Those who saw our article on the Best Picture Books of 2025 will recognize this week’s special care package as one of our picks. After: A Survivor's Story, written by Hallee Adelman and illustrated by Patrick Corrigan, is a powerful and heart-wrenching tale that is tragically becoming more and more relevant in recent times. After … Continue reading Book Mail: AFTER (Hallee Adelman, illus. by Patrick Corrigan)
Happy Valentine’s Day! Whether you’re celebrating with significant others, family, or besties, we hope that it’s filled with love! If your middle grade reader is looking for a last-minute love story to get the Valentine feels, we love Lee Heart’s Spotlight Sprinkles series, which features short, standalone romances for tween readers. Book One: Written in … Continue reading Happy Valentine’s Day: Spotlight Sprinkles
Awesome news for fans of middle grade dark fantasy: The Nowhere Beast by Leslie Vedder, illus. by Abigail Larson (sequel to The Labyrinth of Souls) is hitting shelves tomorrow! For those unfamiliar with this delightfully spooky series, it follows Ix Tatterfall as she is swept into a world of magic and mystery due to her … Continue reading THE LABYRINTH OF SOULS & THE NOWHERE BEAST (Leslie Vedder, illus. by Abigail Larson)
Novels in verse have become even more popular for middle grade readers recently, for good reasons, one being the format’s unique ability to approach heavy, complicated themes in accessible yet evocative language. A Year Without Home by V.T. Bidania is a great example of this, and one that fans of the format should not miss. … Continue reading A YEAR WITHOUT HOME (V.T. Bidania)
Happy February! It’s the season of Puppy Love—and a bit of Kitty Love, too! Between Valentine’s festivities from the Heeler Family, a lovestruck adventure with Dolly Parton’s canine pal Billy, and sweet tales of pets’ faves and forever families, there are plenty of titles to help the little animal lovers in your life celebrate the … Continue reading Happy Valentine’s: Puppy (and Kitty) Love!
The Baby Bookworm 