‘The Secret Language of Birds’ by Lynne Kelly is a tender story of a girl who finds her place through her passion for animals

Lynne Kelly, author of “The Secret Language of Birds,” is one of my favorite authors for a very simple reason: she writes about kids and animals. Her first book, “Chained,” is a wrenching story of a captive elephant and the boy who saves her. Then she penned “Song for a Whale,” about the loneliest whale in the world and the deaf girl who can’t seem to find her place in the world just as this misfit whale can’t communicate with other whales. It seems a natural progression to go from a jungle setting to an oceanic world and then to Texas, which Kelly calls home, to share the story of whooping cranes. Her inspiration came from a new article about a pair of whooping cranes just east of Houston who nested there, the first time whooping cranes had done so in over a century.

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“The First State of Being” Is Today, by Erin Entrada Kelly

Newberry Medal winner Erin Entrada Kelly’s new middle grade novel, “The First State of Being,” is a delightful, thoughtful, and thought-provoking work which explores both the potential problems and fascinating possibilities of time travel. The novel features two young protagonists, both quite brilliant, and both of whom find themselves in situations and locations which reveal their mutual discomfort in new and unfamiliar surroundings.

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‘Louder Than Hunger’ by John Schu is a book that needs to be in every library

Much has been written and admired about “Louder Than Hunger,” John Schu’s brutally, almost painfully honest book about his near-death experience with anorexia nervosa. I think this is a book that will become an important personal experience to each person who reads it as each reader uses Schu’s fictionalized experiences as a mirror that might reflect certain experiences in the reader’s life.

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‘Max in the House of Spies: A Tale of World War II’ by Adam Gidwitz is both charming and chilling

Adam Gidwitz is a much loved children’s author whose fabulous tales have taken readers young and old from Grimm’s fairy tales (“A Tale Dark and Grimm“) to the Inquisition (“The Inquisitor’s Tale“) and now to WWII in “Max in the House of Spies: A Tale of World War II.” This historical fiction also contains Gidwitz’s trademark fantasy twist with two mythical creatures who accompany main character Max as he travels from Berlin to London as part of the Kindertransport, which took Jewish children from Germany to countries where they stayed in foster homes until the end of the war.

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‘The Groundworld Heroes’ by Adrian So: cover reveal and author interview

Adrian So is not your average fourteen year old. He wrote a middle grade novel, “The Groundworld Heroes,” and it’s being published by Monarch Educational Services this August. Adrian described how he started writing by explaining that during COVID, he was stuck at home and had nothing to do but read and write. He wrote nonstop and wrote short stories daily. He wasn’t ready to write a book, he thought.

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‘Walkin’ the Dog’ by Chris Lynch is a touching, dog-filled coming of age story

In “Walkin’ the Dog,” Chris Lynch tells the story of Louis, a boy who loves being home, has no friends, and will be going to the public high school after being home schooled. His father is a retired firefighter who bought a fishing boat and moved them to a seaside town. His mother is an activist whose mental health has been suffering, and she is in a facility working on regaining her equilibrium.

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‘Wrecker’ by Carl Hiaasen is an thrilling, must-read, thoughtful middle grade novel

Wrecker,” is pure Carl Hiaasen with its Key West setting and fabulous action, quirky characters, and clever plot. Carl Hiaasen is known for his novels about Florida, its struggle against pollution and destruction of the land and waters around it, as well as his tongue-in-cheek depiction of people who are oblivious to common sense and basic reasoning skills. This is a book that, in pointing out the racist past of Florida, and Key West in particular, could very well be banned in Hiaasen’s home state of Florida: In this clever and gripping novel, one of the characters actually feels terrible about an ancestor who was a member of the Klu Klux Klan and participated in the lynching of a white man who had dared to enter into a common law marriage with the Black woman he loved.

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‘Growing Up Under a Red Flag: A Memoir of Surviving the Chinese Cultural Revolution’ by Ying Chang Compestine

Sometimes coincidences can be astounding. Last night I read the children’s picture book “Growing Up Under a Red Flag: A Memoir of Surviving the Chinese Cultural Revolution” written by Ying Chang Compestine and illustrated by Xinmei Liu. It’s a powerful book about how civil liberties flew out the door when Mao Zedong took over China and unleashed his Red Guard to terrify civilians into submission. The text is informative, very accessible, and appropriately shocking.

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‘City Spies: Mission Manhattan’ by James Ponti is the fabulous new middle grade thriller in this exceptional series

Can I just say that I love the “City Spies” series by James Ponti? This latest one, “Mission Manhattan,” is just as exciting and thrilling as the preceding books, and reading them brings me as much pleasure as reading one of my favorite adult spy novels, like Tess Gerritsen’s “The Spy Coast” or even John Scalzi’s “Starter Villain.” While granted, these spy novels are geared for middle grade readers, the plots and the action are every bit as well plotted and gripping as many of that genre written for adults. The major differences are that the books in this series are much quicker reads with spies that are underaged. But they are no less brilliant than any seasoned adult spy.

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‘Finally Heard’ by Kelly Yang is a middle grade novel about growing up, technology, and fitting in

“Finally Heard” is Kelly Yang’s newest middle grade fiction. Author Yang is known for her powerful middle grade and young adult novels about fitting in, making friends, finding one’s place in life, and appreciating family. Many children appreciate the vulnerability in her fictional characters because it reflects some of their own feelings. Her first novel, “Front Desk,” for example, reflected her own experiences growing up as her parents managed hotels and she helped work the front desk.

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‘Project F’ by Jeanne DuPrau is a middle grade book about climate change and difficult decisions

In her new book, “Project F,” Jeanne DuPrau takes us yet again far into the future to a different kind of world. It’s a simpler world where there is some electricity, but little technology. Through the eyes of main character fourteen-year-old Keith, we learn about a world in which there are no cars, no planes, no smart phones. Instead people take trains if they need to travel long distances, they bike within their small cities, and they walk. Life as we know it today is hundreds of years in the past.

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‘Mixed Up’ by Gordon Korman is another brilliant middle grade novel: how important are our memories? (Discussion questions included)

Mixed Up” is a typical Gordon Korman novel; typical because it’s both very accessible and very brilliant. Korman’s books are legendary (among teachers and students) because they are almost unique in their ability to provide a plot that moves rapidly with plenty of action, yet at the same time offer us thoughtful issues to consider — in every story. His newest release accomplishes all that.

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