MIDDLE GRADE BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS - my ALL TIME favorite middle grade books

[@jessicaolin4261]

Sparrows and Amazons, The Penderwicks, The Vanderbeekers, Shadow Spinner, Where the Mountain Meets the Moon, I Rode a Horse of Milk White Jade, Red Sails to Capri, Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library, The Prophet, the Shepherd & the Star, Banner in the Sky, Redwall, Song for a Whale....so many I can't list them all. We have Wednesday Wars and The Lost Year on our list to read this year. My 5th grader is reading Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky and really liking it.

[@ChantelReadsAllDay]

This is a great list! We've enjoyed The Penderwicks and The Vanderbeekers in our homeschool and my son loves Mr. Lemoncello's Library!

[@booksmitin]

Echo is such an amazing audiobook! Glad to hear you loved it too!

[@leighdanielle]

Omg all these sound so good! My daughter is high functioning autistic and she will love these! She is obsessed w dogs and reads books w verse better than other books

[@MargaretM.]

Thank you so much for this, Chantel! I now have many more books to add to my list! I enjoy reading middle grade, especially to my two little sisters who are much younger than me. I am looking forward to reading these new additions to them! For middle grade, I love the Keeper of the Lost Cities series, as well as the Wonder stories by R.J. Palacio: Wonder, Auggie and Me, and White Bird!! ALL of these are still so good after all of these years!

[@capturedbyannamarie]

My daughter read echo and loved it after your previous recommendation.

[@ChantelReadsAllDay]

Oh yay!

[@tammyd4208]

This was a wonderful list, added a few. I really enjoyed Closer to Nowhere because of how each character grew so much within the story.

[@ChantelReadsAllDay]

Yesss!

[@BookLoverAmanda]

Rain Reign is also the book that had me fall in love with Middle Grade. Relatable for me with my autistic son💙

[@ChantelReadsAllDay]

I love that!

[@katiemcneece9291]

Favorites: Nowhere Boy by Katherine Marsh (fits refugee prompt for MGM), Amber and Clay by Laura Amy Schlitz, the Silver Arrow duology by Lev Grossman, the City Spies series by James Ponti, the Logan family saga by Mildred D. Taylor. Classic favorites are Treasure Island, wind in the Willows, and Little Women.

[@ChantelReadsAllDay]

The City Spies series is sitting on my shelf waiting for Middle Grade March, glad to hear you enjoyed it!

[@BookLoverAmanda]

I have Echo on my Middle Grade March TBR this year! Fits the prompt for one word title ❤

[@melodieferrin3196]

I’ve read Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus and I loved it! I’m excited to read the sequel someday.

[@ChantelReadsAllDay]

I hope you enjoy the sequel too!

[@leighdanielle]

Omg Lone wolf! How amazing! You should be so proud!! I just purchased it!

[@ChantelReadsAllDay]

Thanks so much for supporting her!

[@leighdanielle]

@@ChantelReadsAllDay absolutely!! I know if we lived closer my daughters would love to meet her

[@happynewmom]

I’d love more information on how you helped your daughter publish a book! Well done!

[@pamelamcarthur5131]

Thank you so much for the recommendations! I added all that I haven't read to my want to read list! I'm looking forward to reading your daughter's book!!!

[@debra9916]

Some middle grade books that my students love are The Wild Robot series, The One and Only Ivan, The One and Only Ruby, Walks Two Moons, Julie of the Wolves, Crenshaw and The Witches.

[@ChantelReadsAllDay]

That's a great list! I have enjoyed The Wild Robot, The One and Only Ivan, Crenshaw and The Witches as well! Walk Two Moons I have an unpopular opinion and strongly disliked but I know most people like it!

[@laurinpatton]

Thank you so much for sharing! I’m searching for a middle school literature option that can change my reluctant reader’s opinion on books. I came across your channel via this post and am excited to share these recommendations.

[@Amethyst678]

Oh I knew your daughter had written some books but I didn’t realise she had published one of them. I’m so happy it was available in the UK and I’m looking forward to reading it 😊

[@ChautonaHavig]

Favorite middle grade... wow. That's tough. I agree with several of yours. Lone Wolf made it into Clock Tower Bound because I loved it so much. The Lost Library was a definite YES last year. Not everyone loves it like I do but I just loved seeing older kids being nice to younger kids, a kid obeying despite his parents being obviously ridiculous about things, parents and kids having a good relationship... and that cat! Mortimer. He was HILARIOUS! If you can make me love a cat, you've done something. I loved Nothing Else but Miracles by Kate Albus, too. I am torn about which I like better. I think the thing is that Miracles is probably a better book, but Moon has that whimsical nostalgia that comes when a book connects to something you love so much (like Narnia). Moon gave me A Tree Grows in Brooklyn vibes, and seeing some of the criticisms got my hackles up because that book is so realistic to the time and everything that I want to go to bat for it. All time favorites? Definitely: The Melendy books by Elizabeth Enright. Oh, who am I kidding? Anything by Elizabeth Enright. Understood Betsy Obviously Narnia... The Secret Garden and The Little Princess Gerald Morris' The Squires Tales. Oh, goodness. I'll be here all day. You get the picture...

