Middle Grade Madness! discussion

What is Black History Month?
Black History Month is an annual celebration of achievements by African Americans and a time for recognizing their central role in history around the world.
Read more about it here: https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/nation...

In honour of Black History Month, let's read some books celebrating all of what it means to be Black!

How It Works:
- You can recommend a book for our book list (read more about that below) OR you can just take part.
- There's no need to sign up to take part, just join in the conversation below.
- This readathon starts in February 2022 (countdown below).
- Recommendations for our book list closes on 22nd January.
- I will feed the books from our book list into a random picker.
- Using the link below (not yet added), access the random picker, spin the wheel, and it’ll randomly pick a book from our list for you to read.
- Read the book and let us know your thoughts on it are below!
- Then spin the wheel of the random picker again and it’ll choose another book for you.
- Try to read what the random picker picks for you but if you don’t have access to that book yet or if it chooses a book you’ve already read for the readathon or that you've already read before or that you don't want to read/have DNF'ed/aren't interested in then spin it again and it’ll choose something different.
- Alternatively, you can just ignore the random picker and read anything on the list that you like, but the random picker makes it more fun.

IF YOU WANT TO RECOMMEND A BOOK FOR THE BOOK LIST:
The Rules on Recommending:
- The book can belong to ANY genre but it must have some sort of a tie to Black history, Black identity, have a Black protagonist or be written by a Black author.
- You can recommend between 1-4 books to add to the list.
- The book you recommend can be MG, YA, Adult or New Adult.
- The book can be a graphic novel or manga.
- The book must be in English or translated to English books are also allowed.
- The book must be more than 100 pages long.
- The book cannot be from the middle of a series if it's not possible to read the book outside of the series and still understand it.

RECOMMEND YOUR BOOK FOR THE LIST HERE:
https://www.goodreads.com/poll/show/2...
(or just write it below and I will add it to the poll for you)

Countdown to start of readathon: https://www.timeanddate.com/countdown...
Link to random picker: https://www.classtools.net/random-nam...

The Book List:
MG:
*The Curie Society by Heather Einhorn - Dalia
~The Crossover by Kwame Alexander - Kadi
~The Red Pencil by Andrea Davis Pinkney - Annie
The North Star by Kat Shepherd - Kadi
Ghost Boys by Jewell Parker Rhodes - Kadi
Blended by Sharon M. Draper - Heda
Ghost by Jason Reynolds - Kacie
Amari and the Night Brothers by B.B. Alston - Lynn
Ban This Book by Alan Gratz - Annie
Root Magic by Eden Royce - Matal
Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor - Mary Kathryn
The Only Black Girls in Town by Brandy Colbert - Annie
Hide and Seeker by Daka Hermon - Georgann
When Life Gives You Mangos by Kereen Getten - Arin

YA:
~Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds - Arin
~Me (Moth) by Amber McBride - Matal
Red at the Bone by Jacqueline Woodson - Dee Dee
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas - Annie
Happily Ever Afters by Elise Bryant - Lynn
Pet by Akwaeke Emezi - Lynn
Wings of Ebony by J. Elle - Dalia
Legendborn by Tracy Deonn - Dalia
Blood Like Magic by Liselle Sambury - Dalia
Allegedly by Tiffany D. Jackson - Arin
Slay by Brittney Morris - Ilsen
Piecing Me Together by Renée Watson - Ilsen
The Weight of the Stars by K. Ancrum - Ilsen
I Wanna Be Where You Are by Kristina Forest - Ilsen

Adult:
+Twelve Years a Slave by Solomon Northup - AlienInTheJam
+The Black Church: This Is Our Story, This Is Our Song by Henry Louis Gates Jr. - Tina
+The Hemingses of Monticello: An American Family by Annette Gordon-Reed - Elaine
*March: Book One by John Lewis - Lynn
The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris - Toby
Honey Girl by Morgan Rogers - Toby
The Supremes at Earl's All-You-Can-Eat by Edward Kelsey Moore - Audrey

————
KEY:
* indicates graphic novels
+ indicates non-fiction
~ indicates novels in verse
Names in italics are the recommenders
—————

Well, I put in 4 books on the write in page, but I could easily recommend more if needed. I've read all the books I recommended and they are good. Here are some additional middle grades that I have read and are good in case you need more:
. Obviously there are many others.

