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The Best Children’s and YA Books of July 2020

by the Brightly Editors

Background image: Iliveinoctober/Shutterstock

Summer reading is in full swing, and we’ve rounded up the best reads for all ages to keep your household unplugged and entertained. Featuring picture books counting down to the new school year, middle grade reads both magical and myth-busting, and YA novels too thrilling to pause, the best new books of July will tide over you and yours until we meet again.

  • Young Adult

  • Burn Our Bodies Down

    by Rory Power

    “I think I’d give anything to know what happened to leave her like this,” writes 17-year-old Margot of her mother, Josephine, “As long as it’s not waiting to happen to me.” Having grown up with no other family members and no past to speak of, Margot is desperate for roots — so when an old photograph reveals her mother’s hometown of Phalene, there’s only one place to go. This eerie thriller builds to a shocking twist.
    (On Sale: 7/7/2020)

  • Escape Room

    by Maren Stoffels

    Escape rooms are all fun and games — unless there’s no way out. For Alissa, Sky, Miles, and Mint, what’s meant to be 60 minutes of entertainment turns into a profound nightmare. Who is the Game Master, and how can they beat him at his own game?
    (On Sale: 7/7/2020)

  • Unravel the Dusk

    by Elizabeth Lim

    In the thrilling sequel to Spin the Dawn, war looms for Maia’s kingdom, and the boy she loves, Edan, is missing. Trapped in the palace and forced to play the part of the emperor’s bride, Maia begins to notice that her magic is slipping away from her and taking on a life of its own.
    (On Sale: 7/7/2020)

  • He Must Like You

    by Danielle Younge-Ullman

    If you were having the year Libby’s having, you’d probably dump a pitcher of sangria on capital-C creep Perry Ackerman, too. But Libby’s outburst — coming on the heels of her brother’s decampment to Greece with his college money — inspires her dad to kick her out of the house. Righteously angry at the men in her life, Libby’s also (confusingly, but undeniably) crushing on her former coworker Kyle.
    (On Sale: 7/14/20)

  • This Is My America

    by Kim Johnson

    For the past 10 years, 17-year-old Tracy Beaumont has been writing letters, pleading for her innocent father’s release from death row. When her brother is accused of murder and goes on the run, Tracy is determined to save her family, no matter what it costs her. Bestselling author Nic Stone calls this novel a “searing examination of the often tragic collision of racism and a flawed criminal justice system.”
    (On Sale: 7/28/20)