Middle grade fiction

Before the Ever After by Jacqueline Woodson

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Published by Nancy Paulsen Books (Released September 1)

Before the Ever After - Kindle edition by Woodson, Jacqueline ...

Summary:  ZJ can remember “before the ever after” when his NFL star dad was a football star, and he and his parents lived a happy life in suburban Maplewood.  But his father has started having severe headaches, memory lapses, and irrational behavior that have put an end to his football career.  Doctors are baffled by his case, and by similar cases of some of his NFL teammates.  12-year-old ZJ finds support from his mom and three close friends, as he tries to enjoy his dad’s more lucid moments, and worries when things start to fall apart.  A crisis near the end of the story results in Dad being admitted to the hospital, with the hope that he’ll get the care he needs, but nothing guaranteed.  176 pages; grades 4-8.

Pros:  This novel in verse by superstar Jacqueline Woodson will appeal to fans of Kwame Alexander and K. A. Holt.  Set in the early 2000’s when doctors were just beginning to understand the effects of multiple concussions for NFL players, there’s no happy ending, but ZJ’s voice hits just the right note between hope and despair.  An awards contender, for sure.

Cons:  It seemed surprising that none of the four 12-year-old boys in the story had any crushes or mention of romance.

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Nat Enough by Maria Scriven

~ Janet Dawson ~ 1 Comment

Published by Graphix

Nat Enough (Nat Enough #1) - Kindle edition by Scrivan, Maria ...

Summary:  Natalie is pretty nervous for the first day of middle school, and grateful to have her best friend Lily by her side.  Lily moved over the summer and has been somewhat uncommunicative, but Natalie is sure everything will be fine once they’re back in school together.  But on the first day, Lily’s hanging out with cool and popular Alex, and dismisses Natalie as a nerd.  Fortunately, Natalie quickly makes a new friend, Zoe, but she still wants her best friend back, and spends weeks trying to figure out how to be cooler so Lily will like her again.  Slowly, Natalie starts to discover her artistic talents, and to listen when Zoe points out that Lily isn’t acting like a friend.  Winning a contest with her graphic story turns things around for Natalie, and she learns the importance of discovering what she can do versus focusing on what she can’t do.  Book 2 is due out September 1.  240 pages; grades 3-6.

Pros:  The latest graphic series from Graphix is sure to be a hit, checking all the boxes for a tried-and-true middle school series:  the end of a friendship, the beginning of another, a first crush, and learning to be yourself.  Appealing to reluctant and avid readers alike.

Cons:  The plot was a little too tried-and-true for this reviewer, who has read many, many books with similar stories.  Hopefully, kids will bring a fresher perspective to the story.

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Gold Rush Girl by Avi

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Published by Candlewick

Gold Rush Girl - Kindle edition by Avi. Children Kindle eBooks ...

Summary:  Victoria (Tory) lives with her parents and younger brother, Jacob,  in Providence, RI, where she chafes under the expectations of her parents and strict Aunt Lavinia.  When her father loses his job and proposes going west with Jacob to seek gold, Tory sneaks on board their boat, revealing herself only when it’s too late to turn back.  The three of them are dismayed by the primitive living conditions, filth, and lawlessness of San Francisco.  Determined to improve their fortunes, Father leaves Jacob and Tory in a temporary tent home and heads out to the gold fields.  Tory starts dressing as a boy and finding carpentry work to support her and her brother, while Jacob grows more and more despondent about their situation.  One day, Tory gets delayed working; when she returns after midnight, Jacob is gone.  She learns that he may have been kidnapped to be used as a cabin boy on a ship heading back east.  Hundreds of abandoned ships, called Rotten Row, sit in  San Francisco Bay.  It’s up to Tory and her new friends Thad and Sam to figure out which ship Jacob is on and rescue him before it’s too late.  Includes an author’s note and a map showing where ships from Rotten Row have been discovered in San Francisco.  320 pages; grades 4-7. 

