Published by Versify

Summary:  Maya’s chosen to play soccer over the flute, following in her beloved father’s footsteps.  Daddy is her number one fan, so it’s all the more devastating when he and Mama announce that they’re separating for the summer.  Summer is filled with soccer camp, friends, and days at the new pool, where Maya learns about her mother’s past as a championship swimmer.  A more secret part of her summer days is the time she spends in her closet quietly playing her flute, which she can’t bring herself to admit that she misses.  Watching her mother reclaim the joy she once knew in the pool makes Maya question what brings her that joy and leads her to make a decision about which path to follow in the upcoming school year. The title comes from a wheel Maya has made in her room with fortune cookie fortunes; by the end of the story, she has learned that she makes her own fortunes.  240 pages; grades 3-6.

Pros:  A great choice for elementary students. Kids will relate to Maya and her issues around friends, family, and figuring out who she really is.  

Cons:  The resolution of the friendship story felt a little rushed.

Published by Balzer + Bray

Summary:  Oliver’s surprised when his new homeroom teacher Mr. Aidact intercepts his spitball on their first day of school.  Before long, Mr. Aidact shows other surprising traits that are annoying at first but soon become endearing.  He has an almost endless knowledge of trivia and proves himself a surprisingly adept girls’ field hockey coach.  When there’s an accident on a field trip, Mr. Aidact turns out to be a skillful bus driver.  Oliver and his best friend Nathan do some sleuthing and make a shocking discovery–Mr. Aidact is actually a robot, a form of artificial intelligence being tested by the government in a project all the adults at school know about.  Try as they might, they find it impossible to keep this information a secret, and when parents get wind of it, an angry mob demands that Mr. Aidact must go.  When Oliver and Nathan intercept the Department of Education’s plans to dismantle their teacher, they hatch a daring plot to rescue him.  If they succeed, their beloved teacher will be gone for good.  But as Mr. Aidact tells them, “I’ll never forget you.  Unless I stand too close to a strong magnet.”  304 pages; grade 4-7.

Pros:  Gordon Korman’s latest book is a timely tale of artificial intelligence, told in his trademark style of multiple narrators, including memos to the Department of Education on the status of their project.  Kids will enjoy the humor and the realistic middle school characters and situations and will also be challenged to think about the line between human and machine.

Cons:  The human teachers were for the most part portrayed as boring and/or slackers.

Published by HarperCollins

Summary:  Sicily is dismayed to learn she’ll be starting sixth grade at the new middle school, leaving her three best friends behind.  School turns out okay, as Sicily reconnects with an old friend from kindergarten, whose cute seventh-grade cousin Michael is living with the family.  Things hit a snag, though, when Sicily’s class is assigned a project on their family’s heritage, and some of her classmates question how she can be both Black and Latinx (Panamanian).  Sicily begins to explore her culture through research, conversations with family members, and writing, something she has always felt passionate about.  She has a chance to write for a new school magazine, but the mean girl editor discourages her.  With inspiration from both her late grandfather’s journals and her new friend Michael, Sicily finally decides to persevere with her writing and produces something she can truly be proud of.  Includes a glossary and author’s note.  304 pages; grades 4-7.

Pros:  Sicily is a smart and sensitive narrator whose passion for writing and curiosity about her culture will educate and inspire readers.  Subplots about a fight with her grandmother over her hair and a ruined dress she tries to keep a secret from her mom add to the authenticity of the story.

Cons:  Sometimes the story felt a little too much like a vehicle for educating readers about Black Panamanian culture.

Lots of Newbery veterans on this list!

I meant to include the link to my mock Caldecott on TPT yesterday. This is a PowerPoint slideshow with 20 books that may be considered for the Caldecott, with facts about the illustrators and what to look for in the illustrations.

The Ogress and the Orphans by Kelly Barnhill

Published by Algonquin Young Readers

A timely fantasy about a kind ogress, a wicked mayor, a troubled town, and the children who figure out who’s good and who’s evil to reset their town in the right direction.

