Category Archives: Middle Grade Book Reviews

Korobá: The Case of the Missing Kolo

Korobá lives in the Nigerian fishing village of Makoko, a setting I’ve never seen featured in a middle grade book. She likes to visit the market and walk the waterways with friends, Saidat and Joba, and Popi her cute dog. … Continue reading

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Marvelous Middle Grade Monday (3/23/2026)

  ••ALWAYS in the MIDDLE is where I review THE BLUE DRESS by Rebecca Morrison. ••Natalie Aguirre @ Literary Rambles has a guest post by Aaron Starmer and a giveaway of his MG speculative You Are Now Old Enough to Hear … Continue reading

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THE BLUE DRESS

Body Image. It’s a tough but necessary topic to talk about. Young people, especially those in middle school, begin to make comparisons of their own developing bodies with classmates, social media posts, along with famous people in movies and television. … Continue reading

Posted in MG Contemporary Fiction, Middle Grade Book Reviews | Tagged , , , , | 14 Comments

OLIVIA GRAY WILL NOT FADE AWAY

Olivia Gray is starting her seventh grade year. Many will agree that middle school brings new challenges and confusion toward growing up. For Olivia, her older brother Malcomb has a new crush, and has come out as gay. That part … Continue reading

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Marvelous Middle Grade Monday (3/16/2026)

  ••ALWAYS in the MIDDLE is where I review RED RIVER ROSE by Carole Lindstrom. ••Natalie Aguirre @ Literary Rambles is participating in the Chasing Rainbow Giveaway Hop with lots of middle grade book choices. ••Jennifer Rummel @ YA Book Nerd … Continue reading

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RED RIVER ROSE

Twelve-year-old Rose is the daring and likable heroine in this historical novel. It’s 1885 and the Canadian government is forcefully moving towards a takeover of Rose’s Métis community during the North-West Resistance. She along with her parents and little sister … Continue reading

Posted in Historical fiction, Middle Grade Book Reviews | Tagged , , , , | 10 Comments

CAPUT MUNDI

You know the plot is going to have some surprising twists and a lot of unanswered questions after the first few minutes reading Caput Mundi. 11-year old Niil Terra is kidnapped by a couple who are trying to get a … Continue reading

Posted in MG Fantasy, Middle Grade Book Reviews | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday (3/9/2026)

  ••ALWAYS in the MIDDLE is where I review NO WAY NEVER SISTERS by Chantel Acevedo and Natalia Sylvester. ••Jennifer Rummel @ YA Book Nerd reviews Dear Jackie: a graphic novel about friendship drama and being yourself. ••Natalie Aguirre @ … Continue reading

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NO WAY NEVER SISTERS

Blended families happen often around the world. A lot of them work out perfectly. With NO WAY NEVER SISTERS the opposite is true. Tweens Melisa and Roxy are not anything alike. Meli is artistic and has a small group of … Continue reading

Posted in MG Contemporary Fiction, Middle Grade Book Reviews, New Release | Tagged , , , , , | 7 Comments

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday (3/2/2026)

  ••ALWAYS in the MIDDLE is where I join the celebration for the release of Donna Galanti’s new book with a review of SECRET WINNERS CLUB. ••Brenda @ Log Cabin Library shares her post about Caput Mundi: The Head of … Continue reading

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