# Book suggestions for teenage girls **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 14, 2017, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/book-suggestions-for-teenage-girls/804467 "2017-12-14T02:16:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2017, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/book-suggestions-for-teenage-girls/804467/1 "2017-12-14T02:16:22Z")
It’s that time of year again, when I give books to my nieces. And it’s also that time of year again, when I have no idea what they’re interested in (I have some specific suggestions for my nephew, at least, never mind that I already had a better idea of what he would want). The older of the two is a high school junior. She’s big on fantasy, and is a total Harry Potter nerd (but getting her anything Harry Potter is a bad idea, because she probably already has it). She also likes nonfiction, and I have in the past given her _Failure is Not an Option_ and _Hidden Figures_, both of which she liked. Her other suggestions last year were: _The Heir_ _The Crown_ _Glass Sword_ (by Victoria Aveyard) _King’s Cage_ (by Victoria Aveyard) _Cruel Crown_ (by Victoria Aveyard) Not that I’d be getting her any of these, since she’s probably already gotten them by now, but just to give an idea of what she likes. The younger is a high school freshman, and is a bit more difficult. She’s fond of crafts, and often takes up whatever her big sister has finished (though this doesn’t help with getting gifts for her herself). She also likes historical fiction about female characters, and she loved the Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children books. And she’s an avid gymnast. I will have a chance to double-check with my sister, if they already have particular books, but it’d work a lot better to already have a shortlist before I do. ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2017, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/book-suggestions-for-teenage-girls/804467/2 "2017-12-14T03:50:48Z")
Can’t go wrong with Diane Duane’s [Young Wizard Series](https://smile.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_c_1_12?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=diane+duane+young+wizards+series&sprefix=diane+duane+%2Caps%2C171&crid=3Q9QPZX9NEQZX). ---
**Author:** ![AI\_Proofreader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@AI\_Proofreader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AI_Proofreader)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2017, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/book-suggestions-for-teenage-girls/804467/3 "2017-12-14T04:02:00Z")
I’d highly recommend the [Divergent series by Veronica Roth.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Divergent_trilogy) ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2017, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/book-suggestions-for-teenage-girls/804467/4 "2017-12-14T04:19:48Z")
[Sloppy Firsts](https://www.amazon.com/Sloppy-Firsts-Jessica-Darling-Book/dp/0609807900) by Megan McCafferty. The first of the Jessica Darling quintet. Very good books. ---
**Author:** ![Francis\_Vaughan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/francis_vaughan/32/3093_2.png) [@Francis\_Vaughan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Francis_Vaughan)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2017, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/book-suggestions-for-teenage-girls/804467/5 "2017-12-14T05:01:23Z")
Call me old fashioned, but the last few years I have been giving my niece Folio Society renditions of the classics for girls. Jane Eyre, Collected works of Jane Austen etc. I have a great dislike of giving presents of something that is as ephemeral as the latest rage in teens, and also a dislike of giving presents of books that are poorly made and apt to fall apart over the years. I generally like presents to be something for life. Just my take on things however. OK, Failure is not an Option is an utterly brilliant choice. I should lay in a few copies and keep them as general presents. ---
**Author:** ![mikecurtis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mikecurtis/32/3284_2.png) [@mikecurtis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mikecurtis)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2017, 5:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/book-suggestions-for-teenage-girls/804467/6 "2017-12-14T05:50:26Z")
Anything by [Francesca Lia Block](https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1&sa=X&biw=1366&bih=656&q=Missing+Angel+Juan&stick=H4sIAAAAAAAAAONgFuLUz9U3MLYsqypR4gIxTUqMjXMKtAQcS0sy8otC8p3y87P983IqAfM0yEgrAAAA&npsic=-1152&tbs=kac:1,kac_so:0&ved=0ahUKEwjsw4_N5ojYAhWlRt8KHTU2DPoQ-BYISg), but particularly the Weetzie Bat series (I am fond of _Missing Angel Juan_!) mc ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2017, 7:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/book-suggestions-for-teenage-girls/804467/7 "2017-12-14T07:55:04Z")
