Category Archives: Middle Grade 8-12

Review: Lion of the Sky by Ritu Hemnani

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Lion of the Sky by Ritu Hemnani

Lion of the Sky
Ritu Hemnani
Balzer + Bray
Published May 7, 2024

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About Lion of the Sky

A historical novel in verse about a boy and his family who are forced to flee their home and become refugees after the British Partition of India.

Twelve-year-old Raj is happiest flying kites with his best friend, Iqbal. As their kites soar, Raj feels free, like his beloved India soon will be, and he can’t wait to celebrate their independence.

But when a British lawyer draws a line across a map, splitting India in two, Raj is thrust into a … Continue reading →

Fall 2024 Backlist Reading Check-In

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Fall 2024 Backlist Reading Check-in

Fall 2024 Backlist Reading Check-In

Normally, I start a post like this at the beginning of the season and add to it as I finish reading each book. That gives me a diary-like record of my experience with each book, which I enjoy looking back at later.

This time, I forgot to start the post and only remembered about it in mid-November when I began making my calendar of list posts for next year. At any rate, I did manage to get my Fall 2024 backlist reading list together, and I’m excited to talk about some of these books.

I somehow managed to get to a lot more backlist titles than I thought I did. My … Continue reading →

Review: The Game of Silence by Louise Erdrich

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The Game of Silence by Louise Erdrich

The Game of Silence (Birchbark House #2)
Louise Erdrich
HarperCollins
Published June 13, 2006

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About The Game of Silence

Winner of the Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction, The Game of Silence is the second novel in the critically acclaimed Birchbark House series by New York Times bestselling author Louise Erdrich.

Her name is Omakayas, or Little Frog, because her first step was a hop, and she lives on an island in Lake Superior. One day in 1850, Omakayas’s island is visited by a group of mysterious people. From them, she learns that the chimookomanag, or white people, want Omakayas and her people … Continue reading →

28 Books Still on My Fall 2024 Reading List

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28 Books Still on My Fall 2024 Reading List

28 Books Still on My Fall 2024 Reading List

What happened to the fall? Is this what a reading slump feels like? These are the questions I’m asking myself this weekend as I finish up this post about my lack of fall 2024 reading and prepare it to go live. Whew. It has been a wild month, y’all.

One of the really terrible things that I’m learning about myself is that when my anxiety level peaks past a certain point, I almost physically cannot read. It’s like my eyes and brain simply do not cooperate. I start the page taking in letters, words, sentences, but within a line or two, I realize I’m … Continue reading →

Review: Rise of the Shadowfire by Jaimal Yogis and Vivian Truong

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Rise of the Shadowfire (City of Dragons 2) by Jaimal Yogis and Vivian Truong

Rise of the Shadowfire (City of Dragons #2)
Jaimal Yogis
Illustrated by Vivian Truong
Graphix
Published October 17, 2023

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About Rise of the Shadowfire (City of Dragons #2)

Grace and friends return for a new adventure in this second installment of the bestselling City of Dragons series!

Ever since the battle in Hong Kong, Grace and her friends have been trying to find a way to get to Paris. When Nate suddenly appears and whisks Grace away to the Dragon King’s lair, she learns that Daijiang and … Continue reading →

Review: Dog Trouble by Kristin Varner

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Dog Trouble by Kristin Varner

Dog Trouble
Kristin Varner
First Second
Published October 29, 2024

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About Dog Trouble

From the author of Horse Trouble comes a graphic novel perfect for fans of PAWS and Allergic!

Ash is a good kid at heart. But his grades are slipping, and when he gets caught vandalizing an old building, it’s the last straw. It’s decided: Ash will spend some time away from the city, at his dad’s place on Ferncliff Island.

It’s bad enough that Ash has no friends on the island (just an annoying little stepsister), but his parents are also making him do community service! He volunteers at the local … Continue reading →