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Tag: 2016 middle grade fiction

December 30, 2016 by Betsy Bird

31 Days, 31 Lists: Day 30 – Wonderful 2016 Children’s Novels

No excuses!  These are just the books that I read in 2016 that I thought knocked it out of the park.  These aren’t the “best of the year”.  These are just the books that were particularly good and that somehow crossed my radar.  I read a lot more than what you’ll see here, but I […]

September 27, 2016 by Betsy Bird

Review of the Day: Cloud and Wallfish by Anne Nesbet

Cloud and Wallfish By Anne Nesbet Candlewick Press $16.99 ISBN: 978-0-7636-8803-5 Ages 9-12 On shelves now Historical fiction is boring. Right? That’s the common wisdom on the matter, certainly. Take two characters (interesting), give them a problem (interesting), and set them in the past (BOOOOOORING!). And to be fair, there are a LOT of dull-as-dishwater […]

August 11, 2016 by Betsy Bird

Review of the Day: Ghost by Jason Reynolds

Ghost By Jason Reynolds Atheneum (an imprint of Simon & Schuster) $16.99 ISBN: 978-1-4814-5015-7 Ages 9-12 On shelves August 30th This is a generalization, but in my experience librarians really enjoy reading within their comfort zones. They’ll travel outside of them from time to time but always they return to the books that they like […]

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Review of the Day: The Mighty Odds by Amy Ignatow

July 22, 2016 by Betsy Bird

The Mighty Odds By Amy Ignatow Amulet Books (an imprint of Abrams) $15.95 ISBN: 978-1-4197-1271-5 Ages 10 and up On shelves September 13th If you could have one weird superpower, what would it be? Not a normal one, mind you. We’re not doing a flight vs. invisibility discussion here. The power would have to be […]

Review of the Day: The Inquisitor’s Tale by Adam Gidwitz

July 7, 2016 by Betsy Bird

The Inquisitor’s Tale or, The Three Magical Children and Their Holy Dog By Adam Gidwitz Illuminated by Hatem Aly Dutton Children’s Books (an imprint of Penguin Random House) $17.99 ISBN: 978-0-525-42616-5 Ages 9 and up On shelves September 27th God’s hot this year. To be fair, God has had some fairly strong supporters for quite […]

Review of the Day: The Wild Robot by Peter Brown

June 3, 2016 by Betsy Bird

The Wild Robot By Peter Brown Little, Brown & Company $16.99 ISBN: 978-0-316-38199-4 Ages 9-12 On shelves now There are far fewer robot middle grade books out there than you might expect. This is probably because, as a general rule, robots fall into the Data from Star Trek trap. Their sole purpose in any narrative […]

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Review of the Day: Wolf Hollow by Lauren Wolk

May 6, 2016 by Betsy Bird

Wolf Hollow By Lauren Wolk Dutton Children’s Books (an imprint of Penguin Random House) $16.99 ISBN: 978-1101994825 Ages 10 and up On shelves now. I am not what you might call a very brave reader. This is probably why I primarily consume children’s literature. I might puff myself up with a defense that lists the […]

Review of the Day: Raymie Nightingale by Kate DiCamillo

April 14, 2016 by Betsy Bird

Raymie Nightingale By Kate DiCamillo Candlewick Press $16.99 ISBN: 978-0-7636-8117-3 Ages 9-12 On shelves now My relationship to Kate DiCamillo’s books is one built entirely on meaning. Which is to say, the less emotional and meaningful they are, the better I like ‘em. Spaghetti loving horses and girls that live in tree houses? Right up […]

Review of the Day: The Magic Mirror by Susan Hill Long

February 22, 2016 by Betsy Bird

The Magic Mirror: Concerning a Lonely Princess, a Foundling Girl, a Scheming King, and a Pickpocket Squirrel By Susan Hill Long Knopf (an imprint of Penguin Random House) $16.99 ISBN: 978-0-553-51134-2 Ages 9-12 On shelves May 10th What do you want from a fairy tale? Magic? Romance? Derring-do? Despicable villainy? Academics and scholars have puzzled […]

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