In these six novels recommended for middle- and/or high-school readers, girls and women express themselves and help, protect, and uplift one another. March is Women’s History Month; see our Women’s History Month tag.

True Life in Uncanny Valley
by Deb Caletti
High School    Labyrinth Road/Random    416 pp.
3/25    9780593708613    $19.99
e-book ed.  9780593708637    $10.99

Sixteen-year-old Eleanor is obsessed with learning all she can about her birth father, tech mogul Hugo Harrison, who ended his relationship with her mother long before Eleanor can remember. When the opportunity presents itself, she takes a summer job under an assumed name as a nanny for his two-year-old son, Arlo, and in the process gets to know Hugo’s young wife, Aurora. As Eleanor takes a front-row seat to a family she thought she knew all about from social media, readers may be less surprised than she is at how much isn’t what it seems; however, it’s easy to empathize with her wish to know her father and to believe the best of him. And Eleanor, who makes frequent, admiring reference to an early comic-book heroine named Miss Fury, becomes more heroic herself as she grows to question Hugo’s ethics in developing his AI projects, including his treatment of both Aurora and Arlo. Her questions are likely to prompt readers’ own about how to know what to believe, and about what makes AI (or anything else) go “from cool and interesting to creepy and disturbing.” SHOSHANA FLAX

Mallory in Full Color
by Elisa Stone Leahy; illus. by Maine Diaz
Middle School    Quill Tree/HarperCollins    320 pp.
11/24    9780063255531    $19.99
e-book ed.  9780063255555    $9.99

Mallory Marsh wants to keep her friends and family happy, even if it means becoming a chameleon who constantly wears different faces to mirror those around her. The one place where she feels free to express herself is her web comic, a sci-fi story full of characters inspired by her life. The juggling act becomes increasingly precarious when Mal secretly attends comic club, where she meets Noa, a nonbinary kid who quickly becomes a friend and a crush she desperately wants to impress. Soon, the multiple lives and web of lies catch up to Mal. Her comic goes viral, with everyone at school on the verge of discovering who is behind it, and she must find the courage to show her true self. Leahy weaves a realistic and at times painfully resonant narrative about the cost of not asserting your own opinions and needs; the various threads of the story reinforce the theme of how the desire for validation and fear of rejection can lead people astray. The book also touches on the experience of questioning one’s sexuality without making it the primary conflict, and still creates a largely queer-affirming space for the characters and readers. SHENWEI CHANG

Greta
by J. S. Lemon
Middle School    Farrar    208 pp.
9/24    9780374392178    $17.99
e-book ed.  9780374392185    $9.99

Greta Goodwin is starting seventh grade amidst change. Her family is moving out of her childhood home, puberty is starting to rear its confusing head, and she has her first crush on classmate Derek. Luckily, some things remain the same, like her annoying little brother and her relationship with her best friend, Lotti. When Derek’s flirtatious advances at a party turn assaultive, Greta’s world begins to shift — and so does the plot, which takes an unexpected turn into something more fantastical. As Greta grapples internally with her assault, her body begins to take on new color and shape. In a particularly science fiction–esque scene, she wakes from a dream to find a translucent, filmy skin peeling off her body. Though unclear to the book’s characters at the time, readers will surmise that she is metamorphosing into something insect-like. While classmates tease her for her strange new appearance, Greta has never felt more beautiful: her transformation allows her to feel strong and protected from manmade harm. “For the first time since I was little, my body was something I felt good in; I wasn’t wishing it was different.” Greta’s sarcasm and wit throughout, combined with her beautiful friendship with Lotti, bring a necessary balance to a challenging story. In the end, Greta has fully, satisfyingly transformed into a winged creature; untouchable and free. HILL SAXTON

Everything Is Poison
by Joy McCullough
High School    Dutton    304 pp.
1/25    9780593855874    $19.99
e-book ed.  9780593855898    $10.99

