What to Read Next Based on Your Hogwarts House
In the dark days of yesteryear, we had to physically wander into bookstores and pick up books at random to find one that suited us, like animals. And we had to do it uphill, in the snow. Nowadays you can simply click your way over to a list that will recommend books perfectly suited to your taste. You can even get them suited to your Hogwarts House. It’s almost like magic. So whether you’re chivalrous, cunning, intelligent, or a badger, here are some suggestions to whet your literary appetite.
If you’re in Gryffindor, you should try…
Code Name Verity, by Elizabeth Wein
The novel opens with the quick-witted Verity, a young spy captured by Nazis, writing her confession in the form of a novel that’s serving to postpone a painful death at the hands of her interrogators. As time runs out, she writes about survival, loss, and her best friend and pilot, Maddie, in a story of wartime bravery with a twist that’ll knock your Golden Snitch–patterned socks off.
Hatchet, by Gary Paulsen
This one’s about 13-year-old Brian, who finds himself the lone survivor of a plane crash with nothing but the titular hatchet in what is basically the original YA adventure tome. It tackles the question every bred-in-the-bone Gryffindor has asked themselves: “If I were to be dropped into the middle of the wilderness, far from civilization and indoor plumbing, would I be able to make it?”
Spellbound, by Cara Lynn Schultz
Spellbound is a tale of courage in the face of impossible odds—of reincarnated star-crossed lovers whose curse can only be broken by sacrifice. It sounds like the stuff of folklore, but it takes place right smack in the middle of modern-day New York City, where Emma is the newest addition to the Upper East Side’s poshest prep school…and the world of all things magic.
If you’re in Slytherin, you should try…
Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac, by Gabrielle Zevin
This is a book I’ve read at least five times, and I’ve come to the conclusion that 17-year-old protagonist Naomi (the aforementioned amnesiac) is a Slytherin through and through. She’s clever, pragmatic, and—let’s face it—a little self-involved. But she has an excuse, seeing as she just hit her head and lost her memories of the last four years, including all her classes, her boyfriend, her parents’ divorce, and what’s been going on with her best friend, Will.
The Diviners ,by Libba Bray
Bray’s series starter takes place in New York in the Roaring Twenties and features a whole host of narrators, but fast-talking Evie (a flapper and a total Slytherin) is the glue that holds them together. And she’s got a secret, supernatural power that—in a world where magic is real and the dead aren’t staying put—might just be more trouble than it’s worth.
Endangered, by Lamar Giles
Lauren “Panda” Daniels is an anonymous high school photoblogger who thinks of herself as a hallway ghost, or “karma personified”—she catches the school’s bullies (the Draco Malfoys, the Umbridges) in illegal or compromising situations and busts them on her blog. But when she gets mixed up with a creepy admirer and the murder of one of the victims of her karmic justice, Lauren has to decide whether to expose her own identity…or play the game.
If you’re in Ravenclaw, you should try…
An Abundance of Katherines, by John Green
Colin is a “washed-up” child prodigy coming to terms with his unrealized potential on a road trip with his best friend. While it’s not the most known or oft-quoted of John Green novels, this one is actually my favorite. We can’t all be whiz kids, but if you’re a Ravenclaw, people probably expect you to have that “wit beyond measure” thing down pat, and odds are you sometimes feel like you fall short. Colin knows what that’s about.
Partials, by Dan Wells
Have you ever used your cleverness and ingenuity to save the dying human race? Probably not, but you would if you could, right? That’s why you’re a Ravenclaw, and that’s why you should check out Partials. In a war-torn, virus-ravaged world, 16-year-old medical intern Kira is trying to save what’s left of mankind, but to do so, she has to put together the pieces of what started the war with the Partials (basically genetically engineered super soldiers) in the first place.
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
This one’s a testament to the Luna Lovegoods of the world. It details the life of 15-year-old Ari, who’s miserable and angry…until he meets Dante. The two have nothing in common besides their weird names. Ari doesn’t want much, whereas Dante wants to figure out what’s up with this thing called life, but between their struggles with both cultural and sexual identity, they might just find that they have some (very important) things in common after all.
If you’re in Hufflepuff, you should try…
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, by Ann Brashares
We at B&N Teen fully endorse the idea that Hufflepuffs are the gridiron backbone of society, and we’ve saved the best for last. If you’re into overarching themes of friendship and loyalty (and let’s be honest, why wouldn’t you be? You’re a Hufflepuff, after all), then you can’t do better than The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. Just four best friends, one pair of pants, and a summer when everything changes.
On Such a Full Sea, by Chang-rae Lee
Hufflepuff has a (wholly undeserved) reputation as the House of the leftovers. And in On Such a Full Sea, our main character Fan isn’t the “chosen one,” and she’s not special—it’s her boyfriend Reg who’s immune to the cancer that kills everyone eventually. But when Reg disappears, it’s Fan who dares to leave, becoming something of a legend to the society she’s left behind, though it’s not for Reg’s sake or anyone else’s. As Lee says, Fan “was not chosen…to lead anyone but herself.”
Luna, by Julie Anne Peters
Regan’s unwavering support of her sister, Luna, is about as Hufflepuff as it gets. Luna is transgender and can only be herself at night—thus her chosen name, in reference to the moon. To everyone but Regan—including their conservative father—Luna is actually Liam, a likable, good-looking boy who gets good grades and hates sports. But when the lines between Luna and Liam begin to blur, Regan learns supporting her sister doesn’t just mean keeping her identity a secret, it means standing by her side when Luna decides to emerge in the light of day.