Now that it's getting a little colder outside (or maybe just a little less hot), it's time to check in on some new middle grade fiction for October, and I interviewed some authors on my blog, Book Q&As with Deborah Kalb, about their new novels...

Sherri L. Smith's new book is called Candace, the Universe, and Everything. When I asked her about the inspiration for the novel, she said, "Initially, I was interested in the idea of a girl findinga notebook from a previous student that helps her navigate her friendships. But I quickly realized the notebook would not just be a 'left behind' item, but something more unusual, which lead to the idea of thewormhole in her locker, and the link to earlier generations." She added, "From there, I leaned into different elements, like a bird Isaw fly overhead one day that seemed to have translucent wings, and the 'visualsnow' I see when I stare into a blue sky. It looks like a boiling pot, so whynot a portal?"

 

J. Anderson Coats's new novel, The Unexpected Lives of Ordinary Girls, was inspired by the life of her grandmother. "After she died, I learned that she’d graduated from highschool when she was in her mid-teens, but her family didn’t support her goingto college and her father refused to let her get a job outside the home," Coats said in our interview. "Instead, she had to help her mother with household chores and child care. So when she was in her 20s, she eloped with my grandfather and barely spoke toher parents ever again. What struck me was how stifling and unfair it must havefelt to her, to be really good at school but refused any opportunities to havea career with those skills. That’s where I started with Unexpected Lives – that feelingof wanting something for yourself when your parents demanded somethingcompletely different from that."

 

Are you craving something with a little spookiness to get into the Halloween spirit? Try Charis Cotter's new novel, The Mystery of the Haunted Dance Hall, which is set at a summer camp. "Camp was thehighlight of my childhood. I loved it so much—I spent 11 months longing for the12th month to arrive so I could go back to camp. It felt very adventurous to leavemy family behind in the city and go to live in a tent under the stars," Cotter told me. "I loved therituals of campfire and chapel and early morning swims, and I loved being withmy peers, sleeping in a sleeping bag, and the sense of order that came with thedaily schedule. Most of all, I just loved being out in nature. For a long time, Iwanted to write a book about camp so I could relive that experience through mywriting."

 

Enjoy, and keep reading!

 

--Deborah Kalb