Rules of the Game: Focus on Middle School

As I began compiling this list, I anticipated that a fun part of creating a bibliography of books targeting students in Grades 5-8 would be the wide range of nonfiction from which to draw. Indeed, many self-help books about surviving life in middle school are always must-purchases. They answer a need for some readers, and we do want to ensure that all students are able to find themselves represented in the collection. But two recurring concerns impinged upon my including more of these books here. First, my students sense, frequently without looking past the cover, that books written “just for them” are often sugarcoated, with tone and content suggesting an adult perspective trying too hard to be hip. And this raises my second concern; except for a surreptitious peek at a sex-ed book to answer a specific concern, most young adolescents would rather not risk admitting to any kind of weakness. It's almost a teen article of faith that they know it all already.

Ironically, fiction may do the best job of telling the truth to middle schoolers about their own experience. By getting into the heads of young teens and revealing their thoughts, feelings, needs, desires, tribulations, and successes, the best novels allow readers to see that others have successfully survived middle school, and that better things are coming.

So what, then, do the following “middle school books” have in common? They are about changes—in school, family, friends, and individuals—that define and clarify the transition from naive self-absorption to a more mature awareness of one's place in a larger world, and they allow readers to glimpse and share the upheavals and growth that typify and punctuate the middle school experience.

FARRELL, Juliana and Beth Mayall. Middle School: The Real Deal: From Cafeteria Food to Combination Locks. rev. ed. HarperCollins. 2007. pap. $7.99. ISBN 978-0-06-122742-4.

Gr 4-7–Mixed fonts, cartoon illustrations, and atypical page layouts inform students that they, too, can become hip and cool in the next few years by understanding the ins and outs of middle school life. Teachers and classes, extracurricular activities, as well as changing relationships with friends and parents are covered in reassuring, if brief, chapters.

HORNE, Richard and Helen Szirtes. 101 Things to Do Before You're Old and Boring. Walker. 2006. pap. $9.95. ISBN 978-0-8027-7745-4.

Gr 5-8–Each left-hand page offers a challenge (“Keep a Dream Diary,” “Learn to Do a Card Trick,” “Climb to the Top of a Mountain”) with a brief explanation, while the right-hand page is for record-keeping, checklists and forms to complete, and stars (provided) to paste in. Meant to be “consumed” by readers, but worth the potential damage if it sparks some young teens' imaginations to action.

NYE, Naomi Shihab. A Maze Me: Poems for Girls. illus. by Terre Maher. HarperCollins/Greenwillow. 2005. Tr $16.99. ISBN 978-0-06-058189-3; PLB $17.89. ISBN 978-0-06-058190-9.

Gr 6 Up–This appealing collection of mostly new poems revels in small observations that tie the world to the individual. The author began journaling at age 12, and suggests that readers, too, might write three lines each day to better see and understand their world. Intimate, mostly quiet poems and soft-palette illustrations illuminate a wide range of adolescent female experiences.

PLETKA, Bob. My So-Called Digital Life: 2,000 Teenagers, 300 Cameras, and 30 Days to Document Their World.Santa Monica. 2005. pap. $24.95. ISBN 978-1-59580-005-3.

Gr 6 Up–Pletka, technology director of Covina-Valley Unified School District in California, conceived the idea of giving 2000 middle school and older students digital cameras to tell their own stories. Three hundred and fifty of their most compelling color images (distilled from 10,000) of school, friends, and families dominate this large-format book. While problems are pictured, these kids are not overwhelmed and are not without hope.

BASKIN, Nora Raleigh. What Every Girl (Except Me) Knows. Yearling. 2002. pap. $5.99. ISBN 978-0-440-41852-8.

Gr 6-8–Gabby's authentic sixth-grade voice is the key here. Though she was only three when it happened, she quietly blames herself for her mother's death. Numerous well-realized adult characters are important to the story, but it is prickly older brother Ian who finally helps Gabby find the answers she needs.

BAUER, Joan. Stand Tall. Putnam. 2002. Tr $16.99. ISBN 978-0-399-23473-6; pap. $7.99. ISBN 978-0-14-240427-0.

Gr 5-8–Seventh-grader Sam is called “Tree” because he's already over six feet tall. But unlike his athletically gifted older brothers and father, he's not into basketball. Instead, he feels overwhelmed by his parents' recent divorce and worries about his Vietnam-vet grandfather's recent leg amputation. Humorous moments, mostly involving Sam's mom, seamlessly lighten the heavier plot elements. Audio version available from Listening Library.

