Top Ten All Time Favorite Books in the Middle Grade Genre

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme created by The Broke and the Bookish

I know middle grade isn’t really a genre, but I was recently asked to come up with some off-the-beaten-track books that would suit readers of differing abilities in the 10-13 age range, and I thought the resulting mix would make a great Top Ten Tuesday list. I’d recommend a lot of these books to readers of all ages, but think they would be especially suited to young readers moving on from children’s books to the beginnings of YA.

1.         The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

2.         A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness

3.         Wonder by RJ Palacio

4.         City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau

5.         Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo

6.         The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke 

7.         Four Kids, Three Cats, Two Cows,One Witch (Maybe) by Siobhán             Parkinson

8.         OMG! Is This Actually My Life? by Rae Earl

9.         This Journal Belongs to Ratchetby Nancy J. Cauvanagh

10.       Eragon by Christopher Paolini

What do you think? Are there any lesser-known middle grade books you think should be added to the list? Let us know in the comments!

Review: Wish by Beth Bracken and Kay Fraser (Faerieground #1)

Title: Wish by Beth Bracken and Kay Fraser
Published: April 1st, 2013 by Capstone
Source: Provided by publisher for review
Format: Hardcover
Group age: Middle grade
Genre: Paranormal / Fantasy/ Fairies
Challenge(s): None
Grade rate: C+
                                                                                                                                                                         

Never wish in the woods.
With one wish made in Willow Forest, Soli and Lucy are pulled into Faerieground—and into the middle of an ancient battle. In the faerie kingdom, an evil queen searches for her daughter while the palace crumbles. To save her best friend, Soli must find her hidden strength.

This is a story about friendship, growing up, and the power of wishes. This is a story about faeries and spells, queens and lost princesses, fireflies and four-leaf clovers. But mostly, this is a story about love.

My Review

Wish: Faerieground is the first book on a series of four about Soli and Lucy.  I enjoyed it.

Lucy is light, while Soli is dark. They are thirteen, best friends and complete opposites.  They have played in the woods all their lives; it’s their secret shortcut, even though Lucy’s mom has warned them to not go there.  One day, Soli makes a wish that has rather big repercussions. 

Beautiful art!

This is the start of their adventure, as they encounter very different fates while in Faerieground.  These faeries are not the Tinker Bell type, they are quite scary and mean.  Especially Queen Calandra, she is awful.   

At the end, Lucy and Soli turned out to be good friends and look out for each other, trying hard to do everything possible to overcome the mess they got themselves into.  Kheelan is also a faery, but he seems to be a good one and he took an instant liking to Soli. Since the book is not lengthy, the characters were a little hard to get to know, mainly because we are told about them and their relationship, instead of shown, for instance by the use of flashback or dialogue.

Faerieground is really easy to read and it’s short.  In fact, I found it too short, but I understand that more is to come in the series.  The story is told from alternating points of view, in the first person from Lucy and Soli’s perspective.  The plot is simple and a bit predictable, but I’m eager to see what happens next. One of the best things about the book is the amazingly beautiful illustrations, like the one on the right. Overall, Wish: Faerieground is a short, entertaining read.

About the cover: The cover is really pretty, as are all the illustrations in the book. 

Guest Post/ Interview with 'B': The Creature From the Seventh Grade: Boy or Beast by Bob Balaban

Title: The Creature from the Seventh Grade: Boy or Beast by Bob Balaban
Published: September 13, 2012 by Viking
Source: Purchased
Format: Hardcover
Group age: Middle grade
Genre: Paranormal (?)

From award-winning actor-writer-producer-director Bob Balaban comes a hilarious new series, perfect for fans of Diary of a Wimpy Kid.
If popularity were a score between one and ten, Charlie Drinkwater would be a zero. He's nerdy and unathletic, and to top it all off, he's suddenly morphed into a giant mutant sea creature sometime between first-period science class and third-period English.
Now Charlie's two best friends are treating him like a science project, there's a petition to get him kicked out of school, the cool kids are recruiting him for their clique, and for some reason his parents are acting like everything is perfectly normal. What's a slimy, scaly, seventh-grade creature to do?

