Coming of age books are part of a genre that transcends generations, and speak to greater truths about the human experience. Through themes of romance, sexuality, grief, ethnic identity, and the strifes of adolescence, readers can find common ground with characters, making them real page-turners.
Here are 55 coming-of-age books everyone needs to know about, ranging from all-time classics to topical new releases.
1. Call Me By Your Name by André Aciman
This book has been turned into a box office classic that had everyone talking. A summer romance blossoms between an adolescent boy and a guest at his parent's summer house on the Italian Riviera. It is a coming-of-age story that has shaken up the genre like never before.
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2. Where the Crawdads Sing
This book quickly took the best-sellers lists by storm and has a highly anticipated film adaptation in the works. One narrative follows the life of Kya in the marshes of North Carolina while the second involves a murder mystery in a nearby town. It is a gripping coming-of-age story reminiscent of Harper Lee's "To Kill A Mockingbird".
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3. Dumplin’ by Julie Murphy
Dumplin' never fancied herself a pageant queen much to her pageant-winning mother's dismay. But when Dumplin' decides to enter a pageant as a plus-sized girl, her mother is ashamed of the supposed "spectacle" her daughter has caused. It is a hilarious look at mother-daughter relationships and learning to love oneself.
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4. The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo
"The Poet X" follows Xiomara Batista, a Dominican teen living in Harlem, NYC. She copes with her family's strife through poetry while dealing with her impending confirmation, tension with her brother, a new love interest, and an increasingly complicated relationship with her mother.
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5. The Midnights by Sarah Nicole Smetana
After the sudden death of her former-rock star father, Susanna is uprooted when her mom moves them to Southern California. She sees this as an opportunity to reinvent herself and possibly become the singer-songwriter she has always dreamed of being.
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6. Everything Within And In Between by Nikki Barthelmess
Ri has never been allowed to embrace her Mexican heritage but she embarks on a journey to meet her mother whom she never knew. This journey of personal growth and self-exploration offers relatable storylines and a heartwrenching lesson in introspection.
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7. The Black Flamingo by Dean Atta
Michael is a mix-race teen living in London who is coming to terms with his gender identity and sexuality. Through the colorful world of drag, he takes the reader on a journey as he explores all aspects of his humanity.
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8. Leah on the Offbeat by Becky Albertalli
This is a heartfelt follow-up to Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda and follows the journey of Leah, a closeted bi-sexual teen with a love for drumming and art. She can't even be open about her sexuality to her openly gay friend Simon but with prom looming in the near future, she is faced with many questions about her remaining time in high-school.
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9. My Heart Underwater by Laurel Flores Fantauzzo
Outcast Cory has a crush on a teacher which goes a little too far after she is grief-stricken after her father falls into a coma. She is shipped away to her family in Manila and she is left to sink or swim. She is forced to explore her heritage and see how the home she never knew will shape her future.
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10. All Kinds of Other by James Sie
As if high school wasn't confusing enough, Jack and Jules start developing feelings for each other. However, one of them identifies as cis and the other is transgender. When they are thrust into the spotlight at high school, they need to decide if they will live a lie or claim their identities.
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11. If You, Then Me by Yvonne Woon
"What does it feel like to kiss someone?" These are the kinds of questions that Silicone Valley teen Xia answers to her future self on an app. She joins a tech incubator for young minds, her chance to break out of her mundane life loop. It is a charming coming-of-age book that is perfect for the tech-forward world we live in.
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12. That Thing We Call a Heart by Sheba Karim
Like most great coming-of-age books, this one starts with the fear of a boring, lonely summer. Shabnam is exploring a childhood friendship but also pursuing a new love. To navigate this minefield she finds help in her father's beloved Urdu poetry and embarks on a journey of self-discovery.
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13. How To Live Without You by Sarah Everett
Emmy's sister disappears but many think she has just run away. Emmy isn't so sure and uncovers a slew of dark secrets her sister kept from her. Who is her sister really? The coming of age novel explores themes of sisterhood, grief, and second chances.
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14. Not My Problem by Ciara Smyth
Aideen is an outcast with plenty of problems on her plate. But she unexpectedly finds one problem she can fix: helping her nemesis sprain her ankle so she can get out of her overflowing schedule. Seems easy enough? This leads to a school term full of traded favors and escapades, all the makings of a hilarious coming of age story.
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15. This Will be Funny Someday by Katie Henry
Izzy is only 16, but she is living a double life. On the one hand, she is a doting girlfriend to a controlling boyfriend and fulfills her role as a dutiful daughter. On the other, she is performing as a stand-up comedian with a slew of new friends who think she is also in college. Where will her lies collide?
