45 of the Best Books for a 13-Year-Old

The Belles by Dhonielle Clayton

I loved the first book. I finished it and immediately rushed into book 2. The people in the world of Orleans are devoid of natural beauty and need The Belles to use their magical treatments to be beautiful. The most powerful of the Belles is known as the favorite and works for the royal family to set trends and perform beauty treatments.

But what happens when a sick queen and a greedy princess have differing views on ruling the people of Orléans and The Belles of the world? The world-building in this YA Fantasy was wonderful and the descriptions of the elaborate beauty treatments painted a vivid picture. The characters were flawed but wonderfully constructed and the teacup pets were adorable.

Peter and the Starcatchers by Dave Berry

This Peter Pan retelling finds Peter aboard a ship of sailors. He and a bunch of other orphans aboard the ship have to protect a treasure locked in a chest hidden on the ship from pirate captain Black Stache.

Think of this as the origin story of Tinkerbell, her fairy dust, and how Peter gained his ability to fly. It’s one of our favorite fairy tale retellings.

Greenglass House by Kate Milford

This middle-grade mystery reminded me of Harry Potter in some ways. A child is trying to uncover the secrets of Greenglass House, a hotel for smugglers and spies before the adults do.

We read this as a family read-aloud and it was wonderful. It’s one of the books for a 13-year-old that younger readers might struggle with.

The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

I knew I had to read this YA mystery series after it was compared to one of my favorite middle-grade mystery books, The Westing Game.

In this story, Avery, a poor orphan is told she’s just inherited a billionaire’s fortune. His family is determined to get to the money, but Avery has bigger fish to fry – the riddles and puzzles the deceased Tobias Hawthorne left behind for her to solve. As she teams up with unlikely allies, she’s forced to figure out who is a friend or foe.

I flew through this story and can’t wait to get my hands on the rest of the trilogy!

Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley

This is the first book in the Flavia De Luce series.  This 11-year-old aspiring chemist is a wonderful heroine. 

I love her- she is smart and precocious.  This is a great mystery without violence.  These are perfect books for a 13-year-old who loves a historical fiction mystery.

The Van Gogh Deception by Deron R. Hicks

The first in a 3 book series, this first story captured the attention of my D.C.-obsessed son. After all, it opens in the National Gallery when a boy wakes up with amnesia.

Described as Dan Brown meets Jason Bourne, it lives up to those clever titles. It’s a fast-paced art caper that will keep your tween fully engrossed.

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

I remember reading this story with my grandmother when I was young. It features a family of four girls who are trying to support each other and their mother while their father is away at war.

The classic story by Alcott has survived for generations for a reason, the way she wonderfully encapsulates what it’s like to be in a family. The highs and lows of the personal and collective lives of Beth, Jo, Amy, and Meg are an endearing testimony to the bonds of sisters.

We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

I chose this book as my choice for unreliable narrator and it did not disappoint.  I will not spoil and give too many details about it.

A group of four friends who spend every summer together on a private island.  Money, family, love, and an accident lead to secrets and lies. 

This book was the perfect suspense which I did not expect.  Even though I knew that the narrator was unreliable, I still had no idea where this story was going.

Pay Attention, Carter Jones by Gary D. Schmidt

⁣My son adored Pay Attention, Carter Jones. He loved the premise of the butler coming over to teach Carter to play cricket. He liked how Carter learned about how to be a gentleman from the butler who is strict, but exactly what the family needs during their troubling time.⁣
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He’s recommended to a few of his friends already and my mom even read it and enjoyed it!⁣ It’s a heart-filled, thought-provoking read in all the best ways.

The Downstairs Girl by Stacey Lee

Some YA books are incredibly appealing to adult readers. The latest Reese’s Book Club pick is the story of a lady’s maid turned advice columnist. Jo Kuan must hide her true identity because of the blatant racism and sexism that was so prevalent.

This is a white and sometimes heartbreaking YA historical fiction book that will have you rooting for Jo.

Stella and the Starlight by Sharon M Draper

This historical fiction novel for 13-year-olds takes place in the Depression era. Stella lives in Bumblebee, North Carolina- the segregated south where the Klan still exists.

The book touches upon so many important concepts like the depression, voting rights, racism, family, and finding your inner strength. The book has a realistic ending, not a happy one and that left my daughter begging to read more.

