30+ Tween Romance Books

Pizza My Heart follows young Maya Reynolds whose parents are moving from Brooklyn, New York to a small town in Pennsylvania to expand their soul pizza business, Soul Slice. Having grown up in Brooklyn, Maya is devastated to have to leave her best friend and life behind for the move. In the new town, she gets off on the wrong foot with her first pizza delivery customer, who ends up being the son of her parents’ new interior decorator. Add a love for art, a new art exhibition she wants to join but may be unable to, new friends, and a potential new crush — Maya’s life quickly gets interesting. Ages 9+

Keiko is thrilled that her two BFFs, Jenna and Audrey, are reuniting with her after their first ever summer apart. But when Jenna returns from Texas, she’s doesn’t seem to fit back in seamlessly anymore — probably because they stopped texting each other after a while. It doesn’t help that Audrey seems boy-crazy and has never really gotten on too well with Jenna anyway. As Jenna and Audrey’s friendship deteriorates over the fall, Keiko feels torn between both girls. This is a strong middle-grade debut, perfect for anyone who enjoys middle-grade books about friendships. Parents and teachers who want to encourage their middle schoolers to stand up for themselves in the midst of a toxic friendship would do well to hand this book to them. Ages 10+

Since her mom died during the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s been just Chloe and her dad. She worries about their finances, so when she has the chance to go on a school trip to Broadway, she’s hesitant to tell him. On a good note, there’s a boy she maybe likes? He works at a boba tea place in her neighborhood, and things are going well until an altercation at the shop ends with Chloe being banned from the boba tea place. What unfolds is a string of chaotic, surprising, and satisfying events, including a boba-making business, two lost lovers reuniting, and a new furry family member. Ages 9+

Just Be Cool, Jenna Sakai is the companion title to fan favorite, Keep It Together, Keiko Carter. Jenna and Keiko have remained BFFs after their fall out with Audrey. But Jenna is having a hard time with several life issues. For one, she and her boyfriend have just broken up (but she’s still stuck in the same school newspaper as he is) and now her parents are divorcing. She starts hanging out at a cute Broadway-themed Diner where she meets a schoolmate Rin Watanabe with whom she argues a lot but begins a tentative friendship. This realistic contemporary novel handles tough themes like the process and reality of parental divorce, a tween experiencing the fall-out of a breakup, kids managing busy school schedules, and keeping bonds of friendship alive. Ages 10+

This 5-star romance about two overachieving rivals is perfect for tweens and young teens. Grace feels like being smart is all she has. She doesn’t seem to good at social situations and can’t figure out fashion and styling like her friends. So she holds on to book smarts and finds worth in her grades — and in competing with her former best friend, Jonah. Their friendship exploded after his dad’s sudden illness and death. Now, it’s the end of 8th grade, and Jonah’s won the coveted top scholar spot, leaving Grace with no raison d’etre. She decides to compete in a half marathon that she finds out Jonah is training for, so she has one last chance to beat him, and she ends up learning a lot about what really matters in life. The romance is sweet and swoony, and Grace and Jonah’s dialogue is so authentic and left me an adult with heart eyes while feeling age-appropriate. Ages 10+

This book is SO CUTE without being eye-roll inducing. I was nervous about reading it because many reviews recommended it, but as “younger YA.” I loved it! Zora’s character is determined and community-centered. Despite running into multiple hurdles throughout the story, she perseveres.
Truly Madly Royally is a charming young adult novel featuring a positive representation of Black teens. There are also strong undercurrents of community outreach, strong female friendships, and being true to oneself. If you’re a sucker for royal romances, this one will steal your heart. Ages 11+

This new middle grade book in the Wish series by the author of Sing It Like Celia, a debut I enjoyed last year, follows two tweens, Dulce and Julian, and their budding, slow-burn romance over the summer. Dulce and Julian are having different summers than they’d planned. Dulce is working her butt off at her family’s (changing) Mexican restaurant while Julian and his mom have moved after his parents’ separation. As Dulce and Julian’s lives intersect over cooking club, skateboard friends, and their parents’ ambitions and desires, the two inevitably go from enemies to something more than friends. Perfect cute, foodie romance for ages 9 and up.