BRUCHAC, Joseph. The Heart of a Chief. Puffin. 2001. pap. $6.99. ISBN 978-0-14-131236-1.

Gr 5-8–Eleven-year-old Penacook Indian Chris is nervous about attending an “off-reservation” public school for the first time, as he is unsure about how he'll fit in with non-Native classmates. But the strength he derives from his culture helps him deal effectively, not only with issues at school, but also with his father's alcoholism and controversial efforts to build a casino on tribal land.

CHOLDENKO, Gennifer. Al Capone Does My Shirts. Putnam. 2004. Tr $16.99. ISBN 978-0-399-23861-1; pap. $6.99. ISBN 978-0-14-240370-9.

Gr 5-8–Moose sees nothing good for him about his family's move in 1935 to Alcatraz Island for his dad's new job. However, he realizes how important it is for his parents that his sister, Natalie, who has what would now be called autism, has a chance to attend an innovative new school. Piper, the pretty and manipulative warden's daughter, further complicates his life, in school and at home. Audio version available from Recorded Books.

CLEMENTS, Bruce. What Erika Wants. Farrar. 2005. Tr $16. ISBN 978-0-374-32304-2.

Gr 6-9–The object of a custody dispute between her equally immature divorced parents, 14-year-old Erika just wants to do the right thing–do well in classes, be in the school play, be a good friend, and not make trouble. She assumes this means acquiescing to her long-absent mom's demand for custody. Good thing Erika's court-appointed lawyer has the time and talent to keep the teen's best interests in mind.

CODELL, Esmé Raji. Sahara Special. 2003. ISBN 978-0-7868-0793-2; PLB $16.49. ISBN 978-0-7868-2627-8; pap. $5.99. ISBN 978-0-7868-1611-8.

––––. Vive La Paris. 2006. ISBN 978-0-7868-5124-9.

ea. vol: Hyperion. RTE $15.99.

Gr 4-6–Sahara Jones is stressed about needing to repeat fifth grade, but she blossoms in the capable hands of her caring and creative teacher, Miss Pointy. Codell's integration of the inner-city Chicago school setting and Sahara's naive perspective create a delightfully unique tone. In the companion novel, Vive La Paris, Sahara's classmate Paris McCray takes piano lessons and mistakenly thinks her teacher's tattoo and yellow felt star are signs of gang membership. With loving family support and gentle humor, understanding eventually dawns. Audio version of Sahara Special available from Listening Library.

CREECH, Sharon. Replay. HarperCollins/Joanna Cotler Bks. 2005. Tr $15.99. ISBN 978-0-06-054019-7; PLB $16.89. ISBN 978-0-06-054020-3; pap. $5.99. ISBN 978-0-06-054021-0.

Gr 6-8–Leo, 12, feels lost in his big Italian-American family, unnoticed amid the noise and shenanigans. Two plotlines, one involving his part in a school play and the other about reading the diary his father kept when he was about the same age, credibly converge to help Leo begin to find his own talents and to recognize what parents must sometimes sacrifice for their children. Audio version available from Recorded Books.

DOWELL, Francis O'Roark. The Secret Language of Girls. S & S/Atheneum. 2004. RTE $16.99. ISBN 978-0-689-84421-8; pap. $5.99. ISBN 978-1-4169-0717-6.

Gr 4-7–Marylin and Kate have been friends forever and expect that to continue as they enter sixth grade. But new neighbor and classmate Flannery befriends Marylin. Kate, feeling excluded, becomes friends with Paisley. Ensuing conflicts are resolved, and Marylin and Kate learn that friendships are best when they are based on real, shared values, interests, and needs, and not status or power. Audio version available from Listening Library.

FRANK, Lucy. Just Ask Iris. S & S/Atheneum/A Richard Jackson Bk. 2003. RTE $17. ISBN 978-0-689-84406-5.

Gr 5-8–Moving into a new Manhattan neighborhood with her hardworking mother and older brother to attend a magnet computer school has 12-year-old Iris Diaz-Pinkowitz stressed out. Warm good humor and the girl's enterprising personality help her meet new friends and neighbors including Will, who uses a wheelchair, and the Cat Lady, a quirky old woman, via the fire escape.

FUQUA, Jonathon Scott. The Reappearance of Sam Webber. Bancroft. 1999. Tr $23.95. ISBN 978-1-890862-02-2.

