Four sisters search for true family in this story of resilience by a Newbery Honoree. When the McCready sisters’ parents are washed away in a tsunami, Great-Aunt Martha volunteers to have them live with her. But as they’re traveling to Martha’s farm in British Columbia, Martha dies unexpectedly, forcing Fiona, the eldest, to come up with a scheme to keep social services away—a scheme that will only work if no one knows they’re living on their own. Can the sisters pull it off? Or will everything fall apart? This classic-in-the-making has the charm of Little Women and the adventure of the Penderwicks. See for yourself! That’s why I’m so glad there’s middle grade fiction like the books on this list. The young protagonists in these books may or may not be facing the same issues as the young readers in your life, but books like these help kids learn how to handle the scary things, big or small. Mia Tang from Front Desk shows kids they can have courage and stand up for the underdog, even when adults and authority figures are telling them to do the wrong thing. Shannon from Real Friends shows kids how to face bullies and what a true, healthy friendship should look like. When Efrén’s mother is deported in Efrén Divided, he becomes his younger siblings’ primary caregiver, showing kids they can have resilience and tremendous heart, even when the unimaginable happens. Kids may only begin middle school once, but through Jerry Craft’s New Kid, they have the opportunity to see what it’s like to be dropped into a new place where no one else looks like you. Maybe one of these books is just right for the young reader in your life, or perhaps you can read it for yourself and remember just what those middle grade years were like.
