October 15 2016
Books for 12-14 year olds
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Watership Down
PenguinYoung rabbit Fiver is convinced that a great evil is about to befall the warren where he lives – but no one will listen to him. -
Noughts and Crosses
Doubleday Children’s BooksCallum is a Nought but his best friend Sephy is a Cross – the daughter of one of the most influential politicians in the country. -
Forever
Macmillan Children’s BooksSeventeen-year-old Katherine meets Michael at a party. The two of them like each other immediately, and soon fall in love – but are they ready to take their relationship to the next level? -
The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas
David Fickling BooksBruno is exploring his new home at ‘Out-With’ when he meets Shmuel, who lives on the other side of a fence which surrounds a large camp in the grounds. -
Junk
PuffinTar loves Gemma, but Gemma doesn’t want to be tied down to anyone or anything. Gemma wants to fly – but she can’t fly forever… -
Looking for JJ
ScholasticWhen a 10-year-old girl kills her best friend, she is convicted of manslaughter and locked away. Seven years later she is released on licence with a new identity. -
The Hunger Games
ScholasticWelcome to Panem: its Capitol repressively rules twelve satellite Districts, enslaving the populations as workers and controlling them through hunger. -
The Graveyard Book
BloomsburyAfter his family are killed, Bod is brought up in a graveyard by ghosts. -
Maggot Moon
Hot Key BooksCombining conspiracy theory and dystopia, this hugely original novel is set in an alternate 1950s in which Britain is dominated by the ruthlessly oppressive forces of The Motherland. -
The Owl Service
HarperCollins Children’s BooksWhen Alison finds a curious dinner service in the attic, the discovery sets off a strange chain of events that look set to effect everyone’s lives. -
Coram Boy
EgmontCoram Boy is the story of Toby, saved from an African ship as a child, and Aaron, the illegitimate son of the heir to a great estate. -
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time
Red FoxThis funny, touching and compelling novel was the winner of the inaugural Booktrust Teenage Prize -
Stormbreaker
Walker BooksFourteen-year-old Alex Rider finds his life turned upside down on discovering that his late uncle wasn’t a mild-mannered banker, but instead a field agent for MI6. -
The Kite Rider
Oxford University PressHaoyou feels powerless when the man responsible for his father’s death demands to marry his mother. Determined to support her himself, the young boy joins a travelling circus. -
The Knife of Never Letting Go
Walker BooksThe first in a series, this enthralling sci-fi/fantasy novel grips readers throughout, presenting them with tough questions about identity, ethics and the nature of truth. -
Life: An Exploded Diagram
Walker Books LtdIn this intelligent young adult novel, Clem’s coming-of-age story of first love and burgeoning sexuality is woven around a tense account of the mounting Cuban Missile Crisis -
Northern Lights
ScholasticThis extraordinary fantasy is the first book in Philip Pullman’s multi-award-winning His Dark Materials trilogy -
The Ruby in the Smoke
ScholasticDetermined to discover the truth about her father’s tragic death, Sally Lockhart is plunged into a dangerous and terrifying adventure that takes her to the dark heart of Victorian London. -
Witch Child
Bloomsbury Children’s BooksThis is the gripping tale of Mary, the granddaughter of a witch. -
Mortal Engines
ScholasticLondon is on the move again: the traction city trawls the world on wheels, capturing and eating smaller towns. -
Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging
HarperCollins Children’s BooksWelcome to the world of Georgia Nicolson – an angst-ridden teenage girl who keeps a diary to record the rollercoaster of emotions and experiences she faces every day -
How I Live Now
PenguinFifteen-year-old New Yorker Daisy is sent to England to spend a summer with her unconventional cousins -
Revolver
Orion Children’s Books‘They say dead men tell no tales, but they’re wrong. Even the dead tell stories.’ -
I Capture the Castle
Vintage17-year-old Cassandra lives an eccentric existence with her bohemian family in a crumbling castle in the English countryside, in this delightful classic coming-of-age story. -
The Fellowship of The Ring
HarperCollinsThe first part of J R R Tolkien’s epic masterpiece The Lord of the Rings, this is the story of young hobbit Frodo Baggins, who finds himself faced with an immense and terrible duty.