Gr 7 Up–After his father's disappearance, 11-year-old Samuel and his mom move into a dumpy apartment due to their reduced circumstances, and he refuses to acknowledge his father's abandonment. This story develops slowly, but portrays in excruciating detail the effects of daily torment from bullying at school and other fears that literally make Samuel sick. The beautifully realized urban setting functions almost like another character.

GANTOS, Jack. Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key. Farrar. 1998. Tr $16. ISBN 978-0-374-33664-6.

Gr 5-8–This is the first in a series of wildly popular books about a boy with ADHD. Joey is a good kid who really wants to do the right thing, but his “bad wiring” means he's constantly in trouble, his impulsivity making it hard to know when to stop. Readers will appreciate this sympathetic portrait of a kid they all know. Audio version available from Listening Library.

GAUTHIER, Gail. Happy Kid! Putnam. 2006. Tr $16.99. ISBN 978-0-399-24266-3.

Gr 6-8–Branded as a troublemaker at the end of sixth grade, Kyle hopes for invisibility as he starts seventh. His mom, a child and family counselor, pays him to read A Young Person's Guide to Satisfying Relationships and a Happy and Meaning-Filled Life, which suggests, for example, that he should say “hi” to people. Despite his doubts, the book seems to guide him, with humor and occasional missteps, through middle school minefields.

HAN, Jenny. Shug. S & S. 2006. Tr $16.99. ISBN 978-1-4169-0942-2.

Gr 5-8–For Annemarie, aka Shug, starting seventh grade includes tutoring bad boy Jack and hiding her mom's drinking problem. Her first menstrual period, first kiss, and first realizations that people she's known may not be quite the people she thought they were are sensitively and realistically portrayed. Audio version available from Recorded Books.

JOHNSTON, Tony. Any Small Goodness: A Novel of the Barrio. illus. by Raúl Colón. Scholastic/Blue Sky. 2001. RTE $16.95. ISBN 978-0-439-18936-1; pap. $4.99. ISBN 978-0-439-23384-2.

Gr 4-7–Eleven-year-old Arturo anchors these gentle vignettes that center on the love and support of his extended family as he deals with school and the sometimes harsh life in the barrio of East Los Angeles. Beautiful poems open each chapter and small illustrations enhance the text. Lots of Spanish words are used; most are explained in context, others in a glossary.

KLISE, Kate. Deliver Us from Normal. Scholastic. 2005. RTE $16.95. ISBN 978-0-439-52322-6; pap. $5.99. ISBN 978-0-439-52323-3.

Gr 5-9–Charles knows that he doesn't fit in his Normal, IL, middle school, especially after his older sister's campaign posters for seventh-grade class president are vandalized by the school's jock/social power elite. He also knows that his parents' decision to pull up stakes to begin life anew aboard a decrepit Gulf Coast houseboat is fraught with problems. A warm and loving, if unusual, family story. Audio version available from Recorded Books.

MAYNARD, Joyce. The Cloud Chamber. S & S/Atheneum/Anne Schwartz Bks. 2005. Tr $16.95. ISBN 978-0-689-87152-8; pap. $7.99. ISBN 978-1-4169-2699-3.

Gr 6-9–Nate's dad's failed suicide attempt, and the suspicion that Nate's mom might have instead actually tried to kill him, throws everyone's life into disarray. Paired with weird Naomi for a science fair project, Nate learns that, “Just because something was invisible most of the time didn't mean it wasn't really there.” Vivid details realistically evoke the mid-'60s Montana setting. Audio version available from Listening Library.

MYERS, Walter Dean. Fast Sam, Cool Clyde, and Stuff. Puffin. 1988. pap. $5.99. ISBN 978-0-14-032613-0.

Gr 5-8–Francis recalls being 13 when he moved to his 116th Street neighborhood in Harlem. Bragging to the kids on the stoop that he can “stuff” a basketball, his new friends quickly call his bluff, and the ensuing year provides both heartache and humor as they support one another through the rough spots at school and home.

MYRACLE, Lauren. Twelve. Dutton. 2007. Tr $15.99. ISBN 978-0-525-47784-6; pap. $6.99. ISBN 978-0-14-241091-2.

Gr 5-8–Twelve-year-old Winnie sweetly recounts her changing relationships (first boyfriend) and changing body (first bra, first period, getting her ears pierced) from sixth-grade graduation through the summer and into seventh grade. In a month-by-month format, this peek into a preteen girl's daily life will be a popular choice. Sequel to Eleven (Dutton, 2004). Can Thirteen be far behind? Audio version available from Scholastic.

