Read Me in the Middle: Best Books for 7th and 8th Graders
We've heard over and over from librarians and educators about how difficult it can be to navigate middle grade and teen books to find the ones with the most appeal for 7th and 8th grade students. Maybe you have an advanced reader who has torn through every middle grade book in your library. Or maybe you have a struggling reader who needs something high interest, but at an appropriate reading level.
We've put our heads together and assembled an amazing list of books that you can feel confident handing your 7th and 8th grade readers! This list includes recent favorites and reliable classics from a variety of genres so there's something for everyone.
Fall Favorites
The Shape of Lost Things
By Sarah Everett
Everett's previous title, The Probability of Everything, is a favorite of our team and the upcoming The Shape of Lost Things did not disappoint! We picked this due to the complex themes - the plot centers around twelve-year-old Skye who has just reunited with her older brother Finn, who was kidnapped by her father four years prior.
Quagmire Tiarello Couldn't Be Better
By Mylisa Larsen
You might remember Quag from Larsen's Playing Through the Turnaround, but if even if you don't, you're going to need to pick this one up. We chose this title because Larsen perfectly captures the 8th grade Quag's voice, tackling issues like parental mental health with surprising humor. And with four starred reviews, it appears our admiration for this character is shared by many.
Splinter & Ash
By Marieke Nijkamp
Nijkamp, an experienced YA author, dives into middle grade with this kickoff to a new fantasy series featuring a non-binary squire and a disabled princess that champions inclusion while bringing plenty of action and world building. We chose this for it's rich characters and setting, which reminded us of Tamora Pierce's Tortal.
Nox Winters and the Midnight Wolf
By Rochelle Hassan
Hassan brings us the first book in a new, eerie, middle grade fantasy duology taking place amongst miles of untamed forest, filled with monsters. The creepy setting and terrific cover are probably enough to sell many of your middle school readers, who will stay for the strong twin-relationship and high-stakes adventure.
Clutch Time
By Caron Butler and Justin A. Reynolds
Former NBA star Caron Butler has once again paired up with author Justin A. Reynolds for a novel with plenty of sports action, but also a strong plot centered around a player reconnecting with his incarcerated father. Give this to fans of Kwame Alexander's The Crossover.
Take It From the Top
By Claire Swinarski
Middle school can be a contentious time when it comes to life-long friendships, which Swinarski explores in this novel set at camp over the course of six summers. We chose it for its universal themes, very middle school friendly cover, and also because us former theater kids couldn't resist the camp production of Wicked!
Shadowed
By Carl Deuker
This Young Adult novel from Deuker uses the hook of basketball to serve up a fast-paced novel about friendship. We chose it for it's disability representation, engaging read, and ability to appeal to reluctant readers.
"A page-turning sports story that delves into a boy’s emotional growth. (Fiction. 13-18)" - Kirkus Reviews
Side Quest
By Steenz and Samuel Sattin
Dungeons and Dragons has exploded with popularity over the past several years with the show Stranger Things, but it's far from the only table top role playing game on the market. These games are especially popular with middle and high schoolers and are a great way to teach storytelling. This nonfiction graphic novel explores the history of TTRPG and how to get started!
Virus Hunters
By Amy Cherrix
Today's middle schoolers are among those most impacted by the school closures of the Covid-19 Pandemic, and this engaging non-fiction is the perfect way for them to learn more about how scientists, doctors, and other experts work togehter to prevent or stop outbreaks.
Recent Favorites
How It All Ends
By Emma Hunsinger
If you're here, you've probabily discovered how hard it is to find good books featuring protagonists who are ages 13-15. Hunsinger captures the feelings of this age so perfectly in this graphic novel about 13-year-old Tara who suddently finds out that she's being bumped from 7th grade straight up to high school. It's hilarious and heartfelt and absolutely perfect for middle school readers who may be anxious about the next chapter in their lives.
Jupiter Rising
By Gary D. Schmidt
This follow up to Schmidt's Orbiting Jupiter is poignant and beautiful and the perfect YA read to give to your middle school students who are in search of emotionally complex stories with memorable characters. Even if they haven't read the first, this novel can stand alone and will steal their heart.
Break To You
By Neal Shusterman, Debra Young,a nd Michelle Knowlden
Neal Shusterman's plethora of novels are loved by teens and have inevitably made their way down into middle school classrooms and libraries. Break To You deals with incarceration, and there are incidents of violence and language, but the focus is on the connection between Jon and Adriana through a journal hidden in the detention center library.
