Category: MG General

Twelve-year-old BFF’s Ginnie and Tillie, want to be sisters. Tillie’s divorced mom plus Ginnie’s widowed dad could equal a lifetime of round-the-clock girl talk and slumber parties. Too bad Dad vowed to never marry again. Ginnie and Tillie form a secret club. They come up with the perfect mission to change his mind: ‘Operation Secret Sisters’.

Before long, Tillie seems happier about gaining a dad than a sister. Ginnie suspects Tillie has turned ‘Operation Secret Sisters’ into a scam called ‘Operation Steal My Dad.’ Things get more complicated when Ginnie stumbles across her real mom’s hidden journals. Ginnie can finally get to know the mother she doesn’t remember and Dad doesn’t talk about.

When Dad discovers she has the journals, he takes them away. Ginnie needs to figure out what the big mystery is before her relationship with her father and her best friend are ruined forever.

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Title: The Secret Sisters Club

Author: Monique Becheger

Publisher: True West Publishing

Release Date: March 18, 2012

Size: ebook, approx 53,000 words

Genre: Middle Grade

Title: Hashbrown Winters and the Phantom of Pordunce

Author: Frank L. Cole

Publisher: Bonneville (CFI)

Release Date: November 13, 2010

ISBN: 978-1599553986

Size: 128 pages, 5.5×8, softcover

Genre: Middle Grade

Series: The Adventures of Hashbrown Winters (book 1), Hashbrown Winters and the Mashimoto Madness (book 2)

Life at Pordunce is back to normal — well, as normal as ever in the three-ring circus that passes for Hashbrown’s elementary school. But everything changes when a ghostly presence starts roaming the halls. And even worse, Hashbrown’s club may be about to lose one of its founding members. Can Hashbrown save the day?

This snort-worthy, fun-filled roller-coaster ride of a book is guaranteed to get you giggling — assuming you can pry it away from your kids long enough to read it yourself.

Title: The Year Money Grew On Trees

Author: Aaron Hawkins

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children

Release Date: September 6, 2010

ISBN: 978-0547279770

Size: 304 pages, 6×8, hardcover

Genre: Middle Grade (10 & up)

Jackson Jones is surrounded by 300 wild apple trees and he needs to make them grow apples — thousands and thousands of them. He convinces his sisters and cousins to help, but what do they know about pruning, irrigating or fertilizing? How can a group of kids fight killer frost and apple loving insects? And even assuming they can make the apples grow, how can they pick and sell enough of them in time?

With frostbitten fingers, stinking shoes, sunburns, and sore muscles, Jackson and his young crew unexpectantly discover the lost art of winging it — and have a year they will never forget.

With maps and spot illustrations of mechanical equipment and irrigation systems, and mathematical calculations of the great amount of money to be earned, this debut middle-grade novel evokes the adventure and can-do spirit from a time when parents allowed kids to figure things out for themselves.

Title: The Healing Spell

Author: Kimberley Griffiths Little

Publisher: Scholastic

Release Date: July 1, 2010

ISBN: 978-0545165594

Size: 368 pages, 6×8, Paperback

Genre: Middle Grade

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11-year-old Livie has done something bad — something so terrible and so awful that she can’t tell anybody. If her family knew she was the reason that their mamma fell into a coma, they would never forgive her.

Livie and her mamma never really got along. Livie’s a tomboy who prefers going frogging with her dad. Her mamma wanted her to start growing up and becoming a young lady like her two sisters. But Livie’s not like that. She never has been and she never will be.

When Livie’s daddy decides to bring mamma home to recover from the coma, everybody thinks he’s crazy. The nurses and doctors thinks she needs to stay in the hospital, but Livie’s father thinks that if mamma’s at home, she’ll get all the love and care she will need to wake up.

But it’s hard taking care of momma. And it’s going to be even harder once Livie’s older sister, Faye, gets married and moves out of the house. So Livie decides to visit the local traiteur. Some people call them voodoo priestesses, but Livie thinks that the traiteur is the only person who can help cure her mamma of the sleeping sickness. The traiteur gives Livie a recipe for a healing spell, but, in order for it to work, Livie must believe in hope and faith.

