Great Reads: Best Books for Young TeensLike this list

22 items

• The Door of No Return

  Alexander, Kwame,

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  Eleven-year-old Kofi Offin dreams of water. Its mysterious, immersive quality. The rich, earthy scent of the current. The clearness, its urgent whisper that beckons with promises and secrets... Kofi has heard the call on the banks of Upper Kwanta,…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Doll Bones

  Black, Holly,

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  Zach, Alice, and Poppy, friends from a Pennsylvania middle school who have long enjoyed acting out imaginary adventures with dolls and action figures, embark on a real-life quest to Ohio to bury a doll made from the ashes of a dead girl.

• Simon Sort of Says

  Bow, Erin,

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  Two years after the infamous event, twelve-year-old Simon and his family move to the National Quiet Zone--the only place in America where the internet is banned. Instead of talking about Simon, the astronomers who flock to the area are busy…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Two Tribes

  Bowen Cohen, Emily,

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  Mia is still getting used to living with her mom and stepfather, and to the new role their Jewish identity plays in their home. Feeling out of place at home and at her Jewish day school, Mia finds herself thinking more and more about her Muscogee…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• We Still Belong

  Day, Christine, 1993-

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  Wesley's hopeful plans for Indigenous Peoples' Day (and asking her crush to the dance) go all wrong--until she finds herself surrounded by the love of her Indigenous family and community at the intertribal powwow

• Starfish

  Fipps, Lisa,

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  Bullied and shamed her whole life for being fat, twelve-year-old Ellie finally gains the confidence to stand up for herself, with the help of some wonderful new allies.

• The Smartest Kid in the Universe

  Grabenstein, Chris,

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  When seventh-grader Jake McQuade mistakes the world's first ingestible knowledge pills for jelly beans, he suddenly knows all about physics and geometry and can speak Swahili (though Spanish would be a lot more useful)--but his sort-of girlfriend…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Alebrijes

  Higuera, Donna Barba,

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  For 400 years, Earth has been a barren wasteland. The few humans that survive scrape together an existence in the cruel city of Pocatel - or go it alone in the wilderness beyond, filled with wandering spirits and wyrms. They don't last long. 13…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Night Diary

  Hiranandani, Veera,

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  Shy twelve-year-old Nisha, forced to flee her home with her Hindu family during the 1947 partition of India, tries to find her voice and make sense of the world falling apart around her by writing to her deceased Muslim mother in the pages of her…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Bookwanderers

  James, Anna (Anna Lois),

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  Since her mother's disappearance, eleven-year-old Tilly Pages has found comfort in the stories at Pages & Co., her grandparents' bookshop. But when her favorite characters, Anne of Green Gables and Alice from Wonderland, start showing up at the…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Nowhere Boy

  Marsh, Katherine,

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  Fourteen-year-old Ahmed, a Syrian refugee, and thirteen-year-old Max, an American boy, are bound by a secret that sets them on the adventure of a lifetime.

• Queen of the Sea

  Meconis, Dylan,

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  When her sister seizes the throne, Queen Eleanor of Albion is banished to a tiny island off the coast of her kingdom, where the nuns of the convent spend their days peacefully praying, sewing, and gardening. But the island is also home to Margaret,…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Camp QUILTBAG

  Melleby, Nicole,

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  After a bit of a rocky start at Camp QUILTBAG, an inclusive retreat for queer and trans kids, Abigail and Kai make a pact to help each other find their footing, all while navigating crushes, their queer identities, and a competition pitting cabin…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea

  Oh, Axie,

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  Deadly storms have ravaged Mina's homeland for generations. Floods sweep away entire villages, while bloody wars are waged over the few remaining resources. Her people believe the Sea God, once their protector, now curses them with death and…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Miles Morales. Suspended

  a Spider-man Novel

  Reynolds, Jason,

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  Miles Morales is still just your average teenager. He has unexpectedly become totally obsessed with poetry and can never seem to do much more than babble around his crush. Nothing too weird. Oh! Except, just yesterday, he used his spidey superpowers…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Daughter of the Deep

  Riordan, Rick,

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  Ana Dakkar is a freshman at Harding-Pencroft Academy, a five-year high school that graduates the best marine scientists, naval warriors, navigators, and underwater explorers in the world. Ana's parents died while on a scientific expedition two years…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• A First Time for Everything

  a True Story

  Santat, Dan,

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  A middle grade graphic memoir based on bestselling author and Caldecott Medalist Dan Santat's awkward middle school years and the trip to Europe that changed his life. Dan's always been a good kid. The kind of kid who listens to his teachers, helps…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Confessions of a Candy Snatcher

  Sinclair, Phoebe,

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  For the past few years, twelve-year-old Jonas and his friends have competed to see how many bags of candy they can grab from unsuspecting trick-or-treaters. No one's supposed to get hurt, just lose their treats. So Jonas is taken by surprise when…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• When You Reach Me

  Stead, Rebecca,

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  As her mother prepares to be a contestant on the television game show, "The $20,000 Pyramid," a twelve-year-old New York City girl tries to make sense of a series of mysterious notes received from an anonymous source that seems to defy the laws of…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• What Happened to Rachel Riley?

  Swinarski, Claire,

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  Thirteen-year-old new girl Anna Hunt decides to make an investigative podcast about how fellow classmate Rachel Riley went from being the most popular girl in school to the most hated.