Middle grade fiction

The Sheep, the Rooster, and the Duck by Matt Phelan

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Published by Greenwillow Books

Summary:  Bernadette the sheep, Pierre the rooster, and Jean-Luc the duck are based on the real animals that piloted the first hot-air balloon in 1783.  Among those in attendance were King Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette, and Benjamin Franklin.  This story takes place after that flight, when Emile, a young boy who works as a servant for Franklin, discovers the sheep, the rooster, and the duck and a girl named Sophie.  The four of them have become balloon experts, and their knowledge comes in handy when Franklin is kidnapped by Count Cagliostro.  They thwart Cagliostro’s plot to launch a war between England and France and take over the government of the newly-formed United States.  Includes an author’s note with historical information.  221 pages; grades 3-7.

Pros:  This engaging historical fiction story is told with both text and several sections of comic-style illustrations.  Kids will love the brilliant animals and cheer on Sophie and Emile as they work together to foil the evil schemers of 18th century France.  

Cons:  Readers may find the large number of characters and historical events at the beginning of the book confusing.

Honestly Elliott by Gillian McDunn

~ Janet Dawson ~ 1 Comment

Published by Bloomsbury Children’s Books

Summary:  Elliott loves to cook and is good at it, with an ability to focus in a way that he struggles with at school.  His ADHD makes schoolwork difficult and social interactions awkward at times.  After almost failing the first semester of sixth grade, Elliott has to endure lectures from his high-achieving, sports-loving dad who is expecting a new baby with his new wife Kate.  For a project at school, Elliott finds himself unexpectedly partnered with popular girl Maribel, whose revelations about her struggles with celiac disease make Elliott realize that her life isn’t as perfect as it seems.  By the end of the story, he’s realized that no one’s life or family is perfect and that he has more love and support around him than he realized.  Includes recipes for Desperation Pie and Elliott’s Crumb Crust that are the centerpiece of Elliott’s and Maribel’s project.  263 pages; grades 4-6.

Pros:  Elliott is an extremely likable character who has friend, family, and school problems that many readers will relate to.  He handles those problems with humor and a certain amount of grace and manages to connect with those around him without giving up on being himself. 

Cons:  There are way more accomplished kid chefs in children’s books than I actually seem to meet in real life.

Confessions of a Class Clown by Arianne Costner

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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.

Isla to Island by Alexis Castellanos

~ Janet Dawson ~ 1 Comment

Published by Atheneum Books for Young Readers

Summary:  Marisol has a happy childhood in Cuba, where she is a cherished only child.  When Castro comes to power, though, life suddenly becomes dangerous for her family.  Her parents decide to send her to New York where she is placed with foster parents.  The illustrations abruptly change from brilliant colors to monochromatic grays as Marisol struggles to adjust to living with strangers, bullying at school, enduring cold weather, and not speaking English.  Bits of color return as she begins to connect with her foster parents and discovers the school library with its books about botany, a subject she loved in Cuba.  As winter turns into spring, summer, and fall, Marisol’s world slowly becomes fully in color once again.  A series of pictures at the end show Marisol’s later life: a reunion with her parents when they immigrate from Cuba, a career as a teacher, and marriage and children with both sets of parents supporting her.  Includes a recipe for arroz con pollo a la Chorrera; additional information about Operation Peter Pan; an author’s note about how her family’s story inspired this book; and a list of resources.  192 pages; grades 5-8.

Pros:  This nearly wordless graphic novel beautifully relates an immigrant girl’s story using color to show her emotions and the connections between her old home and the new one. The author’s note makes some interesting comparisons about how Cuban children were treated by the U.S. versus children immigrating from Latin American countries today.

Cons:  Readers who don’t have much background knowledge on Cuba in the 1950’s and 1960’s may want to start with the back matter to better understand the story.

Ready or Not? (Abby In Between, book 1) by Megan E. Bryant

~ Janet Dawson ~ 1 Comment

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.

When the World Turned Upside Down by K. Ibura

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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. 

Gabby Gets It Together (PAWS book 1) by Nathan Fairbairn, illustrated by Michele Assarasakorn

~ Janet Dawson ~ 1 Comment

Published by Razorbill

Summary:  The book opens with Gabby struggling to walk five dogs and losing track of four of them.  How did she get into this desperate situation? She explains how she and her friends Mindy and Priya love animals but for one reason or another can’t have pets.  They brainstorm how to get more animals into their lives and come up with PAWS, a dog-walking business.  Right away, they find five clients, but a lack of communication among the three of them leads to a series of misunderstandings that threatens the business.  Which brings us back to the opening scene, when Priya and Mindy have stood Gabby up, and she is trying to walk all five dogs.  Fortunately, all three girls have a change of heart, and Priya and Mindy show up in time to rescue the dogs and the business.  They talk about how to fix their mistakes, and PAWS is back in business and ready for book 2.  176 pages; grades 3-6.

Pros:  This graphic novel is going to be very, very popular in my library with all those kids who love The Baby-Sitters Club and Allergic, with believable tween protagonists, cute dogs, and colorful artwork.

Cons: Mindy and Priya seem to have the upper hand because they’re both a year older than Gabby.

Rolo’s Story (Dog’s Eye View, book 2) by Blake Morgan, illustrated by David Dean

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Published by Tiger Tales

Summary:  Rolo starts life with a cruel owner, often tied up in the backyard with a rope and without enough food.  He finally runs away but finds life as a stray to be a precarious existence.  After his friend and mentor Scrap is taken away to the pound, Rolo takes shelter in a shed where he is discovered by a girl named Freya.  Freya lives with her single mother, who is stressed by her many responsibilities and isn’t sure about adding an untrained puppy to the household.  Freya and Rolo’s obvious love for each other finally wins her over, and after a series of mishaps, Rolo finally gets some training.  His presence brings some changes to the household, and Mom finds a career that makes all of them happier.  192 pages; grades 2-5.

Pros:  I always enjoy a good dog-narrated story, and this one is particularly heartwarming, especially for readers who, like Rolo, may not always succeed at carrying out their good intentions.  This is book 2 in a series whose subject matter and relatively low page count is sure to appeal to a wide range of elementary readers.

Cons:  I wish there had been more illustrations besides the same picture of Rolo at the head of each chapter.  Also, Mom’s overnight career switch from accountant to dogwalker seemed a bit fiscally risky.

The Supernatural Society (book 1) by Rex Ogle

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Published by Inkyard Press

Summary:  Will’s struggling with his parents’ recent divorce, his father’s abandonment, and a move from New York City to the small town of East Emerson.  At first he thinks that the monsters he’s seeing in his new town are some overenthusiastic Halloween fans, but before long he realizes that he alone can see the horrors all around him.  Alone, that is, except for his somewhat eccentric neighbor Ivy, who’s in possession of a ring that allows her to see them as well.  Her brilliantly geeky brother Linus doesn’t have the gift and isn’t sure what to believe, but the three of them ultimately form a team to solve the mystery of disappearing pets in town and discover the evil force behind it.  Narrated by Adam Monster, with a voice that evokes A Series of Unfortunate Events, the book ends with a number of unresolved issues, paving the way for book 2 and beyond.  288 pages; grades 4-7.

Pros:  Fans of Lemony Snicket, The Notebook of Doom series, and other books that combine humor and horror will enjoy this series opener that delivers plenty of both.

Cons:  I was sure that Adam Monster’s identity would be revealed in a way that would somehow tie into the rest of the story, but at least in book 1 he seemed to be a somewhat random choice for a narrator.

Sofía Acosta Makes a Scene by Emma Otheguy

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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.