40 Tween & Middle Schoolers’ All-Time Favorite Book List

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Great List! 40 kids ages 11-14 share their All Time Favorite Book! Great insight to what books really resonate with kids.  #booklist #middleschoolMy 12 year old daughter loves to read! I am constantly asking other parents for book recommendations but I really prefer to hear what a child enjoys reading.

So when I found myself chaperoning a 6th grade retreat, I used it as an opportunity to ask each child this question:

What is your favorite book you’ve ever read?

There were several repeats.

The reading difficulty varied.

But every book had one thing in common. It was someone’s favorite.

Love this list because it was created by kids! What would you add? |the House of Hendrix #booklist #middleschool #tween

I compiled their answers into this list.

40 Middle Schoolers all-time favorite books:

(I have not read each of these, so I am including an affiliate link to Amazon so you can read a description)

The GiverThe Giver by Lois Lowry

 

 

 

 

Great list!The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien

 

 

 

 

Series of Unfortunate EventsSeries of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket

 

 

 

 

Margaret Peterson haddixThe Hidden Series, The Found Series, and the Double Identity Series by Margaret Peterson Haddix

 

 

 

 

Lois LowryNumber the Stars by Lois Lowry

 

 

 

 

Bsaher Five-TwoBasher Five-Two: The True Story of F-16 Fighter Pilot by Captain Scott O’Grady

 

 

 

 

Anne of Green GablesAnne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery

 

 

 

 

91o13sPo7VLThe Divergent series

 

 

 

 

CS LEWISThe Chronicles of Narnia by C.S.Lewis

 

 

 

 

the Book ThiefThe Book Thief by Markus Zusak

 

 

 

 

WonderWonder by R.J. Palacio

 

 

 

 

Heaven is for realHeaven is for Real by Todd Burpo

 

 

 

 

HolesHoles by Louis Sachar

 

 

 

 

The Dragon Slippers SeriesThe Dragon Slippers Series by Jessica Day George

 

 

 

 

Tween Choice BooksThe Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart

 

 

 

 

The Ascendents TriologyThe Ascendence Trilogy by Jennifer A. Nielsen

 

 

 

 

Charriots of FireEric Liddell: Something Greater than Gold by Janet Benge and Geoff Benge

 

 

 

 

11 Birthdays Series11 Birthday Series by Wendy Mass

 

 

 

 

Percy JacksonPercy Jackson Series by  Rick Riordan

 

 

 

 

Great list!The Tale of Emily Windsnap by Liz Kessler

 

 

 

 

Code OrangeCode Orange by Caroline Cooney

 

 

 

 

Out of My MindOut of my Mind by Sharon Draper

 

 

 

 

Canterwood Crest SeriesThe Canterwood Crest Series by Jessica Burkhart

 

 

 

 

Tween Book ListHoot By Carl Haissen

 

 

 

 

Davy CrockettDavy Crocket: His Own Story by David Crockett

 

 

 

 

The Hiding PlaceThe Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom

 

 

 

 

The Book of ElsewheresThe Book of Elsewheres by Jacqueline West

 

 

 

 

 Pride and PrejudicePride And Prejudice by Jane Austen

 

 

 

 

Summer of MonkeysSummer of Monkey  by Wilson Rawls

 

 

 

 

Soul SurferSoul Surfer by Bethany Hamilton

 

 

 

 

Little WomenLittle Women by Louisa May Alcott

 

 

 

 

ChompChomp by Carl Heissen

 

 

 

 

Jack LondonThe Call of the Wild by Jack London

 

 

 

 

Other Posts you might enjoy:

Also check out these 10 Encouraging Books for your Tween/Tween Girl about being a Tween.

Help your tween/ teen navigate through those ackward years of insecurity and change.

For more ideas for this age, check out these Pinterest Boards:

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20 thoughts on “40 Tween & Middle Schoolers’ All-Time Favorite Book List

  1. Great question. There are several books I’d like to read, plus I have a 5th and 7th grader, so yeah, I love this list!

  2. Thanks for sharing this great list with your readers! There are quite a few books here that I know my son will enjoy a lot. My youngest son was having difficulties adjusting to certain social aspects of his young life. As someone who works full time, we are unable to take care of a pet. I was recommended a book, that I would also like to share with you called “Watson’s Way” by author Joel Lund (http://bit.ly/WatsonsWay). My son and I read this book together every night for a couple weeks and it really changed his outlook. The author uses his family dog to teach life lessons such as how to be a more patient person, and how to better get a long with others. There is something so pure about learning these things from an innocent animal and my son really seemed to enjoy it. We laughed at times and even cried, but overall I feel we both came out of the experience as better people. There is even a place in the book for kids to write in a journal if they want to! I highly recommend it 🙂

  3. I have read at least half of these and they are very good, I would especially recommend the Chronicles of Narnia, Dragon Slippers series, and the Mysterious Benedict Society series. For anyone who enjoyed the Mysterious Benedict Society I would recommend Drift House by Dale Peck.

  4. Thanks for this list. I am moving from elementary to secondary and want to begin compiling an appropriate classroom library. Since most of my students will be 9th graders who still struggle with reading, a middle school list is just perfect. I was glad to see that I already own quite a few books from the list, so I won’t have to purchase as many. Thanks, again.

    • Thanks so much. I find recommendations from the kids actually reading the books are the most compelling. Thank you for contributing. If you have any others you think of, id love for you to list them. Thanks again. Happy reading.

  5. Hello! I am 12 years old. I read your list of recommendations and find it great! I’ve read a few of these books and they are wonderful. My favorite book that is not on this list would have to be “Stargirl” by Jerry Spinelli. Thank you for posting this resource.

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