This is a hilarious, sweet, romantic comedy about Eve and Andrew who’ve been besties like their mothers their whole lives. But the summer before 8th grade, something changes. Before they know it, the two are in a relationship. Soon after though, things start getting weird. Fully under the public eye, Eve and Andrew realize that maybe being friends is better but who’s going to break up with the other if neither wants to hurt each other and both want their friendship to stay intact? So they both start a campaign to do everything each hates, led on by bad advice from friends to incite the other to break up with them. Soon though, their break up campaigns start eating away at the heart of their actual friendship. This was just such a romp of a story and the only prank related story I’ve actually enjoyed. Ages 10+

When Kat’s “best cousin,” Olivia suddenly develops a crush on her best friend, Tyler with whom she shares no interests, she recruits Kat to help her win his affections. From talking in her ear during their conversations to making index cards about Tyler’s interests, Kat is all in until she realizes that she might like Tyler as more than a friend. This was such a well-told story with plenty of family and friend scenes and a wonderful message about the value of being yourself, especially when love is involved. Ages 9+

Ingrid is most comfortable with online interactions, posting on her website and gaming with her long-distance bestie, whom she met online. When a new kid moves into her neighborhood, and her only in-person friendship crumbles, Ingrid is relieved to add a new friend and maybe crush to her list of online friends. But things take a romantic and surprising turn as she learns to stand up for herself. This book is warm, cozy, sweet, and romantic. I also love that it’s told partly in text messages and truly captures the upper middle schooler vibe as Ingrid and her friends are 8th graders. Ages 11+

Shenice is an U12 softball team captain whose concentration is shot when she stumbles upon a decades-long family mystery. Shenice and her team are preparing to win the Fastpitch World Series, when she discovers that a crime her great-grand father was accused of — which cost him his reputation and place in the Negro leagues — may have actually been a set-up all along. And now, Shenice is the only one who can clear his name. Fast Pitch is a fast-paced, poignant sports mystery about family, racism, and community. Ages 10+

Sincerely Sicily features young Panamian-American Sicily who’s dealing with a major social upheaval: she’s changing schools. At the new school, Sicily, fortunately, reconnects with an old friend and decides to do her first school project on the culture of the Panamanian people. But her classmates protest the fact that she — a Black girl–can’t possibly be Latin American. Sicily is rattled. Add to that a new crush that threatens to ruin her new friendship and an Abuela who thinks her braids are “ghetto” and it’s looking like a tough year for Sicily. This is a sweet, triumphant debut middle grade novel about being Afro-Panamanian, finding pride in your roots, and discovering the joy of writing. Ages 10+

Alyson Gerber is one of my favorite middle grade authors (you can tell by the fact that I’ve read all of her books so far). She writes about impactful topics in a sincere, realistic, and immersive way. This title is about a girl whose mother’s issues with food are starting to affect her. Add puberty, friend drama, and disordered eating, and Sarah is finding it hard to take up space. Ages 10+

When Rory moves to Cincinnati, Ohio, with her dad after her parents’ separation, she meets Abby, a tall fellow basketball lover, and the two become fast friends. Imagine their shock when they find out that their dads can’t stand each other — and not because they coach the city’s rival basketball teams but because of something that happened years ago when THEY were middle schoolers. Bishop takes us through the girls’ lives as they dig into what happened between their dads, telling the story from multiple perspectives: the girls’, their dads’, and a ball-playing nun in their lives. This is a fast-paced and compelling book about true friendships, family secrets, forgiveness, and basketball. Ages 10+

Nat has been paralyzed from the waist down since an accident when she was two and is obsessed with Broadway and Hamilton although she has never actually been in a musical. Upon auditioning, she scores a role in the play and begins to bond with The Boulders, which is what the group calls themselves. Nat faces several challenges because of the way some people treat her during the musical, but when the show has to be canceled after a fire in the theater, the kids have to find a way to get things up and running again. While this sparkling debut highlights several challenges that wheelchair users face, from accessibility to minimal face-to-face interaction with their peers, it is at its heart a book about a love for the stage. Ages 9+

Maggie’s summer is off to a rocky start when her parents announce that she has a half-sister—a daughter her father never knew about until now. Callie’s presence throws off soft-spoken Maggie’s dynamic with her outspoken best friend Daija, even more when Callie joins their hair-braiding business. This is a sweet, relatable middle grade book about sisterhood, entrepreneurship, and finding your voice. This book shines in its realistic portrayal of familial complexities and the ups and downs of friendship. Ages 9+

Kitty Wentworth is grappling with the grief of losing her mother to lung cancer. Her older sister Imogen seems to be coping better and her dad just seems a bit lost. Thankfully, they have their grandmother and a baking enthusiast neighbor Ms. Allison to keep their moods up and care for them. Ms. Allison is also gearing up to start filming The Great British Bake-Off as a contestant. But Kitty’s world shifts when her father gets a work opportunity in New York and wants her and Imogen to move. This is a sweet debut about the grief of losing a parent in death and how that grief never really goes away. Ages 8+

