Welcome to Texas Reads YA! As a teen who loves to read YA, I sometimes have a hard time finding quality YA novels.
These novels explore what it means to accept yourself and come to terms with prioritizing your needs. The characters grapple with where they fit in the world and within politics.
Grace Williams has her future all mapped out. A high school senior in her beloved state of Texas, Grace plans to move to New York City after graduation to study at Barnard College, and maybe, someday, win a Nobel Prize in biology. When she's asked to tutor Jack Nelson, the star baseball player who's flunking bio, she thinks it'll be just another activity to list on her college application. Studying turns to flirting, flirting becomes secret hookups, and despite her expertise in bio, Grace gets pregnant. In a state where abortion is illegal, with parents who would expect her to keep the baby, Grace’s future is over before it’s begun.
With no one else to turn to, Grace must rely on her best friends, Addie and Sebastian, but anti abortion laws put anyone who helps Grace in grave danger, and anyone they encounter might be an informant. When Grace finds a phone number and an offer of help scrawled in a bathroom stall, the three friends hatch a plan to sneak Grace across state lines. The risks to people she loves and those who have befriended her terrify Grace, but with Addie and Sebastian by her side, at least she isn't alone.
A love letter to hometowns, New York City, and infinite possibilities, Biology Lessons showcases the transformative power of friendship in a world where choice is something you have to fight for.
Biology Lessons realistically portrays the effects of all your plans coming crashing to the ground and the support system that helps you get back up. The political landscape is accurate and shows the in and outs of a woman’s life in a “red” state like Texas.
Melissa Kantor lives in Brooklyn, New York, with her family. She writes about the lives of teenage girls, and Biology Lessons, her forthcoming book, tells the story of a teenager in Texas who has to deal with an unwanted, unexpected pregnancy.
Out of nowhere, a lady comes up to Anamaria and says she’s her, from the future. But Anamaria’s thirteen, she knows better than to talk to a stranger. Girls need to be careful, especially in Ciudad Juárez, Mexico―it’s the 90’s and fear is overtaking her beloved city as cases of kidnapped girls and women become alarmingly common. This thirty-year-old “future” lady doesn’t seem to be dangerous but she won’t stop bothering her, switching between cheesy Hallmark advice about being kind to yourself, and some mysterious talk about saving a girl.
Anamaria definitely doesn’t need any saving, she’s doing just fine. She works hard at her strict, grade-obsessed middle school―so hard that she hardly gets any sleep; so hard that the stress makes her snap not just at mean girls but even her own (few) friends; so hard that when she does sleep she dreams about dying―but she just wants to do the best she can so she can grow up to be successful. Maybe Thirty’s right, maybe she’s not supposed to be so exhausted with her life, but how can she ask for help when her city is mourning the much bigger tragedy of its stolen girls?
This thought-provoking, moving verse novel will lead adult and young adult readers alike to vital discussions on important topics―like dealing with depression and how to recognize this in yourself and others―through the accessible voice of a thirteen-year-old girl.
Thirty Talks Weird Love is centered around a 13 year old girl's hopes, dreams, struggles, and fears. We watch her journey to getting help and accepting herself as she is.
Alessandra Narváez Varela is a poet and teacher born and raised in Ciudad Juárez, México. She holds an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Texas at El Paso, where she is now a lecturer.
Sydney Spell is a freshman at UT Austin. She has enjoyed reading throughout her adolescence and is an especially big fan of YA novels.
