Great Middle Grade Reads discussion
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Recommendations for read-aloud books with humor and fast pace
Mod
Glad to have you on Goodreads and even 'gladder' that you've found this group. I'm sure that you'll find plenty of recommendations from our members that'll keep you busy for a while. Good luck in your search.
My kids loved hearing the Percy Jackson books out loud as well as the Fablehaven series by Brandon Mull. Another good series is H.I.V.E. by Mark Walden, the Higher Institute of Villainous Education. The False Prince by Jennifer Nielsen is amazing. We haven't read books 2 and 3 in the series yet. We just finished reading the entire Harry Potter series as a family and now we plan to go back and finish the Nielsen series. Good luck finding your next reads!
Thanks for those recs, I will definitely try H.I.V.E., sounds right up our alley. I have the further disadvantage that my daughters also read independently, thus limiting my choices -- my older one has already been through Fablehaven and the False Prince, but she definitely loved them!Gotta say, I couldn't make it through all of Harry Potter. Starting with the Quidditch World Cup in book four, my interest just flagged and never recovered.
The City of Ember series.Over the holidays we listened to Richard's Peck Here Lies the Librarian and A Year Down Yonder on audiobook -- both historical fiction, but have a lot of great laugh out loud moments.
My boys (9 and 12) are loving The Castleton Series by Mike Dunbar. It starts out with
There are four books out currently, with eight planned for the series. They are being released three months apart, and the next one comes out in February.
Depending on their sensibilities, they might like A TALE DARK AND GRIMM and the sequel, THROUGH A GLASS GRIMMLY. I wasn't as big a fan of the conclusion, A GRIMM CONCLUSION. Give MALCOLM AT MIDNIGHT a try, too- kids love it, and I do, too. Have you read them the Origami Yoda books? Sarah Weeks, PIE is fun, too, as is SMALL MEDIUM AT LARGE. Being a major fan of picture books for older kids, I'll also suggest you take some of those "transition times" to share individual PB titles, like WESLANDIA.Just a side note to thank you for still reading aloud with older kids- it's priceless!
Sandy
I will follow this thread. I have 2 girls 6 & 11. The six year old always wants me to read to her (the oldest is there for the ride). I have been reading the Captain Underpants books for my little one, but I am interested in books that they would both enjoy listening to.
Liza wrote: "I will follow this thread. I have 2 girls 6 & 11. The six year old always wants me to read to her (the oldest is there for the ride). I have been reading the Captain Underpants books for my littl..."For your girls I would definitely recommend the LITTLE HOUSE series -- they are wonderful for reading aloud. Also Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin.
Liza wrote: "I will follow this thread. I have 2 girls 6 & 11. The six year old always wants me to read to her (the oldest is there for the ride). I have been reading the Captain Underpants books for my littl..."If you like Captain Underpants, then you should try The Hero's Guide to Saving Your Kingdom. It's hilarious, it's one of the 2 best books I read to my kids last year. It's a lot more advanced than Captain Underpants, but I think even a 6-year-old should be able to get it -- as long as she doesn't mind having major revisions done to some of her favorite fairy-tale heroes and heroines...
James wrote: "Hello, I'm new to GoodReads in general but this group looked up my alley so here's my attempt to get some advice. I read to my children (age 10 and 12) a LOT, and am always looking for new recom..."
The most popular series for the last couple of years at the middle school where I work has been, "The Rangers Apprentice by John Flanagan."
My daughters both love anything by Gail Carson Levine
etc. and also to echo Tuesday as the Castle, above, anything by Jessica Day George
for example. Both are fantasy writers that take inspiration from fairy tales. My 13-year old just reread Dragon Slippers and one of Levine's books over the holidays, having just finished the Divergent and Matched Dystopian trilogies, so they really have some staying power.
Ooo, another series that I forgot is Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins. Love those books. Not as much humor, but very cool story. I would also second the Artemis Fowl suggestion. The last couple books in that series didn't thrill me as much, but the first three or four are absolutely brilliant.When I was reader the Potter books on my own I got bogged down on book 4 as well. But reading them out loud with the family we would discuss it more and the kids pushed me through, urging me to keep reading because they enjoyed it so much :)
Mod
Another good one for those who like Captain Underpants is the Hank the Cowdog series. More aimed at the younger child than the older, but we (the parents) actually enjoyed them a lot too, so an 11-year-old should be able to.
Rebecca wrote: "James wrote: "Liza wrote: "I will follow this thread. I have 2 girls 6 & 11. The six year old always wants me to read to her (the oldest is there for the ride). I have been reading the Captain Un..."They might really like Geronimo Stilton, too. My younger daughter is a big fan. I've never really read them myself, but they look cute.
