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RI Teen Book Award: Current RITBA Nominees

The goal of the Rhode Island Teen Book Award is to promote quality literature for teens by highlighting well-written books that will be of interest to those between the ages of 12 and 18 years of age.

RITBA 2026 Nominees

East Greenwich school libraries have access to audio and eBooks. If our school library owns a copy of an audio book or eBook, a link has been made to the book title. To access the digital resource, click on the book title link and enter the following:
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Password: EGR

Becoming a Queen by Dan Clay

Gay teen Mark Davis turns toward love, self-expression, and the power of drag to overcome grief when the unthinkable happens.

Print copy available from East Greenwich Free Library

eBook available from EGHS Library

Bright Red Fruit by Safia Elhillo

A novel in verse about Samira's journey into the slam poetry scene and the dangerous new relationship that could threaten all her dreams.

Print copy available from East Greenwich Free Library

eBook available from EGHS Library

Audiobook available from EGHS Library

Call Me Iggy by Jorge Aguirre & Rafael Rosado

Colombian American teen Iggy searches for his place in his family, his school, his community, and ultimately, his country - with a little help from the ghost of his abuelito.

Print copy available from East Greenwich Free Library

eBook available from EGHS Library

Audiobook available from EGHS Library

 

The Color of a Lie by Kim Johnson

In 1955, a Black family passes for white and moves to a “Whites Only” town in the suburbs, but Calvin puts his family at risk as he uncovers the town’s racist secrets.

Print copy available from East Greenwich Free Library

eBook available from EGHS Library

Audiobook available from EGHS Library

 

A Deathly Compendium of Poisonous Plants by Rebecca Hirsch 

This entertaining compendium delves into nature's deadliest plants and their fascinating histories as implements of medicine, warfare, and foul play.

Print copy available from East Greenwich Free Library

eBook available from EGHS Library

Audiobook available from EGHS Library

 

Everything We Never Had by Randy Ribay

In this emotionally charged, moving novel, four generations of Filipino American boys grapple with identity, masculinity, and their fraught father-son relationships.

Print copy available from East Greenwich Free Library

eBook available from EGHS Library

Audiobook available from EGHS Library

 

Full Shift: a Graphic Novel by Jennifer Dugan

Equal parts action-packed and full of laughs, this graphic novel explores found family, the charm and intensity of first crushes, and what it means to truly embrace who you are.

Print copy available from East Greenwich Free Library

eBook available from EGHS Library

Audiobook available from EGHS Library

Gather by Kenneth M Cadow

A resourceful teenager in rural Vermont struggles to hold on to the family home while his mom recovers from addiction in this striking debut novel.

Print copy available from East Greenwich Free Library

eBook available from EGHS Library

Audiobook available from EGHS Library

 

The Great Cool Ranch Dorito in the Sky by Josh Glarza

Ever since cancer invaded his adoptive mother’s life, Brett feels like he’s losing everything, most of all control.

Print copy available from East Greenwich Free Library

eBook available from EGHS Library

Audiobook available from EGHS Library

 

Greymist Fair by Francesca Zappia

This suspenseful and inventive murder mystery is infused with magic and inspired by the lesser-known fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm.

Print copy available from East Greenwich Free Library

eBook available from EGHS Library

Audiobook available from EGHS Library

 

Homebody by Theo Parish

Theo tells the heartwarming story of discovering how to live life on their own terms through beautiful illustrations and lyrical text.

Print copy available from East Greenwich Free Library

eBook available from EGHS Library

Audiobook available from EGHS Library

 

I Shall Never Fall in Love by Hari Conner

A romantic graphic novel mash-up of Jane Austen novels—where two friends discover their feelings for each other and find a space in their world for their love and identity.

Print copy available from East Greenwich Free Library

eBook available from EGHS Library

Audiobook available from EGHS Library

Icarus by K Ancrum

Seventeen year old Icarus breaks into an art collector's home to steal valuable artworks and replace them with forgeries created by his father in this reimagined myth.

Print copy available from East Greenwich Free Library

eBook available from EGHS Library

Audiobook available from EGHS Library

The Invocations by Krystal Sutherland

A darkly seductive witchy thriller where, though both men and demons lurk in shadows, girls refuse to go quietly into the night.

Print copy available from East Greenwich Free Library

eBook available from EGHS Library

Audiobook available from EGHS Library

Looking for Smoke by K A Cobell

Four teens are suspects in their friend’s murder on the Blackfeet Reservation in Montana in this thriller told through all four points of view.

Print copy available from East Greenwich Free Library

eBook available from EGHS Library

Audiobook available from EGHS Library

The Maid and the Crocodile by Jordan Ifueko

Orphaned Small Sade, a curse-eater, fights to make a home for herself while contending with a cursed god in this novel set in the same world as the Raybearer series.

Print copy available from East Greenwich Free Library

eBook available from EGHS Library

Audiobook available from EGHS Library

Shadowed by Carl Deuker

Nate forges a tentative relationship with outcast neighbor, Lucas, through one on one basketball games before they join a team and Nate learns that life is about more than just getting ready for the next game.

Print copy available from East Greenwich Free Library

eBook available from EGHS Library

Audiobook available from EGHS Library

Six Truths and a Lie by Ream Shukairy

Six Muslim teens are falsely accused of a deadly attack in this timely and harrowing examination of America’s justice system.

Print copy available from East Greenwich Free Library

eBook available from EGHS Library

Audiobook available from EGHS Library

Twenty-Four Seconds from Now ... by Jason Reynolds

Neon and Aria are ready to take their relationship to the next level, if Neon can just get out of his own head (and the bathroom he has locked himself in).

Print copy available from East Greenwich Free Library

eBook available from EGHS Library

Audiobook available from EGHS Library

The Wilderness of Girls by Madeline Claire Franklin

Rhi discovers a pack of feral girls in the woods and is swept up in the ensuing mystery in this exploration of trauma, found family and the possibility of magic.

Print copy available from East Greenwich Free Library

eBook available from EGHS Library

Audiobook available from EGHS Library

The Rhode Island Teen Book Award

The goal of the Rhode Island Teen Book Award is to promote quality literature for teens by highlighting well-written books that will be of interest to those between the ages of 12 and 18 years of age.  It is the hope of the committee that by allowing teens to select the winner from each year's list of nominees, teens will be encouraged to not only read more, but also discuss the books they are reading with their friends and family at school, the local library, and at home. 

For more information visit the RITBA website

Please remember that not all books are suitable for all readers.

2026 Annotated List

RITBA 2026 Nominees Flyer