New York State of Mind

Two teenagers, both of whom feel like outsiders at their prep school, form a close bond.

Thirteen-year-old Sikander Aziz must join forces with the legendary hero Gilgamesh to stop an ancient god from destroying New York City.

When Claudia Kincaid and her brother run away from home, they find themselves caught up in a mystery at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. Learn these words from E. L. Konigsburg's award-winning novel.

In this popular novel, two teens meet and fall in love over the course of a single day in New York City.

After learning that they are going to be evicted from their Brooklyn home, the five Vanderbeeker children come up with a scheme to convince their landlord to allow them to stay.

In this romantic comedy, Henri, a Haitian-American teenager who dreams of attending Columbia University, is coerced into helping one of his classmates change her image.

Eleven-year-old Amara visits Harlem with her father to learn more about her family's history.

A teen in New York City fights for his life during the September 11, 2001 attack on the World Trade Center, while on September 11, 2019, a teen in Afghanistan gets caught up in war.

In this novel, a 12-year-old boy uses his passion for building to come to terms with his brother's death.

Arthur and Ben couldn't be more different. Arthur, a Jewish teenager from Georgia, is in New York City for a summer internship that he hopes will help him get into an Ivy League college. Ben, a native New Yorker of Puerto Rican descent, is attending summer school so that he can avoid repeating 11th grade. Find out what happens when a series of coincidences brings these two together.

Science fiction fan Ebony-Grace struggles to adjust when she leaves her sheltered life in Huntsville, Alabama to spend the summer with her father in New York City.

Alfred Brooks's life is going nowhere until he joins a renowned boxing club in Harlem. There, he learns what it takes to be a champion.

When Georges moves to a new apartment building, he meets Safer, who enlists Georges in a scheme to spy on a mysterious neighbor. Learn these words from the novel by Rebecca Stead.

Bridge, Emily, and Tab are best friends who make a promise never to fight – but when seventh grade arrives, keeping their promise is more difficult than they expected.

In this "remix" of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, Zuri Benitez grapples with the effects of gentrification — and with her complicated feelings toward Darius Darcy — when the wealthy Darcy family moves into her Brooklyn neighborhood.

In this novel, a high school student details his time in a psychiatric institution.

In J.D. Salinger's classic novel, Holden Caulfield leaves his prep school and experiences disillusionment and alienation while wandering around New York City.

When her Brooklyn neighborhood is threatened, Sierra must master and protect an ancestral form of magic called shadowshaping.

A young activist, an Iranian immigrant, and a flamboyant fashionista navigate love and friendship in New York City in 1989.

Xiomara hides her poetry from her religious family, but when she joins a slam poetry club, she must decide whether or not she's ready for her voice to be heard. Learn these words from the acclaimed novel-in-verse by slam poet Elizabeth Acevedo.

In Spanish Harlem, Chino is drawn into the criminal network of Willie Bodega, a generous kingpin who demands total loyalty.

Set in New York City at the turn of the twentieth century, Betty Smith's classic coming-of-age novel tells the story of Francie and her Irish-American family.

In the first book of The Mortal Instruments series, fifteen-year-old Clary meets the Shadowhunters, a secret group attempting to rid the world of demons.

When a beloved teacher unexpectedly dies, Sparrow Cooke wishes she could just fly away. Through music, Sparrow finds a way to cope with her loneliness and social anxiety.

Alex hates being a bruja, a witch — but when her family disappears, she must embrace her powers in order to save them.

Told in alternating perspectives, this novel follows the ups and downs of Jasmine and Chelsea, two girls who start a club to give young women at their school a voice.

In this verse novel, eleven-year-old Lonnie reflects on his life in foster care.

Alex loves planes and dreams of getting a dog for his birthday. But September 11th, 2001—Alex's 11th birthday—becomes a day when he will experience both tragedy and hope.

