The False Prince by Jennifer Nielsen

Guess what this one is about...an orphan! Man, there are so many books about orphans, but I suppose too much drama can’t happen with mom and dad around, so the main protagonist is an orphan. This orphan named Sage is feisty, a troublemaker and a loner. One day a man named Connor, well dressed and moneyed, enters the orphanage and leaves with Sage. Sage is joined by 4 other orphans, all the same age and eventually they learn of Connor’s plan. The kingdom in which they live, they learn, is in peril as the King, Queen and Prince have been murdered. This is not public knowledge and Connor is going to groom one of his orphans to pretend to be the youngest prince that went missing 4 years previously and take over the kingdom. His plan is dangerous, traitorous and treacherous and each boy is pitted against the others to rise to the challenge of acting like the missing prince. 

This is a well told tale, without any magical elements but is kings, castles and knights through and through. I enjoyed it. Grades 4-7

The Lions of Little Rock by Kristin Levine

This is a tale of racism in the south in 1958, Little Rock, to be precise. Taking place in Little Rock the year after the integration of the high school that divided the community, this story analyzes how the variety of people that lived here felt about race. The main character, Marlee, is twelve, white and struggling with friends and other middle school woes including the fact that she has a difficult time communicating with people outside of her family. She’s having a hard time standing up or even sharing, until a new girl, Liz joins the school and helps Marlee find her voice. Then one day Liz no longer attends Marlee’s school and rumor is that Liz, in fact, is a black girl who was passing for white. This brings to the surface the racism, the bystanders and the activists and eventually everyone has to take a side. Can Liz and Marlee bring this divided community together, or will their friendship rip Little Rock apart?
Really liked this book, as historical fiction but also as an exploration of deep seated racism and its roots. Grades 4-7

The Alchemyst: The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel by Michael Scott

I have to start by saying I genuinely enjoyed this book! This is a story about a pair of twins that, by helping an employer, get mixed up in saving the world. Turns out they may or may not be the twins spoken of in a prophecy where the twins determine who wins in the world war of good vs. evil, determining the fate of all humans. Let me back up...and I hope I am not giving too much away when I say this, but these two, a boy and a girl, help Nicholas Flamel and his wife protect a book that contains very powerful magic that could be very dangerous in the wrong hands, which is personified by Dr. John Dee. This book is well written, with the right amount of explanation mixed with action, as well as the right amount of reality mixed with fantasy. It is highly engaging and fun to read, if this is your genre. Grades 5-8

The Emerald Atlas by John Stephens

This is a fantasy adventure story about 3 children who are sent away by their parents because their lives became too dangerous. These 3 grow up in orphanages, with Kate, the oldest, looking after the other 2. After about 10 years where no one will adopt them and they have been shuffled from bad orphanage to bad orphanage, the book begins. The last orphanage sends them off to the mysterious house of Dr. Pym located in a remote area in a town no one knows. Turns out it’s a magical town and the children are a bit puzzled by the things they see. In exploring their new giant but cold house, they discover a book which takes them back in time to a place where an evil Countess has taken over the town because she is looking for something she knows must be there. Turns out she is looking for the book the children used to get them back in time and the children are pursued throughout this town, time and the mountains that surround it by awful magical creatures but helped by various people and dwarves. They see death, greed, treachery and this journey tests each of the children, revealing their strengths and weaknesses, as well as their familial bond. A well woven tale ultimately about family and believing in yourself...was fun to read and total fantasy! Grades 5-7

The Fourth Stall by Chris Rylander

Have you ever wondered about underground life in a middle school? This book portrays the school that boys who love movies like The Godfather or Moneyball fantasize that school was like. Long time friends, a boy who is street smart and a boy who is book smart, team up and together they solve average kid’s problems using a no longer used bathroom as their office. One day they learn that a bad, bad kid is trying to take over their territory/school and they decide to fight back. Nothing happens the way they plan, their trust is shattered and it threatens their close friendship, as well as their safety in their own school. How will they emerge from this chaos? An entertaining book, albeit a bit ridiculous at times.
Grades 4-7

The Name of This Book Is Secret by Pseudonymous Bosch

An interesting tale told in an original voice for the narrator--well rarely published anyway. I find many of my sixth graders write like this, using a voice that is talking directly to the readers, is very dramatic and engaging. I will say I was a bit annoyed by the self-importance of the narrator at times and the whole mystery around the SECRET, but it was, overall, an amusing book. It is about a girl who sees impending doom in everything and is determined to survive those disasters. She cries wolf a bit too often, so when a real disaster strikes, you guessed it, no one believes her. I won’t give away too much of the story, as it is, after all, a SECRET, but will say it’s a mystery that is a bit hard to imagine at times, but interesting at the same time. I think this is tailored for 4-7 grade.

Zen and the Art of Faking It by Jordan Sonnenblick

This is a story that fits well for middle school, for that is the time that many people adopt different personalities, either out of curiosity, due to stereotypes, or because of a girl/boy. This book is about a boy’s experience will all three. He falls into this personality of a Zen master and takes it as far as it will allow him. Never mind that you would think he learned his lesson watching his father scam person after person until he was finally caught and sent to jail, but perhaps that is what drives his inability to be himself. Perhaps it's true that sometimes you need to learn lessons for yourself. It’s an interesting peek into middle school personalities but is a little clean, cliched, too neatly tied for my taste. Real life is just a little messier, but maybe that's why books are better!