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Rick by Alex Gino What if: you suddenly realized that your longtime best friend was actually a bully?
What happens: After hanging out with his sci-fi-loving grandpa and joining his school’s Rainbow Spectrum club, 6th-grader Rick starts to understand himself better, leading him to face the uncomfortable truth about his best friend, Jeff.
Book buzz: This companion book to author Alex Gino’s George features some of the same characters, as well as a similarly hopeful story about speaking up and being yourself. | | Hour of the Bees by Lindsay Eagar Welcome to: New Mexico, where Carol and her family are visiting Grandpa Serge to help him move into assisted living.
What happens: At first, Carol thinks Serge’s impossible stories are due to his dementia. Yet as she learns more about the Mexican side of her family -- and as she begins seeing supposedly magical bees -- Carol comes to understand both herself and Serge’s stories in a different way.
You might also like: Laura Resau's The Lightning Queen, another captivating tale that spans generations. | | Making Friends by Kristen Gudsnuk What it’s about: After a doodle of her favorite anime character springs off the page and into life, awkward 7th-grader Dany realizes that the sketchbook she inherited from her grandma can make drawings real, giving Dany the chance to create a perfect best friend.
For fans of: the friendship-focused, slice-of-life graphic novels by Terri Libenson, Kayla Miller, and Svetlana Chmakova.
Series alert: Dany and her magical notebook return in a sequel, Back to the Drawing Board. | | Rules for Stealing Stars by Corey Ann Haydu What it’s about: Moving to an old house offers an unexpected escape for 11-year-old Silly and her sisters: each of the house’s closets leads to a different alternate world. It’s a relief to get away from their unpredictable alcoholic mother, but will the lure of new realities drive the sisters apart?
Is it for you? If you can handle the pain and sadness of the sisters’ situation, you’ll also get to delve into the spellbinding magic they discover and the hopeful connection they share. | | The Book of Boy by Catherine Gilbert Murdock What it's about: Since life in his medieval French village is grim and lonely for Boy, an orphan with a hump on his back, he signs on as servant to a shady traveler named Secondus, and soon finds himself on a dangerous (and possibly magical) journey to collect seven holy relics.
Try this next: Avi's Crispin: The Cross of Lead for another unlikely friendship between misfits, or Adam Gidwitz's The Inquisitor's Tale for another blend of fantasy, faith, and gritty history. | |
Contact your librarian for more books for ages 10-13!
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