Hi! I'm looking for good current books for thirteen year olds (obviously). I have already read the Series of Unfortunate Events,  the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series, and I'm working on the Nancy Drew series. If you think of any books that you think are really good, and appropriate for a thirteen year old, please share them with me.

Thanks a lot!

P.S. I am not going to read the Twilight Series...

Here are a few my daughter has enjoyed:

The Watson’s Go To Birmingham 1963 – Paul Curtis

Esperanza Rising – Pam Munoz Ryan

Number the Stars – Lois Lowry

Out of the Dust and Letters from Rifka  – Karen Hesse

Once on This Island - Gloria Whelan

The Penderwicks - Jeanne Birdsall

A Year Down Yonder - Peck

Listening for Lions - Gloria Whelan

Letters From Rifka - Karen Hesse

Princess Academy - Shannon Hale

Once Upon A Marigold - Jean Ferris

Just Ella - Margaret Peterson Haddix 

The Hundred Dresses – Estes

The View from Saturday – Konigsburg

Immigrant Kids – Freedman

Fever 1793 - Laurie Halse Anderson

Boy:   Tunnel in the sky by robert heinlein

Girl:  Meet the Austins by Madeline L'Engle

Boy or Girl:   Walking Across Egypt by Clyde Edgerton

Believe it or not, I read On the Beach for the first time at 13.  I also read God Is an Englishman at 13.  I suspect it depends on how mature you feel the young person is.

Sheila,  What a beautiful list you gave here.  Thanks.  Pamela

You might take a look at the Jennifer Scales series if she likes fantasy. 

Homecoming-It's on my shelf

I'm not just saying it because it is on my shelf though. It is a really good book, I couldn't put it down. It also has 3 or 4 books after it in the series.

Alabama Moond by Watt Key is the first book by a new Southern writer.  I read it myself and then read a few chapters aloud to my seventh grade classes and they loved it.  

Homecoming mentioned in the about post is good and the next book, Dicey's Song, is a Newbery winner.  Both are good reads (mostly for girls, however).  This same author, Cynthia Voight, has another good one that is not about these same charaters--Izzy, Willy-Nilly.

My daughter is 13 and loved the Twilight series.  She also really like "13 Reasons Why" a book that deals with suicide and how it affects everyone involved. 

Mike

Mrs. Mike

my daughters' favorite book

available here

From the books you listed, maybe you would like:

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin

Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech

My neice who loved the books you listed, also really like the Meg Cabot books. I've never read them myself.

The Westing Game was fantastic!  I still love it.  Also "the Egypt Game".

The Enchanted Forest Chronicles by Patricia C. Wrede (i.e. Dealing with Dragons, Talking with Dragons, and Searching for Dragons) is really good. Also:

the Alosha series by Christopher Pike

The Squire's Tale series by Gerald Morris

The Inheritance Trilogy by Christopher Paolini (Eragon, Eldest, Brisingr)

Redwall series by Brian Jacques

Castaways of the Flying Dutchman by Brian Jacques

Inkheart, Inkspell, and Inkdeath by Cornelia Funke

Spindle's End by Robin McKinley

The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis

Warriors by Erin Hunter

The Magic Shop series by Bruce Coville (I think that's what it's called)

A lot of these are Fantasy... I don't know what your 13 year-old likes but mine really loves just about all of the above. :)

My daughter 13 enjoys Elizabeth Scott and Sara Dessan. We stopped by Borders, browsed the ya section ,wrote some titles down andnow are in the process of getting them. Diane

As an english teacher, I can tell you that I saw lots of my students reading all of the books mentioned above. I second their choices! :)

A book I just got sent for a review was House of Dark Shadows by Liparulo it is book one of the Dreamhouse King series.

I just random choose my review books and was very surprised when it was so excellent.  It was a book I did not want to put down because I needed to find out what happened next. Loads of twists and turns in the plot and the ending has you wanting to read more.  Great for anyone of any age who loves a thriller.

I read Chains today by Laurie Halse Anderson. It's historical fiction anout a 13 y/o girl slave during the Revolutionary War. Should she side with the Patriots or the Loyalists? It's very good, the first of at least two.

Some of the ones already mentioned (and some that I would add) have an easier reading level, but are so good:  The Hundred Dresses; Sarah, Plain and Tall; The Midwife's Apprentice; Belle Prater's Boy.  Most are both funny and serious.  Have you read or heard of any of them? 

Another great one is Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli.  There's a sequel, Love, Stargirl, but I haven't read it. 

I'm an adult with grown kids, but I really enjoy reading books that are for your age group and younger.  That started when my kids were your age and I would read what they were reading and also scout out good books for them, like Traveling Pants and Stargirl.  I continue reading them because they are shorter than adult books, and much less likely to be offensive to me.  My oldest daughter is a middle-school Language Arts teacher who can recommend some more books for you, but I think you've gotten quite a few ideas in these posts already.

Oh, I almost forgot: Seedfolks!  It's excellent.   Hope Was Here and Hoot are two more that you may want to check out.

I just noticed that you joined on December 15th, you started this on the 18th, but your account is currently suspended or closed.  Maybe it's just a vacation thing, but I thought I'd mention it so others don't spend time giving suggestions if you are no longer around.  Please let us know when you are back.  Thanks!

When I was 13 I was into Gone With the Wind but that might not appeal to all 13 year olds.  Of course the Harry Potter series is an obvious choice.  Also the Wizard of Oz series - there were actually a whole bunch of Oz books in addition to the first one that we are familiar with from the movie.  My all time favorite YA book was Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes.  I probaby read that book 50 times during my youth and it never got old.

I do not know but I imagine the account was suspended because the OP was 13 years of age and that is not allowed.  However, I still find the thread intersting and full of great recommendations.

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne. Amazing YA book that both my 13 year old niece and I enjoyed. Movie coming out soon.

okay im 18 so i read books for girls your age not that long ago.

The Clique books by Lisi Harrison are really good. They aren't like anything you have read but you may wanna look them up.

Then there is the Alice books by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor. The early ones are a little below your reading level as i have been reading them since 6th grade and there are books prior to that one i read but she is still currently writing them.

Also anything by Sarah Dessen! I reccomened The Truth About Forever, this lullaby, Just Listen and Lock & Key.

oh p.s. anything by Judy Blume

if you liked the sisterhood of the traveling pants you should read JUST AS LONG AS WERE TOGETHER and its sequel HERES TO YOU RACHEL ROBINSON both by her

• Elsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin
• A Door Near Here by Heather Quarles
• The Vampire Kisses series by Ellen Schrieber ---way different than the Twilight series
• A World of Pies by Karen Stolz
• Chicks with Sticks series by Elizabeth Lenhard
• The Window by Jeanette Ingold
• Behind the Attic Wall by Sylvia Cassidy
• Tamsin by Peter S. Beagle
• Jade Green by Phyllis Reynold Naylor
• The Shadowy Horses by Susanna Kearsley
• Dragons in our Midst series by Bryan Davis 
• Cooper Kids series by Frank Peretti
• Adaline Falling Star by Mary Pope Osborne
• Time Stops for No Mouse by Michael Hoeye
• What I Call Life by Jill Wolfson
• The Whale Rider by Witi Ihimaera
• 1001 Arabian Nights by Geraldine McCaughrean
• 100 Cupboards by N.D Wilson
• Watership Down by Richard Adams

maximum ride series by james patterson