Kids
EL DEAFO by CeCe Bell
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After an illness severely damages her hearing, four year old CeCe must wear hearing aids and learn to read lips. As she goes through elementary school, she sometimes struggles to fit in with her classmates, some of whom treat her differently because of her disability. She constantly wonders what people are thinking about her and feels left out in situations where she can’t understand what others are saying or listening to. But she also knows that her hearing aids let her do some things that the other kids can’t, and someday her classmates will need El Deafo to save the day.
This graphic novel is sure to resonate with all middle grade readers, who will relate to CeCe’s struggles to find true friendship and fit in with her peers. Reader’s with disabilities may find CeCe’s story particularly easy to relate to, while typically-abled readers will get a glimpse into the frustrations of being treated differently and set apart (for example, when CeCe’s friend refers to her as her “deaf friend” rather than just her friend). This novel will both introduce readers to what it is really like to be deaf and remove some misconceptions and other barriers that may have made hearing children hesitant to befriend a deaf classmate. Engaging, educational, and a great story–I highly recommend it!
If you liked El Deafo, you might like Smile by Raina Telgemeier.
BROWN GIRL DREAMING by Jacqueline Woodson
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Jacqueline’s childhood was shaped by the Civil Rights movement, her grandfather’s garden, the kids playing in the streets in Bushwick, and so many other things. She gathers her memories and turns them into poetry in this National Book Award winning memoir. Her story is accessible and beautifully told with vivid imagery and a depth of reflection that inspires similar personal reflection from readers of all ages. A beautiful book. I highly recommend it!
DOLL BONES by Holly Black
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It’s not that Zach doesn’t care what other kids think of him. He does his best to hide his secret imaginative life from his friends on the basketball team. But it’s worth the risk of getting caught in order to keep playing the game with Poppy and Alice. When Zach is being William the Blade, it is like his whole identity changes; he becomes a pirate. And the creepy bone China doll they pretend is their queen really seems to have deadly powers. When Zach’s dad throws away all of his action figures, Zach feels like his world is falling apart. He can’t get up the courage to tell Poppy and Alice why he can’t play anymore. But the bone China doll isn’t about to let Zach go so easily. A ghost appears to Poppy in a dream and suddenly Zach and his friends find themselves on a real adventure every bit as dangerous and magical as any of their games.
This creepy adventure story combines the family and friendship tensions of growing up with an intriguing ghost story. I wouldn’t call it scary, but it definitely has a chilling tone at times. The main thrust of the book, however, is the evolving character relationships and Zach’s coming of age. I would recommend this book to middle grade readers who enjoy fantasy adventures set in the real world.
HEREVILLE: HOW MIRKA GOT HER SWORD by Barry Deutsch
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Mirka dreams of battling dragons. She loves to read stories of knights and monsters, even though such Gentile books are forbidden in Hereville. When a chance encounter with a talking pig earns her a favor from a witch, Mirka seizes the opportunity to embark on a quest for her very own sword. But her task becomes more challenging when she realizes the troubles her siblings now face from being in the family of a crazy pig girl.
This story combines humor, fairytales, family problems, and Jewish culture into an enjoyable graphic novel. Readers will learn dozens of Yiddish words as they plunge into Mirka’s unique fantastical yet realistic world. I would recommend this book to middle grade readers who enjoy graphic novels, spunky heroines, and both fantasy and realistic fiction.
THE WAR THAT SAVED MY LIFE By Kimberly Brubaker Bradley
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Ada has spent her entire life in the room above the pub. Her mother tells her that her crippled foot is too much of an embarrassment; she can never be allowed outside. But in secret, while her mother is at work and her little brother is playing outside, Ada begins (painfully) to teach herself how to walk. When England goes to war with Germany, the children of London are sent away to the country. Although her mother will not allow her to go, Ada sneaks away with her brother in search of a better life. Living in the country with a childless woman who is mourning the death of her partner, Ada begins to question some of the things she always believed to be true. Maybe she is not as worthless as her mother said. Maybe she can have friends. And with the help of the pony, Butter, she may even be able to run.