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16. Nothing Burns as Bright as You by Ashley Woodfolk
It all happens in one day; two girls exploring queer love, the human experiences around grief, and the complexities of friendship between women. The girls try to tame their hearts but the nuances of their past, present and future might seem to be too much to overcome.
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17. Someday We’ll Find It by Jennifer Wilson
Bliss is in her 17th summer, her 6th without a mother. But when her mother returns unexpectedly, just as Bliss starts to forge a new life for herself. Her whole world is upside down and she is at a crossroads; does she embrace life with her estranged mother or does she continue on the path she is blazing for herself?
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18. Submarine by Joe Dunthorne
"Submarine" is a hilarious coming-of-age novel set in the coastal town of Swansey in Wales. Oliver is only 15 but is on a quest to lose his virginity and try to understand the complexities of his parents' failing marriage. His comedic narrative makes this an instant classic.
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19. Atonement by Ian McEwan
Briony is a mere 13-year-old girl, but the innocent mistake she makes ruins lives. See the English upper-class through her eyes at the dawn of the second world war and see how she reflects back on her younger days as she is at the end of her life. The book explores themes of love, grief, and reflection from childhood to adulthood.
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20. David Copperfield by Charles Dickens
Charles Dickens is one of the greatest English novelists of the 19th century and David Copperfield is his semi-autobiographical take on a coming-of-age book. Follow David from his early life as a lower-class child through adolescence and into his vocation as a novelist.
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21. Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides
See America in the 60s through the eyes of a young girl, and then a teenage boy. But these two people are the same. A rare genetic mutation has plagued a Greek-American family for three generations and has reared its head once more with Calliope. Callie? Cal?
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22. Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Kambili is a privileged, somewhat sheltered, teen from Nigeria. When her country is struck by a military coup, she moves in with her aunt and sees a different side of life. When she is reunited with her family, it is more difficult than ever to keep her family together. This coming of age story talks about the black experience as well as relatable family dynamics.
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23. The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros
This heartwrenching story is of a young Latina girl trying to shape her future in Chicago. Instead of a running narrative, readers can enjoy a series of vignettes that paint a colorful picture of snippets of her life.
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24. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
Charlie is a wallflower in every sense of the word. but as he discovers sex, drugs, and the Rocky Horror Picture show, he realizes it's not all that great to live on the sidelines.
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25. The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton
The Outsiders transformed the young adult genre with its portrayal of a coming-of-age story set in a gritty, real environment. The book dates back to the late 60s when greasers were living on the fringes of society, not the ideal place for boys trying to make their way in the world.
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26. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
Hold your tissues close because this is a real tear-jerker. Hazel is terminally ill but has a new spark for life when she meets Augustus. The fault? Augustus is also ill. The two take a morbid yet charming approach to finding love and growing up, for as long as they can.
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27. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
Francie lives in Brooklyn at the turn of the 20th century. This American classic details the next 20 years of her life in a raw and honest look at family dynamics and growing up.
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28. How To Build a Girl by Caitlin Moran
Caitlin Moran delivers a poignant and hilarious look at growing up and reinventing yourself in lower-class England in the 90s. Joanna discovers rock-n-roll and writing, her drugs of choice. How will these things shape an impressionable 14-year-old?
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29. I Capture The Castle by Dodie Smith
In 1934, Casandra is 17. She decides to keep a diary for six months, detailing the hilarious antics of her penniless family. The moments she retells on paper are touching, hilarious, and endearing. How will this tumultuous time change a girl on the cusp of becoming a woman?
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30. American Street by Ibi Zoboi
Fabiola Toussaint is left to navigate her new life in America alone after her mother is detained by immigration on their journey from Haiti. A questionable proposition comes her way and she needs to decide what she is willing to pay for the American Dream.
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31. The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah
Teenage Leni and her family move to a remote corner of Alaska. As eighteen hours of night falls, her father's mental state becomes questionable and Leni and her mother realize they need to fight for their lives.
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32. Red At The Bone by Jaqueline Woodson
At 16, Melody unexpectedly falls pregnant. Follow the trials and tribulations of 2 families of very different social standing as they realize the more different they are, the more they are alike.
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33. Yolk by Mary H.K. Choi
Jane and June were once inseperable sisters in Korea. But their new lives in New York have highlighted just how different they are. When one sister gets a cancer diagnosis, they need to put their differences aside and try to come to terms with their new relationship.
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34. A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce
This was the first novel by classic writer James Joyce, a touching autobiographical novel of his own Irish experiences from young Dubliner to a radical thinker. An easy-to-read yet gripping story of boy to man that transcends generations.
