Unlocked and Uncensored: Our Favorite Diaries for Young Readers

Descendants: Mal’s Diary, by Disney Book Group
If you’re ready for Disney’s new Descendants movie and already loving The Isle of the Lost, you’ll want to know what it’s really like to be Mal, the daughter of the evil Malificent. This diary tells all through super-secret journal entries and Mal’s trademark doodles and drawings. It’s wickedly fun to learn what this edgy, artistic teen is really thinking and feeling.

The Dork Diaries series, by Rachel Renée Russell
We all love the personal diaries of 14-year old Nikki Maxwell, the misfit at Westchester Country Day, who is immediately labeled a dork among the wealthy, designer-clad students, but finds her way with her two best friends, Chloe and Zoey. With a Dork Diaries movie in the works and the 10th tale releasing this fall, we can’t get enough of this adorkable teen, her illustrations, and all of her wacky misadventures.

The Princess Diaries series, by Meg Cabot
The stories of Mia Thermopolis and her ascent to royalty have charmed readers for years. This princess-in-training may be awkward, but her heart is as huge as her ginormous feet, and we’re able to follow her all the way through to her Royal Wedding as an adult, as well as learn more about her long lost half-sister, Olivia Grace, in a new middle grade series just out this past spring.

The Mira’s Diary series, by Marissa Moss
When Mira receives a mysterious postcard from her missing mother, she discovers that her Mom may be a prisoner of the past. This series sends us on three fast-paced epic adventures to 19th century Paris, 16th century Rome, and WWII London, and has a little bit of everything: history, culture, time-travel, and romance.

The Keena Ford series, by Melissa Thomson
Keena Ford, the most “important person in her journal” because it’s hers, is a lovable troublemaker who has to find her way out of the most sticky situations. From birthdays, to field trips, to the day her journal is discovered by Tiffany Harris, the “meanest muffinhead” in second grade, following Keena out of each mix-up is a delight to read.

The Amelia’s Notebook series, by Marissa Moss
These composition books, with hand-printed text and cartoon drawings follow Amelia from elementary school to middle school, through moves, crushes, gossip, family drama, and more. She even tells us how to survive school, summer, friendship, and boys, which we all need a little help with now and then.

The Diary of a Wimpy Kid series, by Jeff Kinney
Even though Greg Heffley wouldn’t like to be on a list of diaries, the list would be incomplete without this wimpy kid sensation, which follows Greg and his clueless antics through middle school. The books are laugh out loud funny and kids and adults alike are anxiously awaiting the next installment, which releases this fall.
Did we miss any of your favorite diaries?