This slim tome has been gracing the New York Times Bestseller List recently. Translated from Japanese, it follows the last few days of a young man who is dying and his deal with the devil to extend h…
Welcome to the Honey B & B by Melody Carlson is a standalone novel taking place in modern times. The story starts out slow and never really gains any serious momentum. This is the perfect book to …
This contemporary book is a 2025 Newbery Honor Book. Supported by the author's illustrations, Magnolia and a new friend go on a simple quest to find the owners of the lost socks left at Magnolia's fam…
The Archer by Paulo Coelho is a brief tale told by a master archer. It lays out a philosphy called "the way of the bow" and applies the principles of archery to everyday life. Though this is not a lon…
Picking up right where Happy Head left off, this suspenseful sequel begins with exactly what you’d expect: a group of kids who have been deemed not happy enough being challenged and facing what feels…
Any other adults out there that read children's books as a palate cleanser? Anybody? I find that not only does it help me keep up to date on what is available for kids to read, it also is a great way …
The Road before Us by Janine Rosche starts off with some crazy events, and then the story just gets more zany from there. It is a dual time novel of sorts as one of the main characters, Benny, recalls…
Bravely tackling a hard topic in a thoughtful and hopeful way via an eclectic collection of characters, Erin Bow brings middle grade readers Simon Sort of Says. The book's cover at first might sugges…
He Should Have Told the Bees by Amanda Cox has a lot of potential. It is written from the perspective of two different women who have experienced two very different lives. They are intriguing and read…
This book begins with our protagonist being dropped off by his family at a two week “camp” that I spent a lot of the book trying to decipher. Is it a conversion therapy? An elaborate character-buildin…
Eagle Drums has been recognized with many awards, including being named a Newbery Honor Book. This book is an important addition to middle grade literature because of its imagining of the first Messen…
Accompanied by colored illustrations, The Many Assassinations of Samir, the Seller of Dreams is a lyrical narrative of adventure on The Silk Road. The format is a first person recounting by the boy, …