This is the story of a girl who overcomes a traumatic, abused childhood and a woman who finds her way out of her grief and into a community that she never expected to accept her. Ada’s strength makes her a compelling character, and it is exciting to watch her thrive in her new environment. Her journey is paralleled with her caregiver’s struggle to overcome her self-imposed isolation. Not all readers will pick up on exactly why Miss Smith believes the community will not accept her (she tells the children it is because she chose to never marry, but her grief over the death of her best friend who lived with her implies that she is gay), but when the children bring her out of her shell, she is welcomed into the community with open arms.
I would recommend this book to middle grade readers who enjoy historical fiction.
THE ENDLESS STEPPE: GROWING UP IN SIBERIA by Esther Hautzig
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Esther had a beautiful childhood. She shared a large home with her parents and extended family in their Polish town of Vilna. They had beautiful garden that Esther tended with her grandfather, and she attended a wonderful school. But that all ended with the German invasion. As the Polish army fought valiantly against the Germans, the Soviets began to wage war against what they considered to be internal enemies. Labeled as capitalists, Esther, her parents, and her grandparents are shuttled into cattle cars and taken to labor camps in Siberia. From age ten to age fifteen, Esther learns to survive working in the harsh, barren landscape. But as she grows and builds friendships and a life for herself, it becomes difficult to imagine ever leaving.
Esther Hautzig tells her life story in beautiful and evocative prose. Her experiences of joys and hardships are both shocking and accessible; in many ways, childhood in Siberia is no different from childhood anywhere else. There is sadness in this story, as you can imagine, but ultimately, Esther’s story is hopeful. I highly recommend this book to middle grade readers and teens who enjoy historical novels and memoirs and who are interested in hearing a less-often-told side of the Second World War.
OKAY FOR NOW by Gary D. Schmidt
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Whenever everything seems to be going well, something terrible is going to happen soon. When Doug gets a baseball cap signed by Joe Pepitone (the Joe Pepitone of the Yankees!), it is inevitable that his jerk older brother steals it. And when he is finally feeling happy on Long Island with friends and a baseball team, it is inevitable that his father mouths off to his boss, loses his job, and moves the family upstate to stupid Marysville, New York. Which means that they’ll be living near Ernie Eco (the jerk). Which means that Doug’s father will be going out drinking every night with Ernie Eco (the jerk) and his brother will still act like the evil criminal mind he is and his mother will still stare into the distance like she’s wishing she had a different life–or maybe wondering when Lucas will come home from Vietnam. And it turns out that everyone in stupid Marysville looks at Doug like he’s the scum of the earth. Terrific. But when Doug discovers a book in the library with an extraordinary painting of a terrified bird plunging toward an icy sea, he is inspired to uncover a new side of himself and the people of Marysville. Of course whenever everything seems to be going well, something terrible must be about to happen. . . .
Through brilliantly written first person narration, Schmidt gradually reveals Doug’s transformation and the evolution of his relationships with friends, family, and neighbors. Not only is the coming-of-age story compelling and accessible, but tense character relationships add suspense that makes this book difficult to put down. It will appeal to middle grade readers and teens (and even adults, especially those who grew up in the sixties) who enjoy coming-of-age stories and historical fiction.
Doug’s voice makes this book exceptional, and Lincoln Hoppe’s performance of the audiobook is perfect. I highly recommend listening to this one!
SISTERS by Raina Telgemeier
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Sometimes Raina wonders why she ever wanted a little sister. She thought it would be fun to have someone to play with, but instead she wound up crowded into a bedroom with two other siblings, arguing about everything, and trying to hide her stuff so that Amara doesn’t steal it. The snake incident was just about the last straw. But when Raina, Amara, Will and their Mom crowd into the family van for a two week long camping road trip, the nightmare is complete. Is there any way they will make it through the vacation without tearing each other apart?
