Among Ghosts by Rachel Hartman - ESSENTIAL

Among Ghosts by Rachel Hartman, 400 pages. Random House, 2025. $21.

Language: G (0 swears 0 'f'); Mature Content: G; Violence: PG13 (death by fire, plague, dragon attacks, bully violence ) 

BUYING ADVISORY: MS, HS - ESSENTIAL 

APPEALS TO: SEVERAL 

13yo Charl had arranged to meet his bully in the ruins of the old abby on the hill. Arriving there, he witnesses a terrible accident, where 2 boys from the village are killed. Charl realizes it could have been him! Years ago Charl and his mother escaped their abusive father, the Earl of Ucht. Now, 7 years later, he his found them, and has sent bounty hunters to return them to him, including a dragon set on destroying the whole village, and beetles which start a plague. Protected by a former knight, a nun, a doctor friend (who also happens to be a dragon) and an old prioress, Mother Truce, Charl wants to save his mother, but she has taught him to turn away from violence. But Charl thinks he may be more like his father that he wishes to be. 

A slow build to the ghostly content. It takes about 1/2 way through before the ghosts show up but I was not disappointed. Hartman sets up the story so well, and once she brings in the ghosts, this reader was also investing in the boy's story. The setting of Among Ghosts is Goredd, the same world as Hartman's other fantasy novels Serafina, Tess of the Road and others. Among Ghosts can be read on it's own and the novels don't overlap, rather they contain dragons which can take human form.  

Lisa Librarian 

Beetle and the Chimera Carnival by Aliza Layne - ADVISABLE

Beetle and the Chimera Carnival by Aliza Layne, 384 pages. GRAPHIC NOVEL Atheneum (Simon and Schuster), 2025. $26 

Language: G (0 swears); Mature Content: PG (the two main characters are lesbian); Violence: G 

BUYING ADVISORY: MS - ADVISABLE 

APPEALS TO: SEVERAL 

In book two, 12yo Beetle, Penny, and Kat are getting ready to celebrated the Chimera Festival, a magical night that only happens once every 10 years. There are costumes and magic and most of all, dragons, who come in just for the festival. The trio discovers that there is something sinister going on as the dragons fail to show up. Beetle's body is threatening to transform at an inopportune time and Gran is gone, But Beetle and her friends have to figure out what is going on before it is too late. 

Amidst the danger they face, Beetle and Kat are trying to find out when to come out and let their families know they are lesbian, so there are issues of coming out, as well as insecurities about identity and if someone will still like you if you are different. The end of the book addresses things you can do if you feel like self-harming, which is nice. The art is stunning and it is painted instead of the flat colors usually associated with graphic novels. The characters, while non-human, are wildly diverse, interact together well. A fast read with some nice plot twists. 

Michelle in the Middle 

Maelstrom A Prince of Evil by Lorian Merriman - OPTIONAL

Maelstrom A Prince of Evil by Lorian Merriman, 240 pages. GRAPHIC NOVEL Henry Holt (Macmillan), 2024. $18 

Language: PG (3 swears, 0 F); Mature Content: PG (gender fluidity); Violence: G 

BUYING ADVISORY: MS - OPTIONAL 

APPEALS TO: SEVERAL 

Half-demon prince, Maelstrom, is bored. His all-powerful, and super evil mother, is ruling the kingdom with a cruelly iron fist. Maelstrom decides to befriend Twigs, the prophesied Hero of Virtue, planning on double-crossing Twigs and the rebellion, and building his own legend in the process. 

The art is bright and colorful. Maelstrom is both an immature, scrawny youth and a misunderstood being trying to discover how to fit in. Themes of family, friendship, and trust, give it more depth, even if it is a bit predictable. It's a fast read. There are multiple races, cultures, and beings portrayed. 

Michelle in the Middle 

Rosie Frost and the Falcon Queen by Geri Halliwell-Horner - ADVISABLE

Rosie Frost and the Falcon Queen by Geri Halliwell-Horner, 464 pages. Penguin, 2023. $19. 

