Best Young Adult Science Fiction Books of All Time
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Released: January 2003)
Author(s): J. K. Rowling, Mary GrandPré (Illustrator)
Ratings and Reviews from Hardcover
Rating: 4.29 (2926 Ratings, 88 Reviews)
Pages: 896
The book that took the world by storm.... In his fifth year at Hogwart's, Harry faces challenges at every turn, from the dark threat of He-Who-Must-Not-Be- Named and the unreliability of the government of the magical world to the rise of Ron Weasley as the keeper of the Gryffindor Quidditch Team. Along the way he learns about the strength of his friends, the fierceness of his enemies, and the meaning of sacrifice.
Genre(s): Fantasy, Fiction, Young Adult, Adventure, Magic, Friendship, Boarding school students, Boarding schools, Children's stories, Bildungsromans
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Released: January 2005)
Author(s): J. K. Rowling, Mary GrandPré (Illustrator)
Ratings and Reviews from Hardcover
Rating: 4.38 (2862 Ratings, 81 Reviews)
Pages: 672
The war against Voldemort is not going well; even the Muggles have been affected. Dumbledore is absent from Hogwarts for long stretches of time, and the Order of the Phoenix has already suffered losses. And yet . . . As with all wars, life goes on. Sixth-year students learn to Apparate. Teenagers flirt and fight and fall in love. Harry receives some extraordinary help in Potions from the mysterious Half-Blood Prince. And with Dumbledore's guidance, he seeks out the full, complex story of the boy who became Lord Voldemort -- and thus finds what may be his only vulnerability.
Genre(s): Fantasy, Fiction, Young Adult, Adventure, Bildungsromans, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Motion picture), Classics, Science fiction, General, Friendship
The Hobbit (Released: January 10)
Author(s): J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (Preface)
Ratings and Reviews from Hardcover
Rating: 4.28 (3259 Ratings, 148 Reviews)
Pages: 300
Bilbo Baggins is a hobbit who enjoys a comfortable, unambitious life, rarely traveling any farther than his pantry or cellar. But his contentment is disturbed when the wizard Gandalf and a company of dwarves arrive on his doorstep one day to whisk him away on an adventure. They have launched a plot to raid the treasure hoard guarded by Smaug the Magnificent, a large and very dangerous dragon. Bilbo reluctantly joins their quest, unaware that on his journey to the Lonely Mountain he will encounter both a magic ring and a frightening creature known as Gollum.
Genre(s): Fantasy, Classics, Adventure, Young Adult, Fiction, Science fiction, War, Children, Comics, General
Dune (Released: January 1965)
Author(s): Frank Herbert, Brian Herbert (Afterword)
Ratings and Reviews from Hardcover
Rating: 4.29 (2751 Ratings, 225 Reviews)
Pages: 704
Set on the desert planet Arrakis, Dune is the story of Paul Atreides--who would become known as Muad'Dib--and of a great family's ambition to bring to fruition mankind's most ancient and unattainable dream. A stunning blend of adventure and mysticism, environmentalism and politics, Dune won the first Nebula Award, shared the Hugo Award, and formed the basis of what is undoubtedly the grandest epic in science fiction.
Genre(s): Science fiction, Fiction, Classics, Adventure, Fantasy, Space, Dystopian, Philosophy, Young Adult, War
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (Released: January 1979)
Author(s): Douglas Adams
Ratings and Reviews from Hardcover
Rating: 4.24 (2545 Ratings, 124 Reviews)
Pages: 215
Seconds before Earth is demolished to make way for a galactic freeway, Arthur Dent is plucked off the planet by his friend Ford Prefect, a researcher for the revised edition of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy who, for the last fifteen years, has been posing as an out-of-work actor. Together, this dynamic pair began a journey through space aided by a galaxyful of fellow travelers: Zaphod Beeblebrox—the two-headed, three-armed ex-hippie and totally out-to-lunch president of the galaxy; Trillian (formerly Tricia McMillan), Zaphod’s girlfriend, whom Arthur tried to pick up at a cocktail party once upon a time zone; Marvin, a paranoid, brilliant, and chronically depressed robot; and Veet Voojagig, a former graduate student obsessed with the disappearance of all the ballpoint pens he’s bought over the years. Where are these pens? Why are we born? Why do we die? For all the answers, stick your thumb to the stars!
