30 Middle Grade Books About Books For Readers 8-12

Today’s post is sponsored by Jenn Naughton and The Bookish Society!

Every parent wants to raise a reader but a staggering number of adults haven’t read a book since graduating from high school. Too often reading in school is conflated with books written by dead dudes, waxing on about topics kids find irrelevant and (ahem), boring. What’s to love about reading if it doesn’t excite and engage?

At The Bookish Society we aim to change the trajectory of our juvenile and young adult readers. We know that reading can and should be a lifelong passion. As such, we do what we know works to raise readers and not just English class students — provide irresistible books that kids actually want to read, along with a community of readers to support, encourage and engage one another. Whether it’s digging into topics and issues kids want to know more about, as we do in in our Women’s Studies Class, or treating the middle schooler’s obsession with graphic novels as a worthy passion in our Tween Graphic Novel Round Table, or enjoying getting lost in another world in the plethora of middle grade fantasy in our Advanced Kids Round Table, there’s something at The Bookish Society that will appeal to every kid.

Let us be part of your child’s journey to becoming a reader for life.



Publication Date March 2nd 2021 by Yellow Jacket
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This clever, fast-paced adventure is a mix of the Story Thieves series and Ready Player One!

Oliver Nelson has a terrible secret-he’s a thief.

But he only steals books from the Garden Grove Library that are old, musty, brittle, or incomplete, like his favorite book, The Timekeeper’s Children. No one reads anymore, and surely no one will miss them, right? Wrong.

The Pribbles are famous inventors of the most popular toy in the world, alternate-reality goggles. They are also book collectors who are searching for The Timekeeper’s Children, so the Pribbles hatch a plan. They invite Oliver, the last person to have checked it out, to their mansion and use special software from their goggles to steal the last remaining copy of the book – from inside Oliver’s mind.

Now, Oliver is thrust into the middle of the story and must help the main characters steal pieces scattered around the fictional world of Dulum to build a magical clock that can turn back time before the evil sorcerer Sigil takes over. They’ll encounter hideous giants, bloodsucking bats, vicious eels, a Nasty Rodent Eater, a gang of wicked children, and a strange, dark figure that follows them from chapter to chapter, all the while with the Pribbles in pursuit.

Can Oliver save Dulum before Sigil destroys everything? And will he finish The Timekeeper’s Children before the Pribbles steal it from his mind?





Publication Date September 17th 2019 by Yearling
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Side characters can be heroes too in this charming and fast-paced adventure that is The Land of Stories meets The Phantom Tollbooth!

Indira has been a character-in-waiting her entire life. So she can’t believe her luck when she’s finally chosen to travel to Fable and study at the renowned Protagonist Preparatory, a school known for producing the best heroes.

But Indira’s dreams of achieving hero status don’t exactly go as planned. A failed audition lands her in the school’s side-character track, and her best efforts to prove advisors – famous characters like Alice from Wonderland and Professor Darcy – wrong are constantly sabotaged. Indira is starting to feel like an evil antagonist might be to blame.

As the danger spreads, Indira discovers all of Fable is under siege. With her friends Maxi and Phoenix by her side, she pieces together clues that will reveal who is behind the dark magic threatening them all. But the more Indira uncovers, the more doubt she feels about her place in this world of stories. After all, can a side character really save the day?





Publication Date August 1st 2017 by Random House Books for Young Readers
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The beloved New York Times bestselling author of the modern classic Frindle celebrates books and the joy of reading with a new school story to love!

Sixth grader Alec can’t put a good book down.

So when Principal Vance lays down the law — pay attention in class, or else — Alec takes action. He can’t lose all his reading time, so he starts a club. A club he intends to be the only member of. After all, reading isn’t a team sport, and no one would want to join something called the Losers Club, right? But as more and more kids find their way to Alec’s club — including his ex-friend turned bully and the girl Alec is maybe starting to like — Alec notices something. Real life might be messier than his favorite books, but it’s just as interesting.

With The Losers Club, Andrew Clements brings us a new school story that’s a love letter to books and to reading and that reminds us that sometimes the best stories are the ones that happen off the page — our own!





Publication Date September 18th 2018 by Random House Books for Young Readers
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Celebrate the freedom to read with this timely, empowering middle-grade debut in the spirit of The View From Saturday or Frindle.

