Tearjerkers
Books to make you cry, just a little
These titles are classified as Teen High School (TH) and can be found in the Teen section of the library.
 
All My Rage
by Sabaa Tahir

When his attempts to save his family's motel spiral out of control, Salahudin and his best friend Noor, two outcasts in their town, must decide what their friendship is worth and how they can defeat the monsters of their past and in their midst.
The Words We Keep
by Erin Stewart

After her sister Alice was found hurting herself, Lily, who has secret compulsions of her own, learns the healing powers of art while working with a new student who was in the same treatment program as her sister.
A Year to the Day
by Robin Benway

A year after her sister Nina's death and still unable to imagine a world without her, Leo forms a friendship with Nina's boyfriend East based on their shared grief, only to discover he knows more about the accident than he is letting on.
Four for the Road
by K. J. Reilly

When seventeen-year-old Asher embarks on a road trip from New Jersey to Graceland to get revenge on the drunk driver who killed his mom, he brings along three new friends from his bereavement groups.
I Must Betray You
by Ruta Sepetys

In a country governed by isolation, fear, and a tyrannical dictator, seventeen-year-old Cristian Florescu is blackmailed by the secret police to become an informer, but he decides to use his position to try to outwit his handler, undermine the regime, give voice to fellow Romanians, and expose to the world what is happening in his country. 
The Blossom and the Firefly
by Sherri L. Smith

A talented violinist in 1945 Japan spends his final eight days before a fatal kamikaze mission in the company of a young woman who has been struggling with trauma after being buried alive in a bombing raid.
The Last Words We Said
by Leah Scheier

Nine months after Danny disappeared, his closest friends, Ellie, Rae, and Deenie, deal with their loss very differently but will have to share secrets about the night he disappeared to uncover the truth. 
We Are Not Free
by Traci Chee

Growing up together in the community of Japantown, San Francisco, four second-generation Japanese American teens find their bond tested by widespread discrimination and the mass incarcerations of people of Japanese ancestry during World War II. 
 
Instructions for Dancing
by Nicola Yoon

Experiencing visions of heartbreak and trying to understand why this is happening, Evie signs up for lessons at a dance studio, where she falls for her dance partner, forcing her to question all she thought she knew about life and love.
We Were Liars
by E. Lockhart

Spending the summers on her family's private island off the coast of Massachusetts with her cousins and a special boy named Gat, teenaged Cadence struggles to remember what happened during her fifteenth summer.
How to Make Friends with the Dark
by Kathleen Glasgow

A powerful tale about love and loss follows the experiences of a girl who struggles with depression and difficulties with moving forward after the loss of her mother. 
Sorry for Your Loss
by Jessie Ann Foley

Pup Flanagan routinely settles for less and since his brother, the only one who made him think he could be more, dies, he basically sleepwalks through life, until a photography assignment changes his view of things.
Thirteen Doorways, Wolves Behind Them All
by Laura Ruby

Observed by a restless ghost, teenaged Frankie strives to make her way and understand what it means to be a woman in the Chicago orphanage where she was abandoned with her younger siblings during the Great Depression.
Like a Love Story
by Abdi Nazemian

An Iranian youth who hides his sexual orientation from his family, an openly gay photographer, and an aspiring fashion designer with an HIV-positive uncle fall in love and find their voices as activists during the height of the AIDS crisis in New York City. 
The Rest of the Story
by Sarah Dessen

Unexpectedly sent to spend the summer with her late mother's estranged relatives at scenic North Lake, a teen finds herself torn between her mother's working-class relatives and her father's wealthier associates.
The Year They Fell
by David Kreizman

When their parents are killed in a plane crash, a group of former childhood friends, who are now entering their senior year in high school, are pulled back together by the tragedy.
Opposite of Always
by Justin A. Reynolds

Falling hard for a popular and charismatic girl who suddenly passes away, a grieving Jack finds himself traveling back in time to when they first met, only to find his efforts to prevent her death triggering unanticipated consequences.
Five Feet Apart
by Rachael Lippincott

Seventeen-year-olds Stella and Will, both suffering from cystic fibrosis, realize the only way to stay alive is to stay apart, but their love for each other is slowly pushing the boundaries of physical and emotional safety.
Summer Bird Blue
by Akemi Dawn Bowman

After her sister and songwriting partner, Lea, dies in an automobile accident, seventeen-year-old Rumi is sent to Hawaii with an aunt she barely knows while she and her mother grieve separately.
I Have Lost My Way
by Gayle Forman

A talented singer who is losing her voice, a gay teen on the brink of running away to find the boy he loves, and a city newcomer reeling from a tragedy collide in Central Park and gradually reveal to each other the losses that have made them feel out of control. 
Get Reading Recommendations
Forsyth County Public Library | #WeKnowBooks