Language: PG13 (69 swears 0 'f'); Mature Content: G; Violence: PG (peril, wild animals) 

BUYING ADVISORY: MS, HS - ADVISABLE 

APPEALS TO: SEVERAL 

13yo Rosie Frost finds herself enrolled in the exclusive boarding school located on Bloodstone Island. Originally built as a tribute to her mother Anne Boleyn by Elizabeth I, now the school boasts an endangered animal reserve. The ghost of Queen Anne is haunting Rosie, encouraging her. She arrives the day before and immediately enters the annual school games, is trying to navigate a pretty horrible bully who seems to have it out for Rosie because she's there on scholarship, and the headmaster, Mr. Hemlock is certainly up to something. Thank heavens she makes a couple of friends in the first few days. 

Oh! I was pulled in right away. I love that it takes place in a non-magical world and involves an environmental concern. The historical connections were fun - I learned a lot about Anne Boleyn and loved that there are Aragons and Cromwells at the school too - so much intrigue. Rosie is trying to deal with the sudden death of her mother, but isn't given tools or counseling to help her - which I felt was pretty irresponsible for a modern day school even if it's in a 400 year old castle of sorts. There's a sequel which I'm excited to read, but this book 1 stands on its own. Rosie is white, some of the other characters are described as brown. 

Lisa Librarian 

An Unexpected Journey by Adrienne Kress and David Miles - OPTIONAL

An Unexpected Journey (Ticket to Ride #1) by Adrienne Kress and David Miles, 208 pages. Andrew McMeel Publishing. 2025. $13. (paperback) 

Language: G (0 swears 0 'f'); Mature Content: G; Violence: PG (peril) 

BUYING ADVISORY: EL - OPTIONAL 

APPEALS TO: SOME 

12yo Teddy is easily distracted and has a hard time keeping his train of thought. But an electric model train received as a birthday gift changes everything. Soon Teddy can focus, as long as it's about trains. When he enters an essay contest he wins a cross country train ride from Toronto to Los Angeles. Along the route, he meets Olivia, and together they try to figure out why a set of blueprints of the special train are so very important to a grumpy old man and a strange woman. 

I was super uncomfortable that 12yo Teddy (who seems like he's actually 9) would be offered a 1 way ticket, with no accompanying adult on a train that shifts routes along the way. The fact that his grandparents live in LA did not make this journey any less crazy. Also, the narrator talks directly to the reader which I hate. I love the game "Ticket to Ride" and while some of the illustrations, like his ticket, mirror the game, it wasn't really connected. Also, this is book 1 and it doesn't end, you've got to read book 2 to find out if Teddy gets home. I'm just barely this side of not recommending, as the action does pick up at the end. Teddy is white. 

Lisa Librarian 

Take a Chance on Me by Elizabeth Eulberg - ADVISABLE

Take a Chance on Me by Elizabeth Eulberg, 304 pages. Scholastic, 2024. $13 (Paperback) 

Language: G (0 swears 0 'f'); Mature Content: PG (Kissing, teen drinking - legal because they are in England); Violence: G 

BUYING ADVISORY: MS, HS - ADVISABLE 

APPEALS TO: SEVERAL 

17yo Evie left Chicago on the last day of school, blocked her friends and stopped using social media. What happened at lunch felt like a betrayal and she was done. She started her annual summer vacation in London immediately. But there's issues with her dad, who abandoned her and her mom years ago and the London trip is really just a custody agreement thing. He's controlling and food obsessed - Evie sneaks crisps into the apartment, and he's judgemental if he catches her. But on her first day in the city, she meets a handsome busker about her age named Aiden. Maybe her promise to give up boys can be set aside, after all, she's only in London for the summer. 

Eulberg is so great at writing clean romance, lots of smoldering and "just friends" with a satisfying ending. The body image, exercise and eating issues were well handled with a trigger warning at the beginning. I loved Evie and was on her team from the beginning. I like that she's honest with herself, I love that she's a lot and embraces it. Evie is white, so is Aiden - their friends are multi cultural, Dev seem to be culturally Indian, not sure about Fiona.

Lisa Librarian 

Force of Nature: A Novel of Rachel Carson by Ann E. Burg and Sophie Blackall - ADVISABLE

Force of Nature: A Novel of Rachel Carson by Ann E. Burg, illustrated by Sophie Blackall, 304 page. BIOGRAPHY, Scholastic, 2024. $20.  

