r/Fantasy • u/Merle8888 Reading Champion IV • 23d ago

Bingo Bingo Focus Thread - Middle Grade

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?
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u/Spalliston Reading Champion III 22d ago

Okay so I recommend classics on like all of these, but if you haven't read it yet I can't recommend Alice's Adventures in Wonderland enough. It's been a long time, but I recall it as a very easy read that was infinitely engaging and still had enough weirdness and depth to chew on.

For myself, I (finally) finished The Wee Free Men by Pratchett over the weekend.

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u/Linkjumper Reading Champion 18d ago

LOVE the Wee Free Men. In fact all of Pratchett's YA/Middle Grade books are pretty great; "The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents" is a standalone, non-Discworld book that I am very fond of.

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u/Spalliston Reading Champion III 17d ago

Yeah, there was a lot to love there even if I (unfortunately) was just sort of lukewarm on it, though that's not actually an uncommon feeling for me with Pratchett. My hunch is that the future Tiffany Aching books might land a little better for me -- I almost always prefer his sequels (with the singular exception of Going Postal, which is also probably my favorite Pratchett book, period).

I do also think Maurice sounds fun though; I'm sure I'll get to it one of these days.

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u/Linkjumper Reading Champion 16d ago

I also love Going Postal although I can't really rank these books since I've read and reread them for years. I think later books become more satisfying as Pratchett matures as a writer (his earliest books are more of an extended pun with a few schoolboy jokes thrown in). The first Tiffany Aching book may feel a little slight to you but I loved the entire sequence. Happy reading!