Pros:  You can always count on Avi for exciting, well-researched historical fiction, and this book really brings the California gold rush to life with lots of adventures and a winning heroine/narrator.  The end definitely leaves open the possibility of a sequel.

Cons:  Fond as I am of Avi’s The True Adventures of Charlotte Doyle, I was expecting more plot twists and edge-of-your-seat suspense than I found here.  

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Stand Up, Yumi Chung! by Jessica Kim

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Published by Kokila

Amazon.com: [Jessica Kim ]-[Stand Up, Yumi Chung!]-[Hardcover ...

Summary:  Yumi Chung knows what she wants: to be a stand-up comedian.  She practices for hours, inspired by her YouTube hero, Jasmine Jasper.  Unfortunately, reality doesn’t match Yumi’s dreams.  She attends an exclusive private school, pushed by her parents to get ready for a top college.  She’s spending the summer studying for a scholarship exam, because her parents’ Korean restaurant is failing.  So when she accidentally wanders into Jasmine Jasper’s comedy camp and is mistaken for another girl, she decides to go with it.  With new friends and a sense of empowerment on stage, Yumi is happier than she’s ever been, until one day when her whole web of lies unravels.  With her beloved sister going to Nepal for two years, the restaurant days away from failure, and her parents and friends angry with her, it’s up to Yumi to figure out how to be true to herself and save the day.  320 pages; grades 4-7.

Pros:  Yumi is a worthy successor to Front Desk’s Mia, a funny and insightful narrator who must deal with her immigrant parents’ expectations while trying to figure out who she is.  Her parents seem stereotypical at first, but a few heart-to-heart talks reveal to Yumi (and the reader) their hopes, dreams, and motivations for doing what they do.  And like Mia, Yumi is ultimately committed to her family’s success and is the one who comes up with the idea to save their business.

Cons:  The series of events that got Yumi into Jasmine’s comedy school were a bit of a stretch.

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Class Act by Jerry Craft

~ Janet Dawson ~ 2 Comments

Published by Quill Tree Books (Released October 6)

Class Act - Kindle edition by Craft, Jerry, Craft, Jerry. Children ...

Summary:  The kids from New Kid are back for their second year at Riverdale Academy Day School, a.k.a. RAD.  This time, the focus is on Drew, who along with Jordan, is one of the few black kids in the school.  Drew lives with his grandmother, who still works long hours to support him, and he struggles with the unfairness of his situation when he’s invited to Liam’s house.  Liam, who is white, lives in a mansion with servants, a pool, and a stay-at-home mother.  When Drew starts hanging out with some older black RAD students, his friends have trouble understanding.  Ultimately, though, he’s drawn back to his original group, and finds a way to get past his pain and mend his friendship with Liam.  A visit from Liam to both Jordan’s and Drew’s neighborhoods highlights the warm community that is somewhat lacking in Liam’s life.  While the focus is on Drew, the story begins and ends with Jordan, who concludes that life is a lot of things, but perfect is not one of them.  And it’s time to draw some comics.  256 pages; grades 3-8.

Pros:  Just when I was ready to give up on 2020, I discovered an upcoming sequel to New Kid, and was able to snag an advance reader copy.  I am happy to report that it is every bit as good as the Newbery Medal-winning first book.  Appropriate to the new eighth graders, this book deals with slightly more mature themes, and the questions about race and racism are for the most part left as questions–no easy answers.  Let’s hope we get to follow Drew, Jordan, and the rest of the group all the way through high school.

Cons:  No easy answers is right, as I found myself feeling frustrated at how difficult it is for Jordan and Drew to find their places at RAD.

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A Game of Fox & Squirrels by Jenn Reese

~ Janet Dawson ~ 1 Comment

Published by Henry Holt & Co.

A Game of Fox & Squirrels: Reese, Jenn: 9781250243010: Amazon.com ...

