Posts Tagged new middle-grade

June 2026 New Releases!

The Cat Prophecies: Claw Quest

A thirteen-year-old boy holds the fate of his family, his neighborhood, and the world in his hands when he discovers that his cat is from a secret realm of warrior cats facing a dangerous enemy.

The walls between worlds are wearing thin. On one side is the bustling neighborhood of San Antonio—home to thirteen-year-old Tito Rodríguez.On the other is a mythical realm where forces of darkness are looking for a way out. Standing between worlds are the guardians of humankind—a race of fierce warrior cats, who appear in our world as cute and furry companions.

When Tito follows a stray cat through a hidden portal, he finds himself at the center of this cosmic battle between the warrior cats and evil spirits that feed on negative emotions. And according to an ancient prophecy, Tito is the Chosen One who will lead the fight against the forces of darkness . . . probably.

It turns out that there are three possible Chosen Ones—Tito and his new friends and fellow outsiders Luisito and Isa, who have their own furry sidekicks (or wise mentors, if you ask the cats). And with the darkness slipping through the cracks to the human world, all three will have to train for the ultimate fight and prove who is the true hero.

 

Roxie in Color

By Diane Debrovner and Stacy Cervenka

Roxie wants to blend in at a new school, which is hard to do when your parents are blind, in this remarkable novel about friendship, misperceptions, and family—plus a dog’s view of the world.

Roxie loves her parents, but other people can’t seem to see past the fact that they’re blind—and they don’t really see Roxie, either. To them, she’s just “the girl with the blind parents.” So when her family moves to a new town and Roxie starts seventh grade at a new school, she’s determined to be known for the other parts of who she is: an artist, an animal lover, and the kind of person who bakes cookies for people she cares about for no special reason. But that means keeping her parents’ blindness a secret from the kids at school and definitely not telling anyone that she might inherit the eye condition that caused her mother’s vision loss—at least until they get to know her.

For a while, Roxie is happier than she’s ever been. But when her lies and omissions lead to a visit from Child Protective Services, will Roxie find the courage to be fully honest with her friends, her parents, and herself? This heartfelt depiction of a girl establishing her own identity, with some chapters told from the perspective of her mother’s loyal guide dog, is an authentic portrayal of the joys, challenges, and everyday ordinariness of being raised by parents who have a disability.

Note: The novel is typeset in Atkinson Hyperlegible, a font developed by Braille Institute specifically for low-vision readers.

 

Glow

By Nancy Stone

Cordelia believes in facts. Frano believes in destiny. They’re as different as storm clouds and sunshine—until they discover three baby white storks that glow with mysterious light.

No one else can see the glow, just Cordelia and Frano—and she wants nothing to do with the new boy. Yet with a massive hurricane barreling toward Florida, the birds’ very survival depends on this unlikely pair.

Glow pulses with light and unforgettable characters. A magical realism story that aims for and captures the heart.

For anyone who loved Haven Jacobs Saves the Planet or Willodeen.

 

 

 

 

 

Sol Goes for Goal!

It’s back to school for the Hillside Valley kids! Sol’s trying out for the middle school soccer team but will a crush on the team captain distract her from her goals? Find out in this new Hillside Valley graphic novel—filled with friendship, first crushes, and some impressive soccer skills!

Welcome back to Hillside Valley-this time it’s Game On for Sol!

Twelve-year-old Sol is a great friend, a model student, a beloved daughter and a star soccer player. At least that’s what everyone always expects of her. But when the soccer team captain Lily walks by, Sol starts to lose focus. What’s with this heart fluttering feeling she has around Lily?! And how can she stay the star player–the star everything–that people see her as if she can barely remember her name (much less how to play soccer) around Lily? Is Sol destined to let everyone down, including herself? Or can she figure out how to be the Sol she wants to be…on and off the field. Settle back into the cozy community of Hillside Valley in this second irresistible graphic novel! And don’t miss the first Hillside Valley Graphic Novel, Speak Up, Santiago!

 

Midsummer Sisters

Kenzie and Quinn aren’t just stepsisters – they’re best friends. They’re spending the summer with their grandmother, kayaking in the marshy coastal islands she calls home. The Outer Banks are also home to a herd of wild ponies, and the girls fall in love with a fragile newborn foal that they name Starling.

But even blue skies and sandy beaches can’t distract from what’s going on back home. Things between their parents aren’t the way they used to be, and the constant fights have left Kenzie and Quinn anxious and confused. They can’t remember a time when they weren’t a family. If their parents divorce and Quinn and her mom move away, will they even still be sisters . . . or will they be nothing?

As their world shifts around them, the girls swear to do the one thing they can: keep Starling safe.

Award-winning cartoonist Niki Smith delivers a stunning story set during a summer of change. Filled with gorgeous and expressive illustrations, Midsummer Sisters is a celebration of the beauty of wild horses, as powerful as the unbreakable bond between sisters.

