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  1. #1
    WatchingThemGrow is offline Blue Diamond level (20,000+ posts)
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    Default Positive fiction for teen girl?

    DD is 13 and reads a ton. She’s stuck in a weird place because YA fiction is on the gory/dark side, and she’s just not into that.

    Can you share some early high school titles, authors, series that are kind and happy?


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  2. #2
    lizzywednesday is offline Red Diamond level (10,000+ posts)
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    I like pretty much anything by Shannon Hale right now, and her Books of Bayern come highly recommended. They're retold fairy tales; the first one is The Goose Girl. I also recommend the two graphic novels that she collaborated with artist LeUyen Pham to write - Real Friends and Best Friends. They're slightly fictionalized graphic memoirs and I love them both for writing & drawing them.

    What does your DD enjoy reading currently? That's a better gauge for things to recommend than just her age and what she's not into. (And I agree that there's a lot of grimdark out there in the YA/teen area - dystopia, dark reworkings, etc. - but that doesn't mean it's everything.)
    ==========================================
    Liz
    DD (3/2010)

    "Make mistakes! Get messy!" - Miss Frizzle

  3. #3
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    Default Positive fiction for teen girl?

    I don’t have any suggestions because my DD (13) and her friends all like violence and murder (seriously ).

    ETA: I really loved The Sun is Also a Star. It’s not light and fluffy. Teen love story but contemporary issues

    Other realistic fiction books: The Fault in our Stars (sad, but not dark/violent), the hate u give (heavy but amazing), tell me three things, Eleanor & Park, and everything, everything

    Adding some historical fiction
    Salt to the Sea
    Between Shades of Gray
    Book Thief
    Fever 1793
    Last edited by georgiegirl; 12-07-2019 at 11:53 PM.
    DD (3/06)
    DS1 (7/09)
    DS2 (8/13)

  4. #4
    Neatfreak is offline Emerald level (3000+ posts)
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    One title that comes to mind is Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell (she also wrote Eleanor & Park that was recommended above).
    ~ Laura



    One in 2004 and the other one in 2008

  5. #5
    Twoboos is offline Diamond level (5000+ posts)
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    Maybe the Selection series by Kiera Cass? My girls have read this series multiple times - some romance, some action, but i don't think dark/gory.
    "Every mother needs a wife." - Amy Poehler, Yes Please

  6. #6
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    DD1 is 14 and really enjoys Shannon Hale. She also loves Robin Jones Gunn's Christy Miller series and has also read the Sierra Jenson series by the same author (note that Robin Jones Gunn is a Christian and her books reflect that). She also likes Melanie Dickerson's YA fairy tale retellings. We've also found that YA has a lot of dark books - I actually stumbled across an interesting podcast episode about that, which has some book recommendations as well. https://readaloudrevival.com/132/
    Allison

    DD1 11/05
    DS 04/08
    DD2 11/11

  7. #7
    Philly Mom is offline Diamond level (5000+ posts)
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    My daughter is an avid and advanced reader. She is a bit younger but also doesn't like the dark/gory books.

    She has read and loved:
    Fever 1793
    Blubber
    Are you there god, its me Margaret?
    The War that Saved My Life; And the War I finally Won
    When Hitler Stole Pink Elephant

    Additional books:
    Anne Frank
    Ann of Green Gables
    Wish

  8. #8
    lizzywednesday is offline Red Diamond level (10,000+ posts)
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    Quote Originally Posted by georgiegirl View Post
    ... Eleanor & Park...
    I loved Eleanor & Park; it perfectly captures being 16, unsure of yourself, uncomfortable in your own skin, and the experience of your first love - how all of your feelings and experiences are dialed up to 11. It's an amazing novel.

    There's supposed to be a movie (for Netflix, I think) in the works.

    I'm excited about that, but definitely recommend reading the book.

    Oh, and I recommend the Simon Snow books - Carry On (which I read) and Wayward Son (which I haven't read yet) - as well as Fangirl, which was recommended downthread.

    Rainbow Rowell's novels (and comics!) are phenomenal. She's also a great follow on social media.

    Quote Originally Posted by georgiegirl View Post
    ...
    Fever 1793
    I also read this one; it's tough to get into, as the main character is really unlikeable in the beginning, but it's well worth it.

    Really interesting, too.

    Quote Originally Posted by Neatfreak View Post
    One title that comes to mind is Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell (she also wrote Eleanor & Park that was recommended above).
    I loved this and can't believe I didn't add it to my list of rec's above.

    Quote Originally Posted by Philly Mom View Post
    My daughter is an avid and advanced reader. She is a bit younger but also doesn't like the dark/gory books.

    ...
    Blubber
    Are you there god, its me Margaret?
    Now, I haven't read either of these since I was a tween myself, but I've read a few things about updates they've made to the technology (i.e. - Margaret, Nancy, and the rest of the PTS's don't call each other ... they text; no more talk about menstrual pads you have to hook into a belt; etc.) ... and I think Blubber has some really important lessons in it.

    ...
    Ann of Green Gables
    ...
    I think you mean Anne; the "e" at the end is super-important to her.

    And the Anne books are among my favorites from childhood ... and I periodically revisit them ... and also recommend Magic for Marigold. Oh, and if your kids don't enjoy Anne, they may love Emily; first in the trilogy is Emily of New Moon.
    ==========================================
    Liz
    DD (3/2010)

    "Make mistakes! Get messy!" - Miss Frizzle

  9. #9
    Mermanaid is offline Platinum level (1000+ posts)
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    My daughter loved The Selection Series. She’s read them multiple times.


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    Jenn

    My loves:
    DD 11/2004
    DS 6/2007

  10. #10
    hbridge is offline Emerald level (3000+ posts)
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    DD loves Lisa Bunker's two books: Felix YZ and Zenobia July. They are both interesting and introspective.

    However, they have quite a bit of LBGTQ embedded into the stories, which can be a positive or not, depending on the circumstances.

    Another idea is the classics: Little Women, Pride and Prejudice, Anne of Green Gables (the trilogy)...

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