Self-confidence book series in reading order

by Shannon Hale

by Alex Morgan

by Jory John

Shannon Hale

62 books• 11 series

Shannon Hale, born Shannon Bryner on January 26, 1974, is an American author mainly of young adult fantasy. Princess Academy (2005) earned a Newbery Honor, and The Goose Girl (2003) opens the catalogue. Austenland (2007), the first novel for adults, became a film in 2013. Hale graduated from the University of Utah and the University of Montana, and has co-written with husband Dean Hale. The catalogue lists 63 titles through The Princess in Black and the Trick-or-Treating Trouble (2026), across series including Princess In Black, Books of Bayern, Real Friends and Kitty-Corn.

Mike Lupica, born May 11, 1952, is an American author and former newspaper columnist known for sports commentary in the New York Daily News and for appearances on ESPN. The catalogue lists 64 books, from Reggie (1985) to Framed (2026). Children's fiction about basketball, football and baseball fills much of the subject list, along with twins, friendship and fathers and sons. Series include Zach & Zoe Mysteries, Comeback Kids, Home Team, Peter Finley and Danny Walker/Travel Team.

Katherine Applegate

228 books• 20 series

Katherine Applegate, born October 9, 1956, and sometimes published as K. A. Applegate, is an American author of children's and young adult fiction. Animorphs, Remnants and Everworld are the series most tied to Applegate, and The One and Only Ivan (2012) won the 2013 Newbery Medal. Applegate received the Publishers Weekly Best New Children's Book Series Award in 1997. The catalogue lists 228 books, from Welcome to Junior High! (1990) to The Littlest Elephant (2026), including Girl Talk, Making Out and Roscoe Riley Rules.

Kelly Yang, born August 29, 1984, is an Asian American writer known mainly for novels for children. Yang's first novel, Front Desk (2018), won the 2018 Parents' Choice Gold Medal for Fiction and the 2019 Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature, and Yang has since written fiction for young adults and adults as well. The catalogue holds 14 books from Front Desk to The Take (2026), including Parachutes (2020), Three Keys (2020), New from Here (2022) and Finally Seen (2023). Front Desk and Finally Seen are the two series listed, and subjects include immigrant families, motels and self-confidence.

Kristen Proby writes contemporary romance, with 104 books in the catalogue from 2012 onward. Come Away with Me (2012) is the earliest title, followed by Fight with Me (2012), Play with Me (2013) and Rock with Me (2013). Vicious King (2026) is the newest release, and Love Me Anyway is scheduled for 2027. Proby series include With Me In Seattle, Boudreaux, Fusion, Love Under the Big Sky, Big Sky Royal, Heroes of Big Sky, Kings of Vegas, Huckleberry Bay and Wilds of Montana. Subjects include rock musicians, restaurateurs, ranchers, veterans and family life.

Jory John is an American author of children's books, known for dark humour and for taking on difficult topics. Jory John titles have reached the New York Times bestseller list, with The Good Egg at number one and The Bad Seed at number two, and John has twice received an E.B. White Read-Aloud Honor. The catalogue lists 40 books from Thanks and Have Fun Running the Country (2009) to This Is Not a Christmas Book (2026). Series include Food Group, Bear & Duck and Animal Problems, and bears, ducks, friendship and kindness appear among the subjects.

Phyllis Reynolds Naylor

131 books• 11 series

Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, born in 1933, wrote 131 catalogued books for children and young adults across half a century. Shiloh, a quartet of children's novels, won the Newbery Medal in 1992, and the Alice McKinley series became one of the most frequently challenged sets of books of the early 21st century. The Boy/Girl Battle, Bessledorf Mysteries, Witch Saga, Cat Pack and Roxie and the Hooligans fill out the list, which runs from To Make a Wee Moon (1969) to Roxie and the Hooligans at Buzzard's Roost (2018). Family life, schools, friendship and siblings are the constant subjects, at a median of 154 pages.