My Name Is Samim

Meikle, Fidan. My Name is Samim

February 10, 2026 by Kelpies
Copy provided by Young Adult Books Central

In 2019, Samim is ten and living in Ghanzni Province, Afghanistan. His father is a pharmacist, and his mother is a teacher. The family, who are Hazara Muslims, are worried about both the Taliban and the US bombings. When Samim's house is destroyed in a bombing and his family is killed, he is left with only his best friend Zayn and his Uncle Roshan. In alternating timelines, we see how Samim leaves Afghanistan, but also how he is settling in to life in the UK under the care of Miss Brown in a foster home. We find out early in the book that Zayn has died en route, and that Samim takes great comfort in talking to his ghost. While life in the UK is difficult, and Samim must recount his journey for Mr. Higgins to help with his asylum petition, it is nothing compared to the rigors of his trek out of Afghanistan. After working in a factory with his uncle, the trio sets off for the UK because another uncle lives there. Samim finds out that his family was targeted because his parents were helping the US, but got no protections. Zayn and Samim lose contact with Uncle Roshan, but end up in a good situation in Italy, where they are welcome to stay with Auntie Amina, who has helped them get there along with many of her grandchildren, although Darya (who has been masquerading as a boy) drowns on the voyage, devastating the boys. Zayn wants to stay, but Samim feels he needs to find his uncle and honor Darya's memory. The boys are put on the bus to Paris as art students, and make it to Calais. Things go badly wrong, but Samim eventually reaches the UK, and after a long time in a displacement facility (he is mistaken for being older because he is tall), ends up in foster care. There, he does well at playing chess, and is invited to play in the London Jr. Championships, which puts him in a position to be badly bullied by Max, who hates immigrants. Samim's asylum is denied, but fellow foster kids Rita and Ayan plan a protest at school. Samim rescues Max from nearly drowning, and eventually wins his appeal and is able to stay. There is also a sweet surprise at the end of the book concerning the fate of one of Samim's friends which might lead to another book.

The format of Samim having to give an interview about his experiencing works well, and the reader is able to digest his horrible experience in smaller chunks, which are interspersed with what life is like for Samim in his new home. While life in the UK has its problems, they pale in comparison to the horrible treatment he experiences on his treacherous journey. Children like Max, who might not understand why refugees are in their country and the journeys they had to get there, will benefit from seeing the sorts of situations that their classmates might have lived through, and be more empathetic as a result.

Kelpies is a Scottish press that has turned out such interesting titles as Littleston's Ice Cream Boy. Their books are available in the US, but are generally only in paperback or e book editions.

I wish all of my students would read books about the refugee experience in order to be more understanding of people who don't have the same background that they do. My Name is Samim is a great book to add to a list of books about different immigrant experiences like Athaide's Wings to Soar, Dassu's Boy Everywhere, Jamieson and Mohamed's When Stars are Scattered, Anta and Salcedo's Frontera, Senzai's Escape from Aleppo, and Dobbs' The Barefoot Dreams of Petra Luna.

Sashimi and Ghosts of the Harvest

Santat, Dan. A Fishboy Named Sashimi
April 14, 2026 by Roaring Brook Press
ARC provided by the publisher

Strange things are happening in Barnacle Bay! When Sashimi comes to shore, grabs a hoodie, and joins Miss Wilcox's classroom, the students ask a lot of questions, but don't get a lot of answers. Joey is assigned to show Shashimi around, but since he is new himself and a target of Billy's bullying, he's reluctant to be seen with a bug eyed student who sweats a lot. This, of course, is how Sashimi, who is really a fish boy, breathes. While he's living in the school and talking to Kevin, the class goldfish, he feels like he should investigate the Beast of Barnacle Bay, since there is a huge festival surrounding the creature. He has a bad experience at a grocery store with some high octane sugar soda and is kicked out after he goes nuts; Billy is there and takes him home to meet his grandfather. Poopdeck Pete is obsessed with the Beast, and gives tours of the bay. Sashimi tells Joey the truth after an incident where Sashimi tries to flush himself down the toilet: he is a fish boy and was chased ashore by Joey's grandfather, and has been living in the school. After meeting with Ben at the local history museum, Sashimi decides to enter the contest to catch the Beast, since there's a $10,000 prize. There is all kinds of drama in the community's participation in this, but in the end, Sashimi donates one of his own scales to the museum, and is rewarded with $500. He donates this money to the school, where budget cuts have been rife, and settles into life in Barnacle Bay. Poopdeck Pete's boat tours experience a resurgence with the interest in the creature, so Joey is happy as well. More adventures, perhaps ones including the very suspiciously damp Ben, are heading to shore. 

Santat's illustrations are always a delight, and he brings Sashimi to life in an engaging way. There's even an informational diagram of how Sashimi breathes; of course, there are extra laughs since he is depicted in tighty whities! The use of the hood to hide his more defining aquatic features is inspired, since young readers these days live in hoodies, often (to my chagrin) with the hoods up. Santat must have a deep and abiding interest in the sea, since his 2022 Aquanaut also involves ocean life living on land. Sashimi is much happier and less traumatic than that graphic novel! 

Sashimi gets himself involved in many ridiculous situations, which makes this a perfect book for older readers (who pretend to be too sophisticated for jokes about Poopdeck Pete) to read to younger ones. Sashimi gets revenge on Billy in a spitball fight, he has a massive sugar buzz and subsequent crash, and we get snarky but informative inserts about what a poop deck is named that and how Sashimi is able to live on land. The illustration style is colorful and unique, and will appeal to older readers who have been raised on Santat's picture books like Are We There Yet, Beekle, and After the Fall. 

Dav Pilkey gets a shout-out in the dedication, which makes perfect sense, since readers of Captain Underpants and Dogman will be thrilled with Sashimi's odd adventures. Santat worked with Tom Angleberger on Princess Pit Stop, and must have absorbed some of Angleberger's Two-Headed Chicken Energy. I'm looking forward to the further adventures of this intrepid fish boy, and hope that he and Joey are able to calm Billy down quite a bit and can continue to support their struggling school. 

The box that the publisher sent with the ARC was delightful, and contained a helpful water bottle (so Sashimi can keep breathing), a sticker, poster, and small container of "fish flakes" that I have on good authority actually contains Swedish fish candy! 

I have a love/hate relationship with Scholastic. I love their titles. I hate that they publish the best book only in paperback. Then, sometimes, they taunt us with amazing books that never become available anywhere but book fairs. So be warned. You might only get a copy of this at a book fair, through the Scholastic book order form, or if Ms. Duga personally mails you a copy. Thanks, Lindsey. You deserve better. 

Duga, Lindsey. Ghost of the Harvest

September 2, 2025 by Scholastic Inc.

