Category Archives: Middle Grade

Middle Grade is not typically an age group most associate with good historical fiction. But the truth is, there is a sea of irresistibly satisfying stories that tip their waters into history, flooding the Middle Grade market — the kind that comfortably flows into hands of adult fiction lovers.

As historical fiction just happens to be my favorite genre, I thought I’d use this Middle Grade Monday as an opportunity to shake the dust off some the Middle Grade misconceptions and share with you a few fantastic titles in children’s literature that dare to venture into human history:

ONE CRAZY SUMMER, by Rita Williams-Garcia

“In the summer of 1968, after travelling from Brooklyn to Oakland, California, to spend a month with the mother they barely know, eleven-year-old Delphine and her two younger sisters arrive to a cold welcome as they discover that their mother, a dedicated poet and printer, is resentful of the intrusion of their visit and wants them to attend a nearby Black Panther summer camp.

In a humorous and breakout book by Williams-Garcia, the Penderwicks meet the Black Panthers.”

THE EVOLUTION OF CALPURNIA TATE by Jacqueline Kelly

“Calpurnia Virginia Tate is eleven years old in 1899 when she wonders why the yellow grasshoppers in her Texas backyard are so much bigger than the green ones.With a little help from her notoriously cantankerous grandfather, an avid naturalist, she figures out that the green grasshoppers are easier to see against the yellow grass, so they are eaten before they can get any larger. As Callie explores the natural world around her, she develops a close relationship with her grandfather, navigates the dangers of living with six brothers, and comes up against just what it means to be a girl at the turn of the century.

Debut author Jacqueline Kelly deftly brings Callie and her family to life, capturing a year of growing up with unique sensitivity and a wry wit.“

INSIDE OUT AND BACK AGAIN by Thanhha Lai

“No one would believe me but at times I would choose wartime in Saigon over peacetime in Alabama.

For all the ten years of her life, Ha has only known Saigon: the thrills of its markets, the joy of its traditions, the warmth of her friends close by . . . and the beauty of her very own papaya tree.

But now the Vietnam War has reached her home. Ha and her family are forced to flee as Saigon falls, and they board a ship headed toward hope. In America, Ha discovers the foreign world of Alabama: the coldness of its strangers, the dullness of its food, the strange shape of its landscape . . . and the strength of her very own family.

This is the moving story of one girl’s year of change, dreams, grief, and healing as she journeys from one country to another, one life to the next.”

THE CASE OF THE DEADLY DESPERADOS by Caroline Lawrence 

“Introducing P.K. Pinkerton, Master of Disguise .

When twelve-year-old P.K. (Pinky) Pinkerton’s foster parents are murdered by Whittlin’ Walt and his gang of ruthless desperados, Pinky goes on the run. He’s forced into hiding with Ma’s priceless last possession: the deed to a large amount of land and silver mines in the Nevada Mountains. But relying on disguises will only keep Pinky hidden for so long, and the desperados are quickly closing in . . . 

Narrated by the incredibly lively Pinky, this thrilling high-speed chase through the Wild West will keep readers on the edge of their seats until the very last page.”

THREE TIMES LUCKY, by Sheila Turnage

“A hilarious Southern debut with the kind of characters you meet once in a lifetime

Rising sixth grader Miss Moses LoBeau lives in the small town of Tupelo Landing, NC, where everyone’s business is fair game and no secret is sacred. She washed ashore in a hurricane eleven years ago, and she’s been making waves ever since. Although Mo hopes someday to find her “upstream mother,” she’s found a home with the Colonel–a café owner with a forgotten past of his own–and Miss Lana, the fabulous café hostess. She will protect those she loves with every bit of her strong will and tough attitude. So when a lawman comes to town asking about a murder, Mo and her best friend, Dale Earnhardt Johnson III, set out to uncover the truth in hopes of saving the only family Mo has ever known.

Full of wisdom, humor, and grit, this timeless yarn will melt the heart of even the sternest Yankee.”

NO MOON, by Irene N. Watts

“A story of reliance and resilience.Did you call out to us, Johnny, before your small body was dragged down under the water? Why didn’t we hear you? I am sorry! I’ll never forget.

Louisa Gardener is the fourteen-year-old nursemaid to the young daughters of a wealthy, titled family living in London, England, in 1912.

