Readers' Advisory -- Youth Services: Testing TEEN MIDDLE: Alternate History

Here are our favorite books about everyday diversity. These titles can be found in the Juvenile Fiction section of the library, unless otherwise noted.

Aven Green, Baking Machine
by Dusti Bowling

Aven knows she's an expert baker of cakes and cookies since she's been baking with her mom for a really long time. Plus no one bakes quite like she does. She cracks eggs with her feet and measures sugar and flour with her feet (plus measuring cups), since she was born without arms. And now Aven has her eye on the prize: a beautiful blue ribbon for baking at the county fair. So she teams up with her friends Kayla, Emily, and Sujata. But it turns out they all have very different tastes and a lot of opinions about baking. Talk about a recipe for disaster!

Out Of My Heart
by Sharon M. Draper

In this sequel to Out of My Mind, Melody decides to sign up for a horseback riding summer camp in order to get over her fear of horses, but she wonders if the camp will welcome a kid with cerebral palsy.

Jo Jo Makoons: Fancy Pants
by Dawn Quigley

In this second book in the Jo Jo Makoons series, written by an American Indian Youth Literature Honor winning author and illustrated by a Wolastoqey artist, irrepressible first-grader Jo Jo is determined to learn how to be fancy before her aunt's wedding, with her own particular flair.

Maizy Chen's Last Chance
by Lisa Yee

In Last Chance, Minnesota, with her family, Maizy spends her time at the Golden Palace, the restaurant that's been in her family for generations, where she makes some discoveries requiring her to go on a search for answers.

Simon B. Rhymin'
by Dwayne Reed

Chicago fifth-grader Simon, an aspiring rapper who lacks self-confidence, uses his rhymes to help bring his community together.

Bump
by Matt Wallace

There is only one thing MJ loves: the world of professional wrestling. She especially idolizes the luchadores and the stories they tell in the ring. When MJ learns that her neighbor, Mr. Arellano, runs a wrestling school, she has a new mission in life: join the school, train hard, and become a wrestler. But trouble lies ahead. After wrestling in a showcase event, MJ attracts the attention of Mr. Arellano's enemy at the State Athletic Commission. There are threats to shut the school down, putting MJ's new home--and the community that welcomed her--at risk. What can MJ do to save her new family?

That Thing About Bollywood
by Supriya Kelkar

An Indian American girl who would bury her feelings about her parents’ separation involuntarily breaks into a Bollywood song-and-dance routine before waking up to an alternate reality where everyone is behaving like Bollywood characters.

Sadiq and the Bridge Builders
by Siman Nuurali

A young Somali American and his classmates design a model city to withstand floods, using river walls, floodgates, gutters, and rain gardens.

Stand Up, Yumi Chung!
by Jessica Kim

Reworking mortifying memories about her perpetual shyness and cross-cultural realities into comedy gold, an aspiring comedienne accidentally lands in a comedy camp under the instruction of a favorite celebrity.

The One Thing You'd Save
by Linda Sue Park

The Newbery Medal-winning author explores a diverse classroom’s varied answers to a question about what they would save if their homes were on fire in a series of linked poems complemented by striking black-and-white art.

What Stars Are Made Of
by Sarah Allen

Aspiring to become a scientist in spite of the challenges of having Turner syndrome, Libby learns that her older sister is having a baby and prepares what she hopes will be a winning entry in a science contest to help with expenses.

The Boy at the Back of the Class
by Onjali Q. Raúf

When a Syrian refugee boy joins their class, the determined students in Mrs. Kahn's schoolroom learn the newcomer's sad story before concocting a plan to reunite him with his loved ones.

From the Desk of Zoe Washington
by Janae Marks

Receiving an unexpected letter on her 12th birthday from the incarcerated father she has never met, a courageous young baker prepares for a cooking-show competition while scrambling to determine her father’s innocence.

Can You See Me?
by Libby Scott

Hiding her struggles on the autism spectrum from her new classmates, sixth grader Tally questions her understanding of what normal means when her best friend begins to feel uncomfortable.

Black Brother, Black Brother
by Jewell Parker Rhodes

Routinely compared to his submissive lighter-skinned brother, a black boy at an elitist prep school is unfairly suspended in the wake of an incident involving the school bully, whom he tries to defeat in a fencing competition.

Pie in the Sky
by Remy Lai

Feeling as out of place as if he landed on Mars when his family moves to an English-speaking country, 11-year-old Jingwen dreams about the cakes he would have baked with his late father, a hope that is challenged by his mother's strict kitchen safety rules.

Planet Earth is Blue
by Nicole Panteleakos

Autistic and nearly nonverbal, twelve-year-old Nova is happy in her new foster home and school, but eagerly anticipates the 1986 Challenger launch, for which her sister, Bridget, promised to return.

Bouncing Back
by Scott Ostler

Struggling to adapt to life in a wheelchair, a 13-year-old former basketball champion joins a wheelchair league that challenges him to embrace new friends and skills in order to save the gym from being closed.

New Kid
by Jerry Craft

Enrolled in a prestigious private school where he is one of only a few students of color, talented seventh grade artist Jordan finds himself torn between the worlds of his Washington Heights apartment home and the upscale circles of Riverdale Academy.

Save Me a Seat
by Sarah Weeks and Gita Naradarajan

Ravi, who has just moved to America from India, and Joe, who is learning disabled, gain strength from each other as they struggle to navigate middle school, family relationships, and friendships.