Middle School Literature

Best friends Tamanna and Yasmine cannot believe their good fortune when a school is set up in their Afghan village; however, their dreams for the future are shattered when the Taliban burn down the school and threaten the teacher and students with death. As Tamanna faces an arranged marriage to an older man, and the Taliban target Yasmine’s Western-educated family, the girls realize they must flee.

After a botched escape plan from her boarding school, Abigail is stunned to discover the school is actually a cover for an elite spy ring called The Center, along with being training grounds for future spies. Even more shocking? Abigail's mother is a top agent for The Center and she has gone MIA, with valuable information that many people would like to have - at any cost. Along with a former nemesis and charming boy from her grade, Abigail goes through a crash course in Spy Training 101, often with hilarious - and sometimes painful - results.

A new middle school has just opened in Horsemouth, New Hampshire: Kaboom Academy. It’s a place where cannons go off in the middle of school assemblies, pills contain actual information, and multiplication is made, er, real. (Read: You ever wonder what it would be like if there were two of you? How about four? How about eight? Well, you’re about to find out!). The school’s new students - and the Journalism 1A class in particular - can’t believe all the shenanigans that go on.

I'm Becky. The new girl. Again. Dad's work keeps us moving a lot, so I'm sort of used to it. Still, being the new girl in middle school for the umpteenth time isn't exactly easy. And to make things worse, the mean girls AKA Thing One and Thing Two, already have it out for me on day one. Good thing I have a plan to beat them. I've been tweaking it for years in every school I've been to. Time to test it, and myself, out for real.

Eleven-year-old David Greenberg dreams of becoming a YouTube sensation and spends all of his time making hilarious Top 6½ Lists and Talk Time videos. But when David's new best friend, Sophie, starts sending out the links to everyone she knows and her friends tell their friends, thousands of people start viewing his videos.

When Mia asks the Cupcake Club girls to be junior bridesmaids in her mother's wedding, everyone is superexcited about the idea...especially when they find the perfect dress for the occasion! It's Emma's dream dress, except it's a little more expensive than she expected. And with her mom recently out of work, there's not a lot of room at the Taylor house for extras.

Amina has never been comfortable in the spotlight. She is happy just hanging out with her best friend, Soojin. Except now that she's in middle school everything feels different. Soojin is suddenly hanging out with Emily, one of the "cool" girls in the class, and even talking about changing her name to something more "American." Does Amina need to start changing too? Or hiding who she is to fit in? While Amina grapples with these questions, she is devastated when her local mosque is vandalized.

Nadia's school is choosing a new mascot, and her idea is totally going to win! She’s also going to kick butt writing for the school newspaper this term.... Maybe. A couple of weeks in, the newspaper is a big mess. The mascot contest is mayhem, too. (Who knew choosing a costumed character could cause such controversy?) Then Nadia and Titi discover that the hippo amulet holds a second secret, one that’s super powerful - and super scary. Too bad they have no idea how to stop it. But Nadia is on the case!

Twelve-year-old Tahlia Wilkins is ready to start off her perfect summer when her dreamy crush invited her to his birthday pool party. But the Red Goddess of Panties, a.k.a. her first period, arrives 24 hours before the pool party and completely messes up all her plans. To make matters worse, her mom is out of town, and there’s no way she’s going to ask her awkward dad for help! Thalia was always afraid growing up would be tough, but this is just not fair.

Twelve-year-old Mikey Pruitt - president, founder, and CEO of Anything, Inc. - has always been an entrepreneur at heart. Inspired by his grandfather Pap Pruitt, who successfully ran all sorts of businesses from a car wash to a roadside peanut stand, Mikey is still looking for his million-dollar idea. It isn't until kid drag queen Coco Caliente, Mistress of Madness and Mayhem (aka eighth grader Julian Vasquez) walks into his office (aka his family's storage/laundry room) looking for an agent that Mikey thinks he's finally found his million-dollar idea!

