Middle School Literature

Before his grandmother moved from India to the island of Mariposa, Muki Krishnan’s life was good. But now? He has to share his bedroom with Paati, his grandmother, who snores like a bulldozer and wakes him up at dawn to do yoga. Paati’s arrival coincides with even bigger changes in Mariposa. The president divides citizens into Butterflies - families who have lived in Mariposa for three generations - and Moths, who, like Muki’s family, are more recent immigrants.

All Margie Majors ever wanted was the mythical American dream she was taught to want: a hard-working husband, a house in a place that had neighborhood BBQs, a white picket fence, two kids, and a dog. Instead, she got “destiny.” Hers was to be a plus-sized, day-drinking, foul-mouthed, bisexual, retired vampire slayer with crushing debt and no idea what to do with the rest of her life.

Every time violence erupts in the Middle East, Ida knows what's coming next. Some of her classmates treat her like it's all her fault—just for being Palestinian! In eighth grade, Ida is forced to move to a different school. But people still treat her like she'll never fit in. Ida wishes she could disappear. One day, dreading a final class project, Ida hunts for food. She discovers a jar of olives that came from a beloved aunt in her family's village near Jerusalem. Ida eats one and finds herself there—as if her parents had never left Palestine!

Bud Collins can't win at anything. His daughter calls him a loser, his ex is taking him to the cleaners, and he can't beat his bookie. Getting lucky with women is also a lost cause until a strange package from his eccentric uncle arrives in the mail and offers him the opportunity of a lifetime. Bud suddenly sees a way to make a fortune and turn his miserable life around, if he doesn’t destroy it first, because there are people like the greedy loan shark, the deranged hit man, and a wicked cast of others who don’t want him to succeed at all costs.

The source has been destroyed. Food is scarce. Tensions are rising. Then the earthquake strikes. Esther and Caleb hit the road, leading a ragtag caravan. Their destination? A mythical city where they hope to find food and shelter - not to mention a way to make it past age 19. On the way, alliances and romances blossom and fracture as the group faces vicious gangs, violent weather, and more variants. Esther must rally to take charge, accepting the help of a blind wilderness guide, Aras.

Her life is a shadow of a life. Her future is not her own to fashion. Her family is a tangle of secrets. She cannot read. She cannot write. But she is Parastrata Ava, the Captain's eldest daughter, the so girl of a long-range crewe - her obligations are grave and many. And when she makes a mistake, in a fragrant orchard of lemons, the consequences are deadly. There are some who would say, "there but for the Mercies go I". There are some who would say Parastrata Ava is just a silly earthstruck girl who got what was coming to her.

As Michelle Baron ascends the steps of Magnolia Middle School, her life is about to change forever. The dream of becoming a teacher leads her on an unexpected journey that will challenge her professionally and personally. Although 180 students file through her classroom daily, one demands her attention more than the others. Living in her third foster home in a year, Amber's bitterness and rebellion spark a challenge within Michelle to somehow make a difference in this troubled girl's life.

Eleven-year-old Kylie’s friends seem so much more mature than she is. And with middle school just a summer away, she’s worried her friends might leave her behind, especially because she keeps embarrassing them. So Kylie applies her scientific brain to solve the problem and comes up with the Everybody Experiment.

Rylee Swanson is beginning eighth grade with zero friends. A humiliating moment at the end-of-seventh-grade pool party involving a cannonball, a waterlogged updo, and some disappearing clothes has Rylee halfway convinced she’s better off without any friends—at least friends like those. The one question Rylee can’t shake is . . . why? When a group assignment in journalism pairs Rylee with science geek DeNia Alonso, DeNia’s annoyingly know-it-all, nerdy personality is both frustration and fuel to Rylee’s search for answers.

It's Halloween: Candy-snatching time. For the past few years, twelve-year-old Jonas and his friends have competed to see how much candy they can snatch from unsuspecting trick-or-treaters. No one’s supposed to get hurt. So Jonas is taken by surprise when one of his smaller targets fights back against his candy-snatching attempt. He’s even more surprised when he starts to receive anonymous notes from someone who seems to know what happened that night.