In case you don’t know “B” is my middle son (I have three boys whose names start with A, B, and C); “B” is currently 12 and loves to read, the apple didn't fall that far from the tree in this case : ) However, he doesn't like to write, so I decided to interview him instead.  Enjoy!  

Can you give me a short description of what this book is about?  Try to not include spoilers!

The story is about a boy that had a monster grandmother and when he hits puberty, his family is waiting to see if he will turn into one as well.  Throughout the book he tries to make adjustments as his body changes.

Did you like the book? Why or why not?

Heck yes!  I liked it because the author makes the characters so real and it’s like he really remembers what it’s like being in middle school.

How long did it take you to read it?

I took me a while, because I read it when I could for about 30 minutes at a time.

Would you recommend this book to others?

Yes, because it’s really good.

What was your favorite thing about the book?

I love the characters and how the writing is contemporary, using slang and everything.

What was your least favorite thing about the book?

There’s nothing really bad about it.

Review and Giveaway: Jack Templar: Monster Hunter by Jeff Gunhus

Tour Schedule

Title: Jack Templar: Monster Hunter by Jeff Gunhus
Published: October 17th, 2013 by Seven Guns Press
Source: Provided for review
Format: eBook
Grade rate: B

Orphan Jack Templar has no memory of his parents and only the smallest details from his Aunt Sophie about how they died. The day before Jack's fourteenth birthday, things start to change for him. At first it's great: A sudden new strength helps him defend his nose-picking friend "T-Rex" from the school bully, and even his crush, Cindy Adams, takes notice. But then a mysterious girl named Eva arrives and tells him two facts that will change his life forever. First, that he's the descendent of a long line of monster hunters and he's destined to be in the family business. Second, that there's a truce between man and monster that children are off-limits...until their fourteenth birthday! Jack has only one day before hundreds of monsters will descend on his little town of Sunnyvale and try to kill him.
As if that weren't enough, things get even more complicated when Jack discovers that the Lord of the Creach (as the monsters are collectively known) holds a personal grudge against him and will do anything to see that Jack has a slow and painful death. To stay alive and save his friends, Jack will have to battle werewolves, vampires, harpies, trolls, zombies and more. But perhaps the most dangerous thing he must face is the truth about his past. Why do the other hunters call him the last Templar? Why do they whisper that he may be the "One?" Why do the monsters want him dead so badly? Even as these questions plague him, he quickly discovers survival is his new full-time job and that in the world of monster hunters, nothing is really what it seems.

My Review

I wasn't sure what to expect of Jack Templar, but really enjoy the book. 

Jack is so funny!  He is the typical 14 year old, that is, until the day of his birthday.  I don't know why his aunt (or some of the hunters) didn't tell him anything about anything, until it was almost too late. What follows is an action packed night of chasing monsters and being chased by them.  I have to say that I learned a lot about the different types :)

The book is very fast paces as much of the story takes place in a span of less than 24 hours.  I don't know how Jack could cope with a chance and a loss that big. Jack's friends are so different and I truly adored Will (not so much T-Rex) and Eva is still a mystery to me. 

To me Jack Templar: Monster Hunter is kind of a mix of Harry Potter with Percy Jackson; I adore both series, thus I liked the book.  The writing is straightforward and it flows very nicely.  There are instances in which the narrator (Jack) stops to give the reader a dire warning about reading the book and other times to give the reader a lesson on a certain type of monster; I found these endearing (if a bit repetitive).  Did I mentioned this book is really funny?  Because it is!  I really enjoyed to listen to Jack's voice.  The book can be read by middle grade readers as well. 

I will definitely read the next book in the series.

About the cover:  If I hadn't read the excerpt that came with the invitation to the blog tour I don't think that I would have picked it up.  The cover is totally unrelated to the story and not very nice.  

Purchase

Amazon * Barnes & Noble

Author Jeff Gunhus

Jeff Gunhus grew up in Cyprus, Greece, and Saudi Arabia where there was a distinct lack of television. He quickly found books were the gateway to incredible adventures, fascinating characters and unbelievable discoveries. Now, with five children of his own (all who watch too much television, in his opinion), he has enjoyed revisiting his old books and reliving those adventures all over again.