In 1650s Rome, Carmela’s mother, Giulia Tofana, runs an apothecary. At sixteen, Carmela is finally allowed to begin training to become an apothecary herself. She learns what goes into healing remedies — familiar herbs such as lavender, rosemary, and pennyroyal, but also urine, dog feces, dried menstrual blood, and more. What surprises her most is Giulia’s willingness to help all who come to her. “There are so many who have no one else to turn to,” Giulia says. “That is the daily work we are here for. Giving women a choice over what happens in their bodies,” whether it be rheumatism, rashes, birth, dangerous pregnancies, or life-threatening marriages. When an abused wife fails to administer the toxic “Acqua Tofana” to her murderous husband properly, Giulia must flee for her life, leaving Carmela to carry on the work. This is an unforgettable novel of courage, chemistry, and female solidarity in a casually violent, misogynistic world — in short, in many ways, a topical story. McCullough enfolds a catalog of women’s hardships and mutual support warmly and dramatically into the immersive tale of Carmela’s growth from dependency and childhood grievances to confident generosity, skill, and compassion. Occasional verse interludes emphasize the pervasiveness of Giulia’s clients’ difficulties. DEIRDRE F. BAKER

Unbecoming: A Novel & Self-Help Guide
by Seema Yasmin
High School    Simon    352 pp.
7/24    9781665938440    $19.99
e-book ed.  9781665938464    $10.99

In this near-future version of Texas, abortion is a crime punishable by a lifetime jail sentence. Abortion pills and IVF are also illegal. Enter two Muslim teens: Laylah, an ultra-organized, straight Indian American who has her sights set on becoming a gynecologist; and Noor, a queer Palestinian American who dreams of becoming an investigative journalist. The two are writing a step-by-step guide for teens on obtaining safe abortions; it’s only after Laylah discovers she is pregnant that she realizes how unrealistic the guide is, particularly the difficulty of obtaining abortion pills. Feeling deep sharam (a neologism Laylah coins combining the words shame and haram, something forbidden in Islam), Laylah keeps her pregnancy secret, while Noor has a secret of her own: she’s investigating the wife of the local imam, whom she suspects of stealing mosque donations. Along the way, Noor and Laylah discover the unlikeliest of allies and learn that “everyone is so much more than they appear to be.” The book is peppered with Bollywood and American pop cultural references and includes a disturbing yet fascinating subplot in which Laylah learns about state-sponsored sterilization in 1970s India. This nuanced representation of Muslim views on reproductive rights is a timely, fast-paced novel that spins a terrifying, cautionary tale about a possible future. JULIE HAKIM AZZAM

Banned Books, Crop Tops, and Other Bad Influences
by Brigit Young
Middle School    Roaring Brook    320 pp.
9/24    9781250901514    $17.99
e-book ed.  9781250901521    $9.99

There’s a new student in Rose’s eighth-grade class in small-town Michigan — and she’s from New York City. Rose can’t believe how mature Talia is, or how brazenly she disrupts the status quo, challenging teachers and wearing dress code–defying clothes. When Talia invites Rose to join a secret “Banned Books Brigade” to protest the recent removal of books from their school library, Rose is hesitant. She knows that neither her parents nor her best friend would approve, and she doesn’t want to get into trouble. But her desire to be included and her strong emotional response to one of the challenged books, about a Jewish refugee ship during WWII (Rose and Talia’s families are Jewish), convinces her to join the group. Reading the books, and befriending Talia and the other members, encourages Rose to question what her parents and teachers tell her and inspires her to develop her own perspective on what’s right — one that is tested when the club is found out. This nuanced story personalizes the issue of censorship (one of the would-be banners is Rose’s best friend’s mom, whom she adores) while also addressing antisemitism and racism (Brigade member Bree is Black). The middle-school friendship dynamics are relatable, as is Rose’s desire not to “rock the boat” with authority figures — making her ultimate decision to speak up feel especially meaningful. RACHEL L. KERNS

From the February 2025 issue of Notes from the Horn Book.