Language: G (0 swears 0'f'); Mature Content: G; Violence: G 

BUYING ADVISORY: MS, HS - ADVISABLE 

APPEALS TO: SOME 

Rachel Carson was always interested in nature. She loved the forest outside her home near Pittsburgh and worried about the effects of the pollution the coal mines were causing on the ecology. She also loved writing, as a young girl, she sold several stories to St. Nick magazine, and helped support her family in the 1920s. Attending college, she planned to be a writer, but being introduced to the study of biology, Rachel realized she could make a difference, but many factors including the fact that she was a woman would come into play as she tried to follow a career in science. 

Ann E. Burg's novel in verse is wonderful. I was immediately immersed in Rachel's story. I loved that she spent a lot of time with Rachel as a child - this will certainly invest the middle school readers in both her causes and her life. Sophie Blackall's illustrations are great - like they were carefully drawn in a scientific notebook. I loved the - were you paying attention and can you identify these things - at the end of the book. While not exactly non-fiction as Burg has combined characters, changed some names and there aren't the typical end materials like a bibliography or links to other sources, I think Force of Nature will be a great historical fiction about a real person and readers will want to find out more. Rachel is white. 

Lisa Librarian 

A Copycat Conundrum by Lisa Yee and Dan Santat - ADVISABLE

A Copycat Conundrum (Misfits #2) by Lisa Yee, illustrated by Dan Santat, 280 pages. Random House, 2025. $15. 

Language: G (0 swears 0 'f'); Mature Content: G; Violence: G. 

BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ADVISABLE 

APPEALS TO: SEVERAL 

The Misfits, undercover agents for NOCK (No One Can Know), find themselves working on a bank robbery job. While in San Francisco, isolated earthquakes are causing disruptions to the power grid, and someone is using the anomaly to empty bank tellers cash drawers. Also, Olive's friend Zeke is receiving threatening letters - he has recently become quite interested in the history of his great-great-uncle Ezekiel, and his research is making someone nervous. Is this a job for the the Misfits? 

Another fun adventure/mystery. The kids don't seem as young as in the last book - and I liked that. The Old West/ Gold Mining / Chinese Art arc was fun. I love their gadgets. This is building into a really fun series. I'll be recommending The Misfits. The group is a mix of races and cultures. 

Lisa Librarian 

Turning Twelve by Kathryn Ormsee and Molly Brooks - ADVISABLE

Turning Twelve (Growing Pangs Companion) by Kathryn Ormsee and Molly Brooks, 236 pages. GRAPHIC NOVEL Random House, 2024. $22. 

BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ADVISABLE 

APPEALS TO: MANY 

For 12yo Katie, things are changing a lot. She's starting 7th grade, her best friends have just moved away and she's anticipating the things that happen as she grows up, like maturing, and crushes and stuff. She's been cast as an orphan in the community production of Annie. While she wanted the lead, being a supporting part is fun, too, and she makes a new friend: Grace. But this friendship feels different, could Katie have a crush on a girl? 

I really like this series. Coming on the heels of Growing Pangs, it's billed as "from the universe of". It can totally stand on it's own. I liked the nods to Baby Sitters Club and hope it can reach that same audience. Besides Katie's struggle liking a girl, there's some church issues going on, a youth group with a mean clique, modesty expectations and the church's stand on same sex attraction. All in all, Ormsbee and Brooks tell a story about being true to oneself. Katie is white, the friends are multi cultural. 

Lisa Librarian 

Mindful Nature- Connecting with our Great Green World by Paige Towler and Chris Gaugler - ESSENTIAL

Mindful Nature- Connecting with our Great Green World by Paige Towler, illusterated by Chris Gaugler. NON-FICTION PICTURE BOOK. Magination Press, 2025. $32 9781433845185

BUYING ADVISORY: Pre-K, EL (K-3), HS - ESSENTIAL 

APPEALS TO: MANY 

Imagine what an animal is doing and feeling. Act like you think they would. Ask yourself questions about their experience and yours. Spending time in nature can improve our health in many ways. 

