This summer definitely did not go as I planned. Looking back, I wonder why I imagined I’d have so much more time to do things like create list posts. Ha! Alas, here I am at the end of summer, and instead of a big list of the middle grade books that looked so great, please enjoy a list of the 10 best middle grade books I read from summer 2023.
10 Best Middle Grade Books I Read From Summer 2023
What you need to know: A boy with anxiety forced to spend an unplugged summer with his aunt meets new friends who challenge how he sees himself. This was the first book by Chris Baron that I’ve read, and I can’t wait to read more!
What you need to know: A girl struggling to control her magic may be the only person who can save her twin brother. Full of fun, magic, friendships, and adventure.
What you need to know: In a small town with deep history, a girl with a magical diary must stop a great evil bent on destroying the town. Perfect for the Halloween season.
What you need to know: A twelve-year-old monster hunter battles evil to bring his mother back from the dead. This one surprised me in the best ways. Powerful storytelling and great characters.
What you need to know: Kelcie and her friends race to stop the theft of a magical artifact that protects life in her kingdom. Great for kids interested in a magic school story.
What you need to know: In a world in which dragons are often enslaved, the daughter of a rancher enters a race in order to save their dragon sanctuary. Fans of SKANDAR AND THE UNICORN THIEF would like this one.
What you need to know: When their sister falls into an enchanted sleep, triplets Giles and Rosalind race to save her. The twisty conclusion to the Raven Crown duology.
What you need to know: In an enchanted sleep, Sorceline fights for her life while her classmates unravel the mystery of her origin in hopes of waking her. Beautifully illustrated– a fantastic follow-up to the first book.
What Were Your Favorite Middle Grade Books of Summer 2023?
Did you read any great books over the summer this year? Are there great books I should add to my reading list? What are your new favorites? Did you read any of the books I listed here? Leave a comment and let me know!
This past year, I read 171 titles in exchange for reviews. I also read something like thirty books from my backlist. I did a terrible job keeping track of my backlist reading, something I’m hoping to do better at this year. All that to say that I read just about 200 books, and so many of them were great. It’s really hard to narrow that list down to just the top ten.
What you need to know: A gender-flipped retelling of sleeping beauty where the prince waits for a kiss to wake him, and two fierce, determined treasure hunters will stop at nothing to break his curse. Features a M/F romance and a F/F romance. I LOVED this book. It is, hands down, my favorite of the year.
What you need to know: An icy planet. A race run with sleds and wolves. A girl whose only chance for survival depends on the race. I couldn’t put it down. Fantastic characters. Intense, action-packed story.
What you need to know: An island with a history of unsolved murders. A girl whose best friend and sister were both murdered on the island will stop at nothing to find out why. This book gripped me from the first page to the last. I love the ending. I didn’t at first, but the more I thought about it, the more I loved it for the risk the author took in writing it.
What you need to know: A magic river kept a girl’s family safe in WWII Hungary. Now she must decide whether to finally take her chance to escape to safety or fight for revolution. Oh. My. Gosh. The writing in this book left me aching. The magic. And the revolution. And the characters. I love it.
What you need to know: This has been a great year for me with reading novels in verse, but this one is my favorite of all. I loved the magical Prague setting. The sweet, slow burn romance. It was all beautiful and fantastic.
What you need to know: I don’t know what I expected going into this book, but I was completely blown away. The forest is creepy and the small community feels so real with its prejudices and complex connections. And… ugh Jay. (I loved Winnie and Jay!)
What you need to know: I adore this book with its cat-who-is-not-a-cat and its sentient inn filled with a magic-wielding family. And the boy on his own looking for answers. This was the book I didn’t know I needed.
What you need to know: Anonymous letters lead a girl and a shapeshifting boy/crow on a journey to save their world in a mysterious place called Nowhere. This one totally blew me away. I loved Roda and Ignis so much. I’ve already got Hassan’s debut YA novel which comes out this year on my TBR!
What you need to know: A girl guarded by birds, who’s never left the safe haven of her tree until a sinister force threatens its existence. The story of this one is excellent, but the illustrations are absolutely stunning.
What you need to know: The cover copy calls this one “folksy” and “fresh” and it totally is! I loved the southern feel of the town and characters, and the exploration of identity and magic in this book. I’m super excited to read more by Ash Van Otterloo.
What are your favorite books from 2022?
Take a second and think through the books you read in the last year. What are the best books of 2022 that you read? Tell me below. I would love to know what you read last year.
Did you read any of the books on my list? What did you think of them? Leave a comment and let me know!
I know it’s already almost March, but it’s been a rough go these last few months. I was kind of on a roll there with my lists and if-we-were-having-coffee posts, and then life threw me a pretty big curveball.
So here it is, in all its belated glory. Let me know if you read any of the books on this list, completed the survey on your own blog, or want to talk about your favorites from last year.
**2020 READING STATS**
Number Of Books You Read: 140 Number of Re-Reads: 3 Genre You Read The Most From: YA Fantasy
1. Best Book You Read In 2020?
Ooooh, this is tough. I’m going to break this into age groups.