Copy graciously provided by the author

After Hailey's fourth grade sister Emma tags along to a haunted hayride, she is never the same. The explanation is that she was touched by a witch, but of course, no one believes that. The family moves to the country town of Harper's Fall on the advice of Emma's therapist, but she is still withdrawn. Hailey, who is starting 7th grade at her new school, feels terrible. She had been pulling away from her younger sister, and now doesn't know how to help her. At school, she meets Renee, Ava, and Marcy, who are generally nice, but tease Hailey a little about wanting to check on her sister at lunch. When Emma doesn't return voluntarily to class after lunch, her teacher gives Hailey a hard time, so Hailey isn't happy when she finds her sister drawing odd symbols on the playground with Thomas after school. There is an upcoming Harvest Moon festival, and Hailey's new friends tell her that children often go missing. Hailey scoffs at this, but Rachel tells her to take it seriously. The story is very dramatic; the ghost of Farmer Asrael haunts a local cornfield, and a girl in his care went missing years ago. Someone close to whoever sees his ghost is the one who goes missing. When Hailey sneaks out with her friends to investigate, she seems Emma out in the field in her pajamas, and she is sucked into the corn field. Of course, the authorities don't believe her. Her parents are subdued after their loss, but Hailey starts to investigate in earnest. With the help of Thomas, she starts to see patterns. There's a website put together by Thomas' grandfather about the missing children. Thomas tells Hailey that the school secretary's son, Caleb Claremont, was the last person to go  missing. The two interview Mrs. Claremont, and realize that all of the children were new to town. Talking to her parents, Hailey finds out that they had a brochure for the town, which motivated them to move there. After witnessing odd behavior from Renee, and finding out that she was recently adopted, Hailey is on high alert. With the help of Thomas' mother, she realizes that she must find Emma during the Harvest Festival, or lose her forever. 

Strengths: There aren't enough books that address how annoying younger siblings can be, even when their older siblings really do love them. Hailey's regret over distancing herself from her sister makes this even more heartwrenching when Emma goes missing. The small town setting is great, and the interaction with her new classmates is a great mix of activities and concerns. I don't want to ruin the twist at the end of this, but it is a great one. Pairing up with Thomas to investigate is nicely portrayed, and I adored Thomas' mother, who ends up helping to save the day. Nicely paced, and super creepy! 
Weaknesses: Mrs. Claremont can't unpack after ten years because she's so sad about losing Caleb. Sigh. I'm just never a fan of parents who are constantly grieving and can't move on. That's just not my experience, and I don't think it serves a purpose to give this example to young readers. 
What I really think: I would buy two copies of this if it were available in paperback, because readers who loved Krovatin's Killer Harvest or Arden's Small Spaces will love this one. For now, I'll wrap this paperback in clear contact paper and hope it holds on as long as possible. 

MMGM- How to Save a Dolphin and Connected: America's Role In Building the Internet

It's

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday
 at 

Always in the Middle 

and #IMWAYR day 

at

Unleashing Readers

Schusterman, Michelle. How to Save a Dolphin
April 7, 2026 by Scholastic Inc.
E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

Dany lives in Galveston, Texas, with her mother, who is an elementary school principal, her father who fishes, and her high achieving siblings Ethan, Hazel, and Jackson. Dany's best friend Courtney has just moved to Oklahoma City, so she is at a loss as she starts 7th grade, since she has no one in whom to confide or to do to Splash World with. As the beginning of school approaches, there is a hurricane forming in the area, but the family feels prepared. Dany and her father even go out in his boat. The weather gets a little choppy, and Dany falls overboard. She has on her life jacket and observes good protocols, but still ends up far from her father. She had been observing a pod of dolphins, and was particularly intrigued by one that stood out because of an unusually blue hue. "Blue" comes up to her, and seems to "talk" to her. She grabs onto the animal's dorsal fin, and he takes her six miles through the bayou to land. She stumbles ashore and goes to the nearest house, where Eleanor Belrose answers the door. Eleanor's family help her and contact her mother and father. Everyone is astonished by her tale, and Ms. Belrose, who is the news director at KPZY, arranged for Sara to be interviewed. As the threat of Hurricane Kai nears, Sara is worried that Blue is stranded in the bayou. She emails the Sealife Support rescue organization, and Chrissie Wake, who runs the organization, show up. Blue is safe for the time being, since the bayou is salty enough for him, but the storm puts a crimp in plans to get him back to his pod. When the hurricane hits, the family is safe, although the father's boat ends up blocking the front door! Blue can't be found, which worries Sara, but he eventually shows up at Splash World. With the help of Ms. Wake and her new friend Eleanor, Sara devises and implements a plan to rescue Blue and return him to the open sea.

Strengths: If I were to construct a book that I could hand to just about any student who wanted an exciting story, it would be this. There is a great and supportive family, friend drama, lots of suspense, excitement and adventure, and an interest and purpose for our main character. It is easy to read, moves quickly, and was blissfully enjoyable. There were sad moments, but they didn't make the story soggy and morose. Dany has some realistic struggles with her siblings, but they come through in the end and love each other. No wonder Schusterman has written so many books! She's so good at it. The upbeat nature of this was great, but there was enough realistic tragedy to please adults who can't stand a happy story.

I try to keep the snark out of my reviews, but when I read a really excellent, solid title and realize it is only available from the publisher in paperback, it's confusing and irritating!

Weaknesses: Like seemingly all of the best Scholastic titles, like Amar Shah's Hoop Con series, this is available only in paperback. I can only imagine this is so that they can sell copies at the book fairs, but considering the titles that have hardback releases... I just don't understand how publishing works, and how editors decide what will sell. I know that publishers are just trying to survive, but maybe they need to do some more market research and demographic surveys with actual middle grade readers?

What I really think: This is a fantastic choice for readers who like outdoor survival adventures like Philbrick's Wild Wave, Watt Key's Deep Water, or this author's other animal titles like Some Bunny to Love or the Kat Sinclair Files. I will purchase this if Follett offers it in a prebind.

Goldstein, Margaret J. Connected: America's Role In Building the Internet
January 1, 2026 by Lerner Publications ™

Copy provided by the publisher

Today's tweens think that the Internet has always existed, but those of us who are older and wiser (and who can mimic the sound of a dial-up connection on demand) know otherwise. 

Accompanied by colorful illustrations, there is a great, short history of computers starting with ARPA (Advanced Research Projects Agency) and addressing e-mail, internet protocols, and Tim Berners-Lee's development of HTML. Since my first experience with the Internet in 1995 was text based, I wish the book had pointed out that at the beginning, there were no pictures on the Internet! 

Popular online destinations like Google, MySpace, and Facebook are mentioned briefly, and the transition from desktop computers to phones is explained. I'd love to see a biography of Marian Croak, who helped develop the technology behind Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) that allowed people to use computers like telephones. This was a huge innovation, since video phones were something that always seemed like a very far off and sophisticated science fiction technology. Artificial intelligence is mentioned very briefly, and this ends with a nice timeline, glossary, and index. 

While it hurt a little to see a picture of my first computer labeled as "A desktop computer from the late 20th century", this is a great, short overview of the development of the internet. I still have Sherman's very complete 2003 The History of the Internet, but am glad to have something a bit more updated to accompany it! 