@Lynn thanks sharing more, I love you recommendations!
Fake ID looks really good but why is it rated so low in all the reviews?😭 I like the sound of it so I'd like to read it but now I'm not so sure...

@Annie yeah we read it as our last book of the month in 2020 (https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...). I thought it was alright but not as good as it could've been.

@Annie definitely! Did you know there's a sequel coming called On Air with Zoe Washington? I'd be interested in reading it to see what other social commentary the series can have but it's coming out in winter 2023 which is so far away!

Kadi wrote: "@Lynn thanks sharing more, I love you recommendations!
Fake ID looks really good but why is it rated so low in all the reviews?😭 I like the sound of it so I'd like to read it but no..."

Fake ID is a little depressing and the main character, Nick, is a bit difficult to like. He's in witness protection with his family, but the choices that he makes aren't always the best. That might be why the ratings are a little low. It is a well written story, however, with lots of twists and turns.

Lynn wrote: "Fake ID is a little depressing and the main character, Nick, is a bit difficult to like. He's in witness protection with his family, but the choices that he makes aren't always the best...."

I'm not a big fan of characters that don't make logical decisions but it's true that it adds a level of uncertainty and drama to books that depending on how it's executed I sometimes enjoy. I think I might give it a try, I'll see next month.

Hey everyone so the book list is finally here! Check it out above or here: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

We've got a really great variety of genres but also book types so I've added a little key at the bottom, please make sure you check that out as it might help you decide if the book type is one you're ok with reading!

You can also roll the random picker to get your first picks here if you want: https://www.classtools.net/random-nam...

Thank you so much Kadi! I’m probably going to pick my books when I’m done with my January reads but I’m super excited!!

@Ilsen awesome! Looking forward to seeing what you start with!

I'm planning to forego rolling the random picker for now. I started reading Hide and Seeker for the October Readathon last year but never finished it so that'll be my first read for this event. After that I'll probably read Blended because I already have a copy of it and want to read it.

I’m going with the random spinner this time because a lot of these I am really excited for and I have a Barnes and Noble gift card that I would not mind using for some of these. Although technically I started early because I’m still reading Amari and the Night Brothers and I’m also reading Dear Haiti, Love Alaine which is also by black authors!

Kadi wrote: "@Ilsen awesome! Looking forward to seeing what you start with!

I'm planning to forego rolling the random picker for now. I started reading Hide and Seeker for the October Readathon..."


I read Blended last year and hated it but hope that you like it. I have a spoiler review, but Ill just say its sad here.

8 MG a few were already on my to read list and 1 YA that was already on my list. I reserved 5 the 5 that sounded the most interesting;

The Curie Society

The Red pencil - didnt actually read the summary it was on my reserve later shelf

Ban this book - I loved the MC favorite book that gets banned so Im hoping it explains why the classmates mom thought it is inappropriate Cant remember any questionable content in that one other than unsupervised kids but that happens in most kids books

When life gives you Mangos - love the title had to see what it was about, sounds interesting

YA - I wanna be where you are - was already on my to read list MC is a dancer I love reading books when the MC is a dancer.

Reserved early last month it took forever for the reserved books to come in and then didnt even get to pick them up because life. So hopefully this challenge I can read at leaset one book for it.

AurorainBookland wrote: "I read Blended last year and hated it but hope that you like it. I have a spoiler review, but Ill just say its sad here."

That's a shame! You didn't like it because it was sad or for another reason? If it's because it was sad then I'll probably be ok with it. It's one I've been waiting to read for quite a few years too so I've got high hopes for it!

Kadi wrote: "AurorainBookland wrote: "I read Blended last year and hated it but hope that you like it. I have a spoiler review, but Ill just say its sad here."

That's a shame! You didn't like it because it was..."

No, it was that and it doesnt do what it seemed to say it would do in the summary the MC didnt find herself she knew it all along and it has a depressing scene, at least it felt more than just plain sad. Trying to describe it is hard. I just added the gist to my review at the bottom under the words spoiler. Maybe it wont bother you that much. I just wasnt expecting that kind of thing in a kids book, I now know MG does get serious like that and more.
Real life like bullying/hate is hard for me to read I guess.

I didn’t say anything but I spun for the random picker last night! First pick was Amari and the Night Brothers which is funny because I’m still reading it XD I’m hoping to finish it tonight! But if I finish it, technically I participated.

