Here are 29 books that Celestial Monsters fans have personally recommended if you like
Celestial Monsters.
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When I pick up a book, I usually go for character-driven stories. This book was no exception. Sonora's writing drew me in. What is it like, being a queer Mexican-American teenager at a Catholic high school? If you read this book, you will discover how wonderful Sonora is at writing humor infused with struggle and emotion. The dialogue read so real and authentic, I felt as though I had been dropped into the scene. And really, what more could you ask for in a great story?
No one knows Yami is gay, least of all her mum, and Yami intends to keep it that way . . . Until, uh oh, she's falling in love again.
Yami prefers to be known for her killer eyeliner, not for being one of the only Mexican kids at her new, mostly white, rich Catholic school - or for being gay. So after being outed by her ex-best friend, before transferring to Slayton Catholic, Yami decides to lie low, make her mum proud and definitely NOT fall in love. The thing is, it's hard to fake being straight when Bo,…
Did you know you can survive being swallowed by a whale? Or that octopus wrestling used to be an actual sport? Or, that once a town in Oregon didn't know what to do with a whale carcass that washed up on their beaches, so they...BLEW IT UP?
There’s something about the way the gods are portrayed, the trials the characters have to face—it feels almost cinematic. And, honestly, the final battle had me clutching the book with my heart in my throat. There were twists I did not see coming.
An instant #1 New York Times and USA Today bestseller! • Drawing on the Grimm Brothers’ dark fairytale, “Godfather Death,” this new novel from the bestselling author of House of Salt and Sorrows is a sweeping, fantastical saga of actions and consequences.
The stunning “Hazel” special edition first printing features exclusive printed endpapers and a beautiful gold-and-red foil-stamped case.
All gifts come with a price.
Hazel Trépas has always known she wasn’t like the rest of her siblings. A thirteenth child, promised away to one of the gods, she spends her childhood waiting for her godfather—Merrick, the Dreaded End—to arrive.
This book felt like stepping into a world full of shadows and secrets, where every character is carrying some kind of hidden agenda. I loved how the protagonist, an orphan girl trying to protect the kingdom she built, was both vulnerable and fierce.
An intoxicating brew of vampires, secrets and romance. A Tempest of Tea by Hafsah Faizal, bestselling author of TikTok sensation We Hunt the Flame, is perfect for fans of Leigh Bardugo's Six of Crows.
'A riveting page-turner, A Tempest of Tea is brewed to perfection' - Rebecca Ross, author of Divine Rivals
'If you like vampires, romance, and kick-ass characters with magic weapons, look no further and you'll be delighted! - Ali Hazelwood, author of The Love Hypothesis
On the streets of White Roaring, Arthie Casimir is a criminal mastermind and collector of secrets. Her prestigious tearoom transforms into an…
A hair-raising, side-splitting supernatural adventure!
In the idyllic town of Pine Port, Kelsey was on the cusp of realizing her dreams. In weeks, she'd clasp her high school diploma and beauty license. Or so she thought, until her life took a supernatural detour, far removed from the ordinary path she'd…
Looking for Smoke is a thriller, set on the Blackfeet reservation. It is no wonder why this book was chosen as the Fall YA pick for the Reese Book Club. Looking for Smoke is told in five different points of view, one of which is a mystery voice. Cobell's writing is exceptional in it's depth of character and the ability to make each POV distinct and palpable. I was drawn into a world I know so little about. There simply are not enough books out there from indigenous authors. We certainly need more like this one. I was captured until the very end.
THE REESE WITHERSPOON BOOK CLUB PICK - A literary-thriller murder mystery, set within a Native American community for fans of Firekeeper's Daughter, Sadie and the One of Us Is Lying series by a debut own voices author
Since moving to the Blackfeet Reservation with her parents, Mara Racette has felt like an outsider, taunted by her tight-knit classmates for growing up far away. So, when a local girl includes Mara in a traditional Blackfeet Giveaway to honor her missing sister, Mara thinks she'll finally make some friends.
Instead, a girl from the Giveaway, Samantha White Tail, is found murdered. Because…
Why do I love books set in cemeteries? Maybe it’s because I grew up living right next to one and still do. I spent hours as a child wandering around and even playing hide and seek among the tombstones. It’s a place where the living and dead meet, a place of mourning, memories, and peace. Cemeteries have so many superstitions and lore surrounding them. The stories written about them can be spooky, mysterious, sad, heartfelt, and any number of things, so the ideas are endless.
