Middle-Grade Summer Reading Challenge

It’s summer! Well, almost anyway. Here in Colorado, the weather is nice enough to make me think I can plant a tree, so that counts as summer.

I had better things in mind for this time of year (for those of you who know me, you’ll know I had heart surgery in January), fun stuff that involved travel and even some early promotion of my upcoming middle-grade novel Midnight at the Barclay Hotel (August 25^th! Mark your calendar! Pre-order!)

Alas, this is the year we all have to do without something, and I am certainly not going to complain. Compared to the (high) school grads, littles who miss their teachers, and all the other tragedy that COVID-19 is bringing us this year, I have it pretty good. I’m still writing, and have a beautiful Colorado to escape in when I feel too cooped up.

Still. I feel like if I don’t turn this thing on its head and set out to make summer special, I might get a little grumpy. So I decided to give myself a reading challenge, first of all, so I'd have some books for June and July. I went on the Twitterz and asked for middle-grade book recommendation, and boy did I get them! Thank you for those, internet friends. I added a few titles that were already on my radar, and…

Presto! I have a MG summer reading list. I ordered these books from my various indie bookstores in Colorado, so I’m also supporting my favorite hangouts. It’s a win all around.

You can join me, create your own list, or just follow along. I’ll be giving away these books by the end of summer, in August sometime.

Oh, and pre-order Midnight at the Barclay Hotel…! Please..?

Here’s my book list:

The One and Only Bob by Katherine Applegate

Ben Braver and the Vortex of Doom by Marcus Emerson

The Witches of Willow Cove by Josh Roberts

Pax by Sara Pennypacker, Illustr. by Jon Klassen

Ernestine, Catastrophe Queen by Merrill Wyatt

The Parker Inheritance by Varian Johnson

A Home for Goddesses and Dogs by Leslie Connor

Keep it Together, Keiko Carter by Debbi Michiko Florence

American As Paneer Pie by Supriya Kelkar

The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelli Barnhill

Stick Dog by Tom Watson, Illustr. Ethan Long

The Cryptid Catcher by Lija Fisher

Read on, y’all!

Where do you get your book recommendations?

Summers are all about reading for me. I don’t know if it’s the longer days, the heat, or the feeling of being on vacation (even when I’m not) that make me want to read, but I do. So far, I’ve read about a book a week, which is pretty impressive for me.

I’m asked sometimes where I get my book recommendations from, so I thought I’d share…

Goodreads:

Goodreads is like my library online: I can keep track of what I’ve read, post reviews if I want, and see what new releases are out there. If I add an upcoming book to my shelf they’ll even send me an email to let me know it’s available. Pretty nifty. I also like their giveaways; I find out about upcoming titles, and even get a chance to win a book.

Criminal Element:

The perfect place to find upcoming mysteries and author features. They have contests as well.

Shelf Awareness:

I get their newsletter, mostly to keep up with industry news, but they’ll review books too.

Murder by the Book:

This Houston bookstore always has the best recommendations! And they sell signed copies, too…

Friday’s Forgotten Books:

You can find a list of blogger book reviews of older, forgotten titles on Patricia Abbott’s blog. I love to go there if I want to read something I might’ve missed.

Sarah Weinman:

I get my true crime recommendations from her newsletter—a must read for mystery fans.

YA Booknerd and Ms. Yingling Reads: 

I get so many of my middle-grade and YA recommendations from Jennifer's blog, it's awesome... Especially the more girl-friendly titles, for my daughters.

Likewise for Ms. Yingling's blog, for middle-grade and early readers.

I also hear about books from friends, sometimes bestseller lists, or just by walking around the bookstore.

How about you? Where do you find your book recommendations??

Summer Break

School's out here in Colorado, and the weather is nice--I hope it is in your part of the world also. And Summer means I take a little blogging break, to catch up on some reading, writing, and playtime with the kids.

I hope to see you back here in August, with fresh pencils and notebooks!

Friday around the web: Wimpy Kid cover reveal, summer reading, and Mumford video

It's Friday! This is where I tell you what newsy items I caught during the week, mostly from Twitter. The past week seemed to be full of fun stuff.

Like the cover reveal of the eighth Diary of a Wimpy Kid book called Hard Luck. Looking forward to this one; I always like the pure funny of this series. It's out in November, so all of America can buy it for the holidays. It's even green for color-coordination.

In other news, Publishers Weekly reported on summer reading programs all around the country. Pretty cool to hear from librarians, as always. I especially liked this quote from Lurine Carter from the Detroit Public Library's children's/teen department:
"Life is very serious, not only in Detroit but all over. We try to relieve their minds. We want the library and the reading to be a pleasant getaway.” Amen to that.

And for a last bit of humor: check out the Mumford and Sons new video, featuring a bunch of funny famous dudes.

Happy weekend, all!

What's on your summer reading list? Why it should be a mystery:

I'm over at the Sleuths, Spies and Alibis table today, talking about why summers are for mysteries. I have a 'summer slide' chart with stats on kids and reading, and everything.

Come say hi, and tell me what you're reading!