Confessions of a Mango

Lumsden, Kate and Pieplow, Nate. Confessions of a Mango

April 14, 2026 by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

Ruby is not excited to leave Lincoln Middle School, where her best friend Ella attends, and go to Benton Academy. Since her twin brother Bryce is excited about the academic enrichment available at the charter school, and her parents don't have time to take the children to two different schools, she has agreed to go. Since Ruby has been diagnosed with dyslexia, dyscalculia, and diysgraphia, she has an extensive 504 plan and several accomodations. She worries about being in Mrs. Taylor's language arts class when the teacher asks what books people read over the summer; Ruby has only read graphic novels, which her 5th grade teacher didn't count. The class is assigned Oliver Twist to read. Ruby does make a friend in the quiet Thea, who seems to try to be as average as possible, but is glad when her father takes her and Bryce to the pool so she can hand out with Ella. Bryce's anxiety decreases at school, since he is able to make friends like Kennedy, who installs an electronic keypad on his locker and shares a lot of the same interests. There's a lot of homework, at least two hours a night, which is very hard for Ruby despite her accomodations. Her parents offer to get her a tutor, and even Bryce offers to help. When she is overwhelmed with the work, Ruby creates an account on the ChatterCube app, and as @confessionsofamango (based on a meme her mother has shown her about a line up of mangos and a love bird that looks almost like on of the fruits), posts that the school is expecting too much and should be more accepting of failure. She writes her tag on the announcement white board, and her post goes viral. There are lots of comments from other students who also feel pressured to succeed, especially by their parents. The principal gets upset when many parents complain, and threatens to punish whoever is posting. The kids at the school, however, start bringing mangoes in their lunches in solidarity! Thea admits to Ruby that she is struggling with the transition from Montessori classes to Benton, even though Ruby won't admit to anyone that she is the poster. Ruby does benefit a lot from a tutor who makes her see her difficulties in learning in a different way, but when the truth comes out, the mango really hits the blender. With help from her parents, Ruby is able to forge a new way forward for herself. 

Strengths: Ruby has a great voice, and I loved that she wanted to try to change what she felt was a difficult situation. It was good to see her parents really trying to support her with tutoring, and they didn't seem to pressure either child with unrealistic expectations. Thea and Kennedy's parents were more problematic, so it was interesting to see a range of expectations. The social media aspect of this will appeal to middle grade readers, and the descriptions of accomodations, coping skills, and a really great tutor were good to see. This ends on a happy note, with Ruby setting up a Fruit Bowl support group. 
Weaknesses: Would this have been different if Bryce had been enrolled in a school that was designed to meet Ruby's needs, but he complained about the lack of academic challenges? While there are good arguments for why Ruby was enrolled in the school, I felt bad that she struggled so much. 
What I really think: This is a good choice for readers who liked Garcia and Williams' Mixed-Up, Hunt's Fish in a Tree, Davis' Figure It Out, Henri Weldon, or Dilloway's Five Thing About Ava Andrews.

Saturday Morning Cartoons- Pet Placement Society

Gallanosa, Primo. Pet Placement Society
March 31, 2026 by Melissa de la Cruz Studio 

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

Mia Garcia lives with her parents in Spring Valley, Washington, where they run a shelter called Furever Home out of a barn on their property. They take in all kinds of pets, but her parents are very particular about who can adopt them, and are running out of money as the number of pets increases. When she is assigned to work on an "Impressive Teamwork Through History" group project at school, Mia meets Riley, who is new to town. He seems lonely, so Mia presses him to take home one of the dogs that needs to be adopted, Ruffles. Unfortunately, she doesn't check with her parents first, and Ruffles turns out to be rather destructive. Riley has to return the dog, but the two bond over the Fantasy Quest television show. Mia had watched the show with her best friend, Lily, but lately Lily is more interested in boys and socializing than the show. Also working on the project are Hollis and Zeke, but the group has trouble deciding what to do, and even end up in detention for fighting and being unproductive. Trying to get pets adopted, Mia even brings a sugar glider to school, but the trouble with the shelter continues. When her parents go out, Mia arranges to have a pet meet-and-greet at the shelter, but isn't happy with the people who come, and starts to sabotage her own attempts at matches. Her friends step in again to clean up the shelter when Mia is punished. After Ruffles runs away and ends up at Mrs. Gorski's house (and Mia climbs in through a window to get him!), more animals are adopted, the school project turns out okay, and the group is ready for new adventures.
Strengths: Graphic novels and pet stories are always popular, so many readers will be interested in Mia's story. Her often misguided attempts to help her parents out are humorous and will resonate with young readers. I was glad to see that she and Riley were able to establish a friendship, and that her school group pitched in to help. The struggles of a group project are real, and it's always good to see them portrayed in tween literature. Lily and Mia's difficulties are also realistic, but it was nice that they were able to make up.
Weaknesses: While Mia's actions are age appropriate (she's 12), they often are not in the best interest of the animals. After Riley returns Ruffles, Mia presses him to take a cat home, and that doesn't work out well either! It would have been nice to see better pet friendly practices portrayed.
What I really think: This is a good choice for readers who liked Fairbairn and Assarasakorn's Paws graphic novels or and Loveless, Hashimoto, and Kote's Animal Rescue Friends. Since I have both of these series, I will pass on purchase, due to the similarities of the storylines and formats.

Landslide

Culley, Betty. Landslide
March 10, 2026 by Nancy Paulsen Books

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

Fifth grader Nathan Savage lives on his mother's family's farm in Crawley main with his parents. Glenn worked at at a plant until the cement dust caused him lung problems, and Renee worked at a shoe repair shop until it closed. Now, Glenn works across the street from the farm at the Homefront Municipal Waste facility that was put in when Renee's sisters sold their share of the farm, and Renee works at home, hand sewing shoes piecework for a factory. While it isn't pleasant having a large landfill across the street, the family is fairly philosophical about it, since the realize garbage must go somewhere. It hits Renee the hardest, and she is coping by replanting all of the plants in the front yard to the back, and by keeping the curtains drawn. Nathan, who plays hockey with his cousin Lizette on recommendation of his uncle, has a keen eye for objects in motion, and seems to see things others cannot. He is very concerned about movement in the landfill, and worries that it isn't stable. When he meets Wilder Bacon and his older sister Lena (who is a lawyer) who are protesting outside his house, he is interested in Wilder's environmental take on the facility. Wilder is very interested in garbage, and interviews Glenn about his work at the landfill. Wilder's mother is not able to take care of him, so he is in the custody of his sister, since his father lives out West with his new family. He is home schooled, having been bullied because of his name, his alopecia, and his intense way of interacting with others. Nathan's friends Ben and Kosal are worried about the landfill and how climate change is affecting the seasons in the local environment. Nathan fills Wilder, as well as Ben and Kosal, in about his concerns. Neighbor Roberta, who has a dairy farm, hopes to stay on her land despite the landfill, but when her cows stop drinking the water from her well, she investigates. Homefront Municipal Waste has an upcoming community vote about enlarging the landfill, and some locals are glad that they fund teams, pay taxes, and bring jobs to the area. Nathan is increasingly worried that Glenn will be on the face of the landfill when it shifts suddenly, and has a code word when he calls Wilder to let him know if the shifting is starting. When he finally says "lasagna" to his new friend, Wilder endangers himself by climbing a high sign, so that Glenn doesn't go out onto the landfill. Young coworker Hank IS out in a truck, and Nathan rides his bike to try to warn him. He climbs into his father's truck, but is soon suddenly swept down all the way to Roberta's farm. Amazingly, he is unhurt, but the massive slide puts the project in jeopardy. Roberta ends up having to sell, as the water is making her sick, but Nathan is able to give television interviews to help inform people about the dangers of the landfill. Wilder is able to return to school with Nathan after his sister wins permanent custody. 

