It’s been years since I delved into YA books the new York Times Bestseller list. The last time was in 2023, where I looked at the list’s titles over the 10 years of the list’s existence. But as we enter the middle of 2026 and start talking about the best YA of the year so far, as well as what we can expect to see in the second half of the year, it seemed worthwhile to check in. the new York Times Lists.
As has been the case for several years now, there are three lists in which YA books appear the new York Times. There is a weekly list that focuses on hardcover best sellers. Then there’s the monthly paperback bestseller list, which, as the name suggests, publishes the best-selling YA paperbacks in the past month. The final list is the series list, which combines children’s and youth books; Books appear on this list once there are three titles in a given series (for example, A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder The series will be listed by combining the sales of all the titles under it; queen of facesThe first in the new series will be on the YA hardcover list, as there has only been one book in the series so far). Of course, there are also graphic novels and comics bestseller lists, which may include YA titles.
So what makes a book a “bestseller” according to the New York Times? This remains a question for ages. General interest bookstores across the country that are part of the team whose sales are included in the list report those sales to the newspaper weekly. It’s not all bookstores everywhere in America, it’s selective, and no, no one really knows what bookstores they are or what the whole landscape of those bookstores is.
Per the new York Timesown methodology notes: :
The bookselling world includes well-established sellers as well as emerging sellers. Places of sale for printed books include national, regional, and local chains representing thousands of storefronts; many hundreds of independent book retailers; numerous online and multimedia entertainment retailers; Supermarkets, universities, gift and big-box department stores; And news-stand.
What’s happening in YA?
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For the purpose of ease and clarity, the data I read for this piece is limited to the two lists easiest to track: the weekly YA hardcover list and the monthly YA paperback list. Titles from each of these lists were removed from their first January edition to their final June edition.
So far in 2026, the bestseller lists of YA titles have been, in a word, boring. It’s been completely white, and the same titles have dominated the list all year. We will see new titles come out, but it took a long time for those new titles to come out this year. In fact, perhaps what stands out about this year’s bestsellers in YA is just how anticipated it is, as well as how many titles are on the hardcover bestseller list. Same titles as the paperback list.
This raises some questions and concerns about the state of YA more broadly:
- If the same titles are appearing on the bestseller lists week after week, is it because fewer books are being sold, so the ones that are selling already have a higher chance of getting there? In other words, is it now harder for a new book from a new author or a mid-list author to see enough sales to make the list, even if the sales of those on the list themselves are not particularly high?
- The last question above is worth considering, given that there is regular crossover of best-selling titles in both formats. Sure, we know that Laura Nowlin and Lynn Painter’s books are selling. But are they really selling that many copies? Both Will the formats consistently land on both lists? Or are other books not selling? Are the sales numbers for YA such that it doesn’t take that many sales to get on one or both lists?
- Who’s buying YA books right now? Note, library sales are generally not counted in these lists (it would be if the library were purchasing from a reporting bookstore, but most libraries purchase their titles through a vendor that offers a discount). Many of these titles are titles that are older in their target audience – think ages 14+ or 16+ rather than 12+. Many also fall into the romance or romance category. Are the people who are buying books adults who are buying and reading these same genres that are published for adults? However the data has not been updated for quite some time. This was well documented during the era of evening. There is nothing wrong with adults buying or reading YA books. However, this does not reveal what books young adults are actually reading and buying. This also plays a big role in why YA feels like it’s in its messy adolescence, sometimes forgetting to appeal to the full range of adolescence rather than the years closest to adulthood. Entire states are trying to rebrand youth books in their public libraries as adult books – spreading the wrong message about who and what these books are for – doesn’t help.
- The question related to the above question is Where? These books are being sold. Not every community has an independent bookstore, nor a big-name store like Barnes & Noble. But many people have a Walmart, Target, or similar big box store with a book section. Adult readers purchasing their next romance or romance novel may not even know they are purchasing a young adult novel because so many covers of young adult and adult novels now look so similar.
- What role are special editions of these books playing? If all sales are counted together, if there are more options for designs, the item is more likely to sell. Those beautiful book covers and page designs will only help sell the book, if they aren’t also selling multiple editions of the book.