After defeating the necromancers and bringing alchemy back to the Alexandria Academy, Shad Hadid is ready for an exciting second term at school. It doesn’t hurt that he’s being called a hero, but the new lessons are harder than he expected and his mentor, Kahem, is nowhere to be found. When Shad intercepts a letter from an informant with a possible clue for thwarting the necromancers’ evil plans once and for all, he's determined to help. Joined by his friends, Shad embarks on a perilous journey across Lebanon to track down this secretive stranger.

Ken is an EngiNerd: one of a super-smart group of friends - all nerds - who have been close since kindergarten. They may be brainiacs, but they're just like everyone else: They fight with one another, watch too much TV, eat Chinese food, and hate walking their dogs. Well, maybe not just like everyone because Ken's best friend Dan has been building robots. He then secretly sent one to each of the EngiNerds, never letting them know he's the mastermind. At first Ken is awed and delighted: What kid hasn't dreamed of having a robot all their own?

For over five decades, Ruskin Bond has written charming tales that have mesmerized people of all ages. This collection brings together his finest stories for children in one volume. Published previously as a Treasury of Stories for Children, this attractive edition includes two new stories: "The Big Race" and "Remember This Day". Filled with a rich cast of characters, The Room of Many Colours, A Treasury of Stories for Children is the definitive book for all Ruskin Bond fans truly a collector's item.

No one dares to leave the District - the towering structure of glass and steel that is their protection against the unruly bands of Outsiders that roam Mundreel and the deadly rain that carries the disease that kills all over the age of 19. This skyscraper stands amid the urban devastation, the city rumored to have once been called "Montreal". Esther and her allies have created a haven on the rooftop, a garden that flourishes, and a home for her new baby, hidden from all but the very few who know her secret.

Seventh grader Estefania "Stef" Soto is itching to shake off the onion-and-cilantro embrace of Tia Perla, her family's taco truck. She wants nothing more than for her dad to get a normal job and for Tia Perla to be put out to pasture. It's no fun being known as the "Taco Queen" at school. But just when new city regulations are proposed, and her family's livelihood is threatened, she will have to become the truck's unlikely champion.

Even though it’s nice being back with her friends at Meadow Wood, Vic still can’t forget about the secret reason her mom wanted her and her brother out of the house - or how much her family is going to change. When her home life is blowing up, it can be hard to focus on campfires and canoeing.

There’s something strange going on at school. The Breakfast Club Investigators haven't managed to solve a mystery in months – and, even worse, Marcus is worried that the group is going to break up! So when Gbenga, the captain of the school basketball team, comes to ask for their help Marcus knows this might just be the Investigator's last chance to prove themselves. The basketball team have had a streak of bad luck, and Marcus and his mates are sure there's more going on than meets the eye.

Twelve-year-old Jeff Michaels, son of a Philadelphia TV sports reporter, is just learning to play soccer on the new sixth-grade team at his middle school. Andrea Carillo has fought her way onto the squad, but the coach doesn’t think girls should play with boys, so she’s riding the bench with Jeff - even though she’s one of the best players.

An urgent phone call from principal/friend Antonio Petrocelli sends retired music teacher Susan Wiles rushing through the doors of Westbrook Middle School, where she discovers a missing bookkeeper and a ransacked office. Eager to keep the break-in quiet, the principal enlists her help.

Ever since she was a baby, the words people use to describe Elyse have instantly appeared on her arms and legs. At first it was just "cute" and "adorable", but as she's gotten older and kids have gotten meaner, words like "loser" and "pathetic" appear, and those words bubble up and itch. And then there are words like "interesting", which she's not really sure how to feel about. Now, at age 12, she's starting middle school, and just when her friends who used to accept and protect her are drifting away, she receives an anonymous note.