Strengths: Considering how many family farms have ceased operation, it is not surprising to find the land around farms being used for other purposes. Across the street from my mother's family dairy farm, the Pennsylvania Turnpike was built in the 1950s, and the hill behind the house was strip mined and made smaller in the 1970s! The Savage's Outlook is understandable; they are glad for Glenn to have a job, understand that the trash has to go somewhere, but are also sad that things are not the same as they once were. Wilder is a good foil for Ben, and they are able to combine their interest and skills to research the situation at the landfill. Roberta is a great older character, and I did wish that things had turned out better for her! This was oddly appealing, and had tons of information about garbage that middle grade readers should know! 
Weaknesses: It stuck me as odd that it never occurred to Nathan to tell his parents about the slippage. His parents are hardworking and very supportive, and seem like the sort of people who would take his concern seriously and alert the proper authorities. Also, Wilder's outlook and actions lead me to believe that he might be on the autism spectrum, but nothing is ever said about his unusual personality .
What I really think: There are a growing number of books that explore the various impacts of the environment on chidlren's lives, and Landslide is a good choice for readers who enjoyed Helget's End of Wild, Mills' The Last Apple Tree, Dilloway's Where the Sky Lives, Baskin and Polisner's Consider the Octopus, or another title including a "garbologist", Sumner's One Kid's Trash. A good nonfiction accompaniment to this is Donnelly and Hendrix's Total Garbage: A Messy Dive into Trash, Waste, and Our World. 

I Know You Started It and A Secret Escape

Benedis-Grab, Daphne. I Know You Started It
April 7, 2026 by Scholastic Press
E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

Snow Valley Secondary, which includes middle and high school, is not the safest place to be in we trust the events of I Know Your Secret and I Know You're Lying. When Jonathan, a popular high school student, has his locker set on fire, middle school students are called to the office to be questioned. These include Dany and Kate, who used to be friends, Gabe, who is blamed for everything in school, and Liam, who is brand new. When both principals are busy with other meetings, they are supposed to go back to class, but decide that they need to investigate the incident themselves. Kate's older sister is Gemma, who was involved in investigations in earlier books, and there is a strong journalism culture at the school. After talking to Susie, who works in the office, the group gets some information, and the members talk to other people at snack break and in between classes. When the true culprit, and the reasons for the fire, are revealed, the kids band together to see that justice is served.

This is told from multiple perspectives, and since there have been fires set at every middle school building I've ever been at, I can definitely see this happening. It seems somewhat less likely that the investigation could be conducted between classes no matter how generous the passing time is, but this is a darker investigation than most middle school ones. The cover is great. Sadly, this looks to be published only in paperback. It will be a popular choice with middle school students who aren't quite ready for books by Karen McManus or Freida McFadden.  

Gerber, Linda. A Secret Escape (Liar's Society #3) 

April 7, 2026 by Scholastic Press
E ARC Provided by Edelweiss Plus

Having gotten into the Last Heir Society (aka the Liar's Club), Jack, Weatherby, and the others are in the society's Alpine Bunker in St. Moritz with the 18 new members. They are invited to participate in la Victoir garment to choose a new member of the voting council, and there can only be one winner of the scavenger hunt. This winner also gets 5 million Swiss francs a year, a private jet, and some islands. Cressida Held (who is Axton's mother) talks to Weatherby alone, and she is soon even more motivated to participate. There is sledding, murder, kidnapping, puzzles, anagrams galore, and lots of in fighting and treachery. But it's not over yet. The ending (which I do not want to spoil) leaves this open for yet another book.

I loved the first book, and I can see this being popular with readers who like clue oriented mysteries and puzzles like the ones in Currie's The Mystery of the Locked Room or Reese's Puzzle heart. If this were the last book in the series, I would buy it so I had a complete set, but my students are no longer reading past book three in series, and my budget has been cut 20% from what it was in 2003 (which is half of what it was in 2002), so I may not purchase.

The Liar's Society #1 

Risky Game #2

Seabird

Kadarusman, Michelle. Seabird

September 30, 2025 by Pajama Press

Copy provided by Young Adult Books Central


In 1892, Kartini is attending a Dutch school in Jepara, Java, in the then Dutch East Indies. When she turns 12, however, Mother, her father's second wife, requires that she leaves school and begin a period of isolation that is intended to make her a more desirable wife. She must also learn to act like a lady and turn her attention to embroidery and other quiet pursuits. Kartini misses her best friend, Lesty, who has returned to Amsterdam after her father's position in Java is finished. Kartini's mother, Ma, has been relegated to a smaller home because she was not "Raden Ayu" like Mother, and so lost her position in the household. Kartini would much rather study, and is jealous that her brothers are sent to boarding school and then to high education in the Netherlands, and doesn't understand why she can't have the same experience. She does get permission from her father to correspond with Lesty, so finds out that women in other parts of the world have more opportunities than she is allowed. She also talks to two of the maids her age in the household, Yanti and Uka, and helps them solve a mystery involving an invitation from the South Sea Starling to travel the world with her importing business. Kartini's father is impressed with her writing, and allows her to meet a Dutch journalist, who encourages her writing. When it seems likely that there might be a marriage arranged for her very soon, Kartini musters the courage to ask for more freedom and an education more similar to that which her brothers received. This story is based on the real life Raden Adjeng Kartini who is credited with changing the way that women and girls were treated in Indonesia.

Readers who enjoyed Kadarusman's modern day Music for Tigers or Girl of the Southern Sea will find this look into late 19th century women's history fascinating. My grandmother was born in the US 1893, and didn't get to vote until she was 27, but things were so much different for women of a higher social status in Indonesia. Not being allowed to leave the house or see anyone outside of the family without special permission? Modern readers will be astonished. I loved that Kartini wanted to practice her Dutch, write to her friend, and investigate so many aspects of life outside the walls of her otherwise privileged existence.

Much of this book is in an epistolographic format, but the publisher was smart enough to realize that few people read cursive these days, so both Kartini and Lesty's letters are in different print fonts.

The details of both the weather and environment in Java and the details of daily life are stunning. At the end of the book, there are picture of Kartini and her family, and more information about the Dutch colonization of Indonesia that will probably be new information to most readers.

I love to read about every day life in other time periods and other places in the world, and Seabird will be perfect for readers who enjoyed Saeed's Amal Unbound, Venkatraman's A Bridge Home, or Huang's Singing Yellow Sail: A Memoir of an Only Child in China.

