Here is my annual list of favorite middle grade books. These weren’t necessarily published in 2019, but I read each of them this year and loved them all! There are so many titles, because it was a great year for MG fiction. Happily, 2020 also promises to bring us many more memorable MG stories.

I’m hoping you’ll find some to suggest to your middle grade reader or some to tuck into their stocking. And keep this list handy when you’re at the library over the break or next summer, looking for a memorable book and your middle grader doesn’t know what to choose. It might come in handy!

My list of favorite picture books will be coming soon. I promise you, you’ll find the perfect gift on one of these lists!

all the impossible things

By Lindsay Lackey

Oh, this is a book I will remember for a very long time. I was so caught up in this tender, wondrous story, I didn’t want it to end. Although at times, it was difficult to read about the cruelty of some of Red’s foster homes, about the mother Red adored ignoring her and about the hopelessness of her mom’s addiction, at other times it was a joy to sink into every page. (more)

TO NIGHT OWL FROM DOGFISH

By Holly Goldberg Sloan and Meg Wolitzer

This story was absolutely delightful. It’s told in a series of emails mostly between two girls who didn’t even know each other existed at the beginning of the book. Avery and Bett are two random twelve year olds living on opposite sides of the country with absolutely nothing in common. That is until their dads fall in love and decide the girls need to go to a primitive sleep away camp in Michigan to meet and bond.(more)

anthem

By Deborah Wiles

Molly is 14 and her family is in turmoil. Her beloved older brother, her hero, disappeared a year ago after a huge fight with their father about the Vietnam War. And now Barry’s draft notice has arrived demanding he report for his physical in five weeks. Molly’s mom and her mom’s best friend, Pam (who happens to be Molly’s aunt and the mom of her cousin and close friend, Norman) are desperate to find Barry to make certain he reports on time. They concoct a crazy plan for 14 year old Molly and 16 year old Norman to drive Norman’s rattletrap school bus across the country to San Francisco to retrieve Barry in time for his physical. Alone! (more)

The Echo Park Castaways

By M.G. Hennessey

This story broke my heart, but also left me a little bit hopeful. You will learn about the stark realities of the foster system through the stories told by the four children living together in a foster home. It’s a foster home that is better than many, because there is no hitting and there is food to eat. However, there’s little adult supervision, very few hot meals, just the barest amount of clothing and supply essentials and very little love. (more)

The Vanderbeekers to the Rescue

By Karina Yan Glaser

Very often I am asked for book recommendations. The Vanderbeeker series is always my go to choice for kids of any age! In addition to being a great book to read to yourself, it’s also a perfect family read aloud or the ideal choice if you’re looking for an audio book to please everyone in the car. So I was delighted when the third book in the series landed in my mailbox. (more)

Summer of a Thousand Pies

By Margaret Dilloway

Oh, this book! A book about summer, baking, The Great British Bake Off, dessert and most of all finding your family. What could be better?! 🥧
Ok, let’s start with the cover. First of all, it prompted me to move Summer of a Thousand Pies to the top of my TBR pile! I knew with one glance I was in for a summer treat. For a lover of flowers and pie, as I am, the artwork says it all. It made me want to curl up with a glass of lemonade, OF COURSE a slice of pie, and dive into this lovely story. I was delighted that I did! (more)
the class

Extraordinary Birds

By Sandy Stark-McGinnis

This tender, beautiful story will touch your heart and stay with you for a very long time. You’ll remember December’s strength and her steadfast belief she’ll soon become a bird. You’ll remember Eleanor’s thoughtfulness, insight and patience. You’ll remember Cheryllynn’s kindness, love of pink and purple and her decision to no longer be Charlie. Your heart will break when you realize December’s certainty she is truly a bird, is actually because of the awful scar on her back; the scar she has convinced herself conceals her wings and wasn’t really caused by her mother’s abuse. And finally you’ll learn more about birds than you could have ever imagined! (more)