Refugee by Alan Gratz

Three tales in one, the book is told in alternating chapters by three narrators.  The stories feature Josef, a Jewish refugee fleeing WWII Germany, Isabel a Cuban girl on her way to Miami in 1994, and Mahmoud a Syrian refugee seeking asylum in Germany in 2015. The chapters rotate between the three characters and their stories do connect at the end in a meaningful and moving way.

The characters are all about 13 years old but shoulder burdens that would be hard for an adult to handle. Gratz accurately portrays each child’s struggle with both grace and clarity – not shying away from difficult emotions and even death.

The Hate you Give by Angie Thomas

This fantastic and incredibly relevant young adult novel tackles the Black Lives Matter movement. Starr is straddling a line between two worlds. She attends a prestigious prep school where she is one of 2 black children in her grade but she lives in a poor neighborhood 40 minutes down the road.

She switches her personality so that she can fit in wherever she is, never truly being her whole self.  When she witnesses her unarmed childhood best friend get killed by a policeman her entire life changes.

She needs to decide what to tell and to whom because her words can have dire consequences for her family and her community. It’s a truly wonderful thought-provoking book all young adults should read.

Far From the Tree by Robin Benway

This book is the winner of the National Book Award for good reason.  I adored this book.  I spent half of it crying and the other half smiling.  This is such a wonderful story about Grace who is adopted at birth. 

When she finds herself pregnant, she puts her daughter up for adoption.  This prompts her to look for her biological mother.  What she finds are two siblings that she never knew about. This is an amazing story told from multiple points of view.

The Parker Inheritance by Varian Johnson

The Parker Inheritance was such a fun listen! It reminded me of The Westing Game, which it references frequently and was clearly a source of inspiration in the best way.

Two new friends, both overcoming personal struggles, end up on a hunt to find a hidden fortune in the town of Lambert, South Carolina. Along the way, they encounter the racist past of the city and learned how the deep-rooted racism impacted Lambert long-term.

I loved the modern twist and more thought-provoking spin on the classic book trope of The Westing Game. It’s a must-listen!

A Study in Charlotte by Brittany Cavallaro

I really enjoyed the first book in the Charlotte Holmes Trilogy. I’ve mentioned before that I am a big Sherlock Holmes fan. This story was different from the others because it takes place in modern times and the central characters are the teenage descendants of Mr. Holmes and Dr. Watson. I love detective books that take a different look at a favorite character.

The adolescent angle leaves room for error in Holmes’ deductive reasoning skills. Watson is also a more fleshed-out character that has deductive reasoning skills of his own. The novel wraps up nicely and the characters solve the mystery leaving enough open ends to allow for a sequel.

Restart by Gordon Korman

My kids all read this book one after another. In fact, they passed it to each other to read so they could all discuss it.

Chase wakes up in the hospital after falling off a roof and doesn’t remember anything- including his name. When he gets back to school, he sees how the kids react to him. Some kids worship him and other kids are terrified of him.

The questions become, who he was and who he wants to be.

Wonder by R.J Palacio

A must-read for kids in middle school, this is an amazing book about embracing differences, kindness and being yourself.  

August Pullman is a boy with an extraordinary facial difference.  He has been homeschooled his entire life and is starting 5th grade at Beecher Prep.  This book is amazing.

Code Girls: The Untold Story of the American Women Code Breakers of World War II by Liza Mundy

I’m not generally a huge non-fiction reader unless the topic is of particular interest to me. Having seen the Imitation Game and read quite a few non-fiction books about coding in war times, I thought this one would be interesting.

It was a truly fascinating read! I loved finding out about the trials and tribulations of the real-life heroes of the war.

Greetings from Witness Protection! by Jake Burt

What a fun story about an orphan girl tasked by the U.S. Marshalls to keep a family alive. As she enters into witness protection with them, she puts her street smarts and pick-pocketing abilities to good use.

But can she keep her new family safe? Will she be able to hide from her own past?

City Spies by James Ponti

MI6 has recruited a bunch of kids to be their newest spy group – the City Spies. They attend a boarding school while learning various spy tactics.

