Tween Reads

Fiction books for ages 9-12

Updated June 18, 2026
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Across so many seas
Behar, Ruth
Paper Book
NEWBERY HONOR WINNER SYDNEY TAYLOR BOOK AWARD HONOR WINNER "As lyrical as it is epic, Across So Many Seas reminds us that while the past may be another country, it's also a living, breathing song of sadness and joy that helps define who we are." --Alan Gratz, New York...
Another
Tremblay, Paul
Paper Book
The bone-chilling, instantly New York Times bestselling tale of an unsettling, unbreakable friendship--from acclaimed horror author Paul Tremblay. "All the questions we ask as kids about who we are and what we're worth take a terrifying turn in this spooky tale of a...
Bye forever, I guess
Meadows, Jodi
Paper Book
Can a guarded gamer girl lower her shield for a new friend... or more-than-friend? "EARNEST AND LAUGH-OUT-LOUD... PITCH PERFECT."--Publishers Weekly, starred review Thirteen-year-old Ingrid's been living a double life. At school, she's her popular...
Eagle drums
Hopson, Nasug?raq Rainey
Paper Book
**A NEWBERY HONOR BOOK** A magical middle grade adventure about a boy in the Arctic who faces a series of challenges presented to him by a family of eagle gods. Through this, he learns important lessons about respecting nature, building compassion, and bringing a community...
Echo Mountain
Wolk, Lauren
Paper Book
★ "Historical fiction at its finest." -The Horn Book "There has never been a better time to read about healing, of both the body and the heart." -The New York Times Book Review Echo Mountain is an acclaimed best book of 2020...
The eyes & the impossible
Eggers, Dave
Paper Book
WINNER OF THE 2024 NEWBERY MEDAL A New York Times bestseller and Today Show Summer Pick A wild, lyrical, hilarious and beautiful story of a wild dog living and surviving in an urban park<...
Ferris
DiCamillo, Kate
Paper Book
A New York Times bestseller! The beloved author of Because of Winn-Dixie has outdone herself with a hilarious and achingly real love story about a girl, a ghost, a grandmother, and growing up. It's the summer before fifth grade, and for...
The fire, the water, and Maudie McGinn
Pla, Sally J.
Paper Book
Neurodivergent Maudie is ready to spend an amazing summer with her dad, but will she find the courage to tell him a terrible secret about life with her mom and new stepdad? This contemporary novel is a must-read for fans of Leslie Connor and Ali Standish. A Schneider Family Book Award winner! ...
The first state of being
Kelly, Erin Entrada
Paper Book
WINNER OF THE NEWBERY MEDAL A FINALIST FOR THE 2024 NATIONAL BOOK AWARD A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER ALA Notable Book for Children · Chicago Public Library Best Fiction for Older Readers of 2024 · Shelf Awareness Best Books of 2024 for Kids and Teens · BookPage Best Middle...
The Flicker
Edgmon, H. E.
Paper Book
Perfect for fans of The Marrow Thieves, Hatchet and The City of Ember, H.E. Edgmon's middle grade debut offers a bittersweet tale of hope and survival, a modern classic for the climate change generation. One year ago, a solar flare scorched the Earth and...
Free period
Terese, Ali
Paper Book
This middle-grade Moxie centering period equity is Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret for the next generation! Longlisted for the National Book Award "Absolute fire." -- Book Riot Helen and Gracie are pranking their way through...
Gut reaction
Larson, Kirby
Paper Book
Critically acclaimed, bestselling author and Newbery Honor-winner, Kirby Larson, and her daughter, debut author, Quinn Wyatt, pen this gorgeously moving and often funny story that explores what living with a chronic illness is like. Inspired by Quinn''s own personal journey, Gut Reaction<...
How to stay invisible
Rudd, Maggie
Ebook
My Side of the Mountain meets How to Steal a Dog in this high-stakes and heartfelt middle-grade story of a young boy and his dog surviving on their own in the woods. Being alone is something Raymond is used to. Twelve-year-old Raymond Hurley...
Impossible creatures
Rundell, Katherine
Paper Book
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * THE FIRST BOOK IN THE LANDMARK NEW FANTASY SERIES THAT CONTINUES WITH THE POISONED KING "A glorious fantasy adventure . . . Brimming with intelligence, inventiveness and generosity of heart."--The Wall Street Journal (One of...
In the tunnel
Lee, Julie (Children's fiction writer)
Paper Book
Trapped in an enemy tunnel, a young refugee experiences the Korean War firsthand in this searing story of survival, loss, and hope, a companion to the Freeman Award-winning novel Brother's Keeper. Myung-gi knows war is coming: War between North and South Korea. Life in...
Insignificant events in the life of a cactus
Bowling, Dusti
Paper Book
"Aven is a perky, hilarious, and inspiring protagonist whose attitude and humor will linger even after the last page has turned." --School Library Journal (Starred review) Aven Green loves to tell people that she lost her arms in an alligator...
King and the dragonflies
Callender, Kacen
Paper Book
A 2021 Coretta Scott King Honor Book! Winner of the 2020 National Book Award for Young People's Literature! Winner of the 2020 Boston Globe-Horn Book Award for Fiction and Poetry! In a small but turbulent Louisiana town, one boy's grief takes him...
The last cuentista
Higuera, Donna Barba
Paper Book
