Top Ten Tuesday: First Crushes in Middle School

I’ll be the first to admit that I can’t imagine a first crush in middle school, as I was the girl with my head down reading any spare minute I could! I was not the middle school girl anxiously awaiting to grow up and get a crush. But, I had friends with boyfriends and girlfriends in middle school, so I know it’s not out of the realm of possibility. And especially now, as kids seem to be growing up faster and faster, romance is a part of the growing up that’s happening.

I also think lists like this are important because if your tween or pre-teen is on any social media at all, then they’ve probably see the bookstagram and booktok images of wwwaaayyyy more spicy romance novels that are not, what I would believe, to be age-appropriate for the under 13 crowd. So, with that being said, these books have characters that are 11 – 13 years old with first crushes, the butterflies in the stomach, the noticing of a cute classmate, maybe even a first kiss, but that’s as far as it goes. And if you’ve got a middle school reader searching for some romance, I think this list and the book list I made a few years ago with ten more titles would be a perfect place to start!

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First Crushes in Middle School

Danny Constantino’s First (and Maybe Last) Date by Paul Acampora

When Danny Constantino asks his old-friend-turned-Hollywood-movie-star, Natalie Flores Griffin, to his local school dance and homecoming parade, she surprises him . . . by saying yes! Unfortunately, now everyone in Cuper Cove has something to say about Danny’s love life–especially since Natalie is the hometown hero. Throw in herds of TV reporters and NFG groupies, his mom using Natalie’s arrival for free publicity, and a pep rally gone horribly, horribly awry, and Danny’s left absolutely clueless in this new world of crushes and becoming (kind of) famous.

Flipped by Wendelin Van Draanen

The first time she saw him, she flipped. The first time he saw her, he ran. That was the second grade, but not much has changed by the seventh. Juli says: “My Bryce. Still walking around with my first kiss.” He says: “It’s been six years of strategic avoidance and social discomfort.” But in the eighth grade everything gets turned upside down: just as Bryce is thinking that there’s maybe more to Juli than meets the eye, she’s thinking that he’s not quite all he seemed.
 
This is a classic romantic comedy of errors told in alternating chapters by two fresh, funny voices.

Goodbye Stranger by Rebecca Stead

Long ago, best friends Bridge, Emily, and Tab made a pact: no fighting. But it’s the start of seventh grade, and everything is changing. Emily’s new curves are attracting attention, and Tab is suddenly a member of the Human Rights Club. And then there’s Bridge. She’s started wearing cat ears and is the only one who’s still tempted to draw funny cartoons on her homework.

It’s also the beginning of seventh grade for Sherm Russo. He wonders: what does it mean to fall for a girl—as a friend?

By the time Valentine’s Day approaches, the girls have begun to question the bonds—and the limits—of friendship. Can they grow up without growing apart?

Just Be Cool, Jenna Sakai by Debbi Michicko Florence

“Heartbreak is for suckers.”

When Jenna Sakai gets dumped over winter break, it confirms what she learned from her parents’ messy divorce: Relationships are risky and only lead to disappointment. So even though she still has to see her ex-boyfriend Elliott at newspaper club, Jenna is going to be totally heartless this semester — no boys, just books.

But keeping her cool isn’t always easy. Jenna’s chief competition for a big journalism scholarship is none other than Elliott. Her best friend Keiko always seems busy with her own boyfriend. And cute-but-incredibly-annoying Rin Watanabe keeps stealing her booth at the diner she’s been hiding at every day after school. Rin is every bit as stubborn and detached as Jenna. And the more Jenna gets to know him, the more intriguing a mystery he seems. Soon Jenna is starting to realize that being a loner is kind of, well, lonely. And letting people in might just be a risk worth taking.

The Mighty Heart of Sunny St. James by Ashley Herring Blake

When Sunny St. James receives a new heart, she decides to set off on a “New Life Plan”: 1) do awesome amazing things she could never do before; 2) find a new best friend; and 3) kiss a boy for the first time.

