The best nonfiction books for teens help teens feel empowered to silence the inner demons that come creeping for some during young adulthood. The best YA nonfiction books don’t talk down to teens but instead welcomes them into the conversation, treating them like the (young) adults they are. The top YA nonfiction books listed here cover a range of topics, from social justice to history to mental health. The result is a kaleidoscopic list of the must-read nonfiction books for young readers.
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And now for an epic list of the best nonfiction books for teens!
#NotYourPrincess: Voices of Native American Women by Lisa Charleyboy and Mary Beth Leatherdale
We kick off this list of the best nonfiction books for teens with #NotYourPrincess. This book collects writing writing, poetry, interviews, essays, and more about the the experiences of being Indigenous young women. Amplifying a largely invisible voice, #NotYourPrincess is an excellent pick if you’re looking for the top YA nonfiction books.
How to read it: Purchase #NotYourPrincess on Amazon
The 57 Bus: A True Story of Two Teenagers and the Crime That Changed Their Lives written by Dashka Slater
A finalist for the YALSA nonfiction book award, The 57 Bus tells the story of two teens whose backgrounds and circumstances couldn’t be more different. Then their lives intersect in explosive ways on the bus. The tale of a courtroom drama, this event thrust the two young adults into the national spotlight. Riveting and engrossing, The 57 Bus is a must-read for anyone who likes true crime and diverse characters.
How to read it: Purchase The 57 Bus on Amazon
Black Birds in the Sky by Brandy Colbert
In Black Birds in the Sky, Brandy Colbert delivers one of the best YA nonfiction books ever. This book highlights the Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921 when a mob of white Americans invaded the predominately Black area of Tulsa, Oklahoma, and committed violent racist deeds. Colbert seeks to write the memorial the Black community never got and explore the context of how this radical act of racial violence came to pass.
How to read it: Purchase Black Birds in the Sky on Amazon
(Don’t) Call Me Crazy by Kelly Jensen
I work with Kelly Jensen, the editor of (Don’t) Call Me Crazy at Book Riot. As a mental health advocate, I love (Don’t) Call Me Crazy, which includes 33 different contributions about mental health when you’re a young person. With heavyweight YA authors like Emery Lord, Adam Silvera, and Libba Bray, (Don’t) Call Me Crazy‘s contributors are as diverse as the experiences they reflect upon in what is easily one of the best nonfiction books for teens.
How to read it: Purchase (Don’t) Call Me Crazy on Amazon
Do You Know Who You Are? by Megan Kaye
One of my favorite parts of teen magazines when I was growing up were the personality quizzes. In this book, you get not just one, not two, but many quizzes to help you understand who you are. When we’re teens, our individuality is emerging, which makes Do You Know Who You Are? such a fun way to explore the person you are becoming. Part guided journal, part quiz book, Do You Know Who You Are? is a fun and insightful reading experience, for sure one of the best YA nonfiction books for sure.
How to read it: Purchase Do You Know Who You Are? on Amazon
The Family Romanov: Murder, Rebellion, and the Fall of Imperial Russia by Candace Fleming
I’ve long been fascinated with Russian history and literature, so Candace Fleming’s The Family Romanov is a must-read for anyone who likes great nonfiction books for young readers. In this engaging read, Fleming details the Romanovs, the last royal family of Russia, including in-depth facts that come to life in a story that pulls you through the pages. If you’ve ever taken a deep dive down the rabbit hole of the Internet to read about whether or not the princess Anastasia survived the massacre that killed her family, this book is for you.
How to read it: Purchase The Family Romanov on Amazon
From a Whisper to a Rallying Cry: The Killing of Vincent Chin and the The Trial That Galvanized the Asian American Movement by Paula Yoo
This YALSA nonfiction award nominee and National Book Award long list book turns the spotlight on the 1982 murder of Vincent Chin, a young Chinese American, by two men in a hate crime in Detroit. During the 1980s, many car manufacturers were relocated to Japan, heightening tensions between Asian Americans and White Americans in Detroit. In From a Whisper to a Rallying Cry, Paula Yoo transports readers back in time to the tinder box relations with Asian Americans and bigoted White Americans and then traces the legacy of the murder, which helped spark the Asian American movement and led to the first federal civil rights case involving a crime against an Asian American. From a Whisper to a Rallying Cry is the book we always needed to explore this horrific crime and its outcome.