E.S. wrote: "My daughters both love anything by Gail Carson Levine etc. and also to echo Tuesday as the Castle, above, anything by J..."That's funny, both of my daughters have read everything by Jessica Day George and love her. They also really like ED Baker, who they say is similar.
My son at that age loved, believe it or not, to hear me read the entire Ramona the Pest series to him. Then we moved to the Chronicles of Narnia, which was over far too soon because he always asked for 'just one more chapter.' And then he discovered the videogames on Steam. :sigh:
The Pippi Longstocking series is a lot of fun. I read the series aloud to my boys, who liked it even though the protagonist is a girl. It makes an easy read-aloud because the chapters are episodic -- each could be a stand-alone story.We've also read the first book, Deadweather and Sunrise of the Chronicles of Egg series. Lots of good middle grade humor -- I received the book as an ARC, but I've been surprised that I haven't heard much about it. One of those hidden gems.
James wrote: "E.S. wrote: "My daughters both love anything by Gail Carson Levine etc. and also to echo Tuesday as the Castle, above, ..."E.D. Baker is another favorite of my oldest. :)Try also Princess Academy by Shannon Hale.
I don't have kids, but I teach English. I've been using The Offenders, by Jerry Craft with Jaylin and Aren Craft. The language is great. It's accessible, modern and fun. Reading the book in my classes has been enjoyable for my students and me too! I highly recommend this book as one to read aloud. The Offenders: Saving the world, while serving detention!
If they liked Lockwood & Co., I also suggest The Last Apprentice series. The first book is Revenge of the Witch. I found it pretty entertaining.
Also Jacob Wonderbar and the Cosmic Space Kapow by Nathan Bransford. I think it's a trilogy -- I've only read the first one, but it's fast-paced and fun.
Oh my goodness you got so many great suggestions. I want to 'amen' like every post!I just want to add Fake Mustache, Candy Shop War, and Cragbridge Hall. They are great family read alouds, IMHO.
I just finished reading Magic Marks the Spot. Lots of humor, pirates,(good or at least nearly good), female protagonist, adventure and fun. It was really fabulous and would be a great read a loud. It is the first of a planned trilogy but the other 2 books aren't out yet so if you have ones that need the entire trilogy you may want to wait.
For fun/fast-paced there's also the Pseudonymous Bosch series, beginning with The Name of This Book Is Secret. 
I just finished the first book in the Sisters Grimm series The Fairy-Tale Detectives and I think it would be a wonderful book to read-out-loud.
Mod
"Oh, yes! And I think the Grandma Dowdel books are even better--A Long Way from Chicago and A Year Down Yonder
"Interrupting Chicken" by Davd Ezra Stein is a great read-aloud. Kids and parents both appreciate the humor and it's got so much energy! (Sorry it's a picture book not a MG book, but still!). For MG, kids still enjoy "The Phantom Tollbooth"
James wrote: "Thanks for those recs, I will definitely try H.I.V.E., sounds right up our alley. I have the further disadvantage that my daughters also read independently, thus limiting my choices -- my older on..."I had a similar experience trying to read the Harry Potter books to my son. I loved reading the books and our entire family adore the movies but my son started to lose interest when I was reading through the series. I am saving the series for him to read himself in about 2 years. Maybe for some kids those books are better read privately? It seems more magical to me to read them under the covers late at night... lumos maxima! lol...
Just discovered a great read-aloud picture book: "I Dare You Not To Yawn" by Helene Boudreau. This book plays on the social trigger of yawns. Fun!
Mod
Thanks for all the recs, everyone! I got HIVE and my daughter scooped it off the table and read it before I had a chance to start reading out loud. Then she read the next 2 books in the series -- clearly a success!Then I got The Last Apprentice and read that to them. Very good choice, similar in topic to Lockwood & Co, although not so humorous.
I will try Magic Marks the Spot next.
Thanks for all the suggestions!
This is a great list. A Year Down Yonder looks wonderful as do many others listed. Thanks for some good suggestions. Question, do we need to read the first book to understand it? By the description, it looks fairly independent, just want to make sure.
Full disclosure: I'm the mom of the author of Magic Marks the Spot. But I've heard from many people (and know firsthand) that it's a terrific family read aloud. Katherine Kellgren's narration on the audiobook is also wonderful and very funny.
