Amy is always on the go - she wants to dance with ribbons. When her friends are coming over to dance, she's excited to dance with ribbons. But she doesn't have anything that will work. Maybe that doesn't matter.
Charlie Thorne is back - and this time she's checking in Cleopatra's history. She's rumored to have left behind an ancient treasure. Charlie is on the case and she's determined to uncover it before anyone else - and before anyone can stop her. She might need the help of her favorite CIA agents - her half-brother and his girlfriend. Can they uncover the clues and find the treasure?
This purple crayon seems to have a mind of its own. At first Jasper is happy to have the crayon's help. He's getting better grades, but soon the crayon wants to take over everything. And it's a little bit creepy!
Skandar's always wanted to pass the test and hatch a unicorn. But when he's not allowed to take the test, he feels like the whole world is against him. Until a strange arrives at midnight. She will take him to the hatching site and sneak him in.At first, Skandar believes it's too good to be true. Does this mysterious strange have anything to do with the unicorn thief?He bonds with a unicorn and joins his place among the students. But he quickly learns that his magical element is illegal. And if anyone else found out, both he and his unicorn could be killed...
Barrett Bloom is hoping to reinvent herself in college. Her high school years were full of friendless times, bullies, and horrific. But the first day of college isn't going her way. She discovers her ex-friend from high school is her roommate, is humiliated in class, and burns down the frat house. You would want to change this day if possible...Barrett wakes up and discover that she's reliving the same day. She's excited to make different choices - until she wakes up again. Now she's stuck in a time loop.But she discovers she's not alone in the time loop. The boy who humiliated her in class is stuck with her. Can they figure out how to get their lives back -without killing each other?
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Knox and his family are living in Hong Kong but Covid is spreading. Knox's parents are scared. Knox, his mom, his sister, and his brother move back to California. They leave behind their dog and their father - who has to stay behind for work.They hate splitting up the family, but Knox's mom is sure the virus won't come to America.But it does.And everything is so hard for Knox and his family. Separated from their father, navigating a new school, trying to make new friends, dealing with racist comments, and trying to adjust.
There's a new student in Amy Wu's class from China. Amy wants to welcome Lin, but he doesn't say much. After witnessing an exchange between Lin and his sister, Amy has an idea.
Charlie Thorne's living on a small island on the Galapagos Islands. She's not exactly hiding but she's certainly been laying low. When a stranger asks her for help, she realizes it's the end of her time there. The stranger wants her help decoding a message left by Charles Darwin about a great treasure.Charlie's interested in learning more, but she's not surprised when the stranger double crosses her. Luckily, Charlie always has a back-up plan. This time in the form of her CIA agent half-brother.She pushes him to help her find the treasure. What changed Charles Darwin so much during his travels?
Chloe can't imagine why her parents want her to marry a boy from her neighborhood. Sure his parents are rich, but the boy in question is terrible. He's so wrong for her.Instead, Chloe hires a boy to play her boyfriend over the holidays. The company provides the perfect boyfriend to soothe even her tradition parents' minds.But no matter how great Drew looks on paper, her parents aren't excited about the prospect. They still want her to marry the neighborhood boy.Chloe can't imagine her life married to him. She's not ready for marriage. And certainly not to him. She wishes that every choice she made wasn't an issue for her parents. Chloe knows they won't approve of Drew in real life - and now that's falling for him, everything gotten way more complicated...
The Wildcats' season is just beginning, but they're coming off the loss of the championship game. There are reasons for the loss. But now the team has to pull themselves together.
They just discovered their teammates and there's a scrimmage tomorrow against the team that beat them. They have one night to gel as a team. Luckily the sleepover tradition will help.This is the one night of the season that they break all the rule in the name of tradition. The initiation ceremony helps seal the bond of friendship and teammates. But the coach throws a wrench into their plans and the night pivots in a way Mel, the captain, never imagined.
Jameela's excited when the newspaper advisor picks up as the new feature editor for the school newspaper. More than anything, Jameela wants to be an award winning journalist just like her grandfather.My Thoughts: I love Little Women, so I was more than happy when this ARC came in the mail. And I loved this book; it perfectly captures the feel of Little Women - from the family dynamics, to the friendship with the boy, to Jameela's writing. Jameela's family is Muslim American. Ali, a family friend, arrives from England. I love their conversations about the differences between the two countries. I loved the bits about the newspaper. I loved Bisma's storytime and how that turned out. Of course, I cried at the ending. This book is such a heartwarming read.
But seventh grade is proving to be difficult. First her father's job takes him away from the family for six months. Then a draft of her article is printed instead of the real article - causing a new friend embarrassment. The last straw is the news of her sister's illness.
Suddenly nothing matters and everything worries Jameela. She longs for life to return to normal.
Dessa and her family are nomads, they travel the country with a caravan of family and friends. They vote together on their destinations. But Dessa's tired of not having roots. She desperately wants to go to college for art. Unfortunately, she's been rejected at every art school she applied to.My Thoughts: I really enjoyed this book. I liked the closeness of the family - including the family they made with the caravan. I liked the romance of the book. I enjoyed the moments where Dessa tried to figure out her future and if she was good enough. But most of all, I loved the moments about art - the creation, the learning, the talking about it all. It made me itch to do something crafty after reading this book.
