HADDIX, Margaret Peterson. Caught. Bk 5. S & S. (The Missing Series). Sept. 2012. ISBN 9781416989820. JLG Level: C: Advanced Readers (Grades 6-9)

Longtime favorite author, Margaret Peterson Haddix, releases the fifth book in The Missing series. Jonah and Katherine travel to the early 1900s to return Albert Einstein’s daughter. (He had a daughter?) Blending more science into the series, readers will continue to race through the story as it unfolds. With short, cliff-hanger chapters and familiar characters returning to the series, Haddix’s new book will be on the waiting list for quite some time.

KORMAN, Gordon. Ungifted. HarperCollins/Balzar + Bray. Aug. 2012. ISBN 9780061742682. JLG Level: HIM: High Interest Middle School (Grades 5-8)

You know you that an author is a perennial pick when his name is in a larger font than the book’s title. Korman is back with another crowd-pleaser. “I want a refund from ancestry.com…there’s nobody like me,” says Donovan, our act first-think later protagonist begins. When his harmless pranks go awry, he remarks, “I hit the statue with a branch, but I didn’t think the world would come off.” Korman’s classic wit and humor hook the reader. Donovan’s prank accidentally gets him enrolled in a school for the gifted. Though he may be “ungifted,” there is much we can learn from the boy and his new classmates. The movie rights, by the way, have already been picked up by Walden Media.

LUBAR, David. Beware the Ninja Weenies and other Warped and Creepy Tales. TOR/Starscape. 2012. ISBN 9780765332134. JLG Level: HIM: High Interest Middle School (Grades 5-8)

The Weenies are back with 33 more warped and creepy tales. As most of the stories are short (an average of three pages each), Lubar brings another sure-to-please collection that will keep your reluctant readers technology-less, for a short time at least. Also great for reading aloud, readers will pause to think in Playing Solo- “game over forever” or laugh out loud at the nothing-is-off-limits plot lines in this made-for-kids book.

PENNYPACKER, Sara. Summer of the Gypsy Moths. HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray. 2012. ISBN 9780061964206. JLG Level: B+: Upper Elementary & Junior High (Grades 5-7)

One way to help bridge the gap from elementary school to middle school is to connect kids with their favorite primary authors’ more mature titles. Widely known as the creator of the “Clementine” series (Hyperion), Sara Pennypacker has a wonderful new chapter book for older readers. Two orphans, a dead great-aunt, and some dying blueberry bushes connect in this charming story as two lost souls find their way home. When Stella’s great-aunt dies, she and Angel decide to keep it a secret, bury her and run the Linger Longer Summer Cottages by themselves. The adventures that follow will surely keep readers turning pages.

STEAD, Rebecca. Liar & Spy. Random/Wendy Lamb Bks. 2012. ISBN 9780385906654. JLG Level: B: Upper Elementary & Junior High (Grades 5-7)

Students who see the cover will recognize the art style and recall Newbery-winning author, Rebecca Stead (When You Reach Me). Stead’s new book is no less a mystery. Seventh grader, Georges (the s is silent) struggles through big changes—a move to an apartment, longer working hours for his mom, and bullies at school. Then he meets a home-schooled neighbor, Safer, who enlists his help to spy on Mr. X. Kids will keep guessing until the end at the interwoven strands of plot. Full of wit and wisdom, Georges will become a favorite character and a champion of middle schoolers everywhere.

Junior Library Guild is a collection development service that helps school and public libraries acquire the best new children’s and young adult books. Season after season, year after year, Junior Library Guild book selections go on to win awards, collect starred or favorable reviews, and earn industry honors. Visit us at www.JuniorLibraryGuild.com.

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SLJ 2012 Day of Dialog: Keeping Middle Schoolers Engaged

From Left: Sharon Creech, Joan Bauer, Eoin Colfer, James Dashner, Jennifer Hubert Swain, Rebecca Stead

Middle school students are a “hormonally charged” bunch who are “full of complex contradictions” and just “want a voice,” say authors who participated in SLJ‘s 2012 Day of Dialog on June 4 at New York’s Jacob Javits Convention Center.

Rebecca Stead, winner of the 2010 Newbery Award for When You Reach Me (Random, 2009) and a panelist in “Minding the Reading Gap: How to Keep Middle School Readers Engaged,” says she draws on her own childhood experiences when writing to “build a story out of small moments.” Her latest, Liar & Spy (Random), a funny tale about destiny, goofy brilliance, and courage, is expected this August.

Joan Bauer, who received a 2001 Newbery Honor for Hope Was Here (Putnam, 2000), says she was haunted by “middle school ghosts” during a recent visit to her old school, where she was reduced to a “social zero.” She now uses the power of fiction to share her past experience and give readers hope that the pain does end.

Sharon Creech, 1995 Newbery winner for Walk Two Moons (HarperCollins, 1994), says during author visits, she often sees a shy child holding one of her books close to their chests, and then approach her to say, “How did you know this was what I was thinking?”

Eoin Colfer, author of the “Artemis Fowl” series (Hyperion) says he still can’t understand why he was forced to read classics such as Henry James’s The Portrait of a Lady, ” about an American heiress who travels to America, instead of Nobel Prize-winning English author William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, about British schoolboys who are stranded on a tropical island. His favorite reading spot was the trunk of his family’s car.

James Dashner, who writes the “13th Reality” fantasy series, describes himself as “supernaturally dorky” during his middle school years. His “most magical” moments growing up in Georgia were spending his summers sitting in front of the air conditioner and reading.

The topic of ebooks drew mixed reactions from panelists, with Colfer warning that books shouldn’t compete with technology. Dashner agreed, adding “anything that gets kids reading can’t be bad.” Meanwhile, Stead sees the convenience of ereaders, saying she was touched when her son, a middle schooler, recently put a paperback to his nose and remarked on the distinct smell of print books.

To see what other had to say about this and other Day of Dialog panels on Twitter using the hashtag #SLJDOD.