No empire-line dresses, no three-headed aliens, no smug vampires, no goblins, and no talking rabbits. Real characters making tough decisions about life right now.
	Cloud busting by Malorie Blackman (2004)
	My life with the liars by Caela Carter (2016)
	Ruby Holler by Sharon Creech (2002)
	The Watsons go to Birmingham, 1963 by Christopher Paul Curtis (1995)
	Boy by Roald Dahl (1984) First book in his autobiographical series
	Matilda by Roald Dahl (1988)
	The happiest refugee by Anh Do (2010)
	Out of my mind by Sharon M. Draper (2010)
	Parvana by Deborah Ellis (2000) First book in The breadwinner series
	Hitler's daughter by Jackie French (1999) First book in the Hitler's daughter series
	Joey Pigza swallowed the key by Jack Gantos (1998) First book in the Joey Pigza series
	Two weeks with the queen by Morris Gleitzman (1989)
	Ban this book by Alan Gratz (2017)
	Refugee  by Alan Gratz (2017)
	Spilled water by Sally Grindley (2004)
	Ugly by Robert Hoge (2015)
	My life as an alphabet by Barry Jonsberg (2013)
	See you at Harry's by Jo Knowles (2012)
	The miscalculations of lightning girl by Stacy McAnulty (2018)
	Journey to Jo'burg by Beverley Naidoo (1985) First book in the Journey to Jo'burg series
	Wonder by R.J. Palacio (2012) First book in the Wonder series
	The boy at the back of the class by Onjali Q. Rauf (2018)
	There's a boy in the girls' bathroom by Louis Sachar (1987)
	Smart by Kim Slater (2014)
	Counting by 7s by Holly Goldberg Sloan (2013)
	The bad beginning by Lemony Snicket (1999) First book in the A series of unfortunate events series
	Mr Stink by David Walliams (2009)
	Other words for home by Jasmine Warga (2019)
	Being Miss Nobody by Tamsin Winter (2017)
	Detention by Tristan Bancks (2019)
	The eighteenth emergency by Betsy Byars (1973)
	A stone in my hand by Cathryn Clinton (2002)
	The chicken dance by Jacques Couvillon (2007)
	Mockingbird by Kathryn Erskine (2010)
	George by Alex Gino (2015)
	Misery guts by Morris Gleitzman (1991) First book in the Misery guts series
	When friendship followed me home by Paul Griffin (2016)
	Don't pat the wombat by Elizabeth Honey (1996)
	Small as an elephant by Jennifer Richard Jacobson (2011)
	The turbulent term of Tyke Tiler by Gene Kemp (1977) First book in the Cricklepit School series
	Inside out and back again by Thanhha Lai (2011)
	Rules by Cynthia Lord (2006)
	The dogs of winter by Bobbie Pyron (2012)
	Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick (2011)
	Here in the real world by Sara Pennypacker (2020)
	Liar and spy by Rebecca Stead (2012)