PARK, Linda Sue. Project Mulberry. Clarion. 2005. Tr $16. ISBN 978-0-618-47786-9; pap. $6.50. ISBN 978-0-440-42163-4.

Gr 5-8–Julia, daughter of Korean-born parents, is a doer. But she doesn't want to raise silkworms for her animal husbandry project with her best friend Patrick–she feels it is too Korean. A clever and funny meta-narrative relates arguments between the author and her character about the progress of the plot, serving to lighten the mood as Julia struggles with issues of race and culture. Audio version available from Listening Library.

PAULSEN, Gary. Harris and Me: A Summer Remembered. Harcourt. 1993. Tr $17. ISBN 978-0-15-292877-3; pap. $5.95. ISBN 978-0-15-205880-7.

Gr 5-9–An unnamed 11-year-old narrator relates the crazy–and often painful–escapades he and his cousin Harris are involved in during a summer spent on Harris's parents' northern Minnesota farm near the midpoint of the last century. Paulsen offers proof positive that some lessons are best learned out of school. Possibly the world's best read-aloud for seventh-grade boys. Audio version available from Recorded Books.

PEARSALL, Shelley. All of the Above. Little, Brown. 2006. Tr $15.99. ISBN 978-0-316-11524-7.

Gr 5-8–Sharice lives in foster care. Rhondell is smart but withdrawn. Marcel squirms uneasily under the thumb of his dad, Sgt. Willy Q. Williams. James is artistically talented, but academically challenged. Mr. Collins is a burned-out urban middle school math teacher who, in desperation, suggests that they build the world's largest tetrahedron, requiring 16,384 individual pieces. Believable characters in individual, alternating voices tell the story.

SHREVE, Susan. Kiss Me Tomorrow. Scholastic/Arthur A. Levine Bks. 2006. Tr $16.99. ISBN 978-0-439-68047-9; pap. $5.99. ISBN 978-0-439-68048-6.

Gr 5-8–Quirky seventh-grader Blister, aka Alyssa, is shocked on the first day of school when her best friend, Jonah, ignores her and instead starts hanging out with the allegedly popular Jakob Cutter and his scuzzy friends. When Jonah is accused of shoplifting, Blister maintains he must be innocent. But can she help prove it? Sequel to Blister (Scholastic, 2001).

SOTO, Gary. Mercy on These Teenage Chimps. Harcourt. 2007. Tr $16. ISBN 978-0-15-206022-0.

Gr 5-8–Turning 13, Ronnie suddenly observes that he and his best friend, Joey, have ears that stick out and arms that seem to reach the ground. When Coach Puddlefield embarrasses him in front of a girl he likes, Joey climbs a tree and won't come down, until Ronnie winningly convinces Coach and Jessica to intervene. A lighthearted book that's sure to strike a chord with adolescent boys.

VEGA, Denise. Click Here: (To Find Out How I Survived the Seventh Grade). Little, Brown. 2006. pap. $7.99. ISBN 978-0-316-98559-8.

Gr 5-8–As if worrying about her big feet and weathering the shifting friendships of seventh grade weren't bad enough, Erin discovers that her uncensored blog has been posted for all of Molly Brown Middle School to see, and real penance is needed to win back the former friends and classmates whom she'd so blithely criticized. Girlish and chatty, incorporates lots of IM abbreviations.

YEE, Lisa. Millicent Min, Girl Genius. Scholastic/Arthur A. Levine Bks. 2003. Tr $16.95. ISBN 978-0-439-42519-3; pap. $4.99. ISBN 978-0-439-42520-9.

Gr 5-8–Millie, almost 12, is just about finished with high school and certainly brilliant. But as her journal breathlessly and humorously reveals, that doesn't mean she really understands the world–she's, well, almost 12. Thoroughly entertaining, this is the first in a series of related titles. Audio version available from Listening Library.

PERLSTEIN, Linda. Not Much Just Chillin': The Hidden Lives of Middle Schoolers. Ballantine. 2004. pap. $13.95. ISBN 978-0-345-47576-3.

“Hidden” is a misnomer, since the author reports mainly on what she is able to observe by closely following five students through a school year in Maryland. For some, middle school resembles a game of dodge ball–you try to avoid being hit by something you probably didn't even see coming. Sensitive and insightful, this title is a worthwhile addition to any professional collection.