Published by Random House Books for Young Readers

Summary:  Jack has been a class clown since first grade and has a big following for the stunts he posts on MyTube, but finding real friends proves to be a lot harder.  He stops by an after-school speed friendshipping club, ostensibly for the free donuts, and gets to talk to three kids: Mario, Brielle, and Tasha.  After the club meeting, the three share their perspectives with readers, which prove to be quite different from Jack’s impressions of them.  Despite Jack’s apparent confidence, he actually has a lot of doubt about his ability to make friends and often assumes that other kids don’t like him.  The reader gets to see all four kids’ insecurities and misperceptions as they slowly move toward a better understanding of each other.  Although there’s no guarantee that they’ll remain friends in eighth grade, each one develops compassion and gets some tools that will come in hand in future friendships.  288 pages; grades 4-7.

Pros:  Diary of a Wimpy Kid fans might be willing to take a chance on this book with its appealing cover and grayscale illustrations.  Jack experiences a bit more personal growth than Greg Heffley, but the author’s light touch and insightful portraits of each character provide plenty of fun along with some learning.

Cons:  The kids were quick to come to some pretty adult conclusions about social media which might not ring quite true with tweens.

Published by Penguin Workshop

Summary:  Abby’s off to a rough start in fourth grade when her cousin and best friend Zoe moves away and stops answering Abby’s letters.  Not only that, but her dad’s lost his job, her mom’s gone back to work, and Abby’s stuck in an after-school running program that she’s sure she’s going to hate.  When she starts noticing some changes going on with her body, she misses Zoe more than ever, and has to steel herself for some awkward conversations with her mom and doctor.  Abby’s awareness of the larger world grows, too, as she learns about homelessness in her community and finds a surprising way to make a difference.  Standing up for herself and communicating about what she needs lead Abby to learn to survive and even flourish with all that’s changing in her life.  208 pages; grades 3-6.

Pros:  A fun series starter that will be perfect for kids in the second half of elementary school.  Megan E. Bryant has a light touch and writes about puberty with a Judy Blume-esque flair.  As I’ve said before, there aren’t enough middle grade books that feature fourth graders, and this one is sure to appeal to a wide range of readers.

Cons:  Given the intended audience for this book, I was surprised there weren’t illustrations.

Published by Scholastic

Summary:  Ai, Ben, Liam, and Shayla have grown up together in the same apartment building, but lately things have been changing.  Shayla has been moving away from the group, and Liam is dealing with panic attacks.  The story opens on the day school closes down due to Covid-19.  During the next few weeks, everyone is struggling to get through this abrupt change, which has exacerbated family issues for all four of the kids.  A well-intentioned but ill-advised mission to help a sick neighbor lands three of the kids in quarantine, where they use their time to come up with better ways to help others in the apartment building.  As the spring wears on, news of George Floyd’s murder reaches the children, and they become aware of protests in their neighborhood.  While they’re not allowed to join the protests, they find other ways to raise awareness about racism.  There are no easy answers as the story ends with the pandemic still in its early days, but the four children have learned how to be more active participants in their own lives, helping themselves, their families, their neighbors, and possibly the greater world around them.  288 pages; grades 4-7.

Pros:  I was drawn into this story right away, with its four interesting characters and the ways they dealt with the events that we all lived through.  While I do find that some of my students are not interested at all in reliving the early days of the pandemic, those who are will find the people and events of this story very relatable.

Cons:  I know schools closed abruptly, but the teacher in this story announces that school is closing down for two weeks about a minute before dismissal, with no time for discussion, just a hurried handout to take home to parents. 

Published by Knopf Books for Young Readers

Summary:  Sofía has always taken being part of a ballet family somewhat for granted.  Her parents were both members of the Ballet Nacional de Cuba before immigrating to New York, and both her older sister and younger brother are at the tops of their classes.  By fifth grade, though, Sofía is starting to realize that her talents lie more with costume design than with dance, and she worries that she’s not living up to her family’s expectations.  She’s also starting to notice some anti-immigration sentiment as a variety of issues unfold around her: new affordable housing in the neighborhood, her teacher from Ireland who’s just become a US citizen, and a young friend who’s considering defecting from Cuba to dance with the American Ballet Theater.  As the days count down to the big Nutcracker performance, her teacher’s surprise party, and her Cuban friend’s decision, Sofía has to decide how and when to speak up for what’s important to her.  288 pages; grades 4-6.

Pros:  Readers will enjoy the chance to become part of Sofía’s warm Cuban-American family that always has room (and good snacks) for any friends or family who want to visit.  Sofía is realistically portrayed, worried about her friends and her place in her family as she gradually becomes more aware of the larger world around her.  

Cons:  I was sorry that Sofía never had a talk with her aunt who wasn’t into ballet and who sometimes, like Sofía, seemed to feel overshadowed by her talented older sister.