Book #207 of 2021: The Double Life of Danny Day by Mike Thayer This middle-grade novel goes far on the strength of its high-concept premise, which is that the ten-year-old protagonist lives every day twice. He treats the original go-round as a bit of a practice session, either goofing off or scribbling notes on quiz …
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Book #168 of 2021: Long Lost by Jacqueline West This middle-grade ghost story is not particularly spooky, perhaps because the overtly paranormal stuff doesn’t really start until midway through. Mostly, the eleven-year-old protagonist is chafing at her family’s recent move (to benefit her older sister’s prospective Olympic skating career) and getting hooked on a mysterious …
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Book #159 of 2021: The In-Between by Rebecca K. S. Ansari Too many under-explained elements in the magical side of this middle-grade story, about a young teen who becomes convinced that his next-door neighbor is a harbinger of disaster. Why do the pencils on her desk vanish? What’s ultimately up with that distinctive yet fake …
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Book #151 of 2021: The Visitor by K. A. Applegate (Animorphs #2) This first Animorphs sequel continues the thrilling fun of the debut, while simultaneously deepening the darker themes of the series. Turning into an animal and back is now described in a way that emphasizes the unnatural body horror of the experience, and the …
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Book #94 of 2021: The Mysterious Disappearance of Aidan S. (as told to his brother) by David Levithan I love a nice postmodern portal fantasy, and this middle-grade novel spins a premise I don’t think I’ve seen before, where the focus is not on a child who vanishes into another world, but on a sibling …
Book #54 of 2021: Amari and the Night Brothers by B. B. Alston (Supernatural Investigations #1) Harry Potter comparisons can be a tad reductive and overdone, but that really is the vibe of this middle-grade adventure from debut author B. B. Alston, with a tween hero’s introduction to a hidden society of strange creatures and …
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Book #22 of 2021: Maresi by Maria Turtschaninoff (The Red Abbey Chronicles #1) Interesting fantasy worldbuilding, but the characters can seem a bit simplistic at times and the plot doesn’t really kick in until midway through, when a raiding ship attacks the island refuge where the heroine lives as an abbey novice. It gets pretty …
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Book #15 of 2021: The Dragon with a Chocolate Heart by Stephanie Burgis (Tales from the Chocolate Heart #1) A cute little book about a young dragon who gets cursed into the body of a human and discovers her true passion for hot cocoa. Unfortunately, it has a few issues typical of the middle-grade fantasy …
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Book #294 of 2020: Anya and the Nightingale by Sofiya Pasternack (Anya #2) Another fun middle-grade fantasy adventure, albeit somewhat messier in plot than the first novel with this Russian Jewish heroine. Still, the representation in this series remains charming and relatable, from the opening scene with Anya building a sukkah to her pride about …
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Book #277 of 2020: The Captive Kingdom by Jennifer A. Nielsen (Ascendance #4) I was intrigued by the news that author Jennifer A. Nielsen would be returning to the world of her middle-grade fantasy Ascendance trilogy, but this next volume never quite manages to justify itself, especially given the backstory retcon twist midway through. The …
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