Favorite Books for Tween Girls (That are good for moms too!)

Hi there! Hope you are having a great week. I can not believe tomorrow is the 4th of July already! Our summer has been a busy one but we are taking a break with a week at the lake. My husband took off work, so it has been nice to have a lot of family time. I am hoping to get back to reading a few books this week (as it’s been over a month since I’ve read anything!). I find it hard to make time to read unless we are on vacation! My daughter is the big reader in our family and she has been reading up a storm this summer! I’m so jealous–ha ha! I’ve got a list of books that I want to read, although sometimes I just grab whatever my daughter has just read. There are a lot of good books out there for the young adult genre! Today, my daughter and I are sharing our favorite books for tween girls (that are also good for moms!).

Because of Winn-Dixie

Mom Says: All of Kate DiCamillo books are must reads! I think my daughter has read just about every single of her novels. Flora and Ulysses, The Tale of Despereaux and The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane are all great books too! Her novels are witty, honest and pretty quick reads. There was just something about Because of Winn-Dixie that was so endearing. I could see some of my daughter’s personality in the novel’s main character.

Tween says: Although I first read this book a few years ago, Because Of Winn-Dixie is one of those books that never gets old. Kate DiCamillo does a great job bringing this story to life. I really felt that I took part in this amazing story. The character was someone I could relate to especially because I love dogs! I would highly recommend this book.

Countdown

Mom says:  Countdown is a documentary fiction novel that is part of a Trilogy. This book is told from the perspective of a tween living in 1960’s. She is dealing with family issues, coming of age struggles while also trying to understand the larger scale country and world issues. I learned a lot of historical facts from this time period.

Available here

Tween says: I generally don’t enjoy historical fiction books too much, but I loved reading this book. I learned a lot about life in the 1960’s from reading this book which was very interesting. Although, we live in the twenty-first century I still related to the main character at times.

The Doll People

Mom says: This book is part of a series by Ann M. Martin (author of The Babysitter’s Club) and Laura Goodwin. I have only read the first Doll People book but it was very entertaining! It tells the story of a very tiny family that lives inside a little girl’s doll house. The book is very imaginative and is certainly a book I would have loved as a little girl. In a time when so many young adult books cover deep issues, it is refreshing to read something light and whimsical!

Available here

Tween says: I couldn’t put these books down. The Doll People is really fun to read with lot’s of twists and turns you don’t expect. Also, unlike some book series, the quality of the story improves with every book.

Wonder

Mom says: This is one of those books that EVERYONE should read. Even if you have seen the movie, the book is worth reading as it is so much more detailed and thought provoking. It is one of those books that really makes you examine yourself and how you treat other people.

Available here

Tween says: It’s no WONDER why Wonder has become so popular. This book is funny, sweet, and inspiring. I truly felt that this book changed the way I see other people. You’re going to read this book and go back and read it again. It’s that good.

Little House on the Prairie Series

Mom says: The Little House on the Prairie Series were some of my favorite books to read when I was younger. Therefore,  I was so excited when my daughter was old enough to read them. We read several of the books in this series together–great series to read as a family! There is so much historical information to learn from the stories. We really enjoyed learning about how families lived back in the 1800’s. It is amazing how many similarities you can find in the way children and families lived back then even though life was so different.

Available here

Tween says: I loved reading about Laura and her family. Even though their lives are so different from ours almost 200 years later, there are still some similarities! Laura fights with her siblings and doesn’t always want to do her chores. She also has a sense of adventure, which I can relate to!

Harry Potter Series

Mom says: My daughter and I started reading the Harry Potter series several years ago (just after she finished 1st grade). We are just about finished with the sixth book in the series. It has worked well that we have taken our time to read it as each book gets a little darker and has more mature topics. I am not typically into fantasy or magic books, but it is hard not to be endeared to Harry and his friends. It is another coming of age story that allows the reader to see Harry go from a young boy to an adult. I’ll be sad when we finish this series!

Available here

Tween says: Whenever someone asks what my favorite book is, the Harry Potter series comes to mind. My mom and I have been reading this series for about five years together and it have been super fun watching Harry grow up and face new challenges. I would highly recommend this series if you enjoy action and mystery. Overall, a great read.

Honorable Mention Recommendations

My daughter always has a massive book pile on her nightstand. There is no way I could keep up with her reading. She has read so many great books and here are a few more of her favorites that she has recommended for me to read too:

Love Sugar Magic This book about the Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) came out earlier this year right around when the movie Coco with the same topic premiered. So my daughter loved reading this one! This book is one I want to read as well.

The Key to Extraordinary Beautiful story that has a powerful message that is important for everyone.

Pay it Forward (Kid Edition) My daughter was so inspired by this story she wrote an essay on this book.

Rain Reign (Ann M. Martin author of the Babysitter Club series) Story is told from the perspective of an autistic middle-schooler.

A Tangle of Knots Intriguing story that also includes several yummy recipes!

The Book Scavenger Mystery Book Series that has you wondering how it will all unfold.

Special thanks to my daughter for all of her help on this post!

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I’ve mentioned before that my kids all love to read. Check out this post for more ideas on instilling a love of reading in kids. I haven’t read many of my son’s favorite books (his genre is a little different than mine!), although we do also read some books together. I will share some of his favorites and the books we like to read together soon!

What good books have you read that fall more into the tween or teen genre?