Welcome to the Bank Street Children's Book Committee's (CBC) Searchable Best Books List, a tool designed to help educators, families, librarians, and others access developmentally appropriate and engaging books for young readers (ages birth - 18).
Our online Searchable Best Books List draws from the committee's annual Best Children's Books of the Year-beginning with the list of books published in 2000-with each featuring more than 600 high-quality titles for young readers.
To share feedback about the tool, please feel free to email bookcom@bankstreet.edu. To learn more about the CBC, visit https://www.bankstreet.edu/cbc/.
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Crow
by Barbara Wright
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Twelve-year-old Moses recounts the events leading to the 1898 Wilmington, North Carolina race riots.
by Barbara Wright
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Twelve-year-old Moses recounts the events leading to the 1898 Wilmington, North Carolina race riots.
Devine Intervention
by Martha Brockenbrough
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Jerome's soul's only chance to avoid Hell is to succeed as lonely Heidi's guardian angel through the Soul Rehabilitation Program for Nefarious Deceased Teens.
by Martha Brockenbrough
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Jerome's soul's only chance to avoid Hell is to succeed as lonely Heidi's guardian angel through the Soul Rehabilitation Program for Nefarious Deceased Teens.
Discovering Wes Moore
by Wes Moore
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Minute decisions result in the failures or successes of two boys with the same name.
by Wes Moore
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Minute decisions result in the failures or successes of two boys with the same name.
Diverse Energies
edited by Tobias S. Buckell
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
In these futuristic stories, a diverse group of students, street kids, and child laborers are pitted against their environments and governments, as they seek answers in their dystopian worlds.
edited by Tobias S. Buckell
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
In these futuristic stories, a diverse group of students, street kids, and child laborers are pitted against their environments and governments, as they seek answers in their dystopian worlds.
Emily's Dress and Other Missing Things
by Kathryn Burak
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Can new friends and Emily Dickinson's poetry help eighteen-year-old Claire overcome the pain of the traumatic death of her mother and disappearance of her best friend?
by Kathryn Burak
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Can new friends and Emily Dickinson's poetry help eighteen-year-old Claire overcome the pain of the traumatic death of her mother and disappearance of her best friend?
Every Day
by David Levithan
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
A sixteen-year-old wakes up each day in a different body. When he falls in love with Rhiannon, how can he maintain a relationship?
by David Levithan
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
A sixteen-year-old wakes up each day in a different body. When he falls in love with Rhiannon, how can he maintain a relationship?
Everything You Need to Survive the Apocalypse
by Lucas Klauss
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
A fifteen-year-old attracted to an evangelical Christian girl explores his religious and fundamental beliefs about the world, his family, and himself.
by Lucas Klauss
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
A fifteen-year-old attracted to an evangelical Christian girl explores his religious and fundamental beliefs about the world, his family, and himself.
Freaks Like Us
by Susan Vaught
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
When his friend disappears, how can Jason, severely mentally ill, convince people to let him help find her?
by Susan Vaught
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
When his friend disappears, how can Jason, severely mentally ill, convince people to let him help find her?
Girl Meets Boy
edited by Kelly Milner Halls
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Six short stories written by young adult authors describe the different perspectives of diverse romantic relationships from the boy-girl point of view.
edited by Kelly Milner Halls
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Six short stories written by young adult authors describe the different perspectives of diverse romantic relationships from the boy-girl point of view.
Gone, Gone, Gone
by Hannah Moskowitz
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
In the wake of 9/11 and the DC sniper attacks, Craig must reconcile unresolved feeling for his ex-boyfriend with his growing attraction to cute, wounded Lio.
by Hannah Moskowitz
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
In the wake of 9/11 and the DC sniper attacks, Craig must reconcile unresolved feeling for his ex-boyfriend with his growing attraction to cute, wounded Lio.
Graffiti Moon
by Cath Crowley
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Lucy doesn't realize it, but her dreams of meeting Shadow, an elusive graffiti artist, have already come true--with surprising consequences for them both.
by Cath Crowley
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Lucy doesn't realize it, but her dreams of meeting Shadow, an elusive graffiti artist, have already come true--with surprising consequences for them both.
Grave Mercy
written by Robin LaFevers
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Can seventeen-year-old Ismae, handmaiden to the God of Death, navigate the intrigue of high court while protecting the man she loves and the fate of fifteenth-century Brittany?
written by Robin LaFevers
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Can seventeen-year-old Ismae, handmaiden to the God of Death, navigate the intrigue of high court while protecting the man she loves and the fate of fifteenth-century Brittany?
