No-Fluff Teen Reads (this is the third)

Discover the best no-fluff teen reads with our curated list of engaging, straightforward books perfect for young readers. Find your next favorite today!

The Song Reader Cover
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The Song Reader

by Lisa Tucker

A moving, evocative tale of love, grief, and sisterhood from the author of the “brilliant, tender, and riveting” (John Dufresne, author of I Don’t Like Where This Is Going) The Winters in Bloom. She can hear the music in people’s souls. Mary Beth and her younger sister Leeann are trying to support themselves in their small Southern hometown. Mary Beth works to make ends meet by practicing her own unique talent: “song reading.” By making sense of the song lyrics people have stuck in their heads, Mary Beth can help people make sense of their lives. In no time, Mary Beth’s readings have the entire town singing her praises, including the handsome scientist Ben, who falls hard for Mary Beth and her unearthly intuition. What happens when she can’t make out the lyrics? When Mary Beth reveals a long-muted secret in the community, however, she turns off the music and gives up song reading for good. Soon everyone’s lives are out of tune: Leeann worries she’ll never graduate from high school, and Ben can’t conduct his experiments. Without Mary Beth’s music, the town’s silence is louder than ever. Could it be that all the lyrics to all those foolish love songs really aren’t so foolish after all?
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ID: 0439583950
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Girl 15, Charming But Insane Cover
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Girl 15, Charming But Insane

by Sue Limb

Fifteen-year-old Jess, living with her mum, separated from her father in Cornwall, and with a best friend who seems to do everything perfectly, finds her own assets through humor.
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ID: 0590937057
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ID: 097610301X
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Anne Frank and Me Cover
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Anne Frank and Me

by Cherie Bennett

After suffering a concussion while on a class trip to a Holocaust exhibit, Nicole Burns finds herself living the life of a Jewish teenager in Paris during the Nazi occupation. Reprint.
How I Live Now Cover
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How I Live Now

by Meg Rosoff

To get away from her pregnant stepmother in New York City, fifteen-year-old Daisy goes to England to stay with her aunt and cousins, with whom she instantly bonds, but soon war breaks out and rips apart the family while devastating the land. "Every war has turning points and every person too." Fifteen-year-old Daisy is sent from Manhattan to England to visit her aunt and cousins she's never met: three boys near her age, and their little sister. Her aunt goes away on business soon after Daisy arrives. The next day bombs go off as London is attacked and occupied by an unnamed enemy. As power fails, and systems fail, the farm becomes more isolated. Despite the war, it's a kind of Eden, with no adults in charge and no rules, a place where Daisy's uncanny bond with her cousins grows into something rare and extraordinary. But the war is everywhere, and Daisy and her cousins must lead each other into a world that is unknown in the scariest, most elemental way. A riveting and astonishing story. Library of Congress Summary. To get away from her pregnant stepmother in New York City, fifteen-year-old Daisy goes to England to stay with her aunt and cousins, with whom she instantly bonds, but soon war breaks out and rips apart the family while devastating the land.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban Cover
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Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

by J. K. Rowling

"During his third year at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry, Harry Potter must confront the devious and dangerous wizard responsible for his parents' deaths"--Title page verso.
Spinners Cover
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Spinners

by Donna Jo Napoli

A reinvention of the Rumplestiltskin story -- one spinner uses a stolen wheel, crippling his leg as he makes straw into a glittering dress for his beloved, whom he loses. A second spinner named Saskia becomes a master spinner -- until she too is forced to spin straw into gold. When they meet, a new tale must be spun.
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ID: 0440414113
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ID: 0385327498
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ID: 0312113420
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ID: 0375829822
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ID: B000F9UEQ6
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The Misfits Cover
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The Misfits

 

No summary available.
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ID: 0060540745
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Ella Enchanted Cover
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Ella Enchanted

by Gail Carson Levine

How can a fairy's blessing be such a curse? At her birth, Ella of Frell was given a foolish fairy's gift—the "gift" of obedience. Ella must obey any order given to her, whether it's hopping on one foot for a day or chopping off her own head! But strong-willed Ella does not tamely accept her fate. She goes on a quest, encountering ogres, giants, wicked stepsisters, fairy godmothers, and handsome princes, determined to break the curse—and live happily ever after.
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ID: 0060002204
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ID: 0670059544
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The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants Cover
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The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants

by Ann Brashares

The first novel in the wildly popular #1 New York Times bestselling Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series, from the author of The Whole Thing Together and The Here and Now. Some friends just fit together. Once there was a pair of pants. Just an ordinary pair of jeans. But these pants, the Traveling Pants, went on to do great things. This is the story of the four friends—Lena, Tibby, Bridget, and Carmen—who made it possible. Pants = love. Love your pals. Love yourself. "Funny, perceptive, and moving." --USA Today “An outstanding and vivid book that will stay with readers for a long time.” —Publishers Weekly, Starred, Flying Start “The loving depiction of enduring and solid friendship will ring true to readers.” —The Bulletin, Recommended “A feel-good novel of substance.” —Kirkus Reviews, Starred “Uplifting.” —Seventeen
The Second Summer of the Sisterhood Cover
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The Second Summer of the Sisterhood

by Ann Brashares

The second novel in the wildly popular #1 New York Times bestselling Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series, from the author of The Whole Thing Together and The Here and Now. With a bit of last summer’s sand in the pockets, the Traveling Pants and the sisterhood who wears them—Lena, Tibby, Bridget, and Carmen—embark on their second summer together. Pants = love. Love your pals. Love yourself. “Light and romantic." —The New York Times “Fits like a favorite pair of pants.” —USA Today “A great summer read.” —The Sacramento Bee “As comfortable as an old pair of jeans.” —Kirkus Reviews, Starred
Girls in Pants Cover
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Girls in Pants

by Ann Brashares

It's been two summers since the Traveling Pants first worked their magic on four young friends, who are now facing their last summer together. The girls will be leaving to attend four different colleges in four different cities. They plan to gather to launch the Pants on their summer voyage and begin the time of their lives. Young Adult.
The Complete Tales of Winnie-The-Pooh Cover
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The Complete Tales of Winnie-The-Pooh

by A. A. Milne

This exquisite, deluxe edition contains the complete illustrated texts of both Winnie-the-Pooh and The House at Pooh Corner. In full-color and featuring a satin ribbon marker, it is the perfect gift and a cornerstone of every family's bookshelf. Since 1926, Winnie-the-Pooh and his friends—Piglet, Owl, Tigger, Kanga, Roo, and the ever doleful Eeyore—have endured as the unforgettable creations of A. A. Milne, who wrote two books of Pooh’s adventures for his son, Christopher Robin, and Ernest H. Shepard, who lovingly gave them shape through his iconic and beautiful illustrations. These characters and their stories are timeless treasures of childhood that continue to speak to all of us with the kind of freshness and heart that distinguishes true storytelling. This deluxe volume brings both Pooh stories—Winnie-the-Pooh and The House at Pooh Corner—together in one beautiful, full-color edition. The texts are complete and unabridged, and all of the illustrations, each gloriously recolored, are included. Elegant yet simple, whimsical yet wise, this classic edition is a book to savor and treasure. The perfect gift for holiday, to welcome a new baby, or for your favorite collector and book lover.