25 Canadian YA books to read in fall 2023
Here are the Canadian young adult books coming out in fall we are excited to read.
Focus. Click. Wind. by Amanda West Lewis
Focus. Click. Wind is a historical YA novel set in 1968. At 17 years old, activist Billie Taylor is an aspiring photojournalist who has recently moved to Toronto with her mother. Billie gets more involved in activism as she discovers an underground network of political protesters at Rochdale College in Toronto and she must figure out how far she will go to be part of the revolution.
Focus. Click. Wind is for ages 13 and up.
When you can read it: Aug. 1, 2023
Amanda West Lewis is the author of numerous books for young readers, including These Are Not the Words and September 17, which was nominated for the Silver Birch Award, the Red Cedar Award and the Violet Downey IODE Award. She is a writer, theatre director, calligrapher and drama teacher based in Brooke Valley, Ont.
Shovels not Rifles by Gloria Wesley
Shovels not Rifles is a historical YA novel that follows a young Black man named Will, who enlists and joins the No. 2 Construction Battalion, Canada's only all-Black battalion, in the First World War. Will experiences racism and discrimination from his superiors and soon after he joins he learns that he won't be fighting on the front lines, but instead doing forestry work like he was back in his small Nova Scotia town. The novel follows Will as he experiences the harsh realities of the war in 1916.
Shovels not Rifles is for ages 13 and up.
When you can read it: Sept. 1, 2023
Gloria Wesley is a novelist and poet. Her previous YA novels include If This Is Freedom and Chasing Freedom, which was shortlisted for the 2012 Ann Connor Brimer Award for Atlantic Canadian Children's Literature. Wesley lives in Halifax.
Into the Bright Open by Cherie Dimaline
Into the Bright Open is a queer YA reimagining of The Secret Garden. When Mary Lennox becomes an orphan at 15 years old, she is sent from her home in Toronto to the wilderness of the Georgian Bay to live with her uncle. Mary is settling into her new life when one night she finds her cousin Olive, who has been medicated and hidden away in an attic room. Mary and Olive become instant friends and, along with a Métis girl named Sophie, set out to try and free Olive. Then one day they stumble upon a long-forgotten and overgrown garden.
Into the Bright Open is for ages 13 and up.
When you can read it: Sept. 5, 2023
Cherie Dimaline is a Métis author best known for her YA novel The Marrow Thieves, which was named one of Time magazine's top 100 YA novels of all time and was championed by Jully Black on Canada Reads 2018. Her other books include VenCo, Red Rooms, The Girl Who Grew a Galaxy, A Gentle Habit, Empire of Wild and Funeral Songs for Dying Girls.
House of Ash and Bone by Joel A. Sutherland
In the YA horror novel House of Ash and Bone, 17-year-old Josephine and her family have inherited a house in Vermont. Josephine, who can hear voices in her head, visits the house with her family and begins to question what is real and what isn't. She has trouble controlling the voices, feels like she is being watched and even catches a glimpse of a woman in the shadows.
House of Ash and Bone is for ages 12 and up.
When you can read it: Sept. 5, 2023
Joel A. Sutherland is an Ontario author of thriller, horror and fantasy short stories, as well as novels, anthologies and children's and YA books. His work includes Summer's End, Haunted Canada 10, Haunted Canada 11 and Haunted: The House Next Door.
Say Yes and Keep Smiling by Laurence Beaudoin-Masse, translated by Shelley Tanaka
Say Yes and Keep Smiling is the sequel to the novel Suck It In and Smile. Ellie, a social media influencer with hundreds of thousands of followers and engaged to singer Samuel Vanasse, is about to launch her new wellness book. However, everything in her life isn't as perfect as Ellie likes to pretend it is. Her father's not well and Ellie is struggling under the pressure to be the person her YouTube followers expect her to be. Ellie finds herself falling back into old patterns as she tries to regain control of her life.
Say Yes and Keep Smiling is for ages 13 and up
When you can read it: Sept. 5, 2023
Laurence Beaudoin-Masse is a writer from Montreal. She is the author of two novels: Suck It In and Smile and its sequel, Say Yes and Keep Smiling.
