Some Fantastic Middle Grades New To Our Shelves

A young boy named Bobby has the worst teacher. She's loud, she yells, and if you throw paper airplanes, she won't allow you to enjoy recess. She is a monster! Luckily, Bobby can go to his favorite spot in the park on weekends to play. Until one day... he finds his teacher there! Over the course of one day, Bobby learns that monsters are not always what they seem.

Each page is filled with "monstrous" details that will have kids reading the story again and again. Peter Brown takes a universal and timeless theme, and adds his own humorous spin to create another winner of a picture book.

Quinny has a lot to say. Hopper gets to the point.

Quinny has one speed: very, very, extra-very fast. Hopper proceeds with caution.

Quinny has big ideas. Hopper has smart solutions.

Quinny and Hopper couldn't be more different. They are an unstoppable team.

But when summer ends, things suddenly aren't the same. Can Quinny and Hopper stick together in the face of stylish bullies, a killer chicken, and the brand-new Third Grade Rules-especially the one that says they aren't allowed to be friends anymore?

Skating in circles doesn't exactly make you Miss Popular...or does it?
Dorothy Moore has never been outgoing. In fact, she's downright shy. So when she and her sister Sam are forced to move in with their pink-haired, hearse-driving grandma, Dorothy's not sure she can survive as the new kid in school. When she reaches into her gym bag to find her sweats replaced with a sequined spandex body suit courtesy of Grandma Sally, she's sure she won't.
Dorothy just wants to fit in at school, and learning how to skate from Grandma Sally seems like the wrong way to go. But meeting new friends Jade and Gigi—who save Dorothy from super embarrassment—makes all the difference, and Dorothy finds that skating in circles might be the path to happiness and adventure.
- See more at: http://www.sourcebooks.com/store/dorothys-derby-chronicles-rise-of-the-undead-redhead.html#sthash.owyOdeO8.dpuf

Skating in circles doesn't exactly make you Miss Popular...or does it?
Dorothy Moore has never been outgoing. In fact, she's downright shy. So when she and her sister Sam are forced to move in with their pink-haired, hearse-driving grandma, Dorothy's not sure she can survive as the new kid in school. When she reaches into her gym bag to find her sweats replaced with a sequined spandex body suit courtesy of Grandma Sally, she's sure she won't.
Dorothy just wants to fit in at school, and learning how to skate from Grandma Sally seems like the wrong way to go. But meeting new friends Jade and Gigi—who save Dorothy from super embarrassment—makes all the difference, and Dorothy finds that skating in circles might be the path to happiness and adventure.
- See more at: http://www.sourcebooks.com/store/dorothys-derby-chronicles-rise-of-the-undead-redhead.html#sthash.owyOdeO8.dpuf

Becky Thatcher has her side of the story to tell--and it's a whopper--in this creative spin on Mark Twain's beloved The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, complete with illustrations.

Tom Sawyer's and Huckleberry Finn's adventures are legendary, but what about the story you haven't heard? In 1860, eleven-year-old Becky Thatcher is the new girl in town, determined to have adventures like she promised her brother Jon before he died. With her Mama frozen in grief and her Daddy busy as town judge, Becky spends much of her time on her own, getting into mischief. Before long, she joins the boys at school in a bet to steal from the Widow Douglas, and Becky convinces her new best friend, Amy Lawrence, to join her.

But the theft doesn't go as planned, and Widow Douglas ends up being unfairly accused of grave robbing as a result. So Becky concocts a plan to clear the Widow's name. If she pulls it off, she might just get her Mama to notice her again, as well as fulfill her promise to Jon in a most unexpected way. That is, if that tattletale Tom Sawyer will quit following her around.

Brand-new stories about all your favorite Monster High characters come to life in this gorgeous full-color graphic novel.

xxx 

Skating in circles doesn't exactly make you Miss Popular...or does it?
Dorothy Moore has never been outgoing. In fact, she's downright shy. So when she and her sister Sam are forced to move in with their pink-haired, hearse-driving grandma, Dorothy's not sure she can survive as the new kid in school. When she reaches into her gym bag to find her sweats replaced with a sequined spandex body suit courtesy of Grandma Sally, she's sure she won't.
Dorothy just wants to fit in at school, and learning how to skate from Grandma Sally seems like the wrong way to go. But meeting new friends Jade and Gigi—who save Dorothy from super embarrassment—makes all the difference, and Dorothy finds that skating in circles might be the path to happiness and adventure.
- See more at: http://www.sourcebooks.com/store/dorothys-derby-chronicles-rise-of-the-undead-redhead.html#sthash.owyOdeO8.dpuf

"Heart, brains, and courage find a home in a steampunk fantasy worthy of a nod from Baum." ~Kirkus Reviews

 

Fans of The City of Ember will love The Mark of the Dragonfly, an adventure story set in a magical world that is both exciting and dangerous.

Piper has never seen the Mark of the Dragonfly until she finds the girl amid the wreckage of a caravan in the Meteor Fields.

The girl doesn't remember a thing about her life, but the intricate tattoo on her arm is proof that she's from the Dragonfly Territories and that she's protected by the king. Which means a reward for Piper if she can get the girl home.

The one sure way to the Territories is the 401, a great old beauty of a train. But a ticket costs more coin than Piper could make in a year. And stowing away is a difficult prospect--everyone knows that getting past the peculiar green-eyed boy who stands guard is nearly impossible.

Life for Piper just turned dangerous. A little bit magical. And very exciting, if she can manage to survive the journey.

Read an excerpt from the book and lots of fun other things HERE.

