Happy Sunday, children’s literature lovers! Have you heard about Regal Cinemas’ $1 movies? We took my daughter to the movies for the first time today and it cost less than $20 for the three of us plus snacks. However, there are limited times and a limited selection of films.
Today I’m reviewing all the middle grade novels: four novels with disability representations and two new releases. They’re all fantastic.
New publications
“I come from here too” by Kashmira Sheth
This is the first novel I’ve read that is told from the perspective of a Sikh boy. It’s a middle school verse novel about an Indian-American Sikh boy, Anoop, who enters 8th grade and experiences racially motivated bullying. At the same time, he worries about his grandfather in India, who is suffering from pneumonia. During the winter break, he and his father visit India and Anoop learns more about his grandfather’s history during Partition and what it means to be Sikh. When he returns home, he is more confident about how to deal with the bullies. However, the bullying increases.
Majestica by Sarah Tolcser
Now for a new fantasy for middle school that reminded me of Jurassic Parkbut with fantasy creatures! Hattie Swift wants to be a chambermaid at the Hotel Majestica, a resort near a magical wildlife reserve. After the death of her parents, she was raised by the hotel staff. She gets the chance to become a chambermaid, but not in the way she wants. She has to accompany the hotel’s spoiled niece on a train ride through the enchanted forest. She is also accompanied by an apprentice magician. When the train breaks down and the fences that keep the magical creatures in stop working, Hattie and her two companions experience an unexpected magical adventure.
A more comprehensive list of new releases can be found in our “New Books” newsletter.
Riot Recommendations
For Disability Pride Month, in the last newsletter I reviewed picture books with depictions of disabilities. In this one I review middle school novels with depictions of disabilities.
The Year My Life Went Down the Drain by Jake Maia Arlow
This is a phenomenal and language-driven novel about 12-year-old Al Schneider, who is queer and Jewish and learns she has Crohn’s disease. She can’t stop running to the bathroom and is unhappy when she gets the diagnosis. Her doctor recommends an IBD support group, which her mother sends her to. For the first time, she finds friends who understand where she’s coming from, but in the meantime, her forever friend feels left out. And her mothers are acting weird.
Sail Me Away Home by Ann Clare LeZotte
This is the third and final book in LeZotte’s wonderful give me a sign Series set on Martha’s Vineyard in the early 19th century. Each book is about the deaf Mary Lambert. Many people on Martha’s Vineyard are deaf, and Martha is treated normally and can communicate with all the locals using sign. In this third book, she is a teacher who reluctantly agrees to accompany a group of missionaries abroad to European schools for the deaf. It seems to be the chance of a lifetime, but the missionaries treat her as less than human, which gets worse as their trip progresses. They see no agency in her. This is written in diary format. Although it is the third in a series, it could also be read on its own.
Mirror to Mirror by Rajani LaRocca
In this middle-grade verse novel, two twin sisters decide to switch places at summer musical camp. Whoever lasts the longest gets to choose which high school they go to. Chaya seems to be the obvious winner: she’s outgoing and likes to be the center of attention. Maya suffers from severe anxiety that she tries to hide from everyone, even though Chaya knows about it. But at summer camp, where they pretend to be each other, the twins get to know each other better. It’s a fast, exciting read.
Puzzled: Memoirs of Growing Up with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder by Pan Cooke
This fantastic graphic novel begins when the author is ten years old and ends when he is still in high school. Cooke tells the story of his OCD and the long journey he took to discovering it. While attending Catholic school, Cooke thought that if he could just get his Hail Marys and prayers right, it would be like puzzle pieces fitting together. He would stay up many hours at night trying to get them perfect. During church services, he would be plagued by obsessions and believe he might be possessed by the devil. These obsessions changed as he got older and got worse, until he felt like he couldn’t hang out with his friend anymore because of them.
Bookworm good
Literacy T-Shirt by angiepea
This design is available as a t-shirt, tank top, sweatshirt or hoodie. Show where you stand any time of year! $30+
Did you read this on bookriot.com? Subscribe to our newsletter, “The Kids Are All Right,” here and get it in your inbox.
