You’ll notice that the best books for seventh graders tend to veer into upper middle-grade territory. That’s the case with the books on this list. I have so many beloved upper middle-grade books and I’ll link to the full list at the bottom of this post, but this list also has several books I have never recommended on the blog before.

Seventh graders are on the brink of teenage life, and may relate most strongly to books about body image, crushes, and things like that. They’re also more able to tolerate tastefully done stories about sexual harassment, domestic violence, addiction, serious mental illness and other harsh, unpleasant realities of life. On this list, you’ll find books that hit all of these themes.