June 10, 2024, 9:45 a.m.
Teen fiction has a unique way of capturing the essence of adolescence, a period brimming with raw emotions, transformative experiences, and the quest for identity. Whether it's the thrill of first love, the sting of heartbreak, or the journey of self-discovery, teen fiction offers readers a mirror to their own lives as well as an escape into new worlds. In this collection, we've gathered 36 of the most poignant quotes from beloved teen fiction novels that encapsulate the beauty and the tumult of teenage years. Each quote is a testament to the power of storytelling and its ability to resonate with readers of all ages, making these moments immortal. Dive in and rediscover the magic of teen fiction through these unforgettable words.
1. “Maybe love, unfathomable love, was too much for people, so they had traded it for something easier.” - Gwenn Wright
2. “They say love is blind...but it isn't. Love is perfect sight. Love is the ability to see a person, I mean really see him-his strengths, his weaknesses, his flaws, all his past triumphs and mistakes-and view that person not as the world says you're supposed to see him, but as you see him-as that special someone you know you will always embrace, body and soul, no matter what anyone else says or thinks I know I can't tell anyone what I've been through. I know they wouldn't understand. They don't see him the way that I see him. All they know is the legend, the darkness. They don't know the inner beauty, the warmth and the joy more intense than anything I ever thought was possible to experience. They don't know the truth behind the name. My angel. My only. Lucifer.” - Marlon Pierre-Antoine
3. “I have a curse.I HAVE A GIFT.I'm a monster.I'M MORE THAN HUMAN.My touch Is lethal.MY TOUCH IS POWER.I am their weapon.I WILL FIGHT BACK.” - Tahereh Mafi
4. “They said she killed herself.Everyone was saying It. What started out as a rumor, quietly whispered among small gatherings of polite people, quickly grew into something that was openly discussed in a large gatherings of impolite people. I was so sick of hearing them talk about It. They questioned me. Over and over again, trying to find out If i knew what happened. But my answers didn't change. Yet It never failed-someone else would ask, as if one day my reply would suddenly be different. I didn't know, but i should have...and I've been haunted ever since.” - Jessica Verday
5. “Anyone? On Snow's visit before the Victory Tour, he challenged me to erase any doubts of my love for Peeta. "Convince me," Snow said. It seems, under that hot pink sky with Peeta's life in limbo, I finally did. And In doing so, I gave him the weapon he needed to break me.” - Suzanne Collins
6. “Too many adults wish to 'protect' teenagers when they should be stimulating them to read of life as it is lived.” - Margaret A. Edwards
7. “In the woods lay a bleeding angel in all her glory. Her arms posed gracefully above her head and her hair soaked in the mud, the blood and feces in which she lay. Dying, fading into the other realm, her form christened by the rain as though the trees had begun to weep upon her in sadness for the brutality she had endured. (The Children of Ankh series)” - Kim Cormack
8. “Kayn began to speak as if she were reading his obituary. “I can see the paper now; it would read something like this; Kevin Smith was a wonderful boy so smart and good looking but a little clumsy. Had he simply tied up his shoes he would have never tripped down the stairs and found himself impaled on a janitor’s broom. Remember kids; tie your shoes; safety first.” (The Children of Ankh series)” - Kim Cormack
9. “Out of misery, comes unexpected joy.” - Milly Silver
10. “The waiter repeated, "The cocktails are from Mr Seadon. He asked me to tell you that he thought you'd enjoy them. They are called Secrets.” - Milly Silver
11. “Who would want to be the prey in a world full of hunters?” - Alexia Purdy
12. “As a Cambion, balance is paramount. Never lose control, never allow emotions to run wild, and never, ever forget who you are and what lives within you. Such discipline requires a sound mind, a thick skin, and a high tolerance for all things weird, because one wrong move and it’s over. No matter how tempting it is at first, in the end, there’s nothing more tragic, more excruciating than losing yourself.Well, except maybe high school.” - sam
13. “Why can't a girl just want to know stuff and not do stuff?” - Ellen Mulholland
14. “Before we go on from here, I just want to say," he paused and took a step closer to me and reached his hand out to my heart. "What I should have said back on the plane is I know you're real." His eyes narrowed, "I'll always fight for you, Lexi, in my own way.” - S.G. Holster
15. “You're not safe with me."He cut me off, seeming to growl. "I don't want to be safe. I want to be with you. You can't do this alone.” - S.G. Holster
16. “Is there one in particular, Tennyson?” Henry said, ducking out from under her arm. “I could arrange a meeting.” “Yeah, the one from Texas…what’s his name?”“That would be Dylan. But he’s a nice guy and you’d break his heart. He dropped out of Texas A&M to come up here and saddle bum around with my horses year-round. Knowing your dad, I think you’d better be looking for a pre-med honors student.”“Leave my dad out of this.” - Laura Anderson Kurk