Can Livie forgive herself for what she’s done? Can she help cure her mamma and make her family whole again? Read The Healing Spell by Kimberley Griffiths Little. (Jen, Scholastic Booktalker)

Title: The Pirate Bride

Author: Ryan & Anna McKinley

Illustrator: Jerry Bennett

Publisher: Outskirts Press

Release Date: May 19, 2010

ISBN: 978-1432755454

Size: 95 pages, 6×9, softcover

Genre: Middle Grade

This book is not eligible for a Whitney Award.

There is no escape from responsibility…even on vacation.

That doesn’t stop 13 year-old Rachel from trying. A day of surfing, away from all five of her younger brothers, is meant to reward Rachel for all of her hard work at home. Instead, it turns into the greatest adventure of her life.

A wipeout catapults Rachel and her surfboard to a strange part of the ocean, far away from land and her family. Rescue arrives, or so Rachel thinks, in the form of an old sailing vessel. She quickly realizes that her heroes are lost pirates, some of which regard her as a threat, others which believe her to be their own rescuer-The Pirate Bride.

Voyage with Rachel as she applies her experiences with her rowdy brothers to the task of earning the pirates’ trust, at the same realizing that even her unruly siblings aren’t as bad as a ship full of lost pirates.

“The Pirate Bride” is an original story from the imagination of ten year-old Anna McKinley and brought to the page with help from her father, Ryan. Adding to the magic and wonder of the story are beautiful, pencil sketch illustrations by the artist Jerry Bennett.

Title: Palace Beautiful

Author: Sarah DeFord Williams

Publisher: Putnam Juvenile

Release Date: April 15, 2010

ISBN: 978-0399252983

Size: 232 pages, 6×8″, hardcover

Genre: Middle Grade

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When sisters Sadie and Zuzu Brooks move to Salt Lake City, they discover a secret room in the attic of their new house, with a sign that reads “Palace Beautiful” and containing an old journal. Along with their neighbor, dramatic Belladonna Desolation (real name: Kristin Smith), they take turns reading the story of a girl named Helen living during the flu epidemic of 1918. The journal ends with a tragedy that has a scary parallel to Sadie and Zuzu’s lives, and the girls become obsessed with finding out what happened to Helen after the journal ends. Did she survive the flu? Is she still alive somewhere? Or could her ghost be lurking in the nearby graveyard?

Title: Hashbrown Winters and the Mashimoto Madness

Author: Frank L. Cole

Publisher: Bonneville (CFI)

Release Date: January 8, 2010

ISBN: 978-1599553788

Size: 128 pages, 5.5×8, softcover

Genre: Middle Grade

Series: The Adventures of Hashbrown Winters (v1)

All Hashbrown Winters ever wanted was a simple life: a treehouse full of buddies, enough marbles to keep him occupied at recess, and a Brody the Ape-Slayer action figure with authentic ninja throwing stars. But everything changes when Hi Mashimoto starts a rival club and threatens to take Hashbrown’s place as the kid with the coolest treehouse at Pordunce Elementary.

This hilarious follow-up to The Adventures of Hashbrown Winters reunites all your favorite zany characters and introduces plenty of new ones. You’ll never believe the trouble Hashbrown gets into this time.

Frank L. Cole’s Hashbrown Winters and the Mashimoto Madness will have your whole family laughing out loud—it’s a perfect read for pranksters of all ages.

Title: The Adventures of Hash Brown Winters

Author: Frank Cole

Publisher: Bonneville Books

Release Date: June 5, 2009

ISBN: 978-1599553030

Size: 98 pages, 5.5×8.5, softcover

Genre: Middle Grade

There I stood, hiding next to the vending machines, disguised as a potted plant. I brushed the plastic leaves from my face and stared down the hallway toward the front double doors. Snow Cone always said one day this ridiculous costume would come in handy.

Fifteen minutes had passed since the last student left for the buses, but I wasn t about to take any chances. Not with my life hanging in the balance. Leaning forward, I peered around the corner just as the sound of footsteps echoed down the hallway. Was this it? Could this be him? Was I about to be pulverized by Hambone while wearing an emergency disguise I had just pulled from my locker?

Hashbrown Winters and his treehouse club of buddies are well known around Pordunce Elementary, especially after Hashbrown s seminar last year on how to give the best show and tell performances er, presentations. But when Hashbrown accidentally crosses Hambone Oxcart, the death dealer of Pordunce, he ll need more than just the support of his friends to survive Hambone s wrath.

Join Hashbrown, Snow Cone, Whiz, and the rest of the gang in Frank Cole s hilarious debut novel of the trials and tragedies of fifth grade life. The Adventures of Hashbrown Winters will keep kids and parents alike laughing out loud, groaning in sympathy, and turning pages until well past bedtime.