June Harper is a good kid. She follows the rules, plays flute in band, and spends her spare time reading. Nobody would ever call her a rebel…until her parents take strict parenting to a whole new level.

It starts with one book deemed “inappropriate” by June’s parents. What follows is a massive book ban at Dogwood Middle School, and suddenly everything June loves – the librarian, books, an author visit – is gone. All seems hopeless. Then June discovers a Little Free Library on her walk to school. When her classmates realize she has access to contraband, she (secretly) becomes the most popular girl in school. A risky reading movement begins at Dogwood, which could destroy June – or gain enough power to protect the one thing she cares most about: the freedom to read!

Equal parts fun and empowering, this novel explores censorship, freedom of speech, and activism. For any kid who doesn’t believe one person can effect change…and for all the kids who already know they can!





Publication Date April 5th 2022 by Aladdin
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Storybook characters collide in this first book in a new trilogy of twisted fairy tales from New York Times bestselling author James Riley, set in the world of his popular Half Upon A Time series — perfect for fans of Fablehaven and Chris Colfer’s A Tale of Magic series!

Five and a half feet might seem pretty tall for a twelve-year-old, but it’s not when your parents are giants. Lena has kept the fact that she’s a tiny giant secret, using magic to grow when out in the giant village. But hiding who she is has always felt wrong, even though she knows the other giants might not accept her. Fortunately, Lena has friends down in the Cursed City who understand that looking different doesn’t make her less of a giant.

Someone who knows not to judge by appearances is Jin, a young genie currently serving one thousand and thirty-eight years of genie training that requires him to fulfill the wish of whoever holds his magical ring. In Jin’s case, it’s the power-hungry Golden King. At least the king only has two wishes left, one of which is for Jin to go to the Cursed City and capture its protector, the Last Knight — one of Lena’s closest friends.

What Lena and Jin don’t know is how close the Golden King’s plans are to coming together, between his dark magic and his horrible Faceless knights. If Jin does find the Last Knight and bring him to the Golden King, why, that could doom the entire fairy-tale world.

…This sounds like it’ll end badly, doesn’t it?





Publication Date September 12th 2017 by Candlewick
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In luminous paintings and arresting poems, two of children’s literature’s top African-American scholars track Arturo Schomburg’s quest to correct history.

Where is our historian to give us our side? Arturo asked.

Amid the scholars, poets, authors, and artists of the Harlem Renaissance stood an Afro–Puerto Rican named Arturo Schomburg. This law clerk’s life’s passion was to collect books, letters, music, and art from Africa and the African diaspora and bring to light the achievements of people of African descent through the ages. When Schomburg’s collection became so big it began to overflow his house (and his wife threatened to mutiny), he turned to the New York Public Library, where he created and curated a collection that was the cornerstone of a new Negro Division. A century later, his groundbreaking collection, known as the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, has become a beacon to scholars all over the world.





Publication Date March 10th 2020 by Algonquin Young Readers
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From the creators of the award-winning Three-Ring Rascals and 43 Old Cemetery Road series!

Is the sweet town of Appleton ripe for scandal?

Consider the facts:
● Appleton Elementary School has a new librarian named Rita B. Danjerous. (Say it fast.)
● Principal Noah Memree barely remembers hiring her.
● Ten-year-old Reid Durr is staying up way too late reading a book from Ms. Danjerous’s controversial “green dot” collection.
● The new school board president has mandated a student dress code that includes white gloves and bow ties available only at her shop.

Sound strange? Fret not. Appleton’s fifth-grade sleuths are following the money, embracing the punny, and determined to the get to the funniest, most rotten core of their town’s juiciest scandal. Don’t miss this seedy saga!





Publication Date April 30th 2019 by Imprint
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Named a best book of the year by Kirkus Reviews, The Library of Ever is an instant classic for middle grade readers and booklovers everywhere—an adventure across time and space, as a young girl becomes a warrior for the forces of knowledge.

With her parents off traveling the globe, Lenora is bored, bored, bored—until she discovers a secret doorway into the ultimate library. Mazelike and reality-bending, the library contains all the universe’s wisdom. Every book ever written, and every fact ever known, can be found within its walls. And Lenora becomes its newly appointed Fourth Assistant Apprentice Librarian.

She rockets to the stars, travels to a future filled with robots, and faces down a dark nothingness that wants to destroy all knowledge. To save the library, Lenora will have to test her limits and uncover secrets hidden among its shelves.