Despite the bullying Nanny Mackintosh, for whom she is an extra pair of hands, she loves her work and her young charges. Then everything changes. The family decides to sail to New York aboard the Titanic. An accident to the children’s nanny, only days prior to the sailing, means that Louisa must go in her stead. She cannot refuse, although she dreads even the mention of the ocean. Memories she has suppressed, except in nightmares, come crowding back.

When Louisa was five and her sister seven years old, their two-year-old brother died on an outing to the seaside. Since that time, Louisa has had a fear of the ocean. She blames herself for the accident, though she has been told it wasn’t her fault.

If Louisa refuses to go on the voyage, she will be dismissed, and she will never get beyond the working-class life she has escaped from.

How Louisa learns self-reliance, overcomes her fears, and goes beyond what is expected of a girl makes No Moon an unforgettable story.”

A BOY CALLED DICKENS, by Deborah Hopkinson

“For years Dickens kept the story of his own childhood a secret. Yet it is a story worth telling. For it helps us remember how much we all might lose when a child’s dreams don’t come true . . . As a child, Dickens was forced to live on his own and work long hours in a rat-infested blacking factory. Readers will be drawn into the winding streets of London, where they will learn how Dickens got the inspiration for many of his characters. The 200th anniversary of Dickens’s birth was February 7, 2012, and this tale of his little-known boyhood is the perfect way to introduce kids to the great author. This Booklist Best Children’s Book of the Year is historical fiction at its ingenious best.”

Here’s the dealio (official synopsis):

Haley and Dodger don’t have much in common. Haley lives in Greenhaven, Connecticut; Dodger lives in Port Salmon, Washington. Haley has a family who loves and supports her; Dodger can’t seem to ever get his dad’s approval. Haley is well adjusted and passionate; Dodger hears strange voices in his head. But they both want something: a new map, a path away from home—or, perhaps, a path toward it.

Of course, this was all before they heard about the missing people, the untraceable radio signals, the unexplained phenomena. Before they both became the first recipients of a summer research grant from a certain mysterious foundation. Before they discovered that their fledgling theories about extraterrestrial life were all too accurate.

Now Haley and Dodger are the only ones who can figure out what is happening in towns across America, who can give voice to the people whispering “alien abduction.” At the very least, they’re both going to have the most eventful summer vacations of anyone they know.

I love fantasy. I love science fiction. I love aliens, UFOs, and uncovering government conspiracies. So how could I not love Kevin Emerson’s newest book, The Fellowship for Alien Detection?

I have to say, it’s hard to find a middle grade book that doesn’t stereotype kids or undermine their sense of complexity, irony, and intelligence. Few authors (especially in the science fiction genre) can pull off the perfect balance between tension, suspense, and well-developed, likeable characters. You either get a fantastic story written poorly or excellent writing with poor story-telling. The beauty of Kevin’s book is its ability to walk the line, create tension, prolong suspense, and ultimately satisfy with rich characters and an enveloping story.

Here’s what I loved:

• It is a science fiction book that avoids the dystopian/fantasy world (which is a genre currently collapsing bookshelves around the world).
• It’s suspenseful and exciting – you want to keep reading.
• It’s believable (despite its unbelievability – you know what I mean, right?!)
• It’s well plotted: the journey follows two distinct and engaging characters whose stories eventually collide into one epic sci-fi adventure that is as surprising as it is satisfying.
• The clues are well-placed.
• It’s about Aliens (enough said!)

Honestly, I was surprised I liked the book as much as I did. A well-paced adventure that will keep readers guessing to the end! Kevin Emerson’s book will turn even the most hard-nose skeptic into a believer: Aliens do, in fact, exist!

For all my fellow Middle Grade enthusiasts, I found a website I’m just dying to share with you! It was created by a group of women who just happen to be both writers, readers, and lovers of Middle Grade, and whose goal (in their own words)  is to “bring awareness, enthusiasm and celebration to books for 8-12 year olds, creating a *home* for anyone and everyone who loves books for this Golden Age of Reading.”

Today I thought I’d kick things off with a re-blog from these creative women in hopes that it will help spark the fuel of excitement around the growing world of Middle Grade.

Be sure to check-out their site, From the Mixed-Up Files . . . of Middle-Grade Authors, and continue to share your support and enthusiasm for children’s literature!

Reblogged From the Mixed-Up Files . . . of Middle-Grade Authors

It’s the month of Groundhog Day and Valentine’s Day and many new great books for middle grade readers!