A First Time for Everything is Dan Santat’s new graphic memoir about his school trip to Europe at the end of middle school. Middle school Dan is shy and socially awkward. He spends most of his time helping his mom, who has Lupus, and gets made fun of a bit by some girls in his grade. Thankfully, his parents are determined that he sees the world, and they support his Europe trip. As they visit Germany, France, Switzerland, and England, Dan is swept up in many, many firsts, making for a life-changing trip. This is a stellar, relatable graphic memoir about growing up, wading through the awkward tween years, and finding one’s voice. Ages 10+

After years of dealing with opioid addiction, Franny’s mom is finally sober and on the right track with a cleaning job and a cozy apartment upstairs from a laundromat. But then she gets in an accident and has to be prescribed opioids again, sending Franny into a frenzy. Franny starts doing her mom’s cleaning jobs behind her back — even blackmailing a school rival into working with her — to ensure they don’t run out of money. Maid for It is an informative, gripping, and accessible middle grade book about living with a parent recovering from addiction. This one is a page-turner — I read it in one sitting! Ages 9+

I LOVED this hilarious middle grade debut! Stu Truly shines a light on that awkward transition between childhood to the pubescent years. In this story, meat-loving Stuart Truly’s first crush is the new girl in his class, who happens to be a vegetarian. He lies about also being vegetarian but then throughout the story, continues to get himself in hilarious circumstances as a result. Ultimately a sweet, funny story about the importance of being oneself and co-existing happily with others who make choices different from ours. Ages 9+

Clea is constantly making mental to-do lists, but can’t seem to stay on top of her school work anymore. Her thoughts are always jumping from one thing to another and she finds it hard to focus when she wants to. The only time she can zone out is when she’s playing chess as a member of her school’s chess team. Clea’s inability to focus starts affecting her grades, which threatens her chess team membership. It also affects her relationships because she finds it harder to control her emotions. This  is a moving exploration of a child’s life with ADHD. It deflates stereotypes about the condition and shows just how much effort people with ADHD have to exert to function in a neurotypical world. Ages 10+

Greer, Joya, and Kiki are three best friends born just after Hurricane Katrina. Now 12 years after the catastrophe, they’re dealing with personal life struggles. Greer feels responsible for an accident that left her sister paralyzed from the waist down and has stopped running track–something she loved dearly before the accident, Kiki is grappling with an absentee father, and Joya is trying to help her financially strained family. Kiki decides that the three girls will sign up for a triathlon to get Greer back into running, but the plan ends up changing all three girls’ lives. This is a warm, stirring, and sparkling middle grade book about female friendships, body image, sports, and self-forgiveness. Ages 10+

Vic and her little brother have been sent off to summer camp for eight weeks. Although summer at Meadow Wood seems to be a regular occurrence, Vic is convinced that the reason they’ve been “shipped off” this time is different. As a result, she’s not excited to be there. When her mom says she doesn’t have money to pay for canteen for Vic and her brother, Vic starts working at the farm with one of the camp owners, Earl. She also goes with him to the market — which she gets paid for. Eventually, Vic learns more about the state of her parents’ relationship and forms closer bonds with everyone at camp and even a certain boy at the market. This upper middle-grade book is an ode to the joy and ruckus of summer camps. It also highlights a sweet sibling bond and the gift of mentorship. Ages 10+

Middle-schooler Jamie Bunn ended seventh grade with a crash. Now she’s front and center of major school scandal and has been sentenced to volunteer at her local library for the summer. In addition to her shame and guilt, she has to come to terms with eclectic library patrons, her nemesis, Trina, and her crush, Trey. Throughout her time at the library, Jamie forms new bonds with library employees Lenny and Sonia, as well as the the director, Beverly. Unfortunately, just when Jamie begins to feel at home, she discovers that the mayor has plans to shut down the library. This is a sweet middle-grade debut that pays (much-deserved) homage to libraries and all they do for people and communities. Ages 10+

Houston is finally one step closer to his astronaut dreams when he gets into the Junior Astronaut Recruitment Program. He only wishes he could bring his younger brother Robbie with him. Robbie has cerebral palsy and needs to use a wheelchair, so even though Houston has always promised to take his brother to space, the odds seem unlikely now. At camp, Houston meets a group of kids he feels at home with and develops a crush on one of his teammates. But he also runs into his grandfather, who’s estranged from his mom. With all those things in the mix, can Houston honor his promise to Robbie? I care zero about space but I loved the characters in this story and the disability rep is so thoughtfully done. The audiobook is immersive and engaging throughout. Great for listeners ages 10 and up.

