We Need Diverse Middle Grade

Welcome to the home page for our series We Need Diverse Middle Grade (WNDMG), where we archive all our WNDMG posts.

Our mission: We 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.

We Need Diverse Middle Grade posts once a month, drawing on work from our own team of contributors as well as from guest authors, editors, agents, teachers, librarians, and booksellers. You can count on our presence here on Mixed-Up Files to shine a light on the stories, work, and truth of all those who are still underrepresented in this field. You’ll be able to recognize our monthly posts by seeing our WNDMG logo: the diverse world we envision. Our artwork is by contributor Aixa Perez-Prado.

Guest Posts for We Need Diverse Middle Grade

If you’re interested in being considered for a guest post slot on WNDMG, please feel free to email: mufcommunications@gmail.com. Please Note: We do not pay for guest blog posts.

Latest from the Blog

  • picture of the book I AM KAVI
    WNDMG Wednesday- Debut Author Interview with Thushanthi Ponweera
    November 8, 2023 by
      I’m so excited to be able to interview debut author Thushanthi Ponweera today for the WNDMG Wednesday blog. Thushanthi’s new book is I AM KAVI (Holiday House) and it launched on September 19, 2023 I am super in love with this gorgeous novel in verse, as I am also a fellow author of a verse novel coming in 2024 and I just adore poetry! I have read an ARC of this book, and I have to say, the book is stunning, poetic, and absolutely heartfelt in every way. And it is a much-needed book highlighting a diverse author and story that is so important. I encourage everyone to buy a copy for themselves and their classrooms and libraries. About I AM KAVI Description taken from online: Caught between two worlds- a poverty-stricken village and a fancy big-city school—a young Sri Lankan girl must decide who she really is and where she really belongs. 1998, Colombo. The Sri Lankan Civil...
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  • We Need Diverse MG Logo hands holding reading globe with stars and spirals floating around
    WNDMG Wednesday – Introducing Isi Hendrix
    October 11, 2023 by
    Illustration by: Aixa Perez-Prado   Introducing Isi Hendrix Hello, WNDMG Wednesday readers … I am so excited for this month’s post. I get to introduce you to the amazing Isi Hendrix, author of the Afrofantasy MG Adia Kelbara and the Circle of Shamans. (HarperCollins – USA and Usborne – UK, September 2023) It’s such a high-profile debut novel, it got TWO debut days: one here in the USA and one in the UK! About Adia Kelbara Life is tough for twelve-year-old orphan Adia. Her aunt and uncle believe she’s an ogbanje, a demon-possessed child that brings misfortune wherever they go,...
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  • Shira and Esther cover
    WNDMG Wednesday- Interview with Anna E Jordan
    August 9, 2023 by
    Illustration by: Aixa Perez-Prado WNDMG Wednesday – Debut Author Interview I’m super excited to be able to introduce you and interview debut author Anna E Jordan today. Anna’s new book is SHIRA AND ESTHER’S DOUBLE DREAM DEBUT (Chronicle Books) and it launches on October 10, 2023. I am extra excited to do this, as Anna and I are Agent siblings! I can’t wait to hold a copy of Anna’s book in my hands, and I am eagerly waiting for my preorder to arrive in October. About SHIRA AND ESTHER A fun middle grade book that draws on the fun switched identity...
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  • We Need Diverse MG Logo hands holding reading globe with stars and spirals floating around
    WNDMG Wednesday -Interview with Kaela Rivera
    July 12, 2023 by
    Interview with Kaela Rivera I absolutely fangirled when Kaela Rivera agreed to let me interview her for the MUFMGA. Cece Rios and the Desert of Souls and Cece Rios and the King of Fears When you read this introduction to Cece Rios and the Desert of Souls and Cece Rios and the King of Fears, I bet you’ll see why I am such a huge fan. When a powerful desert spirit kidnaps her sister, Cece Rios must learn forbidden magic to get her back, in this own voices middle grade fantasy perfect for fans of The Storm Runner and Aru...
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