Finding the right book to read when you’re getting to summer vacation is definitely not easy. You’ve spent so long with someone else telling you what to read that you’re really not sure where to start. Well, any of these books are going to be a great place to start. You’re going to be creating your own middle school reading list for girls, so take a look here and start adding some of your favorites or your wish list books on. In this post, we’ll detail the best books for middle school girls.
Maybe you’ve heard of a few of these, or perhaps you’ve never heard of any. We’ve got a few old grades 6-8 books that you’ll definitely need to check out, and a few brand new ones that you may not even know were released yet. Not to mention there’s some fiction and non-fiction in our list because you can never get too much of either one. You’re going to learn a whole lot no matter which one you read.
No matter if you’re looking to have some fun or you’re looking to learn something new or get some motivation, one of these will help you. From the strength and determination of fictional women in Pride and Prejudice to the same in real ones in I Am Malala or The Diary of a Young Girl, there’s nothing that you can’t do if you set your mind to it. All you need is the right foundation to start.
Looking for books for middle school boys? We have a post on that as well here.
The 5 Best Fiction Middle School Books for Girls Before High School
Are you ready to get reading with some fun books for a change? These fun, fictional books are still going to show you a whole lot about strength and courage while also letting you really dive into a completely new world. Whether you love realistic fiction or something with a little more magic and mystery, there’s something on this fiction book list for absolutely everyone.
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
Historical fiction doesn’t get much better than this classic. Written in Edwardian times, this is the story of a young woman and a man who is determined that each of them knows best. Yet, of course, there’s a whole lot that neither of them knows. Pride and Prejudice is about just what the title suggests; these two contrary traits that will lead anyone down the wrong path, and that definitely happens with Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy.
If you’re looking for a book with a strong female character who steps outside of the confines of her time, Pride and Prejudice is it. You’ll find several strong and engaging characters, beautiful scenes, great dialogue, and a plot that’s going to keep you reading all the way through. Jane Austen definitely knows what she’s doing when it comes to Pride and Prejudice (as well as her other books which you might want to take a look at too).
What Makes it Great:
- A realistic glimpse into life during the nineteenth century
- Intriguing and realistic characters
Why Choose This Book:
- Strong and flawed characters that move the story along
- Beautiful artwork and images throughout
- Great product!
- Jane Austen (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
Last update: 2024-05-01
Dragon Pearl by Yoon Ha Lee
Get ready to venture into space for an odyssey like no other. Min is a teenage girl determined to escape the society that she’s forced to exist in and dreaming of the time when she’ll be able to begin a whole new life. But when she learns that her brother has gone missing, she knows that she needs to do whatever it takes to find him, and the truth of his disappearance.
Action, adventure, and magic collide when you read this book that’s based on a Korean myth. It’s beautifully written and wonderfully descriptive. Every step of the way you’ll believe you’re right there with Min, meeting some of the best and the worst of her world (and the universe). A completely new style for Rick Riordan books (Dragon Pearl is an imprint of his name), you’ll find yourself very much drawn into the stories, the intrigue and a great deal more.
What Makes it Great:
- Explore a whole new world of outer space
- A unique take on ancient Korean mythology
Why Choose This Book:
- Extremely detailed descriptions to pull you in
- Harrowing tale where you never know what happens next
- Hardcover Book
- Lee, Yoon Ha (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
Last update: 2024-05-01
Sal and Gabi Break the Universe by Carlos Hernandez
When Sal and Gabi meet for the first time they’re definitely not the type of people who anyone thinks would become friends. But of course, opposites always seem to attract, right? Sal is the bad kid with a little bit of a secret, or maybe quite a giant secret, his magic. On the other hand, Gabi is the student council president, and her only experience with magic is seeing the fantastic things that he can do.
If you’re looking for more than a few magical experiences, and maybe a little bit of time bending while you’re at it, Sal and Gabi Break the Universe is an excellent way to go. It’s a story filled with love and magic, and definitely a couple of heroes who might also be the villains in their own story. These two teenagers are definitely in for some adventures, and those adventures are going to leave you wanting more, which is great because this book is only the start of a series.
