Your Favorite 21st Century Coming-of-Age Love Stories

This giveaway is sponsored by The Last Enchantments by Charles Finch. After graduating from Yale, William Baker, scion of an old line patrician family, goes to work in presidential politics.  But when the campaign into which he’s poured his heart ends in disappointment, he decides to leave New York behind, along with the devoted, ambitious, and well-connected woman he’s been in love with for the last four years. Will expects nothing more than a year off before resuming the comfortable life he’s always known, but he’s soon caught up in a whirlwind of unexpected friendships and romantic entanglements that threaten his safe plans. As he explores the heady social world of Oxford,  he becomes fast friends with Tom, his snobbish but affable flat mate;  Anil, an Indian economist with a deep love for gangster rap; Anneliese, a German historian obsessed with photography; and Timmo, whose chief ambition is to become a reality television star. What he’s least prepared for is Sophie, a witty, beautiful and enigmatic woman who makes him question everything he knows about himself. ___________________________ If the unending flow of news stories about Millennials is any indication, coming of age in the 21st century brings experiences, challenges, and relationship possibilities unlike those young people have encountered ever before. For this giveaway, we asked you to tell us about your favorite books about coming-of-age and falling in love in the 21st century. Your top three picks are: The Fault in Our Stars  by John Green Eleanor and Park  by Rainbow Rowell The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky These titles may not come as huge surprise, but the rest of the list is a real mix. Not every book you mentioned was actually about the 21st Century, but all were written within the last 14 years, so they definitely have a 21st century perspective on falling in love, and I’d say that counts. There are YA favorites alongside literary fiction bestsellers. But they are all about figuring out who you are and falling in love.  Take a look at the titles tickled your fancy:  An Abundance of Katherines and Looking for Alaska by John Green Timebound by Rysa Walker My Most Excellent Year by Steve Kluger Just Listen and This Lullaby by Sarah Dessen My Struggle (Books 1 and 2) by Karl Ove Knausgaard The Circle by Sara B. Elfgren and Mats Strandberg That Time I Joined The Circus by J.J. Howard Atonement by Ian McEwan Forever by Judy Blume Me Before You by Jojo Moyes Beach Music by Pat Conroy The Lover’s Dictionary by David Levithan Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan A Walk to Remember and The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks The Interestings by Meg Wolitzer Divergent (Series) by Veronica Roth Winter’s Tale by Mark Helprin The Monsters of Templeton by Lauren Groff The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger Harry Potter (Series) by J.K. Rowling To Be Sung Underwater by Tom McNeal Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro The Spectacular Now by Tom Tharp The Twilight Saga by Stephenie Meyer City of Thieves by David Benioff Rules of Civility by Amor Towles The Bookman’s Tale by Charlie Lovett The Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen The Savage Detectives by Robert Bolano Cartwheel by Jennifer duBois The Love Affairs of Nathaniel P. by Adelle Waldman Halo (Trilogy) by Alexandra Adornetto The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen Alif the Unseen by G. Willow Wilson Anthropology of an American Girl by Thayer Hamann A Map of Tulsa by Benjamin Lytal Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness All the Sad Young Literary Men by Keith Gessen Naomi and Ely’s No Kiss List by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan The Impossible Knife of Memory by Laurie Halse Anderson ________________________ Sign up for our newsletter to have the best of Book Riot delivered straight to your inbox every week. No spam. We promise. To keep up with Book Riot on a daily basis, follow us on Twitter, like us on Facebook, and subscribe to the Book Riot podcast in iTunes or via RSS. So much bookish goodness–all day, every day.