Jennifer Chan Is Not Alone by Tae Keller

Published by Random House Books for Young Readers

Everyone has a story to tell, whether that person is a bully, a target, or a bystander, in this powerful novel that explores the dynamics of middle school girls’ social lives.

.Those Kids from Fawn Creek by Erin Entrada Kelly

Published by Greenwillow Books

The sixth graders of Fawn Creek have known each other all their lives and have a well-established social structure. But when Renni moves away and a mysterious new girl takes her place, the order is upset and things start to change.

The Last Mapmaker by Christina Soontornvat

Published by Candlewick

Sai has overcome her impoverished background to become assistant to Paiyoon the mapmaker. When Paiyoon is invited by the Queen on a sea journey to explore some unknown lands, Sai goes along and is drawn into adventure and political intrigue.

Maizy Chen’s Last Chance by Lisa Yee

Published by Random House Books for Young Readers

When Maizy’s grandfather gets sick, she and her mother return to her mom’s childhood home in Last Chance, Minnesota. Maizy’s not excited at the prospect of spending an entire summer with grandparents she barely knows, but Last Chance proves to be surprisingly interesting, and what Maizy learns about her past helps her deal with a racist incident that threatens her grandparents’ restaurant.

Published by Kokila

Summary:  Addie’s mom is expecting a baby, leading her stepfather Alex to offer to adopt her.  While Addie loves Alex, she wants to learn about her biological father before making her decision.  Her mom has always refused to tell her anything about him, so Addie does some detective work with the help of her best friend Cy.  When she discovers that her father is the wrestler Manny Bravo, she convinces her mom to let her visit him and his family in the nearby town where her mom grew up, and where the Bravo family still lives.  The Bravos are famous Mexican American wrestlers in a community known for wrestling, and Addie is kind of starstruck when she meets them.  But soon she begins to form warm bonds with all of them…except for Manny, who frequently is late for their meetings or stands her up completely.  Eventually, Addie begins to understand why her mother left him to pursue her own dreams, and she is able to make some important decisions about her family and her future.  368 pages; grades 4-7.

Pros:  Belpré Honor winner Celia C. Pérez may be in line for another award or two with this heartwarming story of Addie and her family and friends.  There’s a lot going on with both of Addie’s families, as well as interesting subplots, particularly one about an unusual production of The Nutcracker that Cy is directing at their middle school. Pérez does an excellent job of weaving all the various parts of the story together.

Cons:  I could see the writing on the wall with Manny about halfway through the book.

Published by Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers

Summary:  As the story opens, Knox’s parents are making the difficult decision to take the three kids to California from their home in Hong Kong, where the coronavirus is spreading.  His dad has to stay behind and work, while his mom can work remotely from the small house in the Bay Area that the family has inherited.  This proves impossible, and before long, Mom is frantically looking for a new job while Knox, his older brother Bowen, and his younger sister Lea adjust to American schools.  Knox’s ADHD has made school difficult in the past, but he loves his new teacher and makes a new friend right away.  Bowen has a harder time and often takes his frustrations out on his younger brother.  The kids pull together, though, to raise money to get their dad a plane ticket to join them.  In the background is the news of increasing COVID cases in the US, and the story ends in the spring of 2020, with everything, including school, closing down.  The future feels uncertain, but the challenges of the past few months have pulled the family together in a way that makes navigating those challenges seem possible.  Includes an author’s note about her family’s experiences that were the basis for this book.  368 pages; grades 4-7.

Pros:  I started this book months ago and abandoned it after the first few pages; after seeing it on some best of 2022 lists, I decided to give it another chance and am so glad I did.  Despite the feeling of impending COVID doom, there is plenty of humor (I especially enjoyed the kids’ attempts to create a LinkedIn account for their dad) and some pretty touching family scenes, especially when the kids have to deal with anti-Asian racism.  

Cons:  As I’ve mentioned before, I’ve had a hard time getting kids interested in reading anything that has to do with the pandemic.