 

 

Lightmare

Book #2 of The Incorruptibles

Fiora’s world has been turned upside down in this second book in the exciting upper middle grade fantasy series The Incorruptibles, for fans of Keeper of the Lost Cities and The Marvellers.

Still reeling from recent tragedies, Fiora and her Thistle teammates are on the run and living in seclusion. Times are difficult, and the Thistles are more vulnerable to the sorcerer threat than ever. But all is not lost. The Thistles are forming a plan to fight back.

But when terrible truths are revealed, deep fractures form within the team. When one of their own makes a choice Fiora never saw coming—and cannot possibly understand—Fiora and her friends are forced to reexamine what is good and what is evil…as well as the gray space between.

 

Just Ask Elsie

 

Elsie Parker is having a totally normal fifth grade year.

Fractions and conjunctions—check.
Stressing about middle school—check.
Body-positive puberty class at church that also covers feelings and identities—check.

Okay, maybe that last one isn’t so normal. It’s a little weird (and awkward) to spend her Sundays talking periods, B.O., and pimples. But Elsie’s also learning a lot more than she’s heard in her public-school health class — like the difference between sex and gender, and what consent is, and what it might mean that she can’t stop blushing around a certain cute girl at her school.

When her puberty lessons become the school’s latest gossip, Elsie’s totally humiliated… until she finds an anonymous note in her locker from a classmate who wants to know more, and realizes that other kids might have embarrassing questions of their own.

Starting an underground advice board wasn’t exactly in her plans, but Elsie won’t pass up a chance to turn her reputation around — or to share words and labels that have not-so-accidentally been left off their curriculum. But when the principal tries to shut down the unauthorized puberty talk, Elsie has to decide what she’s willing to risk to tell the truth to kids who really need to hear it.

 

Stream

It’s finally summer—heck, yeah!

With eigth grade done, Elio Solis plans to lock in on his gaming and show the fellas what he’s got.

Celi Rivera and her bestie are headed to Hawaii to sun, skate, and search content for her channel.

But those dreams end when a catfishing incident rocks their Oakland community. Suddenly, parents are nosing in posts, taking phones, and laying down lectures about screen-time safety and well-being. Suddenly, Celi and Elio find themselves sent to rural Mexico, without internet, electricity, or even running water save for a dying stream that could wipe out the whole pueblo in the coming summer rains.

Helping curanderas in a healing clinic…
carting sticks to rehabilitate the arroyo…
turn summer dreams to misery!

But day by day, in nature, beauty, and community, with crushes blooming, can they find their way to each other—and slowly back to themselves?

 

 

The Replay Trap

A girl stuck in a time loop repeatedly relives an awkward sleepover at a wildlife center with a wolf-like monster in the woods in this fun and creepy middle grade adventure.

When Sydney heads to a sleepover birthday party at a wildlife center, she’s sure it’s a terrible idea. Not only because she’ll be staying in a creepy cabin surrounded by wolf enclosures, but because she wasn’t actually invited to the party. Instead, her mom asked Ari’s mom if Sydney could join, and now she’s crashing the event with a group of kids she barely knows. Ugh.It turns out she isn’t the only party crasher when a strange, wolf-like creature bounds out of the woods and throws the night into chaos. In the rush to escape, Sydney hits her head, is knocked out cold…and wakes up back in the car, headed to the party.

Sydney realizes she’s living the same night again and again and again. Why is the evening stuck in a loop, and what is the creature prowling around the center? And—most importantly—how can she break the loop and finally see the morning?

Fifth Grade Top Dogs

By Jerry Spinelli

George, aka “Suds,” is about to start the fifth grade, where he, his best friend Joey, and the rest of his classmates will be the top dogs of the whole school. They are ready to collect on the respect they now deserve and leave their lasting legacy at Gotwals Elementary . . . but that’s easier said than done.

Between bullies on the playground and a prankster sister, Suds is being undermined, ignored, and even challenged everywhere he turns.

Suds knows this could finally be his year, if only he works on his walk, perfects his image, and his annoying little sister stays out of his way. He has been preparing to be a top dog his whole elementary school career. Does he now have what it takes?

 

 

 

 

Hope you enjoy these exciting new releases. Have a great Summer!

The Most Perfect Interview with Author Tricia Springstubb

Author Tricia Springstubb

I’m very excited today to welcome author Tricia Springstubb to The Mixed-Up Files of Middle-Grade Authors! We’re here to talk about her newest middle-grade novel The Most Perfect Thing in the Universe.

Before we get started, let’s take a look at the book.

Eleven-year-old Loah Londonderry is definitely a homebody. While her mother, a noted ornithologist, works to save the endangered birds of the shrinking Arctic tundra, Loah anxiously counts the days till her return home. But then, to Loah’s surprise and dismay, Dr. Londonderry decides to set off on a perilous solo quest to find the Loah bird, long believed extinct. Does her mother care more deeply about Loah the bird than Loah her daughter?