Happy Families
by Tanita S. Davis
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Sixteen-year-old twins Ysabel and Justin struggle to come to terms with the discovery that their father is a transgender person.
by Tanita S. Davis
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Sixteen-year-old twins Ysabel and Justin struggle to come to terms with the discovery that their father is a transgender person.
Have a Nice Day
by Julie Halpern
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
After depressed teenager Anna Bloom spends three weeks in a mental hospital, she adjusts her views of life, family and friends. Sequel to Get Well Soon.
by Julie Halpern
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
After depressed teenager Anna Bloom spends three weeks in a mental hospital, she adjusts her views of life, family and friends. Sequel to Get Well Soon.
Home Front Girl
by Joan Wehlen Morrison
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
A teenage girl growing up in the midwest before and during World War II keeps an insightful diary.
by Joan Wehlen Morrison
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
A teenage girl growing up in the midwest before and during World War II keeps an insightful diary.
Hummingbird Heart
by Robin Stevenson
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Sixteen-year-old Dylan has never met her father. When he turns up, it leads to some difficult revelations.
by Robin Stevenson
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Sixteen-year-old Dylan has never met her father. When he turns up, it leads to some difficult revelations.
I. M. Pei
by Jill Rubalcaba
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
This detailed account of how a great architect's masterpieces were planned and constructed is designed as elegantly as Pei's structures. Timeline, sources, bibliography.
by Jill Rubalcaba
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
This detailed account of how a great architect's masterpieces were planned and constructed is designed as elegantly as Pei's structures. Timeline, sources, bibliography.
In Darkness
by Nick Lake
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
As a Haitian boy awaits rescue after an earthquake, he feels the presence of Toussaint l'Ouverture, a Haitian slave turned revolutionary leader.
by Nick Lake
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
As a Haitian boy awaits rescue after an earthquake, he feels the presence of Toussaint l'Ouverture, a Haitian slave turned revolutionary leader.
Kissing Shakespeare
by Pamela Mingle
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Miranda's friend Stephen convinces her to return to sixteenth-century England with him to prevent the young Shakespeare from taking the wrong path.
by Pamela Mingle
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Miranda's friend Stephen convinces her to return to sixteenth-century England with him to prevent the young Shakespeare from taking the wrong path.
Lexapros and Cons
by Aaron Karo
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Chuck Taylor is a silent sufferer of OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder). Supportive parents, a sympathetic therapist, and a few good friends struggle to help him overcome the rituals that dominate his life.
by Aaron Karo
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Chuck Taylor is a silent sufferer of OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder). Supportive parents, a sympathetic therapist, and a few good friends struggle to help him overcome the rituals that dominate his life.
Lies, Knives, and Girls in Red Dresses
by Ron Koertge
Illustrator: Andrea Dezsö
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Reimagined fairy tales--even grimmer than the Grimm's--are clever, sophisticated and rife with dread, death, and dismemberment. Digitally created cut-paper-like illustrations.
by Ron Koertge
Illustrator: Andrea Dezsö
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Reimagined fairy tales--even grimmer than the Grimm's--are clever, sophisticated and rife with dread, death, and dismemberment. Digitally created cut-paper-like illustrations.
Long Lankin
by Lindsey Barraclough
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Cora and little sister Mimi are sent to stay with Great-Aunt Ida who does not want them. Horrible things have happened there, especially to small children.
by Lindsey Barraclough
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Cora and little sister Mimi are sent to stay with Great-Aunt Ida who does not want them. Horrible things have happened there, especially to small children.
Love & Haight
by Susan Carlton
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
In 1971, seventeen-year-old Chloe travels to San Francisco to legally obtain an abortion and ultimately confronts her definition of womanhood.
by Susan Carlton
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
In 1971, seventeen-year-old Chloe travels to San Francisco to legally obtain an abortion and ultimately confronts her definition of womanhood.
Master of Deceit
by Marc Aronson
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Hoover offered security but instilled fear, protected or broke rules. Was he hero or betrayer? This even-handed, library-must-have is meticulously researched. Detailed notes and bibliography.
by Marc Aronson
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Hoover offered security but instilled fear, protected or broke rules. Was he hero or betrayer? This even-handed, library-must-have is meticulously researched. Detailed notes and bibliography.
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl
by Jesse Andrews
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Seventeen-year-old Greg uses humor and his films to deal with his social awkwardness and the harsh realities of life.
by Jesse Andrews
Ages: 14+
Published: 2012
Seventeen-year-old Greg uses humor and his films to deal with his social awkwardness and the harsh realities of life.