Genre(s): Science fiction, Fiction, Adventure, Space, Aliens, comedy, Religion, Read 2024, Young Adult Fiction, Arthur (Fictitious character)
The Fellowship of the Ring (Released: January 1954)
Author(s): J.R.R. Tolkien
Ratings and Reviews from Hardcover
Rating: 4.38 (2367 Ratings, 87 Reviews)
Pages: 398
In ancient times the Rings of Power were crafted by the Elven-smiths, and Sauron, the Dark Lord, forged the One Ring, filling it with his own power so that he could rule all others. But the One Ring was taken from him, and though he sought it throughout Middle-earth, it remained lost to him. After many ages it fell into the hands of Bilbo Baggins, as told in The Hobbit. In a sleepy village in the Shire, young Frodo Baggins finds himself faced with an immense task, as his elderly cousin Bilbo entrusts the Ring to his care. Frodo must leave his home and make a perilous journey across Middle-earth to the Cracks of Doom, there to destroy the Ring and foil the Dark Lord in his evil purpose.
Genre(s): Fantasy, Adventure, Classics, Science fiction, General, Biography, War, History, Frodo (Fictitious character), Middle Earth (Imaginary place)
The Martian (Released: January 2011)
Author(s): Andy Weir
Ratings and Reviews from Hardcover
Rating: 4.42 (2413 Ratings, 266 Reviews)
Pages: 384
Six days ago, astronaut Mark Watney became one of the first people to walk on Mars. Now he's sure he'll be the first person to die there. After a dust storm nearly kills him and forces his crew to evacuate the planet while thinking him dead, Mark finds himself stranded on Mars' surface, completely alone. with no way to signal Earth that he's alive. And even if he could get word out, his supplies would be gone years before a rescue could arrive. Chances are, though, Mark won't have time to starve to death. The damaged machinery, unforgiving environment, or plain-old "human error" are much more likely to kill him first. But Mark's not ready to quit. Armed with nothing but his ingenuity and his engineering skills—and a gallows sense of humor that proves to be his greatest source of strength—he embarks on a dogged quest to stay alive, using his botany expertise to grow food and even hatch- ing a mad plan to contact NASA back on Earth. As he overcomes one seemingly insurmountable obstacle after the next, Mark begins to let himself believe he might make it off the planet alive. But Mars has plenty of surprises in store for him yet. Grounded in real, present-day science from the first page to the last. yet propelled by a brilliantly ingenious plot that surprises the reader again and again, The Martian is a truly remarkable thriller: an impossible-to- put-down suspense novel that manages tc read like a real-life survival tale. --front flap
Genre(s): Science fiction, Fiction, Space, Adventure, Fantasy, Solar system, Mars, Young Adult Fiction, Young Adult, Science Fiction & Fantasy
Mistborn: The Final Empire (Released: January 2006)
Author(s): Brandon Sanderson
Ratings and Reviews from Hardcover
Rating: 4.45 (2222 Ratings, 249 Reviews)
Pages: 534
What if the whole world were a dead, blasted wasteland? Mistborn For a thousand years the ash fell and no flowers bloomed. For a thousand years the Skaa slaved in misery and lived in fear. For a thousand years the Lord Ruler, the "Sliver of Infinity," reigned with absolute power and ultimate terror, divinely invincible. Then, when hope was so long lost that not even its memory remained, a terribly scarred, heart-broken half-Skaa rediscovered it in the depths of the Lord Ruler's most hellish prison. Kelsier "snapped" and found in himself the powers of a Mistborn. A brilliant thief and natural leader, he turned his talents to the ultimate caper, with the Lord Ruler himself as the mark. Kelsier recruited the underworld's elite, the smartest and most trustworthy allomancers, each of whom shares one of his many powers, and all of whom relish a high-stakes challenge. Then Kelsier reveals his ultimate dream, not just the greatest heist in history, but the downfall of the divine despot. But even with the best criminal crew ever assembled, Kel's plan looks more like the ultimate long shot, until luck brings a ragged girl named Vin into his life. Like him, she's a half-Skaa orphan, but she's lived a much harsher life. Vin has learned to expect betrayal from everyone she meets. She will have to learn trust if Kel is to help her master powers of which she never dreamed. Brandon Sanderson, fantasy's newest master tale-spinner and author of the acclaimed debut Elantris, dares to turn a genre on its head by asking a simple question: What if the prophesied hero failed to defeat the Dark Lord? The answer will be found in the Misborn Trilogy, a saga of surprises that begins with the book in your hands. Fantasy will never be the same again.