- Most of the books appearing on bestseller lists have been around for a long time. The new titles that have emerged are coming from the genres named above or from name-recognition YA authors—especially adults. Sarah Dessen has been writing YA for 30 years, and though she certainly still appeals to teen readers, most of those who are familiar with her and her work are now in adulthood.
- It’s interesting to see how different the bestselling YA titles are from those recognized as the strongest, most critically acclaimed this year (see the second part of this piece). Although this is not unusual, this year’s deviation has really stood out. This is especially true when considering how few books published in 2026 have a chance at any lists.
- Diversity in this list leaves one Very to be desired. This directly reflects both efforts to get these books on readers’ radar And Six years of direct attack on literature through book ban. Is it clear yet that after banned books are banned everyone is not rushing to buy them? The books disappear, and we watch the imprints that published them close down. We need diverse books that provide even more insight The voices of the global majority are still facing challenges in getting published..
So what has topped the list? First, let’s look at the two New York Times YA bestseller lists separately. Here’s a look at the books that are dominating the hardcover list. This is based on 26 weeks of lists since the beginning of the year, and note that some of these titles made their debut on this list before 2026 (so they are likely to remain on the list for longer than 26 weeks):
- fake skating By Lynn Painter, 26 weeks
- I wish I had told him By Laura Nowlin, 26 weeks
- starlight wings By Alison Saft, 20 weeks
- better than movies By Lynn Painter, 18 weeks
- sun and star maker By Rachel Griffin, 15 weeks
- A stage set for villains Shannon J. By span, 11 weeks
- beth is dead By Katie Burnett, 10 weeks
- divine rival By Rebecca Ross, 10 weeks
- racing games By Marissa Mayer and Tamara Moss, 10 weeks
- free me By Tahere Mafi, 10 weeks
Now on the monthly YA paperback bestseller list. There are six lists included in total, and as the hardcovers note above, some of these books have already been on the paperback bestseller lists since the beginning of the year. The count here is only for 2026.
No other title appeared on the YA paperback bestseller list more than twice.
As you’ll probably notice, there’s a lot of crossover between hardcover and paperback bestsellers. Lynn Painter and Laura Nowlin dominate Both. Painter has three books between the two lists (two of which are in both lists), and Nowlin has two books, one of which is in each list. In all six months of 2026, Painter and Nowlin have had at least one book on the list; Painter has had two books on both the lists each week and month this year.
However, they are not alone.
book thief Spent time on both the hardcover list and the paperback list this year. It remained on the paperback list for four months (February, April, May, and June) and it appeared on the hardcover list for five weeks (March 29, then April 5, 12, 19, and 26). A 20th anniversary special edition hardcover of the book was released in March this year.
If there are 320 “spaces” on the bestseller list in the six months of the year – 260 weekly and 60 monthly – then between the places taken by Painter’s titles (58) and Novellin’s (38), that is. Two authors make up 27% of all possible spots for bestsellers.
None of this is an indictment of either those authors or those books. Rather, it is intended to reflect the questions we should be considering about YA more broadly right now, as outlined above. A lot of new books are published every week. Why is Two so dominant on the (secret) lists of records?
Why is it that there is only one writer of color appearing at the top of these lists this year? While there are other writers from the color world who have included in the list in respectable numbers this year-you’ve got oliver Thao by Dustin was on the hardcover list for seven weeks storm breaker Nisha J. By Tuli, Three Weeks- The vast majority who make the list only make it for one week-behind the five willows By June Hur, dragon and sun lotus By Amelie Wen Zhao, eternal ruins By Tigest Girma, i can give you the moon By Ann Liang, swan’s daughter By Roshni Chokshi—or, if they’re lucky, two weeks—The Secret World of Briar Rose By Cindy Pham and young world By Soman Chainani. heir Ábíké-Íyímídé by Farida has spent the last two weeks of this data period on the list, and it is possible that the title will remain on the list going forward.
Even a small number of authors of color succeed on the monthly paperback list.
If it seems like the world of YA literature has gone weird lately, you’re probably not wrong. It’s not unusual for some titles to remain popular for so long, but it’s also unusual for so few authors to dominate for so long.
Of course, all this data is just that, but with the perspective of YA history as well as the current context of the category, there are plenty of questions to ask — and, perhaps, a reminder to continue promoting and championing a more inclusive range of titles more broadly. It’s also a reminder of what we’re losing as book bans continue: access to a range of voices and viewpoints for all readers.
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