  Courage Has No Color, The True Story of the Triple Nickles by Tanya Lee Stone

They became America’s first black paratroopers. Why was their story never told? Sibert Medalist Tanya Lee Stone reveals the history of the Triple Nickles during World War II.

World War II is raging, and thousands of American soldiers are fighting overseas against the injustices brought on by Hitler. Back on the home front, the injustice of discrimination against African Americans plays out as much on Main Street as in the military. Enlisted black men are segregated from white soldiers and regularly relegated to service duties. At Fort Benning, Georgia, First Sergeant Walter Morris’s men serve as guards at The Parachute School, while the white soldiers prepare to be paratroopers. Morris knows that for his men to be treated like soldiers, they have to train and act like them, but would the military elite and politicians recognize the potential of these men as well as their passion for serving their country? Tanya Lee Stone examines the role of African Americans in the military through the history of the Triple Nickles, America’s first black paratroopers, who fought in a little-known attack on the American West by the Japanese. The 555th Parachute Infantry Battalion, in the words of Morris, “proved that the color of a man had nothing to do with his ability.”

 Beholding Bee by Kimberly Newton Fusco 

Bee is an orphan who lives with a carnival and sleeps in the back of a tractor trailer. Every day she endures taunts for the birthmark on her face—though her beloved Pauline, the only person who has ever cared for her, tells her it is a precious diamond. When Pauline is sent to work for another carnival, Bee is lost.

Then a scruffy dog shows up, as unwanted as she, and Bee realizes that she must find a home for them both. She runs off to a house with gingerbread trim that reminds her of frosting. There two mysterious women, Mrs. Swift and Mrs. Potter, take her in. They clothe her, though their clothes are strangely out of date. They feed her, though there is nothing in their house to eat. They help her go to school, though they won’t enter the building themselves. And, strangely, only Bee seems able to see them.

Whoever these women are, they matter. They matter to Bee. And they are helping Bee realize that she, too, matters to the world–if only she will let herself be a part of it.

This tender novel beautifully captures the pain of isolation, the healing power of community, and the strength of the human spirit.

   The Whole Story of a Half Girl by Veera Hiranandani

What greater praise than to be compared to Judy Blume!–”Each [Blume and Hiranandani] excels in charting the fluctuating discomfort zones of adolescent identity with affectionate humor.”–Kirkus Reviews, Starred

After her father loses his job, Sonia Nadhamuni, half Indian and half Jewish American, finds herself yanked out of private school and thrown into the unfamiliar world of public education. For the first time, Sonia’s mixed heritage makes her classmates ask questions—questions Sonia doesn’t always know how to answer—as she navigates between a group of popular girls who want her to try out for the cheerleading squad and other students who aren’t part of the “in” crowd.

At the same time that Sonia is trying to make new friends, she’s dealing with what it means to have an out-of-work parent—it’s hard for her family to adjust to their changed circumstances. And then, one day, Sonia’s father goes missing. Now Sonia wonders if she ever really knew him. As she begins to look for answers, she must decide what really matters and who her true friends are—and whether her two halves, no matter how different, can make her a whole.

Hattie Ever After by Kirby Larson and Kirsten Potter

After leaving Uncle Chester’s homestead claim, orphan Hattie Brooks throws a lasso around a new dream, even bigger than the Montana sky. She wants to be a reporter, knowing full well that a few pieces published in the Arlington News will not suffice. Real reporters must go to Grand Places, and do Grand Things, like Hattie’s hero Nellie Bly. Another girl might be stymied by this, but Hattie has faced down a hungry wolf and stood up to a mob of angry men. Nothing can squash her desire to write for a big city newspaper. A letter and love token from Uncle Chester’s old flame in San Francisco fuels that desire and Hattie jumps at the opportunity to get there by working as a seamstress for a traveling acting troupe. This could be her chance to solve the mystery of her “scoundrel” uncle and, in the process, help her learn more about herself. But Hattie must first tell Charlie that she will not join him in Seattle. Even though her heart approves of Charlie’s plan for their marriage, her mind fears that saying yes to him would be saying no to herself. Hattie holds her own in the big city, literally pitching her way to a byline, and a career that could be even bigger than Nellie Bly’s. But can making headlines compensate for the pain of betrayal and lost love? Hattie must dig deep to find her own true place in the world. Kirby Larson once again creates a lovingly written novel about the remarkable and resilient young orphan, Hattie Inez Brooks.

