Magical creatures in middle grade fiction

 Reading for the CYBILS is so much fun.  It's a little like standing in a firehose spray of children's literature but if you can get past feeling completely overwhelmed (that was earlier this week), it's a blast, because there are SO MANY great books.   Well, not literally, because that would hurt.  Okay, then!  Let me tell you about my two new favorites. 

Creatures of the In Between by Cindy Lin is an exciting adventure that starts in the middle of things, with an attack on Whisper Island, a haven for magical beasts.  The Kingdom of the Three Realms is tied to the magical beasts and the leader of the Realm is meant to be bonded to a magical beast.  The current leader is the Dowager Queen who's phoenix does her bidding.  The Crown Prince is Jin, her 12 year old grandson, who has spent his entire life learning from books about magical creatures because, other than her phoenix, there are no other creatures in the kingdom.  Jin really wants to bond with a magical creature and keeps pushing the boundaries of his grandmother's orders until finally he has to run away to Whisper Island.  On Whisper Island, he finds out that the books aren't really accurate about the magical creatures and that he has a lot to learn.  Luckily, there are three Whispers (people who can communicate with the magical creatures) still on the island.  This is a really fun book to read.  The descriptions of the magical creatures are clear enough that even if you have no background knowledge of them, you can visualize what they look like.  Jin and the rest of the characters are well developed and such kind and interesting people, I was sorry to finish the book.  There are big themes of building and earning trust, good versus evil, pushing back against rules that are unjust, and kindness.  This is going to be a fun one to use as a read aloud because the kids are not going to let you stop reading!  

The second one is a really creepy ghost story.  It's called the Bellwoods Game and it's written by Celia Krampien.  It's about a town called Fall Hollow.  It's kind of an ordinary town with mountains close by and a river that runs past it.  In Fall Hollow, there is a forest that's called Bellwoods because there's a bell out in the woods.  No one really knows why the bell is there but there's a game that the kids play on Halloween that's a dare-go into the woods and ring the bell.  If you get caught by the ghost, you'll need a gift to to give and the ghost will let you go, no gift, and you'll end up dead.  The parents of the town think this game is a bad idea, so the kids play in a highly guarded secret.  The prologue of the story is one of the games and the main part of the story is another game, some time later.  Bailee is a girl who is the center of the story.  She's been ostracized by her friends because of an incident that happened last year and is unsure if she's even going to be a part of the game.  Her grandmother has been unwell and Bailee worries about her a lot.  But she goes to be part of the game and is selected as one of the three contestants to enter the woods.  Also chosen is Fen, one of Bailee's former closest friends and Carmen, a smart girl that Bailee isn't really close to.  As the three start the game, they are warned to stay together, which Fen dismisses out of hand. I'd like to tell you more of the plot, but part of what makes this story so deliciously creepy, is how it spins out.  There are themes of betrayal and friendship and power in this page turning story.  It would make a good read aloud, but I think the kids are going to snatch it out of the reader's hands so they can read more quickly!  I know I couldn't put it down.  

Here's the gorgeous cover.

Here's the author reading a little bit of the book.