It's 1948, and World War II has just ended. Berlin is in pieces, torn apart by bullets, bombs, and bloodshed. But a particular scientist has survived - one with vital knowledge of an ancient weapon. When Endgame spies learn of the news, Boone, a Cahokian, and Ariadne, a Minoan, are each sent undercover to find the scientist amid the snowy rubble. But when their paths intertwine, the last thing they expect is to let their guards down and work together.

For seventh-grader Mila, it starts with some boys giving her an unwanted hug on the school blacktop. A few days later, at recess, one of the boys (and fellow trumpet player), Callum, tells Mila it's his birthday, and asks her for a "birthday hug." He's just being friendly, isn't he? And how can she say no? But Callum's hug lasts a few seconds too long, and feels...weird. According to her friend, Zara, Mila is being immature and overreacting. Doesn't she know what flirting looks like? But the boys don't leave Mila alone.

Junior is loving his life with the Khatchadorian family. But his idyllic life soon turns to terror when a mysterious individual begins to make trouble in the neighborhood. It starts with a mysterious howling in the night. And when Junior's pooch pals realize their favorite toys are missing, things get serious. Junior thinks he knows what is happening. He's heard of a mysterious creature called the Howly Wiener that visits town once a year and fills the street with monsters.

Abby and her classmates have all been invited to Briar Academy to participate in the Challenge, a prep-school competition where teams compete for prizes and the glory of being the best of the best. While there, they figure out their nemesis, the Ghost, is using Briar as headquarters to plan a devastating attack on his enemies (a.k.a. pretty much everyone) using a brand-new invention Toby developed. And this time, the Center and Mrs. Smith will be of no help as Abby suspects there is someone working for the Ghost on the inside - and they can trust no one.

Everyone at The Smith School is obsessed with Monster Mayhem, the latest reality video game craze. But when Drexel Caine, the mastermind behind the game, is suddenly kidnapped, it becomes clear that the kidnappers are playing for more than just special badges. After Drexel's son - who is Abby's friend, Toby - receives a cryptic message, Abby and her friends discover the kidnapping is part of a bigger scheme that could take down The Center for good.

Cordelia Liu’s first year at Shadow School was a success. She studied hard and made friends. She also sent hundreds of ghosts into the afterlife, because Shadow School isn’t a normal school, and Cordelia Liu isn’t a normal girl. But her second year is already different. Ghosts are refusing to move on, the teachers are acting weird, and Cordelia’s best friends, Benji and Agnes, aren’t as interested in rescuing the ghosts as they used to be.

Eric is the new kid in seventh grade. Griffin wants to be his friend. When you're new in town, it's hard to know who to hang out with - and who to avoid. Griffin seems cool, confident, and popular. But something isn't right about Griffin. He always seems to be in the middle of bad things. And if Griffin doesn't like you, you'd better watch your back. There might be a target on it. As Eric gets drawn deeper into Griffin's dark world, he begins to see the truth about Griffin: He's a liar, a bully, a thief.

When the baddest of bad guys threatens the world with a giant black hole, Ben Braver is the only one who can stop it. Ready or not, he's about to learn what it really means to be a hero.

New York Times best-selling author Nikki Grimes has received numerous accolades for her writing, including the Coretta Scott King Award. In Planet Middle School, 12-year-old Joylin Johnson is satisfied with her life. Everything seems pretty simple: a nice, relaxed game of basketball with the boys is all she needs to keep her happy. But it all changes when her best girlfriend starts flirting with her best guy friend.

Lenny has no idea of the adventure he’s in for when his parents decide to take an extended research trip and sign him up for a boarding school in an old German castle. But even before leaving for the school, it seems like something is trying to prevent Lenny from going… Once he arrives at Shadowsnout Castle Academy, a couple more things become clear: (1) this is not your average school, and (2) Lenny is probably in some serious danger. Lenny needs an escape plan—and fast.