Publication Date September 14th 2021 by Pajama Press
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He’s known as the class troublemaker. She’s known as the bookworm. But when every note they send is anonymous, identity is suddenly what they make it.

Between her father’s posting overseas and her best friend Sienna’s move to the other side of the country, seventh grade is looking lonely for Jane MacDonald. But Sienna has left her with one last trick: a hidden message in a library book ― the perfect plot to start a secret club and find Jane a new book-loving friend.

Tyson Flamand has problems of his own. Since the fourth grade he’s had a reputation as a bad kid, and there’s no point fighting it when teachers always think the worst. So when he finds an anonymous note in the library looking for a nerdy new friend, he knows he’s the last person in the world it could be meant for. But something makes him answer it anyway, and Tyson finds himself pulled into a secret book club where being hidden may be the first step to being truly seen.

With the insight of a veteran middle-school teacher, Colleen Nelson, author of the award-winning Harvey Comes Home and Sadia, weaves together two stories of identity, expectation, and the courage to challenge both. As their paths move ever closer, Jane and Tyson both discover their own self-reliance and their ability to overcome obstacles that seemed insurmountable.





Publication Date October 26, 2021 by Viking Books for Young Readers
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What does all the magic in the world matter if it can’t save the ones you love? For self-proclaimed bookstore lovers and fans of Pages & Co. comes an exploration of the way war can shape a family, in the tradition of Pax and Wolf Hollow.

It’s 1944 Sutton, NY, and Poppy’s family owns and runs, Rhyme and Reason, a magical bookshop that caters to people from all different places and time periods. Though her world is ravaged by World War II, customers hail from the past and the future, infusing the shop with a delightful mix of ideas and experiences.

Poppy dreams of someday becoming shopkeeper like her father, though her older brother, Al, is technically next in line for the job. She knows all of the rules handed down from one generation of Bookseller to the next, especially their most important one: shopkeepers must never use the magic for themselves.

But then Al’s best friend is killed in the war and her brother wants to use the magic of the shop to save him. With her father in the hospital suffering from a mysterious illness, the only one standing between Al and the bookstore is Poppy. Caught between her love for her brother and loyalty to her family, she knows her brother’s actions could have devastating consequences that reach far beyond the bookshop as an insidious, growing Darkness looms. This decision is bigger than Poppy ever dreamed, and the fate of the bookshops hangs in the balance.





Publication Date August 29th 2017 by Starscape
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In Ban This Book by Alan Gratz, a fourth grader fights back when From The Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E. L. Konigsburg is challenged by a well-meaning parent and taken off the shelves of her school library. Amy Anne is shy and soft-spoken, but don’t mess with her when it comes to her favorite book in the whole world. Amy Anne and her lieutenants wage a battle for the books that will make you laugh and pump your fists as they start a secret banned books locker library, make up ridiculous reasons to ban every single book in the library to make a point, and take a stand against censorship.

Ban This Book is a stirring defense against censorship that’s perfect for middle grade readers. Let kids know that they can make a difference in their schools, communities, and lives!





Publication Date June 25th 2013 by Random House Books for Young Readers
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Charlie and The Chocolate Factory meets A Night In The Museum in this action-packed New York Times bestseller from Chris Grabenstein, coauthor of I Funny, Treasure Hunters and other bestselling series with James Patterson!

Kyle Keeley is the class clown and a huge fan of all games — board games, word games, and particularly video games. His hero, Luigi Lemoncello, the most notorious and creative gamemaker in the world, just so happens to be the genius behind the construction of the new town library. Lucky Kyle wins a coveted spot as one of twelve kids invited for an overnight sleepover in the library, hosted by Mr. Lemoncello and riddled with lots and lots of games. But when morning comes, the doors stay locked. Kyle and the other kids must solve every clue and figure out every secret puzzle to find the hidden escape route!

Don’t miss the next puzzle-packed adventures — Mr. Lemoncello’s Library Olympics and Mr. Lemoncello’s Great Library Race!





Publication Date December 1st 2020 by Roaring Brook Press
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Real life and fairy tales collide in Never After: The Thirteenth Fairy, book one in the new middle-grade Never After series from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Descendants series, Melissa de la Cruz.

Nothing ever happens in Filomena Jefferson-Cho’s sleepy little suburban town of North Pasadena. The sun shines every day, the grass is always a perfect green, and while her progressive school swears there’s no such thing as bullying, she still feels bummed out. But one day, when Filomena is walking home on her own, something strange happens.