Soon they get to go on a mission to Paris to put what they learned into action. Subsequent books take place in San Francisco and Beijing. At this point, this series is on our pre-order series list.

Briar Rose by Jane Yolen

This historical fiction book for teens was such an unexpected beauty for me.  Books about the Holocaust are most often inherently extremely heavy.  I love the way this book is a fairy tale retelling of Briar Rose (AKA Sleeping Beauty) that turns it into a story about the Holocaust. 

It does not trivialize the atrocities of that time but rather, it makes the subject more approachable to a younger audience.  Beautifully written and well done. This is one of the books for a 13-year-old that adults will love and a must-read from WWII books for kids!

Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank

This is the quintessential book about the Holocaust written by Anne Frank, a Jewish girl in hiding during WWII.  Although she did not live to see freedom, her father survived as did the diary that she kept during her years of hiding. 

This is a powerful book that captures the neverending capacity for hope in the human spirit. After all, Anne said it best when she said “in spite of everything I still believe that people are really good at heart”. This is the only book on this list of WWII books for kids that is non-fiction

The War that Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

I read this book in a few hours and immediately ordered the sequel The War I Finally Won.  Ada is a 10-year-old girl who lives in a one-room world gazing at the world from one window.  She was born with a club foot and teaches herself to walk in secret.  When the children who lived in London were evacuated to go to the country at the start of WW2, Ada escapes her abusive mother and leaves London with her little brother.

There is so much depth to this book.  It is a Newbury Honor book and the Winner of the Schneider Family Book Award for middle grade. This middle-grade historical fiction is a story of love and survival in the face of overwhelming obstacles.

This is one of the books for a 13-year-old that adults will adore because it’s emotionally crafted and brilliantly written.

To Night Owl From Dog Fish by Holly Goldberg Sloan and Meg Wolitzer

This book came so highly recommended that I was afraid it wouldn’t live up to the hype. But, I loved it. Is it about two girls who could not be more different whose fathers fall in love and send them to camp together so they can meet before they all become a family.

It is told through emails sent back and forth between the girls, family, and friends as well. It is so well written and is ultimately a story about friendship and unconditional love. This middle-grade book deals with really complicated issues like what makes a family in a completely approachable way so it is perfect for our list of books for a 13-year-old.

Goldfish Boy by Lisa Thompson

Another great read in middle-grade books.  This story is about a boy named Matthew who has severe OCD and has trouble leaving his house due to his anxiety.

Matthew is the last person to have seen the toddler next door before the four-year-old disappeared.   I love the fact that this book looks at the world from Matthew’s point of view.  It is very readable as well as eye-opening.

Hello, Universe by Erin Entrada Kelly

This book was a Newberry award winner for a reason. It gave the mom in me a bit of an anxiety attack when one of the characters fell down the well, but all’s well that ends well.

This book is a middle-grade read that I’d recommend for all ages. In particular, I liked how it addressed bullying, being different, and overcoming shyness.

Anne of Green Gables by L.M Montgomery

My mother was the first person to read this book to me and I was immediately drawn to Anne.  She was smart, precocious, and has a way of making everyone love her while simultaneously finding new ways to get into trouble. 

I read the book again when I was a teenager and then again as an adult.  I will be reading this to my daughter next.  Every time I read it, I am able to capture more of the nuances that are hidden within the pages. I am not sure if this book is more popular in Canada but, one day I hope to visit Prince Edward Island. This is one of my (Jackie) favorite books of all time.

Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie

Peter Pan is one of Kirsten’s favorite childhood stories. The magical world of Neverland with its pirates, mermaids, and natives is so engrossing.

The story of Peter Pan and his adventures with the Darling children have inspired countless spin-off books, movies, and theatrical productions for a reason. It’s one of the must-read books for a 13-year-old.

Holes by Louis Sachar

A great middle-grade book about camp (and yet another that was adapted into a movie!) Holes should be on every child’s list. And, if you are looking for bedtime stories for kids, this is a great read-aloud for a younger child that cannot read this themselves.

When a boy under a curse is sent to a detention camp he’s taught to behave by digging holes all day, every day.  It doesn’t take long for him to realize he’s digging for a reason – but what are the camp wardens looking to find?

