We are providing a limited number of book reviews for parents of teens and tweens. These book reviews cover content, themes and worldview of fiction books, not their literary merit. They are designed to equip parents to decide whether a book is appropriate for their children. A book's inclusion in this list does not constitute an endorsement by Focus on the Family.
We hope you find these reviews helpful. New book reviews will be added periodically, so we encourage you to check back regularly if you're looking for information on a particular work.
If you're looking for information about a particular book series, please be sure to look through our titles by series.
For the complete list of all our available book reviews, including more recent titles, please visit Focus on the Family's ThrivingFamily.com.
Use these reviews to decide whether a book is appropriate for your children.
Abarat
Action Bible, The
Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, The
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, The
Airhead
Al Capone Does My Shirts
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
Almost Home
Always Watching
Amber Brown is Feeling Blue
Amber Spyglass, The
Andrea Carter and the Long Ride Home
Anne of Avonlea
Anne of Ingleside
Anne of the Island
Apothecary's Daughter, The
Artemis Fowl
Artemis Fowl: Arctic Incident
Asking for Trouble
Asterix In Corsica
August 1914
Baby
Babylonne
Back To School
Backstage Pass
Bad Beginning, The
Bad Idea: a novel with coyotes
Basilisk's Lair, The
Battle of the Labyrinth, The
Believer, The
Being Nikki
Ben-Hur
Beyond the Deepwoods
Beyond the Grave
Beyond the Reflection's Edge
Big Bike Mystery, The
Black Circle, The
Blood Ransom
Book of Names: A Novel ("Legends of Karac Tor"), The
Book of Time, The
Boy Who Dared, The: A Novel Based on the True Story of a Hitler Youth
Breaking Dawn
Bridget's Blog
Bronze Bow, The
Bucking the Sarge
Bud, Not Buddy
Burning Bridge, The
Call It Courage
Cannons of the Comstock
Capture, The
Carjackers, The
Carry On, Mr. Bowditch
Case of the Autumn Rose, The
Case of the Dinosaur in the Desert, The
Case of the Loony Cruise, The
Case of the Monster in the Creek, The
Case of the Red Hot Possum, The
Catching Fire
Changing Faces
Children's Book of Virtues, The
Chosen Ones
Christy & Todd: The College Years
Claudia and the Phantom Phone Calls
Clique, The: Massie
Counselor
Crazy Christmas Angel Mystery, The
Curse of the Cheese Pyramid, The
CyberQuest: The Complete Virtual Adventures
Dangerously Alice
Dating Do-Over
Dazzle's First Day
Dear John
Destiny's Dilemma
Diamonds in the Shadow
Diary of a Wimpy Kid
Dicey's Song
Disguised: A Wartime Memoir
Door In the Wall, The
Door in the Dragon's Throat, The
Door Within, The
DragonSpell
Duck for President
Echo in the Darkness, An
Eclipse
Edge of Apocalypse
Elijah of Buxton
Elsie's Endless Wait
Elsie's Impossible Choice
Emily Climbs
Encore, The
Eragon
Escape from the Island of Aquarius
Evil Star
Fading Tracks
Fairest
Fellowship of the Ring, The
Fever 1793
Field Guide, The
First Escape, The
Flight of the Phoenix
Flip Flop
Frindle
Frontiersman's Daughter, The
Geronimo's Valentine
Gideon the Cutpurse
Giver, The
Glass Castle, The
Going Bovine
Golden Compass, The
Golden Spirit
Good Earth, The
Graceling
Great Black Heroes: Five Brilliant Scientists
Grapes of Wrath, The
Gulliver's Travels
Hallelujah Lass, The
Happenstance Found
Happy Birthday, Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkhaban
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
Heart of Courage
Here, There Be Dragons
Hiding Place, The
Higher Power of Lucky, The
Holes
Horrible Harry Moves up to Third Grade
Horton Hears a Who
Hundred Dresses, The
Hunger Games, The
Hunter Brown and the Consuming Fire
Hunter Brown and the Secret of the Shadow
Importance of Being Earnest, The
Icebound Land, The
In the Shadow of Lions
Independence Hall
Inkheart
Into the Wild
Invisible Friend, The
Iron Thunder
Ivanhoe
Jerusalem Interlude
John Hancock, Independent Boy
Joys of Love
Judy Moody
Julia Gillian (and the Art of Knowing)
Junie B. Jones and the Stupid Smelly Bus
Just Ask
Kate and the Spies
Kathleen's Abiding Hope
Kathleen's Enduring Faith
Kathleen's Shaken Dreams
Kathleen's Unforgettable Winter
Katy's New World
Kingdom's Dawn
Kingdom's Quest
Kira-Kira
Kristy's Great Idea
Lady Carliss and the Waters of Moorue
Last Breath
Last Invisible Boy, The
Last Straw, The
Legend of Gid the Kid and the Black Bean Bandits, The
Legend of Ten-Gallon Sam and the Perilous Mine, The
Less Is More
Life of Pi: A Novel
Lightning Thief, The
Little Klein
Little Sister Is NOT My Name!