This book was a joy to read. A fantasy story in a cemetery that’s both heartfelt and full of life. I loved how it wove Latinx culture and Día de los Muertos traditions into a story about identity, family, and magic.
Yadriel’s journey to prove himself as a brujo felt so personal and empowering. Then there’s Julian, the ghost he accidentally summons and starts to fall for. Their banter, their bond, the way they grow together—it just made my heart ache in a good way. It’s a love story, a ghost story, and a celebration of being seen.
Yadriel has summoned a ghost, and now he can't get rid of him.
When his traditional Latinx family has problems accepting his true gender, Yadriel becomes determined to prove himself a real brujo. With the help of his cousin and best friend Maritza, he performs the ritual himself, and then sets out to find the ghost of his murdered cousin and set it free.
However, the ghost he summons is actually Julian Diaz, the school's resident bad boy, and Julian is not about to go quietly into death. He's determined to find out what happened and tie off some loose…
Born to a Tibetan mother and an American father, I was raised in the U.S. As a girl, I wondered why things were always changing: the seasons, people, and places I loved. Growing older, I became fascinated with how to find happiness in a world where nothing lasts forever. After college, I lived in India with my Tibetan grandmother, learning about Buddhist “bardo” perspectives on life’s ephemerality. I realized that though we resist change, accepting impermanence allows us to live happier lives. I publish widely on impermanence and host a Tricycle interview series about bardo, with guests including David Sedaris, Elizabeth Gilbert, Malcolm Gladwell, Ann Patchett, and Dani Shapiro.
We often feel alone when we experience change and transitions, but Saunders’s book reminds me that we’re all on the journey of life together.
President Lincoln can’t let go of his young son, Willie, when the boy dies of typhoid fever. Willie, too, is holding on: lingering in the after-death world, he’s convinced his parents are going to come get him. He’s surrounded by people who are also in bardo (the state between death and rebirth), trapped in denial and attachment. When they accept the reality of their situation, the characters are liberated from their suffering.
This book has deepened my understanding of how—both individually and collectively—we struggle against loss, but it’s possible to let go and move forward.
WINNER OF THE MAN BOOKER PRIZE 2017 A STORY OF LOVE AFTER DEATH 'A masterpiece' Zadie Smith 'Extraordinary' Daily Mail 'Breathtaking' Observer 'A tour de force' The Sunday Times The extraordinary first novel by the bestselling, Folio Prize-winning, National Book Award-shortlisted George Saunders, about Abraham Lincoln and the death of his eleven year old son, Willie, at the dawn of the Civil War The American Civil War rages while President Lincoln's beloved eleven-year-old son lies gravely ill. In a matter of days, Willie dies and is laid to rest in a Georgetown cemetery. Newspapers report that a grief-stricken Lincoln returns…
Kindle Book Award Finalist. Readers' Favorite Book Award Finalist. Gotham Writers' YA Novel Discovery Contest Finalist. B.R.A.G. Medallion Honoree
Brigit Quinn has always felt like an outsider. Growing up in a small town where her mom’s pagan practices are the stuff of local gossip, she’s spent her whole life trying…
I'm a YA writer based in Toronto, Canada. I have four novels under my belt, but I’ve only just begun to tackle difficult topics and character voices in my work. The most interesting books I’ve read are the ones that challenge the reader the most. I’m trying to incorporate that more into my work moving forward, and I think young readers really need to hear it. With so much pressure for perfection —in school, at home, even online—it can be reassuring to find characters who don’t have it all together, who still find happiness despite their flaws, and who find people who will love them through the ups and downs of changing for the better.
This book is written in verse, so the whole thing is like one long poem. The audiobook is read by the author, which I think captures the intent of the book beautifully.
Xiomara, or X, is a young girl living in Harlem who feels suffocated by her overbearing religious mother and her brilliant twin brother’s academic accomplishments. X writes poetry for her school assignments, but she also uses it as a form of diary to express the feelings she can’t otherwise. She challenges religion, her mother’s opinions, and the friends she makes at school.
