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Monday, June 11, 2012

Fall Preview: BEA's 5 Buzz-worthy Middle Grade Picks

Happy Middle Grade Monday! This week I have something a little different to share. At Book Expo America, I had the chance to attend the Middle Grade Editor Buzz Panel. Five editors shared their most buzz-worthy books coming out in the fall, and they look fantastic.



1.) Starry River of the Sky by Grace Lin: Grace's editor and friend Alvina Ling presented this book with so much pride, it was difficult not to get caught up! It's a companion novel to her Newbery Honor Where the Mountain Meets the Moon, and experiments with some of the classic styles of the Chinese literary tradition, like using a narrator - in this case, Madame Chang. (Oct 2012)

2.) Malcolm at Midnight by WH Beck: Kate O'Sullivan from Houghton Mifflin called this story a "masterpiece" with an "intimate, personal arc about becoming one's own best self." She acquired it at auction when she fell in love with this tale of a secret society of classroom pets that helps keep the school children safe. (Sept 2012)

3.) Professor Gargoyle by Charles Gilman: This is the first book in the Tales from Lovecraft Middle School series, all of which have lentical covers that display a simple animation when you move them. Jason Rekulak, of Quirk Books said that though the covers are pricey, they grab readers right away, and even noted that when they were setting up their booth, groups of adult construction workers stopped to check the books out. (Sept 2012)

4.) Mira's Diary: Lost in Paris by Marissa Moss: Being billed as Midnight in Paris for middle graders, this story mixes contemporary with historical when Mira goes to Paris to find her mother, but ends up whirling through the past when she visits Notre Dame. The book has sketches by Mira doodled throughout, which is a nice visual touch to the artistic themes. (Sept 2012)

5.) The Peculiar by Stefan Bachmann: "Gothic, steampunk, fairy, and fantasy" - "dark, scary, weird, magical, whimsical." Virginia Duncan of Greenwillow press gushed over this debut and its 18-year-old author, saying she wanted to "live in this book." (Sept 2012)

Can't wait to start reading! Which fall books are you most excited about? Also, if you'd like to watch any of the panels at BEA, check out their livestream options.

10 comments:

  1. What a great experience to be at BEA! Each of these sounds fascinating.

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  2. These sound wonderful. Thanks for sharing a little bit of BEA with us. And I had no idea that there was a live stream I could access. I'm excited!

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  3. So lucky you got to go to BEA. I'm looking forward to The Peculiars, Shannon Messenger's book Keeper of the Lost Cities and Lauren Oliver's The Spindlers. Too bad Shannon's book wasn't spotlighted.

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  4. Oh, man! So many good books to look forward to. I have to say, the secret society of school pets really tugged at my heartstrings, just from that one-liner!

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  5. I'll have to take a look at Professor Gargoyle-- I wonder who the librarian at that school will be? Even if the covers are pricey, I'm showing the book for just $11.94 at Follett, which isn't bad. Might not hold up terribly well.

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  6. Thanks for sharing these - they all look great!

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  7. So many great books...so little time. But I must make the sacrifice. Thanks, Gina. :)

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  8. Wow, that's hard, but certainly THE PECULIAR is up my alley fo fantasy : ). Thanks for stopping by my new blog!

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  9. Thanks for sharing this with us!

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  10. Thank you so much for sharing.
    I am over the moon exited for The Peculiar.

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