Genre(s): Fantasy, Adventure, Fiction, Young Adult, Dystopian, High Fantasy, Science fiction, Mystical powers
Ender's Game (Released: January 1985)
Author(s): Orson Scott Card
Ratings and Reviews from Hardcover
Rating: 4.26 (1931 Ratings, 92 Reviews)
Pages: 256
Ender's Game is a 1985 military science fiction novel by American author Orson Scott Card. Set at an unspecified date in Earth's future, the novel presents an imperiled humankind after two conflicts with the Formics, an insectoid alien species they dub the "buggers". In preparation for an anticipated third invasion, children, including the novel's protagonist, Andrew "Ender" Wiggin, are trained from a very young age by putting them through increasingly difficult games, including some in zero gravity, where Ender's tactical genius is revealed. The book originated as a short story of the same name, published in the August 1977 issue of Analog Science Fiction and Fact. The novel was published on January 15, 1985. Later, by elaborating on characters and plotlines depicted in the novel, Card was able to write additional books in the Ender's Game series. Card also released an updated version of Ender's Game in 1991, changing some political facts to reflect the times more accurately (e.g., to include the recent collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War). The novel has been translated into 34 languages. Reception of the book has been mostly positive. It has become suggested reading for many military organizations, including the United States Marine Corps. Ender's Game was recognized as "best novel" by the 1985 Nebula Award[3] and the 1986 Hugo Award[4] in the genres of science fiction and fantasy. Its four sequels—Speaker for the Dead (1986), Xenocide (1991), Children of the Mind (1996), and Ender in Exile (2008)—follow Ender's subsequent travels to many different worlds in the galaxy. In addition, the later novella A War of Gifts (2007) and novel Ender's Shadow (1999), plus other novels in the Shadow saga, take place during the same time period as the original. ---------- Contained in: [Ender's War](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL49619W) See also: - [Ender's Game: 1/2](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL19647657W/Ender's_Game._1_2) [1]: http://www.hatrack.com/osc/books/endersgame/
Genre(s): Science fiction, War, Aliens, Space, Adventure, Murder, Dystopian, Fiction / Science Fiction / General, Award winners, Juvenile Fiction
The Well of Ascension (Released: January 20)
Author(s): Brandon Sanderson
Ratings and Reviews from Hardcover
Rating: 4.33 (1665 Ratings, 157 Reviews)
Pages: 624
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Brandon Sanderson, the Mistborn series is a heist story of political intrigue and magical, martial-arts action. The impossible has been accomplished. The Lord Ruler -- the man who claimed to be god incarnate and brutally ruled the world for a thousand years -- has been vanquished. But Kelsier, the hero who masterminded that triumph, is dead too, and now the awesome task of building a new world has been left to his young protégé, Vin, the former street urchin who is now the most powerful Mistborn in the land, and to the idealistic young nobleman she loves. As Kelsier's protégé and slayer of the Lord Ruler she is now venerated by a budding new religion, a distinction that makes her intensely uncomfortable. Even more worrying, the mists have begun behaving strangely since the Lord Ruler died, and seem to harbor a strange vaporous entity that haunts her. Stopping assassins may keep Vin's Mistborn skills sharp, but it's the least of her problems. Luthadel, the largest city of the former empire, doesn't run itself, and Vin and the other members of Kelsier's crew, who lead the revolution, must learn a whole new set of practical and political skills to help. It certainly won't get easier with three armies – one of them composed of ferocious giants – now vying to conquer the city, and no sign of the Lord Ruler's hidden cache of atium, the rarest and most powerful allomantic metal. As the siege of Luthadel tightens, an ancient legend seems to offer a glimmer of hope. But even if it really exists, no one knows where to find the Well of Ascension or what manner of power it bestows.
Genre(s): Fiction, Fantasy, Adventure, War, Dystopian, Epic Fantasy, Young Adult, Science fiction