Children can learn to be mindful in nature as we teach them how to do so. Children will engage with this photo story. This book is a great resource for preschool activity time, thus I included the level of High School in this review. Gaugler formatted the photography and words creatively. The first 2 pages uses personification to grab the child's attention. Then, Towler moves the prose to simile and third person form.  

MOMMAC 

On Guard! by Cassidy Wasserman - ESSENTIAL

On Guard! by Cassidy Wasserman, 252 pages. GRAPHIC NOVEL RH Graphic Random House, 2025. $22 

Language: G (0 swears); Mature Content: G; Violence: G 

BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ESSENTIAL 

APPEALS TO: MANY 

Grace is going in to 7th grade alone. Her best friend dropped her at the end of the last school year. Grace is unsure of herself and wants to hide from her old friend. Plus, her parents have gotten a divorce and her relationship with her mother is difficult. Grace signs up for the fencing club, hoping to gain a friend and perhaps a more sure footing. 

This book brings up a lot of issues: losing a friend in middle school when friends go different direction, mother-daughter relations, divorce, trying something new, and trying not to look foolish in front of peers. This is a great book that addresses all of that. The biggest focus may be on imperfect family relations and how to work on them and that it's ok to advocate for yourself. The fencing is only a side bar, really. Great way to spark discussion and realize you're not alone. The art is bright and well done. Grace appears white, but has friends from multiple backgrounds. 

Michelle in the Middle 

Beth is Dead by Katie Bernet - MANY

Beth is Dead by Katie Bernet, 400 pages. Simon and Schuster, JANUARY 2026. $20 

Language: R (47 swears, 6 ‘f’); Mature Content: PG-13 (steamy makeout mentioned, off-page sex, drinking, drunkenness mentioned); Violence: PG-13 (death, blood mentioned) 

BUYING ADVISORY: HS - OPTIONAL 

APPEALS TO: MANY 

Beth March is dead. Who killed her? The police aren’t letting anyone off the hook - including her three sisters. Meg, Jo, or Amy might have motives - but sisters can argue without wanting each other dead, right? Jo is sure this is somehow related to the best-selling book their author father wrote based on the girls’ lives. But they haven’t heard from him in six months now. The surviving sisters will have to figure out who Beth's murderer is before someone they love is irrevocably charged.

I had to separate what I know from reading Little Women many times from the characters in Bernet’s modern murder mystery reweaving. I don’t think many of my students have read the original nor seen any of the movies - so how will they enjoy this? I think they will like it alot. Bernet gives us plenty of suspects with motive and added sisterly and high school drama. The addition of their own father being the author of the book that compels them to insta-fame was great. So don’t hesitate to buy this because it is “just another rewrite”. And recommend it to your adult friends who love the original - I had a great time seeing how Bernet used the characters - both main, secondary, and tertiary - in familiar ways and how she deviated from their origins and storylines. 

Cindy, Middle School Librarian, MLS 

When Sally O'Malley Discovered the Sea by Karen Cushman - ADVISABLE

When Sally O'Malley Discovered the Sea by Karen Cushman, 230 pages. Knopf (Random House), 2025 $18. 

Language: G (0 swears 0 'f'); Mature Content: G; Violence: PG (peril, attempted hold-up) 

BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ADVISABLE 

APPEALS TO: SEVERAL 

13yo Sally was raised in an orphanage in the late 1800s, and things have never worked out for her. So, when she loses her latest job at a hotel in Oregon, she decides to leave on her own and head west. She's heard the sea is something to see. She has some tips from her job at the hotel, and buys a pair a dungarees so she can rip off the torn hem of her dress. When a delivery wagon comes by, and a woman named Major offers Sally a ride, she takes it, despite her promise to herself to trust nobody. But when Major gets an unusual shipment - a spoiled 7yo boy named Lafayette, Sally wonders if walking would have been a better plan. 