How to read it: Purchase From a Whisper to a Rallying Cry on Amazon
Girl Code: Gaming, Going Viral, and Getting It Done by Andrea Gonzalez and Sophie Houser
There’s still a long ways to go to bring more gender equality to computer programming. In Girl Code, Andrea Gonzalez and Sophie Houser sing a rallying cry to recruit more girls to learn to code and enter the gaming world. This essential knowledge can be a lucrative skill in an industry that could use as many young women as possible to start to equal out accurate representation. The book is co-written by two friends who met at a Girls Who Code event and soon bonded over their experience being female coders and gamers. The result is an approachable, inspiring, and informative blueprint for success busting down barriers.
How to read it: Purchase Girl Code on Amazon
How to Be a Difficult Bitch by Halley Body, Mary C. Fernandez, Sharon Lynn Pruitt-Young, and Zara Hanawalt
I love the title of this book, How to Be a Difficult Bitch. In one of the best nonfiction books for teens, How to Be a Difficult Bitch advocates for “claiming your power, ditching the haters, and feeling good doing it.” In other words, it’s embracing your bitchy side and harnessing it to your advantage. Rather than be just another obedient, pleasant, and passive young woman, you’ll learn how to be a difficult bitch, one with invisible armor, serious power, and flawless confidence to shake things up and love yourself while you’re doing it.
How to read it: Purchase How to Be a Difficult Bitch on Amazon
March: Book One by John Lewis, Andrew Aydink, and Nate Powell
In March: Book One, the late politician John Lewis teams up with Andrew Aydin and Nate Powell to bring history to life, specifically the formative early days of Lewis’ journey as an activist with the Civil Rights movement brewing in the background. The first book in a trilogy, March: Book One brings young readers into a tumultuous time of racial tension, revolutionary energy, and fierce courage to change things. It’s an excellent representation of the best YA nonfiction graphic novels.
How to read it: Purchase March: Book One on Amazon
Murder Among Friends: How Leopold and Loeb Tried to Commit the Perfect Crime by Candace Fleming
Another great read from Candace Fleming, who penned The Family Romanov featured earlier, Murder Among Friends is easily among the best YA nonfiction books. In Murder Among Friends, Fleming breathes fresh life into the chilling story of Leopold and Loeb, two young men who teamed up to kidnap and kill a child they knew in 1924. But they didn’t count on getting caught, much less at the center of a complicated legal battle. Why did they do it? And how on earth did they avoid the death penalty? Fleming seeks to answer both questions in this gripping true crime book for teens.
How to read it: Purchase Murder Among Friends on Amazon
The (Other) F Word: A Celebration of the Fat & Fierce edited by Angie Manfredi
In The (Other) F Word, for sure one of the best nonfiction books for teens, Angie Manfredi delivers a great book all about being fat. Or thick. Or chubby. Or curvy. Or whatever word we have for being overweight. This body positivity book includes artwork, fashion tips, essays, and poetry by famous YA authors like Julie Murphy, Renée Watson, and Lily Anderson. This book is the mega confidence booster we need.
How to read it: Purchase The (Other) F W ord on Amazon
Queer, There, and Everywhere: 23 People Who Changed the World by Sarah Prager
In Queer, There, and Everywhere, Sarah Prager features 23 queer people who changed the world, from Eleanor Roosevelt to Abraham Lincoln to Harvey Milk and George Takei. This book’s strength lies in its diversity, proving that queer people have been at the forefront of human progress for, well, forever. A celebration of queer people across time, Queer, There, and Everywhere is one of the best nonfiction books for teens.