17. “It was the first time I discovered that some girls actually sneak out of the house during slumber parties and meet up with boys. I would’ve never known if I hadn’t gone to the bathroom at midnight and caught Macy and Adrienne climbing through the bathroom window. They had on eyeliner, perfume, and cut-off shorts. Their only goodbye a glare that promised retribution if I didn’t keep my mouth shut.” - Laura Anderson Kurk
18. “My mom was sitting at the kitchen table. She’d set her coffee down, making a noise that made me look her way. I’d begun to notice her less and less often, like her colors were fading and blending in with walls. She was shrinking. Or maybe her sphere of influence in the family was shrinking. My dad glanced at her, too, and then wrote something on a napkin. He slid it across the counter to me—Don’t worry. Come home in one piece. Have fun and act like a sixteen-year-old for a change.” - Laura Anderson Kurk
19. “I’ve known her long enough to know that this was purely intentional.” He peered sideways at me, judging my reaction. “I like her just fine, but you should watch yourself around her. Tennyson is given to obsession, and her obsessions tend to run toward trouble. It’s kind of a Wyoming thing to push the whole ‘Wild West’ routine to its limits.” - Laura Anderson Kurk
20. “The ice cold fear I’d felt, not knowing if Wyatt was alive, pressed into the wall with other girls and surrounded by guys who were unspeakably brave, hit my body again in a wave. This was trauma—the gift that keeps on giving.” - Laura Anderson Kurk
21. “Every moment of our lives we make choices. Most we don’t even know we’re making, they’re so dull or routine or automatic. Some are beyond explanation—like my mom choosing Wyatt’s memory over Dad and me.” - Laura Anderson Kurk
22. “I found I could only glance at him for tiny moments and then I had to look away. He was perfect enough to hurt my feelings for a long time, and I wanted to let him.” - Laura Anderson Kurk
23. “I pretended to be a Cheyenne guide. I pretended to be a prairie woman. I pretended Henry was my old-timey husband taking me to our new homestead. I leaned down and patted Trouble’s neck. “Good boy,” I said. “Trusty steed.” - Laura Anderson Kurk
24. “I smiled at him. Not even Wyatt would have known how to be this honorable when talking about a girl that had hurt him.” - Laura Anderson Kurk
25. “Here was what I wanted to happen when I walked through the door after my first real date and my first ever kiss. I wanted my mom to say, “Dear God, Meg, you’re glowing. Sit and tell me about this boy. He let you borrow his jacket? That’s so adorable.” Instead, I came off the high of that day by writing a letter to my dead brother and doing yoga between my twin beds, trying to forget my absent mother.” - Laura Anderson Kurk
26. “On the best nights, he’d appear outside the bookstore window and wait for me to unlock the door. He usually hadn’t had time to shower between doing things with cattle and horses and coming to find me, and he looked older than us and stronger than us.” - Laura Anderson Kurk
27. “Sometimes, in the stillness of my room, my mom’s voice came to me, repeating things she’d said for months. Like, “My skin is melting off my face, isn’t it?” And, “My whole body feels dead from the crap they’re pouring into me. Do I look green to you?” And, “When I’m naked, I can see my heart beating.” - Laura Anderson Kurk
28. “Meg,” he whispered. “It wouldn’t be real love if there weren’t the possibility for another response to him. If we couldn’t choose not to love him, then our love would be empty. That’s why there’s evil in this world, because there’s free choice in this world. He allows the one to prove the other.” - Laura Anderson Kurk
29. “Next to the first Henry and Meg, Henry had written, “Promise?” Well, that genie’s out of the bottle and there’s no stuffing her back in.” - Laura Anderson Kurk
30. “With a damp palm, I turned the knob and cracked open the door. She was asleep in her freshly made bed. I can’t explain how relieved I felt for this simple mercy. She was here and safe on clean sheets.” - Laura Anderson Kurk
31. “I could’ve gone on and on but the truth was all that mattered. “My brother died because someone was jealous.” - Laura Anderson Kurk
32. “Then let me be your mercy,” he said. “I’ll never be able to give you smart answers about why we suffer, but I can come into your world and try to be some kind of help to you.” - Laura Anderson Kurk
33. “We all think when we’re young that we want excitement and highs and passion. To hell with ordinary.”I smiled and she chuckled. “But when we find ourselves in these adult bodies,” she said. “When we wise up a little, or get slapped in the face by life, we realize we just want all things to be equal.” She put the heels of her hands together near her heart like the Yoga prayer position. “And we want to understand them better.” - Laura Anderson Kurk
34. “We bumped into other silent lines of kids going in the same direction. We looked like we were much younger and our lines were headed to the cafeteria or recess or the carpool line. Or it could’ve been a fire drill. Except for the stone-faced police officers weaving between us with rifles.” - Laura Anderson Kurk
35. “His room was dark until he switched on his desk lamp. I sat on the floor next to his bed and watched him counting clothes and considering shoes. He seemed so boyish right then—like he wished his mom would just come in and pack for him. I couldn’t possibly love him any more than I did at that moment.” - Laura Anderson Kurk
36. “All you need is one thought and one word. When you learn how to connect them, you can do anything you like.” - Jennifer Loiske