Summary:  Samantha and her older sister Caitlin have recently been moved from their parents’ home to live with their Aunt Vicky and her wife Hannah.  Although the reason is unclear at first, it has to do with Caitlin’s broken arm.  Caitlin seems happy to be there, but Sam misses her parents and her best friend and wants to go home.  When Aunt Vicky gives Sam her favorite card game, A Game of Fox & Squirrels, the characters begin to come to life for her.  Ashander the fox is charming and handsome, and promises her he’ll get her home if she can successfully complete a series of challenges before the next full moon.  Maple, Birch, and Cedar are three squirrels who help and encourage her.  Sam is eager to do what Ashander asks, but as the challenges continue, his rules start to change, and he begins to show a more frightening side.  Before long, Sam is in over her head, and isn’t sure where she belongs.  Aunt Vicky and Hannah are kind, and between bouts of homesickness, she starts to recall more troubling aspects of her life at home.  Ashander still holds out the promise of home, but is Sam willing to pay the price he is demanding?  224 pages; grades 5-8.

Pros:  This seems to be the year for books that examine child abuse, and this one does it in a way that blends fantasy with reality.  Sam starts to see her father’s traits in Ashander, with just the right amount of tension bordering on horror.  I hope this will be considered for some awards.

Cons:  There’s a lot of inferencing required to understand what has happened to Sam and Caitlin; that along with the blurry line between reality and fantasy may be confusing for some readers.

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Show Me a Sign by Ann Clare LeZotte

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Published by Scholastic Press

Show Me a Sign: LeZotte, Ann Clare: 9781338255812: Amazon.com: Books

Summary:  11-year-old Mary Lambert lives in Chilmark, a community on Martha’s Vineyard, where, in 1805, many of the residents are deaf.  Mary and her father are deaf; her mother is hearing, as was her brother George, who died recently in an accident that Mary feels she caused.  Their community is somewhat uneasily intertwined with the Wampanoag and black freedmen, and Mary is aware of the racism expressed by some of the people closest to her.  Everyone in Mary’s life communicates through a sign language that has evolved on the island making the community distinctive enough to draw the attention of scientists.  One of them, Andrew Noble, arrives from Boston to stay with the local minister and study the population in hopes of better understanding the cause of deafness.  When Mary accidentally discovers a letter to Andrew asking him for a live specimen, she doesn’t realize that she is soon to become that specimen, kidnapped and taken to Boston for further study.  Mary awakens to the fact that most of the deaf population outside of Martha’s Vineyard are treated as less than fully human, and she becomes desperate to find a way to communicate and get help.  The story concludes with healing for Mary and her family, and with a vision of a brighter future for the deaf community.  Includes six pages of notes about the history of Martha’s Vineyard, deaf education, sign language, and the Wampanoag.  288 pages; grades 4-8.

Pros:  This is honestly a masterpiece of historical fiction that tackles so many different topics and doesn’t shy away from difficult topics.  Mary’s mother and best friend both have racist beliefs that don’t change by the end of the story, yet also have qualities that Mary loves.  This would make an excellent book club selection.

Cons:  I found the beginning a little slow going as there was so much to introduce.

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Twins by Varian Johnson, illustrated by Shannon Wright

~ Janet Dawson ~ 4 Comments

Published by Graphix (Released October 6)

Twins (Twins #1) (1): Johnson, Varian, Wright, Shannon ...

Summary:  Twins Mauren and Francine are starting middle school.  Maureen, who’s the narrator, is known as the thinking twin, while Francine’s reputation is as the talking twin.  Francine, now calling herself Fran, seems to be reinventing herself with tons of friends and not much time for Maureen.  Although Maureen excels in her classes, she struggles to connect with other kids and ends up eating lunch in the library.  Everything changes, though when the twins decide to run against each other for class president.  Although their parents try to keep things civil, emotions run high as each twin assembles a campaign staff and decides on a platform.  The tension finally leads to a heart-to-heart conversation where each girl is able to share her own insecurities and see what her sister is going through.  256 pages; grades 3-7.

