Holding Up the Universe Author Jennifer Niven Shares 10 Realistic YA Novels She Loves

Jennifer Niven won hearts (and broke them) with her 2015 debut, All the Bright Places, and on October 4 she’ll return with Holding Up the Universe, another moving tale of two mismatched teens who find they complete each other in unexpected ways. Libby is fighting to claim a life beyond other’s perceptions of her and grief for her lost mom, and Jack is a go-with-the-flow type who struggles privately with prosopagnosia, also known as face blindness. When they encounter each other in counseling and community service following a game gone wrong, it’s the start of a hopeful love story that could transform their lives.
Here’s Niven to share 10 realistic YA books she loves—just don’t ask her to call them her top 10. Niven will be appearing at Barnes & Noble’s nationwide B-Fest event this Saturday, June 11, at 2 p.m., at the Dublin, California B&N.
Please don’t ask me to choose a top ten or even a top one hundred. YA literature is so brave and bold right now, and I love the way authors aren’t shying away from tackling the real issues that impact teens. As a result, there are so many truly wonderful books. Here are some of my favorites, old and new, and the reasons I can’t live without them.

The First Time She Drowned, by Kerry Kletter
For the gorgeous, kick-to-the-gut heartache, the kind that cripples you and heals you and stays with you months after reading.

We Have Always Lived in the Castle, by Shirley Jackson
For the most savagely clever unreliable narrator I’ve ever read, Merricat Blackwood, who once upon a time did a very bad thing.

You and Me and Him, by Kris Dinnison
For the refreshingly original love triangle, friendship, and flawed but lovable characters.

Mexican WhiteBoy, by Matt de la Peña
For being true and sad and lovely all at once.

Vanishing Girls, by Lauren Oliver
For keeping me up all night and taking me deep inside the mind and heart of a girl in turmoil as she fights for self-acceptance.

Asking for It, by Louise O’Neill
For being utterly, completely fearless.

Stargirl, by Jerry Spinelli
For the sweet and haunting way it delivers this important message: be true to who you are in spite of everything and everyone else.

The Serpent King, by Jeff Zentner
For some of the most beautiful writing I’ve ever read.

The Sky Is Everywhere, by Jandy Nelson
For helping me through grief of my own and reminding me, via the loveliest, most lyrical prose, that I’m not alone.

All American Boys, by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely
For existing.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Holding Up the Universe hits shelves October 4, and is available for pre-order now. Lucky readers who live in or near Dublin, California, don’t miss Niven’s author event this Saturday! Everyone else, discover who’s coming to a B&N near you as part of our inaugural B-Fest weekend.