For many years fiction books with Jewish representation usually revolved around the Holocaust experience. And while these are incredibly meaningful and important, there's been a lack of YA books featuring Jewish protagonists in other genres. We also want to see Jewish characters being the main hero saving the world, crushing on classmates, struggling to balance school and life, or going to camp. That's why the books on this list cover a range of genres like realistic fiction, romance, science fiction/fantasy, horror, and more. The past few years has seen an increase of Jewish voices in YA fiction, and we're excited to share some of our top picks for you.
A smart and powerful story set in the Orthodox Jewish community about what it means to fit in, break out, and find your own way, by the award-winning author of The Life and Crimes of Hoodie Rosen. This book is Gossip Girl + My Name Is…
Coming soon!
Rowan and Neil, in a committed long-distance relationship while attending different colleges in Boston and New York City, face the challenges of navigating the first months of college life and personal struggles as they…
Told in alternating timelines, Jewish seventeen-year-old Natalya spends one summer in New York with her dad, trying to muster the courage to talk to her girl crush, and the other in Los Angeles with her estranged mom, going for a guy she…
Based on the author's grandmother's true experiences during the Holocaust in Romania, this harrowing story follows Rieke Teitler as she must decide whether holding on to her life might mean letting go of everything that has ever mattered…
Swan maiden Hilde sacrifices her magical wings to seek freedom in the human world, but when her pact with an upstart baron takes her the court of Ludwig II, she struggles to fit in, and only Jewish artist Franz, who has the power to paint…
Teens Hannah and Noah, who each have different ideas of how to spend Hanukkah, team up to save the last Jewish remnant in small-town Texas.
New Yorker Hannah Levin is allergic to exactly two things, horses and tinsel. Unfortunately, she’s…
Isa de Smit grew up in her parents' art gallery in Amsterdam, but in the middle of the war she survives by selling fake paintings to the Nazis while trying to help her friend, Truus, smuggle Jewish babies to safety--but in 1943 it is hard…
The last thing highly organized Olivia Schwartz wants to do the summer before her senior year of high school is go on a cruise with her parents and younger brothers, so when Olivia meets charming, exciting Sebastian, she feels like she can…
Summer vacation quickly becomes complicated for Felicity Becker as she tries to plan a perfect wedding for her mom, figure out her feelings for her friend Nancy, and wonder what dating will look like for her as an asexual person.-- Also…
Margo Zimmerman is gay, but she didn't know until now. An overachiever at heart, Margo is determined to ace her newly discovered gayness. All she needs is the right tutor. Abbie Sokoloff has her own gayness down to a science. But a…
A moving YA debut about a girl who grapples with questions of her Jewish identity, mental health struggles, and sexuality while on a temple exchange trip through Israel. -- When high school senior Tally and her twin brother Max head off on…
When Margaret Welty spots the legendary hala, the last living mythical creature, she knows the Halfmoon Hunt will soon follow. Whoever is able to kill the hala will earn fame and riches, and unlock an ancient magical secret. While Margaret…
Camp Alpine Lake is the only place where Goldie Easton feels safe. She’s always had a special connection to the place, even before she was old enough to attend. The camp is the lifeline of Roxwood, the small town she lives in. Alpine Lake…
After reliving the same day for months, eighteen-year-old Barrett reluctantly teams up with her nemesis Miles to escape the time loop, and soon finds herself falling for him, but what she does not know is what they will mean to each other…
Uriel the angel and Little Ash (short for Ashmedai) are the only two supernatural creatures in their shtetl (which is so tiny, it doesn't have a name other than Shetl). The angel and the demon have been studying together for centuries, but…
An extraordinary YA urban fantasy about two teens who discover each other while fighting for their diaspora community. -- Almost sixteen years ago, Mateo Matisse's island homeland disappeared into the sea. The survivors of San Madrigal's…
After recovering from a soccer injury that ended her Olympic dreams and still grieving the death of her beloved grandmother, seventeen-year-old Hannah Klein will do anything to keep the painful memories of her recent past at bay, including…
Robin Gow's A Million Quiet Revolutions is a modern love story, told in verse, about two teenaged trans boys who name themselves after two Revolutionary War soldiers. For as long as they can remember, Aaron and Oliver have only ever had…
Sent to stay with her aunt in Prague, Ilana Lopez—a biracial Jewish girl—finds herself torn between her dream of becoming a violinist and her immigrant parents’ desire for her to pursue a more stable career. When she discovers a forgotten…
Hoodie Rosen's life isn't that bad. Sure, his entire Orthodox Jewish community has just picked up and moved to the quiet, mostly non-Jewish town of Tregaron, but Hoodie's world hasn't changed that much. He's got basketball to play, studies…
