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HomeBook Reviews and Recommendations: Preteen and Tween, Ages 9-12

Book Reviews and Recommendations:

Preteen and Tween, Ages 9-12

 

With maturity developing and a wide range of reading abilities among preteens and tweens, middle grade novels (books for ages 9 and up) begin to soar with well-developed fantastical worlds, a gentle increase in the complexities of social and emotional plot developments, smaller fonts, and more pages.

 

Children's Book Reviews for ages 9 to 12

While kids used to read books featuring characters around their age, preteens and tweens begin to “read up”–they often like to read about characters older than themselves, while also reserving the right to “read down” at any moment in time. We believe that our job here at The Children’s Book Review is to select excellent middle grade books that cover the many interests, maturity levels, and varying ranges of emotional readiness of kids ages 9-12. Our middle grade book reviews and book lists cover everything from the simply fun to stories that begin to raise difficult questions. You’ll find fantasy novels, mystery books, historical fiction, graphic novels (books that are formatted in comic book style), and much, much more.

Here are a few middle grade book lists to get you started:

5 Laugh-Out-Loud and Reach-for-the-Kleenex Middle Grade Novels

5 Amazing Middle Grade Books

5 Middle Grade Books That I’ll Never Lend Out to Anyone Ever

If you’re a huge fan of middle grade novels and a socialite, digitally speaking, and feel that we must know about one of your favorite books for ages 9-12, then you can send us suggestions on books for preteens and tweens through our Twitter handle, and share your most distinguished books on Instagram or Facebook with #thechildrensbookreview. We’re looking forward to connecting with our fellow bookworms!

Buy recent books and ebooks for preteens and tweens in our Book Shop powered by Amazon.

Boos for Ages 9-12

Get To Know Duck Embry from Brad McLelland and Louis Sylvester’s The Fang of Bonfire Crossing, "rip-roaring" middle-grade adventure.

The Wondrous Workings of Planet Earth explains how our planet works—and how we can protect it—from its diverse ecosystems and their inhabitants, to the levels of ecology, the importance of biodiversity, the cycles of nature, and more.

Jake Burt is an award-winning author of middle grade fiction, including Greetings from Witness Protection!, The Right Hook of Devin Velma, The Tornado (Fall 2019), and Cleo Porter and the Body Electric (Fall 2020).

From the beloved author of Because of Mr. Terupt, Rob Buyea, comes the sequel to The Perfect Score. Learn about The Perfect Secret and Rob's writing and reading life.

he Fox Girl and the White Gazelle presents many great talking points such as: the idea of belonging and what that means to each of us, and how we treat people who we see as outsiders.

The Big Book of 100 Outdoor Activities not only provides a wealth of such activities but – even better – it situates them outside, keeping the living-room carpet blissfully free of glue. 

Alley-Oop! Ez and the Intangibles grabs the reader and dunks them right into this sports-story-with-a-valuable-twist.

Catherine Doyle has created a magical story that will delight young readers looking for a fresh fantasy.

Karen Benke is the author of several books, including Rip the Page! Adventures in Creative Writing, Leap Write In! featuring more adventures in creative writing, and Write Back Soon: Adventures in Letter Writing.

Bridges!: With 25 Science Projects for Kids is a fun read, and a wonderful role-model: a great new addition to children’s non-fiction.

This month, the book that tops off the best selling middle grade book list from our affiliate store is Alicia D. Williams' Genesis Begins Again.

Padma Venkatraman is the author of The Bridge Home. She was born in Chennai, India, and became an American citizen after attaining a Ph.D. in oceanography.

Which five words best describe Saving Winslow? Sharon Creech: Gentle, funny, Creechian, sincere, poignant

Peter Bunzl, the Author of Cogheart, Shares Five Steampunk Stories

In our sixth installment of the “Learn to Draw on TCBR” series, just like in his book Let's Make Comics, Jess Smart Smiley teaches us how to make a comic.

Genesis Begins Again is Alicia D. Williams' debut novel. Read all about it!

Get To Know Rex Gallagher from Beth Vrabel’s The Reckless Club, a new middle-grade Breakfast Club drama set in a old folks' home.

The Children's Book Review | January 30, 2019 This month, the book that tops off the best selling middle grade book list from our affiliate store is TCBR founder Bianca Schulze's 101 Books to Read Before You Grow Up—the must-read reference guide for book lovers of all ages! Also listed are the 5 books we selected from the nationwide best-selling hardcover middle grade list, as seen on The New York Times. All of these books are wonderful choices for tweens and middle schoolers. The Children’s Book Review’s Best Selling Middle Grade Book   101 Books To Read Before You Grow Up Written by Bianca Schulze Publisher’s Synopsis: 101 Books to Read Before You Grow Up provides a comprehensive list of kid-friendly books for children to read before they grow up. This must-read review list acts as an interactive journal where kids can document the books they read, why they like them, and how they rate them. Divided into sections by subject, from fairy tales and fantasy to sports and nonfiction, 101 Books to Read Before You Grow Upcelebrates the importance of reading and encourages family participation to develop lifelong readers. The perfect reference guide for book lovers of all ages, 101 Books to Read Before You Grow Up helps both kids and parents decide which books to

Here are five classic nonfiction survival tales written for adults—to be read and passed on to young readers with a taste for adventure.

In The Mystery of the Lost Map, readers are introduced to Cowboy Little and Cowboy Small, two brothers that share a thirst for adventure and mischief.

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