Best New Middle School Reading Books
Don’t miss out on these best new middle school reading books of the year!
Perfect for your children ages 9 to 12, I’m also loving reading a number of these books out loud to my late elementary children as well.
Be sure to check out all of the best new books for kids of the past years!
You can find these amazing new middle school reading books of 2016 at your local library or purchase through the affiliate links provided.

New Reads for Middle Schoolers
The Girl Who Drank the Moon and Ghost were a huge hit in our house!
Every night I read a middle school book out loud to the boys, and this one definitely kept their interest!
The next new middle school reading books on our list? The Wild Robot and Full of Beans!
BEST NEW MIDDLE SCHOOL READING BOOKS 2016
Winner of the 2017 Newbery Award * New York Public Library Best Book of 2016 * Chicago Public Library Best Book of 2016 * Amazon Top 20 Best Book of 2016 and MORE!
A young girl raised by a witch, a swamp monster, and a Perfectly Tiny Dragon must unlock the dangerous magic buried deep inside her in this epic coming-of-age fairy tale from the highly acclaimed author of The Witch’s Boy.
Thor’s hammer is missing again. The thunder god has a disturbing habit of misplacing his weapon — the mightiest force in the Nine Worlds. But this time the hammer isn’t just lost, it has fallen into enemy hands.
Unfortunately, the only person who can broker a deal for the hammer’s return is the gods’ worst enemy, Loki — and the price he wants is very high.
How do you punish an immortal? By making him human.
After angering his father Zeus, the god Apollo is cast down from Olympus. Weak and disoriented, he lands in New York City as a regular teenage boy.
Now, without his godly powers, the four-thousand-year-old deity must learn to survive in the modern world until he can somehow find a way to regain Zeus’s favor.Â
National Book Award Longlist * New York Times Bestseller * An Amazon Best Book of the Year
From best-selling and award-winning author Sara Pennypacker comes a beautifully wrought, utterly compelling novel about the essential truths that define us and the devastating costs of war. Pax is destined to become a beloved classic.
From bestselling and award-winning author and illustrator Peter Brown comes a heartwarming and action-packed novel about what happens when nature and technology collide.
A 2017 Newbery Honor Book * An NPR Best Book of the Year * A Booklist Best Book of the Year * A Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year * and MORE!
Brilliantly crafted, Wolf Hollow is a haunting tale of America at a crossroads and a time when one girl’s resilience, strength, and compassion help to illuminate the darkest corners of our history.
A 2017 Newbery Honor Book * A New York Times Editor’s Choice * A New York Times Notable Children’s Book * and MORE!
The best-selling author of A Tale Dark and Grimm takes on medieval times in an exciting and hilarious new adventure about history, religion, and farting dragons.Â
Max Crumbly is about to face the scariest place he’s ever been: South Ridge Middle School.
There’s a lot that’s great about his new school, but there’s also one big problem — Doug, the school bully whose hobby is stuffing Max in his locker.
If only Max could be like the hero in his favorite comics. But that doesn’t mean Max won’t do his best to be the hero his school needs!
A National Book Award Finalist for Young People’s Literature * Nominated as one of America’s best-loved novels by PBS’s The Great American Read
Ghost wants to be the fastest sprinter on his elite middle school track team, but his past is slowing him down in this first electrifying novel of a brand-new series from Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe Award–winning author Jason Reynolds.
Filled with history, mystery, and magic for both adults and middle school readers, this Disney-Hyperion thriller is now being taught in over a thousand classrooms nationwide.
The brave and unusual Serafina lives in the magnificent Biltmore Estate in the opulence of the Gilded Age and the rugged beauty of the Blue Ridge Mountains.
But she’s caught between two worlds: she’s too wild for Biltmore’s beautifully dressed ladies and formal customs, and too human to fully join her forest kin.Â
By the author of The Mysterious Benedict Society, this heart-pounding mystery adventure is laced with magic and humor.
In this ingeniously crafted novel, acclaimed author Trenton Lee Stewart invites readers to join the adventure, decipher the clues, and ask themselves the question: Is knowing a secret a gift or a curse?
This breathtaking, full-color illustrated fantasy is inspired by Chinese folklore, and is a companion to the Newbery Honor winner Where the Mountain Meets the Moon.
A 2016 National Book Award Finalist
Two-time Newbery Medalist Kate DiCamillo returns to her roots with a moving, masterful story of an unforgettable summer friendship.
Newbery Medalist Richard Peck tells a story of small-town life, gay marriage, and everyday heroes in this novel for fans of Gary Schmidt and Jack Gantos.
A boy’s chance encounter with a scruffy dog leads to an unforgettable friendship in this deeply moving story about life, loss, and the meaning of family.
For readers who enjoyed Wonder and Counting by 7’s, award-winning author Donna Gephart crafts a compelling dual narrative about two remarkable young people:
Lily, a transgender girl, and Dunkin, a boy dealing with bipolar disorder.
Their powerful story will shred your heart, then stitch it back together with kindness, humor, bravery, and love.
Winner of the Scott O’Dell Award * A New York Public Library Best Book for Kids of 2016
It’s 1934, the middle of the Great Depression.
With no jobs on the island, and no money anywhere, who can really blame the grown-ups for telling a few tales? Besides, Beans isn’t anyone’s fool.
In fact, he has plans. Big plans. And the consequences might surprise even Beans himself.
A Kirkus Reviews Best Book of 2016 * A Shelf Awareness Best Book of 2016 * A Chicago Public Library Best Book of 2016 * An Amazon Best Children’s Book of 2016
The best-selling author of the Shatter Me series takes listeners beyond the limits of their imagination in this captivating new middle grade adventure where color is currency, adventure is inevitable, and friendship is found in the most unexpected places.
In a hilarious tale reminiscent of T. H. White, a lost boy finds himself an unlikely apprentice to the very old, vaguely evil, mostly just grumpy Wizard Smallbone.
Wildly funny and cozily heartfelt, Delia Sherman’s latest is an eccentric fantasy adventure featuring dueling wizards, enchanted animals, and one stray boy.
This book marks beloved author Karen Romano Young’s masterful return to children’s literature: a heartbreakingly honest account of what it means to be between girl and woman, elementary and middle school, inside and out — and just what you name that in-between self.

