Great Middle Grade Reads discussion

Here we are again at the turning of a month. Care to share? What were some of your best middle grade reads? I know at our house, the summer heat's been making it uncomfy to do anything but find a book and a seat in front of a fan. Maybe that's why I finished so many books in July.

I think my favorite read was The Dagger X by Brian Eames, which is a little heartbreaking because there's no sign of a third volume in the promised trilogy. I also very much enjoyed Race to the Bottom of the Sea by Lindsay Eagar, whose stories always seem to mingle tragedy and happiness in equal measure. And I picked up Cloud and Wallfish by Anne Nesbet, a historical (1980s, Cold War) about a boy whose parents are probably (definitely) American spies headed into East Germany.

This was my hands down favorite book from middle school.

As usual I reread some of my favorites. The best of these were The Misadventures of Maude March and Maude March on the Run! by Newbery winner Audrey Couloumbis. I also read several for the first time. The best would be a toss-up between Savvy by Ingrid Law and All the Answers by Kate Messner.

I had a good month in July. Apart from out book of the month Ghost, I can recommend three books.
If you are looking for a boarding school mystery, or you want to start a new series, The Lost Twin is a good read.
The Lost Twin

For a quirky read, check out The Cat Who Came in Off the Roof. It's bound to bring a smile to your face.

I liked I, Juan de Pareja for many reasons. It's a heart-warming story set in Spain and it's about painters and art. The main character is a well-treated slave-boy.

I mainly read YA books last month, but the one MG book that I read I really enjoyed, Just Jaime by Terri Libenson. I have read almost every book in this series and I have liked them all. I highly recommend this author.

The best MG book I read in July was our June BOTM The Mostly Invisible Boy. I've done a full review on my blog now, The general public version is on Goodreads :) I really enjoyed it.

I don;'t seem to be reading many MG books at present. Not sure why, just a TBR list that's too long, and new books coming out that add to it!

My favourite MG reads for July were three Dear Canada books I reread in order to finally post a review.

Orphan at My Door: The Home Child Diary of Victoria Cope (if you choose to only read one Dear Canada Book, chose this one, diarist is a budding writer and story also depicts home children from England being sent to Canada)

An Ocean Apart: The Gold Mountain Diary of Chin Mei-Ling (great sense of time and place and very thought provoking with regard to Canada’s really horrid immigration policies towards the Chinese during the mid 20th century)

With Nothing But Our Courage: The Loyalist Diary of Mary MacDonald (very descriptive, emotional but naturally with a pretty Loyalist attitude, but also showing how war affects citizens and tears apart communities)

C.J. wrote: "Here we are again at the turning of a month. Care to share? What were some of your best middle grade reads? I know at our house, the summer heat's been making it uncomfy to do anything but find a b..."

Cloud and Wallfish is excellent.