What Makes it Great:
- All about celebrating the differences of others
- Magic, mystery, and adventure throughout
Why Choose This Book:
- Completely different but highly realistic characters
- All about trying to cope with change, loss and more in a completely new world
- Hardcover Book
- Hernandez, Carlos (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
Last update: 2024-05-01
Genesis Begins Again by Alicia D. Williams
For a young girl who’s always been taught that everything about herself is wrong or not enough, there seems like nothing to do but create a list of all of the things that she hates. But it’s not just things she hates in general. It’s things she hates about herself, with her own skin being one of those things. As Genesis starts to find more and more things, 100 things that she hates about herself, she also begins to meet new people who just might help her change her mind, and see herself as someone beautiful, wonderful and talented.
We all struggle with things that we don’t like about ourselves or things that others tell us are no good about ourselves, but when we see others doing the same, it makes us feel awful. The story of a young girl who has created her own list of so many things to hate about herself is one that too many people can relate to, and when you read Genesis Beings Again you’ll find ways to evolve, love and believe in yourself, even as Genesis learns that there is good, beauty and more in everyone.
What Makes it Great:
- Tackles the idea of racism both internally and externally
- Explores the concept of self-hatred and self-love
Why Choose This Book:
- Encourages everyone to learn to see the beauty and wonder in themselves
- Beautifully written, descriptive scenes and characters throughout
- Hardcover Book
- Williams, Alicia D. (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
Last update: 2024-05-01
Holes by Louis Sacher
When Stanley is sent to Camp Green Lake for a crime he didn’t commit; he knows he’s just going to have to make the best of it. After all, no one believes his version of what happened. So, it seems he’s going to have no choice but to dig holes until his time is finally up. But when even that seems to go awry, there’s nothing Stanley can do but run for his life, meeting up with yet another one of the boys from the camp along the way, but what they discover as they attempt to survive might shock everyone.
The curse on the Yelnats family is one that has been passed down from one generation to the next, from his great-great-grandfather all the way to Stanley. That has to be the reason for everything that’s happening to him, and it’s a great way to create a funny baseline for this story. Stanley is a likeable character, and his friends that he makes along the way are definitely the kind of people that you want to know even more about. It doesn’t matter that this book is a little bit older, just about anyone will relate.
What Makes it Great:
- Plenty of humor interspersed throughout
- Interesting and fun characters
Why Choose This Book:
- Paints a strong picture throughout of past and present stories
- Excellent plot for younger and older readers alike
- Holes, Paperback
- Stanley Yelnats is under a curse. A curse that began with his no-good-dirty-rotten-pig-stealing-great-great-grandfather and has since followed generations of Yelnats
- Now Stanley has been unjustly sent to a boys' detention center, Camp Green Lake, where the warden makes the boys "build character" by spending all day, every day, digging holes
Last update: 2024-05-01
The 4 Best Non-Fiction Middle School Books for Girls to Read Before High School
Non-fiction books most definitely don’t have to be boring. You can have an excellent time with them. But that doesn’t mean you’re not going to learn about hard things. These books are the kind that you may even read later on in high school, and you’re already going to have a head start of just what they are and what they’re going to teach you along the way.
The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank
Generations have grown and learned the horrors and the losses of the Holocaust alongside Anne Frank, and there is definitely no reason to stop that lesson. This is a young girl who endured extreme tragedy, loss, grief, and terror and yet continued to do just that, endure. When the Nazi’s came, her family went into hiding, and it is there that The Diary of a Young Girl, picks up. Through her journal entries, we learn about her family and her world in a whole new way.
While this is not one of the typical stories that you may have read, depicting the horrors of ghetto life and the death camps, The Diary of a Young Girl is a story of a girl who never knows what might be coming next, or how she will even survive. The family managed to live quite a long time in hiding, and yet, it was not enough to see them through the war. While The Diary of a Young Girl will not delve into the horrors they endured when they were sent to the concentration camps; it most definitely will depict an amazing level of strength.
What Makes it Great:
- Accurate, historical account of one of the greatest tragedies in our history
- Explores a young girl’s life and attempt at believing in the world around her
Why Choose This Book:
- For anyone who loves history, including the dark aspects of what human beings are actually capable of
- A story of love, and hope even in the midst of a terrible time in history
- Anne Frank (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 280 Pages - 02/02/2015 (Publication Date) - Prakash Book Depot (Publisher)
Last update: 2024-05-01
I Am Malala by Malala Yousafzai
Nothing was going to stop Malala Yousafzai from receiving the education that she knew she was entitled to, not even the Taliban who took control of her town in Pakistan. When she spoke out, everyone knew that she could be punished, and yet no one believed it would lead to her being shot in the head at 15-years-old. Still, Malala defied the odds and not only survived but still refused to be silenced, refused to back down. Today, this amazing young woman is the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, and always an outspoken supporter of the right for a woman to attend school.
