In Michelle Kadarusman’s hopeful "Girl of the Southern Sea", an impoverished girl living in Indonesia dreams of a better life. Nia longs to go to high school. Her mother died giving birth to her brother, Rudi. Her father drinks,... Read More

Lisa Schmid’s debut novel for middle-grade readers "Ollie Oxley and the Ghost" is an engaging story full of mystery and mischief. Ollie has moved, again, with his mother and little sister. His mother’s new job is in her hometown of... Read More

Set in a time and place when humans have already nearly destroyed the Earth once, Alex Lyttle’s "The Rise of Winter" is a richly imagined middle grade fantasy about a young girl who joins with a select group of animals to protect the... Read More

In Donna Grassby’s moving debut, Kate’s Ring, a thirteen-year-old girl tries to hold her family together through hardships and tragedy. Kate is the oldest of six siblings. Her mother suffers from tuberculosis; her father is loving,... Read More

In Alex T. Smith’s amusing "Mr. Penguin and the Lost Treasure", a penguin sets up shop as a professional adventurer and receives his first case—but it is more than he bargained for. Mr. Penguin has just launched his business when he... Read More

In Michael Hutchinson’s clever middle grade mystery "The Case of Windy Lake", four precocious children are on a quest to find a missing archaeologist. The Mighty Muskrats—Sam, Otter, Atim, and Chickadee—are cousins who spend their... Read More

Nikki Barthelmess’s "The Quiet You Carry" is an honest, thoughtful story about a young woman coming to terms with a lifetime of abuse. Victoria’s life changed overnight. Her father threw her out of her house over what she chooses to... Read More

Amalie Jahn’s "The Next to Last Mistake" is an insightful story about love and friendship. Tess Goodwin is happy with her life as a farm girl in Iowa. She is content with her cows, her chess club, and most importantly, her best friend,... Read More