Exactly what should my 13 year old be reading?

[Toastedpickle]

I’m really stuck on books for my daughter (just turned 13). She seems at an in-between age of moving on from books she read at primary school with age appropriate themes to going into young adult territory, many of which in my opinion are very sexualised or too scary/focused on death. I google endlessly for ideas to give her but things like the Sarah J Maas books come up for her age - am I being overly protective, or are these not suitable (I have read a couple myself)?! We go to the library but Young Adult is just lumped together and it is such a broad age range. She just kind of aimlessly flicks through them and then reverts back to things she has read before from the ‘younger’ section.

Is there an in between stack of books I’m missing that are suitable for just turned teens? She liked the Lottie Brooks books, loves Enid Blyton, Secret Garden etc just to give an idea of themes. I think she would like romance books (age appropriate!). Nothing full of drama, death, fighting.

Philip Pullman Sally Lockhart series.

My 12yo reads whatever she wants, I don’t restrict the themes as I think keeping her love of reading is more important. She’s recently enjoyed twilight, good girls guide to murder and one of us is lying (all series) - I think all of these have inappropriate themes on your list though, all of young adult likely will otherwise it’ll be in the children’s section. I read mostly adult books when I was her age and skipped over the stuff I didn’t understand. It’s not the same as seeing stuff on tv.

At that age I'd have thought any young adults books would be good, I think they are made for this age? I know times have changed but I was reading anything I liked at that age (Stephen king, etc)
I didn't think Sarah j maas was explicitly ya, just adult books that young adults tend to like?
Personally I would have thought all the ones mentioned by raspberryripple are ok, listened to a good girls guide to murder on a road trip with my kids at that age and don't remember anything inappropriate? (Twilight maybe slightly older)
Has she tried heartstopper? What about those Robin Stevens books, they are very popular.

What's your daughter's opinion on what she'd like to read? I wouldn't limit her to young adult either. The beauty of reading is that if you don't understand what you're reading you don't visualise it. It just passes you by.

My DD (14) absolutely loved the Hunger game series, the Divergent series, and the Slated trilogy aged 12 to 14 ish. I thought they were age appropriate, having read them too. All a bit dystopian, but that's what she likes at the moment.

She wasn't keen on the One of us is lying series, she found them all a bit slow until the conclusion in the last 50 or so pages. She though A good girl's guide to murder was OK, but wasn't massively excited by it.

When she was around 11ish, she like the Real friends trilogy (graphic novels), they seemed very pleasant - no violence or death

Her friends are currently reading romance and sending each other photos of pages with fairly graphic descriptions and giggling. I'm less comfortable with the age appropriateness of these, than the stuff my DD reads, but then again I read the occasional smut as a teenager too

My next book recommendation for DD is the Daughter of the empire trilogy, which has to be my favourite book series, I first read it around 13/14. It's got a strong female protagonist, is set in a fantasy universe based on ancient Japan. It does feature a lot of war, death, politics, violence and romance. But the characters are fully rounded and complex and the writing is beautiful. The story is compelling and epic. Not young adult though

Mine were on Terry pratchett, Suzanne Collins etc by that age, twilight was a little later. Dd1 also got really into Jane Austen and tinkered with other classics

If she likes romances, maybe Georgette Heyer? And how about David Eddings (yes I know, the controversy, but still, good books!). Classics like Jane Austen, the Brontes? Orwell? Sci-fi - Heinlein?

Is it you saying no death and drama or her?
if it’s you, she should read Karen McManus One of Us is Lying series, all teenage girls seem to love these.

I also have a fan of dystopian fantasy here. My 12yo (Y7) has read all the Hunger Games series, all the Maze Runner series and he's just started the Dirvergent series.

I was delighted my DD read some classics at 11. Heidi, A little princess (my childhood favourite), Little women, Secret garden. My DD likes fantasy and is currently obsessed with the warrior cats series. There is about 30 books so it's kept her busy for months. Philip Pullman ones are good too for that age but she didn't love them.

At 12 now, I let her pick whatever she wants from the library YA or kids section. I figure they are age appropriate or they wouldn't be categorised that way. I agree they tend to be all lumped together, romance mixed with fantasy. She needs time to go through them and we often get lots of books and she disregards a few once she has the time to start them. Our library allows 12 each time and we just quickly return ones that she won't read.

Thanks all. Will look at these suggestions. Maybe I’m being too uptight and I just need to let it go - it was the sex and relationships that I’m worried about, mainly because the leap from Enid Blyton to Sarah J Maas seems quite big - guess I was hoping for some teen entry level romance 😅
thanks again

No definitely not me, I love a bit of crime and drama myself but they really aren’t her bag, she hates anything to do with death!

I have found that young adult fiction romances can vary from hand holding/kissing/fade to black sex (eg twilight) all the way up to erotica (eg whatever smut my DDs friends are currently reading for the giggles)

I would have thought she should be choosing her own books. Does the school provide a reading list? I’m very old but I know my grammar school did.

At that age I was reading all the classics and point horror to balance it out!

Very dated now, but what about Judy Blume? Her books were already pretty dated when I read them but that didn't stop me enjoying them.

Can't go wrong with Harry Potter!

How about Ursula LeGuin, or Susan Cooper? (The Dark Is Rising series.)

Gill Sims has a new teen book being published in August. It's marketed as 'the next step' from Lottie Brooks. So that might be worth a try?

There's a sequel to Impossible Creatures coming out soon, if she enjoyed that. And a new Skandar book.

DS enjoyed The Inheritance Ganes series when he was 13/14.

Just to put it out there...a lot of the girls at school seem to be really liking Jacqueline Wilson atm. I read them when I was in school and loved them but, unexpectedly, they are still popular!

The Sarah J Maas books definitely get 'spicier' as the series progresses. We had a parent complain recently when her 11 yr old read book 5 (it was in our teen section) - she said it was totally inappropriate for that age

Books at primary school that had 'age appropriate' themes are no longer 'age appropriate'. She's much beyond that now. You need to look at the age indications, not primary or YA, which could be for girls much older.

Try lovereading4kids and the age 13 category.

How about Eva Ibbotson? She's written some fairly innocent YA romances (A Song for Summer is my favourite) which I guess would qualify as 'entry level'. She's a lovely writer too. Humorous, down to earth, and affectionate towards her characters. She's might also enjoy Georgette Heyer as a PP suggested.

I'd suggest these books below, really captivating stories and also good to develop her vocabulary and skills with reading for English and world knowledge etc. But they're still very enjoyable:
Brotherless Night by V.V Ganeshananthan, The Handmaids Tale,
Brave New World,
The Colour Purple,
Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie,
Wellness by Nathan Hill,
Yellowface by R.F Kuang.
Fundamentally, by Nussaibah Younis,
Someday, Maybe by Onyu Nwabineli
The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store by James McBride
The Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo

I was reading classics at that age. No worries about too much sex, and loads to choose from. And lots of sci fi.
I'd also recommend Eva Ibbostsen, Philip Pullman.
At slightly older I read Terry Goodkind which was slightly smutty fantasy. Not sure how that compares to Sarah Mass as I haven't read those yet myself.

I started Agatha Christie at this age. I know there’s always death but it’s never gory or disturbing.