But my first new read is Wings of Ebony!! I’ve heard a lot of good things about it and it’s in my library so I’m excited to read it! I’m also going to try to read the MG graphic novel on this because I’m participating in the Graphicsathon and want to try to fit in as many graphic novels as I can!

I also want to try to fit in some of my owned TBR from Black authors this month with the readathons I’m participating in so we shall see! I’m super excited for the month!

Ive got a busy month coming up nxt month but im going to get Slay and read it and maby another one

Ive read amari,blended and when life gives you mangoes and enjoyed them and u guys will2 im sure

So I didn’t realize until I finished the first book in the Amari series that the sequel comes out tomorrow!! I thought it was so much later! So my first pick was actually Amari but I didn’t think there was a sequel so I picked something else! But now, I am totally reading the sequel as my pick! I’ll still try to get to Wings of Ebony but I’m excited for the sequel to Amari that I cannot wait!!

Lucky the sequel of it doesn’t come out here till September

@Edan Well I was wrong. Yesterday when I finished the book, it said the release date was today but I guess this morning, Goodreads changed it to August 30th.

I’m so sad that Goodreads got my hopes up like that. I have to wait until August???

I'm a little busy at the moment but I'm sure I'll be able to join next week.

I'm reading Twelve Years a Slave since I already had this one picked for another challenge and I'll try to read Ghost Boys which is the one I got spinning the wheel.

One of these days I'll actually remember to add my recommendations before the readathon starts!
Oh well, I'm looking forward to participating anyway. I'm probably going to start with Some Places More Than Others, which isn't on the list but I own a copy so I can start reading it today. I'll have to put a few others on hold at the library.

Tiffany wrote: "One of these days I'll actually remember to add my recommendations before the readathon starts!
Oh well, I'm looking forward to participating anyway. I'm probably going to start with [book:Some Pla..."

Oh no! Did I send out a message about adding your recs to the list last month? I honestly can't remember. You know for future events, if you catch it even after I've posted the list like a day or 2 afterwards and before the next month starts then you can message me your recommendations and I can still add it for you if you like. I'm not super strict about the deadline to add it as long as it's before the new month starts.

Some Places More Than Others is shorter than I'd expect! But it still looks pretty good. Depending on what you think of it I might add it to my TBR!

Satrina wrote: "I'm a little busy at the moment but I'm sure I'll be able to join next week.

I'm reading Twelve Years a Slave since I already had this one picked for another challenge and I'll try..."

Join in whenever you can😊 I completely forgot about Ghost Boys until you mentioned it. I've gotten myself a copy of that one too now and hope to read it sometime during the month...

Hey everyone! You can check out more Black History Month reads here: https://www.goodreads.com/blog/show/2...

@Kadi I'm pretty sure you did send a reminder! January flew by and it just completely slipped my mind.

I really enjoyed Some Places More Than Others. I ended up rating it 4.5 stars. It's definitely more character-driven and introspective, which I know isn't for everyone, but I really liked it!

Got my books interesting the library put in the teen section.

so i'm joining this readathon!

i just finished reading The Crossover and it made me cry lol. this book was unexpected in the best way possible, and i'm glad that i finally read it. i actually read the graphic novel version, and the illustrations were amazing. they weren't over the top, but also not too simple. highly recommend!!

i think i will start Happily Ever Afters next because i definitely need something fun and light right now.

arin wrote: "so i'm joining this readathon!

i just finished reading The Crossover and it made me cry lol. this book was unexpected in the best way possible, and i'm glad that i finally read it...."

I loved . It is light and fun.

@Arin Aaw that’s great! At least I think so, I like it when a book can make me cry because it means it did it’s job well. Also I didn’t know it had a graphic novel too!

@Lynn what did you think of it?

I feel like my first book for this readathon should be The Crossover now. It’s one of the ones I wanted to read anyway and if it’s a novel in verse it’ll probably be a quicker read than some of the other ones.

@Annie is it because you don’t have the time to read or because you can’t concentrate on reading? Either way it’s fine! You can always put whichever books you’re interested in from the list onto your TBR and if/whenever you read them in the future you can come back and discuss them here!

My copy of slay just came!! Exciting times

Kadi wrote: "@Arin Aaw that’s great! At least I think so, I like it when a book can make me cry because it means it did it’s job well. Also I didn’t know it had a graphic novel too!

