Some of the Year's Best Middle Grade Books from our 2018 Winter Newsletter

Every kid has a story, and the students in classroom 501 have nothing to do but talk. A clever teacher has corralled some of the “left behind” kids into a room and banished their phones. It takes a while, but when their words break open, each kid begins to truly see the other. A snappy, compelling story about compassion and empathy. Grades 5–8. - Tera

Two sisters, a family trip, the backseat of a car, and the beach. Secret Sisters of the Salty Sea is one of those novels that succeeds in making a string of moments utterly poignant, carrying us along on a first trip away from home. Alix is the younger sister: curious, odd, passionate, and impulsive. Jools is timid but full of longing to live her life fully. In a brief novel, Newbery Award winner Lynne Rae Perkins captures something timeless about this stage of growing up, with a lovable family reminiscent of the Penderwicks. Grades 3–5. - Tera

Winnie-the-Pooh was based on a real bear (as many of us know), but this version of her story is unspeakably charming and deftly retold. Winnie is rescued after her mother dies, and is brought up by a thoughtful boy, then by a veterinarian who takes care of the horses being transported to wartime Europe. Sensitive Winnie wants nothing but to make everyone around her laugh at her antics. We can’t help but feel and hope for her safe return to the woods of Canada. Like Charlotte’s Web or Bambi, this read-aloud book will enchant and transport every listener. Grades 3–6. - Tera

Two really funny books about a boy and girl who are befriended and aided by extra-ordinary companions. (One is an anthropomorphic inkblot. The other is a clever, sweet, green-hued, demigod-like well-dweller—in a chicken suit.) Heartwarming and zany, with great artwork. For kids who found Wild Robot irresistible. Grades 3–6. - Ga

Sweet, vulnerable, but rather crafty when it comes down to it, Louisiana is pulled along by her granny into a roadtrip adventure she doesn’t want to take. Along the way she meets Burke Allen and his pet crow, talks her way into the hearts of those around her, and discovers she is not the person she thought she was. Kate DiCamillo is one of the masters of children’s literature and she charms us all the way through this tale of a girl who has strayed very far from home. Grades 4–6. - Tera

A medieval setting, ancient relics, a quest. It all sounds like something that has been done before, but this fantasy is peculiar in a way you wouldn’t expect. You see, Boy (the humble goatherd taken up by a passing sorcerer), well, he may not be a boy at all, but neither is he the opposite. What he is and what that means to him is something that will have to be discovered along the way. The Book of Boy is a rich, satisfying novel, drawing heavily on medieval mysticism and crafted with impressive literary aplomb by Catherine Murdock. Grades 4–6. - Tera

Three not-yet-friends team up to hunt for a rumored land where 11-year-old Byx—our lead character—may find others of her kind and mitigate the pain of being the last of her species, an endling. Byx is a Dairne; she’s canine’ish, speaks intelligently, walks upright, and, when in need of swift locomotion, glides small distances. She rescues Tobble, a small, round, fiercely loyal, unfailingly polite Wobbyk. They travel with a human (Can you trust them? Humans are among the six species vying for power in Nedarra and are responsible for the genocide of Byx’s people.) The human Khara is 14 years old, brown-skinned, disguised as a boy, and playing her own intricate game. As they hunt for Dairneland, Byx, Tobble, and Khara are being hunted due to another skill the Dairne possess: the invaluable ability to always recognize a lie. This book is not just a whimsical animal fantasy; it is a brightly shattering, all-too-aware environmental novel with a bracingly quick pace, set in a highly believable landscape, and one of my favorite books this season. Grades 4–7. - Ga

Most readers will find Amal’s world utterly different from their own, and I think this is a good thing. Growing up in Pakistan, Amal is not unhappy with her life. She fights to get schooling when family tradition dictates that the eldest daughter stay home and take care of her siblings. But when she crosses the all-powerful landlord of her village, Amal’s destiny becomes both smaller and larger. Will she find a crack in the walls that keep her trapped? Will she become a teacher, as she dreams of? Eye-opening and uplifting, this story continued to resonate long after I read it. Grades 5–8. - Tera

Merci is just trying to make it through middle school with some dignity intact. Edna, occasional friend, more often enemy, is always content to throw her under the bus—despite the fact that Edna already has everything Merci could ask for, including a rich doctor father (only a podiatrist, but still). Then comes the day that Merci is paired up with the big (good-looking?) new boy Michael at school, and suddenly Merci’s life is drama with a capital D. This well-crafted middle grade novel is about friends and family and growing up being proud of where you come from and who you choose to be. Understated but precise, Medina captures the first throes of adolescent angst perfectly. Grades 4–7. - Tera

Mason Buttle is dyslexic, large, and extra sweaty, so he already struggles when it comes to seventh grade. But what’s worse is that his best friend died in a tragic (and mysterious) treehouse accident over a year ago—and the police officer still on the case believes Mason knows more than he’s telling. This big-hearted novel takes on the story of an underdog, neighborhood bullies, new friendships, self-reliance, and the triumph of standing up for oneself, while also unwinding the twisty truth of what really happened (as told by Mason Buttle). We loved Leslie Connor’s All Rise for the Honorable Perry T. Cook, and her new novel is just as poignant and memorable. Grades 5–8. - Tera