Where to Start with A.S. King (Amy Sarig King)
Unlike many young adult authors, A.S. King (Amy Sarig King) does not write traditional sequential series. Instead, her bibliography consists of standalone contemporary novels infused with surrealism, magical realism, and deep psychological exploration. Because the books do not share a single continuous narrative, you can read them in almost any order. However, finding the right starting point depends on what kind of story you are looking for.
For the quintessential A.S. King experience, we recommend starting with Please Ignore Vera Dietz. This Michael L. Printz Honor book perfectly blends her signature surrealism—including a talking pagoda and brief cameos from the dead—with a raw, grounded look at grief, family secrets, and teenage isolation. It is a fantastic introduction to her writing style.
If you prefer a multi-perspective, sprawling character study, Dig is another excellent entry point. It won the prestigious Michael L. Printz Award and explores the lives of five estranged cousins dealing with their family's toxic legacy and racism. For younger readers or those looking for middle-grade stories, starting with Me and Marvin Gardens or Attack of the Black Rectangles (published under her full name, Amy Sarig King) is highly recommended.
Publication Order of Standalone YA Novels
Reading A.S. King's standalone novels in order of publication allows you to witness the evolution of her surrealist style, from adventurous historical reincarnation to complex contemporary narratives. Here is the order of her young adult novels:
- The Dust of 100 Dogs (2009) – A 17th-century pirate is cursed to live 100 lives as a dog before returning as a modern teenager.
- Please Ignore Vera Dietz (2010) – A teen girl deals with the sudden death of her former best friend and the secrets they kept.
- Everybody Sees the Ants (2011) – A boy escapes his real-life bullies by traveling into surreal dreams featuring his grandfather's POW camp and talking animals.
- Ask the Passengers (2012) – A closeted teen girl sends love up to the passengers of the airplanes flying over her small town.
- Reality Boy (2013) – A teen boy deals with the psychological aftermath of growing up on a toxic reality TV show.
- Glory O'Brien's History of the Future (2014) – After drinking a strange mixture, a graduate starts seeing visions of a futuristic civil war.
- I Crawl Through It (2015) – Four traumatized teens navigate a surreal landscape involving standardized testing, lie detectors, and an invisible helicopter.
- Still Life with Tornado (2016) – An art student encounters past and future versions of herself as she tries to understand a family trauma.
- Dig (2019) – Five cousins unravel their family's wealth, prejudices, and secrets.
- Switch (2021) – Time stops moving forward, leaving a girl and her family trapped in a house that is shifting and changing size.
- Pick the Lock (2024) – A young woman writes a punk opera to break free from her toxic, controlling family.
Middle-Grade Novels (Amy Sarig King)
Under her full name, Amy Sarig King, the author has written several acclaimed middle-grade books that deal with environmentalism, censorship, and family dynamics in a slightly gentler but still distinctively quirky format:
- Me and Marvin Gardens (2017) – A boy discovers a strange, plastic-eating creature in the woods behind his farm.
- The Year We Fell from Space (2019) – A young girl maps constellations and deals with her parents' divorce and mental health.
- Attack of the Black Rectangles (2022) – A boy discovers that a classroom copy of a book has been censored with black marker and decides to fight back.
Short Story Collections and Anthologies
A.S. King is also an accomplished editor and short-story writer. Her curated anthologies have received high acclaim, including a Printz Award:
- Monica Never Shuts Up (2012) – A collection of King's adult short fiction.
- The Collectors: Stories (2023 / 2024 paperback) – An award-winning anthology edited by King, featuring stories centered on unique and strange collections.