Shelley Tanaka is an author, translator and editor who has written and translated more than 30 books for children and young adults. She lives in Kingston, Ont.
Hopeless in Hope by Wanda John-Kehewin
Hopeless in Hope is a YA novel about a 14-year-old girl named Eva Brown whose life is unravelling. Her mother drinks and shouts, she is being targeted at school by the popular mean girl and then her beloved nohkum ends up in the hospital. After an incident where her younger brother is found walking around their neighbourhood alone, Eva is sent to live in a group home, while her brother goes to live with a foster family. A visit to her nohkum in the hospital and a copy of her mother's diary set Eva down a path of beginning to understand the truth about her mother.
Hopeless in Hope is for ages 12 and up.
When you can read it: Sept. 5, 2023
Wanda John-Kehewin is a Cree writer, poet, author and scriptwriter. She is the author of the graphic novel Visions of the Crow. Her other work includes the poetry collections Seven Sacred Truths and In the Dog House, which won the World Poetry Foundation's Empowered Poet Award.
Flight Plan by Eric Walters
In Flight Plan, 13-year-old Jamie is stranded over 1,200 miles from home when the flight he is taking has to make an emergency landing when the engine stops. Jamie soon realises that all the other airplanes he can see have also been grounded, cars are no longer working, nor are cell phones. Jamie sets off on a journey to get home, with help from those around him, including a rescue dog and his fellow passengers.
Flight Plan is for ages 12 and up.
When you can read it: Sept. 12, 2023
Eric Walters is one of Canada's most prolific writers for young people. He's penned over 100 books, including Bear in the Family, The Power of Three and Run. His 2006 novel We All Fall Down came in at #88 on the list of the 150 bestselling Canadian books of the past 10 years. Walters won the 2020 Governor General's Literary Prize for young people's literature — text for The King of Jam Sandwiches.
Those Pink Mountain Nights by Jen Ferguson
Those Pink Mountain Nights is a YA novel set in Alberta that follows three teenagers — Berlin, Cameron and Jessie — who are brought together by working at Pink Mountain Pizza. A possible sighting of Kiki, Cameron's cousin who disappeared five months earlier, sets off a course of events over one week in their small, snowy town that will alter all their lives. Those Pink Mountain Nights explores topics such as Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, mental health and sexuality.
Those Pink Mountain Nights is for ages 13 and up.
When you can read it: Sept. 12, 2023
Jen Ferguson is a YA author, activist and academic of Michif/Métis and Canadian settler heritage, based in Los Angeles. Ferguson has a PhD in English and creative writing. Her debut novel, The Summer of Bitter and Sweet, won the 2022 Governor General's Literary Award for young people's literature — text.
Goddess Crown by Shade Lapite
Goddess Crown is a YA Afro-fantasy novel set in the kingdom of Galla. Kalothia was raised in secret — in a woodland outside of the kingdom where she learned to fish and hunt and look after herself. On her 16th birthday, she is forced to flee her home after it is invaded by attackers and she ends up in the king's court, where she gets caught up in dangerous power struggles.
Goddess Crown is for ages 13 and up
When you can read it: Sept. 12, 2023
Shade Lapite is a British-Nigerian writer living in Toronto. She runs a blog called Coffee Bookshelves which celebrates and promotes writing by authors of colour. Goddess Crown is Lapite's debut novel.
Suliewey by Saqamaw Mi'sel Joe and Sheila O'Neill
Suliewey is a historical fiction novel and the sequel to My Indian. It continues the story of Mi'kmaq guide Sylvester Joe, whose traditional name is Suliewey, as he decides to go out on his own to look for the last remaining Beothuk community. The novel demonstrates an existing kinship between the Mi'kmaq and the Beothuk.
Suliewey is for ages 12 and up.