@Lynn what did you think of..."

Kadi wrote: "@Arin Aaw that’s great! At least I think so, I like it when a book can make me cry because it means it did it’s job well. Also I didn’t know it had a graphic novel too!

@Lynn what did you think of..."

Here is a link to my review. I really liked it.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

AurorainBookland wrote: "Got my books interesting the library put in the teen section."

I actually struggled to categorise that book myself because it's tagged as both MG and YA on Goodreads and the synopsis also labels the characters as "young women". I think it might be somewhere inbetween MG and YA so like MG+ (upper middle grade), let me know if you think that's accurate after you've read it! I want to read that graphic novel too but I'm not sure if I'll be able to find a copy.

Annie wrote: "yes Eden, I also have Slay, it looks like such a cool book, and the cover is gorgeous!"

Yeah I had no idea what Slay is about but as soon as I read Eden's message I could picture the really pretty cover in my head.

Am I the only one who can picture covers after seeing them once or twice? Like I'll have no idea about the book or the author and can even forget the titles and where I've seen them before but I can always reliably remember cover designs in association with the book title.

Kadi wrote: "Annie wrote: "yes Eden, I also have Slay, it looks like such a cool book, and the cover is gorgeous!"

Yeah I had no idea what Slay is about but as soon as I read Eden's message I could picture the..."

I remember cover designs too.

Kadi wrote: "AurorainBookland wrote: "Got my books interesting the library put in the teen section."

I actually struggled to categorise that book myself because it's tagg..."

Will do. I dont know the guidelines for the catagories since the girls Im assuming the main 3 are High school age but they get early college admittance. But from what topics Ive seen covered in MG + so far Id put it in that catagory.

Annie wrote: "I want to read The Curie Society by Heather Einhorn too, but I can't seem to find it in any of the places I look for books..."

I got lucky, my library had a copy. Sad that youre having a hard time finding a copy. Hopefully it get easier to find, but was only published last year so maybe thats why?

Annie wrote: "I'd say both, but maybe more that I can't seem to get drawn in into reading books much, my focus is worse than in quite some time... I hate this feeling like reading has always been one of my favorite things to do, and now I just can't seem to be able to read much..."

You're so right! Bookworm problems are not often talked about but I relate a lot to what you're saying. Only a couple of months ago I experienced the same kind of thing!

It seems like you have reading fatigue. Or a lack of instant gratification. I say that from my own experiences, there's no judgment or assumptions, it just sounds similar to something I faced.
So basically in the past when I started reading manga I got hooked onto the short chapter, quick storyline type structure that manga have which books definitely don't have. Books require a lot more time commitment and can be much slower paced so it makes you wait for that gratification or good feeling you get from reading or seeing characters grow and so there was a point in time where I didn't want to read books and would choose to only read manga night after night because when I read books I felt like it was moving sooo slowly or just wasn't fun for me like manga was. I mean I might be wrong but it sort of sounds like that for you too. Like the books you're reading aren't satisfying you or hitting that spot of what you makes you love reading.

Also maybe you're feeling some pressure because of your ARCs and pressure you're putting on yourself by comparing how quickly you used to read to how you read now. For me I find that the more I fixate on reading faster, the slower I end up reading and it takes a lot of enjoyment of it for me. That's why self-imposed deadlines never work for me! And now I have a veeery lax take on ARCs. I may have a pile of remaining ARCs to get to but my attitude is that I'll get round to it when I feel like it because I used to put way too much pressure on myself about it, then I decided I'm only going to keep reviewing ARCs if I can chill out more. There's no enjoyment in it if I stress myself out!

I think what you need to do is rediscover what you love about reading. Going back to a series you already know you love is 100% the best move you could've made👏🏻 Because you know you don't have to commit loads of time to reading with the uncertainty of loving it or not—you've already read it so you know you're going to love it.
The next thing you could do is go to your TBR, go riiiight to the bottom to the very first thing you added and scroll up. Remind yourself of books you added ages ago that you were excited to read but never got round to and try reading those. (The TBR challenge could be a good way for you to do that or just do it at random) I find that is usually a great way to get back into finding good books after reading a lot you didn't enjoy. And of course events like this are great because you have a big long list of books to choose from and hopefully something tickles your fancy.
My last piece of advice may seem the most controversial but it might be a good idea to stop reading! Not forever lol. Just for a little bit. Tell yourself you're taking a break for a week and clear your currently reading shelf. Then when you come back after a week with a new book and a fresh mind you might feel a bit better!

