Looking for a really good middle grade realistic fiction book?
Can be sad, happy, serious, anything, but must be realistic fiction. I may have read some that you comment, but that’s ok. Just need some ideas! Bonus point if there’s a sport involved.
Middle grade sports books that I’ve enjoyed: The Track series by Jason Reynolds, Falling Short by Ernesto Cisneros, Black Brother, Black Brother by Jewell Parker Rhodes, Select by Christie Matheson, Ana on the Edge by AJ Sass, Obie Is Man Enough by Schuyler Bailar, Get a Grip, Vivy Cohen! by Sarah Kapit, Nikki on the Line by Barbara Carroll Roberts.
Chimera_08 on
I loved Tangerine by Edward Bloor. Middle school soccer is maybe the A plot, but there are also really heavy topics explored like race, income, crime, violence, and integrity.
When I was in middle school reading the book it felt like the first book I’d ever read that thought I was smart enough to read about “adult” topics and I remember talking to my mom about it a lot.
Past-Wrangler9513 on
Anything Sharon Creech
Walk Two Moons
Absolutely Normal Chaos
Chasing Redbird
Bloomability
whatinpaperclipchaos on
Frizzy by Claribel Ortega is a pretty sweet graphic novel about an afro-latine girl learning to love her curls. It’s a combination of very cute and (age appropriate) “fuck ‘good hair'” mantra.
implacableforce on
Anything by Sharon Creech (Walk Two Moons), Jean Craighead George (My Side of the Mountain, Julie of the Wolves), Gary Paulson (Hatchet), Jack London (Call of the Wild, White Fang), LM Montgomery (Anne of Green Gables)
*Notable books in parentheses
Other Books:
Mandy, by Julie Edwards
Island of the Blue Dolphins, Scott O’Dell
Bridge to Terebithia, Katherine Patterson
The Witch of Blackbird Pond, Elizabeth George Speare
imabaaaaaadguy on
*Shiloh* was my favorite book growing up. *Fifty-Four Things Wrong with Gwendolyn Rogers* is my modern favorite.
DrTLovesBooks on
With sports:
{{The Crossover by Kwame Alexander}} and the sequels
{{Lupe Wong Won’t Dance by Donna Barbara Higuera}}
Author Laurie Morrison has written several books, each of which feature a character engaged in sports. {{Up for Air by Laurie Morrison}} is one.
{{The Humiliations of Pipi McGee by Beth Vrabel}}
{{Dragon Hoops by Gene Luen Yang}}
{{Truly Tyler by Terri Libenson}}
{{Black Brother, Black Brother by Jewell Parker Rhodes}}
{{Taking Up Space by Allison Gerber}}
{{Ghost by Jason Reynolds}} and the other three books in the series
{{The Next Great Paulie Fink by Ali Benjamin}}
{{Swim Team by Johnnie Christmas}}
{{A High Five for Glenn Burke by Phil Bildner}}
{{The Fifth Quarter by Mike Dawson}}
{{Captain Skidmark Dances with Destiny by Jennifer A. Irwin}}
10 Comments
Back Home by Michelle Magorian,
Good Night Mr Tom (same author)
My Side of the Mountain,
By the Great Horn Spoon,
Dragonwings by Yep
Basically anything by Jerry Spinelli! Gordan Korman books are great too (he mostly writes realistic fiction, but has a few sci-fi books as well).
– [Air](https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/0bbc465d-8642-4948-a417-d7047ce08e8f) by Monica Roe
– [Ana on the Edge](https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/3091f1c7-1437-47c7-b5ee-2a318f87354b) by A.J. Sass
– [A Kind of Spark](https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/acb93e08-d91c-46db-9470-1928195281a4) by Elle McNicoll
– [How to Win a Slime War](https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/57d42000-4f97-4651-bf3f-c9e66be135f0) by Mae Respicio
– [Chirp](https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/ae3a70da-07e1-425a-ad9f-e8d3db12d8e0) by Kate Messner
Middle grade sports books that I’ve enjoyed: The Track series by Jason Reynolds, Falling Short by Ernesto Cisneros, Black Brother, Black Brother by Jewell Parker Rhodes, Select by Christie Matheson, Ana on the Edge by AJ Sass, Obie Is Man Enough by Schuyler Bailar, Get a Grip, Vivy Cohen! by Sarah Kapit, Nikki on the Line by Barbara Carroll Roberts.
I loved Tangerine by Edward Bloor. Middle school soccer is maybe the A plot, but there are also really heavy topics explored like race, income, crime, violence, and integrity.
When I was in middle school reading the book it felt like the first book I’d ever read that thought I was smart enough to read about “adult” topics and I remember talking to my mom about it a lot.
Anything Sharon Creech
Walk Two Moons
Absolutely Normal Chaos
Chasing Redbird
Bloomability
Frizzy by Claribel Ortega is a pretty sweet graphic novel about an afro-latine girl learning to love her curls. It’s a combination of very cute and (age appropriate) “fuck ‘good hair'” mantra.
Anything by Sharon Creech (Walk Two Moons), Jean Craighead George (My Side of the Mountain, Julie of the Wolves), Gary Paulson (Hatchet), Jack London (Call of the Wild, White Fang), LM Montgomery (Anne of Green Gables)
*Notable books in parentheses
Other Books:
Mandy, by Julie Edwards
Island of the Blue Dolphins, Scott O’Dell
Bridge to Terebithia, Katherine Patterson
The Witch of Blackbird Pond, Elizabeth George Speare
*Shiloh* was my favorite book growing up. *Fifty-Four Things Wrong with Gwendolyn Rogers* is my modern favorite.
With sports:
{{The Crossover by Kwame Alexander}} and the sequels
{{Lupe Wong Won’t Dance by Donna Barbara Higuera}}
Author Laurie Morrison has written several books, each of which feature a character engaged in sports. {{Up for Air by Laurie Morrison}} is one.
{{The Humiliations of Pipi McGee by Beth Vrabel}}
{{Dragon Hoops by Gene Luen Yang}}
{{Truly Tyler by Terri Libenson}}
{{Black Brother, Black Brother by Jewell Parker Rhodes}}
{{Taking Up Space by Allison Gerber}}
{{Ghost by Jason Reynolds}} and the other three books in the series
{{The Next Great Paulie Fink by Ali Benjamin}}
{{Swim Team by Johnnie Christmas}}
{{A High Five for Glenn Burke by Phil Bildner}}
{{The Fifth Quarter by Mike Dawson}}
{{Captain Skidmark Dances with Destiny by Jennifer A. Irwin}}
Without sports, but really good:
{{Rez Dogs by Joseph Bruchac}}
{{The Probability of Everything by Sara Everett}}
{{Simon Sort of Says by Ellen Bow}}
{{Good Different by Meg Eden Kuyatt}}
I hope you find some great reads!