When you can read it: Sept. 15, 2023
Saqamaw Mi'sel Joe is the author of Muinji'j Becomes a Man and An Aboriginal Chief's Journey, and the co-author of My Indian and Suliewey. Mi'sel Joe is considered the spiritual chief of the Mi'kmaq of Newfoundland and Labrador and has been the district traditional chief of Miawpukek First Nation since 1983, when he was appointed by the late Grand Chief Donald Marshall.
Sheila O'Neill is an author, drum carrier and member of Qalipu Mi'kmaq First Nation. She is the co-author of My Indian and Suliewey. O'Neill is a founding member and past president of the Newfoundland Aboriginal Women's Network.
Life Expectancy by Alison Hughes
In the YA novel Life Expectancy, Sophie St. John discovers a lawsuit that was launched by her parents when she was a baby, which says she has a reduced life expectancy as the result of a serious disease. She also finds out she might be very wealthy. Sophie is suddenly facing a much shorter life than she expected and she is determined to navigate this new world on her own terms.
Life Expectancy is for ages 13 and up.
When you can read it: Sept. 23, 2023
Alison Hughes is a writer from Edmonton. She has written 20 books for children and young adults, including Fly and Hit the Ground Running, which was a finalist for the Governor General's Literary Award for young people's literature — text. Her writing has been shortlisted for the Writers' Union Short Prose Competition for Developing Writers, longlisted for the 2011 CBC Short Story Prize and shortlisted for the 2021 CBC Nonfiction Prize.
Badass(ish) by Jaymie Heilman
Badass(ish) is a YA novel that follows three teenagers in Alberta — Renzi, Davis and Jae — who come together to try and stop the construction of a pipeline. Renzi knows what the effects of climate change can do to a community — she watched her grandparents' home get destroyed by a hurricane in Puerto Rico — while Davis's parents work for the oil company that they are protesting against. The three friends need to work through family pressures, secrets and ex-boyfriends in order to fight the pipeline, but also save their friendship.
Badass(ish) is for ages 12 and up.
When you can read it: Sept. 25, 2023
Jaymie Heilman a writer and historian who grew up in Sherwood Park, Alta. She teaches Latin American and Caribbean history at the University of Alberta and currently lives in Edmonton. Badass(ish) is her debut YA novel.
Poison Town by Elyssa Campbell
Poison Town is a mystery YA novel about a 14-year-old girl named Addie who becomes an environmental activist in her hometown. There are ongoing environmental and health issues where Addie lives, a company town which was built around a lead and zinc smelter, even after the company did a cleanup. Addie is determined to find out what is going on and why the air and water still seem dangerous.
Poison Town is for ages 12 and up.
When you can read it: Sept. 26, 2023
Elyssa Campell is a writer and substitute teacher who grew up in a town with a smelter and now lives near Vancouver. Poison Town is her debut novel.
The Grimmer by Naben Ruthnum
The Grimmer is a YA horror novel about a high schooler named Vish who loves heavy metal and literature, but who is uncertain about his future. With his father recently out of treatment for addiction, he can feel the eyes of the town focused on his family — one of few brown families there. After Vish is attacked by a pale, decaying monster, he finds himself drawn into a world of witches, undead creatures and magic. With the help of an eccentric local bookstore owner and his teenage employee Gisela, Vish tries to stop an inter-dimensional threat that could destroy his whole town.
The Grimmer is for ages 13 and up.
When you can read it: Sept. 26 2023
Naben Ruthnum is a Toronto-based author and screenwriter who has written everything from short fiction and crime fiction to thrillers, memoir and literary criticism. He is the author of the memoir Curry: Eating, Reading, and Race and the novels Helpmeet and A Hero of Our Time. Under the pen name Nathan Ripley, he is the author of two thrillers: Find You In the Dark and Your Life is Mine.
A Pretty Implausible Premise by Karen Rivers
In the YA novel A Pretty Implausible Premise, Hattie and Presley have an instant connection. They meet on the first day of their senior year in high school and are both trying to escape the ghosts of their pasts. Due to recent tragedies, Hattie has given up on her dream to swim at the Olympics and Presley has had to give up his competitive ice skating career. They end up in a whirlwind romance, but can their relationship survive the trauma they've both endured, as well as the wildfires surrounding their town?