A companion to her previous memoir, Smile, Telgemeier’s newest book captures the frustrations, rivalries, and deep loving bond of sisterhood. While Sisters is not quite as suspenseful and compelling as Smile, Telgemeier weaves flashbacks to the past into the story of the roadtrip to build a more complete picture of the family dynamic, as well as to create an engaging story arc. The story will resonate with middle grade readers who have siblings and will also appeal to readers who enjoy realistic fiction and graphic novels.
THE REAL BOY by Anne Ursu
The Magician Caleb adopted Oscar as his shop assistant, to help with small tasks like restocking the pantry, but not with magical tasks of preparing spells for the customers. As far as Caleb and his mean-spirited apprentice Wolf know, Oscar can’t even read—although Caleb has begun to suspect something of Oscar’s self-education through the way he obviously knows more about herbal magic than Wolf. Shy Oscar is happy to remain in the background where he doesn’t have to interact with people, who often think there is “something wrong with him.” But when Caleb goes out of town on a secret errand, Wolf sneaks out to the forest for an afternoon and is chopped up into bits by some unknown creature. Soon after, Callie, the healer’s apprentice arrives with more distressing news: the children of the lords and ladies in the high-walled “Shining City” are contracting mysterious illnesses—and the healer is also away on unnamed business. Fearing a resurgence of the plague that nearly destroyed their country years ago, Oscar and Callie realize they cannot wait for their masters to return. They must try to find a cure for illnesses—and hope that whatever monster killed Wolf does not return.
I loved this book! I found it much more engaging than Breadcrumbs. The story develops slowly, with a lot of time devoted to world-building. But by interspersing a few dramatic and intriguing events early on, Ursu kept me eagerly turning pages, trying to puzzle out the mystery as I became immersed in the fantasy world. As the title suggests, it is inspired by Pinocchio, but only loosely; the connection isn’t even clear until over 200 pages into the story. More significant is Oscar’s struggle to fit in with the “normal” people around him, his gradual discovery of his own abilities and self-worth, and his growing friendship with Callie. All of the characters—good and not-so-good—are carefully crafted with strengths and short-comings. And the ominous evil that threatens them is both terrifying and misunderstood. A wonderfully complex and engaging fantasy—I highly recommend it!
If you liked The Real Boy, you might like Charmed Life by Dianna Wynne Jones, Dreamwood by Heather Mackey or The Secret of Platform 13 by Eva Ibbotson.
COSMIC by Frank Cottrell Boyce
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Liam has always looked old for his age–really, really old for his age. In fact, as the only six-foot-tall, bearded twelve year old he knows, he is frequently mistaken for a parent or a teacher. At first, Liam finds his grow-up appearance to be an annoyance–a reason for kids to make fun of him–and mostly spends time on his own, playing World of Warcraft. But when his parents encourage him to go out and make friends, he discovers that looking grown up can have its advantages. Which is how he has the opportunity to ride the terrifying, gravity defying Cosmic at the amusement park. And how he and Florida, posing as father and daughter, almost get to test drive a Porche at the car dealership (until Liam’s dad catches them at the last minute). But when Liam finds out about a contest to win the ultimate trip to a new amusement park in China, he becomes Florida’s “dad” once again as they embark on the adventure of a lifetime. And that is how they end up lost in outer space, and this time, Liam’s dad is nowhere near enough to save the day.
This science fiction novel is funny and poignant, in some ways reminiscent of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Throughout his “dadly” adventures, Liam learns a lot about what it means to be a parent vs. a kid, and ultimately discovers that even the greatest adventures are not worth as much as his own dad’s love. I highly recommend this one to middle grade and teen readers. It would also make a great family read aloud to older elementary age kids, as parents are sure to enjoy it, as well!
Susan the Librarian 