Things get worse yet when Loah’s elderly caretakers fall ill and she finds herself all alone except for her friend Ellis. Ellis has big problems of her own, but she believes in Loah. She’s certain Loah has strengths that are hidden yet wonderful, like the golden feather tucked away on her namesake bird’s wing. When Dr. Londonderry’s expedition goes terribly wrong, Loah needs to discover for herself whether she has the courage and heart to find help for her mother, lost at the top of the world. 

 

The Most Perfect Thing in the Universe is available for preorder now and releases June 1, 2021.

MH:  When and where did you get the idea for The Most Perfect Thing in the Universe?

TS:  A writer’s mind is a wild, unpredictable place. Ideas lurk about. You glimpse one from the corner of your eye but before you can catch it, it has slipped back into the shadows. Maybe you get another chance–this time it lingers long enough to walk beside you for a while before it disappears again, leaving you to puzzle out what to make of it…

…which is my devious way of saying, I don’t exactly know where I got the idea for Loah!  If I look at my files, I can see I first tried to write about her back in 2017. The files have names like Loah After Retreat and Loah After Mary Jane’s House(two of many places I worked on the book) and Loah Yet Again. I set out to write a historical novel, something I’d never done. I did research, which I loved, and began a story about a timid, turn of the century girl who lived in an ambiguous European country in a spooky house with her ancient caretakers. Her beloved older sister vanishes; an orphan seeks refuge. But my world-building was shaky–I kept making things up rather than sticking to established historical facts. After many tries and lots of frustration, I had to admit I lacked the discipline to stay within set bounds of time and place.

But by then I was too in love with Loah to let her go. She became a timid contemporary girl who lives in a spooky house with ancient caretakers. It’s her beloved mother who vanishes, her new friend Ellis who hides out with her. The birds came winging in on their own. Birds have flitted through so many of my books–a sparrow even gets its own little arc in Every Single Second–and here they settled in and became central to the story.

MH: Was there a time you thought you might give up on this book? What did you do to get through that?

TS: More than one time! I especially remember one gray January afternoon. I’d been working all morning, and had just introduced a brand new character, a snarky woman wearing a hat made of faux-giraffe-skin. What in the world was she doing there? I went for a long, desolate walk. Getting away from the desk helped me realize that I was writing loony scenes in an effort to distract readers (and myself!)  from the fact that I’d lost my story’s thread. I needed to think more deeply about who Loah was, what she needed and wanted. What was my story about, and what was it reallyabout? The woman in the giraffe hat got the axe (though who knows–she may yet turn up in a different story, where she actually belongs).

I do endless revisions for all my books, but usually one thing remains constant the–the setting, the situation, the conflict. For The Most Perfect Thing in the Universe, it was Loah. She may be my favorite of all the young heroes I’ve written.

MH: What do you like about writing for MG readers?

TS: Pretty much everything! Kids this age brim with curiosity. They love to laugh. They are vulnerable and brave and they will commit to a story like nobody’s business. Middle grade readers demand strong plots, but they’re also sophisticated enough to appreciate nuance. Their sense of justice and their hopes for the world make me want to be a better person as well as a better writer. Their eyes are so wide and their hearts so big!

MH: Was this your original title?

TS: Yes, except for all those working titles I mentioned when Loah’s story was a different book. The title was a gift that came to me during my research. It’s drawn from a quote from the nineteenth-century naturalist Thomas Wentworth Higginson, who wrote, “I think that, if required on pain of death to instantly name the most perfect thing in the universe, I should risk my fate on….”

Well, I am not going to give the rest away!

Wouldn’t filling in that blank be a fun classroom writing prompt?

MH: Tell us something fascinating you discovered while researching this book.

TS: Each year Arctic terns make a round trip migration of up to 25,000 miles, the longest recorded migration of any animal on the planet. Much of their route is over water–how do they do it without the GPS lady? Sadly, due to climate change, Arctic terns, like far too many species of animals and plants, face increasing challenges to their habitat and survival. Research made me even more aware than I’d been of Earth’s precious, fragile inter-connections. We can all help protect and preserve. The Audubon Society has wonderful suggestions for how we can become nature’s advocates, starting in our own neighborhoods.

MH: Now time for a Quick-Answer Finish-This-Sentence Round. Ready?

          TS: Sure!

MH: Recently, I’ve been very interested in learning about…

          TS:   … dogs, for my new novel.

MH: The best thing that happened to me yesterday was …

           TS:  … helping my neighbor get a vaccine appointment.

MH: I can’t help but laugh out loud when …. 

            TS: … my tiny granddaughter imitates Elsa.

MH: I’m looking forward to ….

           TS: … visiting schools and young readers for real.

MH: I really like the smell of …. 

           TS: … licorice.

MH: If I weren’t a writer, I might like to be a …

           TS: … person who delivers flowers.

Well, if Tricia Springstubb showed up on my doorstep with flowers, I would welcome her smiling face! But I am very, very happy she’s writing thoughtful, engaging, entertaining middle-grade fiction for all of us.  Thank you, Tricia!

Tell us about your favorite Tricia Springstubb book! Leave a comment below.