YA Verse Books I Love!

Hope you are all well! Recently I’ve been reading a lot and buying a lot of verse novels. I had never really read any verse novels until 2020 and now I am obsessed. I’ve been doing a two part post every month and this month I decided to talk about verse novels. One part will be discussing verse novels I love and the second being verse novels I want to read. So, here is part one, YA verse novels I love!

Run Rebel by Manjeet Mann

“When Amber runs, it’s the only time she feels completely free – far away from her claustrophobic home life. Her father wants her to be a dutiful daughter, waiting for an arranged marriage like her sister Ruby.

Running is a quiet rebellion. But Amber wants so much more – and she’s ready to fight for it.

It’s time for a revolution.”

This is the verse novel that started it all for me. I got a copy of this verse novel from a colleague at the library as he thought it would be something I’d enjoy and he was correct. I’d never read a verse novel previous to this but this one made me fall in love with the format. It is such a beautiful story you can fly right the way through and I highly recommend it.

---

The Black Flamingo by Dean Atta

“A boy comes to terms with his identity as a mixed-race gay teen – then at university he finds his wings as a drag artist, The Black Flamingo. A bold story about the power of embracing your uniqueness. Sometimes, we need to take charge, to stand up wearing pink feathers – to show ourselves to the world in bold colour.”

I think this was the first verse novel that I remember buying. But, it wasn’t until recently that I finally gave it a read. It certainly lived up to all the amazing things that I’d heard about it. This is such a stunning verse novel that I know I want to read again very soon. If you haven’t read this one already I highly recommend it.

---

Blood Moon by Lucy Cuthew

“During her seminal sexual experience with the quiet and lovely Benjamin, physics-lover and astronomy fan Frankie gets her period – but the next day a gruesome meme goes viral, turning an innocent, intimate afternoon into something sordid, mortifying and damaging.”

This is a verse novel that I think every single person needs to read. I flew through it in a matter of hours. The messages in this book are ones that every teenager needs to read about. This is a verse novel that I am going to highly recommending for years to come to teenagers and adults as well.

---

Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds

“A cannon. A strap.
A piece. A biscuit.
A burner. A heater.
A chopper. A gat.
A hammer
A tool
for RULE

Or, you can call it a gun. That’s what fifteen-year-old Will has shoved in the back waistband of his jeans. See, his brother Shawn was just murdered. And Will knows the rules. No crying. No snitching. Revenge. That’s where Will’s now heading, with that gun shoved in the back waistband of his jeans, the gun that was his brother’s gun. He gets on the elevator, seventh floor, stoked. He knows who he’s after. Or does he?”

This is the latest verse novel that I read and potentially my favourite that I’ve read. I could not put this one down, it was absolutely spectacular. I’m so glad that I picked this one up and didn’t really look into what it was about other than reading the little bit of the synopsis above. It shocked me and I cannot recommend it enough!

What are some verse books you have loved? Let me know in the comments below. Be sure to look out for part two of this series, YA verse books I want to read, coming soon!