A Pretty Implausible Premise is for ages 12 and up.
When you can read it: Sept. 26, 2023
Karen Rivers writes novels for children, teenagers and adults. Her YA books include A Pretty Implausible Premise, You Are the Everything, All That Was and Before We Go Extinct. She lives in Victoria.
How to be Found by Emily Pohl-Weary
How to be Found is a YA novel about best friends Michie and Trissa, who were raised by their single mothers in the same duplex. At 16-years-old, the friends suddenly find themselves with different interests — Trissa loves going to the hottest nightclub in town, while Michie would prefer to stay in reading her favourite book. When Trissa goes missing one night everyone writes her off, but Michie refuses to give up on her friend. Her search for Trissa takes her to dangerous places, all the while a serial killer is targeting girls in their city.
How to be Found is for ages 12 and up.
When you can read it: Sept. 26, 2023
Emily Pohl-Weary is a writer and creative writing instructor at the University of British Columbia. Her previous books include the YA novels Not Your Ordinary Wolf Girl and Strange Times at Western High and the poetry book Ghost Sick. Pohl-Weary is originally from Toronto and now lives in Vancouver.
Iz The Apocalypse by Susan Currie
In the YA novel Iz The Apocalypse, 14-year-old Iz Beaufort is desperate to join a school music group called Manifesto. The only problem is that Manifesto is based at the prestigious Métier School and Iz, who has lived at 26 different foster homes, knows that Dominion Children's Care wouldn't send her to Métier School. Iz finds a way to fake her way in, but once she becomes a student at Métier, keeping her life a secret, while balancing fees, homework and new classmates is more challenging than she expected.
Iz The Apocalypse is for ages 12 and up.
When you can read it: Oct. 1, 2023
Susan Currie is a writer and an elementary teacher. Her previous books include The Mask That Sang and Basket of Beethoven. Currie lives in Brampton, Ont.
Dragging Mason County by Curtis Campbell
In Dragging Mason County, Peter Thompkin's best friend Alan, also known as teen drag queen Aggie Culture, is throwing Mason County's first Drag Extravaganza. Peter decides to help his best friend produce the show, but as backlash begins to mount Peter hopes his friendship with Alan will survive the experience.
Dragging Mason County is for ages 14 and up.
When you can read it: Oct. 3, 2023
Curtis Campbell is a writer, comedian and theatre artist. Campbell lives in Toronto and Dragging Mason County is his debut novel.
Curious Tides by Pascale Lacelle
Curious Tides is a YA fantasy book about a teen mage who is trying to find out the truth about the drowning deaths of her fellow students at the prestigious Aldryn College for Lunar Magics. After being the only survivor of a tragedy at the Dovermere sea caves, Emory has discovered that she has gained new powers and abilities that she doesn't know how to control. When the supposedly drowned students begin to wash ashore, alive, only to then die very soon after in horrible ways, Emory begins to suspect that there is more behind the drownings and the secret society that she believes her classmates were involved in.
Curious Tides is for ages 14 and up.
When you can read it: Oct. 3, 2023
Pascale Lacelle is a French Canadian author from Ottawa. She has a bachelor's degree in French literature. Curious Tides is her first novel.
Catfish Rolling by Clara Kumagai
Catfish Rolling is a debut coming-of-age YA novel by Clara Kumagai with magical realism elements. There is a catfish that lives under Japan, and when it rolls the land rises and falls. Sora is 17 years old and living with her father after losing her mother to a powerful earthquake, which she blames on the catfish. The catfish doesn't just affect the land — it also affects time, leaving Japan divided into zones, with some moving fast and some moving slow. When Sora's father disappears, Sora must head into the abandoned time zones to find him.
Catfish Rolling is for ages 14 and up.
When you can read it: Oct. 3, 2023
Clara Kumagai is from Vancouver and has lived in Japan and Ireland. Her writing has appeared in publications such as The Kyoto Journal, Cicada, Room and The Irish Times. Catfish Rolling is her debut novel.
