Book picks similar to
Lily Lo and the Wonton Maker by Frances Lee Hall
middle-grade
level-children
level-middle-grade
vcfa
Just Grace
Charise Mericle Harper - 2007
Luther feel less lonely. But as the mystery of the missing cat continues, Grace's well-intentioned plan backfires, and she finds herself in a bit of trouble. Illustrations.
Let's Pretend We Never Met
Melissa C. Walker - 2017
After all, sixth grade is hard enough without wondering if you’ll be able to make new friends or worrying that the kids in Pennsylvania won’t like your North Carolina accent.But when Mattie meets her next-door neighbor and classmate, she begins to think maybe she was silly to fear being the “new girl.” Agnes is like no one Mattie has ever met—she’s curious, hilarious, smart, and makes up the best games. If winter break is anything to go by, the rest of the school year should be a breeze.Only it isn’t, because when vacation ends and school starts, Mattie realizes something: At school Agnes is known as the weird girl who no one likes. All Mattie wants is to fit in (okay, and maybe be a little popular too), but is that worth ending her friendship with Agnes?
Do-Over
Rachel Vail - 1992
Maybe it's because he's not so good at Seven in Heaven, or because he always manages to say the wrong thing. His best friend isn't much help, and his dad can't even seem to stay married, so what good would his advice be?Unlike in basketball, there are no do-overs in life or in love. Which is either really scary or really awesome, depending on how you look at it.
Building Blocks
Cynthia Voigt - 1984
Seems to Brann his dad could stand up for himself more, instead of building a wall of excuses to hide behind. But some things never change -- after all, his dad has always been this way. Or has he? Brann never imagined that he would actually get the chance to find out. But suddenly he is hurled back in time to spend the day with his father as a young boy. In this single mystifying day of adventure, Brann discovers that there is more to his dad -- and fate -- than he thought.
The Epic Documentary of a Not-Yet-Epic Kid
Robin Mellom - 2012
Mostly, it was upper average along with moments of extreme average, highlighted by several minutes of total epicness. This is the story...Trevor Jones--perfect attendance award recipient, former neurotic (he hopes)--has been preparing for the start of seventh grade his entire summer.But he is NOT ready for the news his best friend, Libby (proud neurotic, in a color-coding sort of way), drops on him: he must ask a girl to the fall dance. By the end of the day.Trevor decides he would rather squirt hot sauce in his eyes than attend the dance. Everything changes when he meets mysterious new student Molly (excessive doodler, champion of unnatural hair colors). Trevor starts to think that going to the dance maybe wouldn't be the worst thing ever. But what if she says no to his invitation? More important, what if she says yes?!
Revenge of the Flower Girls
Jennifer Ziegler - 2014
Two boys. Three flower girls who won't forever hold their peace. What could go wrong with this wedding? Everything!The Brewster triplets, Dawn, Darby, and Delaney, would usually spend their summer eating ice cream, playing with their dog, and reading about the US Presidents. But this year they're stuck planning their big sister Lily's wedding. Lily used to date Alex, who was fun and nice and played trivia games with the triplets, and no one's quite sure why they broke up. Burton, Lily's groom-to-be, is not nice or fun, and he looks like an armadillo.The triplets can't stand to see Lily marry someone who's completely wrong for her, so it's up to them to stop the wedding before anyone says "I do!" The flower girls will stop at nothing to delay Lily's big day, but will sprinklers, a photo slideshow, a muddy dog, and some unexpected allies be enough to prevent their big sister - and the whole Brewster family - from living unhappily ever after?
Dancing in the Streets of Brooklyn
April Lurie - 2002
But in July 1944, Judy’s carefree days and her innocence are shaken by a discovery: The man she’s always called Pa isn’t her real father. Even more shocking, Judy learns that the father she doesn’t remember was an alcoholic who abandoned his family. That’s why Judy’s mother emigrated to America from Norway. Now Judy feels jumbled inside: She’s angry at her mother for keeping the truth from her–and she’s suddenly awkward around Pa. Nothing her parents say soothes the hurt.At first, even the attentions of Jacob Jacobsen don’t make her feel any better. Judy likes Jacob; it’s just that his dad’s drinking binges hit too close to home. Ashamed, Judy doesn’t want anyone to find out her secret. But as misfortune befalls Jacob, Judy’s close friends, and her own family, Judy rallies to their side, and in the process recognizes that growing up encompasses forgiveness–of others and of herself.