Website * Twitter * Facebook

Book Trailer

Blog Tour $50 Giveaway
$50 Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash + Swag
Ends 2/18/13
Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader, Not A Writer http://iamareader.com and sponsored by the author. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.


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Guest Post / Interview with ‘B’: Al Capone Does My Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko (Al Capone at Alcatraz #1)

In case you don’t know “B” is my middle son (I have three boys whose names start with A, B, and C); “B” is currently 12 and loves to read, the apple didn't fall that far from the tree in this case : ) However, he doesn't like to write, so I decided to interview him instead.  Enjoy!  

Title: Al Capone Does My Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko

Published: April 20^th, 2006 by Puffin

Source: From School

Format: Hardcover

Today I moved to a twelve-acre rock covered with cement, topped with bird turd and surrounded by water. I'm not the only kid who lives here. There's my sister, Natalie, except she doesn't count. And there are twenty-three other kids who live on the island because their dads work as guards or cook's or doctors or electricians for the prison, like my dad does. Plus, there are a ton of murderers, rapists, hit men, con men, stickup men, embezzlers, connivers, burglars, kidnappers and maybe even an innocent man or two, though I doubt it. The convicts we have are the kind other prisons don't want. I never knew prisons could be picky, but I guess they can. You get to Alcatraz by being the worst of the worst. Unless you're me. I came here because my mother said I had to.

Interview

1. Can you give me a short description of what this book is about?  Try to not include spoilers!

The book is about a kid that moves to Alcatraz because his father got a job there.  He has a sister with autism and the family is trying to put her into a special school that is very close to Alcatraz. The book is about his move and his new friends and his new life.

2. Did you like the book? Why or why not?

Yes, because it was so good that it was hard to put down.

3. How long did it take you to read it?

I guess five or six hours. 

4. Would you recommend this book to others?

Yes!  It’s a very good book and I want to read the sequel.

5. What was your favorite thing about the book?

Everything!

6. What was your least favorite thing about the book?

Nothing.

7. Anything else that you would like to add?

Peace out. 

There you have it guys!

'B' is 12 years old.  He is in 7th grade and loves to read, play X-Box and play with his little brother. His favorite books are manga, the Wimpy Kids series and the Origami Joda series. 

Guest Post: The Strange Case of Origami Joda

Title: The Strange Case of Origami Yoda by Tom Angleberger
Published: April 1st, 2010 by Amulet Books
Source: Library

In this funny, uncannily wise portrait of the dynamics of a sixth-grade class and of the greatness that sometimes comes in unlikely packages, Dwight, a loser, talks to his classmates via an origami finger puppet of Yoda. If that weren’t strange enough, the puppet is uncannily wise and prescient. Origami Yoda predicts the date of a pop quiz, guesses who stole the classroom Shakespeare bust, and saves a classmate from popularity-crushing embarrassment with some well-timed advice. Dwight’s classmate Tommy wonders how Yoda can be so smart when Dwight himself is so clueless. With contributions from his puzzled classmates, he assembles the case file that forms this novel.

Review by 'B' (11 years old)

In order to encourage my kids to read this summer I promised to put their reviews in my blog.  Hopefully you'll like them and tolerate the proud mama syndrome.  So *roll drums here* this is B's first review:

This is one of the best books I ever read!  It is a combination of case files put together by Tommy to decide if  he should ask Origami Yoda an important question.  It keeps you wondering if he is magical or not.

My favorite character is Tommy because he likes Sara very much and wants to know if she likes him.  I wish there was an Oragami Yoda at my school so I could ask him stuff (I am going to sixth grade in August.)  The more annoying character was Harvey because he didn't believe in Yoda at all and try to make one of his own.  Dwight is just weird, but he doesn't know that he is.

I think that Dwight had a good plan from the beginning and it all works out at the end.  I would recommend this book to other fifth graders like me.  I'll read book two when it comes out.