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Diversity in MG Lit #54: Jan & Feb 2026

By on February 18, 2026   /   Articles  
Here are seven titles from January and February, curated by Rosanne Parry, by diverse authors. Watch for in-depth interviews with several of the authors in the months ahead!

Hail Mariam

Hail Mariam by Huda Al-Marashi
Often in a MG book when the character belongs to a faith community the book centers the cultural aspects of that religion–the holidays, the cultural practices, the historical hardships. Here is a rare book which delves into Mariam’s actual experience of faith, her prayer life, consolation, and discernment. And its explores the interfaith experiences of a Muslim girl attending a Catholic school. (A more common experience than you might think. In my parents Catholic schools about a third of the student body was Jewish. My local Catholic high school had a Muslim student body president last year. It’s student body is a third religions other than Catholicism and a third students with no religious affiliation.) It’s refreshing to see religion addressed with such care and authenticity. Mariam’s thoughtfulness and moral courage as she navigates the new school and her sister’s illness makes for an appealing read.

Mythspeaker

Mythspeaker by Christopher Roubique
Roubique is an indigenous person, not enrolled in a tribe, who has written a work of fantasy inspired by the indigenous cultures of North America. This debut novel a sweeping adventure featuring a daring heist, a band of misfits and many magical creatures. I think it would appeal to the fans of Rick Riorden.

Goodbye, French Fry

Goodbye, French Fry by Rin-Rin Yu
Ping-Ping is a Chinese American. Like many two culture kids she feels not American enough for her school friends and not Chinese enough for her parents. But she does find physical, emotional, and social strength in the practice of taekwondo and in her piano lessons.

The Last Resort Books

This is the second in a new series, the first was The Last Resort by Erin Entrada Kelly. They are mystery puzzle stories with an interactive virtual element. Readers use their phone to see the pictures come to life and interact with the ghosts in the book to solve an additional mystery. It’s an exciting concept and I’m eager to see if readers at our bookstore respond.

A Year Without Home

A Year Without Home by V.T. Bidania
Set in Laos at the end of the Vietnam War, Bidania has written an ambitious tale spanning years and hundreds of miles from wartime Laos to the refugee camps of Thailand. The use of verse keeps the story accessible, emotionally vivid, and fast moving.

Hattie Mae Begins Again

Hattie Mae Begins Again by Sharon G. Flake
A novel in verse set in the Great Migration of the 1930s when many African American families moved from the rural south to cities in the north. Hattie Mae’s is new to Philadelphia and finding both new friends and new ambitions.

Nadia Islam, On the Record

Nadia Islam, On the Record, words by Adiba Jaigirdar art by Avani Dwivedi
Nadia is a student journalist, a growing environmental activist, and a celebrating her first Ramadan when she will fast just like the other grown ups. And then her family decides to go to visit relatives in Bangladesh for the whole month of Ramadan. Trepidation becomes opportunity as Nadia finds an opportunity to report on environmental issues abroad.
This is only a small sample of the diverse books published in the last two months. Please add any Rosanne missed in the comments.
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STEM Tuesday– Chemistry– Writing Tips & Resources

By on February 17, 2026   /   Chemistry, STEM Tuesday  

Chemistry Love & The Power of (Word) Attraction

February

Can the month of love be the perfect month for a STEM Tuesday post on chemistry? 

Yes, it can. 

Love = Attraction

Chemistry = Attraction 

Chemistry = Love!

Creating a STEM-themed piece of writing or any other creative endeavor that readers love means creating an attraction, or chemistry, with the reader. Sound simple enough, right? But as we all find out one way or the other, creativity, like relationships, is anything but simple. 

So, how can we use chemistry to become more effective creators? Chemistry, in a nutshell, is the study of matter and how matter interacts. By knowing how our own creative matter interacts, we can create more satisfying work.

 

La Sorbonne. Amphithéâtre de chimie. CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Building better bonds

Chemistry is dependent on the bonds formed between atoms. The quantum attractions and repulsions between atoms hold matter together in an almost infinite number of possible configurations. Different atoms form unique substances. The unique substances, for example, sodium and chloride, that react to form table salt, interact to form new substances, themselves unique in their properties.

Writing is a form of chemistry. Letters are our atoms. The way we combine letters in an almost quantum attraction binds the formation of a word. Words combine to form an idea. The ideas become sentences. Sentences become paragraphs. Paragraphs become chapters. Chapters become entire books. The possibilities are infinite!

We become better writers and creators when we learn the best ways to combine words to create the best chemistry with the reader. This is done by practice. It’s done by experimentation. Trying new and different words and combinations, tinkering with the order and meaning to produce the desired chemistry. Just as with the chemist, the process consists of trial and error. Scribbles, brainstorms, and notes become an outline. An outline becomes a draft. The draft is chisled, honed, and polished to a finished piece as we refine the chemical attractions and repulsions of different word combinations.

However, almost every novice or student chemist discovers early on that sometimes (often in my own personal case) the chemistry experiment fails. Sometimes it blows up. Sometimes it yields a stinky mass of goo that clears the laboratory and causes a visit by the local hazmat team. Sometimes it just fizzles out in utter defeat.

Writers experience much of the same with almost every first draft we create. It’s not just a novice creator thing either; it’s part of the process for every piece. And, just as the chemist needs to clean up the mess, analyze what went wrong, and plan for a different (and hopefully more positive) outcome with the next trial, the writer uses the first draft as a springboard to better things. 

