YA Retellings

Folklore

Travelers Along the Way: A Robin Hood Remix by Amina Mae Safi: As the title indicates, this book is a retelling of the Robin Hood folk tales. Set during the Third Crusade, Robin is portrayed by a female Muslim teenager named Rahma al-Hud who, along with her merry band of misfits, works to secure Jerusalem from Richard the Lionheart and the false Queen Isabella by using a combination of cunning, wit, and thievery. Despite the dark wartime setting, this book is a quick read filled with fun and humor and much more focused on familial love and friendship than romance. And if you like this one, be sure to check out the other titles in the Remixed Classics series!

Strike the Zither

Joan He

The Wrath and the Dawn

Renee Ahdieh

Fairy Tales

Skin of the Sea by Natasha Bowen: This Little Mermaid retelling is set in the mid-1400s at the beginning of the slave trade and is full of West African mythology and history. Simi is a Mami Wata (mermaid) whose job is to collect and bless the souls of those who die at sea. When she unknowingly defies an ancient decree, she must journey to the Supreme Creator to apologize and save the other Mami Wata, but there are others who will do whatever they can to make sure she fails. This story was incredibly creative and compelling and did a great job of portraying a culture and history that is so often overlooked. If you enjoy this one, don’t miss its sequel, Soul of the Deep!

Stepsister

Jennifer Donnelly

At Midnight: 15 Beloved Fairy Tales Reimagined

Edited by: Dahlia Adler

Classic Novels

The Weight of Blood by Tiffany D. Jackson: In this retelling of Stephen King’s classic Carrie, Maddy Washington is a bullied, biracial teen in small-town Georgia who is forced to pass herself as white by her overzealous father. When people find out, the bullying only gets worse. Then she discovers a power she never knew she had, a power that will change Maddy and her town forever. I’ve personally never been a huge horror fan, but I still thought this novel was very well done. It adds to the story by bringing in modern technology and all the consequences that go along with it in a town grappling with the lingering effects of the Jim Crow era. Fair warning: This book is very dark and definitely not for the faint of heart!

A Blade So Black

L.L. McKinney

One for All

Lillie Lainoff

Shakespeare

These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong: This Romeo and Juliet retelling makes the titular characters heirs to two rival gangs in 1920s Shanghai. When a deadly and unexplainable contagion starts ripping its way through the city, they are forced to team up in order to save the place they both call home. It was interesting to see how the author took the original story and infused it with the effects of other major events of the era, as well as how she altered some of the major plot points while still staying true to the play. If you like this one, try the sequel, Our Violent Ends!

That Way Madness Lies: Fifteen of Shakespeare’s Most Notable Works Reimagined

Dahlia Adler

Enter the Body

Joy McCullough