We Are Never Getting Together

Rallison, Janette. We Are Never Getting Together 

April 7, 2026 by Shadow Mountain
E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

Madeline and Cooper are seniors in high school, and have a long standing feud going on that leads them to dramatically sabotage each other. After Madeline steals Cooper’s clothes from the locker room and leaves him a clown costume instead, Cooper retaliates by having his friends relocate her Miata under the bleachers. This brings the two to the attention of principal, Ms. Tsuru, who is tired of the antics, which have included leaving meat in a locker and a glitter bomb. Madeline’s father and Cooper’s mother are called to the office, and the two pranksters have to work together on painting the faded tiger tracks in the parking lot. Since both parents are divorced (Madeline’s mother moved to Norway for her career, and Cooper’s father is working on an Alaskan oil rig) and know each other from the spin class the mother teaches, they decide to go out to dinner to discuss their errant children. The two do talk while they are painting, even though there is a rather epic paint battle, and get to the root of the problem; Cooper commented that Madeline got starring roles in the plays because her father donated money to the school, and Madeline retaliated by sharing an unflattering football video of Cooper. Both admit to being wrong, and have an uneasy truce. This is disrupted when they find that their parents are dating, and they figure this must be stopped. Cooper’s sister Claire rather likes Madeline and her father, but Cooper comes up with a good idea: he and Madeline should pretend to date, because then their parents wouldn’t be interested in each other. Madeline agrees, and the two have to navigate Cooper actually dating a girl named Dahlia, making their parents believe they are dating, and dealing with the football team and Madeline’s friend Selena. On the night of Homecoming, Madeline is out with the rather unpleasant TC from another school, and he hits a stray cat who has been hanging around the school. Madeline is upset, but TC won’t take the cat to the vet. Luckily, Cooper’s friend group happens by and stops, and Cooper not only hands over hsi suit jacket to protect the injured animal, but goes with Madeline to the vet. The two have been dancing around their attraction to each other, and finally admit that the two of them should be together, to the surprise of absolutely no one.
Strengths: There have not been enough books from Rallison lately; I adored her 2008 Revenge of the Cheerleaders, 2009 Just One Wish, and 2010 My Double Life! She does an excellent job of writing about high school characters who are still interesting to middle school students. Such books were more prevalent 15 years ago; now young adult books include a lot more mature language, drinking, and other questionable choices. I would not have found these enjoyable as a teenager. While I am not personally a fan of the “enemies to lovers” trope, I know a lot of people are, and Madeline and Cooper’s journey to one another is very sweet. There’s some “practice” kissing that is totally middle grade appropriate but also rather thrilling. There are humorous moments, but also good lessons about how teens should act towards one another. Dahlia could have been a completely evil character, but is portrayed with a little bit of sympathy, and TC is unfortunately a type of guy that readers may encounter.
Weaknesses: It would have been fun if the parents had still gotten together. Younger readers won’t care, but it would have made for a fun complication for Madeline and Cooper. It was nice to see parents involved with high school students, showing up at games and taking them out for ice cream.
What I really think: This is exactly the type of book my readers have been wanting to read this year, so I will definitely purchase a copy, and am dusting my older titles off and making sure they get some circulation. Glad to see this author back! Fans of Kasie West, Sarah Dessen, and Lynn Painter will enjoy this title.  

MMGM- The Setback and Skateboards: A Graphic History

It's

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday
 at 

Always in the Middle 

and #IMWAYR day 

at

Unleashing Readers

If you are in charge of buying books for middle grade readers in 4-8th grades, put Leitch's The Setback on your purchase list immediately. It will be a huge hit. It's also a fabulous gift for a sports obsessed boy named Liam (look at that cover!), and there are tons of those out there.

A little more personality leaked into this review than usual, which just means that the writing made me FEEL things. Either that, or it's an indication that I wrote this on the last day before winter break and I am feeling the strain of having to say things to students like "Please don't touch other people's pants" and "Let's not make emergency noises in nonemergent situations".

Leitch, Lynn. The Setback

March 24, 2026 by Pajama Press

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

Liam LOVES sports. He is on several teams with his best friend Marcus, and the two hope to apply to the prestigious Camp Jackman for the summer. Liam feels very connected to his grandfather who has recently passed away, and feels that attending the camp would honor his legacy. The grandfather played soccer for the Nation Team, and went to the camp in 1977. Liam's parents support his efforts, but have lately been busy caring for his five-year-old sister Lily, who was recently diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. When Liam does not make the baseball team (and Marcus does), he is in a difficult position. In order to apply to the camp, he needs to be on two sports teams that decide members through tryouts, but has only played soccer. He thinks about joining a local swimming team, but when he finds that obnoxious new student Jayson is on it, declines. He's on the shorter side, and doesn't make the school basketball team. He thinks about joining an intramural team, but never quite makes that happen. In the meantime, he has school projects, class activities with Mr. Young, and a possible romance with Izzie. There's friend drama with Marcus: Liam feels awkward because his friend will go to camp while he will not, but it turns out that Marcus feel ignored by Liam, and thinks that Liam would rather be friends with the girl-obsesses Sami. After a classroom incident involving stealing gum, Liam is held back for after school detention, making him late for track tryouts. This ruins his last chance at applying to the camp, although the track coach was impressed by his performance. Liam even e mails Camp Jackman, hoping they will bend the rules for him. They won't, but invite him to apply next year. Since he is invited to participate in the Blue Hornets elite track team, he is well on his way to his next application.
Strengths: It is hard to describe exactly how all-consuming sports can be for middle school students. I've seen many kids like Liam who play multiple sports, both at school and on the club level, and who think that they can make a career playing sports. Liam is willing to participate in just about any sport, and it was great that he found he had a talent for running. (But not surprising; my best cross country runners often had soccer backgrounds.) The friend drama with Marcus was perfect; it's hard when a friend excels at something when one is struggling. The inclusion of family issues, with Lily's health, makes the parents' support of Liams' endeavors even more meaningful. The portrayal of middle school romance is absolutely spot on, from Sami's interest in all the girls, to the trend of having shoelaces portray relationship status, to Liam breaking up with Izzie because he doesn't want to go out with anyone. While Liam doesn't get to go to camp, there is a bright spot when he gets to be on he elite track team, so this was hopeful while not ignoring the struggles tweens face. I'm very interested to see other books by Leitch.
Weaknesses: This is set in Canada, so maybe school rules are different there. At my school, Mr. Long would be out of a job for not watching his class on multiple occasions! We're not even allowed to let students sit in the hallway outside a classroom unsupervised. If a student is sick, we have to call the office or find a teacher on hall duty to take the student to the clinic. We also can't assign detentions for the same day as an infraction, because how would the student get home if a bus were missed? Our families are given at least a week's notice if students are kept after school, and detentions are given only for cumulative behavior, not just for one instance. They are issued by the assistant principal, not teachers. Young readers won't mind these details, but they really bothered me, especially since major plot points revolved around them.
What I really think: I think the fact that I had some personal issues with this book stemmed from the fact that I really liked it and need this book for my students. I'm definitely buying a copy, even though it stung more than a little that the grandfather was exactly my age and DEAD! Authors, authors! Let's increase dramatic tension in stories by keeping relatives alive and having tweens argue with them. What if the parents had supported Liam no matter what he did, but the grandfather put pressure on him to excel? Much more interesting. The Setback had some of the same feel of Wallace's great 2010 Sports Camp, and is the book I would expect if the extraordinary sports writer Fred Bowen teamed up to write a book with the fabulous tween romance writer G.F. Miller. 

Hoena, Blake and López, Sareki (Illustrator). 

Skateboards: A Graphic History
January 1, 2026 by Graphic Universe ™
Copy provided by the publisher

There are always young readers who skateboard, but there are very few books that tie in to this interest. Having a graphic nonfiction title is a perfect way to deliver this interesting history. 