Filomena is being followed by Jack Stalker, one of the heroes in the Thirteenth Fairy, a series of books she loves about a brave girl and her ragtag group of friends who save their world from an evil enchantress. She must be dreaming, or still reading a book. But Jack is insistent ― he’s real, the stories are real, and Filomena must come with him at once!

Soon, Filomena is thrust into the world of evil fairies and beautiful princesses, sorcerers and slayers, where an evil queen drives her ruthless armies to destroy what is left of the Fairy tribes. To save herself and the kingdom of Westphalia, Filomena must find the truth behind the fairytales and set the world back to rights before the cycle of sleep and destruction begins once more.





Publication Date November 14th 2017 by Restless Books
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With over one million copies sold in Spanish, Mexican literary legend Juan Villoro’s The Wild Book is a fantastical homage to libraries, in which a boy is sent to live with his kooky, book-obsessed uncle in a library where books have supernatural powers and adventure lies behind every cover.

Thirteen-year-old Juan’s summer is off to a terrible start. First, his parents separate. Then, almost as bad, Juan is sent away to his strange Uncle Tito’s house for the entire break! Who wants to live with an oddball recluse who has zigzag eyebrows, drinks fifteen cups of smoky tea a day, and lives inside a huge, mysterious library?

As Juan adjusts to his new life among teetering, dusty shelves, he notices something odd: the books move on their own! He rushes to tell Uncle Tito, who lets his nephew in on a secret: Juan is a Princeps Reader, which means books respond magically to him, and he’s the only one who can find the elusive, never-before-read Wild Book. But will Juan and his new friend Catalina get to The Wild Book before the wicked, story-stealing Pirate Book does?

An unforgettable adventure story about books, libraries, and the power of reading, The Wild Book is the instant-classic young readers’ debut by beloved, prize-winning Mexican author Juan Villoro.





Publication Date January 20th 2015 by Aladdin
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This “clever opener likely to leave readers breathless both with laughter and anticipation” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review) is the first in the New York Times bestselling series from the author of the Half Upon A Time trilogy.

Life is boring when you live in the real world, instead of starring in your own book series. Owen knows that better than anyone, what with the real world’s homework and chores.

But everything changes the day Owen sees the impossible happen — his classmate Bethany climb out of a book in the library. It turns out Bethany’s half-fictional and has been searching every book she can find for her missing father, a fictional character.

Bethany can’t let anyone else learn her secret, so Owen makes her a deal: All she has to do is take him into a book in Owen’s favorite Kiel Gnomenfoot series, and he’ll never say a word. Besides, visiting the book might help Bethany find her father…

…Or it might just destroy the Kiel Gnomenfoot series, reveal Bethany’s secret to the entire world, and force Owen to live out Kiel Gnomenfoot’s final (very final) adventure.





Publication Date June 2nd 2015 by Henry Holt and Co. (BYR)
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For twelve-year-old Emily, the best thing about moving to San Francisco is that it’s the home city of her literary idol: Garrison Griswold, book publisher and creator of the online sensation Book Scavenger (a game where books are hidden in cities all over the country and clues to find them are revealed through puzzles). Upon her arrival, however, Emily learns that Griswold has been attacked and is now in a coma, and no one knows anything about the epic new game he had been poised to launch. Then Emily and her new friend James discover an odd book, which they come to believe is from Griswold himself, and might contain the only copy of his mysterious new game.

Racing against time, Emily and James rush from clue to clue, desperate to figure out the secret at the heart of Griswold’s new game ― before those who attacked Griswold come after them too.





Publication Date July 24th 2018 by Katherine Tegen Books
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A boy is imprisoned by a witch and must tell her a new scary story each night to stay alive. This thrilling contemporary fantasy from J. A. White, the acclaimed author of the Thickety series, brings to life the magic and craft of storytelling.

Alex’s original hair-raising tales are the only thing keeping the witch Natacha happy, but soon he’ll run out of pages to read from and be trapped forever. He’s loved scary stories his whole life, and he knows most don’t have a happily ever after. Now that Alex is trapped in a true terrifying tale, he’s desperate for a different ending — and a way out of this twisted place.