Pros:  Another fun graphic novel from Graphix, this one written by Coretta Scott King honoree Varian Johnson.  A fast-paced middle school story, excellent artwork, and a multicultural cast of characters will make this a popular choice for sure.  This book is billed as book 1, so we can hope there will be more to come in the Francine/Maureen saga.

Cons:  Although Shannon Wright did a commendable job of giving Francine and Maureen distinctive characteristics, it was sometimes a little difficult telling the identical twins apart in the illustrations. 

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Echo Mountain by Lauren Wolk

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Published by Dutton Books

Echo Mountain by Lauren Wolk: 9780525555568 | PenguinRandomHouse ...

Summary:  Ellie’s family has moved to a farm on a mountain in Maine after losing almost all their money in the Great Depression.  Ellie and her father love the self-sufficiency of the farm, while her mother and older sister Esther hate it.  When their father is hit by a falling tree and lapses into a coma, it falls on Ellie to do much of the work he did.  Feeling alone, she wanders up the mountain to the home of a legendary “hag”, who turns out to be an ordinary old woman named Cate with a life-threatening leg injury.  Ellie learns some occasionally stomach-turning healing techniques (maggots, vinegar poured into the wound) from Cate as she works to save her.  Cate’s grandson, Larkin, becomes a good friend, and Ellie is finally able to tell someone her secret: she didn’t cause her father’s accident, as her family thinks, but she’s letting them believe it to protect Esther and her younger brother Samuel.  While Ellie’s mother is suspicious of Cate, Ellie finds her friendship with the older woman and her grandson a lifeline, and is certain they can help wake up her father and restore him to health.  368 pages; grades 4-8.

Pros:  Lauren Wolk has crafted another beautifully written historical fiction novel featuring a strong girl protagonist with a unique perspective and set of talents.  This is sure to be considered for a second Newbery (like Wolf Hollow) or Scott O’Dell award for historical fiction (like Beyond the Blue Sea)

Cons:  Usually I am a big Lauren Wolk fan, but this one didn’t grab me as much as her previous two.  I found Cate, with her endless store of sage wisdom, a little too good to be true.  It’s gotten starred reviews in journals and lots of 5-starred ones on Amazon, though so clearly I’m in the minority.

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96 Miles by J. L. Esplin

~ Janet Dawson ~ 3 Comments

Published by Starscape

96 Miles - Kindle edition by Esplin, J. L.. Children Kindle eBooks ...

Summary:  “Dad always said if things get desperate, it’s okay to drink the water in the toilet bowl.”  When we meet John and his younger brother Stew, they are indeed scooping water out of a toilet; things have obviously gotten desperate.  Their father is away on a business trip, and the power grid over much of the U.S. has been out for weeks.  Dad is a bit of a survivalist, but unfortunately his reputation was well-known.  When some unsavory neighbors learned the boys were on their own, their food and water supplies were stolen one night.  Now they’re stocking up on toilet water to make a 96-mile hike through the Nevada desert to the one place they know of that might save them.  Another pair of siblings, Cleverly and Will, who are also trying to stay alive, find them in the bathroom.  Stew convinces a reluctant John to let them come along, and the four of them start out.  For reasons that are not clear until well past the halfway point of the book, they have to make the trip in three days, and even John and Stew’s survivalist training may not be enough to get all four of them safely to their destination.  272 pages; grades 4-8.

Pros:  Holy cow!  Once I got about a third of the way through, nothing would do but to read all the way to the end.  Unlike many survival stories, the situations felt fairly realistic, as did the knowledge the kids had.  The characters were interesting and reasonably well-developed, and the pace did not let up from page one until the very end.

Cons:  I had a very unproductive Saturday morning, thanks to this book.

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