Shoe Dog: Young Readers Edition by Phil Knight

Phil Knight tells the story of the creation of his now-famous company, Nike. From his initial disappointment at being cut from the basketball team to the risks and setbacks of growing a global brand.

This is a wonderful story for budding entrepreneurs and sneaker addicts alike. This is one of the books for a 13-year-old that adults will love too – there is even an adult edition of the book.

Ghost by Jason Reynolds

Ghost runs and has been running since he was a small child. He started running when his father chased him down to the street with a loaded gun and he has not stopped since.

Now, he has been chosen for an elite track team that could go to the junior Olympics if Ghost can get his act together. He has natural, raw talent that can send him all the way if he can stop his past from catching up to him. This Nationa Book award Finalist for Young People’s Literature is the perfect book for a 13-year-old.

Dragon Hoops by Gene Luen Yang

Gene does not like sports. He doesn’t like to play or watch but, the high school where he teaches is obsessed with their basketball team, the Dragons.

This graphic novel is one part memoir as the author tells about the current students and their quest for the state championship as well as one part biography as we see the history of the team- including racism and sexism in the sport.

Linked by Gordon Korman

When someone sneaks into the local middle school and vandalizes it with a swastika, nobody can believe it. Dana is the only Jewish girl in the entire town and she starts to feel like more of an outsider than she had before.

Now, more swastikas start to appear and Dana, Michael, and Link begin to take a closer look at who might be doing this. Their investigation brings them closer to the answers as well as crimes of the past.

Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds

This book for a 13-year-old takes place over the course of a 60-second elevator ride, 15-year-old Will is taking on his way to shoot his brother’s killer.

Visited by spirits at each level as he descends, he needs to decide if he should continue the cycle of street violence or let his brother’s death go unavenged.

A Kind of Paradise by Amy Rebecca Tan

This is one of the best children’s books of 2019 for a reason. I read this as a read-aloud with both of my children (boys 6-8) even though it’s technically a middle grade.

The story revolves around Jaime, who is being punished with community service hours at the library for the summer after she did something wrong in school. Jaime is reluctant to volunteer at first but quickly grows to love the staff and regulars at the library. I adored this charming tale and so did my kids. 

Ghosts by Raina Telgemeier

Raina Telgemeier has a unique way of incorporating sensitive subjects into her books without making them overwhelming or scary. In Ghosts, Cat’s younger sister, Maya, has Cystic Fibrosis. They have just moved to a new city where the air is easier for Maya to breathe.

Cat has given herself the role of protector of her younger sister and as the festival of Dia De Lost Meurtos draws closer, the two sisters each confront the idea of death in very different ways.

New Kid by Jerry Craft

This graphic novel has won numerous awards, and for good reason. This is a thought-provoking story of a 7th-grade boy who wants to pursue his dream of becoming an artist.

Instead, his parents send him to a prestigious private school where he is one of the few diverse students. He can’t seem to figure out where he fits in at home or at school. This is a good one for kids who aren’t yet ready for Angie Thomas’s books.

The Witch Boy by Molly Knox Ostertag

Boys grow up to be shapeshifters and girls become witches.  But, what if you are a boy who loves witchery? Would you show your talents if it meant you would be exiled? 

This Middle grade challenges gender stereotypes and is a perfect witch book for any middle-grade reader. This is one of the books for a 13-year-old that every child should read!

Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson (Young Readers Edition)

Stevenson’s memoir about his early career is truly eye-opening. I had no idea about the scope of injustice toward black men in the criminal justice system.

The stories of the inmates on death row who were falsely accused broke my heart. I can’t believe our country doesn’t have more reform in this area. Stevenson’s career is truly incredible and one that should be commended.

The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown

I was enthralled by the heroics of the team. The sheer force of will and strength it takes to get in that boat and win. I thought I would be bored by the minutia of rowing, but I wasn’t.

The mechanical part of it, the precision, just made me appreciate the skill of rowing even more. The Olympic games gave me such a heightened sense of American pride. I was rooting for the team and cheering them on the whole time. This book for a 13-year-old has an adult version too!

Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Woman Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race by Margot Lee Shetterly

This true and amazing story of the black mathematicians and their role in the space race reads like a fiction novel.

So many people know this story because of the movie but, the book gives so many more details- as is usually the case with adaptations. This is one of the books for a 13-year-old that adults will love too!