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A Stone’s Throw by Wayne Edwards

A beautifully wrought tale of hardship, healing, and the bonds that remake us. Edwards’ novel unfolds with the quiet intensity of a life upended, following a twelve-year-old girl as she’s forced to navigate loss, displacement, and the uneasy hope of…
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Rise of the TechPals (A Boy and His D.O.G. Book 2) by Jordan Hines

A fast-paced, inventive sequel packed with humor, teamwork, and escalating stakes. In Hines’s hilarious, high-energy sequel to A Boy and His D.O.G. series, Blu and his loyal robot partner are thrust back into action when supposedly defunct TechPals begin glitching…
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Raining Robots: A Boy and His D.O.G. by Jordan Hines

A high-tech adventure with heart to spare. Hines delivers an energetic sci-fi adventure anchored by humor, heart, and an endearing boy–robot partnership in this lively series opener. Ben, who has always longed for a dog, never expects his first dog…
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Really, Granddad? by Wayne Sherrard

Tender, witty, and irresistibly readable. Sherrard’s compelling collection of fifty short stories traces the life of a boy who grew up in motion—packing, unpacking, and discovering meaning in the small wonders of a postwar world. The stories in the collection…
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A Dying Titan by Mike Connor

Inventive, witty, and unpredictably heartfelt. Connor’s excellent tale thrusts readers into a world where time, trust, and identity can shatter without warning. Thirteen-year-old Jack Landon wakes in the bizarre town of Cabbington with no parents, no answers, and two unlikely…
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Knights in Manhattan: A Reen and Joanie Detective Agency Novel by Kay Dibianca

A sprightly urban caper that mixes high-stakes mystery with warmth, humor, and the magic of discovery. DiBianca’s latest Reen and Joanie Detective Agency tale kicks off with a cryptic note and a string of jewel heists. Reen Penterson, ten, and…
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A Seal Upon the Heart by Arian Hatefi

Lyrical, emotional, and gripping. In Hatefi’s heartfelt middle-grade adventure, two siblings risk everything to save the person they love most. Eleven-year-old Leonardo and eight-year-old Leili’s lives change forever when they learn their father has a terminal illness. Rumors of a…
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The Mighty Worrier by Hunter Lloyd

Refreshingly sharp and emotionally layered… In Lloyd’s fun middle-grade novel, a socially isolated seventh grader obsessed with being right begins to unravel when his intelligence fails to shield him from failure, vulnerability, and unexpected friendship. Twelve-year-old Daniel Diamond is the…
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Summer Solstice by Kelly Williams

Thoughtful, compassionate, and quietly profound… A lonely boy and a broken bird find their way forward in Williams’s graceful, moving middle-grade novel. After a car crash kills his father, twelve-year-old Elliot Blake retreats into silence, burdened by guilt he can’t…
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Wintersfall: The Legend of Sangareth (the Elderwood Chronicles, Book 4) by M.G. Claybrook

A quietly powerful tale about history, belief, and the quiet defiance of choosing empathy over fear. Claybrook’s fourth entry in The Elderwood Chronicles continues his deep exploration of folklore and philosophy, centering on a young squirrel raised in a realm…
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The Best Worst Christmas Ever by Thomas J. Thorson

Deeply human and quietly magical; a triumph… Thorson turns a blizzard, a blackout, and a botched vacation into a warm, imaginative reawakening of what family and Christmas really mean in his compelling YA fantasy. The Natale family’s long-awaited tropical escape…
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Shades of Yellow by Talia Orbach

A standout debut… Set in a quiet Connecticut town, Orbach’s heartfelt middle-grade novel follows three fourteen-year-olds as they face pressure, loss, and change—and discover that friendship might be the one thing they can count on. Cassidy is used to moving.…
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Another Side of Sunshine by Kay DiBianca

Clever, wholesome, and fun… DiBianca’s latest novel is a cleverly structured middle-grade mystery that brings together classic adventure tropes with the emotional honesty of a coming-of-age summer tale. Spunky ten-year-old Reen Penterson ditches her summer novel-writing when a campus-wide treasure…
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Angels in the Sand by Lori Keating

Tender, nostalgic, and deeply moving… A young girl searches for love and connection as she faces heartbreaking loss in Keating’s poignant novel. Jess Alexander has already lost her father. Now, just before Christmas, she learns her beloved Grandma Evelyn doesn’t…
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THE DRAGON WAY HOME by Margaretta James

Fierce, tender, and unforgettable… James’ latest novel is a taut, emotionally charged middle-grade novel that weaves magical realism with the raw ache of a fractured family. Trying to come to terms with his parents’ divorce and a canceled trip to…
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Hidden by Olivia Gold 

A wildly entertaining ride that’s as heartfelt as it is hilarious… Gold combines sharp wit, wild turns, and middle school madness into a taut, thrilling story in her latest novel. Xander thought he had middle school figured out: stay low,…
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Animal Revolution: General Jack and the Battle of the Five Kingdoms #5 by David Bush

Intense, insightful, and unputdownable… In the chaos of revolution, two roosters dare to challenge an empire of eagles in Bush’s fifth installment of the General Jack and the Battle of the Five Kingdoms series. It’s 1793. France is in turmoil.…
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Digger: Dig or Die! by Deborah Cholette

Gripping, relentless, and timely… Cholette’s razor-sharp dystopian thriller thrusts two siblings into a race for survival as they battle a world unraveling around them. A climate disaster drains Earth’s atmosphere, forcing humanity to flee. Siblings Nick and Lily must adapt…
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Stjarna’s Stars by Patricia Squire

Whimsical and enchanting; a heartfelt journey of courage, family, and new beginnings. Squire’s compelling novel transports readers to 19th-century Iceland, where a young girl faces the upheaval of her life as her family sets out on a journey from their…
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Animals at War: General Jack and the Battle of the Five Kingdoms #4 by David Bush

Powerful, layered, and suspenseful; a compelling exploration of loyalty, survival, and moral conflict. Bush’s thrilling latest novel plunges readers into the chaos of 1536, a Europe divided by ideological conflicts, through the lives of its vivid animal characters. Gert, a…