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The best novels set in the 1980s (1980-1989).
Fiction set by in by decade:
1900s, 1910s, 1920s, 1930s, 1940s
1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s
Fiction set by in by decade:
1900s, 1910s, 1920s, 1930s, 1940s
1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s
Score
A book’s total score is based on multiple factors, including the number of people who have voted for it and how highly those voters ranked the book.
| 100 |
|
Trust Exercise
by
Susan Choi (Goodreads Author)
3.12 avg rating — 38,996 ratings
score: 92,
and
1 person voted
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| 100 |
|
We Ride Upon Sticks
by
3.78 avg rating — 17,109 ratings
score: 92,
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1 person voted
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| 100 |
|
The Girl with the Red Balloon (The Balloonmakers, #1)
by
Katherine Locke (Goodreads Author)
3.76 avg rating — 5,640 ratings
score: 92,
and
1 person voted
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| 104 |
|
Somewhere Off the Coast of Maine
by
Ann Hood (Goodreads Author)
3.53 avg rating — 1,531 ratings
score: 91,
and
1 person voted
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| 104 |
|
Show and Prove
by
Sofia Quintero (Goodreads Author)
3.91 avg rating — 110 ratings
score: 91,
and
1 person voted
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| 104 |
|
Dogtag Summer
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3.72 avg rating — 222 ratings
score: 91,
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1 person voted
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| 107 |
|
Hunger in America
by
David Allan Cates (Goodreads Author)
3.73 avg rating — 11 ratings
score: 90,
and
1 person voted
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| 107 |
|
This Is Just a Test
by
Madelyn Rosenberg (Goodreads Author)
3.83 avg rating — 536 ratings
score: 90,
and
1 person voted
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| 109 |
|
A Girl of Forty
by
2.76 avg rating — 17 ratings
score: 89,
and
1 person voted
|
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| 109 |
|
Not Your All-American Girl
by
Wendy Wan-Long Shang (Goodreads Author)
4.18 avg rating — 585 ratings
score: 89,
and
1 person voted
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| 111 |
|
Plays Well with Others
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3.95 avg rating — 711 ratings
score: 88,
and
1 person voted
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| 111 |
|
'89 Walls
by
Katie Pierson (Goodreads Author)
3.51 avg rating — 356 ratings
score: 88,
and
1 person voted
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| 111 |
|
What a Way to Go
by
3.55 avg rating — 227 ratings
score: 88,
and
1 person voted
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| 114 |
|
The Easy Way Out
by
Stephen McCauley (Goodreads Author)
3.76 avg rating — 740 ratings
score: 87,
and
1 person voted
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| 114 |
|
The Rise and Fall of the Gallivanters
by
3.71 avg rating — 277 ratings
score: 87,
and
1 person voted
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| 114 |
|
The Story That Cannot Be Told
by
J. Kasper Kramer (Goodreads Author)
4.24 avg rating — 1,179 ratings
score: 87,
and
1 person voted
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| 117 |
|
The Object of My Affection
by
Stephen McCauley (Goodreads Author)
3.80 avg rating — 1,788 ratings
score: 86,
and
1 person voted
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| 117 |
|
The Carrie Diaries (The Carrie Diaries, #1)
by
Candace Bushnell (Goodreads Author)
3.56 avg rating — 39,293 ratings
score: 86,
and
1 person voted
|
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| 117 |
|
The True History of Lyndie B. Hawkins
by
Gail Shepherd (Goodreads Author)
4.16 avg rating — 457 ratings
score: 86,
and
1 person voted
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| 120 |
|
We Are Lost and Found
by
Helene Dunbar (Goodreads Author)
3.73 avg rating — 2,911 ratings
score: 85,
and
1 person voted
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| 121 |
|
Lost Boys
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4.04 avg rating — 584 ratings
score: 84,
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1 person voted
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| 122 |
|
The Last Days of Disco, With Cocktails at Petrossian Afterwards
by
3.84 avg rating — 299 ratings
score: 83,
and
1 person voted
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| 122 |
|
Revenge of a Not-So-Pretty Girl
by
3.59 avg rating — 216 ratings
score: 83,
and
