YA Recommendations for In-between Readers

Ally Carter recently tweeted about the dearth of YA books for in-between readers, or readers who have mentally and emotionally phased out of MG but aren't ready for or interested in the grittier, edgier stuff that takes up most of the space on YA shelves these days. As a reader who continues to be less interested in the grittier, edgier stuff, I thought I'd pull together a few of my favorite titles that fall into that in-between world.

Anything by Ally Carter

This topic was probably on Ally Carter's brain because she happens to write for those in-between readers, and she's long been one of the authors I'll pick up on the spot, no questions asked. She tends to write action-packed stories with a heap of quirky characters and snappy one-liners. My personal favorites are the books in her Heist Society series. I even recommended HEIST SOCIETY and UNCOMMON CRIMINALS a while back.

Anything by Lindsey Leavitt

Lindsey Leavitt is another of my go-to authors for fun--and funny--YA. Whereas Ms. Carter writes thrillers, Ms. Leavitt gravitates toward straight-up contemporary fiction. I honestly couldn't decide which of her books is my favorite, so I'll just say that SEAN GRISWOLD'S HEAD is the sweetest, GOING VINTAGE has the cleverest concept, and THE CHAPEL WARS is the most poignant. Take your pick!

Bloomsbury's "If Only" Series

In a YA market that skews older, this series specifically targets those in-between readers. As publishing director Cindy Loh puts it, "Every novel in the series provides a different ‘what-if ’ situation and fills in the blank. A hallmark of the line will be humor, which isn’t to say that every book will be a comedy, but there will be light moments in each novel. And every novel will be aspirational and ‘clean teen’--suitable for readers as young as twelve.” I've read several of these books, and my favorite is the one I just finished, Kristin Rae's WHAT YOU ALWAYS WANTED. Her main character loves old movies even more than I do, so it felt like this book was written especially for me.

STEERING TOWARD NORMAL by Rebecca Petruck

I'm cheating a little with this pick, since Rebecca Petruck's STEERING TOWARD NORMAL is technically MG, but it's upper MG, so I'm going to include it:) I posted an official recommendation after I first read it several years ago, so I'll let you check that out. Suffice it to say that I love this book now every bit as much as I did then!

FOR DARKNESS SHOWS THE STARS by Diana Peterfreund

I wanted to include a fantasy or sci-fi on this list, and Diana Peterfreund's FOR DARKNESS SHOWS THE STARS has been on my mind again lately. Though the themes are deep enough to appeal to older readers, I'm sure my thirteen-year-old self would have loved this book. Since I posted an official recommendation for this one, too, I'll let those words speak for themselves.





I could go on and on, but I'll leave it there for now. What are some of your favorite YA books for in-between readers?