Best Fiction for Older Readers of 2024Like this list

25 items

• Alterations

  Xu, Ray,

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  In Toronto, we meet Kevin Lee. His parents are divorced. His sister is mean. His mom is always working and now Grandma is moving from China into their already cramped apartment. What else could possibly go wrong? Follow along as Kevin navigates the…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Any Way You Look

  Siddiqui, Maleeha,

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  Twelve-year-old Ainy loves fashion! The summer after sixth grade, she finally gets to work in her Amma’s clothing store and hang out with her best friend Safiya. She might even be ready to wear the hijab full time like her older sister Bajjo. But…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Between Two Brothers

  Allen, Crystal,

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  Middle schooler Ice loves his older brother Seth. They’re not just brothers, they’re best friends to the end. But just before Seth leaves for college, they have a huge fight. But before Ice can apologize, Seth gets into a terrible accident and winds…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Black Star

  Alexander, Kwame,

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  Lee’s Mill, Virginia, 1930: 12-year-old Charley Cuffey is the star pitcher in town. Charley and her best friend Cool Willie Green spend their days playing ball, dreaming of going pro, and drawing inspiration from Nana Kofi’s (Charley’s grandfather)…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Bletchley Riddle

  Sepetys, Ruta,

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  London, 1940: 14-year-old Lizzie Novis loved solving riddles with her older brother Jakob until their mother disappeared in the Nazi invasion of Poland, tearing their small family apart. While everyone assumes she is dead, Lizzie refuses to believe…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Buffalo Dreamer

  Duncan, Violet,

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  Summer (Cree and Apache) and her family are making their annual trip from the U.S. to Canada to spend summer vacation with extended family on a Canadian Cree reservation. Summer looks forward to this visit every year, but this year, as they cross…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Cookie Crumbles

  Badua, Tracy,

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  Tween best friends Laila and Lucy need to make a name for themselves in hopes of getting into an elite high school together. Laila competes in a fancy baking contest with Lucy writing a (hopefully) award-worthy article about it. When a bite of…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The First State of Being

  Kelly, Erin Entrada,

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  It’s 1999, and Michael is used to instability - as a latchkey twelve-year-old with a hardworking mom - but he is particularly worried about Y2K so he’s hording supplies under his bed. The new millennium, however, becomes the least of his concerns…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Flicker

  Edgmon, H. E.,

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  The flicker, a large solar flare, has destroyed the earth as we know it. Recently orphaned stepsiblings Millie and Rose set out with their infant brother and their dog to find Millie’s grandmother, a Seminole elder. But the world holds more dangers…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Free Period

  Terese, Ali,

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  Prankster pals Helen and Gracie pull one too many over-the-top tricks in their middle school and are required to participate in the Community Action Club to make up for it. When they find out the club is working to make menstrual products available…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Gamerville

  Christmas, Johnnie,

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  JT Max Lightning has worked night and day to finally qualify for Gamerville, a championship tournament where players compete in a multiplayer video game. He knows he can win, but his plan to participate is short-circuited by his parents who send him…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Impossible Creatures

  Rundell, Katherine,

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  If someone asked you for help because a murderer was chasing them, what would you say? This is how Christopher from Scotland who accidentally comes through a portal to another world meets Mal who is running from said killer in the last magic place…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Jasmine Is Haunted

  Oshiro, Mark,

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  Jasmine has moved around a LOT in the last 4 years. She and her mom keep getting noise complaints and getting on the landlords' bad sides because no matter where they go, a ghost follows Jasmine. When she goes to a GSA meeting at her new school, she…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Kareem Between

  Safadi, Shifa Saltagi,

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  National Book Award Winner Kareem Between by Saadia Faruqi’s is a heartfelt coming-of-age story that explores the experiences of a Pakistani American boy navigating the complexities of cultural identity, family dynamics, and personal growth. Set in…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Kwame Crashes the Underworld

  Farmer, Craig Kofi,

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  Kwame isn’t prepared when he loses his grandma, but what happens next is really unexpected: he gets transported to the Ghanian underworld by a mysterious whirlpool, where he’s reunited with her! Together with some trusty friends, it’ll be up to them…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Not Nothing

  Forman, Gayle,

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  Twelve-year-old Alex learns to deal with his anger issues toward his absent, mentally ill mother while doing community service at a nursing home for an act of violence toward another child. He befriends a voluntarily silent Holocaust survivor and…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Not Quite a Ghost

  Ursu, Anne,

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  Everything in Violet’s life is changing. The creepy attic room in her new house becomes her bedroom, and soon after moving in she gets sick, and doesn’t get better. She spends more and more time alone in her room: but is something else with her in…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Partition Project

  Faruqi, Saadia,

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  Mahnoor explores the enduring legacy of the 1947 Partition of India when her Dadi (grandmother) moves from Pakistan to Texas. A school documentary project motivates Mahnoor to begin interviewing Dadi and other community members who are connected by…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• A Place to Shine

  Arnold, Marie,

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  Nanna’s memory loss is cause for sweet Sunny and her younger brother Miles to have life as they know it change in a day. Coming home one day to seeing social workers in their hallway begins their adventure to find home, family and a magical cure for…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Read at Your Own Risk

  Lai, Remy,

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  It’s never a good idea to skip class, play a game to talk to spirits and read a cursed journal all in the same day. That’s exactly what Hanna does in this gory, quick and increasingly terrifying story. Follow along as Hannah tries to figure out what…Read moreRead more of this annotation