Ant isn’t your average 10 year old. He loves a good game of spades and he and his best friend are planning to revamp their reputation after losing badly at the last spades tournament. But things are changing in Ant’s life. His dad is acting weird, asking him to hide things from his mom. There’s a new girl in class who Ant maybe likes and who plays spades better than many boys he knows. When his best friend is grounded, Ant teams up with Shirley, hoping to impress his father and finally be tough like Joplin men should be. But instead, he learns what it really means to be a man—and it’s not about never crying. The story is told by Ant’s ancestor, lending a touch of magic realism. There are also many details about playing a game of spades and I loved, loved the audiobook narrator. Ages 10+

14-year-old Karthik Raghavan is spending his last summer of middle school delivering groceries for his father’s Indian grocery store. When he’s not playing delivery boy, he’s hanging out with his best friends and sneaking glances at his crush whenever he runs into her. It’s the early 2000s in Boston, Massachusetts, and the recession is causing store closures. Karthik’s father’s store becomes at greater risk of closure when Juhi’s family opens an Indian restaurant (also selling pre-packaged ready-to-cook items). But the most interesting part of Karthik’s summer? A university student wants him to act as Leonard Bernstein in her play. Can Karthik deliver? This is a unique, refreshing look at a family dealing with financial struggles and a young teen discovering his passions. Ages 10+

Rachel Brooks has finally scored a spot as a forward on her soccer team. She just needs one more doctor’s visit to check on her scoliosis — one she hopes will be the last. Unfortunately, the doctor has bad news for her: the curve has worsened and she’ll have to wear a back brace. Worse still, she needs to be in a back brace for twenty-three hours a day. How will she still play soccer? What will her friends think? And what about Tate, the boy she’s crushing on? This is an important, realistic story of a girl dealing with scoliosis in middle school. With an immersive, charged plot, this story touches multiple themes from scoliosis, to soccer, family, the death of a parent, and even the emotions of welcoming a new sibling. Ages 9+

Red, White, and Whole is Rajani LaRocca’s newest middle-grade verse novel. The year is 1983 and 13-year-old Reha is caught between two cultures: her Indian family and community at home; and the all-American experience at school and with her white “school best friend.” Then her mom is diagnosed with leukemia and Reha’s life is turned upside down. Between school, family issues, and navigating her affection for a boy in her neighborhood, Reha has her plate full. This  is a heartwarming and heartbreaking verse novel about mothers and daughters, the eighties, and straddling two cultures. Ages 10+

Jia, Everett, and Ariel are high school besties whose summer plans could not be any more different. As the summer progresses, all three girls will need their friendship to anchor them through the waves of grief, first loves, and standing up for themselves. I LOVED the depiction of friendship in this book and the way the author brings cities and characters to life. If you loved The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants and can’t get enough of emotional, fast-paced YA stories — this book is for you! Nearly no language and no sexual content. Ages 11+

On her 12th half birthday, her parents surprisingly gift her their approval to post on social networks. Thrilled, Harper starts posting TikTok videos like her idol, Blake Riley. Her first video goes viral and brings her closer to the popular crew in her school who only befriend her so she can teach them her edits. Their interest in her creates a rift between Harper and her best friend Ava. In the midst of the chaos, Harper tries a TikTok filter, which, combined with a wish to be 22, suddenly makes her 22!
Unfortunately, her future is much different than she imagined. Her little sister is now a teen (aww!). She’s now working for Blake Riley (yay) and so is popular girl Celia who she’s now friends with. But she and Ava have lost touch as have she and her childhood friend and crush. This is a charming, light, feel-good story about time travel, social media, and treasuring friendships. Ages 10+

After a series of unfortunate incidents with potatoes, Ben Hardy is sure he’s cursed. So you can imagine his terror when his family moves to Idaho and his school’s mascot is a potato! When Ben accidentally causes the mascot to sprain his ankle, the coach insists that he replace the injured mascot. As the new kid, Ben is scared to tank his social status and lose his new friends and potential friendships with the cool kids, so he decides to hide his identity as the mascot. But soon, one lie leads to another and Ben’s lies threaten to topple all the good things in his new life in Idaho. My Life As a Potato is a humorous, thought-provoking story about staying true to yourself and finding your tribe as the new kid in town. Ages 10+