This modern spin on the Scheherazade story is perfect for fans of Coraline and A Tale Dark and Grimm. With interwoven tips on writing with suspense, adding in plot twists, hooks, interior logic, and dealing with writer’s block, this is the ideal book for budding writers and all readers of delightfully just-dark-enough tales.





Publication Date April 30th 2019 by HarperCollins
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Read the book that Ali Standish (author of The Ethan I Was Before) calls “a heartwarming story” and Melissa Roske (author of Kat Greene Comes Clean) calls “a joyful, heartfelt debut!”

Thirteen-year-old Jamie Bunn made a mistake at the end of the school year. A big one. And every kid in her middle school knows all about it. Now she has to spend her summer vacation volunteering at the local library — as punishment. What a waste of a summer!

Or so she thinks.

A Kind of Paradise is an unforgettable story about the power of community, the power of the library, and the power of forgiveness.





Publication Date July 17th 2012 by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
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The first book in Chris Colfer’s #1 New York Times bestselling series The Land of Stories about two siblings who fall into a fairy-tale world!

Alex and Conner Bailey’s world is about to change, in this fast-paced adventure that uniquely combines our modern day world with the enchanting realm of classic fairy tales.

The Land of Stories tells the tale of twins Alex and Conner. Through the mysterious powers of a cherished book of stories, they leave their world behind and find themselves in a foreign land full of wonder and magic where they come face-to-face with fairy tale characters they grew up reading about.

But after a series of encounters with witches, wolves, goblins, and trolls alike, getting back home is going to be harder than they thought.





Publication Date January 2nd 2018 by Henry Holt and Co. (BYR)
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An enchanting urban fantasy middle-grade debut ― the first book in a trilogy ― set in a magical hotel full of secrets.

Orphan Elizabeth Somers’s malevolent aunt and uncle ship her off to the ominous Winterhouse Hotel, owned by the peculiar Norbridge Falls. Upon arrival, Elizabeth quickly discovers that Winterhouse has many charms ― most notably its massive library. It’s not long before she locates a magical book of puzzles that will unlock a mystery involving Norbridge and his sinister family. But the deeper she delves into the hotel’s secrets, the more Elizabeth starts to realize that she is somehow connected to Winterhouse. As fate would have it, Elizabeth is the only person who can break the hotel’s curse and solve the mystery. But will it be at the cost of losing the people she has come to car for, and even Winterhouse itself?

Mystery, adventure, and beautiful writing combine in this exciting debut richly set in a hotel full of secrets.





Publication Date September 19th 2017 by Yearling
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Previously published as Curse of the Boggin. A fast-paced, thrilling series opener from bestselling author D. J. MacHale. Check out a book — and unlock an adventure!

There’s a place filled with tales that don’t have an ending. Puzzles that won’t be solved until someone steps in to finish them.

Enter the Library.

Marcus and his friends have found the key to open it. And they need to use it, because, clearly, something is up. A strange guy in a bathrobe haunts them; fires rage and flare out in an instant; a peculiar old lady keeps telling them, “Surrender the key…” At first Marcus thinks he’s going nuts, until the mystery gets personal. The Library may hold some answers, but the clock is running out. Because on these library shelves, the stories you don’t finish might just finish you…





Publication Date June 20th 2017 by Greenwillow Books
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Eddie, a passionate reader and a shiny green bug, saves the school library in this funny, heartwarming tale that fans of Flora & Ulysses and Charlotte’s Web will love. Includes black-and-white illustrations throughout from Newbery Honor Medalist and New York Times-bestselling author-artist Victoria Jamieson.

Eddie is a tiny green bug who loves to read and who lives behind the chalkboard in the fourth-grade classroom with his parents, his 53 brothers and sisters, and his aunt Min. But when Aunt Min goes to the school library to read a book and never returns, Eddie leaves the comfort of his home for the first time and makes the dangerous trek through Ferny Creek Elementary School to find her. After dodging running sneakers, falling books, and terrifying spiders, Eddie reaches the library, where he discovers Aunt Min stuck in a perilous situation! To top it all off, there’s a substitute librarian who aims to close the library for good and get rid of all the books!

Encouraged by the brave deeds done by small creatures such as Stuart Little and Charlotte from Charlotte’s Web, Eddie comes up with a plan to save the library — a plan that requires all the courage one little bug can muster.