"Hand this book to readers who enjoy emotionally raw, true-to-life stories like Saints of the Household by Ari Tison or Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds. Gr 8 and up." - School Library Journal
An Impossible Thing to Say
By Arya Shahi
“In this creative, lyrical novel in verse, Omid balances his first true crush and a new enthusiasm for rap music with the larger social struggles of being an Iranian American teen in the weeks before and after 9/11. . .Shahi gives readers embarking on a path toward agency an insightful, eloquent companion in Omid.”
Grades 8-10
— Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books (starred review)
The Supernatural Investigations Series
By B. B. Alston
“Fast-paced adventure and cutthroat pre-adolescent contempt make for a delightfully challenging journey here, particularly considering the ways that Alston frames Amari’s racial and economic experiences as a Black girl as the root of her strong-willed nature and spirit of integrity. It’s a good thing this book is the first of a series, because readers will be sorely disappointed when it ends.”
Grades 3-7
— Booklist (starred review)
A For Effort
By Jarad Greene
“Apart from his older sister, Jay doesn’t know anyone at his new high school. To make matters worse, he gets stuck with theater as his elective instead of art. . . On top of Jay’s academic woes, he’s also grappling with friendships and with finding the confidence to express himself.
A vulnerable and encouraging school drama.”
Ages 11-14
— Kirkus Reviews
The Civil War of Amos Abernathy
By Michael Leali
Crumbs
By Danie Stirling
Flowerheart
By Catherine Bakewell
"Sixteen-year-old Clara Lucas’s innate magic has always been out of control, resulting in overgrown flora and damaged property, but it has never harmed anyone until she accidentally curses her father, whose chest suddenly blooms with poisonous flowers. . . It’s an uplifting and meaningful tale bursting with floral imagery and cottagecore aesthetics."
Ages 13-Up
— Publisher's Weekly (starred review)
Ghost Roast
By Shawnelle Gibbs and Shawnee Gibs
Illustrated by Emily Cannon
"As penance for a poor decision, a 15-year-old New Orleanian must help her father run his ghost-hunting business in the Gibbs sisters’ and illustrator Cannon’s cheeky graphic novel debut. . .In the vein of Octavia Butler’s Kindred and boasting the fun of Ghostbusters, the Gibbs sisters invoke New Orleans mysticism to shed light on the city’s history surrounding enslaved peoples. Cannon’s vibrant, beaming color palette keep spirits—and suspense—high amid the dark themes."
Ages 13-Up
— Publisher's Weekly (starred review)
Slugfest
By Gordon Korman
"Thanks to a new state rule that eighth graders can’t graduate to high school without a PE credit, summer school sees a motley assortment of students assembled in the gym. . .By the time the annual all-city flag football tournament rolls around, they’ve become a quarrelsome, disorganized, laughably inept…team. Even elderly Mrs. Finnerty demonstrates hidden depths, plus an apparently limitless supply of baked goods that will keep readers salivating alongside this lively, large-hearted, sharply seen cast of middle schoolers."
Ages 9-13
— Kirkus (starred review)
The Song of Us
By Kate Fussner
"Olivia has everything she needs in her poetry club, until the day Eden walks in, and it is love at first sight. . . Eden’s 'fall into the underworld’ as she searches for relational connection will resonate with readers of all ages, but is especially prescient for those in middle school. . . This is a sad story, a hard story, an edgy story, but also a hopeful and important one that deserves a spot on the shelves of middle grade readers."
Grades 6-Up
— School Library Journal
The Stars Did Wander Darkling
By Colin Meloy
"With a brush of nostalgia, Meloy takes readers to 1980s Oregon, where a picturesque town is about to unearth something sinister. . . Written for his young self, whose only horror option was Stephen King, Meloy delivers a solid middle-grade horror story with authentic chills and splashes of gore. The friendship between the four main characters drives it all, much like in Stranger Things and Stand by Me, ensuring readers’ hearts are engaged as much as their adrenaline."
Grades 5-8
— Booklist (starred review)
Squire
By Nadia Shammas and Sara Alfageeh
"Reconciling noble goals with the unethical choices required to achieve them is a perennial struggle, in both fiction and reality, and Aiza’s journey will leave readers with much to contemplate long after they close the book."
Grades 5-8
— Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books (starred review)
XOXO
By Axie Oh
"A vivid, comical scene of everyday life in Koreatown introduces narrator Jenny Jooyoung Go, a high school junior and classical cellist aiming for a top conservatory. . . K-pop helps a cellist develop musically and emotionally in this novel filled with humor and theatrics.
Ages 13-17
— Kirkus Reviews
Even More Titles!
Click the image below to download a printable list of new and classic titles perfect for middle school readers in grades 7 and 8. Keep this at the children's or teen reference desk for easy access, or print out copies to hand out to readers.