Okay, A Long Way From Chicago is hysterical. I can't wait to read some more from him. Thanks for the ideas. These are the kinds of books I love.A Long Way from Chicago
Mod
Mark wrote: "Okay, A Long Way From Chicago is hysterical. I can't wait to read some more from him. Thanks for the ideas. These are the kinds of books I love.A Long Way from Chicago"
Here Lies the Librarian is my favorite Peck novel : )
Jane wrote: "Full disclosure: I'm the mom of the author of Magic Marks the Spot. But I've heard from many people (and know firsthand) that it's a terrific family read aloud. Katherine Kellgren's narration on th..."The bad news is that I never got a chance to read this aloud to my daughters. The good news is that I got the book, but my older daughter grabbed it and read it before I could get a chance to read it aloud. She liked it so much, she recommended it to my younger daughter. So the kids loved it!
Congrats to your daughter on a great book!
Thanks, J. L. Great news! I'll pass the word along to Caroline. She'll be thrilled.
I have to second John Erickson's Hank the Cowdog series. I read them out loud to both our sons, and while driving the oldest to college (1,400 miles one way) we listened to audiotapes performed by the author--he does all the crazy voices and sings the songs, too. My all-time favorite: "Eating bugs is lots of fun, it won't require a hot dog bun, nourishment for everyone, eating bugs is lots of fun." ;)
The Artemis Fowl series is great... so creative. I don't know why but my favorite character is Mulch... He won me over as the series progressed..
I'm reading "Touching Spirit bear" to a 5th grade class that loved "Hatchet" Violent but wonderfully good about how to handle anger and being bullied or being a bully
A wonderful read-aloud that moves and has humor= The Watsons Go To Birmingham. Winner of Newbery Honor. This story has some real laugh out-loud moments, my kids each loved it and certainly kept their interest. It also has some important teaching moments.
Shana wrote: "The Artemis Fowl series is great... so creative. I don't know why but my favorite character is Mulch... He won me over as the series progressed.."Mulch was a great character. Those books are full of great characters. I'm always surprised that no one ever made a movie from them. They're so visual it seems like they would make fantastic movies.
J.L. Hello there! My sister is a teacher and made this great book required reading for her class--they loved it!! The Offenders: Saving the World While Serving Detention! Lots of action, multiculturalism, boy and girl lead characters and really funny. Plus, it gives a powerful lesson on bullying.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...
Sherrie wrote: "Shana wrote: "The Artemis Fowl series is great... so creative. I don't know why but my favorite character is Mulch... He won me over as the series progressed.."Mulch was a great character. Tho..."
My daughter read most of the Artemis Fowl books herself already. Last summer, the school made the mistake of saying the kids had to read 4 books, but they put "Artemis Fowl Series" on the list -- so my daughter read ONLY Artemis Fowl books for her summer reading. I wasn't sure whether to be proud of her for being clever, or angry at her for not getting a bit more variety in...
The Offenders: Saving the world while serving detention by Jerry Craft, Jaylen Craft, and Aren Craft is packed with so much adventure and attitude that it makes this book worth reading. It doesn't just entertain with a host of interesting characters that takes you on an emotional roller coaster, (more humorous than anything) there is also an important lesson incorporated in the theme of the story. Each chapter introduces a whole new level of interest that heightens the curiosity of the reader as it deeply draws their attention into each page. This book should be a recommendation for all middle grade students, and some adults thus far. I absolutely enjoyed it!! :D-Cassandra Adams author of 'Til Death Do Us Part
J.L. wrote: "My daughter read most of the Artemis Fowl books herself already. Last summer, the school made the mistake of saying the kids had to read 4 books, but they put "Artemis Fowl Series" on the list -- so my daughter read ONLY Artemis Fowl books for her summer reading. I wasn't sure whether to be proud of her for being clever, or angry at her for not getting a bit more variety in... Gotta love how literal kids can be sometimes! At least the series kept her interested. Those first four books are really good.
Great Middle Grade Reads
Books mentioned in this topic
Priscilla the Great (other topics)Here Lies the Librarian (other topics)
A Long Way from Chicago (other topics)
A Long Way from Chicago (other topics)
A Long Way from Chicago (other topics)
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I'm new to GoodReads in general but this group looked up my alley so here's my attempt to get some advice. I read to my children (age 10 and 12) a LOT, and am always looking for new recommendations. Every time we finish a series there's a period of semi-trauma where we try to get over losing our friends and having to find new material.
We just finished reading Lockwood & Co. by Jonathan Stroud, which they ADORED both for its humor and suspense. Past favorites have always seemed to combine humor and a fast pace, like Terry Pratchett's Wee Free Men, Chris Healy's Hero's Guide to Saving the Kingdom. Rick Riordan, Patricia Wrede, Lloyd Alexander and Obert Skye have been favorites in the past, too.
Anyone got some recommendations of similar stuff that my children and I might like? It's gotta have some humor and some pace. For what it's worth, they were bored to tears by A Wizard of Earthsea.
Thanks, and greetings to everyone!