I was so excited to see another book by Karen Cushman! Sally is funny and smart and independent. Lafayette was perfectly irritating, and Major the kindest. Cushman's character development was spot on. Because they are traveling, there are a lot of side characters, but even they are fleshed out a bit - the Saloon girl who brings Sally and Lafayette sandwiches to the drunk robber on the road - tiny pieces of the stock characters of the west. Marvelous. It was hard to pinpoint the time period - Sally mentions once having to wait for something until 1899, so we know it takes place before then. I adored When Sally O'Malley Discovered the Sea and am so happy to add it to my Karen Cushman collection. Sally and her companions are white. 

Lisa Librarian 

Survive This Safari by Natalie D. Richards - ESSENTIAL

Survive This Safari by Natalie D. Richards, 384 pages. Random House, 2025. $18 

Content: G 

BUYING ADVISORY: EL - ESSENTIAL; MS - ADVISABLE 

APPEALS TO: MANY 

12yo Lucy has earned a place on a team to try out a new escape room style game set in her favorite safari park - Wildlands - where her older sister works. Paired with three others, she is spending the night and solving puzzles - and one of their team has the chance to become a student ambassador for the park. Lucy is anxious to prove her worth; she loves animals, but on her previous tryout, she froze on the viewing platform and had to be rescued. She is hoping that she can overcome her anxiety issues and win the spot. 

Richards creates great tension between the group members without resorting to melodrama. The addition of a real crisis in the park ups the stakes in a way that works well. While I am not a fan of anxiety as a plot point, I did enjoy how Lucy receives encouragement and sound advice from her teammates along the way. Fans of Stuart Gibbs’s funjungle books will also enjoy Lucy’s story. 

 Cindy, Middle School Librarian, MLS 

Penny Draws a Team Sport by Sara Shepard - ADVISABLE

Penny Draws a Team Sport by Sara Shepard, 218 pages DOODLE FICTION Putnam (Penguin), 2025. $15 

Language: G (0 swears); Mature Content: G; Violence: G 

BUYING ADVISORY: EL - ADVISABLE 

APPEALS TO: SEVERAL 

Penny Lowry is a 5th grader who is an artist, not an athlete. Her PE teacher has proposed a pickleball tournament to raise money for an animal shelter. Penny reluctantly signs up with the rest of her class and her buddy Rocco. They make a pact not to take the game too seriously, which works out fine until Rocco discovers he's really good at pickleball. Now Penny is worried she'll let down Rocco and the whole school with her playing. 

There is some nice humor and Shepard captures elementary school angst well. I wish the art and the captions were bigger so I could read them easier. That said, this is along the lines of "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" format but with more text, making it a deeper read. Students should be able to relate to Penny's anxiety and nervousness about not being good at something as well as studying for end of year testing. Race isn't mentioned, and it's difficult to tell what anyone's ethnicity is from the line drawings. 

Michelle in the Middle 

Murder Between Friends by Liz Lawson - SEVERAL

Murder Between Friends by Liz Lawson, 384 pages. Random House, 2025. $20 

Language: R (73 swears, 11 ‘f’); Mature Content:PG-13 (smoking weed mentioned, pantless mentioned, romantic entanglements mentioned) ; Violence:PG (murder and dead body mentioned) 

BUYING ADVISORY: HS - OPTIONAL 

APPEALS TO: SEVERAL 

Henry’s brother Jake was incarcerated for murder based on the testimony of Grace - not only one of his BFFs, but also the girl he had secretly started dating. Now Jake has been released on a technicality, but a new trial will be coming soon. Ally, the other member of the BFFs, is determined to prove Jake’s innocence before it is too late. And Grace is beginning to question her own memories of that night. But the murderer is out there and they do not want their secrets to be exposed. 

Lawson tells the story from the alternating POVs of the BFFs. Lawson has them vacillating between a variety of suspects. The tension between the former best friends is nicely handled - Lawson avoids the mean girl trope trope and also avoids having everything be drugs and alcohol related. The relationships that are implied to be sex related are between adults. 

Cindy, Middle School Librarian, MLS 

The House Next Door by Ellen Oh - ADVISABLE

The House Next Door by Ellen Oh, 192 pages. HarperCollins, September 2025. $19. 

Language: G (0 swears 0 'f'); Mature Content: G; Violence: PG (the children are clawed, and there is talk of eating the youngest, the monster battle is intense, and the kids do have to kill things.) 

