Posts

New middle grade realistic fiction March 2026

-
Image
 There have been SO MANY new books that came out in the last month!  So lucky us!  Here are two of my newest favorites. "When Tomorrow Burns" by Tae Keller is about three middle school kids who are trying to figure things out.  They have been friends for a long time, but are struggling to remain friends because of the things they haven't felt confident to share with each other.  Nomi, Vi, and Arthur each have the own opportunity to tell their stories and through that story telling, readers get a full picture of how their relationships crisscross and intersect and divide.  And each of them believes in a prophecy that they read in a book that they found at the Museum of Lost and Found, a gallery where people could drop off paintings, sculptures and poems that one of Arthur's dads runs in the first floor of their apartment.  Part of the story line that keeps the kids together is trying to find the second book to try to figure out the true meaning of the p...
Post a Comment
Read more

New realistic middle grade fiction

-
Image
  There have been some amazing books that came into the world in the last month.   Here are two of my favorites! The first one is called “Glory Be” by Jamie Sumner.  Jamie has such a gift for giving a voice to people with big hearts and quirky personalities.  You might remembers some of her other work, like “Roll On”.  This one is a new set of characters and  you are going to love it.  Glory lives with her mom and her dad and their dog Roux.  Except that Roux is missing and Glory is heartbroken.  It takes until almost the end of the book to find out really what happened and it is super fun ride.  The story is written in free verse and as usual, Sumner has a wonderful way of describing not only the setting but also helping readers to understand the depth and complexities of the feelings of the characters.  This would be a great one for teaching personal narrative, for character analysis, for foreshadowing and inferencing.  There...
Post a Comment
Read more

Middle Grade fiction standouts 2026

-
Image
 How lucky I am to get to read some of these amazing new books that are just coming out?  Wait till you read these!   The first one is a novel in verse and it's historical fiction.  It's called "A Year without Home"  and it's written by V. T. Bidania and according to the author's notes, is a story about her family's experience as they traveled from their home in Laos, to a refugee camp in Thailand, to a second refugee camp in Thailand and then to the US.  The story is told by Gao Sheng, who is the oldest child in her family and as a girl, she is not considered as important as her brother, Yia.  She is expected to be hard working, dutiful, and well behaved and she tries hard to fill that role.  Her home in Laos contains most of her immediate family-her grandmother, her aunts and uncles, her parents and siblings and they have most everything they need.  Her father is an officer in the Laotian military and when the Laotian government falls to th...
Post a Comment
Read more

Spectacular speculative middle grade fiction 2025

-
Image
 So even though CYBILS isn't doing an award this year, people are still reading and recommending books.  I'm so happy I got to read this two, because they're wonderful! The first one is called "Candace, the Universe, and Everything".  It's written by Sherri L. Smith, who has written several other books, but this is the first one I've read (and it will NOT be the last).  The story is told by Candace, a middle schooler who lives with two loving parents.  She's having a hard time adapting to the new relationship she has with two girls that she considers her best fiends.  She missed out on a camping trip with Becca and Deen and it seems like Becca and Deen are bonded in a way that they hadn't been before.  Candace feels left out.  And then, a bird flies out of her locker, leaving behind a purple notebook full of advice that seems surprisingly on point, especially when Candace finds out that the notebook is 40 years old and that the writer had the same...
Post a Comment
Read more

Even more middle grade fiction Fall 2025

-
Image
 Usually this time of year, I'm knee deep in middle grade speculative fiction as part of the CYBILS award list, which is super fun.  But this year, they are taking a break (sad face emoji) but I'm still finding some fun things to read, it's just not the overwhelming glut I'm accustomed to, with stacks of books on hold for me at my local library and the stacks of books on my coffee table giving me the stink eye every time I sit down.  Luckily, here are two amazing ones that just came out. The first one is in a category I like to call "not exactly speculative fiction".  There are no ghosts or magical creatures in these books, but the kids face obstacles that I hope are not realistic.  This one is called "The Free State of Jax".  It's written by Jennifer Nielsen, an author whose work I admire greatly.  Jax is a kid who has lived with his grandmother since he was a little boy.  But his grandmother developed Alzheimer's disease and he was sent to ...
2 comments
Read more

Even more middle grade speculative fiction Fall 2025

-
Image
 Sooooo many new middle grade fiction titles are coming out this fall.  Check out these two new ones. The first one actually came out in May but Netgalley was kind enough to keep it on the shelf until a few weeks ago.  It's called "The Curiosities" by W. H. Eatons, which is actually three people- Mark Wheaton and his two kids, Rowan and Wyatt.  It's about two kids, Marlow and Zack, who just moved to a new small town with their mom, an exogeologist (a scientist who studies rocks from other planets) who works at the Rocket Propulsion Lab.  It's also about the cats who live in the neighborhood, who are talkative, friendly, and capable of a great many things.  The problem begins with a hum that a creature notices.  The creature is unidentified until quite late in the book but is referred to occasionally.  The hum seems to be disrupting insects and birds and eventually the people of the town.  When the middle school science teacher, Ms. Layla, dis...
Post a Comment
Read more

New middle grade speculative fiction-Fall 2025

-
Image
I'm sorry that we're not going to get to do the CYBILS award this year.  The CYBILS award was created by people who blog and write about children's literature and has consistently been one of my favorite things to do each year.  Imagine getting a list of 100+ middle grade fiction books, having to source them, read them and rate them and discuss them with a group of other people who love books as much as you do.  It wasn't always easy but I always found a couple of titles that I would have otherwise missed that I totally fell in love with.  But [sigh], this year, the organizers wanted to take a break.  Or needed to take a break.  I hope it's a short one and we can go back next year!  Here are two of my new speculative fiction favorites this year. The first one is called Outside by Jennifer Holm.  I adore Jennifer Holm's work and it was such an honor to get to meet her at the Nerdy Book Camp when that was still a thing.  This new one is terrifi...
Post a Comment
Read more