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35. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
Arguably one of the greatest American novels of the 20th century, "The Catcher in the Rye" follows Holden Caulfield for 2 days during his prep-school expulsion. The book pleads for the protection of childhood innocence and casts a light on the false values of adulthood.
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36. Fresh by Margot Wood
Freshman year in college is comical in itself, but for Elliot McHugh is it about to get a whole lot funnier. Se in a small dorm room, looming finals, and a few wild mistakes in between all culminate in a hilarious coming-of-age story set in.
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37. I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
This is another American classic by famed writer and activist, Maya Angelou. It is her debut memoir retelling the stories of her youth facing abandonment and discovering her strong spirit.
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38. Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison
This book won the Nobel Prize for Literature in the 90s, speaking to its powerful and transcendent message. Follow the journey of Macon from birth to adulthood, a journey made incrementally more difficult by being a black man in Michigan in the 70s.
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39. How the García Girls Lost Their Accents by Julia Alvarez
The four García sisters have to uproot their lives in the Dominican Republic and moved to America in the 60s. Will they be able to hold on to their identities as they navigate their new home with straight hair, American fashion, and no accents?
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40. Looking for Alaska by John Green
Miles Halter has a morbid fascination with famous last words, leading him to go looking for the "great perhaps" at boarding school. Alaska Young enters his life, putting him on the fast track to finding it.
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41. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
An unlikely friendship forms between two boys; one wealthy, the other the son of a servant. A gut-wrenching tale ensues, seeing them overcome adversity as Afghanistan is on the brink of war.
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42. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
The backdrop of the second world war flung many children into adulthood before their time, including young Liesel Meminger, a young German foster girl. Books become her refuge as she finally learns to read.
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43. The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
When his mother dies in a crash, Theo Decker moves in with a wealthy Park Avenue family when he is just 13. This new life exposes him to the seedy underbelly of the art world as he tries to come to grips with his new environment.
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44. A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara
Four college friends navigate life after school and see the importance of the family that we create ourselves, compared to the ones we are born into. Brotherly love is a bond like no other, something they will find out the hard way.
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45. Normal People by Sally Rooney
Connell and Marianne are opposite people, but throughout their lives, they experience an inexplicable orbit around each other. When self-destructive behavior emerges when they become adults, their orbits coincide once more.
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46. Every Summer After by Carley Fortune
Six summers of their youth were spent building what 2 young lovers thought would be an unbreakable bond. But one wrong decision proves them wrong. Years later, their paths cross again and it all comes to a head one fateful weekend.
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47. Mary Jane by Jessica Anya Blau
Mary Jane's summer job as a nanny to a psychiatrist becomes all the more interesting when he starts to treat a famous rockstar and his movie star wife. Is the life she knows still the one she will want once school starts again in the fall?
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48. I Fell In Love With Hope by Lancali
The terminally ill protagonist experiences the ultimate tragedy. Their partner commits suicide in front of them. They can only find happiness again through mischievous deeds with a band of sickly friends from the hospital.
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49. A Million Kisses In Your Lifetime by Monica Murphy
Crew Lancaster is the school's bad boy. He doesn't fall for the preppy perfection of Wren Beaumont, the envy of all at school. Until they get partnered up at the science lab and he will go to any length to have his obsession recognized by her.
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50. Just The Way You Are by Beth Moran
Olivia Tennyson realizes her life is not going how she planned. She wrote a dream list at 16, but by 29 she hasn't actualized any of her dreams. Go on a journey with the ultra-relatable heroine as she starts to tick off things from her list on the ultimate journey of self-discovery.
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51. Swing Time by Zadie Smith
As youngsters, the dream of two best friends becoming famous dancers seems like a reality. But only one of them has what it takes. By 20, their friendship has shattered but it is not forgotten.
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52. The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
Starr Carter lives in an impoverished black community but attends a rich prep school. When her best friend is shot by a cop, her community rises up in his honor. Starr is caught between the two, and what she chooses to testify will up-end her life on both ends.
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53. The Idiot by Elif Batuman
Selin is the daughter of Turkish immigrants and starts her freshman year at Harvard. Her new, worldly friends and Hungarian first love, send her on a journey of self-actualization as she spends her first summer in Europe.
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54. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
Jane Eyre is a classic piece of literature that needs little to no introduction. The heroine has to learn to love, be vulnerable, and keep her head straight all while there is a brooding yet caring presence in her midst.
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55. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
This is another famous coming-of-age novel known by all. Huck is kidnapped by his drunken father and adventure ensues with the Mississippi River as the backdrop.
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