Little Toot
Living Nightmare, A
Looking For Alaska
Looking Glass Wars, The
Lord of the Flies
Losers, Inc.
Love Killer, The
Lucky Breaks
Maggie Come Lately
Mandie and the Holiday Surprise
Manga Messiah
Masquerade, The
Maudie in the Middle
Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment
Maze of Bones, The
Melonhead
Merchant of Death, The
Mercy Clifton: Pilgrim Girl
Millie's Courageous Days
Millie's Faithful Heart
Millie's Grand Adventure
Millie's Reluctant Sacrifice
Millie's Remarkable Journey
Millie's Steadfast Love
Millie's Unsettled Season
Miracles on Maple Hill
Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, The
Mixed Bags
Moby Dick: A Pop-Up Book
Motorcycles, Sushi & One Strange Book
Moving Day
Mudshark
My Side of the Mountain
Mystery of the Silver Coins
Nate Donovan: Revolutionary Spy
Naya Nuki: Shoshoni Girl Who Ran
New Horizons
New Moon
Night
Nineteen Eighty-four
Not-So-Simple Life
Old Man and the Sea, The
On the Run
One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich
One False Note
One Hundredth Day of School, The
Outsiders, The
Owling, The
Passage, The
Penderwicks, The: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy
Perfect
Perfectly Proper Prince, The
Peter and the Starcatchers
Pinky and Rex and the Double-Dad Weekend
Pitcher's Duel
Point Blank
Pox Party, The
Pretties
Pride and Prejudice
Princess Academy
Princess and the Goblin, The
Princess Diaries, The
Princess Plot, The
The Prophecy
Pygmalion
Raiders From the Sea
Raiders Promise, The
Ransom's Mark
Raven's Gate
Redwall
Return of the King, The
Reveal, The
Rilla of Ingleside
Ring of Rocamadour, The
Rodrick Rules
Romeo and Juliet
Ruins of Gorlan, The
Sam the Minuteman
Sarah's New World: The Mayflower Adventure (1620)
Saving Sailor
Savvy
School's Out
Sea of Monsters, The
Shack, The
Sidney & Norman
Sign of the Beaver, The
Single Shard, A
Sir Bentley and Holbrook Court
Sir Dalton and the Shadow Heart
Sir Kendrick and the Castle of Bel Lione
Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, The
Skeleton Key
Skin Hunger
Sky the Blue Fairy
Slam!
