Published by Farrar, Straus, and Giroux

Summary:  Frederick Fredrickson sees kids in his class as lions, meerkats, or fleas who live on the meerkat’s butt.  He, unfortunately, is a flea, with no prospects of moving up in the hierarchy.  When a prank results in him being cast adrift in a boat, he winds up landing downriver at a weekend camp designed to “transform” boys.  He poses as Dash, an infamous troublemaker, and finds himself accepted by the odd cast of characters he’s grouped with.  When a Category 5 hurricane bears down on the camp, leaving Frederick and another boy stranded there, he discovers the true meaning of courage and what it takes to be a real friend.  290 pages; grades 3-6.

Pros:  A great choice for reluctant readers, especially boys, with plenty of humor and sympathetic portrayals of kids who feel left out at school.  Illustrations by Dan Santat, who seems to be producing about half a dozen new books every year, add to the fun.

Cons:  I never really warmed up to Frederick.

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Published by Random House Books for Young Readers

Summary:  When Lucy Callahan was 8 years old, she was struck by lightning, an event that damaged the left side of her brain and caused the right side to work overtime.  She’s a math genius with a touch of OCD, and has been homeschooled by her grandmother for the last four years.  At 12, she’s ready for college academically, but Nana thinks she needs to develop her social skills.  She enrolls Lucy at East Hamlin Middle School, insisting that her granddaughter go to a regular school for one year, make one friend, participate in one activity, and read one book that’s not about math.  At first, this seems like an impossible goal, as Lucy’s classmates stare and make fun at the way she has to sit and stand three times before taking a seat and wipe down her desk and locker with Clorox wipes.  But Lucy hides her genius abilities, and slowly begins to find a place for herself at school.  She makes a couple of interesting friends, and the three of them start volunteering at an animal shelter, where Lucy falls in love with a dog named Pi.  But when one of her new friends tells some other girls about Lucy’s math skills, she feels betrayed and isn’t sure she’ll get through the year.  Can the brilliant and quirky Lightning Girl truly find happiness in middle school?  Includes additional information on pi and the Fibonacci sequence. 304 pages; grades 4-7.

Pros:  Lucy is an unusual but engaging narrator, and readers will cheer her on as she navigates the difficult pathways of seventh grade while remaining true to herself.

Cons:  I was hoping to learn the identity of SquareHead 314, an online friend on a math site where Lucy spends a lot of time, but that didn’t happen.

Published by Bloomsbury Children’s Books

Summary:  When the seventh graders at Wolf Creek Middle School are given the assignment to submit their writing to be put in the town’s time capsule, Nora expects to write about field day and the Fourth of July cookout.  But when two inmates escape from the prison housed in Wolf Creek, everything changes.  The story is told in texts, letters, news articles, and other materials mostly created by Nora, her best friend Lizzie, and new girl Elidee.  As events unfold, Nora begins to see that her town is not as idyllic as she first thought.  Elidee, an African American girl whose brother is in the prison, has experiences at school and in town that highlight some differences between being a black and a white resident of Wolf Creek.  By the time the two inmates are caught, Nora realizes that life will never be simple for her again…but that it has gotten a whole lot more interesting.  448 pages; grades 4-8.

Pros:  The different types of writing will keep readers moving quickly through the 400+ pages; all the girls’ stories, but especially Elidee’s, highlight subtle racism and white privilege and how it affects people of both races.

Cons:  The message sometimes overwhelms the story, and Elidee at times comes across as a bit too good and too “woke” to ring true for a 13-year-old.

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Published by Greenwillow Books

Summary:  Alix and her older sister Jools head off with their parents before dawn one morning.  They drive all day before finally arriving at the seashore.  Their house faces the beach.  The family rents the downstairs from Lila, the woman living upstairs.  Lila’s granddaughter Nessa often visits, and she and Alix become friends.  There are new adventures every day of the week: a long walk on the beach, a trip to the raptor center, a search for sea glass, the exploration of a lighthouse.  Things don’t always go according to plan (an attack by a giant June bug; the destruction of a sand castle by two careless boys), but everyone remains positive, and it’s a happy vacation that brings about bonding moments for each member of the family and sees the beginning of new friendships.  Even three flat tires on the drive home can’t diminish the joy of the trip, and Alix falls asleep in her own bed dreaming of her new friends and anticipating the rest of the summer.  Includes instructions for making a sea glass necklace.  240 pages; grades 3-6.

Pros:  A quiet book that perfectly captures the highs and lows of a family vacation.  The characters are realistically portrayed, just quirky enough to make them likeable and believable.   The writing provides a feast for the senses that will make you want to go to the beach, and the illustrations enhance this.  An ideal summer read-aloud.

Cons:  Read this book in the summer; it might be too depressing to read it surrounded by snow and cold.

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Published by Arthur A. Levine Books

Summary:  When Mia’s parents left China for the United States, they were full of dreams for a better life.  A year later, they’re working difficult, low-paying jobs, and are a step away from being homeless.  When her mom sees an want-ad for a family to run a hotel near Anaheim, Mia and her family think all their dreams are about to come true.  Unfortunately, the hotel owner is Mr. Yao, a cruel and racist man who makes unreasonable demands on his workers and pays them a pittance; his son is in Mia’s class and makes her life miserable.  The hotel is robbed and Mia’s mom is beaten up; her father endures sleepless nights when customers wake him up at all hours; and Mia has a scare when she is threatened by a drunken customer.  Nevertheless, she is determined to help her family get ahead, and her excellent customer service at the front desk, combined with her parents’ hard work, begins to pay dividends.  When Mr. Yao announces he is selling the motel, the connections Mia and her family have made to their neighbors and to other immigrants pay off, leading them to a happy ending and the promise of a brighter future.  304 pages; grades 4-7.

Pros:  Based on the author’s experiences in the early 1990’s, this story will give readers who aren’t recent immigrants greater understanding and empathy for those who are.  Sympathetic characters and a fast-paced plot will keep kids turning the pages.

Cons:  Some of Mia’s victories, especially the big one at the end, were a little unbelievable.

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