A Reading Gift Guide for the Middle Graders // Second Edition

Every morning, sometimes as early as 5:30, I hear the squeak of her bedroom door and tiptoe taps up the stairs. She grabs her “upstairs” book (not to be confused with the “downstairs” book she reads at bedtime) and snuggles up with me on the couch. The occasional sighs, gasps, and giggles interrupt the still morning, as well as the inevitable “oh my gosh mom listen to this part,” but mostly we’re quiet, together. It’s my favorite part of the day.

Finding books for this advance reader who is also still an eight year old has not been easy. Finding the right balance between the “baby-ish” books and the “too boy crazy” books can be challenging for us. Adding a pandemic to that mix and limited access to libraries didn’t help either. But it also made for a fun way to hunt for books. When I go in to pick up my library holds, I don’t want to linger in the library. So I make a quick grab and swipe down the book shelves and wait for the book report when she finishes. Some have been misses. But many have been surprise wins which I can only refer to as Book Magic.

I say my favorite part is the morning together. But I think maybe its more than that. It’s watching the way her eyes sparkle when she tells me about a book she is loving. It’s the way she runs up to my bedroom when a book is finished, setting it on my bedside table (somewhere on the mountain of other books), and insists I read this RIGHT NOW! It’s when I notice her curled up under a blanket with a most contented look on her face and I realize I have given her everything she could ever need. I have given her books.

That is more magical than Christmas.

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I am sharing some of Caroline’s favorites from this year in case you have a middle grader in need of new book ideas. You will notice a big theme for her is magic, fairy tales, and friendships. Mystery has also always been a favorite but there were fewer mystery books this year. The bridge between the “too easy” and the “too complicated” is still a tricky one for us. If your middle grader has some favorites, we would love new ideas.

For a complete list, visit my bookshop Favorite Big Kid Books 2020 as well as the Graphic Novels for All Ages. You can also find last year’s favorites here.

Like Magic - I lead with this one because it was one of my magical finds that turned out to be her BEST book of the year. A story of three girls with different backgrounds that all find the same secret book leading them to a surprise friendship. She loved this one so much that it inspired her to start an online book club with a couple friends just so she could talk about it. It is as adorable as it sounds.

Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy - If you love Little Women and you want your children to love it too, give them this book. It reimagines the orignal story as a modern day retelling in the graphic novel style. I adored it as much as Caroline. And she wanted to make sure I say she cried all the way through this book.

Whatever After - Our first venture into the fairy tale remakes. She loves this series but especially enjoys listening to them.

Charmed I’m Sure - She didn’t think she would like this one at first because — eww, boyfriends — but she ended up loving the message about just being ourself. This one sits on my nightstand right now.

Share Your Smile - Raina Telgemeier is a favorite graphic novelists and this is her nonfiction book about how to write your own story. I think I might also need to read this one.

Pashmina - An excellent introduction into immigration and belonging in this multi-award winning graphic novel.

Stargazing - Another graphic novel with a friendship story about growing up Chinese-American. I am trying to be more intentional on providing a wide range of perspectives in my kids’ reading and this is an excellent one for that.

Phoebe and her Unicorn - All you need to know about this graphic novel series is “Unicorn.” And also Caroline still pronounces the name “Pho-bee,” even after I corrected her, and I kind of love it.

Polly Diamond - The back cover of this book read “magical chapter book series about a girl named Polly who loves words and writing stories.” It might as well have been written about Caroline. There are only two in this series so far but we are hope for more.

Missy Piggle Wiggle - Mrs. Piggle Wiggle was a favorite in my house as a child. It was fun to discover this sequel with Mrs. Piggle WIggle’s niece written in a very similar but updated style.

Upside Down Magic - A great series of books for the Harry Potter fans taking place in a school for magic.

Just Add Magic - Caroline has been obsessed with the Amazon Prime show of the same name for a year now and I was excited to find it was a book series first. A great one for the cooking and magic crossover fans.

Shai and Emmie - A very sweet series written by Academy Award-nominated actress Quvenzhané Wallis about two third grade friends with dreams of stardom.

Fairy Mom and Me - This was another surprise find on the shelves that became an instant hit. A girl with a mom as a fairy (aren’t we all, though?)

Misfits - Admittedly, Caroline only just started this series for Royal Academy Rebels but she already loves it. Another fun fairy tale retelling but more advanced than Whatever After.

Flunked - Caroline hasn’t read this Fairy Tale Reform School series yet but it is by the same author as Misfits and the series is another of the fairy tale school kind so I’m sure she will like these too.