Reads for teens and young adults

Christmas is a great time to gift a book to the young adults and teens in our community. Tempting them away from devices and into a book is no easy task. Yet young brains are still developing and reading is so good for understanding ourselves and the world around us. Many teen books tackle issues in a non-judgemental and empathic manner. There are many genres including romance, thrillers, friendships, personal issues, fantasy, so something for all tastes. Here is a selection.

‘Yours from the Tower’, by Sally Nicholls, published by Andersen Press, is a wonderful 19th-century historical fiction. It also has a beautiful cover (not totally judging a book by the cover) and also decorations on the fore-pages. It was shortlisted for the Bookseller Magazine Young Adult Prize in 2024.

The book tells the story of Tirzah, Sophie and Polly, best friends who’ve left boarding school and gone back to their own lives. In letters they share their hopes, dreams and frustrations. It is a lovely uplifting story and a favourite at the bookshop.

‘Steady for This’, by Nathanael Lessore, published by Hot Key Books, is a funny and award-winning debut novel about Shaun who is entering a competition at Raptology, convinced that will give him a chance with Tanisha – but something goes horribly wrong. It’s got humour, romance, relationships and personal issues.

‘Anticipation’, by Neil Taylor, published by Unbound, is a thriller. Riya Sudame inherits her father’s secret AI algorithm and must safeguard it from getting into the wrong hands. Enter Jim Booker, a powerful social media tycoon who will stop at nothing to get this technology. With great power comes great responsibility.

‘Songlight’, by Moira Buffini, published by Faber and Faber, is the first book just out in a new Torch Trilogy. Set in the fictional place of Northhaven where resides those who have developed ‘songlight’, the ability to connect telepathically. Lark is one of those people, and she is living in great danger, as many of the townsfolk are ruthless hunters. Fantasy books are extremely popular amongst this age group.

When I was of an age myself, I read Terry Pratchett, who introduced me to fantasy and science fiction. Recently we read ‘Equal Rites’ in the teen bookclub, and they loved it. It is the third book in Pratchett’s disc world series. It is not necessary to read in order, and the books, if I remember rightly, got better as they went along.

In ‘Equal Rites’, the Wizard Drum Billet, on his death bed, laid a bony hand on the shoulder of the eighth son of an eighth son to transfer his power, but in the chauvinistic (not to say misogynistic) world of magic, he failed to check whether the baby was in fact a boy. There is no such thing as a female wizard, apparently, but now it has happened. The battle of the sexes begins.

And what better time than Christmas to gift a shiny collectors’ item of a classic fiction which will live beyond our teenage years. ‘The Secret Garden’, by Frances Hodgeson Burnett, or ‘Pride and Prejudice’, by Jane Austen, are particular favourites of mine. Also ‘The Little Prince’, by Antoine de Saint-Exupery, or ‘1984’, by George Orwell for the older teens.

Tertulia Bookshop wishes all our wonderful customers a beautiful Christmas. Thank you all for your support and generosity throughout the year.