BUYING ADVISORY: MS - ADVISABLE 

APPEALS TO: SEVERAL 

12yo Rory lives next door to a haunted house. Years ago his best friend Joey was seriously injured when he fell down the stairs in the house and his family eventually moved. Now Rory sees ghosts walking around inside, and sinister eyes watching him. His grandfather came for a visit from Japan and showed Rory how to spray holy water around the house to protect himself. Now, a new boy, Jack, and his sister Mira have moved in. Jack doesn't believe in ghosts, but Rory knows someone needs to protect Mira, and he knows just what to do 

First of all, Ellen Oh must be a connoisseur of fine Japanese and Korean food because all the dishes sound fantastic and now I'm craving Korean Fried Chicken. With more adults than kids in the story, I had a lot of names to keep track of, and the main job of the adults seemed to be to cook all the food. Jack is smart, and had some great ideas on defeating what was in the house. Good build as well to the final battle. Keeping some salt near me for the next few nights just in case. Jack and his family are Korean, Rory is Japanese. 

Lisa Librarian 

Spirit Service by Sarena and Sasha Nanua - OPTIONAL

Spirit Service by Sarena and Sasha Nanua, 320 pages. Simon & Schuster, 2025. $18 

Content: G 

BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - OPTIONAL 

APPEALS TO: SOME 

7th grader Raveena wants to save her school’s art program, but she and her three BFFs are having a hard time coming up with a service project to help them win a school-wide contest, which would restore funding to a couple of programs. At a local antiques store, Raveena is literally shocked by a pink rotary phone, which then rings, and the voice on the other end turns out to be an actual ghost. The girls may have the edge they need - help spirits pass on, make money, and win the contest. 

 The four girls on the cover look multi-cultural, but that’s about the extent of their culture. The town they live in is founded by and embraces spiritualism, so that isn’t a big leap for them. I like the reviewers that compare the book to Babysitters Club meets Ghostbusters. Nothing earth-shattering here to read, but reasonably enjoyable. 

Cindy, Middle School Librarian, MLS 

Speak Up, Santiago by Julio Ata and Gabi Mendez - ESSENTIAL

Speak Up, Santiago by Julio Ata, illustrated by Gabi Mendez, 220 pages GRAPHIC NOVEL RH Graphic Random House, 2025. $22 

Language: G (0 swears) Mature Content: G Violence: G 

BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ESSENTIAL 

APPEALS TO: MANY 

Santiago is going to visit his grandmother in Hillside Valley to improve his Spanish the summer before he starts 7th grade. His dad is Columbian and speaks Spanish, but his mother is of European descent and only speaks English. Santiago is really self conscious about his accent and ability to keep up with the language. Perhaps the universal language of soccer will help him, but as he prepares for a soccer tournament, his self doubts might be his own worst enemy. 

I loved that a lot of the text is in Spanish. Most of it is translated, but not all. I also liked that some words were inked out, because Santiago couldn't understand them when people talked too fast. This is a great book for Spanish speakers trying to learn English, or English speakers trying to learn Spanish. It is a real empathy builder for second generation kids who are trying to learn their heritage through language and have lost either language or culture. As an English speaker, the book was totally accessible. As someone who wants to learn Spanish, I found it insightful. Positive relationships and message-loved it! 

Michelle in the Middle 

Meet Me at Sunset by Lee Heart - ADVISABLE

Meet Me at Sunset by Lee Heart, 160 pages. Simon Spotlight, 2025. $8 (pb)

Content: G

BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ADVISABLE

APPEALS TO: SEVERAL

Julie is looking forward to a summer at the family beach house, but is not excited when her parents invite an acquaintance, Sophia, to come along. Julie had plans to catch the eye of her summer crush, James, and she drags Sophia into them. Cue a bit of relationship drama, changes of plans, and mild hijinks.

Very much a first crush book. Heart does a good job of keeping all of the relationships light - Julie and Sophia have misunderstandings, which do not become drag-out wars; the girls have crushes which do not become major make-out sessions. I applaud showing early relationships which do not need to become soap opera episodes. Plus it is such a great length for a middle grade book. 

Cindy, Middle School Librarian, MLS