Your Kid’s Next Read Book Lists: Best Books for 12-14

Reading around the ages of 12-14 is all about engagement. Themes (yes, some of them heavy!), characters, storyline and even the cover art all need to appeal to savvy teen readers, otherwise a book will be ditched quicker than the latest fashion. Humph. Thankfully, publishers and YA authors KNOW this and the books aimed at this very age group all try to hit the mark. But which ones actually do?   

The wonderful Your Kids Next Read Facebook group have the answer. Below are the best books for 12-14 year-olds based on the reads their kids LOVE and recommend. They all have the teen-reader tick of approval, which can be hard to get!     

The Your Kids Next Read Facebook group is the place where all the cool kids are hanging out. The lovely Allison Tait set up this fast-growing group and invited me on board as a moderator. It is the place to share your thoughts on books your little ones love, links to relevant children’s book reviews, and, of course, to ask the group for suggestions and recommendations about books for your child to enjoy next.

You can join here.

Please note, these lists are member-generated and not edited with my teacher librarian hat on!      

Books for kids 12-14 years.

For more books for this age range see my post ‘Best Books for Young Adults’.

‘Two Wolves’ by Tristan Bancks

‘The Book of Chance’ by Sue Whiting

‘Somewhere Around The Corner’ by Jackie French

‘Counting by 7s’ by Holly Goldberg Sloan

‘The List’ by Patricia Forde

‘Worse Things’ by Sally Murphy, Sarah Davis (Illustrator)

‘When Rain Turns To Snow’ by Jane Godwin

‘Song of the Lioness’ (series) by Tamora Pierce

‘The Dog Runner’ by Bren Macdibble

‘Clementine and Rudy’ by Siobhan Curham

‘Young Dark Emu’ by Bruce Pascoe

‘Detention’ by Tristan Bancks

‘The Fire Star: A Maven & Reeve Mystery’ by A. L. Tait

‘The Lost Souls Atlas’ by Zana Fraillon

‘The Jane Doe Chronicles’ (series) by Jeremy Lachlan

‘Dragonfly Song’ by Wendy Orr

‘Skulduggery Pleasant’ (series) by Derek Landy

‘Discworld’ (series) by Terry Pratchett

‘The Mulberry Tree’ by Allison Rushby

‘Peta Lyre’s Rating Normal’ by Anna Whateley

‘Tiger Daughter’ by Rebecca Lim

‘When The Ground Is Hard’ by Malla Nunn

‘Unrequited’ by Emma Grey

‘The Old Kingdom’ (series) by Garth Nix

‘The Aurora Cycle’ (series) by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

‘Ghost Bird’ by Lisa Fuller

‘Dry’ by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman

‘The Things That Will Not Stand’ by Michael Gerard Bauer

‘This Is How We Change The Ending’ by Vikki Wakefield

‘The Unadoptables’ by Hana Tooke

‘Red Day’ by Sandy Fussell

‘Haywire: The Dunera Boys’ by Claire Saxby

‘Catch A Falling Star’ by Meg McKinlay

‘The True Colour of a Little White Lie’ by Gabriel Bergmoser

‘Becoming’ by Michelle Obama

‘Crow Country’ by Kate Constable

‘Tell Me Why’ by Archie Roach

‘The Outlaws Scarlett and Browne’ by Jonathan Stroud

‘The Surprising Power of a Good Dumpling’ by Wai Chim