Top 8 Diary Books Of All Time

Do you also have a habit of writing a diary or keeping a journal? Today's post gives you a recommendation of some fantastic books written in the form of a diary with some fun illustrations to make it even more exciting to read.

Photo by Debby Hudson on Unsplash

Note that this list is going to be only of books in series. There are some great standalone books too which I will recommend next time. For the time being let's see which series made it to the top of this list.

08. Name: California Diaries
     Author: Ann M. Martin
    Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary Fiction
    Published in: 1997 by Scholastic Inc.
    Illustrations: No

The California Diaries is a spin-off of The Babysitter's Club by Ann M. Martin. The writer of the diary is Dawn Shafer, who has returned to California to live with her father, stepmother and brother. The reason for her keeping a diary is because of her school project.

The book's main theme is how she deals with some major changes in her life. One of them, transferred to the high school where earlier she was the oldest in the middle school, is now the youngest. The book raises some major and serious teen issues like consuming alcohol, smoking and cancer.

07. Name: Claire Journals
     Author: Tanith Lee
     Genre: Fantasy, YA Romance
     Published in: 2001 by Puffin Books 
     Illustrations: No

Claire Journals as the name suggests is the journal of Claire in which she writes about her daily life as a slave. We follow her as she runs away with a charming prisoner.

But this is just beginning, the real adventure is yet to come when she arrives at his home called the Wolf Tower. This book has every ingredient in the recipe of a good book, a heroine you'll fall in love with, a fantasy world that you'll love to visit and the funny narrative style that brings everything together. 

06. Name: Stargirl
      Author: Jerry Spinelli
      Genre: YA Fiction, Contemporary Romance
      Published in: 2002 by Scholastic 
      Illustrations: No

 

How do you feel when an unknown girl sings you Happy Birthday with a Ukulele in the school. You don't know her. Maybe you don't even want her. This "different" girl is STARGIRL. Out of the ordinary. Earlier home schooled, Stargirl has entered the Mica Area High School for the first time. 

She is one of those unforgettable protagonists with whom you are sure to fall in love with, just how Leo did. What will Leo do? Will he go with his heart, .i.e., with the first love of his life or with his mind and go with the crowd.

This book is much more deep and moving than it sounds. So grab it if you love this type.

Now before moving on to the next one I'd like to quote my favorite line from this book.

"She was bendable light: she shone around every corner of my day."

05. Name: Ashbury/Brookfield
      Author: Jaclyn Moriarty
      Genre: YA Fiction, Romance, Humor
      Published in: 2002 by St. Martin's Griffin 
      Illustrations: No

Dear Readers,

Imagine waking up every morning and getting weird, funny messages from your mom sticking on the fridge. My favorite one:

 “I hope you feel better today. Please ring me at work if you are dead.” 

How will you react if your English teacher asks you to write letters to strangers just to revive the tradition of writing letters {which fills the whole book}. How will you feel when your best friend goes missing almost every single day. 

This is the regular life of Elizabeth Clarry. It is a funny, serious, sincere and touching story written in the form of letters when she writes to her pen-pal Christina. I loved this book and I'm sure you will love it too especially if you love reading candid humor and poignant tales of a young adult.

Yours Truly,

Book Buzzerr

04. Name: Diary of a Wimpy Kid
     Author: Jeff Kinney
     Genre: Middle-Grade Children's Fiction, Humor
     Published in: 2007 by Amulet Books
     Illustrations: Yes

First of all, this is a JOURNAL, not a diary. This is what Greg Heffley got to write in the very first line. So, when Greg has been gifted this diary aka journal by his mom his first thoughts are like this is a crazy idea. Nevertheless, he starts writing in it as a documentary that he will hand out to people when they will ask him about his success story.

It has a lot of childish and funny illustrations and the series covers all the adventures that he is having with his friend Rowley. Greg is a boy who has a very high opinion about himself and thus sometimes gets into trouble because of this. The books are packed with common and most relatable middle school issues that a boy may face. 

03. Name: Cecelia and Kate
      Author: Paspin-official C. Wrede and Caroline Stevermer
      Genre: YA Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Mystery
      Published in: 2004 by Harcourt 
      Illustrations: No

Cecelia and Kate are cousins. Being living apart {Cecelia in London and Kate in the countryside} they try to be in touch through a game of letters. The letters back and forth are written by the duo Authors. All these letters then combined in the form of a book is truly a magical delight to read.

Both the young ladies are facing their own set of issues ranging from new held magic skills to humor to a fun-size romance. It's a perfect balance of every verb.

All in all, highly recommended to the fans of historical fiction and mystery. It will definitely satisfy the hunger of reading historical fiction with a touch of something new. 

02. Name: The Vampire Diaries
     Author: L. J. Smith
     Genre: YA Fantasy, Paranormal Romance
     Published in: 2010 by HarperTeen 
     Illustrations: No

ATTENTION PLEASE ALL THE FANS OF VAMPIRE FICTION !! Here's a treat for you. Inspired by the best selling books and a popular CW TV show, the writer of this diary is Stefan. 

If you are acquainted with the series, you are in a very good position of understanding it. Because the series is seriously very complicated with 21 primary works and 42 total works.

The book spotlighted here is Origins, the 14th book of the series, featuring Katherine, a mysterious girl, for whom Stefan falls for. She's pretty with a secret of her own - she's a Vampire.

Recommended for the fans of Teen Vampire Fiction. Well I think this is not required to say but you cannot pick up this book directly. You need to read the whole series or watch the show first or else everything would seem unavailing.

01. Name: Dork Diaries
     Author: Rachel Renee Russell
     Genre: Children's Fiction, Humor, Contemporary
     Published in: 2009 by Aladdin
     Illustrations: A Big Yes {most funny ones}

Considered as The Diary of a Wimpy Kid for Girls, the book features Nikki Maxwell. She starts writing her very first diary when she enters a new school in the eighth grade. The 15 books in the series capture the daily life of Nikki. From becoming enemies with the school's most popular girl, having a crush on the same guy as her enemies, becoming friends with the two incredible girls in her school, to her fights with her younger sister. Everything is so relatable.

As a girl, I liked this more than The Diary of a Wimpy Kid. I listened to its adaptation as a podcast and it was superb. You can find it here. Also if you like listening to some amazing bookish podcasts I made a recommendation which you can find here. {Therefore the content of this one has been copied from there. Please don't judge me. The book is so good I didn't think I was doing justice to it}.

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 #what's_going_in_my_mind

Wooow, I never thought this recommendation would turn out to be so good that it includes almost every common genre. Everyone will find something according to their reading preferences.

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I hope you liked the recommendation and if you haven't please let me know which other books should have been included in this list. I love getting new book suggestions. Till then HAPPY READING.