From The Mixed Up Files

Welcome summer! New Releases for a new season. The school year is winding down. Drop the textbooks and pick up a fun read. This list gives you several choices to tuck into your beach bag. Just don’t get any sand in the pages! Camp Sylvania by Julie Murphy. HarperCollins/Balzer and Bray, June 6,  288 pp. Magnolia “Maggie” Hagen is determined to be in the spotlight . . . if she can just get over her stage fright. This summer she has big plans to finally attend Camp Rising Star, the famous performing arts camp she’s...

May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, a time set aside to honor and celebrate the contributions and accomplishments of Americans of Asian and Pacific Islander descent. On March 28, 1979, President Jimmy Carter issued the first presidential proclamation for Asian/Pacific American Heritage Week. In 1990, Congress amended the original designation and expanded the observance to a month. The following year, President George H.W. Bush made it official, and AAPI Heritage received a month-long observance.   In keeping with this year’s theme, “Advancing Leaders Through Opportunity,” there are some amazing AAPI middle-grade authors who are leading the way to a...

In honor of Arab American Heritage month, I wanted to offer a half dozen children’s books that shed a spotlight on Arab Americans as well as an understanding of the Arab world. In particular, the books selected are geared towards elementary school children and focus on various experiences of Arab...

  As we come up on our sixth anniversary of STEM Tuesday (yes – SIX years!) I thought it would be a great time to remind you of the AMAZING authors who make STEM Tuesday possible. The STEM Tuesday blog posts are written by a group of award-winning children’s authors,...

I was so excited when Escape From Grimstone Manor, book one in Matt’s new series Monsterious, showed up at my house. While book mail is always a thrill, this spooky read was high on my list. And of course, Matt did not disappoint. I read it in one sitting! Monsterious...

Merry and marvelous, the month of May! Congratulations to teachers, librarians, and parents of middle graders on the completion of another year of school. To everyone involved with education, amid the final projects, end-of-year grading, and graduation to whatever is next, the end of school brings a chance to reflect...

Welcome summer! New Releases for a new season. The school year is winding down. Drop the textbooks and pick up a fun read. This list gives you several choices to tuck into your beach bag. Just don’t get any sand in the pages! Camp Sylvania by Julie Murphy. HarperCollins/Balzer and...

It’s a commonly held statistic that 97% of people who set out to write a novel never finish it. 97%! I don’t know where the statistic comes from, but as someone who has finished novels (11 of them) and has struggled with every single one, I don’t doubt this statistic...