Summer can be an exciting season, inviting more time with friends and family, campouts under the stars, or fun-filled travel plans. However, the break in predictable school-centered schedules can also invite big changes! For me growing up, summers often meant relocation and new schools, for others it can bring big shifts in friendships or new family dynamics. Follow the kids in these five middle grade novels, as they navigate tricky summers when everything for them changes.
Why it matters: Low key, vacation-centric summers are pleasant, but some kids face a different kind of “heat” during their break from school. These stories may help a challenging summer feel less isolating.
Go Deeper: For readers seeking emotionally touching summer reads that won’t fade like tan lines, these five middle grade novels are bound to stick.
Read Time: 4 Minutes
“The Firefly Summer” (2023) by Morgan Matson
Summary:
Ryanna spends the summer with her mother’s estranged family in the Blue Ridge Mountains, where she meets relatives she barely knows and begins uncovering family secrets. What starts as an unfamiliar summer becomes a journey of discovering where she belongs and what family really means.
Perfect for: readers navigating family changes, blended families, and searching for belonging.
“Ferris” (2024) by Kate DiCamillo
Summary:
Ferris Wilkey’s summer is turned upside down when her grandmother claims to see a ghost, her family is dealing with personal struggles, and everything feels slightly out of control. Through the chaos, Ferris learns more about her family, herself, and the complicated emotions that come with growing up.
Perfect for: readers looking for a funny, heartfelt story about family and change.
“Ruptured” (2023) by Joanne Rossmassler Fritz
Summary:
During a summer vacation in Florida, Claire’s family is shaken when her mother experiences a medical emergency that changes the entire trip. Claire has to navigate fear, uncertainty, and the reality that sometimes one moment can change everything.
Perfect for: readers navigating a family crisis or searching for resilience, and lovers of novels in verse or deeply emotional stories.
“Summer at Squee” (2024) by Andrea Wang
Summary:
Phoenny Fang returns to Squee, a Chinese cultural summer camp, expecting another perfect summer with her friends, but things quickly change when friendships shift and new challenges emerge. As she navigates camp life, identity, and expectations, Phoenny learns that growing up means adapting to change.
Perfect for: readers experiencing friendship changes, identity questions, or who love a good summer camp adventure.
“The Braid Girls” (2023) by Sherri Winston
Summary:
Best friends Maggie and Lena spend the summer building a braiding business while balancing friendship, family expectations, and their dreams for the future. As their business grows, they learn that growing up means figuring out who you are and what kind of friend you want to be.
Perfect for: readers who enjoy friendship-focused stories, have an eye for creativity, or want to see characters exploring entrepreneurship.
In Closing:
When summer brings unexpected challenges or new beginnings, these five stories remind readers that not only can change be the start of something meaningful, but they are certainly not alone.
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Happy to see a debut MG book from acclaimed Cherokee author Brandon Hobson, The Storyteller. Ziggy is already dealing with anxiety and the disappearance of his mother only makes things worse. In a search for answers about where his mother (and so many other Native women) have gone Ziggy is drawn to a nearby cave and the story tradition of the Cherokee for answers. (Scholastic Press, 4/18/23)
Books about neurodivergent girls are few and far between. I was thrilled to find Good Different by 
Two graphic novels caught my eye this month, both with Asian-American protagonists. Squished by Megan Wagner Lloyd and Michelle Mee Nutter is about the second oldest daughter finding some autonomy and space to make her art in a family of seven siblings. A large family is its own culture beyond race and ethnicity. I belong to a big family and found lots of scenes here that resonated. (Graphix 3/7/23) Parachute Kids by Betty C Tang is about being left in America with siblings or relatives while parents remain behind in an Asian country. (Graphix 4/4/23)
Two stories about African-American athletes will appeal to sports fans. Colin Kaepernick Change the Game by Eve L Ewing and Orlando Caicedo is a graphic novel (Graphix 3/7/23). Track and field fans will devour the story of national champion, world champion, and four time Olympian, Chanunté Lowe in her debut MG biography Boundless. (Scholastic focus 3/7/23)
And finally there are four notable additions to the genre of MG protagonist meets magical creatures and discovers hidden powers. They are Once There Was by Kiyash Monsef (S&S 4/423), Momo Arashima Steals the Sword of the Wind (Labyrinth Road RH 4/4/23), Hamara and the Jungle of Memories by Hanna Alkaf (HC 3/28/23), and The Scroll of Chaos by Elie Chapman (Scholastic Press 3/7/23)