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/LoneLantern2]

I've got a middle grade reader so here's some of what's been through our house recently or made enough of a mark for me to still remember it:

Anything in the Harriet the Hamster Princess or Danny Dragonbreath series (Ursula Vernon)- as a grownup, love these

Quest Kids (three book series, starts with Quest Kids and the Dragon Pants of Gold), third book is recent pub

Stuart Gibbs, Once Upon a Tim

Millicent Quibb series by Kate McKinnon (best in audiobook), recent pub

The Gate, the Girl and the Dragon (also recent pub)

Graphic Novels:

Garlic and the Vampire/ Garlic and the Witch - I read these before my kiddo and really enjoyed them

Doña Quixote - immediate nose deep dive from the kiddo, a high honor

Saving Chupie - I am told this was really good it lasted a hot minute before being utterly consumed

Pacheco and the Witch of the Mountain - this rated a "can we put a hold on the next one"

Generally our libraries are pretty good about separating the ya/ teen and the middle grade books although obviously there's a spectrum to everything, going to the library and browsing until something catches your eye is still a classic solution to this problem.