In my experience, a teenager who is accustomed to recreational reading can handle anything on the Booker Prize list. There is some really excellent literature out there, some amazing writers. Books for “teenage girls” do not need to have teenage girl protagonists, nor even female ones, nor be written by a female author. A great book will make itself apparent to any reader., and be perceived as the treasure it is. I don’t mean to sidetrack the thread, nor belittle the suggestions so far, but seriously, let her get exposed to whatever she is intellectually capable of discovering the beauty of. If she doesn’t like it or comprehend it, she won’t read it. If she does, she will love you forever to opening the door. Disclaimer: Read the review yourself (not the jacket blurb). Make sure you are not giving her 50 Shades of Gray. But very few books are that troublesome. ---
**Author:** ![Weedy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/weedy/32/301_2.png) [@Weedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Weedy)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2017, 8:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/book-suggestions-for-teenage-girls/804467/8 "2017-12-14T08:46:49Z")
The _Sabriel_ books (_Sabriel, Lirael and Abhorsen_)by Garth Nix are pretty good YA fantasy. I also liked the Skyscraper Throne series by Tom Pollock, which are YA urban fantasy. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2017, 8:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/book-suggestions-for-teenage-girls/804467/9 "2017-12-14T08:47:13Z")
For the younger one, consider _My Brilliant Career_. It’s about a teenage girl living in the Australian outback around 1900 who wants a career in the arts, but her family keeps coming up with ways to foil it, including making her governess to a truly awful band of children to pay off her father’s debts. At one point, though, she gets to live with a somewhat well-off grandmother, and experience a nice life, and get a taste of something besides the outback. The kicker is, it was actually written by a sixteen year old girl who lived in the Australian outback-- although it isn’t an autobiography. It’s a work of fiction, and it has quite a bit of humor in it. It was a favorite book of mine when I was 16. Also, I read Winston Graham’s _Poldark_ series when I was in high school and loved them. I had missed seeing the original series on _Masterpiece Theater_ (albeit, I saw it later), because I was in the Soviet Union when it ran. So I read it knowing nothing about it, and just loved it. Anyone who likes historical novels should like it, and probably someone who likes romance with a real story would too. I never read fantasy, so I have no suggestions there. I can tell you that my all-time favorite book ever is something I read when I was 14. It’s called _Testament of Youth_, and is an autobiography of a young woman’s experience of WWI as a nurse in the VAD. It’s a pretty long book though. Don’t give it to a kid with a short attention span. ---
**Author:** ![Penfeather](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/penfeather/32/384_2.png) [@Penfeather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Penfeather)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2017, 9:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/book-suggestions-for-teenage-girls/804467/10 "2017-12-14T09:27:48Z")
Terry Pratchett’s _Wee Free Men_. Part of the Discworld series, but works well as a standalone for those who don’t know the Disc yet, and one of the best kids books there is, particularly for girls: smart and funny and wise and touching and honest. > [@](#): > > Miss Tick sniffed. “You could say this advice is priceless,” she said, “Are you listening?” > “Yes,” said Tiffany. > “Good. Now…if you trust in yourself…” > “Yes?” > “…and believe in your dreams…” > “Yes?” > “…and follow your star…” Miss Tick went on. > “Yes?” > “…you’ll still be beaten by people who spent their time working hard and learning things and weren’t so lazy. Goodbye.” ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2017, 11:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/book-suggestions-for-teenage-girls/804467/11 "2017-12-14T11:47:57Z")
Agreed with the above, that a 17yo can read near anything. Agreed with the above about Tiffany Aching for the slightly younger one. Consider books that won the [World Fantasy Award](http://www.worldfantasy.org/awards/). Two recent good ones: **Uprooted** , a well-told fantasy about a fight between two more-or-less wizards. **The Sudden Appearance of Hope** , a modern fantasy about a woman whose superpower/curse is that nobody–not even her own parents–can remember encountering her once she’s out of sight. She parlays this into a successful career as a jewel thief. A lot of fun. ---
