by Ernesto Cisneros Efren is an American-born child of illegal Mexican immigrants living in Southern California. When his mother is caught by immigration officers and deported, Efren must balance caring for his younger twin siblings with his own school work and friendships, while also helping his father find a way to bring his mother back. […]
by Jessica Day George When Anthea is sent to live with her uncle beyond the wall, she discovers that he is raising illegal horses—and that she can communicate with them. I wish this book had been out when I was in elementary school. Even as an adult I loved the characters and the horses.
by Jessica Day George Castle Glower changes every Tuesday, throwing out a new wing or redecorating a room or changing the destination of a staircase. When Princess Celie’s family goes missing and treacherous men try to take over the kingdom, Celie and her siblings step up to the task of defending themselves, their people, and […]
by Meg Medina Merci Suarez starts 6th grade with big hopes of joining the soccer team and having a great year. But things don’t go as planned, and she must navigate unsettling family health issues and friends who are suddenly more interested in boys than in sports. This story felt so real to me, even […]
by Kwame Alexander Told entirely in short poems/rap, this is the story of Josh Bell and his family—including his twin brother and their basketball star father. I’m not big on basketball or poetry, but this was an incredibly cool way to tell a story, and a lot of the poems were really poignant. I loved […]
by Louis Sachar When Stanley Yelnats is convicted of a crime he didn’t commit, he has the choice either to go to prison or to Green Lake correctional camp. In the camp (where there is no actual lake), convicts are forced to dig five-foot holes, one a day, every day. But Stanley soon realizes that […]
by Neil Gaiman As a toddler, Nobody Owens climbs out of his crib and wanders out the front door and up the hill to the nearby cemetery, away from the house where the rest of his family is being murdered in their sleep. The ghostly citizens of the graveyard protect him from the killer who […]
by Kelly Barnhill A baby is taken from her screaming mother to be left in the woods for the (make believe) witch in the annual Day of Sacrifice. The (very real) witch rescues an abandoned baby and feeds her starlight on the way to finding her a new, loving home. Except that she accidentally feeds […]
by Ellen Raskin Eccentric millionaire Sam Westing has no heir, or rather, he has sixteen of them. These heirs must participate in the game set out in the old man’s will if they want a chance to win the whole inheritance. This is a fun and intriguing puzzle mystery with a kooky cast of characters, […]
by Scott O’Dell Karana’s people have always lived undisturbed on the Island of the Blue Dolphins—that is, until the Aleuts came to hunt otter and ended up killing half of the villagers. The rest of the villagers welcome the chance to leave the island a couple of years later when a ship comes to take […]