• General Recommendations
  • Staff-Created List

YA Books for Tweens

These are some of our favorite titles for readers transitioning to YA books.

Strathcona County Library

29 items

  • Sixteen-year-old America Singer is living in the caste-divided nation of Illea, which formed after the war that destroyed the United States. America is chosen to compete in the Selection--a contest to see which girl can win the heart of Illea's…
    Book, 2012New York : HarperTeen, 2012. — CASS
  • A retelling of Cinderella about an indomitable inventor-mechanic who finds her prince but realizes she doesn't want a fairy tale happy ending after all.
    Book, 2015Boston : Clarion Books, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2015. — CORN
  • On a continent ruled by three empires, some, like Safi and Iseult, are born with a distinct magical skill, and now, with the help of Prince Merik, they will need to learn how to wield their magic to preserve the balance of their world.
    Book, 2016New York : Tom Doherty Associates, 2016. — DENN
  • In this story loosely based on the Sleeping Beauty fairy tale, seventeen-year-old Rose, a healer's apprentice, falls in love with the betrothed Lord Hamlin, who is seeking the sorcerer who cursed his future bride.
    Book, 2010Grand Rapids, Michigan : Zondervan, [2010] — DICK
  • To everyone at Meridian High School, fourteen-year-old Michael Vey is nothing special, just the kid who has Tourette's syndrome. But in truth, Michael is extremely special--he has electric powers. Michael thinks he is unique until he discovers that…
    Book, 2011New York ; Toronto, ON : Mercury Ink/Simon Pulse, 2011. — EVAN
  • A retelling of the tale of twelve princesses who wear out their shoes dancing every night, and of Galen, a former soldier now working in the king's gardens, who follows them in hopes of breaking the curse.
    Book, 2010New York : Bloomsbury, 2010, c2009. — TEEN GEOR
  • It is June 6, 1944, D-Day, and Dee Carpenter (true name Dietrich Zimmermann), an underage private in the United States Army, is headed for Omaha Beach, seeking revenge for his uncle, who was arrested by Nazis when Dee was a little boy; meanwhile,…
    Book, 2019New York : Scholastic Press, 2019. — J GRA
  • When fifteen-year-old Will is rejected by battleschool, he becomes the reluctant apprentice to the mysterious Ranger Halt, and winds up protecting the kingdom from danger.
    Book, 2005New York : Philomel Books, c2005. — TEEN FLAN
  • Edward is the King of England. He's also dying, which is inconvenient, as he's only sixteen and he'd rather be planning his first kiss than who will inherit his crown. Jane, Edward's cousin, is far more interested in books than romance.…
    Book, 2017New York : HarperTeen, an imprint HarperCollins Publishers, [2017] — HAND
  • In a dark future, when North America has split into two warring nations, fifteen-year-olds Day, a famous criminal, and prodigy June, the brilliant soldier hired to capture him, discover that they have a common enemy.
    Book, 2011New York : G. P. Putnam's Sons, 2011. — LU
  • As plague ravages the overcrowded Earth, observed by a ruthless lunar people, Cinder, a gifted mechanic and cyborg, becomes involved with handsome Prince Kai and must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect the world in this futuristic…
    Book, 2012New York : Feiwel & Friends, 2012. — TEEN MEYE
  • When thirteen-year-old Henry and his family move to the city to leave behind a secret tragedy, Henry finds a journal is his best friend.
    Book, 2012Toronto, ON : Tundra Books, 2012. — NIEL
  • In this retelling of the Korean legend "The Tale of Shim Cheong," sixteen-year-old Mina is swept away to the Spirit Realm, where, assisted by a motley crew of demons, gods, and lesser spirits, she sets out to awaken the sleeping Sea God and save her…
    Book, 2022New York : Feiwel and Friends, [2022] — TEEN OH
  • For centuries, the enchanted members of the Entente have worked in tandem with the Three Fates—the Present, the Past, and the Future—to maintain destiny across the Thirteen Queendoms. But when Queen Magrit learns of her untimely demise from Hecate,…
    Book, 2023New York : Bloomsbury, [2023] — PAIG
  • Geek girl Ellie hopes to go to ExcelsiCon Cosplay to meet the actor (closet nerd Darien) scheduled to play Federation Prince Carmindor in a reboot of the movie Starfield.
    Book, 2017Philadelphia : Quirk Books, [2017]. — TEEN POST
  • As Will, fifteen, sets out to avenge his brother Shawn's fatal shooting, seven ghosts who knew Shawn board the elevator and reveal truths Will needs to know.
    Book, 2017New York : Atheneum, [2017] — TEEN REYN
  • Raised as a foundling in one of Austermeer's Great Libraries, Elisabeth has grown up among the tools of sorcery -- magical grimoires that whisper on shelves and rattle beneath iron chains. If provoked, they transform into grotesque monsters of ink…
    Book, 2019New York, NY : Margaret K. McElderry Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division, [2019]. — ROGE
  • When a long-term attack against her world by the alien Krell escalates, Spensa's dream of becoming a pilot may come true, despite her deceased father being labeled a deserter.
    Book, 2018New York, NY : Delacorte Press, 2018. — TEEN SAND
  • Olivia Prior has grown up at the grim Merilance School for Girls with no no past except for her one treasure, her mother's journal, so when a letter arrives inviting her to come home to ruinous manor, Gallant, she seizes the chance to find out about…
    Book, 2022New York : Greenwillow Books, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, [2022] — TEEN SCHW
  • Jake volunteers at a nursing home because he likes helping people. He likes skating and singing, playing Bingo and Name That Tune, and reading mysteries and comics aloud to his teachers. He also likes avoiding people his own age . . . and the…
    Book, Candlewick Press