I felt like THE LOST CITY read a little too much like a guidebook to the story world or that the world building sometimes dominated the story. So, I wasn’t expecting that, and I think I would have enjoyed it a lot more if the story had been more prominent.
I enjoyed CINDERELLA IS DEAD. I thought the concept for the story was really awesome, I think I just got too wrapped up in the hype. Maybe would have appreciated it more if I’d just read if fresh, no expectations?
3. Most surprising (in a good way or bad way) book you read?
THE MONSTER OF MARNMOUTH VALLEY by CJ Greene kind of shattered all my expectations. I loved the characters and found myself “just one more chapter”-ing my way through the whole thing!
4. Book You “Pushed” The Most People To Read (And They Did)?
5. Best series you started in 2020? Best Sequel of 2019? And Best Series Ender of 2020?
Normally I’m horrible about series, but looking over my reading from last year, I actually conquered more series than I thought, including some really big ones.
I love this series with all my heart. It reminds me so much of THE SCORPIO RACES, but for a slightly younger audience. And the relationships between generations are incredible. It’s a fabulous series.
I feel like that’s such a predictable choice, and yet, I think it’s deserved. This book was the one I needed to finish out the year. I longed for it because I wanted more of Elias and Laia’s story, but dreaded it because I knew not everyone would make it out alive, and I knew that was going to be heartbreaking.
6. Favorite new author you discovered in 2020?
I have to list two: Elizabeth Acevedo and Kiersten White.
Both have been writing books for a while, and I have owned books by both for a while. With Acevedo, I read WITH THE FIRE ON HIGH, and was just blown away by how immersive and unique and beautiful the story is.
For some reason I requested THE CAMELOT BETRAYAL on Netgalley. I think I was just gambling to see if I would even be able to get a copy of a book by an author as big as Kiersten White is. When I realized it was a sequel, I decided to read the first book in the series first, and I immediately fell in love with the gender-flipped Merlin/King Arthur story. LOVE!
7. Best book from a genre you don’t typically read/was out of your comfort zone?
8. Most action-packed/thrilling/unputdownable book of the year?
WHERE DREAMS DESCEND by Janella Angeles. I felt completely swept away by this story. The magic, the romance, the danger. I dove in, and just couldn’t stop reading.
9. Book You Read In 2020 That You Would Be MOST Likely To Re-Read Next Year?
1. New favorite book blog/Bookstagram/Youtube channel you discovered in 2020?
I started following Bowties and Books on YouTube early last year, and I love the reviews, and updates, and more than that, I feel like I learn a lot from their takes on bookish world issues. From diversity representation to bookish drama, they always bring wise perspective that I deeply appreciate.
I want to expand my BookTube subscription list, so if you have any suggestions, please share them!
2. Favorite post you wrote in 2020?
My favorite post might be the one that is a list of 26 Asian-Inspired Fantasy books by Asian authors. Initially it was meant to be a reading list to help us get through another delay in the release of the movie Mulan, but after all the conflicts over the movie, maybe it’s really better as an alternative reading list.
3. Favorite bookish related photo you took in 2020?
I love lots of things about this photo. The Jane Austen quote. The colorful book spines. The diversity that the titles represent. The fact that I have all these books somehow, and that many of them came from independent bookstores or through review opportunities from blogging.
I’ve been kicking around this idea of doing a weekly community library in our neighborhood. Maybe load up a book cart or two and wheel them outside. Let the neighborhood kids pick through and borrow what they want and return things when they’re done. It’s still a dream at this point, but I’m hopeful, and this photo is at least partly what inspired me.
What are your best bookish thoughts about 2020?
Did you post a 2020 Bookish Survey? If so, please share the link in the comments! Also tell me if you read any of my favorite books, or which favorites you discovered last year that must be on my reading list.
One of the few good things about this year has been that I’ve ended up with a bit more time to read– and thank goodness, because this year has been an incredible one for finding new favorite books.
This month brings even more fabulous titles packed with romance, humor, explorations on social justice and racial issues, and lush fantasy landscapes. Here are a few of the titles I’m most excited about coming out October 2020.
The Girl of Hawthorn and Glass by Adan Jerreat-Poole
What you need to know: Francie Frye, a reluctant northwoods Nancy Drew tackles her third mystery and hopes to uncover the truth about her mother. Loved it!
What you need to know:Mad Max: Fury Road meets Frozen. (I’m intrigued!) A quest for her missing best friend pairs a girl with a team of unconventional allies.
What you need to know: A girl faces a terrible curse in order to save the lives of those she loves. Magic and alchemy. Sounds perfect for fans of GIVE THE DARK MY LOVE and TO BEST THE BOYS.
What you need to know: A cursed wood encroaching on a peaceful kingdom. A girl who can save it with the help of a pesky fox, a powerful bear, and the magic in her veins. Poston is on my auto-buy list, so I MUST have this one!
Available October 20, 2020
What’s on your October reading list?
Have you read any of the books on my list already? Which books are you looking forward to reading this month?