Everything seems to be racing forward, but when she meets Quinn, Sunny questions whether she really wants to kiss a boy at all. And with the reemergence of her mother, Sunny’s journey to becoming the new Sunny St. James will be trickier than expected.

Acclaimed author, Ashley Herring Blake’s sweet, tender novel will dare readers to find the might in their own hearts.

Not If You Break Up with Me First by G. F. Miller

Childhood friends Eve and Andrew are destined to be together—everyone says so, especially their friends and classmates who are all suddenly crush-obsessed. So when Eve and Andrew’s first eighth grade school dance rolls around and Eve, feeling the pressure, awkwardly asks Andrew to go with her, everyone assumes they are Officially Dating and Practically in Love. Overwhelmed, Eve and Andrew just…go with it.

And it’s weird. Neither of them wants this dating thing to mess up their friendship, and they don’t really see each other that way. But they also don’t want to be the one to call things off, the one to make things super awkward. So they both—separately—pledge to be the worst boyfriend or girlfriend ever, leaving it to the other person to break up with them. It would be genius…if the other person weren’t doing the exact same thing.

Perfect Match by Stephanie Faris

This year, Mia is selling and delivering roses and chocolate for the Valentine’s Day fundraiser, and just like the year before, the same few popular girls are slated to receive bouquets of deliveries from their best friends. To shake things up a bit, Mia delivers an extra twenty-five roses from made-up “secret admirers” to overlooked girls who she thinks could use a confidence boost.

But Mia’s meddling might have done more harm than good—especially when she realizes that one of her rose deliveries has inspired Sun Patterson to get a makeover and pursue Alex, Mia’s best friend who she might feel more than friendly toward.

As the messy consequences of the extra roses unfold, Mia finds herself torn between her newfound goal to help others find their perfect match, the heavy weight of her secret actions, the friendships she is struggling to find time for, and some seriously confusing feelings for Alex.

Maybe this matchmaker stuff is more complicated than it seems.

Rolling On by Jamie Sumner

It’s the very end of eighth grade and all everyone can talk about is high school—everyone except Ellie Cowan. Ellie wants to freeze time. Middle school was epic. She moved to Oklahoma, made her best friends, won a baking championship, quit a beauty pageant, and dominated Putt-Putt golf in her wheelchair.

But now her feelings for her best friend Bert are starting to change. When did Bert get so cute? And why are all the other girls suddenly noticing, too? As if that isn’t enough to deal with, Grandpa’s health takes a turn for the worse. So what do you do when you don’t know how to hold on or when to let go?

Shug by Jenny Han

Annemarie Wilcox, or Shug as her family calls her, is beginning to think there’s nothing worse than being twelve. She’s too tall, too freckled, and way too flat-chested; there’s not one good or amazing thing about her. And now she has to start junior high, where the friends she counts most dear aren’t acting so dear anymore—especially Mark, the boy she’s known her whole life through and the boy she wants as her first kiss.

Life is growing up all around her, and all Shug wants is for things to be like they used to be. How is a person supposed to prepare for what happens tomorrow when there’s just no figuring out today?

Well, That Was Awkward by Rachel Vail

Gracie has never felt like this before. One day, she suddenly can’t breathe, can’t walk, can’t anything—and the reason is standing right there in front of her, all tall and weirdly good-looking: A.J.

But it turns out A.J. likes not Gracie but Gracie’s beautiful best friend, Sienna. Obviously Gracie is happy for Sienna. Super happy! She helps Sienna compose the best texts, responding to A.J.’s surprisingly funny and appealing texts, just as if she were Sienna. Because Gracie is fine. Always! She’s had lots of practice being the sidekick, second-best.

It’s all good. Well, almost all. She’s trying.

Funny and tender, Well, That Was Awkward goes deep into the heart of middle school, and finds that even with all the heartbreak, there can be explosions of hope and moments of perfect happiness.

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.