The Shadow Cipher by Laura Ruby. Chapter Book.“When a potato-faced real estate mogul buys their historic, rent-controlled building, three middle schoolers..band together to solve a centuries-old mystery. At once thoroughly modern (a solar-powered city filled with a genuinely diverse cast of characters) and charmingly old-fashioned (steampunk machinery, ciphers, and a mystery at times reminiscent of […]

Ranger’s Apprentice: The Ruins of Gorlan by John Flanagan (and sequels). Chapter Book.“This quartet opener introduces five teenaged orphans raised together in the medieval-like kingdom of Araluen, focusing on the apprenticeship of wiry, clever Will to a mysterious scout/spy, and on Will’s changing relations with oversized, rival-later-friend Horace. Though Will’s slight physique keeps him out […]

Sal & Gabi Break the Universe by Carlos Hernandez (and sequels). Chapter Book. “Bullies are everywhere, but seventh-grader Sal knows just how to handle a difficult kid like Yasmany Robles. Obviously, you deal with a bully by opening a portal into another universe, taking a raw chicken from it, and planting it in the bully’s […]

Hilo the Boy Who Crashed to Earth by Judd Winnick (and sequels). Graphic Novel.“Gr 2–5—Daniel Jackson Lim, aka DJ, is an ordinary boy in a family of overachievers. He meets Hilo, a robot boy who fell to Earth from space and doesn’t know where he came from or what he is doing on this planet. […]

September includes a celebration of Hispanic Heritage from September 15th to October 15th. While I’ll continue to explore middle grade fantasy this month, I’ll also make time to explore kidlit that honors and celebrates Hispanic Heritage. Take some time to explore the Latinx KidLit Book Festival, a virtual book festival that will launch on September […]