In this hilarious novel, 13-year-old Nate sneaks off to New York City to audition for a role in a Broadway play. Learn this list in which the vocabulary from the novel takes center stage. Break a leg!

In this novel, a boy with facial anomalies tries to navigate the sometimes treacherous world of public school.

In this semi-autobiographical novel set in Harlem in the 1930s, a boy learns about his family history on his fourteenth birthday.

Recent immigrants from Cuba, Ruthie and her family are just learning to adjust to life in New York City when Ruthie is severely injured in a car accident. This novel, based in part on the author's childhood experiences, won the 2018 Pura Belpré Award.

Chester Cricket makes an unexpected journey from the fields of Connecticut to bustling New York City, where he meets several new friends but misses his rural home.

In this powerful novel, a Brooklyn fifth grader explores the effects of the September 11th terrorist attacks on her family, friends, city, and country.

Peaches, Squeezie, Monkeyman, Benny, Mack and Kitty—these are just some of the Harlem residents with vivid stories to tell in this collection from Newbery-winner Walter Dean Myers.

After a fight with her best friend, Miranda starts receiving mysterious letters from a person who can predict the future — and who warns Miranda that someone is going to die.

Told in the form of journal entries and a screenplay, this novel tells the story of a teenager on trial for murder. 1999 HarperCollins edition.

This novel traces the lives of four middle schoolers before, during, and after September 11, 2001.

Each week, students in a high school English class step up to the mic to share original poems.

In the 1940s, two Jewish teenagers from different backgrounds develop a deep friendship as they pursue their ambitions.

Secret agent Henry Park is torn between his American identity and his Korean heritage.

Lafayette and his brothers struggle to make it on their own in New York City.

In 1995, a new arrival to their New York City neighborhood changes the lives of Neeka and her best friend.

In this award-winning novel, a teen documents her life in 1960's Harlem.

Set during the Harlem Renaissance, this follow-up to the Pulitzer Prize-winning Beloved explores a love triangle that ends violently.

This novel traces a family's deep connection to the sport of baseball through nine generations.

Newland Archer, a member of New York City's high society in the late 19th century, is engaged to a proper young lady — but finds himself drawn to the unconventional Countess Ellen Olenska. Read the full text here.

In this sequel to the award-winning graphic novel New Kid, eighth-graders Drew and Jordan grapple with identity, privilege, and fitting in.

In this graphic novel, an African-American seventh grader struggles to fit in at his new private school.

After receiving calls from Death-Cast informing them that they have less than 24 hours to live, strangers Mateo and Rufus connect through an app called Last Friend.

Maks, a newsboy living in New York City in the late 19th century, tries to prove his sister's innocence after she is accused of theft.

After finding and returning the wallet of a social media billionaire, Benji and Felix must forge a friendship and spend a five-million-dollar cash reward before their time runs out. Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–14, Chapters 15–30, Chapters 31–44

In this classic novel, set in the late 19th century, Lily Bart tries to cling to her tenuous position in New York City's high society.

In this novel, narrated in a mix of prose and verse, a Puerto Rican girl adjusts to life in New York City.

Inspired by the superhero comics he loves to read, Bryan makes difficult choices as he navigates a new friendship.

This interwoven novel of short stories explores the relationships and love lives of teenagers during a blackout on a hot summer night in New York City.

Having almost done this and almost been that his whole life in New York City, fifth-grader Albin Schaffhauser wants to figure out what he’s actually worth.

When people mysteriously disappear and her mother is attacked by an infectious patient, sixteen-year-old Raquel Celestin and her friends start an investigation that leads them to a dangerous game in the tunnels of the Bronx.

The summer before her high school senior year, Nala Robertson meets Tye Brown at a Harlem talent show, which inspires her to be more proactive in her relationships and community.

In this first book of the series, seventeen-year-old Evangeline O’Neill is enjoying life in 1920s New York City, until her museum curator uncle is called in to consult on a murder and she realizes that her ability to read objects could be helpful.