My Favorite Middle Grade Books of 2023
And it's only February! (2024)
I did not send a Christmas card out last year.
In fact, I’ve not sent a holiday card since I had a child which says about everything you need to know about everything. (All at once.)
But if I had! And if I had continued our tradition of hand-drawn cards and little tidbits about the family! I would have said:
This year…
Rob became a Libby guy
Jill discovered a love for South Shore Bar Pizza
Daisy asked to go to the candy store every day
Dolly acquired a heating pad for optimal napping
And if I had included in that card a list of my favorite middle grade books for no reason other than I am a middle school librarian and I like talking about middle grade books, I would have included these titles for you.
Happy Holidays to all and a very Happy New Year!
Lasagna means I love you by Kate O’Shaughnessy
An ooey, gooey, melted marshmallow story about foster care and how cooking connects us all.
Good Different by Meg Eden Kuyatt
A novel in verse about a girl on the autism spectrum discovering her identity.
What happened to Rachel Riley by Claire Swinarski
A true crime podcast, a middle school investigative journalist and one popular girl, completely fallen from grace. Why??
A work in progress by Jarrett Lerner
A middle school boy with body image issues. (I cried.)
Iveliz Explains It All by Andrea Beatriz Arango
THE middle grade book about mental health.
Alone by Megan E. Freeman
A survival novel in verse about a girl who wakes up in her small town in Colorado and finds out there’s been an apocalypse and…she’s completely alone.
A First Time For Everything by Dan Santat
A graphic novel memoir about a study abroad trip that is so achingly aware of what it’s like to be in middle school and have a first crush and want to fit in and be the same as everyone, but also stand out.
The best middle grade book of the year! (At least according to me and the National Book Awards.)
Bonus: I reread Kristy’s Great Idea for my staff book club when we had to bring in a childhood favorite and let me tell you. I still love it.
Bonus #2: This Time It’s Real and Eight Nights of Flirting - my favorite YA romances of the year.
Kristy’s Great Idea is one of my forever favorites too! We share many favorites this year including LASAGNA and RACHEL RILEY 🥰
Your email came at the perfect time! I needed a last-minute Valentine's gift for my daughter. Hit the local bookstore on the way home and found LASAGNA and RACHEL RILEY! She read the jackets and said, "These might go to the top of my pile." Thanks for your suggestions and for being YOU!