Welcome to another edition of Must Read Monday!

This feature is where I spotlight older, recent, or upcoming releases I am looking forward to. The lists will include all genres I like to read, everything from picture books to comics, children’s lit to adult fiction!
 

 
This week: middle grade titles! A mix of debuts, series entries, and new titles from read and loved authors. All of the following titles are ones that I have either read tremendous reviews for, happily discovered through social media or through browsing! This week’s list of can’t miss titles includes: Sunny, the third entry into to critically acclaimed Track series by Jason Reynolds; The Orphan Band of Springdale, a new historical fiction title from Anne Nesbet; Ashley Herring Blake’s contemporary middle grade novel Ivy Aberdeen’s Letter to the World; the acclaimed historical fiction title Ahimsa by Supriya Kelkar; Natasha Farrant’s boarding school story The Children of Castle Rock; and Tiffany Park’s mystery-centered debut, Midnight in the Piazza. Let’s take a closer look!

Ahimsa by Supriya Kelkar
Publication: October 1, 2017 by Lee & Low/Tu Books
Book Description:

In 1942, when Mahatma Gandhi asks Indians to give one family member to the freedom movement, ten-year-old Anjali is devastated to think of her father risking his life for the freedom struggle.

But it turns out he isn’t the one joining. Anjali’s mother is. And with this change comes many more adjustments designed to improve their country and use “ahimsa”—non-violent resistance—to stand up to the British government. First the family must trade in their fine foreign-made clothes for homespun cotton, so Anjali has to give up her prettiest belongings. Then her mother decides to reach out to the Dalit community, the “untouchables” of society. Anjali is forced to get over her past prejudices as her family becomes increasingly involved in the movement. When Anjali’s mother is jailed, Anjali must step out of her comfort zone to take over her mother’s work, ensuring that her little part of the independence movement is completed.

 

The Children of Castle Rock by Natasha Farrant
Publication: March 1, 2018 by Faber Faber
Book Description:

Like many girls, Alice Mistlethwaite idolises her father, Byron. He is a hero: brave, kind and impossibly funny. It’s just a shame that he’s always in and out of prison… After a particularly naughty outing, Alice’s Aunt Patience decides to take action. Alice is to be sent to St Cuthbert’s School for Winners – where competition runs deep, and being ‘outdoorsy’ is not optional.

Much to her own surprise, Alice fits in far better than she ever has before, swiftly making friends and enjoying running wild in the Scottish countryside. But then Byron disappears – or rather his letters stop – and Alice becomes convinced something has happened to him. Aunt Patience is much less sure (and worse, seems to think he has something to do with a robbery that’s making the news), but Alice is undeterred. Armed with her new friends, and a handy opportunity to escape from school, she sets off on an epic quest to find her father, prove everyone wrong about him – and perhaps discover some home truths about herself and her family along the way.

 

Ivy Aberdeen’s Letter to the World by Ashley Herring Blake
Publication: March 6, 2018 by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Book Description:

When a tornado rips through town, twelve-year-old Ivy Aberdeen’s house is destroyed and her family of five is displaced. Ivy feels invisible and ignored in the aftermath of the storm–and what’s worse, her notebook filled with secret drawings of girls holding hands has gone missing.

Mysteriously, Ivy’s drawings begin to reappear in her locker with notes from someone telling her to open up about her identity. Ivy thinks–and hopes–that this someone might be her classmate, another girl for whom Ivy has begun to develop a crush. Will Ivy find the strength and courage to follow her true feelings?

 

Midnight in the Piazza by Tiffany Parks
Publication: March 6, 2018 by HarperCollins
Book Description:

Beatrice Archer may love history, and Rome may be chock-full of it, but that doesn’t mean she wants to move there!Too bad Beatrice’s father got a job as the head of the history department at the American Academy in Rome—now, Beatrice has no choice but to get used to the idea.

When she arrives in Rome she explores her new city as much as she can, but it isn’t until she hears talk of a strange neighborhood legend that Beatrice perks up. A centuries-old unsolved mystery about the beautiful turtle fountain outside her window? Sounds like fun! Before Beatrice has a chance to explore, though, she sees a dark figure emerge from the shadows of the square in the middle of the night—and steal the famous turtle sculptures that give the fountain its name.

When no one believes her story, Beatrice knows that it’s up to her to solve the crime and restore the turtles to their rightful place. With the help of her new friend Marco, she navigates a world of unscrupulous ambassadors, tricky tutors, and international art thieves to unravel one of Roman history’s greatest dramas—before another priceless work of art is stolen.

 

The Orphan Band of Springdale by Anne Nesbet
Publication: April 10, 2018 by Candlewick Press
Book Description:

With the United States on the verge of World War II, eleven-year-old Gusta is sent from New York City to Maine, where she discovers small-town prejudices — and a huge family secret.

It’s 1941, and tensions are rising in the United States as the Second World War rages in Europe. Eleven-year-old Gusta’s life, like the world around her, is about to change. Her father, a foreign-born labor organizer, has had to flee the country, and Gusta has been sent to live in an orphanage run by her grandmother. Nearsighted, snaggletoothed Gusta arrives in Springdale, Maine, lugging her one precious possession: a beloved old French horn, her sole memento of her father. But in a family that’s long on troubles and short on money, how can a girl hang on to something so valuable and yet so useless when Gusta’s mill-worker uncle needs surgery to fix his mangled hand, with no union to help him pay? Inspired by her mother’s fanciful stories, Gusta secretly hopes to find the coin-like “Wish” that her sea-captain grandfather supposedly left hidden somewhere. Meanwhile, even as Gusta gets to know the rambunctious orphans at the home, she feels like an outsider at her new school — and finds herself facing patriotism turned to prejudice, alien registration drives, and a family secret likely to turn the small town upside down.

 

Sunny (Track #3) by Jason Reynolds
Publication: April 10th 2018 by Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books
Book Description:

Sunny is just that—sunny. Always ready with a goofy smile and something nice to say, Sunny is the chillest dude on the Defenders team. But Sunny’s life hasn’t always been sun beamy-bright. You see, Sunny is a murderer. Or at least he thinks of himself that way. His mother died giving birth to him, and based on how Sunny’s dad treats him—ignoring him, making Sunny call him Darryl, never “Dad”—it’s no wonder Sunny thinks he’s to blame. It seems the only thing Sunny can do right in his dad’s eyes is win first place ribbons running the mile, just like his mom did. But Sunny doesn’t like running, never has. So he stops. Right in the middle of a race.

With his relationship with his dad now worse than ever, the last thing Sunny wants to do is leave the other newbies—his only friends—behind. But you can’t be on a track team and not run. So Coach asks Sunny what he wants to do. Sunny’s answer? Dance. Yes, dance. But you also can’t be on a track team and dance. Then, in a stroke of genius only Jason Reynolds can conceive, Sunny discovers a track event that encompasses the hard hits of hip-hop, the precision of ballet, and the showmanship of dance as a whole: the discus throw. As Sunny practices the discus, learning when to let go at just the right time, he’ll let go of everything that’s been eating him up inside, perhaps just in time.