As school season starts back up, here’s a list of six middle grade books I read over the summer that I thoroughly enjoyed. Middle grade reads are for everyone!

Nothing Else but Miracles by Kate Albus

“From the author of A Place to Hang the Moon comes a hopeful World War II story about three scrappy siblings on the Lower East Side of Manhattan.” This is a lovely work of middle grade historical fiction. I love Kate Albus – she writes such warm stories, balancing the hard and the funny and the hopeful so well. I love stories of siblings overcoming odds together. So well done.

The Cartoonists Club by Raina Telgemeier

This was a fun middle grade graphic novel. Lots of how tos about cartooning and creating a club. Would be great to share with kids interested in those topics or anyone interested in a behind the curtain kind of look.

The Girl in the Lake by India Hill Brown

A chilling (and historically inspired) middle grade ghost story. I grabbed this on audio and was delighted when I saw the narrator was the fabulous Bahni Turpin. Gahh, so good. I loved this. It was spooky while covering important history. I loved the family featured here.

The Cursed Moon by Angela Cervantes

“One two, the Caretaker’s coming for you. Three-four, you’ll breathe no more. Five-six, you’ll float like sticks. Seven, eight, you’ll meet your fate.” Oh my gosh, this was a SPOOKY middle grade ghost story that I had to finish in a day because I needed to know everything would be ok. Page-turning!

Extra Normal by Kate Alice Marshall

Three cheers for spooky middle grade fantasy adventure stories! I listened to this and devoured it.

“Charlie Greer is nothing special—at least not compared to her adopted siblings. Her younger sister is a ghost. Her brother Mateo is a werewolf. Gideon is the product of seriously sketchy experiments that gave him telekinetic powers. Even her parents work for the Division of Extranormal Investigations tracking down all things supernatural, alien, and otherwise unusual.”

And then her parents go on vacation and spooky neighbors move in and something is just not right. Is Charlie the only one who can save the day? You bet and I am here for it. I love Charlie.

Lasagna Means I Love You by Kate O’Shaughnessy

This was a lovely middle grade story that had me tearing up in a few places. Fans of the Vanderbeekers would love this – different stories and situations, but gave me the same kind of feels as I read. I love Mo and wanted to hug her, and there are some adults in this book I could have smacked. I gave this five stars. And if it weren’t a billion degrees, I’d fire up my oven and make some of Mo’s recipes.