One of my favorite things is the YA earworm. You know what it is: that book title which is the name of a song or the chorus of a song and whenever you see the book pop up, that song is suddenly in your head. Sometimes this is intentional but other times, it’s a complete coincidence that the book title matches a song.
I’ve written about 2019 YA earworms and 2020 YA earworms, and given that 2021 YA books seem to already be showing off their book tile song games, let’s take a look at the earworms to prepare for in the new year.
The book descriptions come from Goodreads, with the corresponding song pulled from YouTube. Enjoy!
2021 YA Book Titles That Are Also Song Titles
Cool for the Summer by Dahlia Adler (5/11)
Lara’s had eyes for exactly one person throughout her three years of high school: Chase Harding. He’s tall, strong, sweet, a football star, and frankly, stupid hot. Oh, and he’s talking to her now. On purpose and everything. Maybe…flirting, even? No, wait, he’s definitely flirting, which is pretty much the sum of everything Lara’s wanted out of life.
Except she’s haunted by a memory. A memory of a confusing, romantic, strangely perfect summer spent with a girl named Jasmine. A memory that becomes a confusing, disorienting present when Jasmine herself walks through the front doors of the school to see Lara and Chase chatting it up in front of the lockers.
Lara has everything she ever wanted: a tight-knit group of friends, a job that borders on cool, and Chase, the boy of her literal dreams. But if she’s finally got the guy, why can’t she stop thinking about the girl?
Pair it with Demi Leovato’s “Cool For The Summer”
I Think I Love You by Auriane Desombre (3/2)
A YA contemporary rom com about two girls who start as rivals but after a twist of events, end up falling for one another–at least they think so. A pitch perfect queer romance–and it’s a paperback original!
Arch-nemeses Emma, a die-hard romantic, and more-practical minded Sophia find themselves competing against one another for a coveted first-prize trip to a film festival in Los Angeles . . . what happens if their rivalry turns into a romance? For fans of Becky Albertalli’s Leah on the Offbeat, full of laugh-out-loud humor and make-your-heart-melt moments.
Pair it with The Partridge Family’s “I Think I Love You”
Mysterious Ways by Wendy Wunder (no pub date or cover yet!)
When 18-year-old Maya looks at someone, she instantly knows everything about them, which makes starting at a new school and meeting a guy she actually wants to be around more than a little challenging. No one would ever believe her superpower—so what happens when someone does, and challenges her to use it for good? Publication is set for fall 2021.
Pair it with U2’s “Mysterious Ways”
Rise To The Sun by Leah Johnson (No pub date or cover yet!)
Set over the course of four days at a music festival, the novel features strangers Toni and Olivia, who meet and realize that the music is more than just a way out; it’s a way through… if they are brave enough to face it together.
Pair it with Alabama Shakes’s “Rise To The Sun”
She Drives Me Crazy by Kelly Quindlen (April 20)
After losing spectacularly to her ex-girlfriend in their first game since their break up, Scottie Zajac gets into a fender bender with the worst possible person: her nemesis, the incredibly beautiful and incredibly mean Irene Abraham. Things only get worse when their nosey, do-gooder moms get involved and the girls are forced to carpool together until Irene’s car gets out of the shop.
Their bumpy start the only gets bumpier the more time they spend together. But when an opportunity presents itself for Scottie to get back at her toxic ex (and climb her school’s social ladder at the same time), she bribes Irene into playing along. Hijinks, heartbreak, and gay fake-dating scheme for the ages. From author Kelly Quindlen comes a new laugh-out-loud romp through the ups and downs of teen romance.
Pair it with Fine Young Cannibals, “She Drives Me Crazy”
Take Me Home Tonight by Morgan Matson (May 4, no cover or description yet!)
Since there’s no description yet, just know it’s a new Morgan Matson. Pair it with “Take Me Home Tonight” by Eddie Money.
Those Summer Nights by Laura Silverman (May, no official cover yet)
Hannah used to be all about focus, back before she shattered her ankle and her Olympic dreams in one bad soccer play. These days, she’s all about distraction—anything to keep the painful memories of her recent past at bay, including the string of bad decisions that landed her in a boarding school for troubled teens. Enter Bonanza, the local entertainment multiplex and site of Hannah’s summer employment. With its miniature golf, bowling alley, and arcade—not to mention her hot, flirty coworker Patrick—Bonanza seems like the perfect way to stay distracted. Until her boss announces the annual Bonanza tournament, a staff
competition that brings her past Olympic nightmares crashing back into her present.
On top of that, the Bonanza staff includes Brie, the ex–best friend she cut off last year, and Ethan, her brother’s best friend who suddenly glowed up into a hot, sensitive sweetheart who seems to accept her, even knowing her worst secrets. Under the neon lights of Bonanza, Hannah must decide whether she can find a way to discover a new self in the midst of her old life.
Pair it with “Summer Nights” from Grease.
With You All The Way by Cynthia Hand (3/30)
Ada’s sick of being the invisible good girl in her family. She’s just caught her boyfriend cheating on her after she said she wasn’t ready for sex, and she’s had it up to here with her perfect, beautiful older sister trying to give her advice, especially when that advice includes staying a virgin until she’s truly in love.
But all of that pales in comparison to what Ada discovers when her mom drags them to Hawaii for an annual surgeons’ conference: her mom is having an affair. Just like that, Ada’s whole world comes crashing down, all because it seems like no one can stop themselves from falling into bed with people they shouldn’t.
So Ada decides it’s time for her to do just that, and get sex over with. But what she thinks is one of her best laid plans doesn’t actually leave room for the truth: That feelings, romantic or not, always get in the way.
Pair it with New Edition’s “With You All The Way”
You Can Go Your Own Way by Eric Smith (Fall pub date and no official cover yet)
A YA romantic comedy about a boy trying to save his family’s aging pinball arcade, and a girl whose tech giant dad wants to buy it. When the two get stuck there during Philadelphia’s biggest-ever snowstorm, they’ll have to work together to make it out.
Pair this one with the Fleetwood Mac classic “Go Your Own Way.”