A School for Brides by Patrice Kindl (2015)

Young adult, Jane Austenesque sequel to the equally adorable Keeping the Castle, which was in its own way a nod to I Capture the Castle. 

Sometimes you just have to let a book speak for itself:

"Oh, she was pretty enough in the usual way, but she was not the heroine of a novel, fit for drama and a life of extraordinary jobs and griefs. No, she was one who would find contentment as the wife of a gentleman landowner and farmer, a magistrate and person of importance in a small country village. She was cut from a simple, strong cloth that would was and wear well, with modest trimmings for a holiday, she was not a fragile velvet or satin that must be kept for best."

"A happy marriage confers a great advantage upon all members of the union: the wife, the husband, and any children in their care. It is not essential for fulfillment in life; both sexes may live singly and be well satisfied with their lot. And not every marriage is happy; many married people must seek their contentment elsewhere. Yet where a sturdy bond does grow up between a wedded pair it becomes a source of strength and joy their whole lives through." 

 Great characters, lovely humor, adorable and sweet book. 

Girl, 15, Charming But Insane by Sue Limb (2004)

Absolutely adorable young adult novel about a young British girl living with her mum and struggling with all the usual teen troubles--boys, friends, etc, but the dialogue (mostly in the voice of the heroine Jess Jordan) is beyond witty. Plus, Mom's a librarian! See awesome quote.

“Unfortunately she met her mum by the gate, and she could tell by her face that Mum had had one of those days. Occasionally people came into the library and peed, pooed, or got drunk and starting shouting abuse. Drunks and vagrants went to sleep in the reference section. Once a very old man who lived on the streets had died on the Oxford English Dictionary. You might think that being a librarian would be a quiet, cushy job, but sometimes it seemed that the library was really a nightmarish extension of the mean streets and that librarians were just cops and paramedics disguised in tweedy cardigans and long dangly parrot earrings from the charity shop.”

My Life: The Musical by Maryrose Wood (2008)

Emily Pearl is obsessed with a Broadway show and devoted to trying to find the mysterious author. Wood was a member of the original cast of Merrily We Roll Along, and vividly depicts theater life and Broadway fans.

Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen by Dyan Sheldon (1999)

Drama queen Mary Elizabeth moves from Manhattan to New Jersey with her mother and two bratty sisters, renames herself Lola, and sets about shaking up her suburban high school. Lola is a hilarious character and the story, as told through her melodramatic perspective, is equally hilarious.  Terrible cover art, however.

Bras and Broomsticks by Sarah Mylnowski (2005)

Rachel is a normal Jewish girl growing up in New York City, who wants nothing more than to be popular, have a boyfriend, grow breasts and stop her father from marrying her evil Soon-To-Be-Stepmonster (STB for short). When she comes home one day to discover that her younger sister Miri is a witch, as is her mother, she begins to make all sorts of plans to make her dreams come true. Very cute YA chick lit.

Absolutely, Positively Not by David LaRochelle (2005)

Funny and charming novel about a teenage boy coming to terms with his homosexuality. Yay for light and funny gay teen lit! Better than those scarring books where the poor gay kid is victimized, terrorized and humiliated (for example, Annie on My Mind - an acclaimed gay teen novel).  See also David Levithan's Boy Meets Boy for fun gay YA lit.

Kimchi and Calamari by Rose Kent (2007)

Novel about an engaging eighth-grade boy protagonist who was adopted by his Italian parents from Korea, and who is coming to terms with his heritage. Great characters all around, and funny, likable hero.  Plus, how cute is the cover art?

Audrey, Wait! by Robin Benway (2008)

Adorable novel about a girl who inadvertently becomes a celebrity after her ex-boyfriend writes a song about her that hits the charts. Audrey has a similar snarky (but not annoying) feel as the title character in the film Juno. Great supporting characters fill out a engaging story.