**Author:** ![Meurglys](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/258eb7/32.png) [@Meurglys](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meurglys)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2017, 11:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/book-suggestions-for-teenage-girls/804467/12 "2017-12-14T11:58:41Z")
For suitable fantasy, I’d suggest maybe [V. E. Schwab](https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7168230.V_E_Schwab)’s _A Darker Shade of Magic_. It’s part one of a trilogy, all of which is available. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2017, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/book-suggestions-for-teenage-girls/804467/13 "2017-12-14T12:38:36Z")
A while ago I read award winning scientist Hope Jahren’s [Lab Girl](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25733983-lab-girl), her autobiographical account of her career in paleobiology. It is a very fine book even if you are not terribly interested in the science. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2017, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/book-suggestions-for-teenage-girls/804467/14 "2017-12-14T12:46:49Z")
[The Lockwood & Company books](https://www.amazon.com/Screaming-Staircase-Lockwood-Co/dp/1423164911/ref=pd_sim_14_7?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=1423164911&pd_rd_r=6CVZHEWHV900M2RHS1JT&pd_rd_w=QHN5D&pd_rd_wg=OpIj4&psc=1&refRID=6CVZHEWHV900M2RHS1JT) are the best thing I’ve read in ages. It’s a five book series, and though it skews a bit younger than your girls’ ages, I would consider it perfect for Potter fans. I’m 47 and I loved it. It pains me that I have no one to buy it for! The Bartimaeus trilogy by the same author is also very good. ---
**Author:** ![WildBlueYonder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ce7236/32.png) [@WildBlueYonder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildBlueYonder)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2017, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/book-suggestions-for-teenage-girls/804467/15 "2017-12-14T16:35:00Z")
There are no books for just girls or boys! :eek::eek: Get used to it!:D:D ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2017, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/book-suggestions-for-teenage-girls/804467/16 "2017-12-14T18:41:23Z")
I hope I didn’t give the impression that some books were only for one gender, especially since some of the books I mentioned that they already liked have male protagonists and are widely enjoyed by both genders. And my copy of _The Wee Free Men_ is already over at their house, though I don’t know if any of them have read it yet. If they want, they can borrow any of my Discworld books they want (I have nearly the complete set). The other suggestions, I’ll look into. ---
**Author:** ![Tzigone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@Tzigone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tzigone)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2017, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/book-suggestions-for-teenage-girls/804467/17 "2017-12-14T18:52:09Z")
> [@](#): > > Call me old fashioned, but the last few years I have been giving my niece Folio Society renditions of the classics for girls. Jane Eyre, Collected works of Jane Austen etc. > I have a great dislike of giving presents of something that is as ephemeral as the latest rage in teens, and also a dislike of giving presents of books that are poorly made and apt to fall apart over the years. I generally like presents to be something for life. Just my take on things however. I was a big reader, and didn’t care for those as a teenage girl. Still don’t. I dislike people giving “classics” instead of giving someone something they’d actually like to read. Good on OP for telling us what they like so suggestions can be tailored to those tastes. ---
**Author:** ![Hazle\_Weatherfield](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Hazle\_Weatherfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hazle_Weatherfield)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2017, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/book-suggestions-for-teenage-girls/804467/18 "2017-12-14T19:22:31Z")
A Wrinkle in Time! ---
**Author:** ![GreenWyvern](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/greenwyvern/32/2834_2.png) [@GreenWyvern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenWyvern)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2017, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/book-suggestions-for-teenage-girls/804467/19 "2017-12-14T19:50:54Z")
Ursula Le Guin’s _Earthsea_ books. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2017, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/book-suggestions-for-teenage-girls/804467/20 "2017-12-14T19:54:55Z")
Is there a Roy Moore biograpghy? :: D&R :: [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/book-suggestions-for-teenage-girls/804467.md?page=2)