Totally Middle School

June 4, 2018
Featuring an eclectic mix of short stories from a number of beloved authors, this collection explores three topics—“Family,” “Friends and Fitting In,” and “Finding Yourself”—in a variety of formats, from poems to comic panels. Margarita Engle takes on the “dreaded/ dreadful/ deadline-looming/ first-in-my-lifetime/ Middle School/ Mixer,” while Katherine Paterson and granddaughter Jordan offer advice-laden Facetime and text exchanges between two cousins (“organize, organize, organize”). A David Wiesner comic visualizes finding one’s place in an intimidating new setting, and Linda Sue Park and Anna Dobbin’s story, told in part from a dog’s perspective, considers cross-species family life. The stories look at eras and cultural differences, as well, from Gary Schmidt’s searing story about a boy’s neighbor heading off to the Vietnam War, to Hena Khan’s present-day tale of a Pakistani immigrant connecting with her new classmates. The collection, “dedicated to middle schoolers everywhere” (“This, too, shall pass”), deals honestly and sensitively with this volatile time. Ages 9–12. Agent: Doe Coover, Doe Coover Agency.

July 15, 2018
In 11 stories, editor Groban has compiled a collection for the 12-year-old in all of us from beloved authors such as Karen Cushman, David Wiesner, Margarita Engle, and Lois Lowry.In this ode to middle school, in all of its difficult and awkward glory, readers will get a glimpse into the adolescences of a diverse cast of characters with varying experiences, helping them see the world through someone else's eyes. With poetry, short stories, text message "conversations," and even a comic strip (some fictional and some based on the authors' real-life experiences), this collection tries to give its readers everything, with mixed results. Some stories, such as "How to Make S'mores," by Hena Khan, and "Dog People," by Linda Sue Park and Anna Dobbin (Park's daughter), really show how difficult and wonderful the middle school years can be, especially when we take a chance on something new. Too many others, however, feel ancillary to the theme; although they have characters of the right age, the point of the story has little or nothing to do with, well, middle school, which may puzzle readers lured by the title. "When She Whined in Her Sleep," by Gary D. Schmidt, for instance, is a good story, but it is more a lyrically wrought critique of war than an exploration of the middle school experience.A solid anthology for young readers, if somewhat lacking cohesion. (Anthology. 9-13)

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August 1, 2018

Gr 5-8-Groban brings together literary powerhouses including Lois Lowry, Katherine Paterson, Linda Sue Park, Karen Cushman, Gary D. Schmidt, Gregory Maguire, and more, with tales of friends, family, and fitting in while dealing with the universal middle school angsts. This anthology features a mix of formats: stories in verse, first-person narratives (including one by a dog), email and texts, and even a short graphic novel by Caldecott-winner David Wiesner. Many of the stories involve timeless middle school worries revolving around friends, homework, and family issues, while others grapple with thorny topics such as cultural bias and soldiers returning from the Vietnam War with PTSD. Each selection is followed by a short biography about the author, with interesting tidbits about their lives. Stories swing from heartrending to heartwarming. VERDICT Readers will "totally" relate to the issues and perspectives presented in this well-curated collection. A great purchase for upper elementary and middle school libraries.-Michele Shaw, Quail Run Elementary School, San Ramon, CA

Copyright 2018 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

August 1, 2018
Grades 5-8 Confident that writers can help readers face the challenges of their middle-school years, editor Groban offers 11 short stories, most by well-known authors, including Gregory Maguire, Gary D. Schmidt, Lois Lowry, Karen Cushman, Mary Downing Hahn, Margarita Engle, Joyce Sidman, Katherine Paterson (with her granddaughter, Jordan Paterson), and Linda Sue Park (with her daughter, Anna Dobbin). David Wiesner contributes a graphic-novel-style short story in which an 11-year-old boy, feeling lost on his first day at a combined middle and high school, finds a home there: the art room. Hena Khan, a Pakistani American writer, contributes How to Make S'mores, an involving story in which a recently immigrated girl and her parents struggle to understand American ways when she goes on a three-day school field trip called Outdoor Ed. The overall quality of the writing is quite good, and the stories are surprisingly varied in theme, tone, and point of view. With its hallway-locker-themed jacket, this book is an inviting choice for kids entering middle school and a good way of discovering writers they might enjoy.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)