One of the easiest ways is by picking up a book to read. A lot of teens don’t know what their interests are when it comes to literature, so, we’re here to give recommendations on what type of books you would love to read based on your preferences for shows or movies.
1. Stranger Things
If you love the adventures of Hawkins kids in the Upside Down, then you’ll love the antics in Lockwood & Co: The Screaming Staircase by Jonathan Stroud. While the stories have some major differences, we find that the supernatural elements of both series complement each other in ways that Stranger Things fans will love the twists and turns of Lockwood & Co.’s adventures whilst hunting ghosts in their mysterious town.
Page Count: 440
Author: Jonathon Stroud
Genre: Supernatural/Paranormal
2. Outlander
After watching the adventures of Jamie and Claire in Outlander through Scotland and time, you’ll have no trouble picking up Kindred by Octavia E. Butler. Kindred is told by the protagonist, Dana. While both Claire and Dana, the main characters in both their stories, travel through time, Dana finds herself in a more tremulous and demanding position as a black woman with a white husband back in the 19th century. This book is sure to keep you on the edge of your seat.
Page Count: 287
Author: Octavia E. Butler
Genre: Historical Fiction
3. The Umbrella Academy
If strange abilities and superpowers appeal to you, you’ve probably seen The Umbrella Academy, which would make Vicious by V.E. Schwab a great read for you. While The Umbrella Academy follows an estranged family with superpowers, Vicious tells the tale of Victor and Eli through flashbacks to college and in the present day during their hunt for each other after gaining strange abilities following their intentional near-death experiences during an experiment. Both stories have a good dynamic between good and evil, and how people perceive one another.
Page Count: 366
Author: V.E. Schwab
Genre: Fiction/Superheroes
4. The Society
The Society and Gone by Michael Grant have the most similar themes on this list. Both stories center around the disappearance of all adults in a small, quiet town. Gone centers around the children of Perdido Beach, who find themselves with supernatural abilities and an indestructible barrier surrounding their town. Both have themes of loss of normalcy and the struggle of containing chaos with unexplainable events and mutations thorough out animals and humans alike. If you’ve ever wondered what life would be like without adults, this book shows that it may not be as freeing as you think.
Page Count: 560
Author: Michael Grant
Genre: Dystopian
5. American Vandal
Both American Vandal and One of Us is Lying by Karen M. McManus follow heavy and interesting mysteries throughout their storylines. If you loved American Vandal for its hard-hitting questions and its sudden plot twists, One of Us is Lying is the perfect read for you. Similar to American Vandal, One of Us is Lying follows a whodunnit theme with the sudden death of a fellow classmate, Simon, in a Saturday detention. The main characters of the stories are determined to uncover the truth, given all of them are now suspects in Simon’s murder.
Page Count: 361
Author: Karen M. McManus
Genre: Mystery
6. Boyz in the Hood
Boyz in the Hood & The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas both follow the struggles of black youth in America. They shine a light not only on police brutality but gang violence and racial stereotyping. Boyz in The Hood shows the life of young black boys the in the gang and drug-infested streets of South-Central Los Angeles, while The Hate U Give follows the journey of Star, a young black woman, navigating life as a minority in a predominately white school while living in a low income, black neighborhood. She has to find her way after the loss of her childhood friend, Khalil, during a police shooting.
Page Count: 464
Author: Angie Thomas
Genre: Contemporary
7. Desperate Housewives
Do you love to watch the drama-filled lives of Bree, Lynette, Susan, and Gabrielle unfold on Desperate Housewives? Then you won’t be able to turn the pages of Big Little Lies by Liana Moriarty fast enough. The book takes place in Australia and focuses on the murder of a parent at an elementary school fundraiser. And with a new-comer in town, we see that these women’s lives are filled with lies, deceit, and secrets that threaten to ruin their lives and others.
Page Count: 480
Author: Liana Moriarty
Genre: Mystery
8. Penny Dreadful
Penny Dreadful is a show that delves deep into the dark supernatural world of Victorian-era London. If you loved the gritty and nightmarish undertones of Penny Dreadful, The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein by Kiersten White is a fantastic book for you to pick up. Also based in the Victorian era. The book follows Elizabeth’s quest to find her strange childhood friend, Victor Frankenstein. The plot then takes us into a dark journey through both her past and the countries of Europe in search for Victor. Elizabeth’s journey leads to many secrets and the discovery of Victor’s obsession with the unnatural.
Page Count: 304
Author: Kiersten White
Genre: Historical Fiction/Supernatural
9. Love, Death, and Robots
Love, Death, and Robots is a futuristic, anthology series delving into multiple unique themes and mediums of animation. The Writers of the Future books by L. Ron Hubbard are similar in the way that they all follow different short stories at a time, also usually centered around the future. Both are able to make compelling stories within a short time frame and word constraint, while still being able to hold your attention. If you’re looking for something different, unique, and without the worry of recycled plots, Writers of the Future is for you.
Page Count: 35 Volumes
Author: Various Authors
Genre: Speculative Fiction/Umbrella Genre
10. Full Metal Alchemist: Brotherhood
Full Metal Alchemist: Brotherhood is widely considered one of the best anime of all time, with its diverse storyline and thought-provoking themes. The Alchemyst by Michael Scott, though not as idea inducing as Full Metal Alchemist: Brotherhood, shares a similar magic system in the way that both stories have an alchemist as a key point in their worlds. In The Alchemyst, Sophie and her brother, Josh, both go journey through a world of alchemy and magic similarly to the Elric Brothers, with both gods and aspects of mythology sprinkled throughout both.
Page Count: 390
Author: Michael Scott
Genre: Fantasy/Mythology
A Little Bit About Us
The two of us (Brooke and Rachel) are sophomores at Dacula Highschool and have a great love for reading and writing. This is our first article for the Gwinnett Citizen and hopefully not our last. Rachel hopes to be a journalist and author in the future and Brooke also hopes to be a published author and computer scientist. Brooke’s extracurricular would be track and field, while Rachel spends her after school hours writing her first book.
