Tag: secrets

Girl standing on a hill with arms held out. She's facing fields and mountains. Her shadow looks like a bird. A dog stands next to her.
Posted in MG Novels, So Many Good Books

Kestrel Takes Flight

Posted on by Susan Uhlig

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday

Kestrel Takes Flight* (Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2026) by Joy McCullough is such a good read. This novel is written in verse and can be read very quickly, but contains important truths.

It’s the middle of the night and Kestrel’s mom sneaks them out of the house where they live with Grandpa. The two fly from San Diego to Montana for the summer. Kestrel is puzzled over the secrecy and doesn’t understand why they didn’t say good-bye to Grandpa. Or why Mom didn’t tell her about the trip ahead of time. On the plane Mom explains she is going to work at a bear institute. Well, really a dog institute. And Kestrel hates dogs. If Karelian dogs hunt bears, what will they do to a girl?

Intersperses with the poems are letters Kestrel writers in her journal to her grandfather. She plans to show them to him when they get back. In them we see how she changes. (I did feel some of the initial changes happened too quickly.) I love how the first and last poems bookend the story, and how she shows Kestrel’s life experiences expanding. I want to say more, but don’t want to give anything away.

The book is a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection.

Read about Joy and see some of her books here. On this site you can check out her young adult books. Somehow I’ve only read one, Blood Water Paint, and it was fantastic.

*I received a copy for review from the publisher. Thoughts are my own.

Cover has words Little then Women scratched out followed by Monsters and shows silhouettes of 4 sisters in a spooky night setting
Posted in MG Novels, So Many Good Books

Little Monsters

Posted on by Susan Uhlig

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday

Little Monsters* (Aladdin, 2026) by Máire Roche has a fantastic cover. This story is perfect for the spooky season. Or for anytime really.

It starts out very similar to the classic book, Little Women, but it’s Halloween and no costumes that Jo is grumbling about. Meg at almost 14 wants to make it special for her younger sisters–just if she can earn enough money. But she has deeper problems. Like not upsetting their current foster mother, Marmee, so the March sisters don’t have to move yet again. Speaking of upset, that’s when Meg’s monstrous magical abilities appear. Plus there are rumors of a strange creature roaming around the town at night. Then there’s the new boy, Laurie’s cousin, and she must keep everything monstrous hidden from him. So many secrets!

Readers familiar with the classic will be amused by this twist, but the story is more than a twist. Meg’s struggles feel real in this fantasy world. I had so much sympathy for her as she tries to protect her family. I loved watching her grow.

Read about the author here and check out her other books here.

*I received a copy of the book from the publisher for review. Opinions my own.

cover of The Experiment
Posted in MG Novels, So Many Good Books

The Experiment

Posted on by Susan Uhlig

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday

The Experiment (Feiwel and Friends, 2025) by Rebecca Stead is such an unusual and intriguing story.

Sixth-grader Nathan’s world is ending–or at least his time on earth. He’s always had to keep the secret that his family is from another planet. They are part of ten families in the experiment. But then some of his friends in the group have been disappearing without a word. Today, locked in his room, he’s waiting for the people who are coming to pick him up!

I love that Nathan is a Calvin and Hobbes comic fan.

See the author’s other books here and learn about Rebecca herself here.

cover of How to Tell a True Story
Posted in MG Novels, So Many Good Books

How to Tell a True Story

Posted on by Susan Uhlig

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday

How to Tell a True Story (Margaret Ferguson Books, Holiday House, 2025) by Tricia Springstubb is a fascinating story of dealing with trauma–a family home burning down.

Seventh grader Amber Price divides her world into Before and After. Before, hardly anyone noticed her. After, she’s the fire girl. And not only do students know her name, but they want to do a fundraiser for her family. However, she knows Dad would say, “the Prices don’t take charity.” Somehow the fundraiser goes ahead, and she’ll have to confess to Dad. Worse, though, her brother, the hero who saved Amber from the fire, is keeping secrets.

This book is a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard selection.

Previously, I recommended her book Moonpenny Island. I need to find more of Tricia’s books. You can check them out here and read about the author here.

cover of Chirp
Posted in MG Novels, So Many Good Books

Chirp

Posted on by Susan Uhlig

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday

I probably missed Chirp (Bloomsbury Children’s Books, 2020) by Kate Messner due to the pandemic, but am very glad to have caught up with it now.

The summer after 7th grade, Mia and her family move back to Vermont and she wishes the two years in Boston had never happened. Mom is making her choose two activities–one for her brain and one for her body–when Mia would rather just stay on the couch like she’s mostly been since her accident. New friendships, helping out Gram out with her cricket farm that she was supposed to sell, keeps her busy, but things keep reminding her of the secret she’s hiding.

This book is sooo good. It’s not just a making friends story, or a kid moving story, but so much more. So many layers.

And, yes, the bestselling author did eat crickets in her research for this story. Read more about Kate here and check out all her books here.