The Benefits of Being an Octopus

By Ann Braden

This is one of those books you won’t forget. You won’t forget seventh grader, Zoey’s bravery and determination to rescue her family from her mom’s abusive boyfriend and extreme poverty. You won’t forget her kindness and patience toward her younger brothers and sister when her mom is either working or exhausted. You’ll remember her struggles to complete her homework, and cry for her when she forgets it, because she was rushing to make sure her 5 year old twin siblings have their shoes for school. (more) 

the Lost Boy’s gift

By Kimberly Willis Holt

This sweet story is full of heart, magic, endearing characters and talking animals. It takes place on a storybook street lined with rainbow colored houses full of caring neighbors who notice the world. In one of those houses you’ll find Tilda Butter, who has lived there since her parents dropped her off when she was seven years old and never returned to take her home. Soon after Tilda arrived Aunt Sippy said something rather remarkable. She told Tilda that everyone has a special gift and it’s up to us to discover it and use it. “For a gift should never be wasted.” (more)   

the class

By Francis O’Roark Dowell

Oh, how I loved this MG book! The story is told from the point of view of everyone in a sixth grade class. Each chapter is told by a different student in the class. You learn about their families, their background and their insecurities. You gain so much insight into their thoughts about themselves and about each other. The teacher is a very caring person who always puts her students first, even though it might result in bending the rules a bit. She’s the teacher we would all want to have; demanding, caring, fair and patient. (more)   

Fish in a Tree

By Lynda Mullaly Hunt

This story of a girl desperately trying to fit in as she hides her disability from the world will break your heart. But the friendship, the caring family and most of all the understanding and supportive teacher will have you cheering as you read each chapter. (more)

the true history of lyndie b. hawkins

By Gail Shepherd

Lyndie has a very happy life. She loves history, her dog, the library and her best friend, Dawn. She lives in a perfect white cottage with her mom and dad and they go on lots of adventures together researching the history that surrounds their small town of Love Forge TN in 1985. But this all suddenly changes when her daddy loses his job. They quickly sell their house, move in with grandpa and her very strict grandmother, Lady, and leave her beloved library and favorite librarian behind.(more)

The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise

By Dan Gemeinhart

Coyote and her story captivated my heart from the first page. She and her dad, Rodeo, are on a road trip zigzagging around the country in a yellow school bus, as they try to run away from the memories that broke their hearts five years earlier. 🚌 From the moment Coyote bought a slushy for a very hot little boy in a gas station, I knew she was a kind soul with a huge heart. (more)

operation frog effect

By Sarah Scheerger

It’s the first day of fifth grade and the kids in Miss Graham’s room are feeling hopeful and quite pleased with themselves, because they’re the top kids at White Oak Elementary.
We quickly meet eight of them. They’re an assorted bunch; lots of ethnicities, lots of different home lives…They learn to be leaders, to be creative problem solvers and to think for themselves. And most importantly she teaches them about “the butterfly effect”, which they quickly paraphrase as “the frog effect” in honor of their class frog. (more)

drop of hope

By Keith  Calabrese

This heart print story reminds us that the small kindnesses we encounter everyday make our lives worth living. You’ll also read about friendship and caring teachers, as you begin to understand the struggles and repercussions suffered by a small midwestern town when their factories close one by one until there is only one left. You’ll begin to understand how this stress affects everyone, adults and children, in so many ways. But most of all, you’ll read about how a small kindness can blossom into so much more; how it can lead to another and another. And you will wonder, could this really happen or is it just a story? (more)