A great read-aloud and read-alone, this action-packed short novel includes references to classic children’s literature throughout and is perfect for fans of Chris Grabenstein’s Escape From Mr. Lemoncello’s Library and Lynne Rae Perkins’s Nuts To You. Featuring extensive black-and-white art from Newbery Honor Medalist and New York Times-bestselling author-artist Victoria Jamieson.





Publication Date April 15th 2014 by Sourcebooks Young Readers
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An Overdue Library Book Can Change Your Life. (So Can a Pet Mongoose.)

When Dorrie and her brother Marcus chase Moe-an unusually foul-tempered mongoose-into the janitor’s closet of their local library, they make an astonishing discovery: the headquarters of a secret society of ninja librarians.

Their mission: protect those whose words get them into trouble, anywhere in the world and at any time in history.

Petrarch’s Library is an amazing, jumbled, time-traveling secret base that can dock anywhere there’s trouble, like the Spanish Inquisition, or ancient Greece, or…Passaic, New Jersey. Dorrie would love nothing more than to join the society, fighting injustice with a real sword! But when a traitor surfaces, she and Marcus are prime suspects. Can they clear their names before the only passage back to the twenty-first century closes forever?





Publication Date May 5, 2016 by Piccadilly Press LTD
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A poignant story about dealing with grief through the magic of reading and friendship.

Calypso’s mum died a few years ago and her emotionally incompetent Dad can’t, or won’t, talk about Mum at all. Instead he throws himself into writing his book A History of the Lemon. Meanwhile the house is dusty, there’s never any food in the fridge, and Calypso retreats into her own world of books and fiction.

When a new girl, Mae, arrives at school, the girls’ shared love of reading and writing stories draws them together. Mae’s friendship and her lively and chaotic home – where people argue and hug each other – make Calypso feel more normal than she has for a long time. But when Calypso finally plucks up the courage to invite Mae over to her own house, the girls discover the truth about her dad and his magnum opus – and Calypso’s happiness starts to unravel.





Publication Date September 24th 2019 by Philomel Books
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An enchanting story about the magic of books and the power of imagination from debut author Anna James. Perfect for fans of Inkheart, The Land of Stories, and Story Thieves. Soon to be a major television series!

Since her mother’s disappearance, eleven-year-old Tilly Pages has found comfort in the stories at Pages & Co., her grandparents’ bookshop. But when her favorite characters, Anne of Green Gables and Alice from Wonderland, start showing up at the shop,Tilly’s adventures become very real. Not only can she follow Anne and Alice into their books, she discovers she can bookwander into any story she chooses. Tilly’s new ability leads her to fun and exciting adventures, but danger may be lurking on the very next page…

When new secrets are uncovered, it’s up to Tilly to solve the mystery of what happened to her mother all those years ago. From debut author Anna James comes a charming and exciting adventure about a bookish young heroine, a mysterious librarian, and a magical bookshop that will delight book lovers everywhere.





Publication Date June 22, 2021 by Quill Tree Books
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This hilarious and poignant tween debut about dealing with bullies, making friends, and the power of good books is a great next read for fans of Merci Suárez Changes Gears and John David Anderson.

Ahmed Aziz is having an epic year — epically bad.

After his dad gets sick, the family moves from Hawaii to Minnesota for his dad’s treatment. Even though his dad grew up there, Ahmed can’t imagine a worse place to live. He’s one of the only brown kids in his school. And as a proud slacker, Ahmed doesn’t want to deal with expectations from his new teachers.

Ahmed surprises himself by actually reading the assigned books for his English class: Holes, Bridge To Terabithia, and From The Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler. Shockingly, he doesn’t hate them. Ahmed also starts learning about his uncle, who died before Ahmed was born. Getting bits and pieces of his family’s history might be the one upside of the move, as his dad’s health hangs in the balance and the school bully refuses to leave him alone. Will Ahmed ever warm to Minnesota?





Publication Date October 1st 2018 by Peachtree Publishing Company
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A plucky young heroine hides a secret while trying to save her family and their magical bookstore from a dastardly villain in this whimsical middle grade novel.

Property Jones and her family have just won the Great Montgomery Book Emporium in a contest, and it’s every booklover’s dream! The pull of a lever calls forth rooms full of marvelous wonders ― from the Room of Woodland Tales with its squirrels and mice, to the rocket ship in the Room of Space Adventures, and the aquarium ceiling in the Room of Ocean Tales.