The Apothecary by Maile Meloy

It’s 1952 and the Scott family has just moved from Los Angeles to London. Here, fourteen-year-old Janie meets a mysterious apothecary and his son, Benjamin Burrows – a fascinating boy who’s not afraid to stand up to authority and dreams of becoming a spy. When Benjamin’s father is kidnapped, Janie and Benjamin must uncover the secrets of the apothecary’s sacred book, the Pharmacopoeia, in order to find him, all while keeping it out of the hands of their enemies – Russian spies in possession of nuclear weapons. Discovering and testing potions they never believed could exist, Janie and Benjamin embark on a dangerous race to save the apothecary and prevent impending disaster.

Together with Ian Schoenherr’s breathtaking illustrations, this is a truly stunning package from cover to cover.

The Fourth Stall Part III by Chris Rylander

Their business is finished, and Mac’s and Vince’s lives have become something they have never been before: simple. None of the fortune or the glory, none of the risk or the threat of juvenile prison. There’s even a new business that has stepped in to take their place (and take the heat off Mac and Vince for once). Things couldn’t be better.

But that was before things at their middle school started to go haywire. Before they found out that there’s a new crime boss at a school another town over trying to consolidate power. And before their old nemesis, Staples, came back to town begging for help after his stint in the clink. Just when Mac and Vince thought they were out, the business pulls them back in. But this time, will they be able to escape with their lives and their permanent records intact? Traitor in the Shipyard: A Caroline Mystery (American Girl Mysteries) by Kathleen Ernst and Sergio Geovine

The Quilt Walk by Sandra Dallas

Based on a real-life incident in Colorado history, this spellbinding story is by the “New York Times”-bestselling author of the adult titles “The Bride’s House” and “Prayers for Sale.”

AMULET BOOKS WINS NEW MIDDLE GRADE BOOK SERIES FROM BESTSELLING AUTHOR JON SCIESZKA IN A HEATED 6-WAY AUCTION

(Reblogged from Mishaps and Adventures)

Senior Vice President/Publisher Susan Van Metre and Editorial Director

Charles Kochman at ABRAMS Amulet Books imprint beat out five other children’s publishers for the first six books in a new illustrated middle grade series by bestselling author Jon Scieszka, the nation’s first National Ambassador of Children’s literature.

Titled Frank Einstein, Kid Scientist and illustrated by Brian Biggs, the series is about a budding scientist who battles an evil genius with the help of two well-meaning but imperfect robots that he invents. The first book will appear in fall 2014. Scieszka’s longtime agent Steven Malk at Writers House orchestrated the deal. Amulet Books plans an extensive marketing and publicity campaign for the launch.

Jon Scieszka always wanted to be a kid science genius. The closest he got was winning a green “Participant” ribbon at his fourth grade Science Fair and dressing up one Halloween as a bloody Albert Einstein. Scieszka studied pre-med in college. He taught elementary school, including second grade science, in New York City for ten years.

For over twenty years, he has been a children’s book writer, and is the author of The True Story of 3 Little Pigs!, The Stinky Cheese Man, the Time Warp Trio series, Math Curse, Science Verse, the Trucktown series, the Spaceheadz series, and more. In 2008, Scieszka was named the nation’s first National Ambassador of Young People’s Literature by the Library of Congress and the Children’s Book Council. He is also the founder of the web-based literacy initiative for boys called Guys Read, and is the editor of the Guys Read Library of Great Reading series.

Founded by Harry N. Abrams in 1949, ABRAMS was the first company in the United States to specialize in the creation and distribution of art and illustrated books. Now a subsidiary of La Martinière Groupe, the company publishes visually stunning illustrated books in the areas of art, photography, cooking, interior and garden design, craft, architecture, entertainment, fashion, sports, pop culture, as well as children’s books and general interest titles.

The company’s imprints include Abrams, Abrams ComicArts, Abrams Image, Abrams Books for Young Readers, Amulet Books, Abrams Appleseed, Stewart, Tabori & Chang, and STC Craft/Melanie Falick Books. Abrams also distributes books for The Vendome Press, Victoria & Albert Museum, Tate, Royal Academy of Arts, Booth-Clibborn Editions, Five Continents and others.

http://www.abramsbooks.com