Title: Petronella Saves Nearly Everyone: The Entomological Tales of Augustus T. Percival

Author: Dene Low

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children

Release Date: June 1, 2009

ISBN: 978-0547152509

Size: 208 pages, jardcover

Genre: Middle Grade

You would think Petronella’s sixteenth birthday would be cause for celebration. After all, fashionable friends are arriving at her country estate near London, teas are being served, and her coming out party promises to be a resplendent affair. Everything is falling nicely into place, until, suddenly—it isn’t. For Petronella discovers that her guardian, Uncle Augustus T. Percival, has developed a most unVictorian compulsion: He must eat bugs. Worse still, because he is her guardian, Uncle Augustus is to attend her soiree and his current state will most definitely be an embarrassment.
During the festivities, when Petronella would much rather be sharing pleasantries with handsome Lord James Sinclair (swoon), important guests are disappearing, kidnapping notes are appearing, many of the clues are insects, and Uncle Augustus is surreptitiously devouring evidence. It’s more than one sixteen-year-old girl should have to deal with. But, truth be told, there is far more yet to come . . .

Title: Everything Is Fine

Author: Ann Dee Ellis

Publisher: Little, Brown Young Readers

Release Date: March 1, 2009

ISBN: 978-0316013642

Size: 160 pages, hardcover

Genre: Middle Grade

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Stuck at home caring for her severely depressed mother and abandoned by her father, Mazzy has only the day-to-day dramas of her neighborhood to keep her busy. But between flirting with the boy next door and worrying about the fact that she’s flat-chested, Mazzy has to face the fact that her mom is emotionally paralyzed by a family tragedy. As readers delve into the story, they’ll eventually discover what it was that tore Mazzy’s family apart, and they’ll see what it takes to put it back together.

Despite its serious subject matter, Mazzy brings humor to the trying age of adolescence and gives readers just the kind of awkward, troubled, and endearing character they will gladly embrace.

Title: The Secret Mission (Book of Mormon Sleuth #5)

Author: C.B. Andersen

Publisher: Deseret Book

Release Date: April 2008

ISBN: 978-1590389065

Size: 304 pages, softcover

Genre: Middle Grade

Series: Book of Mormon Sleuth, The Lost Tribe, The Hidden Path, The Forgotten Treasure

Why did a first- edition Book of Mormon wind up in an old Catholic mission in San Diego? What clues does it contain to a mysterious past? And why is Dr. Anthony interested?

Brandon Andrews is having nightmares. Okay, perhaps it would be more accurate to say that Brandon Andrews is having a nightmare, over and over and over again. A chance encounter in a grocery store with a crotchety old man has been taking over Brandon’s nighttime musings. In this dream, the man from the grocery store consistently morphs into Mr. Omni, a man whom Brandon sees as a nemesis from his past.

As Brandon strives to overcome his fears and the sleep deprivation that they are causing, Mr. Andrews calmly announces to the family that the time has come to take their next family vacation. In most families this would be a cause of great excitement and anticipation. Unfortunately, as Brandon says, “My dad is awesome. That said, I know of two areas where he is totally lacking. The first is his ability to show compassion when I am in distress (which is why I hadn’t yet bothered to tell him about my nightmares). The second is that he has absolutely no idea how to do a normal family vacation.”

As most of his children watch him in dread-filled silence, Mr. Andrews explains that he has received a phone call from Mr. Omni. He has requested that the entire family come to stay with him at his cottage for a week in Southern California. As the family will later learn, Mr. Omni has been excavating some ruins and has found an old copy of the Book of Mormon and an old journal that belonged to the catholic priest who lived there in the 1800’s. The priest had received the Book of Mormon as a gift from a member of the Mormon Battalion. These things become the opening clues in a story that will carry the Andrews family in general, Brandon and his brother, Jeff, in particular, through yet another vacation filled with mystery and mayhem.

As the Andrews family seeks out information on the Mormon Battalion, Brandon and Jeff spot the evil Dr. Anthony. They give chase and, for their efforts, are locked in a small filing room at the Mormon Battalion Visitor’s Center. It doesn’t take long for Brandon to connect Dr. Anthony with Mr. Omni, a fact that only increases his horror at being on this vacation.