Songs of Irie by Asha Ashanti Bromfield
Songs of Irie is a historical coming-of-age YA novel set in 1976. Irie and Jilly are from two different worlds — Jilly lives in the hills, safe in a mansion, while Irie is from the heart of Kingston, where fighting on the streets is a regular occurrence. Tension is building on the streets and there is civil unrest in the lead-up to an important election. Irie and Jilly bond at Irie's dad's record store over their love of Reggae music and must fight for their friendship, and budding romance, to survive.
Songs of Irie is for ages 13 and up.
When you can read it: Oct. 10, 2023
Asha Ashanti Bromfield is a writer, actress, singer and producer of Afro-Jamaican descent. She is known for starring as Melody Valentine, drummer for the band Josie and the Pussycats, in the television show Riverdale and as Zadie Wells in the Netflix show Locke and Key. Her YA novels include Hurricane Summer and Songs of Irie. She is from Toronto. CBC Books named Bromfield a Black Canadian writer to watch in 2022.
Flower and Thorn by Rati Mehrotra
In the YA fantasy novel Flower and Thorn, 17-year-old Irinya, who has an incredible knowledge of magic flowers, has always wanted to be a flower hunter ever since her mother's disappearance. After discovering a priceless silver spider lily, which she is then tricked into handing over, Irinya has to go on a dangerous journey to get the flower back.
Flower and Thorn is for ages 14 and up.
When you can read it: Oct. 17, 2023
Rati Mehrotra was born in India and now lives and writes in Toronto. She is the author of the YA fantasy novel Night of the Raven, Dawn of the Dove which was a finalist for best YA novel at the 2023 Aurora Awards. Mehrotra has also written the science fantasy novels Markswoman and Mahimata.
The Haunting of Adrian Yates by Markus Harwood-Jones
In the queer YA romance novel The Haunting of Adrian Yates, Adrian's summer takes an unexpected turn when he meets a ghost named Sorel in the graveyard near the apartment he lives in with his dads. Adrian's best friend Zoomer is worried that Sorel, who becomes Adrian's boyfriend, might be keeping secrets from him. Adrian begins to meet with Sorel in secret and they start experimenting with consensual possession, which doesn't go according to plan.
The Haunting of Adrian Yates is for ages 13 and up.
When you can read it: Oct. 24, 2023
Markus Harwood-Jones is a writer, artist and academic living in Toronto. His previous YA novels include In a Heartbeat, We Three and Confessions of a Teenage Drag King, which was named one of the best books of 2020 by CBC Books.
The Space Between Here & Now by Sarah Suk
In The Space Between Here & Now, Aimee Roh has a rare condition called Sensory Time Warp Syndrome. When Aimee smells something that is linked to a memory, she will travel in time to that moment in her life. When Aimee time travels to a memory about her estranged mother, the moment she is brought back to doesn't match up with the story she was told about why her mother left. Aimee decides to travel to Korea in search of some answers.
The Space Between Here & Now is for ages 13 and up.
When you can read it: Oct. 31, 2023
Sarah Suk is a YA writer living in Vancouver. Her debut novel, Made in Korea, was named one of the best Canadian books for kids and young adults of 2022 by CBC Books.
Gorgeous Gruesome Faces by Linda Cheng
Gorgeous Gruesome Faces is a debut speculative thriller about 18-year-old Sunny Lee, a former teen pop star. When Sunny finds out that Candie, her ex-best friend and group mate, is attending a K-pop workshop, she decides to use it as an opportunity to confront her about their shared traumatic past involving the third member of their group. At the K-pop workshop, things don't go to plan and competitors start to experience strange injuries and mutilations to their bodies. Sunny is in a race against time to expose who is behind the bloodshed and why.
Gorgeous Gruesome Faces is for ages 14 and up.
When you can read it: Nov. 7, 2023
Linda Cheng was born in Taiwan. She received her bachelor of fine arts from the Savannah College of Art and Design and worked as an art director in the U.S. Gorgeous Gruesome Faces is Cheng's debut novel. She currently lives in Vancouver with her family.