While most people know about the tie-in to California surf culture and the 1960s resurgence in the sport, the early 1900s background may be surprising. Creating ones own toys was always fun, so seeing boxes and old roller skate wheels made into scooters, and boards used for baking buns made into skateboards didn't surprise me at all, but I don't know that children today produce as many of their own amusements. The different technological developments are interesting; I need to know more about what a clay wheel is, since my involvement with skateboards didn't happen until the appearance of urethane wheels.

There was a lot of fun history of which I was not aware; a drought in Southern California in 1976, for example, led to a lot of empty swimming pools that were used to develop new tricks. Parkour style outdoor skating utilizing stairs and railings in public areas heated up in the 1980s, and the X Games and Tony Hawk took hold in the 1990s and early 2000s. 

The illustrations all give a great feel for the styles and fashions of the time periods, and there is plenty of detail given to the evolution of skateboards themselves. There's even a bit of information about Vans shoes; I didn't realize that they were associated with skateboarding because the soles had extra gripping capabilities! This ends with a glossary, a few websites to visit, and a very helpful index. 

My students will be very excited to see this book. Now, if there could be some middle grade novels about skateboarding like Spangler's Kickturn. Other than a few old Matt Christopher titles and some Jake Maddox books, there are few other choices.  

Read 63 books in March. A little slow for me; I really am dedicated to reading just about all middle grade lit. 

Don't you think SOMEONE in publishing might be just the tiniest bit curious about why I am only buying FOUR of the books I read?

Nyah. No one cares. They just want to keep publishing depressing stuff and then whine about why no one is buying middle grade. Grrr. 

And yes, I had an uninspiring spring break, and am heading into testing next week. Also, blocked someone on Goodreads who commented that a long synopsis of a book is not a review, and I merely suspected they might have been referencing my review. That's the current mood! 

Happy Easter! Marie's Magic Eggs and Little Bunny's To-Do List

Wallace, Sandra Neil and Turk, Evan (illus.)

Marie's Magic Eggs: How Marie Procai Kept the Ukrainian Art of Pysanky Alive

February 10, 2026 by Calkins Creek

Copy provided by the Publisher

Ukrainian history is unfortunately filled with many tragic events, and young readers will be aware of the problems there currently with Russian. They may not know that the Ukranian people have a long history of trying to maintain their country, culture, and identity. Born in a small village in 1987, Marie and her family lived under various occupations, and eventually fled to Croatia. After her brothers left for North America, she made the trip herself at the age of thirteen, and ended up living with a cousin in Minneapolis. She worked in the vibrant Ukrainian community there, and started to try to replicate the Pysanky eggs that she made at Easter with her grandmother. She didn't have the dyes or equipment she needed, so improvised with using colors from paper and makeshift tools. She helped build a Ukranian church, and kept up her family traditions. After her son was killed in 1945, she helped welcome war refugees to further help her community. When her daughter took an interest in her art, Procai set up a Ukranian Gift Shop as a way to preserve the art of her culture. By 1972, there was such interest in Pysanka artists that Nationagl Geographic featured the family in an article. Procai went on to write books about decorating, and her business became the largest supplier of pysanka products in the world. 

Wallace, whose family emigrated from Ukraine, is a vocal advocate for Ukranian identity. Her grandmother had a tool from Procai's gift shop, but she didn't find out about Procai until Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022. It couldn't have been easy to gather information about Procai; the history of businesses is often lost to time, and folk artists often don't get the attention that they deserve. Luckily, her grandchildren agreed to speak to the author, and there are a good number of family photos from the mid twentieth century included in the back matter. 

I might have to look up Procai's book; my cousin's father's parents were from  Czechoslovakia, and she has made Pysanka eggs for fifty years. This is an art prevalent in several Slavic cultures, and doesn't get the widespread recognition that other arts and crafts do. Turk's art captures the color and style of the traditional egg designs. 

This is a great book to celebrate Easter, and will perhaps encourage young readers to investigate other forms of egg decorating beyond the standard US dye tablets. Include this in displays or Ukranian culture or in ones celebrating artists along with Rogers and Innerst’s Joan Mitchell Paints a Symphony, Harvey and Wise’s Ablaze with Color: A Story of Painter Alma Thomas, Scott, Stinson and Soloy's A Tulip in Winter: A Story about Folk Artist Maud Lewis, Spangler and Sweet's Unbound: The Life and Art of Judith Scott, and Temple and White’s Wilhelmina Barnes-Graham: An Introduction to Her Life with Activities.

Zax, Helen Kemp and Eagan, Kiersten Eve (illustrator)
Little Bunny's To-Do List
January 6, 2026 by Harry N. Abrams
Copy provided by Young Adult Books Central

A small, white rabbit living in a hutch has a busy morning as he magically transform into a bow-tie wearing Easter bunny and makes all of his preparations for delivering eggs. He consults his lengthy to-do list as he gathers and Dye's eggs, harvests jelly beans from a tree, and knits a number of lambswool sweaters. After enchanting his giant egg basket, he takes off in the evening to deliver eggs. It's not all work, though; he has plenty of time to bunny hop with the garden gnomes. With all of the Easter baskets filled and eggs hidden everywhere, he hops home in time to drink some magic parsley tea and return to being a regular, and very tired, bunny. He snuggles with the other bunnies to dream. 

Told in rhyming verse, this book shows Little Bunny being very productive, and even includes a fold out list at the end, complete with glittery check marks indicating that he got all of his work done. From a time management perspective, I was a little surprised that he left all of the work for the day before Easter; I rather wished this would also have showed some long range planning. The readers for this, however, are young enough that they probably have never even created a to-do list, so this is a great place to start. Zax and Evans have also written Little Witch's To-Do List and Little Elf's To-Do List (for Christmas). 

The illustrations are befittingly pastel , with a good dose of sparkles. Little Bunny and his friends are all shown be upbeat, cooperative, and helpful. Little Bunny does take some breaks to have lemonade with his friends, who help him organize things, unwind wool, and have quite the party while dyeing the eggs. The end papers are delightful, with eggs, teacups, carrots, and flowers. 

While there may never be another Easter picture book as completely perfect as Heyward's 1939 The Country Bunny and the Little Gold Shoes, there are a number of fun ones available. Take a look at Toht's Pick a Perfect Egg,  Heim and Blanco's Stop That Bunny, Baker's Hap-Pea Easter,  and Trukhan's The Great Big Egg Hunt for a veritable Easter basket of great titles. 

Princess Academy: The Graphic Novel and Fruitcake

Hale, Shannon and Ying, Victoria. Princess Academy: The Graphic Novel
April 7, 2026 by Bloomsbury Children's Books
ARC provided by the publisher

Miri lives in Eskel with her father, who has raised her since her mother died while she was being born. Her small mountain village depends on the mining of a stone, linder, and trading with other communities. When the message comes that the prophets have revealed that the heir to the throne, Steffan, will have a wife who comes from Eskel, all of the girls of a certain age are sent to a Princess Academy to learn skills. While Miri is glad to be going to school rather than tending goats, she misses her community, especially Peder, whom she would like to marry. There are a lot of different girls attending the school, with the understandable problems, as well as friendships. Even though the ostensible purpose of the academy is to train a future princess, the girls are able to work together, overcome obstacles, and think beyond the traditional fairy tale stereotype of a princess. There is a magical element in this with Miri being able to communicate via the linder stone. The original novel (2005) has two sequels, Palace of Stone (2012) and The Forgotten Sisters (2015).