Winner of the Newbery Medal--a brilliant journey through the stars, to the very heart of what makes us human. "Gripping in its twists and turns, and moving in its themes -- truly a beautiful cuento."--New York Times Había una vez . . .  ...
The list of things that will not change
Stead, Rebecca
Ebook
EIGHT STARRED REVIEWS! The reassuring book kids and families need right now. "An absolute original . . . a story that kids will love." --R. J. Palacio, bestselling author of Wonder At a time when everything is changing for Bea and her family, the important things...
Look both ways : a tale told in ten blocks
Reynolds, Jason
Paper Book
A National Book Award Finalist Coretta Scott King Author Honor Book UK Carnegie Medal winner An NPR Favorite Book of 2019 A New York Times Best Children's Book of 2019 A Time Best Children's Book of 2019 A...
Mani Semilla finds her Quetzal voice
Lapera, Anna
Paper Book
Best of the Year: School Library Journal *Booklist * New York Public Library - Social Justice Books For fans of Donna Barba Higuera''s Lupe Wong Won''t Dance and Aida Salazar''s The Moon Within comes Mani...
Marcus Vega doesn't speak Spanish
Cartaya, Pablo
Paper Book
One boy's search for his father leads him to Puerto Rico in this moving middle-grade novel, for fans of Ghost and See You in the Cosmos. Marcus Vega is six feet tall, 180 pounds, and the owner of a premature mustache. When you look like this and you're only in the...
Max in the house of spies
Gidwitz, Adam
Paper Book
An acclaimed Best Book of 2024! Instant New York Times bestseller . Wall Street Journal Best Books of the Year . Booklist Editors' Choice . Publishers Weekly Best Books of the Year . School Library Journal Best Books of the Year . Common Sense Best Books...
The night war
Bradley, Kimberly Brubaker
Paper Book
From the two-time Newbery Honor-winning author of The War That Saved My Life and Fighting Words comes a middle grade novel set at the border between freedom and fear in World War II France, at the Chateau de Chenonceau, where a Jewish girl who has lost everything but her life must...
On thin ice
Kim, Jessica
Paper Book
For fans of Disney's GO FIGURE, a laugh-out-loud, heartfelt dual POV sibling-rivalry story by acclaimed author Jessica Kim Twelve-year-old fraternal twins Phoebe and Dexter Bae are polar opposites in every way except for their love of the ice. Phoebe is hyperfocused...
The partition project
Faruqi, Saadia
Paper Book
In this engaging and moving middle grade novel, Saadia Faruqi writes about a contemporary Pakistani American girl whose passion for journalism starts a conversation about her grandmother's experience of the Partition of India and Pakistan--and the bond that the two form as she helps Dadi tell her...
Planet earth is blue
Panteleakos, Nicole
Ebook
"Tender and illuminating. A beautiful debut." --Rebecca Stead, Newbery Medal-winning author of When You Reach Me A heartrending and hopeful debut novel about a nonverbal girl and her passion for space exploration, for fans of See You in the Cosmos, Mockingbird, and...
The prince of nowhere
Hassan, Rochelle
Paper Book
This sweeping middle grade fantasy debut by Rochelle Hassan follows Roda and Ignis, who embark on an adventure filled with magic and mystery--perfect for fans of Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones. Roda isn't afraid of the monsters that roam the wilds of the...
See you in the cosmos
Cheng, Jack
Ebook
"I haven't read anything that has moved me this much since Wonder." --Jennifer Niven, author of All the Bright Places A space-obsessed boy and his dog, Carl Sagan, take a journey toward family, love, hope, and awe in this funny and moving...
Snoop
Korman, Gordon
Paper Book
From Gordon Korman, the bestselling author of Restart, the story of a boy who's stuck at home with two broken legs... and who starts using cameras and a drone to spy on his classmates, neighbors, and a possible criminal who's come to town. If Carter hadn't been checking his phone,...
Starfish
Fipps, Lisa
Paper Book
A PRINTZ HONOR BOOK . Ellie is tired of being fat-shamed and does something about it in this poignant novel-in-verse. "In her debut novel, Starfish, Lisa Fipps confronts diet culture and fat phobia head-on. . . . The book reads as if Ellie herself is writing these poems, which...
The Swifts : a dictionary of scoundrels
Lincoln, Beth
Paper Book
#1 New York Times bestseller! "Knives Out feel by way of Lemony Snicket...This archly told, never muddled debut whodunit reveals a roster of distinct characters, a labyrinthine setting and plot, and a mystery that is as clever as its heroine." - Publishers Weekly...
The things we miss
Stecher, Leah
Paper Book
"Magical and heartbreaking! You will read this book in one gulp." - Jennifer L. Holm, New York Times-bestselling author of The Fourteenth Goldfish When You Reach Me meets Starfish in this heartfelt contemporary middle grade about a misfit girl who finds...
Unstuck
Dee, Barbara
Paper Book
"Both relatable and inspiring...an entertaining and heartfelt read." --Janae Marks, New York Times bestselling author of On Air with Zoe Washington From critically acclaimed author Barbara Dee comes a middle grade novel that's "this generation's Dear Mr....
The worlds we leave behind
Harrold, A. F.
Paper Book
A Booklist Editor's Choice Title for 2023 From acclaimed author and illustrator pair A.F. Harrold and Levi Pinfold comes another powerful and poignant story about friendship, betrayal, and redemption. Hex doesn't know why he does the things he does...

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