1 person voted
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| 124 |
|
The Fundamentals of Play
by
3.23 avg rating — 359 ratings
score: 82,
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1 person voted
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| 124 |
|
Other Words for Love
by
Lorraine Zago Rosenthal (Goodreads Author)
3.86 avg rating — 3,492 ratings
score: 82,
and
1 person voted
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| 126 |
|
The Magical Imperfect
by
Chris Baron (Goodreads Author)
4.21 avg rating — 1,022 ratings
score: 80,
and
1 person voted
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| 127 |
|
The Impossible Fortress
by
Jason Rekulak (Goodreads Author)
3.78 avg rating — 12,388 ratings
score: 79,
and
1 person voted
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| 128 |
|
Last Dance at the Frosty Queen
by
3.89 avg rating — 239 ratings
score: 78,
and
1 person voted
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| 129 |
|
Paper Covers Rock
by
Jenny Hubbard (Goodreads Author)
3.38 avg rating — 2,357 ratings
score: 77,
and
1 person voted
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| 130 |
|
We Are Still Tornadoes
by
Michael Kun (Goodreads Author)
3.88 avg rating — 1,906 ratings
score: 76,
and
1 person voted
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| 131 |
|
Wivenhoe Park
by
Ben Vendetta (Goodreads Author)
3.97 avg rating — 87 ratings
score: 75,
and
1 person voted
|
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| 132 |
|
Nobody Was Here : Seventh Grade in the Life of Me, Penelope (Elston Prep, #1)
by
Alison Pollet (Goodreads Author)
3.48 avg rating — 283 ratings
score: 74,
and
1 person voted
|
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| 133 |
|
The Boy on the Bridge
by
Natalie Standiford (Goodreads Author)
3.24 avg rating — 888 ratings
score: 73,
and
1 person voted
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| 134 |
|
My Fat, Mad Teenage Diary (Rae Earl, #1)
by
3.73 avg rating — 4,486 ratings
score: 72,
and
1 person voted
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| 135 |
|
Screaming Divas
by
Suzanne Kamata (Goodreads Author)
3.41 avg rating — 83 ratings
score: 71,
and
1 person voted
|
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| 136 |
|
The Scar Boys (The Scar Boys, #1)
by
Len Vlahos (Goodreads Author)
3.77 avg rating — 2,513 ratings
score: 70,
and
1 person voted
|
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| 137 |
|
Rose Sees Red
by
Cecil Castellucci (Goodreads Author)
3.63 avg rating — 562 ratings
score: 69,
and
1 person voted
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| 138 |
|
The Guy, the Girl, the Artist and His Ex
by
3.74 avg rating — 603 ratings
score: 68,
and
1 person voted
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| 139 |
|
Butterfly
by
3.21 avg rating — 1,195 ratings
score: 67,
and
1 person voted
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| 140 |
|
Cape Town
by
Brenda Hammond (Goodreads Author)
really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 33 ratings
score: 66,
and
1 person voted
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| 141 |
|
Touching Snow
by
M. Sindy Felin (Goodreads Author)
3.63 avg rating — 426 ratings
score: 65,
and
1 person voted
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| 142 |
|
Picnic at Mount Disappointment
by
Melissa Bruce (Goodreads Author)
4.74 avg rating — 19 ratings
score: 64,
and
1 person voted
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| 143 |
|
Yesterday
by
C.K. Kelly Martin (Goodreads Author)
3.42 avg rating — 865 ratings
score: 63,
and
1 person voted
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| 144 |
|
Karma
by
Cathy Ostlere (Goodreads Author)
3.84 avg rating — 1,626 ratings
score: 62,
and
1 person voted
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| 145 |
|
Out of Shadows
by
Jason Wallace (Goodreads Author)
3.79 avg rating — 1,145 ratings
score: 61,
and
1 person voted
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| 146 |
|
Scowler
by
Daniel Kraus (Goodreads Author)
3.50 avg rating — 1,620 ratings
score: 60,
and
1 person voted
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| 147 |
|
Summer and the City (The Carrie Diaries, #2)
by
Candace Bushnell (Goodreads Author)
3.61 avg rating — 16,108 ratings
score: 58,
and
1 person voted
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| 148 |
|
The Book of Samuel
by
Erik Raschke (Goodreads Author)
3.54 avg rating — 48 ratings
score: 57,
and
1 person voted
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| 149 |
|
Surviving Santiago
by
Lyn Miller-Lachmann (Goodreads Author)
3.81 avg rating — 54 ratings
score: 56,
and