More Great Reads Middle Grade Readers

It's been two months since Lizzie's daddy disappeared due to the awful Depression. Lizzie's praying he'll return to Bittersweet, Alabama, for her birthday. It won't feel special without him, what with Lizzie's Mama being so sad she won't even talk and the bank nipping at their heels for a mortgage payment.

Daddy expected her to be the best at any cost. But Lizzie claims "that cost me my top grades and my best friend. It's dumped 'em both square into Erin's hands. She's gone batty if she thinks she's gonna get me carted off to the orphanage."

While Lizzie waits, she gets comfort writing in her journal. As time passes, she can only picture her daddy's face by opening her locket. If others can get by, why did her daddy leave? If he doesn't return, how can she overcome the same obstacles that drove him away?

Rosanne Parry author of Heart of a Shepherd, shines a light on Native American tribes of the Pacific Northwest in the 1920s, a time of critical cultural upheaval.
  
Pearl has always dreamed of hunting whales, just like her father. Of taking to the sea in their eight-man canoe, standing at the prow with a harpoon, and waiting for a whale to lift its barnacle-speckled head as it offers its life for the life of the tribe. But now that can never be. Pearl's father was lost on the last hunt, and the whales hide from the great steam-powered ships carrying harpoon cannons, which harvest not one but dozens of whales from the ocean. With the whales gone, Pearl's people, the Makah, struggle to survive as Pearl searches for ways to preserve their stories and skills.

Great Things Come From Things That Are Difficult

Liesl and Po

Liesl lives in a tiny attic bedroom, locked away by her cruel stepmother. Her only friends are the shadows and the mice—until one night a ghost appears from the darkness. It is Po, who comes from the Other Side. Both Liesl and Po are lonely, but together they are less alone.

That same night, an alchemist's apprentice, Will, bungles an important delivery. He accidentally switches a box containing the most powerful magic in the world with one containing something decidedly less remarkable
Will's mistake has tremendous consequences for Liesl and Po, and it draws the three of them together on an extraordinary journey.

From New York Times bestselling author Lauren Oliver comes a luminous and magnificent novel that glows with rare magic, ghostly wonders, and a true friendship that lights even the darkest of places.

Great Books for Middle Grade Readers

Bamboo People
This coming-of-age story is narrated by two 14-year-old boys on opposing sides of the conflict between the Burmese government and the Karenni, one of the many ethnic minorities in Burma. When the boys' paths intersect, they are forced to make difficult decisions.




Bink and Gollie
Meet Bink and Gollie, two precocious little girls — one tiny, one tall, and both utterly irrepressible. Setting out from their super-deluxe tree house and powered by plenty of peanut butter (for Bink) and pancakes (for Gollie), they share three comical adventures involving painfully bright socks, an impromptu trek to the Andes, and a most unlikely marvelous companion. No matter where their roller skates take them, at the end of the day they will always be the very best of friends. Full of quick-witted repartee, this brainchild of Newbery Medalist Kate DiCamillo and award-winning author Alison McGhee is a hilarious ode to exuberance and camaraderie, imagination and adventure, brought to life through the delightfully kinetic images of Tony Fucile.

Countdown
It's 1962, and it seems everyone is living in fear. Twelve-year-old Franny Chapman lives with her family in Washington, D.C., during the days surrounding the Cuban Missile Crisis. For Franny, as for all Americans, it's going to be a formative year.



Finding Family
Delana has never known her parents. Raised by her Aunt Tilley and a reclusive grandfather, Delana has led a sheltered existence, nurtured on her aunt's wild family histories. But when Aunt Tilley dies, Delana confronts her pent-up curiosities and embarks on a quest to unravel her aunt's fictions and draw out her mysterious grandfather. In searching for her true history, Delana finds herself, and a home in the one place she never thought to look. This moving fictional story is imagined from real antique photographs that author Tonya Bolden has collected. Bolden's well-researched historical details about 1905 Charleston, West Virginia lend authenticity, while spare, lyrical writing make this young girl's coming-of-age resonate.

Keeper
To ten-year-old Keeper, this moon is her chance to fix all that has gone wrong...and so much has gone wrong. But she knows who can make things right again: Meggie Marie, her mermaid mother who swam away when Keeper was just three. A blue moon calls the mermaids to gather at the sandbar, and that's exactly where she is headed -- in a small boat, in the middle of the night, with only her dog, BD (Best Dog), and a seagull named Captain.

When the riptide pulls at the boat, tugging her away from the shore and deep into the rough waters of the Gulf of Mexico, panic sets in, and the fairy tales that lured her out there go tumbling into the waves. Maybe the blue moon isn't magic and maybe the sandbar won't sparkle with mermaids and maybe -- Oh, no..."Maybe" is just too difficult to bear. Kathi Appelt follows up to her New York Times bestseller, The Underneath, with a tale that will pull right at your very core -- stronger than moon currents -- capturing the crash and echo of the waves and the dark magic of the ocean.

Touch Blue

Touch Blue and your wish will come true.

"Why take chances?" says eleven-year-old Tess Brooks. "Especially when it’s so easy to let the universe know what you want by touching blue or turning around three times or crossing your fingers."

But Tess is coming to know that it’s not always that simple.

The state of Maine plans to shut down her island’s schoolhouse, which would force Tess’s family to move to the mainland--and Tess to leave the only home she has ever known. Fortunately, the islanders have a plan too: increase the numbers of students by having several families take in foster children. So now Tess and her family are taking a chance on Aaron, a thirteen-year-old trumpet player who has been bounced from home to home. And Tess needs a plan of her own--and all the luck she can muster. Will Tess’s wish come true or will her luck run out?

Newbery Honor author Cynthia Lord offers a warm-hearted, humorous, and thoughtful look at what it means to belong--and how lucky we feel when we do. Touch Blue, sure as certain, will touch your heart.