But there is more to the Emporium than its thousands of books in extravagant displays. In fact, the previous owner is hiding something that could destroy absolutely everything for the Joneses. Property has a whopper of a secret too ― and it might just be the key to saving her family and their bookshop from the clutches of a nasty villain.

Sylvia Bishop’s fantastical debut explores themes of family, identity, and mystery while weaving an entertaining tale filled with quirky, memorable characters. Perfect for fans of A Series of Unfortunate Events.





Publication Date August 28th 2018 by Henry Holt and Co. (BYR)
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In the tradition of E. L. Konisburg, Kristin O’Donnell Tubb’s The Story Collector is a historical fiction middle-grade novel inspired by the real life of Viviani Joffre Fedeler, born and raised in the New York Public Library.

Eleven-year-old Viviani Fedeler has spent her whole life in the New York Public Library. She knows every room by heart, except the ones her father keeps locked. When Viviani becomes convinced that the library is haunted, new girl Merit Mubarak makes fun of her. So Viviani decides to play a harmless little prank, roping her older brothers and best friend Eva to help out.

But what begins as a joke quickly gets out of hand, and soon Viviani and her friends have to solve two big mysteries: Is the Library truly haunted? And what happened to the expensive new stamp collection? It’s up to Viviani, Eva, and Merit (reluctantly) to find out.





Publication Date June 26th 2018 by HarperCollins
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From Sarah Prineas, author of the acclaimed Magic Thief series, comes a stunning new tween fantasy where books literally come to life!

The powerful Lost Books at the palace library are infecting the rest with an evil magic, and two unlikely friends must figure out who, or what, is controlling the books and their power. If they can’t, the entire kingdom could be at risk.

Sarah Prineas returns to her classic middle grade roots with this imaginative, fast-paced adventure for book lovers everywhere.





Publication Date May 18th 2021 by Greenwillow Books
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Once there were two sisters who did everything together. But only one of them disappeared.

New York Times–bestselling author Jacqueline West’s Long Lost is an atmospheric, eerie mystery brimming with suspense. Fans of Katherine Arden’s Small Spaces and Victoria Schwab’s City of Ghosts series will lose themselves in this mesmerizing and century-spanning tale.

Eleven-year-old Fiona has just read a book that doesn’t exist.

When Fiona’s family moves to a new town to be closer to her older sister’s figure skating club — and far from Fiona’s close-knit group of friends — nobody seems to notice Fiona’s unhappiness. Alone and out of place, Fiona ventures to the town’s library, a rambling mansion donated by a long-dead heiress. And there she finds a gripping mystery novel about a small town, family secrets, and a tragic disappearance.

Soon Fiona begins to notice strange similarities that blur the lines between the novel and her new town. With a little help from a few odd Lost Lake locals, Fiona uncovers the book’s strange history. Lost Lake is a town of restless spirits, and Fiona will learn that both help and danger come from unexpected places — maybe even from the sister she thinks doesn’t care about her anymore.

New York Times–bestselling and acclaimed author Jacqueline West weaves a heart-pounding, intense, and imaginative mystery that builds anticipation on every page, while centering on the strong and often tumultuous bond between sisters. Laced with suspense, Long Lost will fascinate readers of Trenton Lee Stewart’s The Secret Keepers and fans of ghost stories.





Publication Date May 22nd 2019 by NOSY
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In a fast-paced and funny adventure, Kit must use the magic of books to save the library — and its resident dragon — from a power-hungry tycoon.

Kit Spencer can’t stand reading. She’d rather be outside playing and getting muddy than stuck inside with a book. But when her best friends, Josh and Alita, drag her to the local library, Kit makes an incredible discovery: she’s a wizard — and books are the key to her abilities. Unfortunately, a greedy businessman wants to tear down the beloved library, destroying all its magic. To make matters worse, there’s a sleeping dragon hidden there, and if she’s awakened, her wild power will wreak havoc. With the help of a friendly dragon-dog hybrid named Dogon, Kit and her companions will have to find a way to save the dragon in the library — and maybe the world!

A humorous romp full of library enchantment, with a diverse cast of characters and dynamic illustrations.

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Hi! I’m Jen! I’m a thirty-something introvert who loves nothing more than the cozy comfort of home and snuggling my two rescue cats, Pepper and Pancakes. I also enjoy running, jigsaw puzzles, baking and everything Disney. Few things bring me more joy than helping a reader find the right book for them!

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