One thing I really liked was how she’d write one poem for her assignment, and then the following poem would be titled “what I actually turned in.” The book uses different styles of poetry to convey different feelings and to set different scenes, and it explores a wide range of topics—from religion to dating and sex…
WINNER OF THE THE CILIP CARNEGIE MEDAL 2019
SHORTLISTED FOR THE WATERSTONES CHILDREN'S BOOK PRIZE 2019
THE WINNER OF THE 2018 NATIONAL BOOK AWARD
THE WINNER OF THE MICHAEL L.PRINTZ AWARD
THE WINNER OF THE PURA BELPRE AWARD
THE WINNER OF THE BOSTON GLOBE-HORNBOOK AWARD
'I fell in love at slam poetry. This one will stay with you a long time.' - Angie Thomas, bestselling author of The Hate U Give
'This was the type of book where "I'll just do 50 pages" turned into finishing it in 2 reads. I felt very emotional, not just because the…
I started reading fiction again after realizing I needed to transition and wanted to see myself represented. Teenage stories help me imagine what my life would have been like had I transitioned earlier, and learning about other trans experiences helps me feel closer to the larger community. I didn’t know it at the time, but I was surrounded by other closeted queer teens when it wasn’t safe to be out. Writing essays evolved into memoir and eventually fiction, and reading others’ work was a critical part of learning to write my own. The books on this list laid the foundation for my debut novel.
I couldn’t believe how immersive it was and how I couldn’t put it down—probably the fastest read of any 368-page book!
This was the first trans teen coming-of-age book I read, and it became a gateway to the others. It took me back to my own high school life, with all its highs and lows, and it also reflected many of my adult experiences.
Enby girls like me have more in common with a demiboy like Felix than I imagined.
A Stonewall Honor Book * A Time Magazine Best YA Book of All Time
From Stonewall and Lambda Award–winning author Kacen Callender comes a revelatory YA novel about a transgender teen grappling with identity and self-discovery while falling in love for the first time.
Felix Love has never been in love—and, yes, he’s painfully aware of the irony. He desperately wants to know what it’s like and why it seems so easy for everyone but him to find someone. What’s worse is that, even though he is proud of his identity, Felix also secretly fears that he’s one marginalization too…
When my son and son-in-law were getting married back in 2010, my cousin’s four-year-old daughter Emma was excited to be their flower girl. I wanted to buy Emma a book about a flower girl to prepare her for the wedding, but I couldn’t find anything that worked for our situation, since we were having two grooms and no bride—at an otherwise traditional Jewish wedding. Then one day, my cousin called, laughing, and said “Emma said she’s afraid to come to the wedding because of the Ring BEAR!” So I needed to write this for Emma—a story where everything isn’t what the child imagines, but it’s all joyful.
Little Heather has two eyes, two ears, two legs, two pets, and two mommies. Doesn’t everybody? Maybe not, Heather discovers on her first day at school. She also finds out that families may come in all different shapes and sizes, but what they all have in common is love. This is the book I found when there weren’t any others. Originally published—bravely—in 1989 and republished most recently in 2015 with a new illustrator, this groundbreaking, very first LGBT picture book is a must-read.
New in the UK, a rediscovered modern classic for today's generation in an updated, beautifully illustrated edition.
All but unavailable since 2009, this delightful, important modern classic is back by public demand - revitalised in an updated, beautifully illustrated new edition for young readers. Celebrated author Leslea Newman and bestselling illustrator Laura Cornell tell the story of a little girl called Heather. Heather's favourite number is two - she has two arms, two legs, two pets and two lovely mummies. But when Heather goes to school for the first time, someone asks her about her daddy ... and Heather doesn't…
A spy school for girls amidst Jane Austen’s high society.
Daughters of the Beau Monde who don’t fit London society’s strict mold are banished to Stranje House, where the headmistress trains these unusually gifted girls to enter the dangerous world of spies in the Napoleonic wars. #1 NYT bestselling author…
Rob Sanders writes fierce and funny picture books. From fiction to nonfiction, Rob’s unique style and voice rings with clarity. Rob is a writer who teaches and a teacher who writes. Every school day he teaches elementary school kids about books and words and reading and writing. Rob also mentors other writers, leads writing workshops, critiques manuscripts, and spends time collaborating and learning with others who share the same passion.
Sunny is a 12-year-old with a new heart and new plans for the summer—have amazing experiences, find a new best friend, and kiss a boy. Sunny takes readers on one heart-racing adventure after another as she navigates difficult family situations, goes on a first-kiss quest, and learns to surf. When she makes a new best friend, she discovers that maybe it’s not a boy she wants to kiss after all. Three words to describe this book: humor, heart, and hope.
When Sunny St. James receives a new heart, she decides to set off on a New Life Plan: 1) do awesome amazing things she could never do before; 2) find a new best friend; and 3) kiss a boy for the first time. Her New Life Plan seems to be racing forward, but when she meets her new best friend Quinn, Sunny questions whether she really wants to kiss a boy at all. With the reemergence of her mother, Sunny begins a journey to becoming the new Sunny St. James.
As with Ivy Aberdeen's Letter to the World, the sophomore…