[@ChantelReadsAllDay]

Ooh, I obviously haven't gotten that far into Clock Tower Bound yet! I want to read The Lost Library and Nothing Else but Miracles this year.

[@juner1064]

So many of these are on my favorite middle grade of all time list too!! So many great ones! My favorites from last year that you didn’t mention are The Girl who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill, Catepillar summer by Gillian McDunn, the second Myrtle Hardcastle book and Nothing Else but Miracles by Kate Albus.

[@paperbacksandponytails]

I loved A Night Divided, I even got my dad to read it. And I have Echo on my tbr for Middle Grade March.

[@Readingindarknesss]

A night divided sounds great! I have a Ton of this woman’s books on my tbr and haven’t read any!! It’s bad.

[@LifeBetweenWords1]

I still haven’t read Just Like That-although I will! I love Gary’s books. My brother went to Calvin College, where Gary is a professor, and took classes from him. While he was there Gary’s wife died, and I think that grief has informed some of his books. I’m sure that’s one reason he made that choice in JLT. I didn’t know that Holling died though, that makes me sad. 😢

[@ChantelReadsAllDay]

Interestingly, there are at least three books of his where people die in car crashes, it's a bit of a theme with him! That's really cool that your brother took classes from him!

[@LifeBetweenWords1]

@@ChantelReadsAllDay yes! Grief is a consistent theme in his books for sure!

[@starlasell5698]

❤📚❤️ Sweep... was one of my favorite middle grades last year. I can't wait for middle grade March, although I read them year round. 😃 I'll be adding some of these to my list. Thanks!

[@ChantelReadsAllDay]

I usually binge middle grade in March and then need a few months of a break because of the excessiveness of March, haha.

[@starlasell5698]

@@ChantelReadsAllDay Hehehe, true that!

[@amyofhearthridge]

Wednesday Wars and Okay for Now are SO good 😭😭😭😭 I can’t wait to read Hercules Beale!

[@susanfryman5156]

Very helpful as always.

[@Readingindarknesss]

Echo sounds great! I’ve been hearing about it for years and have yet to read it.

[@BookLoverAmanda]

I love that your 12 year old wrote a book! How AMAZING!❤

[@ChantelReadsAllDay]

I'm so proud of her!

[@jessn1017]

So I just went to add A Place To Hang The Moon to my wish list and discovered it is currently included free with an Audible membership. Not sure how the audiobook is on that one, but if you're a member of Audible, take advantage! I just added it to my library.

[@ChantelReadsAllDay]

Oh nice! I bought the audiobook when we listened to it a year or so ago but hopefully more people will listen to it now!

[@AshleasBookshelf]

Recent favorites not on your list: The Lost Library by Wendy Mass and Rebecca Stead and A Dragon's Guide to the Care and Feeding of Humans by Laurence Yep.

[@ChantelReadsAllDay]

I need to get my hands on The Lost Library, I really enjoyed Bob by them and A Dragon's Guide to the Care and Feeding of Humans just sounds great!

[@rubeuspotter719]

My favorite middle grade books are the Harry Potter series, and the inheritance cycle(some might correct me on the age, but this series is more or less based on reading level not age proximity)

[@ChantelReadsAllDay]

I've definitely heard The Inheritance Cycle grouped as both middle grade and YA, I've only read the first book in the series but I could see how it could fit in either category.

[@rubeuspotter719]

@@ChantelReadsAllDay well if you don’t care for the series don’t watch the movie. While I find it enjoyable, it just doesn’t hold a candle to the books.

[@sandra3616]

I wrote a comment, but I don't see it. (I was trying to figure out which books I noted in it.) So I'll rewrite it, inasmuch as I can remember it. A Place to Hang the Moon and Wednesday Wars are two that have been on my radar for a while. You have already heard some of what I thought about Lone Wolf, but I think that one of the strengths of it is that Raeca hit a sweet spot with the characterization and story line. Hugo was a likeable kid and it wasn't a horror story. (I know there are many many horror stories that emerge from the foster care system, but there are also some good situations that come out of bad situations and some good kids and kind people.) What can I say? I'm a fan!

[@ChantelReadsAllDay]

Thanks for being such an encourager, Sandy!

[@elisabethprice4697]

Have you ever heard of the Wingfeather Saga? It’s my favorite middle grade!

[@ChantelReadsAllDay]

Yes, we have read the entire series, it's great!

[@insearchofwonder]

Thanks for your! I airways need recommendations for MGM because i don't read a lot of middle grade.

[@BookLoverAmanda]

Want to read Sweep sometime!

[@ChantelReadsAllDay]

It's so good!

[@chelseyreads]

wow, your 12 year old daughter wrote a book, that is amazing!

[@ChantelReadsAllDay]

Thanks, I'm proud of her!

[@landlockedwy4603]

It’s an old book, but one of my favorites: Daphne’s Book by Mary Downing Hahn

[@Thecatladybooknook_PennyD]

❤

[@Stury_Khan]

Thanks for this video. Best wishes from Pakistan 🇵🇰

[@priscillashaw5715]

Does the lost year talk lots about vaccines? I was very dissapointed with wrecked by carl somrthing. Just felt like proganada instead of a good read. Im hoping this book doesnt have that feel.