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If you loved
Books like Criss cross
A hazy, poetic snapshot of a small-town summer where everything and nothing happens all at once. These 12 books are the closest matches in mood, pace and themes, with what each one shares with Criss cross.
- nostalgic
- hazy
- wistful
- sun-dappled
- 01
The year of Janie's diary
Donna Balcombe
An intimate, time-capsule confession of mid-century adolescence that captures the universal growing pains of leaving childhood behind.
- 02
The lions of Little Rock
Kristin Levine
A gentle but unflinching exploration of how a quiet voice can become the loudest in the room when friendship and justice are on the line.
- 03
Across Five Aprils
Irene Hunt
A quiet, aching portrait of a boy growing up on the home front while his family and country tear themselves apart.
- 04
Flipped
Wendelin Van Draanen
A charming, he-said-she-said exploration of first love and the messy, beautiful process of learning to see people for who they truly are.
- 05
Diary of a teenage Girl
Melody Carlson
An intimate, faith-filled glimpse into the everyday struggles and spiritual awakenings of a high schooler finding her place in the world.
- 06
Crispin--The Cross of Lead
Avi
A breathless, mud-spattered flight for survival through a perilous medieval landscape.
- 07
Look Both Ways
Jason Reynolds
A vibrant, interconnected snapshot of the unsupervised magic and quiet struggles that happen on the walk home from school.
- 08
Jacob have I loved
Katherine Paterson · 1980
A salty, atmospheric exploration of the bitter ache of growing up in the shadow of a golden sibling.
- 09
Macarons at midnight
Suzanne Nelson
A sugar-dusted, Cinderella-esque tween romance that balances the thrill of a first crush with the warmth of the bakery kitchen.
- 10
That was then, this is now
S. E. Hinton · 1971
A raw, street-level elegy for a boyhood friendship fracturing under the weight of growing up.
- 11
Olive's ocean
Kevin Henkes
A quiet, ocean-scented summer of reflection, where a young girl navigates the bittersweet currents of grief, family, and first crushes.
- 12
Crush
Svetlana Chmakova
A sweet, funny, and deeply relatable exploration of the butterflies and blunders that come with a first middle-school crush.