There seems to be a trend of trying to increase interest in older titles by issuing graphic novel versions. Pierce's Alana: The First Adventure has seen this treatment as well. Princess Academy seemed closer to the original than some adaptations I have read, but it has been quite some time since I read the original. Hale's strong world building definitely comes through, and seeing one concept of the setting was fun. Readers who enjoy other girl power fantasies like Ursu's The Troubled Girls of Dragomir Academy and Hendrix's Adia Kelbara and the Circle of Shamans will enjoy this visit to Eskel.

Ogle, Rex. Fruitcake (Four Eyes #3)

April 7, 2026 by Graphix

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

As the new year of middle school starts, Rex is dismayed that all of his classmates seem to be forming romantic pairs. He's still hanging out with his friend Drew, but things are very complicated with him. Chase and Ramon are still giving people a hard time, even accosting Kyle just because he is wearing a pink shirt. Rex finds himself wanting to have a girlfriend, and connects with Charlotte, whom he asks to a dance. She accepts, and he feels like he is part of the larger group who have romantic entanglements. He can't afford to get his hair cut, as his family struggles with their finances, so takes a job babysitting to earn some money. His stepfather cautions him against letting people at school know about his employment, since babysitting is a girl's job. The stepfather also doesn't want to travel to California, because it's full of "fruits and nuts". Rex spends some time hanging out in the art room with other students who find the cafeteria daunting, and he talks to Nina as well as Kyle, who says openly that he is gay. When Rex's abuela visits, she always makes sure that the family has food and clothing. She also wants to take the family to church. Rex's mother won't attend, and Rex is shocked with the minister decries "the sin of homosexuality" from the pulpit. Even though Rex has leanings towards liking boys, he tells himself that if it is a sin, he will make the choice to like girls. Drew continues to deliver conflicting messages to Rex; they can hang out and kiss, but if Rex talks in public to Kyle, he can't talk in public to Drew. When Rex feels that kissing Drew is cheating on Charlotte, he breaks up with her with little explanation. There is a lot of drama at the school dance, but Rex eventually makes peace with Charlotte, his grandmother and her religion, and his own sexuality.
Strengths: This is an interesting look at how middle school life was back in the 1980s or 90s- going by the author's own age, this should be 1993, but the presence of overalls wants me to set in a few years earlier! This has all of the tween drama. Charlotte is a great character, and the way that Rex breaks up with her seems completely realistic. Drew is quite the eye opening character, and I always love reading about Abuela. The illustrations really make this one.
Weaknesses: The trend in LGBTQIA+ literature has been away from coming out stories, but since Ogle frequently draws on his own middle school experiences, this must have been the story he wanted to tell. I don't know how many 13 year olds now will understand the term "fruitcake".
What I really think: Readers who have followed Ogle's story in Four Eyes and Pizza Face wil be interested to see how his life in middle school continues. I know that marginalized communities often take derogatory terms and regain power by using them, but I haven't been a fan of any of Ogle's titles. I never would have referred to myself as "four eyes" in middle school, but times do change. Certainly, the acceptance of LGBTQIA+ individuals has changed dramatically in the last thirty years. 

Iced Out and The Water You're Swimming In

Marino, Max, Bolte, Mari and Diaz, Roman (illus.)
Iced Out (Lerner Sports Stories)
January 1, 2026 by Lerner Publications ™

Copy provided by the publisher

One of Xio's moms has been transferred, and while starting at Grant Elementary is a little daunting, Xio is glad that the community has a travel hockey team rather than just a club one. When she goes to school, she sees boys wearing soccer jerseys and strikes up a conversation with Luke and Lamar, but they are dismissive and rude, telling her that girls don't play hockey. Only Todd is nice and agrees that girls could play as well. At least Ainsley asks Xio to sit with her at lunch, and the two bond over skating, since Ainsley and her friend Lainey are figure skaters. Xio encourages the girls to try out for hockey with her after skating at the local rink with members of the older girls hockey team. After drilling and practicing for weeks, Xio feels prepared for the tryouts, even though the boys tell her that she should join the Bumblebees instead of the Hornets. Xio, Lainey, Ainsley, and Davi all make the team, and the boys are angry because they displaced four of their friends. Luke and Lamar even try to push the girls around on the ice until their coach upbraids them for treating teammates poorly. Lainey wants to quit, but Xio encourages her to stay. When the team runs into former members Leo and Mikey, who now play for the Bumblebees, they find out that they are having a perfectly fine time, and know that not everyone can play on the same team. Xio has good skills, and because of her hard work, the team is doing well. Luke and Lamar eventually apologize, and the Hornets have more success when they all work together. The end of the book has a short biography about Grace Zumwinkle, who plays in the PWHL. 

It is hard for me to believe that over fifty years after Title IX boys still are resistant to girls on their teams! Even the Boy Scouts, now Scouting America, have female members, and my middle school had several girls on the team before enrollment dropped and we had to combine with another school. That makes books like this all the more important for young readers, so that they can understand that girls are just as good at sports as boys!

I loved that Xio and her friends put in the hard work to polish their skills for tryouts, and that they were determined to stick with the team even when the boys were rude. They stood up for themselves, and eventually changed the boys' minds. Characters who are resilient and persistent are great examples for younger readers, and I wish more middle grade books included these good examples. 

There are a few shorter books about hockey, like Eyre's The Mean Girl Meltdown, McKnight's Jim Nasium is a Hockey Hazard, Mutinda and Walters' Hockey Night in Kenya, and Maddox's Slap-Shot Slump, although not all of them deal with the additional topic of girls in sports. Books for slightly older books that address this include Deibert's Bea Mullins Takes a Shot, Morrill's Being Sloan Jacobs, and Kim's On Thin Ice.

 

Fagan, Rachel Schwartz. The Water You're Swimming In 

March 17, 2026 by Orca Book Publishers
E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

Noah lives in Bible Hill, Nova Scotia in a town near the Bay of Fundy that is so small that students either need to go to a private Christian school for some of their years, or travel to a nearby town. As he enters 8th grade, he's dealing with the fact that his older brother, Jamie, who has always had problematic behavior, has run away to Halifax. His parents are struggling, so invite his Grandma Aisling to stay with them to keep an eye on Noah. She's a fiddler as well as an herbalist, traditions that are kept alive by Jamie, who is hoping to make a living playing fiddle. Noah is a swimmer, and when he finds that the winner of an end of year school meet will win an all expense paid trip to Halifax, he practices extra hard so that he can visit the city, find his brother, and bring him back. Classmate Jessica, however, informs him that SHE will be winning the meet. Noah has a crush on Alysha, and the two spend some sweet moments together, but there is drama when she confides in Jessica. Noah comes in second at the meet, but takes his savings and gets a bus to Halifax. He doesn't have a lot of money, and can't find his brother after checking several local bars. Taking a moment to look out at the ocean, he slips and falls in... and is rescued by Jessica, who is there with her parents. Eventually, his parents are contacted, Jamie is found, and the family is able to work through their problems with a therapist.
Strengths: I don't know anything at all about Nova Scotia, other than the Anne of Green Gables connection, so it was interesting to take a brief look at a community there. There also aren't a lot of books about swimming, so details of Noah's training and competition were appreciated. Including a light romance with some twists to it added some interest. While I don't approve of Noah taking off on a bus by himself, I have to applaud his initiative and independence, even if he doesn't plan as well as he should have. There's a happy ending to the book, and it's good that the family is shown attending therapy.
Weaknesses: It was interesting to see Grandma Aisling's herbal concoctions and hear her songs (a lot of them are quoted, and they have a bit of a sea shanty feel to them), but I'm not sure how either of these topics will resonate with my students.
What I really think: There's a lot of emotional impact in a missing sibling, and The Water You're Swimming In is a good choice for readers who like stories like Pfeffer's 1987 The Year Without Michael or Fritz's Everywhere Blue.

