Book Gifts for 14 to 17 Year Olds
Ages 14–17 · 9th to 12th grade
For a 14 to 17 year old, give a novel they would choose for themselves, not one that feels like homework: a prize winner with a teenage narrator, or a modern classic. Most of the eight below are on school lists in one state or none in our data, so they are rarely a book the teen already had to read.
Not for every family: The Hate U Give, The Perks of Being a Wallflower and The Kite Runner deal with mature themes, including violence and sexual abuse, and all three have been challenged in US schools. Read the book page before giving them.
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Life of Piby Yann Martel · Grades 9th–12th · 336 pages · 2001
The Booker Prize winner about a teenager surviving 227 days adrift with a Bengal tiger.
On national book lists, but no state school list in our data
Get it on Amazon
Great Expectationsby Charles Dickens · Grades 9th–12th · 544 pages · 1861
Dickens's story of an orphan lifted into London society by a mysterious inheritance weighs ambition against gratitude.
On national book lists, but no state school list in our data
Get it on Amazon
Purple Hibiscusby Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie · Grades 10th–12th · 336 pages · 2003
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's debut novel follows a teenager finding her own voice outside her father's house.
On school lists in 1 state (most often 11th grade)
Get it on Amazon
I Know Why the Caged Bird Singsby Maya Angelou · Grades 10th–12th · 289 pages · 1969
Maya Angelou's first memoir, about her childhood and her emergence as a writer.
On school lists in 1 state (most often 11th grade)
Get it on Amazon
The Perks of Being a Wallflowerby Stephen Chbosky · Grades 9th–12th · 213 pages · 1999
213 pages of feeling seen — the book every 'wallflower' keeps.
On school lists in 1 state (most often 10th grade)
Get it on Amazon
The Kite Runnerby Khaled Hosseini · Grades 10th–12th · 371 pages · 2003
Friendship, guilt, and redemption in Afghanistan — unforgettable.
On school lists in 1 state (most often 11th grade)
Get it on Amazon
The Poet Xby Elizabeth Acevedo · Grades 8th–12th · 368 pages · 2018
Winner of the Printz Award, the National Book Award, and the Carnegie Medal — Elizabeth Acevedo's verse novel about finding your own voice against family expectations.
On school lists in 2 states (most often 9th grade)
Get it on Amazon
The Hate U Giveby Angie Thomas · Grades 9th–12th · 444 pages · 2017
The police-shooting story teens pass to each other and can't stop talking about.
On school lists in 8 states (most often 10th grade)
Angie Thomas box set: The Hate U Give and Concrete Rose
Get the box set on AmazonOnly this book: editions and formats →
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What reads well at ages 14–17?
Teens read adult-length books (213 to 544 pages here). A verse novel (The Poet X) or a short one (The Perks of Being a Wallflower, 213 pages) suits a teen who reads little; Great Expectations suits one who likes long classics.
How were these picked?
Each book comes from one of ReadingList's hand-checked lists, and the awards named are the award bodies' own. The school-list line counts the states whose reading lists include the book in our data (see how we source lists). Books set in fewer states come first, because a gift they already read in class is a wasted gift.
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