1 person voted
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| 150 |
|
Scar Girl (The Scar Boys, #2)
by
Len Vlahos (Goodreads Author)
3.95 avg rating — 131 ratings
score: 55,
and
1 person voted
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| 151 |
|
Lost Stars
by
Lisa Selin Davis (Goodreads Author)
3.33 avg rating — 902 ratings
score: 54,
and
1 person voted
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| 152 |
|
Believarexic
by
J.J. Johnson (Goodreads Author)
4.22 avg rating — 2,289 ratings
score: 53,
and
1 person voted
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| 153 |
|
The Agony of Bun O'Keefe
by
Heather Smith (Goodreads Author)
4.23 avg rating — 1,826 ratings
score: 52,
and
1 person voted
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| 154 |
|
The Incredible True Story of the Making of the Eve of Destruction
by
Amy Brashear (Goodreads Author)
liked it 3.00 avg rating — 284 ratings
score: 51,
and
1 person voted
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| 155 |
|
Tell Me No Lies
by
Adele Griffin (Goodreads Author)
3.51 avg rating — 215 ratings
score: 50,
and
1 person voted
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| 156 |
|
The Liars of Mariposa Island
by
Jennifer Mathieu (Goodreads Author)
3.34 avg rating — 1,100 ratings
score: 49,
and
1 person voted
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| 157 |
|
Rewind
by
Jan Page (Goodreads Author)
3.91 avg rating — 134 ratings
score: 48,
and
1 person voted
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| 158 |
|
Becoming Beatriz
by
Tami Charles (Goodreads Author)
4.05 avg rating — 439 ratings
score: 47,
and
1 person voted
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| 159 |
|
I Like You Like This
by
Heather Cumiskey (Goodreads Author)
3.62 avg rating — 301 ratings
score: 46,
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1 person voted
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| 160 |
|
The Sacrifice Box
by
Martin Stewart (Goodreads Author)
3.26 avg rating — 2,290 ratings
score: 45,
and
1 person voted
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| 161 |
|
Gravity
by
Leanne Lieberman (Goodreads Author)
3.59 avg rating — 898 ratings
score: 44,
and
1 person voted
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| 162 |
|
Laura & Emma
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3.20 avg rating — 3,598 ratings
score: 43,
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1 person voted
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| 163 |
|
Flesh and Bone and Water
by
Luiza Sauma (Goodreads Author)
3.62 avg rating — 1,248 ratings
score: 42,
and
1 person voted
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| 164 |
|
The House of Impossible Beauties
by
Joseph Cassara (Goodreads Author)
3.86 avg rating — 4,702 ratings
score: 41,
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1 person voted
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| 165 |
|
Age of Consent
by
Amanda Brainerd (Goodreads Author)
3.11 avg rating — 1,176 ratings
score: 40,
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1 person voted
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| 166 |
|
Sag Harbor
by
Colson Whitehead (Goodreads Author)
3.56 avg rating — 11,502 ratings
score: 39,
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1 person voted
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| 167 |
|
Swimming in the Dark
by
Tomasz Jedrowski (Goodreads Author)
4.25 avg rating — 72,070 ratings
score: 38,
and
1 person voted
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| 168 |
|
Silver Sparrow
by
Tayari Jones (Goodreads Author)
3.90 avg rating — 45,436 ratings
score: 37,
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1 person voted
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| 169 |
|
The Last Book Party
by
Karen Dukess (Goodreads Author)
3.27 avg rating — 10,004 ratings
score: 36,
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1 person voted
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| 170 |
|
No Cream Puffs
by
Karen Day (Goodreads Author)
4.01 avg rating — 684 ratings
score: 35,
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1 person voted
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| 171 |
|
Skateway to Freedom
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3.23 avg rating — 22 ratings
score: 34,
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1 person voted
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| 172 |
|
Charlie (Snowy Cove, #1)
by
Dalya Moon (Goodreads Author)
3.51 avg rating — 170 ratings
score: 33,
and
1 person voted
|
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| 173 |
|
Band Fags!