A Certain Small Shepherd
Rebecca Caudill - 1965
From the late Rebecca Caudill, author of The Best-Loved Doll and Tree of Freedom, comes the heartrending story of a young Appalachian boy, born mute, who speaks for the first time ever to a young couple and their newborn baby, who have taken refuge from a blizzard in a nearby church.
Kitchen Chaos
Deborah A. Levine - 2015
But when new girl Lillian arrives from San Francisco, suddenly three's a crowd. Especially after the trio is grouped together for a big sixth-grade social studies project - can they put aside their animosity long enough to succeed? When Liza suggests they all take a cooking class with the chef from her favorite cooking show for the project, the girls are on board, but they need an adult to take the class with them. It seems like the perfect opportunity to snag some quality time with their over-scheduled, overstressed mothers... if they can convince them to sign up!Several headaches and close calls later, the girls at last find themselves in Chef Antonio's kitchen with their mothers in tow - but the drama is only just beginning!
George
E.L. Konigsburg - 1970
George is the funny little man who lives inside Ben, helping him (mostly) navigate life as a sixth grader who happens to be a scientific genius and who happens to be studying organic chemistry with students much older than he. One of those students is William Hazlitt, a senior who has been Ben's lab partner in previous years. William's interest in chemistry has taken a troubling turn, and Ben has a plan to come to his rescue. And that's when things get complicated -- for Howard, for Ben, and for George.
Everyone Else's Parents Said Yes
Paula Danziger - 1989
Matthew cannot resist the temptation to play practical jokes on his older sister and all the girls in his class at school, so by the time of the big party for his eleventh birthday they have all declared war on him.
The Girl Who Wasn't There
Karen McCombie - 2014
Finding it hard to make friends, things change when Maisie tells her new classmates about something strange she saw the night before - a girl's face in the window of a gothic tower. The girls tell Maisie about the ghost of a Victorian pupil rumoured to wander the corridors. One particular student called Kat seems captivated by what Maisie has seen, and - both feeling like outsiders - they quickly become close. One night, though, Maisie comes across a tin box full of photos and notes. It's plainly decades old, and, squinting at the photos - belonged to a smiling girl who looks exactly like Kat...
The Ashwater Experiment
Amy Goldman Koss - 1999
To Hillary, each move is an escape from becoming one of the "sleepwalkers" she's seen at all of the seventeen schools she's attended. But then the Siegals land in Ashwater, California. And this time, they're staying put. Seventh grade isn't going to be a typical year for Hillary. What can she do if she can't run?
City Sticks
A.H. Sewell - 2015
It was a sample (and not even the correct file - it was an old rough draft that was saved under a new title), and Goodreads will not take it down. The Amazon link directs to the correct, and full, edition. "She is lost, but the world is too. It is a perfect circle.For life is, but a dream /// is not."- "Seeing Ghosts/A Perfect Circle" excerptA. H. SewellCopyright 2015
Bittersweet
Winnie Mack - 2016
She loves ice cream, sleepovers, Christmas, and her soccer team (future team captain). What doesn’t she love? Her super-annoying teenage brother, how her little sisters mess up the house and talk incessantly, and especially, how completely weird she is feeling.Lately, Sam has been crazy hungry and thirsty. She’s tired all the time, and, most humiliating of all, she’s started wetting the bed like a baby.One day, after a collapse at a soccer game, she wakes up in the hospital to find out she’s got Type 1 diabetes. Suddenly everything is different: not just her diet and the injections, but her relationships with her family and her friends. Will she learn to handle it?This poignant story of a young girl coming to terms with a serious diagnosis, is a hopeful tale about overcoming life’s hurdles.