Mystery in the Grand Canyon

Bowling, Dusti. Mystery in the Grand Canyon

Sir Edmund of the Wild West #1
March 17, 2026 by Holiday House
E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

Edmund is a goldendoodle who thinks he should become a British Royal Guard at Buckingham Palace when his owner, the British Mrs. Brandywine, passes away from a heart attack. He is returned to the Academy, where service dogs are trained. Since Edmund has a talent for identifying when people are about to have seizures, he is paired with Willy, a veteran who suffered a traumatic brain injury in the service and also suffers from PTSD after the death of his friends Jeff and Mike. Willy has a camper van, and hosts a ghost hunting show. He and Edmund take off to the Grand Canyon to investigate the 1928 disappearance of hikers Glen and Bessie. Edmund, who is extremely supercilious and overestimates his own importance, is condescending to the dogs he meets, like Rocky and King Ruler (a tiny Chihuahua), although he bows to social pressure and lets Rocky sniff his butt. Because many people have died in the Grand Canyon, Edmund realizes that he can see and talk to their ghosts. Willy starts his investigation at the Emery Kolb photography studio, since it was the last place that the hikers were seen. The other dogs warn Edmund about the Mogollon Monster who frequents the canyon, and there are plenty of scrapes, like Willy slipping and almost plummeting to his death before being saved by travelers Emmie and Jared. Edmund uses his conversations to help lead Willy to some conclusions about the mystery, and he is soon able to lean into his new life, even eating a lowly hotdog that Rocky provides. Willy's seizures have returned, so the two get help from Emmie and Jared in order to head off to their next adventure.
Strengths: Bowling uses a lot of history of the Grand Canyon, especially in her portrayal of the ghosts. I loved her author's note at the end, as well as the bibliography. It's always fun to travel in the Southwest via her books. There's a nice balance between Edmund's point of view and Willy's activity, and the representation of a military veteran dealing with health issues and being helped by a service dog was excellent. I'm not sure how many elementary readers are interested in podcasts, but middle school ones occasionally listen, especially to ones with murder and ghost themes, so the mystery of Glen and Bessie will garner some interest.
Weaknesses: Edmund's British affectations and insistence that he is somehow better than the other dogs will amuse elementary school readers more than middle school ones.
What I really think: Comparisons to Messner's Ranger in Time series are apt, since both books feature dogs who save the day and are roughly the same length and reading level This reminded me most strongly of Erickson's 1982 Hank the Cowdog series with a dash of Cameron's Puppy Tales books.

Hafsa's Way

Saeed, Aisha. Hafsa's Way
March 10, 2026 by Nancy Paulsen Books
E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

In this companion novel to Amal Unbound and Omar Rising, we follow the progress of Amal's best friend, Hafsa. Hafsa's family runs a produce market in their small Pakistani village, and she is very excited to have been accepted into a month long medical studies summer program at the Bukhari school in Lahore. Her father is adamantly against the idea, since he is appalled when she does something as simple as riding a bicycle, because it is somehow unseemly for a girl to do this. When her older sister, Shabnam, visits with her doctor husband, Sohail, the idea comes up for Hafsa to stay with Shabnam while she attends the program, which Sohail offers to pay for. In a surprise move, Hafsa's grandmother jumps with with her agreement to send Hafsa, stopping her son from forbidding it! Hafsa is surprised at how opulent Sohail's family home is, and a bit concerned that Shabnam is helping Sohail's mother with a hospital fund raising gala rather than going to culinary school. Another concern is that the medical camp is being held the next year, and the focus of the current program is climate change. Since it was difficult to attend this year, there is little hope of returning. One teacher lets Hafsa watch the recorded videos from the previous year, so she does get some of the medical information. The program is interesting, and Hafsa takes a particular interest in an elephant, Gulab, at the local zoo, even though other students make fun of her "dancing" with the elephant in a quiet moment. At the zoo, she runs into Tariq, who is also worried that Gulab is not receiving the best care, and the two work to get Gulab's situation more attention. Hafsa talks to Sohail about the fact that Shabnam is working so hard on the gala that she has set aside her dream to open a cupcake bakery, which causes a few family problems, but also opens communication. Hafsa's attempts to get Gulab's case media attention are successful, and the school offers her a scholarship to the camp the following year because of her work. Sohail's mother agrees to hire a team to help with the ever increasing work for the gala, and the book ends on a positive note. 

Strengths: I read this book and Hicks' Inbetweens on the same night, and now I want to go to a summer program! While these tend to be expensive, they are so helpful, and it was interesting to see depictions of programs in both the US and Pakistan. Of course, I would rather send my own children to a medical program, and climate change is every bit as important to study. There's just enough information about climate change and its effects to be interesting, but not so many that the story is bogged down in details. There's a personal face of the issues with Gulab; readers who love animals will want to read this for the details about elephants. The family dynamics are well depicted, and US readers will find it interesting that Shabnam was married relatively young to a man picked out for her by her parents. It was nice to see a glimpse of Amal at the beginning of the story. 

Weaknesses: I would have adored this as a middle school student, but while Amal Unbound remains popular in my library, I've had trouble getting readers to pick up titles like Omar Rising. I'll probably purchase a copy, because I think it's an important story to read. Just don't understand why young people are not curious about the world. 

What I really think: This is a great choice for readers who want to see what every day life is like in countries other than the US and who enjoyed stories like Abbas's Aarzu All Around, Perkins's The Golden Necklace: A Darjeeling Tea Mystery, or Bajaj's Thirst.

I hesitate to mention this book, but since it caught me a bit off guard, it might surprise others as well. Even if librarians and teachers don't read every book they hand to students, they should have a good idea of what the stories contain. This might be exactly what you are looking for in a book; it is just not something I will be purchasing. 

Patel, Khushboo. All That Chandni Knows
March 31, 2026 by G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers
E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

**Spoilers**

While I very much enjoyed seeing the depiction of daily life in Gujarat in 1999 (and was amazed that there were so many cultural references that are the same in the US!), the exploration of colorism, and Chandni's struggles to get into boarding school, I'm not sure that I want to personally hand middle school readers a story where the father is having an affair with the mother's sister, Diya Masi. Not only that, but Diya Masi lives in the family home, shares a room with Chandni, and while Chandni knows about the affair (and is told that the mother is okay with it), the mother does not and is devastated at the end of the book. There are no details at all about any activity, so my objection doesn't lie there. This is a novel in verse, and I wish there were more support for Chandni throughout, because this would be a devastating secret with which to live.

This was lyrical and heart felt, but perhaps just not the right choice for my readers in grades 6-8. If this is something that appeals to you, by all means take a look.