Posts Tagged middle grade books

The Middle Grade Slump

kid with book

Storm clouds have gathered over the land of middle grade literature, and the forecast is uncertain. Referring to 2023 sales, consumer behavior advisor Circana reports thatSales of books for children ages 8-11 are posting the steepest year over year declines within the children’s book market in the U.S.”

But haven’t print sales decreased overall? Yes, print sales were down 3% in 2023. However, sales of middle grade books declined by 10%. And that came on the heels of 2022, which saw its own steep decline in the middle grade market. The middle grade market is in a slump.

There’s a lot of speculation about the cause of this downward trend. There are supply chain issues, the cost of paper, and increasing book prices to take into account. But there isn’t one factor alone that has produced the current state of affairs. It’s a combination of factors that have joined forces to create the perfect storm.

 

Pandemic Effects

Event cancellations and supply chain issues caused a major disruption during the pandemic, and these issues have not completely resolved themselves. Increasing book costs and unstable profit margins are a direct result of this continuing recovery.

pandemic earth in mask

Another pandemic effect could be the widespread learning loss attributed to school closures. According to Education Week, “Analyses of student test scores have repeatedly shown severe declines in academic achievement.” These gaps in learning form a compounding deficit, especially in reading.

However, in a recent issue of Publishers Weekly, Circana BookScan books analyst Karen McLean notes that the decline in children’s book sales “is really a return to 2019 levels, before the pandemic led to a jump in children’s sales.” It may be reasonable to suggest that a surge in sales during the early part of the pandemic has skewed trends and statistics in the years since 2020. 

 

Book Challenges

Book challenges and book bans have certainly affected the middle grade market. School Library Journal reports that school librarians were “more likely to avoid buying books or to remove titles from collections because of their content” in 2023. This certainly affects sales, but in a larger and more concerning context, it affects readership.

Trying to avoid conflict, some school libraries have severely limited students’ access to circulation, placing restrictions on students’ ability to check books out. Many teachers have eliminated classroom libraries altogether, and still others have opted out of reading aloud to students.

School library book crates

Book challenges have created a threatening environment. For many school personnel, it’s just not worth the hassle to provide books for students. Sadly, the trend resulting from book challenges is contributing to a declining interest in reading among students.

In Publishers Weekly’s Spring 2024 Children’s Preview, Molly Ker Hawn of the Bent Agency says, “The drop in school and library sales, thanks to book challenges and restrictive local and state-level legislation, makes me really concerned about the whole middle grade ecosystem.”

 

The Changing Landscape of Literature

School Library Journal’s Teen Librarian Toolbox (TLT) suggests that trends in middle grade books may be causing some readers to pause. One trend they note is that middle grade novels are aging up, with the typical middle grade protagonist now being 12 or 13. 

Additionally, TLT points out that middle grade novels “are growing increasingly longer, which can be a real hindrance to many readers. We don’t need all the books to be shorter, but we need more shorter books to be an option.”

 

The popularity of graphic novels among this age group should be an indication that many students are averse to hundreds of pages of solid text. Perhaps the formula for the next break-out middle grade hit will find its success in an innovative format.

 

What’s Working

We’ve heard the grim news. Let’s talk about what’s working in middle grade. Graphic novels continue to top the sales charts, especially when they are products of series. While this format initially struggled to achieve legitimacy among many adult gatekeepers, it has proven itself to be an effective port of entry for budding book enthusiasts.

We see consistency in the popularity of books by authors like Dav Pilkey, Jeff Kinney, and Raina Telgemeier, but there’s another trend in graphic novels that deserves some attention. According to Publishers Weekly, adaptations are driving the market. Many backlist books are seeing a resurgence in popularity because they have been adapted into graphic novels.

The Baby-Sitters Club

Ann M. Martin’s Baby-Sitters Club chapter books have been adapted into graphic novels, and guess what? The original chapter books have seen a new surge in popularity. The same is true of Mary Pope Osborne’s Magic Tree House books.

Lemoncello's Library Graphic adaptation cover

Following suit, you can now find graphic adaptations of Chris Grabenstein’s Escape From Mr. Lemoncello’s Library and Paula Danziger’s Amber Brown series. Based on the track record of adaptations, we may see a resurgence in the popularity of these backlist titles.

 

Looking Ahead

Will the storm clouds continue to gather over the land of middle grade? Or will the sun break through and usher in the dawn of a brand new day? Time will tell. Given this uncertain forecast, what should middle grade authors do?

Authors, of course, should keep writing. Stories are derived from passion and creativity. They are crafted through revision and feedback. And they are always born with an uncertain future. 

Every creative act is a risk taken by the creator. Whether that creation finds success in the market or not, it is a personal triumph for the author who has turned a solitary, irresistible idea into a gift to share with the world. The great hope to which we can all cling is that middle grade readers will soon rediscover the joy of books. 

From the Mixed-Up Files Gets Recognized for Dedication to Diverse Books

Wndmg logo

Are you looking for some good news to cheer about? Well, here you go: From the Mixed-Up Files of Middle Grade Authors is receiving some love!

What’s this about?

We all know that there are many reasons to love the Mixed-Up Files, and one big reason is our effort to put a spotlight on diverse books. Just check out our WNDMG Wednesday blog posts!

Well, it turns out a lot of people have been noticing our dedication to diverse books, and our blog is getting some love from Feedspot. Feedspot chose Mixed-Up Files as one of the 80 Best Diverse Book Blogs and Websites for 2024! That’s something to celebrate!

