Kelly is a former librarian and a long-time blogger at STACKED. She's the editor/author of (DON'T) CALL ME CRAZY: 33 VOICES START THE CONVERSATION ABOUT MENTAL HEALTH and the editor/author of HERE WE ARE: FEMINISM FOR THE REAL WORLD. Her next book, BODY TALK, will publish in Fall 2020. Follow her on Instagram @heykellyjensen.
July was a quieter month in every respect. There were fewer new YA releases, and there was just less YA book news. It’s not unexpected, as publishing slows down during the high point of summer. We’ll see a flurry of both new books and news in the coming weeks as the fall publishing frenzy begins (yes, in August!).
Here are the stories that did show up in July. Let’s catch up with the latest in YA adaptations, YA talk, and more.
- Read your way into all of the new YA science fiction and fantasy that hit shelves in July. You can also dive into some of the most anticipated YA science fiction and fantasy reads for July and August.
- The Lambda Literary Awards just announced their finalists for best queer literature and the YA picks are excellent.
- In some pretty big and exciting news, E. Lockhart now has an agent related to book-to-screen adaptations and her own screenwriting career. I’m eager to see what comes next with her work after the success of the We Were Liars adaptation.
- Not only is there a hint here that we’ll see more Jenny Han adaptation news soon, but there’s also a big hint there’s a second season of We Were Liars in the works at Prime.
- On the 15th anniversary of Eclipse‘s release, USA Today ranks all of the “Twilight” films. Agree? Disagree?
- This is a really great and important read about the lack of YA books centering Black American Muslim teens. As YA continues to grow in its inclusivity, these sorts of pieces are important to continue advocacy for more.
- As anyone who has been reading YA for a long time knows, there’s a perception that YA has aged up its main protagonists. Here’s some research to back that feeling up with data.
- Relatedly, here’s another forthcoming imprint focused on adult-YA crossover titles. It’s where the money is right now, so it’s not surprising to see this (it’s at least the fourth one in the last year or two to capitalize on “older” YA/adult YA readers, following Saturday Books, Requited, and the deeply problematic pair of “labeled” imprints from Entangled).
- GMA’s YA Book Club has its next title and it’s Molly X. Chang’s The Nightblood Prince.
- The second season of Netflix’s adaptation of My Life With the Walter Boys will land on August 28.
- I could not be more excited to learn there is a new Sarah Dessen book hitting shelves next year, with at least two more to follow.
- What’s the current casting for the adaptation of Sunrise on the Reaping, due out next November? Teen Vogue has done the work to put it all in one place.
Image courtesy of IndieHeartStudio on EtsyI’m kind of obsessed with this book fair sticker, and I needed y’all to see it and enjoy it as well. $4.
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With the lighter month on YA news, you’ve got some bonus time to catch up. Check out the latest in YA comics and nonfiction from July, as well as the best YA books of 2025 so far.
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