Back-to-school season is creeping up, and more than school-supply-filled stores are lurking around every corner. From college plans gone astray to sudden changes of perspective, these five must-reads are back-to-school dramas and summer vacations their protagonists never expected and journeys some of them may not even survive. Mark these books off your end-of-summer bucket list.
The Ping Pong Queen of Chinatown by Andrew Yang
As if high school wasn’t stressful enough—Felix Ma’s parent hired a college admissions coach to help him develop his extracurricular resume during his junior year. Choosing to start a school film club and shoot his own short film leads Felix to meet Cassie Chow, a senior whose optimism is equally matched by her own college anxieties.
Their mockumentary drifts from the demands of their parents nad Felix’s coach into something much more serious and real, real enough to challenge the strength of their new friendship.
If you like: Romance, drama, coming of age, contemporary, realism, high school,
Seasick by Kristin Cast & Pintip Dunn
Could you put aside your misgivings about your frenemy to solve a murder?
Ex-best friends Naya Morgan nad Yana Bunpraserit are inducted into an exclusive society of their small Oklahoma town’s top high school graduates and are off on the club’s yacht trip to Bermuda. Despite the drama radiating off each other and their peers, both girls are ready for a luxurious summer getaway—until one of their classmates is found dead.
At sea with a killer that won’t stop, Yana and Naya can’t avoid each other anymore. If they do, they might not survive.
If you like: Thriller, mystery, enemies to friends, contemporary, coming of age, high school
Brownstone by Samuel Teer & Mar Julia
Aludena always wondered about her father, but she didn’t expect meeting him to be a summer-long journey. Having grown up with her white mom, Alumdena isn’t prepared for her Guatemalan father’s quickly-spoken Spanish or the worn-down brownstone he wants her help fixing.
As she gets to know her father and his neighbors, it turns out the summer isn’t as long as she thought, and it’s going to take determination to fix his home, unite the neighborhood, and create a lasting bond between them.
If you like: Graphic novels, coming of age, historical fiction, New York City, own voices
Lie Until It’s True by Jessie Weaver
Accusing your sister of murder and broadcasting her trial to your millions of TikTok fans is not a good look, especially when she turns out to be innocent.
After making herself a villain to her family and fans, Amanda is trying to solve a new crime. Her childhood best friend’s mom is arrested for murder a billionaire. Will staying at the haunted hotel her aunt works at and investigating the crime win back her friends and reputation or will it just put Amanda and her estranged BFF Vince in a spookier situation?
If you like: Horror, thriller, mystery, crime, supernatural
If You Can’t Take the Heat by Michael Ruhlman
A break-up and a broken leg are all it takes to send high school football star Theo Claverback’s summer into a quick downward spiral and his college plans up in the air. Amongst all the calamity, he finds himself working as a line cook for a French restaurant.
In the kitchen, Theo finds more than food as he befriends the chef and starts to fall for one of his coworkers. Could the world of upscale dining be his new passion or another set of overcooked plans?
If you like: Historical fiction, coming of age, summer adventure, contemporary, cooking