Strength, resilience, and a strong foundation of beliefs have led Malala to never give up on her dreams for the future. Every step of the way this young woman has found adversity and never backed down from it. I Am Malala is her memoirs and a story of being the one to stand up, no matter what you might face along the way. This account brings the truth of the Taliban, global terrorism in general, women’s rights, and much more into the light, and into a style that anyone reading can truly understand.
What Makes it Great:
- Story of overcoming adversity and never backing down
- An accurate account of the difficulty facing women who attempt to break free of the mold in a country held back by terrorism and outdated concepts
Why Choose This Book:
- Excellent book to showcase to teens and younger the truth of the world outside of our doors
- Includes stories of others who have fought back against oppression in many different forms
- The book is in pristine condition. Ships out in 24 hours. Cover is slightly worn around the edges
- Yousafzai, Malala (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
Last update: 2024-05-01
Girl Code by Andrea Gonzales
Far too few women are represented within the world of coding for one reason, or another and Girl Code is set to change that. Whether you’ve never coded a day in your life or you’ve been building up your own skills, it’s the story of two teenagers who made a name for themselves. These teenage girls not only learned to code but created a video game that went viral and the story of how they did it is one that any budding coder (or aspiring inventor) will want to know all about.
Andrea Gonzales and Sophie Houser have never backed down from a challenge, and they’re ready to share not just the story of how they got where they are today, but what others can do to follow them. There’s even a section on how to get started with coding if you’ve never tried it before. These two women started out exactly like any other teenagers, with a skill, an idea, and a dream for what it could someday become. Is it no wonder that they managed to take the world by storm?
What Makes it Great:
- True story of hard work and dedication and what it can accomplish
- All about working together and becoming the best person you can be
Why Choose This Book:
- Entire section included for getting you started coding for yourself
- All about inspiring others to begin pushing for their dreams, whatever they might be
- Gonzales, Andrea (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 304 Pages - 03/06/2018 (Publication Date) - HarperCollins (Publisher)
Last update: 2024-05-01
Bad Girls: Sirens, Jezebels, Murderesses, Thieves and Other Female Villains by Jane Yolen & Heidi Stemple
Girls aren’t just damsels in distress or princesses or even heroes. Sometimes, they’re the villains. That’s precisely what Bad Girls is all about, women who have been the villain in the story, throughout history. Whether you’re reading about traditional villains, like Jezebel or non-traditional ones like Catherine the Great, these stories tell about women who have been labeled as ‘bad girls’ and ‘badly-behaved’ but isn’t that part of the fun of it?
In Bad Girls, you’ll read about a total of 26 different women who were given a bad reputation by history. It’s going to be up to you to decide which ones are actually deserved and which ones might just be history’s way of shutting down a strong force. That’s because Bad Girls is going to present each of the women as both innocent and guilty and leave it up to you to be the judge of just which side they should fall on (though no one is ever really good or evil, right?).
What Makes it Great:
- Presents girls and women throughout history in an entirely different light
- Provides a new view of what we’ve been led to believe about our history
Why Choose This Book:
- Gender roles of each era are challenged along the way
- Offers short and easy to read stories of women throughout history
- Yolen, Jane (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 172 Pages - 09/08/2015 (Publication Date) - Charlesbridge (Publisher)
Last update: 2024-05-01
Summary of the Best Books for Middle School Girls
Putting everything together, in this guide we reviewed the following:
| Product | Number Of Pages |
|---|---|
| I Am Malala | 368 |
| Girl Code: Gaming, Going Viral, and Getting It Done | 304 |
If you’re looking for your next book, you won’t need to look any further than this list of 7 awesome reads. Each one is written by an awesome author, and each one is going to make you love reading more than ever. For this summer you’re not going to have any problems finding a great book to add to your list and start reading. In fact, you’re going to be more than happy to finish one so you can start reading the next.
Want more reading lists? Check out all of our reading book lists here. Or if you’re looking to get a headstart on your middle school summer reading list, check out our comprehensive one here.
Lastly, teaching girls about how to think about money is important. Check out our post on teaching kids on money here.