Revenge OF THE ENGINERDS

By Jarrett Lerner

The Enginerds are back! I loved meeting this group of middle school boys, who have been friends since kindergarten, who share a love of science and inventions and who agreed they should absolutely NEVER eat lunch in the cafeteria in Enginerds. In that book, they sent the 18 robots they invented out into the world, with disastrous results. Luckily, they captured 17 of them, but what about number 18? And since it’s been gone, VERY strange things have been happening. (more)

the eleventh trade

By Alyssa Hollingsworth

When a family leaves their home to immigrate to a new country or to seek asylum, they very seldom want to leave. Don’t we all find comfort in the familiar; whether it be the familiar sights, familiar foods, friends or family? Immigrants and refugees have the same feelings, just as we do. However, those who flee war torn countries in pursuit of a safe place to live and raise a family, have no choice. They are simply choosing to survive and to be safe. ⚽️ We learn about one of these families in The Eleventh Trade. This story tells the heartbreaking story of a young Afghan refugee.(more)

right as rain

By Lindsey Stoddard

🌼Rain lives in a BEFORE and AFTER life. BEFORE is her life when her older brother was still alive. When he protected her, joked with her and played his guitar; when her family was happy and loving. AFTER has been every day since that awful night when she and her parents received the phone call all parents dred. The one that says “come quickly; your child has been in an accident”. 🌼 (more)

planet earth is blue

By Nicole Panteleakos

This story, set in 1986, is about the fierce love between two sisters who are all alone in the world. Nova doesn’t speak, so her case worker, her teachers and most of her foster parents all assume she “Cannot read. Cannot speak. Severely mentally retarded”. But Bridget knows that’s not true. As she tells all who will listen, “Nova is not dumb. She’s a thinker, not a talker.” Even as they are bounced from foster home to foster home and school to school, they have one thing to look forward to – the launch of the Challenger.  (more)

wish

By Barbara O’Connor

I listened to this story this summer and I didn’t want Charlie’s story to end. I was immediately transported to her aunt and uncle’s porch on the side of a mountain watching the sunset. I felt the warmth and caring of her aunt and uncle, the support of a new friend and his family and the love of her dog, Wishbone. This is the dog Charlie finds after wishing every day since fourth grade for a dog of her own. This story has been out for awhile, but if you haven’t read this gem, promise me you will!

roll with it

By Jamie Sumner

I couldn’t have loved this ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ story more! I smiled, I cheered, I clinched my fists in frustration and I felt a warm cozy feeling as I read this sweet story about a spunky, determined girl. Not only did Ellie have to deal with the usual middle school angst (lunch table drama, living on the “wrong” side of the tracks, giving a how-to speech) she also had to deal with CP and spending her life in a wheelchair. (more)

Disaster Days

By Rebecca Behrens

Oh, it’s been a really long time since I read a MG book that kept me on the edge of my seat like this one did. And I loved it! I loved the suspense, the adventure, the ingenuity and the love that filled every page. Hannah is 13 and lives on a small, sleepy Seattle island. Her day begins like any other; she misses the bus (not unusual), her mom is over protective when Hannah realizes she forgot her inhaler, she feels a nagging worry her best friend is slipping away. Looking back, Hannah so wishes she’d let her mom hug her when she dropped her off at school, she hadn’t picked a fight with her best friend and she’d told her dad “love you” when he called from his business trip. But Hannah had no idea what would happen later that day… (more)

pay attention, carter jones

By Gary M. Schmidt

I wasn’t sure what to expect from this book. The story of Mary Poppins was fresh in my mind and I thought this might be a similar story. Oh, I was so wrong! It is much, much more. This sweet story stole my heart. and in the process taught me more about cricket than I ever dreamed I’d know! 🏏
It is the first day of school and the Jones household is in an uproar. Not surprising with four kids, one crazy dog and a single mom! (more)

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More about Susan

Hi! I'm Susan, a wife, a mom and a recently retired elementary school librarian with 22 years of experience. One of my greatest joys is to connect kids with a perfect book, which then leads them to a lifelong love of learning. Through my blog, I'm hoping to reach parents, their children and teachers to help them find those special books. I’m also hoping to offer some tips and techniques to use with your children as you read aloud.