The Chemical Attraction!

Writers need to find the chemistry with the reader. They need to create the attraction that keeps the eyes on the page and the reader’s boots on the story world’s ground. One learns how to use the words, sentences, and paragraphs to create an attraction that hooks the reader and then forms a strong bond to keep them reading.

In this STEM Tuesday month of February, use your time to brush up and reboot your writing and creativity by examining the chemistry in your work. Build better results by building better words, sentences, and paragraphs. When a creator uses their words with the right touch of chemistry, they create attraction to their ideas, and they might find they attract new ideas and new readers. 

Be inspired by the month of love and the somewhat questionable holiday of Valentine’s Day to create work where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. 

 

Mike Hays has worked hard from a young age to be a well-rounded individual. A well-rounded, equal-opportunity sports enthusiast, that is. If they keep a score, he’ll either watch it, play it, or coach it. A molecular microbiologist by day, middle-grade author, sports coach, and general good citizen by night, he blogs about sports/life/training-related topics at www.coachhays.com and writer stuff at www.mikehaysbooks.com. Two of his science essays, The Science of Jurassic Park and Zombie Microbiology 101,  are included in the Putting the Science in Fiction collection from Writer’s Digest Books. He can be found roaming Bluesky under the guise of @mikehays64.bsky.social and @MikeHays64 on Instagram.

 

The O.O.L.F Files

This month on the Out Of Left Field (O.O.L.F.) Files, we dig deeper into the chemistry and writing connection with a dive into chemical bonding, chemical education, technical chemistry writing, and some chemistry jokes, because we all know how funny chemistry can be, right? If you doubt it, take a look at my chemistry grades in school. Now those were funny!

 

  • Atomic Hook-Ups – Types of Chemical Bonds: Crash Course Chemistry #22

 

 

 

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Mixed-Up Member Spotlight: Patricia Bailey

By on February 16, 2026   /   Author Interviews  

It’s always a joy to shine a spotlight one of our Mixed-Up Files members – this time with accomplished author Patricia Bailey, whose contributions to the blog are much appreciated! Check out our interview below, pick up a copy of her stellar book, and browse Patricia’s Mixed-Up posts. Thank you, Patricia!

Patricia Bailey headshot

Welcome to the Member Spotlight, Patricia! Where did your interest in writing Middle Grade first take shape, and how did that lead you to being involved with From the Mixed-Up Files…?

I was a middle and high school teacher for years and wrote with students the entire time. I eventually realized that the pieces I wrote that had a young protagonist were the ones I had the most fun with. So, when I decided to see if I could write a novel, middle grade was it! I was a big fan of From the Mixed-Up Files when I was teaching, and was beyond thrilled when they accepted me as a member.

Your multiple award-winning novel, THE TRAGICALLY TRUE ADVENTURES OF KIT DONOVAN, blends action with deeper emotional elements like grief and self-identity. What drove you to write this story, and how did you weave these elements together to create such a compelling tale?

KIT came to me on a road trip that took me through Goldfield, Nevada, a small town on US Route 95 between Reno and Las Vegas. I ended up chatting with the owner of a rock/antique shop there. He filled me in on the history of the town and the interesting people who had lived there when it was booming. For some reason, I just couldn’t let the place go. Then the character of Kit came to me and I just started writing. Once I started writing, the idea of redemption through a child’s eyes really took hold of me. I think at some level we’re all still nine year’s old – trying to figure out how to love others and still love ourselves – and how to make up for the harms we cause along the way. Being human is tough work. Perhaps recognizing shades of our struggle in the lives of other people – even fictional ones – will help us all be a little bit more compassionate.

Book Cover:

The Tragically True Adventures of Kit Donovan

Your website lists a lot of the active things you do – from hiking to rafting to even having a black belt in aikido. Do these activities inspire your writing, or are they a respite from it (or somewhere in between)?

I think that everything you do somehow seeds the writing – even if you don’t recognize it at the time. Right now I am pretty deep in to caregiving the people I love. I imagine that is seeping in when I actually find time to write now, and I imagine it will influence the work I do in the future.

Some of the favorite books you list from your childhood include the catalogs of Beverly Cleary and Judy Blume, among others. How have those authors in particular inspired and influenced you as a writer?

I think for the most part the books you read as kids help you see yourself better. Judy Blume’s Tiger Eyes was the book that made me feel less alone when my dad died when I was nine. Though the circumstances were vastly different, Davey felt like a big sister, leading me through some of the grief and letting me know that some of my reactions weren’t as weird as I thought – because she did them (or something like them) too. Eventually, I realized that the writers that I admired were just ordinary people who wrote – not magical, mythical creatures – and that with hard work and persistence I might actually become one too.

What’s the most recent book you’ve read that gave you a similar feeling as reading those early books?

I adored The Labors of Hercules Beal by Gary Schmidt and Kate DiCamillo’s The Beatryce Prophecy. I would have devoured them as a kid.

What are you working on now that’s keeping you creatively engaged?

I’ve been working on a new middle grade cotemporary for some time, now. I’m also writing some bad poetry – which helps with the writing, since it rattles my inner perfectionist a little bit.

Thank you for your time! Where can we find you and inquire about things like school visits and what’s coming next?

My website:  www.patriciabaileyauthor.com is probably the best place. I’m pretty hit and miss on socials, but you can find me at:  @patriciabailey_author on Instagram and @pbailey.bsky.social

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