Title: Pretty Like Us

Author: Carol Lynch Williams

Publisher: Peachtree Publishers

Release Date: October 1, 2008

ISBN: 978-1561454440

Size: 224 pages, hardcover

Genre: Middle Grade

For Beauty McElwrath, the first day of sixth grade in small-town Green River, Florida, proves to be exactly the catastrophe she expected. Beauty is acutely shy, and she s sure she s doomed to be a social outcast for yet another school year. It doesn t help that her mother is dating her teacher!

But then she meets Alane Shriver, a new student who suffers from progeria, a rare, rapid aging disorder. At first Beauty is frightened by her fellow outsider s wrinkled skin, shriveled hands, thick glasses, and tiny, frail body. But fear gives way to curiosity, and Beauty discovers that, on the inside, Alane is just like any other twelve-year-old girl. When a life-threatening event puts the two of them in harm s way, Beauty unexpectedly finds the confidence and inner strength to save Alane.

Title: Jee’s Bones

Author: W. Dave Free

Publisher: Leatherwood Press

Release Date: 2008

ISBN:

Size: 5.5×8″, softcover

Genre: Children

Jeremy, nicknamed Jee, lives on a desert ranch where his family keeps a fledgling shrimp farm. A sharp and savvy kid with a passion for prehistory, Jeremy bursts with excitement when he finds a dinosaur skull in the ranch backcountry. But he and his family soon realize the discovery is more than they bargained for. After being washed with water from a nearby spring the skull transforms into a live ornithomimus, a great ostrich-like dinosaur with yellow eyes, a sharp beak, and an enormous appetite. Fearing that public involvement will harm the creature, which Jeremy names Fuji, the Free family keeps it hidden in a cave on their property. But before long, a meddling professor catches wind of the discovery and demands access to the ranch land. And when this Professor Stutts and his band of armed thugs arrive to take the ranch by force, Jeremy must use all his wits and skills to keep his family and Fuji alive.

Title: Caleb’s Quest

Author: Christopher Esseltine

Publisher: Cedar Fort

Release Date: January 2008

ISBN: 978-1-59955-104-3

Size: 5.5×8.5; 178 pages

Genre: Middle Grade/Teen, Choose your own adventure

Every choice we make puts us on one path or another. Thirteen-year-old Caleb has some tough choices ahead, but he’s not alone — you’re there to guide him! When Caleb’s father is called to go to battle against the Lamanites, Caleb realizes it’s up to him to find his father and get him home safely. Caleb’s father isn’t the only one in danger, though; Caleb will need to be quick, careful, and clever if he wants to succeed in his mission. One wrong choice could mean an end to his adventure — and maybe even his life.

This choose-your-own-adventure begins when you open this book and enter Nephite lands and Book of Mormon times, but only you can decide how it ends!

Title: Make Me a Home

Author: Tamra Norton

Publisher: Cedar Fort

Release Date: January 2008

ISBN: 978-1-59955-113-5

Size: 5×8; 168 pages

Genre: Middle Grade

Allie Claybrook has spent the better part of her sixth-grade year as the “new kid” at Edna Elementary School—a title she is eager to shed. When Ivy Peterson moves to town, Allie quickly becomes her friend. It doesn’t hurt that Ivy’s older brother, Ty, is the best-looking boy in the seventh grade. But it doesn’t help that Celeste—the most popular girl in Allie’s class—shares Allie’s views about Ty. As Allie deals with her father’s deployment to Iraq and Ivy deals with her parents’ divorce, the girls discover the importance of friendship and a place to call home.

Title: Bullies in the Headlights

Author: Matthew Buckley

Publisher: Covenant Communications, Inc.

Release Date: 2007

ISBN: 978-1598113266

Size: 6×9; 196 pages

Genre: Middle Grade Humor

Series: Sequel to Chickens in the Headlights

The Buckley boys are headed back to school for another year. Unfortunately, so are the Hagbarts—and they’re out for revenge. Matthew Buckley and his brothers may have won a single small battle over the summer, but the war is far from over. Luckily, though the Hagbarts may be meaner, the Buckleys are smarter—or were smarter. The sight of Matthew’s underwear at the top of the school flagpole loudly states that the Hagbart bullies are getting expert help from someone quite clever.

Soon the war of wits escalates to an incredible scheme designed to get the ultimate revenge on the Hagbarts. But now that Matthew has been learning that he’s supposed to do good to those who hate him, what will he do when a little push becomes a great big shove?