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Books About Sadness & Grief for Ages 12–18 – Wonderlit | Wonderlit

Browse → Ages 12–18 → Themes → Sadness & Grief → Ages 12–18

Books About Sadness & Grief for Ages 12–18

Sadness in adolescence can shade into something heavier: isolation, numbness, the feeling that things won't get better. These 3,632 books don't minimize any of it. They meet teenagers where they are and, mostly, show that the heaviness does eventually shift.

3,632 books

Cover of Chess Rumble

For the child struggling with big feelings and neighborhood conflict, this powerful verse novel shows how a game of stra

Cover of Finding Family

Guided by 19th-century photographs and old postcards, twelve-year-old Delana searches for the hidden truths of her Afric

Cover of The Journal of Jesse Smoke: A Cherokee Boy

My Name Is America #10

The Journal of Jesse Smoke: A Cherokee Boy

Sixteen-year-old Jesse Smoke keeps a journal through the year 1837, documenting his people's journey and hardships durin

Cover of Spin

1...123 124 125 126 127...152

Spin

Lamar Giles

For the teen navigating a broken friendship who needs to find common ground with an enemy to uncover the truth behind a

Ages 14–18

Cover of Naming Maya

Uma Krishnaswami

For the child grappling with the sale of a family home or navigating the complex feelings of belonging to two different

Cover of Mara's Stories

Gary D. Schmidt

For the middle grade reader beginning to learn about the Holocaust, this gentle yet profound story explores how stories

Cover of Waiting to Forget

Waiting to Forget

Sheila Kelly Welch

For the child processing family transitions or medical trauma, this tender story navigates the heavy silence of waiting

Cover of Perfect

A young girl struggles with the quiet, heavy burden of bulimia while trying to maintain an image of being okay.

Cover of Iceberg, Right Ahead!

Iceberg, Right Ahead!

Stephanie Sammartino McPherson

Investigate the fatal collision of the Titanic through survivor reports and rare photographs of the specific iceberg tha

Cover of I Am Not Who You See: An Illustrated Novel

I Am Not Who You See: An Illustrated Novel

Krishnni Khanna

For the child who feels like a 'hidden poet' or seeks to understand the complex journey behind a famous face, this book

Cover of Four Steps to Death

Tales of War #2

Four Steps to Death

Witness the brutal reality of the Battle of Stalingrad through the intertwined lives of soldiers and civilians caught on

Cover of Never Again

For the student grappling with the weight of history and the meaning of justice. This book explores the aftermath of the

Cover of The Foreshadowing

The Foreshadowing

Marcus Sedgwick

As World War I begins, seventeen-year-old Sasha is haunted by terrifying premonitions of death that she cannot seem to e

Cover of Orbiting Jupiter

Orbiting Jupiter

Gary D. Schmidt

For those seeking to understand the weight of responsibility and the power of chosen family, this moving story explores

Cover of Wake Up!

For the teenager navigating the divide between who they are and where they come from, especially when facing social labe

Cover of Exposed

Kimberly Marcus

For the teenager grappling with complex family loyalty after a brother is accused of a serious crime, this verse novel e

Cover of Bombs Over Bikini

Bombs Over Bikini

Connie Goldsmith

For the student grappling with the ethics of history, this account reveals the human and environmental cost of America's

Cover of How to Say Goodbye in Robot

How to Say Goodbye in Robot

Natalie Standiford

For the teen who feels like an outsider or prefers a protective shell, this story explores the deep, platonic bond betwe

Cover of Ukraine: Remember Also Me, Testimonies from the War

Ukraine: Remember Also Me, Testimonies from the War

George Butler, foreword by Oksana Markarova, Ambassador of Ukraine to the United States

For the teenager grappling with global news, this powerful collection of testimonies and reportage drawings provides a h

Cover of The Smile

Donna Jo Napoli

Renaissance Florence comes alive through the eyes of Elisabetta, the woman who would eventually inspire Leonardo da Vinc

Cover of The Power of UN

The Power of UN

Nancy Etchemendy

For the child grappling with the weight of a mistake or wishing they could turn back the clock. A thoughtful look at how

Cover of Life, After

Sarah Darer Littman

For the teen processing a major life change or the lingering effects of a scary event while trying to find where they fi

Cover of The Smell of Other People's Houses

The Smell of Other People's Houses

Bonnie-Sue Hitchcock

For the teenager navigating the complexities of family secrets, grief, and the deep desire to belong in a place that fee

Cover of My Family Divided

My Family Divided

For the teen navigating the heartbreak of family separation, this memoir offers a courageous look at growing up in the s

Sadness & Grief for Other Ages

Books About Sadness & Grief for Ages 0–3(344)