How to read it: Purchase Queer, There, and Everywhere on Amazon
Revolution in Our Time: The Black Panther Party’s Promise to the People by Kekla Magoon
In Kekla Magoon’s Revolution in Our Time, a National Book Award finalist, the Black Panther Party comes to life. Magoon highlights the Black Panthers as an organized socialist movement that taught Black people self defense and survival skills. Magoon situates the Black Panthers within the greater context of historic revolutionary efforts and their legacy, which runs all the way to modern activism like the Black Lives Matter movement.
How to read it: Purchase Revolution in Our Time on Amazon
Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi
In this adaptation of Ibram X. Kendi’s National Book Award-winning Stamped from the Beginning, YA power author Jason Reynolds “Remixes” the core concepts form Kendi’s book about the fight between racism and antiracism. In one of the best YA nonfiction books, Reynolds and Kendi explore the concept of racism and contextualize it within America’s past, present, and future along with a discussion of how you can arm yourself against racism and stand up to hate. Stamped is for sure one of the best nonfiction books for teens.
How to read it: Purchase Stamped on Amazon
Symphony for the City of the Dead: Dmitri Shostakovich and the Siege of Leningrad by M.T. Anderson
In Symphony for the City of the Dead, award-winning author M.T. Anderson turns the spotlight on a young Dmitri Shostakovich, the brilliant composer, caught in Leningrad, which was occupied by the Nazis starting in 1941 and reached its peak in the harsh winter of 1943-1944. More than a million people died in the occupation. Somehow Shostakovich forged ever on, writing the now-famous Leningrad Symphony, making a case for the power of music to persist and resist. It’s easy to see why this is one of the top YA nonfiction books and a YALSA nonfiction award finalist.
How to read it: Purchase Symphony for the City of the Dead on Amazon
Vincent and Theo: The Van Gogh Brothers written by Deborah Heiligman
If it’s the best nonfiction books for teens that you’re seeking, Deborah Heiligman’s Vincent and Theo should be at the top of that list. This engaging book won the YALSA nonfiction award. And it’s easy to see why. This captivating book focuses on the relationship between very famous painter Vincent Van Gogh and his brother, Theo, a bond that lifted each brother up. Drawing on more than 658 letters Vincent wrote to Theo over his life, this book captures the story behind one of the most acclaimed painters of all time.
How to read it: Purchase Vincent and Theo on Amazon
A Young People’s History of the United States by Howard Zinn adapted by Rebecca Stefoff
This book adapts Howard Zinn’s famous classic A People’s History of the United States for young readers. In this version, we hear stories about America by a diverse slate of marginalized voices, including people of color, women, immigrants, slaves, queer people, and economically disenfranchised Americans. The result is a voice for the voiceless and definitely among the best nonfiction books for teens. If you like this book, be sure to check out another list here on Broke by Books: “10 Best YA Books about Politics and Social Justice.”
How to read it: Purchase A Young People’s History of the United States on Amazon
We Say #NeverAgain: Reporting by the Parkland Student Journalists edited by Melissa Falkowski and Eric Garner
One of the best nonfiction books for teens, this compelling book collects writing from the student journalists at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, which suffered a mass shooting in February 2018. Contributors focus on a range of subjects like mental health, gun control, trauma, and activism. Inspiring and candid, We Say #NeverAgain is one of the best YA nonfiction books.
How to read it: Purchase We Say #NeverAgain on Amazon
Yes She Can: 10 Stories of Hope & Change from Young Female Staffers of the Obama White Houses edited by Molly Dillon
We close out our list of the best nonfiction books for teens with Yes She Can. Editor Molly Dillon collects ten essays by female staffers in Obama’s White House. This empowering book compiles essays on being a young woman in politics, specifically the Obama administration. It’s important now more than ever to amplify women in politics, and this book goes a long way to breaking the glass ceiling that has stifled so many women.
How to read it: Purchase Yes She Can on Amazon
And there you have it! The best nonfiction books for teens. What book will you read first?
Plus, check out our other lists of great books for teens:
