Calling all ballerinas, comedians, theater kids, and overall lovers of the spotlight… This fall, join Nettie Delaney and Haylah Swinton for moving and candid stories about life on the stage. Despite dealing with bullies and tense relationships with family and friends behind the scenes, these two talented female artists will do whatever it takes to make it big. So if you love these binge-worthy new YA titles, read on for even more thrilling, can’t-put-them-down stories about life in the performing arts.
Pretty Funny for a Girl
by Rebecca Elliott
Haylah Swinton is an ace best friend, a loving daughter, and an incredibly patient sister to a four-year-old nutcase of a brother. Best of all, she’s set on being a stand-up comedian star. But when impossibly cool and thirstalicious Leo reveals he’s also into comedy and asks Haylah to ghostwrite his sets, will Haylah find the confidence to step into the spotlight and strut like the boss she really is? Rebecca Elliott’s hilarious and authentic journey of family, friends, and fierce mistakes is sure to capture readers’ hearts as her plus-sized, teenage heroine navigates learning to love the body she’s in.
Sing Like No One’s Listening
by Vanessa Jones
Nettie Delaney has just been accepted into a prestigious performing arts school—the very same school her superstar mother attended. But Nettie hasn’t been able to sing a single note since her mother died, and if she’s going to survive a demanding first year and keep her place at Duke’s, she’ll have to work through her grief and deliver a showstopper or face expulsion. Can Nettie summon the courage to find her voice? Or will the pressure and anxiety of performing come crashing down? Vanessa Jones’s well-crafted journey of grief and healing is sure to be a pure joy for any musical theater aficionado.
Macmillan Publishers
When Claudia accidentally witnesses the breakup of Paige and Iris, the schools it-couple, Claudia becomes a target for Iris’ revenge. Iris is already known for her icy personality, and getting on her bad side is the last thing Claudia wants. So when the two find themselves forced to pair up for their class production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Claudia knows she’s in for a wild ride of a senior year. Featuring a realistic world of new friendships, tense feuds, and tentative romance, all while dealing with the high-stakes world of the performing arts, Emma Mill’s Foolish Hearts is a must-read to follow up Nettie and Haylah’s stories of acceptance and self-confidence.
Abrams Books
Jordan Sun has just begun her junior year at the Kensington-Blaine Boarding School for the Performing Arts, and as an Alto 2, she’s already off to a rocky start. She may have earned her spot in a prestigious performing arts program, but her talents seem to always get passed over during the fall musical for a more stereotypical vocalist. But when Kensington’s elite, all-male a cappella group announces an opening, it turns out Jordan might be exactly what the Sharpshooters are looking for… With just the right amount of vocals to satisfy Sing Like No One’s Listening fans and enough comedy to have Pretty Funny for a Girl readers laughing out loud, Noteworthy is an ideal read for future performing artists.
On the Come Up
by Angie Thomas
HarperCollins Publishers
Bri wants to be one of the greatest rappers of all time, but her path to stardom is both in the shadow of her talented father and filled with more than her fair share of obstacles. When her first song goes viral—for all the wrong reasons—Bri finds herself labeled as a notorious and angry artist from a troubled background. This new persona may promise financial security for her struggling family, but are the consequences of her newly achieved fame really worth it? As both a heavy and joyous story of fighting for your dreams in an often-hostile world of performing in the public eye, On the Come Up proves a powerful companion to Sing Like No One’s Listening and Pretty Funny for a Girl.
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