Snow Treasure
So Not Happening
Sober Faith
Stargirl
Starlighter
Stealing Bradford
Stone Fox
Stormbreaker
Subtle Knife, The
Summer Before, The
SummerHill Secrets, Volume 1
Sword Thief, The
Tale of Two Cities, A
Theodore Boone: Kid Lawyer
Time for the Stars
Time Quake, The
Time Thief, The
Time Travelers, The
Tinker's Daughter, The
Titan's Curse, The
To Kill a Mockingbird
Tombs of Anak, The
Tour de Force
Toward the Goal: The Kaká Story
Trapped at the Bottom of the Sea
Tree for Peter, A
Tree Grows in Brooklyn, A
Trion Rising
True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle, The
True Friends
Truth About Forever, The
Truth Slayers
TTYL
Twilight
Twisted
Two Towers, The
Unafraid: Mary
Under Siege
Vanishing Sculptor, The
Vienna Prelude
Voice in the Wind, A
Wheel On the School, The
When You Reach Me
Whipping Boy, The
Winter Room, The
Words Unspoken
Wrinkle in Time, A
Zelda and Ivy: The Runaways
The 39 Clues
Aedyn Chronicles
The Alex Rider Series
Alice
Allie Finkle's Rules for Girls
Amazing Indian Children
Amber Brown
Anne of Green Gables
Asterix
The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing: Traitor to the Nation
Bad Idea
The Baby-Sitters Club
Becoming Beka
Boarding School Mysteries
The Book of Time Trilogy
The Books of Umber
Butterfly Meadow
Candlewick Sparks
Carmen Browne
Carter House Girls
Charmed Life
Chip Hilton Sports
Chosen Girls
The Chronicles of the Imaginarium Geographica
The Chronicles of the Scribe
Circle C Adventures
Cirque Du Freak: The Saga of Darren Shan
The Clique Summer Collection
Codebearers Series
The College Years
Cooper Kids Adventures
Crimson Cross
Cul-de-Sac Kids
Daughters of Faith
The Davis Detective Mysteries
Diary of a Teenage Girl
The Door Within Trilogy
The Dopple Ganger Chronicles
DragonKeeper Chronicles
Dragons of Starlight
Echoes From the Edge
The Edge Chronicles
The End Series
The Elijah Project
Emily Novels
Faith and Friends
The Gatekeepers
Geronimo Stilton
The Gideon Trilogy
Guardians of Ga'hoole
Harry Potter
Hello Reader Science Series
Heroes of Promise
His Dark Materials
Horrible Harry
The Hunger Games
I Can Read Book
I Witness
Inheritance Cycle
Inkheart Trilogy
Internet Girls
I, Q
Junie B. Jones
Katy Lambright
The Kingdom
The Knights of Arrethtrae
Legends of Karac Tor
A Life of Faith
Elsie Dinsmore
Kathleen McKenzie
Millie Keith
A Lineage of Grace
London Confidential
Lord of the Rings
Looking Glass Wars
Mandie: Her College Days
Mandie
Mark of the Lion
Maximum Ride
Mission Hope
Nathaniel Fludd, Beastologist
The New Sugar Creek Gang
Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle
The Pathway Collection
Payton Skky
Penderwicks
Pendragon
Percy Jackson and the Olympians
The Powerlink Chronicles"
The Princess Diaries
Princess Power
Rachel Yoder
Rainbow Magic
Ranger’s Apprentice
The Rayne Tour
Ready-to-Read
Ready, Freddy!
Real Life
Real TV
The Red Blazer Girls
Red Wheel
A Resurrection of Magic
Rugendo Rhinos
Saga of the Sierras
Sassy
Scandia
A Series of Unfortunate Events
The Shadowside Trilogy
Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants
Sisters in Time
The Spiderwick Chronicles
Starcatchers
SummerHill Secrets
Theodore Boone
The Tillerman
Time Quartet
Twilight Saga
Uglies Trilogy
Viking Quest
Warriors
Watchers Chronicles
Young Patriots
Zion Covenant
To help parents find reading material for younger children, the Thriving Family staff reads hundreds of picture books published each year. Then we create an annual list and choose to review only 10 that have family-friendly text and illustrations. This highlighting of 10 picture books from the previous year began with books published in 2008 and continues today.
What is a family-friendly picture book?
Family-friendly picture books can do one of two things. They can
We hope you enjoy our picks of this year's 10 Family-Friendly Picture Books! (Scroll down further for staff picks from previous years.)
Do you have a book that you would like considered for a review? Although we can't guarantee that all books requested will be reviewed, we are always happy to hear from you. Send your requests!