When an unexpected internship falls into her lap, she jumps at the chance to learn. She wants to prove herself to her new boss and to herself. Can she make a living being an artist? Can she see a future for herself beyond traveling with her family?
Charlie's older sister is getting married; giving the family one last weekend at the family home before it's sold. Things are changing and Charlie doesn't like change. She's not thrilled about movie. She's sad that her mother's comic strip is ending. She's not sure she wants to leave town for college. She does know that she wants this weekend to be perfect - to be just like old times.My Thoughts: I adore Morgan Matson books and honestly I could have read many more pages about this family. I really loved it. I saved it to read on vacation and it was such a fun read. I loved the wedding drama, the family drama, and the moments between the siblings. I enjoyed the comic strip and learning more about how that changed things in the family. So many laughs and cute moments in this book from the borrowed dog to the donut runs to the capture the flag moment. Charlie grows during the weekend - learning things about herself and her family. Another sweet story from Morgan Matson - and I can't wait to see what she writes next.
But of course things don't run smoothly and Charlie spends the weekend putting out small fires. The end of the weekend will change everything, but Charlie's holding on to the past as tight as she can
Elle's in the seventh grade but a recent growth spurt has made her life miserable. She's nearly six feet tall already. Her basketball game's suffering because of her new height.My Thoughts: A fun middle grade - about sports, fitting in, and trying to be yourself. I really enjoyed the first book of this series and I'm looking forward to more. I felt terrible for Elle - being at that awkward stage in her life and being so tall. While I was never that tall, I was also tall for my age. Plus of course, I loved the basketball parts of the book. And who didn't hate being told what to do by the school. I love how that worked out.
She's also forced into a dance - a school tradition. She's so tall that she has a hard time dancing with the boys. She also can't find her rhythm. She's dreading the dance - from her lack of skills to her terrible partner to the dress she's forced to wear.
Why can't life be easy?
Molly Meade started her ice cream stand in 1944, during the war. At first it was something to help out her family and spread some joy. But it became bigger than that. She only employed girls. Now, in present day, Amelia can't believe it's her last summer at the ice cream stand. Nor can she believe that she's head girl.My Thoughts: Two concepts hooked me on this book: feminism and ice cream. I loved the dual timelines and how they came together. I loved learning about Molly's life in stages, through her diary. I really loved how the ice cream stand came to be - first with fun for her friends and then through business. I loved Amelia and her dedication to the creamery. I loved her determination, her brains, and how she wanted to make the summer magical for the other girls. I would have loved to work at the stand. I liked her relationship with Cate and how that worked out, even through the rocky moments. I felt badly for Grady and his relationship with his father. This book made me crave ice cream so badly! Stay Sweet is the perfect summer read!
But on her first day, she discovers Molly's body. There goes her perfect summer hanging out with her best friend, Cate and scooping ice cream.
Molly left her stand to her great nephew. More than anything Amelia wants to help him, but she's concerned about the changes he wants to make. Meade Creamery stands for more than just ice cream.
Amina hates the spotlight; she has a hard time projecting her voice. Even though she loves music, Amina would rather stay in the background. But she at the age when everything starts to change.My Thoughts: I really enjoyed this book. I loved Amina's struggle to find her voice and her courage. I enjoyed the family dynamics. I really loved the Oregon Trail game - brings me right back to my childhood. I liked the food descriptions and the family celebrations. My heart broke when the mosque was vandalized. But I loved how the community came together to help. I really enjoyed the friendship moments between Soojin and Amina and the new friendship with Emily.
Her best friend is just about to become a US Citizen and she's thinking of changing her name. Soojin wants a more American name. Amina can't imagine calling her best friend by another name. Emily starts hanging around both girls. Amina isn't interested in Emily's friendship but Soojin befriends her.
Amina's uncle is coming to stay with them for a time. He's stricter than her parents. His ideas make Amina nervous - especially the ones about music.
Music soothes Amina's soul. With all the changes in her life, it's the one thing that gives her joy. Especially after someone vandalizes their mosque. Can she use music to help her and other heal?
They're celebrating Farah's birthday. Because of a move, she hasn't seen her two best friends in a while. They head upstairs to try to escape her younger brother. Her aunt left her a birthday present. When they unwrap it, they find the strangest game they've ever seen: The Gauntlet of Blood and Sand.My Thoughts: I really loved this book. I loved the Middle Eastern flair. I loved how the friends had to come together to save Farah's little brother. Of course I loved the description of food. And the board gaming. I loved reading about the puzzles and the challenges they had to solve. I enjoyed the characters (especially the giant lizards) in the game who wanted to help them and get out of the game itself. The world building was amazingly good; I loved the descriptions. The action and the danger pulled the story along making me not want to put the book down.
Before they realize what happened, her younger brother vanishes into the game. They go in after him, knowing they must beat the game or be trapped inside forever.
Library Recommendation: A must have for both middle school and public libraries
