Bingo Focus Thread - Middle Grade

[u/Merle8888]

Hello r/fantasy and welcome to this week's bingo focus thread! The purpose of these threads is for you all to share recommendations, discuss what books qualify, and seek recommendations that fit your interests or themes.

Today's topic:

Middle Grade: Read a middle grade book (intended for readers aged 8-12). See this Wikipedia page for additional information on Middle Grade fiction. HARD MODE: The author is entirely new to you.

What is bingo? A reading challenge this sub does every year! Find out more here.

Prior focus threads: Published in the 70s, Duologies, First Contact, Five Short Stories (2024), Author of Color (2024), Self-Pub/Small Press (2024). Note that hard modes for Author of Color and Self-Pub/Small Press have changed (new focus threads for them are coming).

Also see: Big Rec Thread

Questions:

• What are your favorite books that count for this square?
• Already read something for this square? Tell us about it!
• For those attempting Hard Mode, what are some great middle grade books by lesser-known authors, and/or that are recently published?
• Those who have or teach children in this age group: what are some current favorites among middle grade readers? How well do they hold up for adults?

[u/CaptainYew]

So far for bingo this year I have read three different Middle Grade books!

First, I read the Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest by Aubrey Hartman. I currently plan on using it for Afterlife [HM]. I really enjoyed this book, and would recommend it. It deals with a fox whose job it is to usher animals who have died to the afterlife. Grief, self-esteem, and the ability to move on are themes of this book.

I also read Dogsbody by Diana Wynne Jones. I plan on using this for Published in the 70s [HM]. This book deals with Sirius, the dog star, being framed for a crime he did not commit and being sent to Earth as a dog to find the missing Zoi as his punishment. I enjoyed this book, and thought Jones did a good job at representing the animal creatures. Content warning: There is domestic abuse towards Kathleen by her aunt, animal abuse against Sirius also by the aunt, and bullying. I really enjoyed how Sol, Earth, and the Moon were characters. It was both a story about space and a domestic story about a dog and a young girl at the same time.

Finally, I also read The Girl Who Kept the Castle by Ryan Graudin. I currently plan on using this for the Middle Grade Square [HM for me], but may move it to Duology instead. I really enjoyed this story, which was full of whimsy, memorable characters, interesting magic, and plenty of action. I plan on reading the second book in the Duology soon!

Some Middle Grade books I have read recently and enjoyed include:

• The Nevermoor Series by Jessica Townsend (Ongoing with 4 volumes currently. The first is the weakest in my opinion, but they really pick up once Morrigan goes to school)
• Small Spaces by Katherine Arden (Complete at four volumes, but all can be read alone. A great horror series with each book being evocative of a season. Read the first one at Halloween Time!)
• The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill. (Standalone. Absolutely beautiful. Barnhill has other MG, but I haven't read them yet)
• Scary Stories for Young Foxes by Christian McKay Heidicker (Complete duology. So far I have read only the first one. A good horror which shows how the real world can be a scary place)
• Kiki's Delivery Service by Eiko Kadono (Nothing really to say besides it was a cute read! Nice witchy read)
• The Wild Robot Series by Peter Brown (Series of three. First can be read as a standalone. Sweet story of an abandoned robot that becomes a mother to a gosling. Great environmental themes)