Here’s what Feedspot has to say about us: “Read special intros, summaries, and extracts from books and novels that revolve around the theme of Diversity and Inclusion. From the Mixed-Up Files of Middle-Grade Authors is a team of writers and readers of middle-grade books, and their goal is to celebrate and generate enthusiasm about books for 8-12-year-olds.”

 

So, what is Feedspot, you might ask?

Feedspot is a content reader that can help you keep up with multiple websites all in one place. That way, you don’t have to visit each website separately to find out what’s new. With this recognition, Feedspot acknowledges the contribution of websites and blogs that recognize the importance of putting more books with diverse characters in the hands of children.  

The goal of this list is to recognize and bring more traffic to websites and blogs that are dedicated to the promotion and growth of inclusive literature. In addition to From the Mixed-Up Files, their list of 80 websites and blogs includes standouts like the Lee and Low Books blog, Multicultural Kid Blogs, and KidLit TV.

 

Why is this important?

You know the saying: Energy flows where attention goes. Publishers Weekly recently reported findings from the University of Wisconsin’s Cooperative Children’s Book Center (CCBC) regarding diversity in children’s books. The good new is that “the number of books received by the CCBC that have BIPOC authors, illustrators, or compilers has tripled since 2015.” They expect this trend to continue with BIPOC representation and to expand to a broader range identities, including differing abilities, LGBTQ+, and religious diversity.

 As you’ll find on our WNDMG page, our mission is to “celebrate and promote diversity in middle-grade books, and we examine the issues preventing better equity and inclusion on the middle-grade bookshelf. We intend to amplify and honor all diverse voices.” If you’re like us, and you have a passion for making sure that all children see themselves represented in books, check out Feedspot’s 80 Best Diverse Book Blogs and Websites and make sure to follow From the Mixed-Up Files of Middle Grade Authors!

Looking for Luck in All the Write Places

Hope you’re feeling lucky this St. Patrick’s Day week. In case you’re looking for good fortune, check out some of these middle-grade books with the work “luck” in the title.

Hard Luck

Written and illustrated by Jeff Kinney
Book #8 in the Diary of a Wimpy Kid Series
Greg Heffley’s on a losing streak. His best friend, Rowley Jefferson, has ditched him, and finding new friends in middle school is proving to be a tough task. To change his fortunes, Greg decides to take a leap of faith and turn his decisions over to chance. Will a roll of the dice turn things around, or is Greg’s life destined to be just another hard-luck story?

Mary Anne’s Bad Luck Mystery

Written by Ann M. Martin
Book #17 in the The Baby-Sitters Club Series
Mary Anne should never have thrown away that chain letter she got in the mail. Ever since she did, bad things have been happening-to everybody in the Baby-sitters Club. With Halloween coming up, Mary Anne’s even more worried-what kind of spooky thing will happen next? Then Mary Anne finds a new note in her mailbox: Wear this bad-luck charm, it says. OR ELSE. Mary Anne’s got to do what the note says. But who sent the charm? And why did this person send it to Mary Anne? If the Baby-sitters don’t solve this mystery soon, their bad luck might never stop!

Lucky Strike

Written by Bobbie Pyron
A rich, southern voice tells the unforgettable story of two vulnerable outsiders, the lightning strike that turns their world upside down and the true meaning of lucky. Nate Harlow would love to be lucky, just once! He’d like to win a prize, get picked first, call a coin toss right, even! But his best friend, Genesis Beam (aka Gen), believes in science and logic, and she doesn’t think for one second that there’s such a thing as luck, good or bad. She doesn’t care what names the other kids call them. She cares about being right, about saving the turtles of Paradise Beach, and she cares about Nate. Then, on his birthday, at the Goofy Golf mini-golf course, Nate is struck by lightning – and survives! Suddenly baseballs are drawn to his bat – popular kids want HIM on their side. It seems the whole town of Paradise Beach thinks Nate has the magic touch.But is there room for Gen in Nate’s lucky new world? Lucky Strike tells the unforgettable story of two vulnerable outsiders and what luck is really all about.

The Thing about Luck

Written by Cynthia Kadohata & illustrated by Julia Kuo
The winner of the National Book Award for Young People’s Literature, from Newbery Medalist Cynthia Kadohata. There is bad luck, good luck, and making your own luck–which is exactly what Summer must do to save her family. Summer knows that kouun means “good luck” in Japanese, and this year her family has none of it. Just when she thinks nothing else can possibly go wrong, an emergency whisks her parents away to Japan–right before harvest season. Summer and her little brother, Jaz, are left in the care of their grandparents, who come out of retirement in order to harvest wheat and help pay the bills. Having thoroughly disappointed her grandmother, Summer figures the bad luck must be finished–but then it gets worse. And when that happens, Summer has to figure out how to change it herself — because it might be the only way to save her family. Cynthia Kadohata’s ode to the breadbasket of America has received six starred reviews and was selected as a National Book Award Finalist.

Lost in Ireland

Written by Cindy Callaghan
Book #2 in the Lost In Series
A superstitious girl must try to turn her horrible luck around during a family trip to Ireland. Meghan McGlinchey is the most superstitious girl in her family–and probably in the entire state of Delaware. When she receives a chain letter from a stranger in Ireland, Meghan immediately passes it on, taking only a tiny shortcut in the directions. But after a disastrous day, made complete by losing the election for class president and embarrassing herself in front of the entire school, Meghan realizes that tiny shortcut was a big mistake. Thankfully, her family was already headed to Ireland on spring break, and Meghan makes it her mission to find the original sender and break her extremely unlucky streak. With the help of an eccentric cast of characters–and one very cute Irish boy–can Meghan figure out a way to stop her bad luck? Or is she cursed forever?

Bookroo.com contributed to these summaries.