Book for 13 year old girl

last year

I have read All the Light We Cannot See two times and loved it even more the second time. I have a 13 year old granddaughter who has requested books for Christmas because, "I have read all the ones I have." None of the ones she has are as advanced as "All the Light", but I think she would really like it once the size quit intimidating her. I would like to introduce her to other books I have read and really liked and expand her reading experience. At her age, I would have inhaled this story.

I would like to have others' experience about attempts to enhance a teenager's reading tastes. I've also posted this on the Kitchen Table and Home Decorating Discussion forums.

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bigdogstwo

last year

last modified: last year

Hi Nora - I love that you are stretching her reading world because 13 is such a tough age for choosing books. Is there any concern about her reading "adult circumstances"? We read Judy Blume's Forever as teenagers and the content was VERY adult and we hid it from our parents - please know that I am not suggesting this book.

Some that I would suggest are:

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith

The Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck

Ten Little Indians and/or The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie

Paddy Clarke, Ha, Ha, Ha by Roddy Doyle

The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society - Shaffer and Barrows

Klara and the Sun - Kazuo Ishiguro

The Book Thief - Markus Zuzak

Year of Wonders - Geraldine Brooks

I could go on forever, but I will stop here.

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Comments (6)

rouan
last year
Nora-l, what kinds of books does she like? Does she prefer mysteries, science fiction, fantasy, historical fiction? It would be easier to give a recommendation if we knew what she did or did not like.
norar_il thanked rouan
annpanagain
last year
I would suggest you buy her a book token as you might get her a book she already possesses.

A good book shop assistant could help her with a suitable choice.

As a 13 y.o, I read historical romances, my daughter chose Anne Frank and similar recounting by teenagers in wartime! Tastes vary so much.
norar_il thanked annpanagain
rouan
last year
last modified: last year
Bigdogstwo, good selections! I was thinking of the Queen’s Thief series, by Megan Whalen Turner, starting with The Thief, which is why I was asking about her granddaughter’s genre choices.
bigdogstwo
last year
Also a great choice, Rouan!!

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merryworld
last year
I think I was about that age when I got Gone With the Wind for Christmas. Talk about intimidating size! But most kids her age are not as intimidated by big books since they've probably read Harry Potter.