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Teens wellbeing: 25+ books to help young adults with wellbeing

Older teens love to read books about how they are feeling, and the emotions that are running through their adolescent bodies. But what young adult fiction is out there to help them understand about wellbeing and mental health? We have a list of 25+ books focused on teens wellbeing for you. These are the books that our teens love – what do you think?

As always, we have included a checklist with these details for you.

We hope you like this – why not tell us if there are any additional books you think should be on here?

Teens wellbeing books

1. Open Your Mind by Gemma Cairney

An honest resource about stress, trauma, anxiety and anything else in the world. A great book to teach us a way to deal with our struggles.

2. It’s OK not to be OK by Dr Tina Rae

A book that explores mental health disorders, why they happen and how we can build resilience.

3. What Kind of Girl by Alyssa Sheinmel

When a young girl accuses her boyfriend of hurting her, it divides the entire student body. Who is lying and who is telling the truth?

4. As Far as You’ll Take Me by Phil Stamper

A story that explores sexuality, freedom, and mental health, Will Marty ever be able to find what he is looking for, find his freedom in his sexuality and finally find somewhere that he belongs.

5. Optimists Die First by Susin Nielsen

Petula is dealing with anxiety, grief and losing her best friend. When Jacob walks into her therapy group, things change for Petula. Can Jacob make her life better?

6. Am I Normal Yet? By Holly Bourne

Evie wants to be normal, accepted and starting a new college. In her new life, can she explore the one last thing to tick off her list…relationships.

7. Paper Avalanche by Lisa Williamson

Ro’s life can be lonely, but lonely means she can keep things hidden. When Tanvi enters he life, could Ro’s walls come crumbling down.

8. A Quiet Kind of Thunder by Sara Barnard

When Steffi meets a new boy at school, who seems to be the only to understand her, can Steffi be brave enough to use the voice that Rhys gives to her.

9. More Than This by Patrick Ness

When Seth drowns, he finds himself waking up and alive. How? He remembers dying but his search for answers is only just beginning.

10. I Have Lost my Way by Gayle Forman

Told over the course of a single day from three different perspectives, this is the story about the power of friendship, and being true to who you are.

11. Girl in Pieces by Kathleen Glasgow

Charlie has learnt to deal with her troubles through hurting herself. When she finds herself in the wild of Arizona, she begins to put herself back together.

12. The Girl Beneath the Willow by Rebecca Louise Dobson

In a new town, and looking to escape the incident, Emmy thought life would be easier here. When Willow promotes kindness and positive choices, will Emmy finally be able to face up to what happened?

13. The Year I Didn’t Eat by Samuel Pollen

When Max suffers with an eating disorder, and is battling with the ever-deteriorating disorder, will he be able to find his way out. Will he beat his fears, disorder, and fight the loneliness?

14. Silence is not an option by Stuart Lawrence

When times are tough, this book demonstrates how speaking out, standing up and being a voice is ever so important.

15. The Outrage by William Hussey

When Gabriel’s greatest crime is being gay, he must find a way out of the strict laws he is currently living under. How will he fight against the laws and be himself?

16. Parachutes by Kelly Yang

When Claire finds herself in California thanks to the Parachute system, she finds a new sense of freedom, which she explores with the hottest parachute, Jay. But Claire, her host sister has other plans. Will Claire’s freedom still be part of her new life.

17. Grown by Tiffany D Jackson

Enchanted dreams about being a famous singer, but when Korey turns up dead, all signs point to her. Can she find a way forward?

18. Love is a Revolution by Renee Watson

In order to impress Tye, Nala tells a few tiny lies to have enough in common with him. As they spend more time together, sharing more of themselves, some of those lies get harder to keep up. As Nala falls deeper into keeping up her lies and into love, she’ll learn all the ways love is hard, and how self-love is revolutionary

19. Every Last Word by Tamara Ireland Stone

With her struggle with Purely-Obsessional OCD, can Samantha turn off her dark thoughts or will her friends help her understand her disorder.

20. Excuse me while I ugly cry by Joya Goffney

When Quinn is blackmailed by an anonymous account, she either had to face her greatest fears or her entire journal will go public. It is a race against time to find who is blackmailing her.

21. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

Despite the tumour-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel’s story is about to be completely rewritten.

22. I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson

When tragedy strikes, and drives twins Jude and Noah apart, they have to find a way back to each other to remake their world. Have they heard only half of the story and what will bring them closer together?

23. The Rest of Us Just Live Here by Patrick Ness

This new bold and irreverent novel powerfully asks what if you weren’t the Chosen One? The one who’s supposed to fight the zombies, or the soul-eating ghosts, or whatever this new thing is, with the blue lights and the death?

24. First Day of My Life by Lisa Williamson

It is GCSE results day and everything is about to change. With a missing person, a stolen baby and someone is lying, who can help Frankie make sense of it all.

25. The Art of Being Normal by Lisa Williamson

Secrets don’t always stay secret do they? With David’s desires to be a girl and Leo’s desires to be invisible, things are about to get messy when an unlikely friendship forms.

26. They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera

When you are told you are going to die today, you’d want to make the most of the day wouldn’t you? Well Mateo and Rufus have to live their lifetime in one single day. The pair go on one last great adventure.

That definitely should keen the teens in their bedrooms – reading (!). Or at the very least, keep the teens quiet for a little bit and off screens…..

If you want to download this list, then just click on the circular image below.

Don’t forget to check out the other booklists that we have within #BeWellRead, as well as the other ones on the site generally. There might be more great books for you and the family.

If you are looking for other resources relevant to teens, do take a look at these:

Check out some of these resources from off KiddyCharts too:

Teen articles from the internet

Articles around teenagers for you to take a look at; might even get a few ideas of what on earth to do with them?!

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Helen

Helen is a mum to two, social media consultant, and website editor; and this site is (we think) the only Social Enterprise parenting magazine! Since giving up being a business analyst when juggling travel, work and kids proved too complicated, she founded KiddyCharts so she could be with her kids, and use those grey cells at the same time. KiddyCharts has reach of over 1.1million across social and the site. The blog works with big family brands (including travel) to help promote their services, as well as offering free resources to parents of kids under 10. It gives 51%+ profits to Reverence for Life, who fund a number of important initiatives in Africa, including bringing running water and basic equipment to a school in Tanzania. Helen has worked as a digital marketing consultant (IDM qualified) with various organisations, including Channel Mum, Truprint, Talk to Mums, and Micro Scooters. She loves to be creative in the brand campaigns she works on. Get in touch TODAY!

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