by
Frank Anthony Polito (Goodreads Author)
3.77 avg rating — 579 ratings
score: 32,
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1 person voted
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| 174 |
|
I Survived the Eruption of Mount St. Helens, 1980
by
4.12 avg rating — 4,557 ratings
score: 31,
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1 person voted
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| 175 |
|
The Year Money Grew on Trees
by
3.93 avg rating — 847 ratings
score: 30,
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1 person voted
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| 176 |
|
Life in Miniature
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3.34 avg rating — 242 ratings
score: 29,
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1 person voted
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| 177 |
|
You Are One of Them
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3.48 avg rating — 4,626 ratings
score: 28,
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1 person voted
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| 178 |
|
Disgruntled
by
3.66 avg rating — 1,424 ratings
score: 27,
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1 person voted
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| 179 |
|
Come Dancing (Jack and Julia #1)
by
Leslie Wells (Goodreads Author)
3.59 avg rating — 381 ratings
score: 26,
and
1 person voted
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| 180 |
|
Dancer, Daughter, Traitor, Spy (The Bolshoi Saga #1)
by
Elizabeth Kiem (Goodreads Author)
3.13 avg rating — 686 ratings
score: 25,
and
1 person voted
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| 181 |
|
Forgive Me If I've Told You This Before
by
Karelia Stetz-Waters (Goodreads Author)
4.08 avg rating — 813 ratings
score: 24,
and
1 person voted
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| 182 |
|
A Long Walk to Water
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4.25 avg rating — 100,861 ratings
score: 23,
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1 person voted
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| 183 |
|
Snow Lane
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3.77 avg rating — 472 ratings
score: 22,
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1 person voted
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| 184 |
|
Signal to Noise
by
Silvia Moreno-Garcia (Goodreads Author)
3.74 avg rating — 4,851 ratings
score: 21,
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1 person voted
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| 185 |
|
The Possibility of Fireflies
by
Dominique Paul (Goodreads Author)
3.70 avg rating — 710 ratings
score: 20,
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1 person voted
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| 186 |
|
The Year Nick McGowan Came to Stay
by
3.63 avg rating — 1,494 ratings
score: 19,
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1 person voted
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| 187 |
|
All the Secrets of the World
by
Steve Almond (Goodreads Author)
3.85 avg rating — 778 ratings
score: 18,
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1 person voted
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| 188 |
|
Wave: A Novel in Verse
by
Diana Farid (Goodreads Author)
4.11 avg rating — 630 ratings
score: 17,
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1 person voted
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| 189 |
|
Scouts
by
Shannon Greenland (Goodreads Author)
3.83 avg rating — 988 ratings
score: 16,
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1 person voted
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| 190 |
|
The Center of Everything
by
Laura Moriarty (Goodreads Author)
3.68 avg rating — 10,490 ratings
score: 15,
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1 person voted
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| 191 |
|
Coachella
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3.88 avg rating — 26 ratings
score: 14,
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1 person voted
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| 192 |
|
Walks With Men
by
2.72 avg rating — 1,900 ratings
score: 13,
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1 person voted
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| 193 |
|
The Age
by
Nancy Lee (Goodreads Author)
3.56 avg rating — 118 ratings
score: 12,
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1 person voted
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| 194 |
|
Every Other Weekend
by
Zulema Renee Summerfield (Goodreads Author)
3.48 avg rating — 896 ratings
score: 11,
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1 person voted
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| 195 |
|
Plainsong
by
3.42 avg rating — 132 ratings
score: 10,
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1 person voted
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| 196 |
|
Alma Presses Play
by
3.44 avg rating — 288 ratings
score: 9,
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1 person voted
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| 197 |
|
Time After Time (Time After Time, #1)
by
4.15 avg rating — 153 ratings
score: 8,
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1 person voted
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| 198 |
|
The Perfect Golden Circle
by
Benjamin Myers (Goodreads Author)
3.90 avg rating — 5,129 ratings
score: 7,
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1 person voted
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| 199 |
|
Her Rebel Highness (Daughters of the Dynasty, #2)
by
Diana Ma (Goodreads Author)
3.96 avg rating — 204 ratings
score: 6,
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1 person voted
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| 200 |
|
I Must Betray You
by
Ruta Sepetys (Goodreads Author)
4.40 avg rating — 94,343 ratings
score: 5,
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1 person voted
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204 books ·
86 voters ·
list created January 26th, 2012
by Kelli Robinson (votes) .
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Rainbowheart
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Dec 02, 2021 11:17AM
I removed The Perks of Being a Wallflower because it's set in the early '90s.
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