With the end of the school year quickly approaching, you may be looking for some books to read in your free time this summer. Here are some amazing books from a genre that works for almost all book-readers: realistic fiction!

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith: 1943

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn follows Francie Nolan from age eleven to age seventeen in the 1910s. In the beginning of the novel, Francie is a book-loving young girl who lives in New York City with her younger brother Neeley, her hard-working mother Katie, and her alcoholic father Johnny. The novel follows Francie and her family as she grows into adulthood, with plenty of life-changing events along the way.

Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell: 2013

When Eleanor Douglas starts her first day of school in Omaha, Nebraska, her peers immediately show her that she’s not welcome there. Along with being unwelcomed by her abusive stepfather, Richie, in her own home, Eleanor becomes an outcast in her community. However, she eventually becomes friends with one boy: Park Sheridan. Throughout the school year, Eleanor and Park’s friendship blossoms into something more, but their relationship is not without its risk; if Richie discovers her boyfriend, Eleanor will surely be putting herself, her family, and Park in danger.

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson: 1999

Melinda Sordino is a high-school student who gets shunned by the rest of her school, including her former best friend, Rachel, for calling the police at a party over the summer. However, the other students don’t know her reasons for calling the police, and Rachel doesn’t know what her boyfriend, Andy, did to Melinda. Speak is a novel that follows Melinda throughout her freshman year of high school, as her peers and the reader find out what happened at the party.

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews: 2012

Recently turned into a movie to be released on June 12^th, Me and Earl and the Dying Girl is about Greg Gaines, a high school senior. Greg and his friend Earl make low-budget films in their spare time, so when Greg befriends Rachel Kushner, a girl with leukemia, they decide to make a film for her. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, but most importantly, you’ll love this book that will stay with you for a lifetime.

Say What You Will by Cammie McGovern: 2014

When Amy, a girl with cerebral palsy, reaches her senior year in high school, she convinces her mother to let her have peer aides at school so she can meet friends. The only aid she really connects with is Matthew. Matthew, although he denies it, has a disability of his own: obsessive compulsive disorder. Matthew is the only person who always speaks completely truthfully to Amy, and Amy helps Matthew finally acknowledge his OCD, helping them form a bond that seems unbreakable, until an event occurs right before Amy leaves for college that could potentially change everything.

See You at Harry’s by Jo Knowles: 2013

Fern is one of four siblings, including her older sister Sarah, her older brother Holden, and her younger brother Charlie. In See You at Harry’s, Fern watches her family experience a great amount of stress. Her father tries to bring more people to the family business and convince his children to work there, even though none of them want to, especially Sarah. Her mother is always off meditating, barely interacting with the rest of her family. Holden confronts his sexuality, but his father does not approve of it at all. Meanwhile Charlie, the “surprise” baby, holds the attention of everyone, while no one pays attention to Fern. When tragedy strikes the family, Fern feels more ignored than ever before, and it seems that contrary to her friend Ran’s belief, all will not be well.