Whatever you decide to do just know that you can overcome this hard time in your bookworm life! I hope it goes alright for you! Also sorry for the essay but I hope some part of it was helpful!

i finished my second book for the readathon today, which is Happily Ever Afters. i really enjoyed it and it was exactly what i wanted. the main character could be selfish at times, but i think it was a part of her development. it wasn't perfect by any means, but i still really liked it.

i wrote a review here :
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

next, i think i'll start When Life Gives You Mangos. my friend recommended it to me and i'm so excited to read it ^^

and kadi, what you wrote is very helpful, thank you for that!

Finished the Curie Society MG + or light YA.

Heres my review there is - spoiler - before any spoilers.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Reading Ban this book and there are spoilers for the banned books especially Bridge to Terabithia. Just thought I'd let you all know that.

soo i finished my third book for this readathon!
When Life Gives You Mangos is an interesting book. it was engaging and fun, and i really liked the author's writing style. i did guess the plot twist at some point, but it still surprised me.

i found it hard to write a review for this book because it's also hard to explain what's happening in it, but here it is :
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

i highly recommend it if you want something mysterious and fun. i suggest you go into this book without knowing anything. i think it'll be more exciting ^^

arin wrote: "soo i finished my third book for this readathon!
When Life Gives You Mangos is an interesting book. it was engaging and fun, and i really liked the author's writing style. i did gu..."

Interesting. I'm planning on reading When life gives you Mangos now that I have finished Ban this book.

Ban this book was interesting and the ending was satisfying except for some subplots with the side characters not feeling finished but the main plot ends so its all good. I didnt like some of Amy Anne's strange thoughts that in her mind seemed to be fact. She's 9 but still.

My review all spoilers are under - spoiler -

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Arin and Aurora you guys are killing it in this readathon! I've only just started my first book for this one and I'm not enjoying it😔

Also Aurora I totally agree about the inconclusiveness of some of the subplots in Ban this Book. I loved the power given to the characters through growing and their love for reading but my view since reading the book last year has changed quite a bit in the way that so many kids nowadays are reading books that actually are too old for them. It's amazing to see kids read but they shouldn't be reading stuff that is too old for them and doesn't have age appropriate content, not to be restrictive or to look down on them but because it can be scarring to their psyche or damaging to their mental health.

If you're 10 you shouldn't be reading the Hunger Games. I feel like that is a problem that stems from 1. Parents not reading themselves and therefore not knowing the content of these books and whether their kids should read it and 2. A lack of distinction or understanding between MG and YA.

As MG readers we know, but a lot of people wouldn't know the difference between mg and ya and it's why you have young kids reading violent books with inappropriate language or content like The Hunger Games or Twilight or The Maze Runner.

That's not even mentioning the problem of MG books with inappropriate content themselves like the Jason Steed books. That's disturbing stuff!

I feel a lot more strongly about this than I used to or else I would've critiqued the book a lot more in my review. Now I feel like as a reader, especially an mg reader, I want to advocate for better mg content and appropriate reads for our target audience.

Kadi wrote: "Arin and Aurora you guys are killing it in this readathon! I've only just started my first book for this one and I'm not enjoying it😔

Also Aurora I totally agree about the inconclusiveness of some..."

I liked Trey's character but he never got closure with his mom :(

I read your thoughts and yeah that book sounds disturbing.

I have read a lot of MG summaries that feel like a YA summary or found reviews that says it has graphic violence or the MC or her friend has a crush on a teacher.

Theres stuff going on in MG that I dont agree with and I go through a lot of reviews just for find one that mentions content. Which is why most of my reviews focus on content.

But sadly some parents dont have time to pre read what their kids want to read or comb through reviews and some dont care as long long as their kid is reading. I think Rebecca's mom from Ban this book is the well at least shes reading camp. Shes 10 her friend Amy Anne is 9. But Amy Anne's dad read the book summary and was like nope, you're waiting a few years to read this one.
Totally agree YA should be for at least ages 13+

Yes, I have younger cousins and I hate for them to read something they're not ready for or causes nightmares!

I just finished Root Magic. It was hard to read about all our children had to go through at the hands of whites. But I loved that our heroine found her roots.