Introducing Vivien Leigh Reid by Yvonne Collins & Sandy Rideout (2005)

Teen chick lit about a teen girl who goes to Ireland to spend time with her estranged mother who is filming a movie. Silly and fun read.  Followed by two very cute sequels: Now Starring Vivian Leigh Reid Diva in Training, the second in the series about the title character who this time around stays with her actress mother in L.A., takes an acting class, and gets a part in an evening soap. Dishy and fun.  And
The New and Improved Vivien Leigh Reid Diva in Control, third in the series, this one follows her adventures on an evening action/adventure drama. Adorable, with great characters and some good villains (in her soon-to-be stepsisters). Great fun.

The Unlikely Romance of Kate Bjorkman by Louise Plummer (1995)

Kate Bjorkman, six feet tall, bespectacled and gawky, is celebrating the holidays in Saint Paul with her family. Her brother comes home for the holidays bringing his friend (and her longtime crush) Richard with him. Romance ensues, and she writes the whole thing up using her Romance Writer's Phrasebook. So adorable and charming.

Alice, I Think by Susan Juby (2000)

This series of novels stars Alice MacLeod, a Canadian girl who is one of the most eccentric, endearing, and hilarious characters I've ever read. Fabulous books! In the first, Alice, formerly homeschooled, decides to attend school. Hilarious. Read-out-loud-to-anyone-nearby-hilarious.  In Miss Smithers, Alice decides to compete in the Miss Smithers beauty (scholarship) pageant. Still hilarious.  Also, Alice MacLeod, Realist at Last.  Alice decides to try her hand and screenwriting. The results? Hilarious.

Ellen Conford - Adored Author

Though Ellen Conford's books are contemporary, they are sadly out-of-print. Featuring endearing characters and funny but realistic situations, all of her books are recommended, especially:  Seven Days to a Brand-New Me: Hilarious story of a high school girl who tries to jazz up her life through a combination of self-help and romance books.  The Alfred G. Graebner Memorial High School Handbook of Rules and Regulations, an excellent high school tale. Witty and realistic, as are all Conford books.  And Hail, Hail Camp Timberwood, the best of all summer camp YA novels. Conford deserves to be in print for decades to come. Her books are not remotely dated, despite being written twenty to thirty years ago.

Boy Meets Boy by David Levithan (2003)

Set in an alternate universe where gay is completely unremarkable, Paul becomes the first openly gay third-grade school president and helps form his school's first gay-straight alliance (mostly to help the straight kids learn to dress and dance). Paul is now in high school, where the quarterback and the head cheerleader is the same person--a drag queen named Infinite Darlene--and where he meets cute new boy Noah. Hilarious and very sweet.

Enthusiasm by Polly Shulman (2006)

As the novel opens, Julie's friend Ashleigh, who is prone to obsessive enthusiams has just discovered Jane Austen, whom Julie has loved for years. In Ashleigh's attempts to recreate the Austen era, they crash a private school dance and meet a couple of boys. Much romantic confusion ensues, and a little Pride and Prejudice take-off—with full awareness by the young girls, who disagree over which of their potential beaus is Darcy. And which one Darcy likes. In addition to being charming and witty, with strong supporting characters, this is actually a sweet romance.

Sleeping Freshman Never Lie by David Lubar (2005)

Utterly fantastic. Regular guy freshman Scott Hudson is going through his first year of high school, and things are tough. Scott is a good writer and gets pretty inspired by his English teacher, leading to some pretty funny writing like this (from Scott's journal to his yet-to-be-born sibling):

"Today Mr. Franka introduced the topic of stream-of-consciousness writing. That's where the writer sort of vomits the contents of his mind onto the page, just letting whatever comes flow out. Go out. Show out the prose and cons and all the twisty little pretzel bends of each thought untaught in the belief that anyone else on the planet would want to read the spewings despite the fact that the writer didn't plan it but just kept going and going like a battery bunny banging a drum like the drum I wanted when I was five but got a toy clarinet instead which broke when I tried to use it to pry up a rock in the backyard next to the apple tree so I could buy my hurt feelings.

Don't feel bad if you skimmed that last sentence. I sure wouldn't read it. I already spend too much time with my streaming, streaming consciousness.

Mr. Franka didn't talk too much about the topic. 'You'll get a fair dose of it in college if you forget to duck,' he said."
Loved it. Everyone should read it.