Must-Read Books for Middle-Schoolers! Archives ~ Page 3 of 3 ~ Sagarika Blogs

Category: Must-Read Books for Middle-Schoolers!

The New Girl, The Twins’ New Neighbor

The New Girl, Book One, By Katrina Kahler

Age 9+

The New Girl series is a huge attention grabber and had had me hooked from the very beginning. Separate stories from each of the main characters give the readers everyone’s point of views.

The main characters are girls who were never thought to be friends with each other, but Alexa’s life changed her mind when she and her brother, Tyler lost their home because of their mother.

Alexa used to live in trailer park, and she was an outcast at her old school. Matty hair, and shabby clothes were what other people saw her for. But her life took an unexpected turn when she found out that because of the poor conditions her mother provided for her and her brother, the Child Protective Services Department put Alexa and Tyler under the care of their aunt and uncle until their mother was able to find a good job and place to live. Alexa was aware of her mother’s feelings of unwillingness toward living with the kids, so she knew her mom would benefit from this decision. On top of that, she had only met her aunt and uncle once, and it wasn’t a very pleasant memory. Devastated, Alexa’s thoughts about starting a new school only made things worse. But once she got settled in with her brother in her aunt and uncle’s luxurious home, both Alexa and Tyler never wanted to return to the small trailer they had once lived in with their mother…

Casey and Ali were twins separated at birth, and after 12 years met each other for the first time because of the loss of a family member. Now they live together. Both of them were excited at first, but living together was a new experience for both girls, and it took a lot of adjusting. When their new neighbor arrived however, bigger problems rose. The three quickly became friends, but a rival tore them apart, and fights between the girls caused them to split up. Friends, not friends, whichever way, they needed to stick together to teach their enemy a lesson…

The New Girl Series

The New Girl, Book One, By Katrina Kahler

Age: 9+
The Twins’ New Neighbor

The New Girl series is a huge attention grabber and had had me hooked from the very beginning. Separate stories from each of the main characters give the readers everyone’s point of views.

The main characters are girls who were never thought to be friends with each other, but Alexa’s life changed her mind when she and her brother, Tyler lost their home because of their mother.

Best Friends -Graphic Novel

Best Friends, by Shannon Hale

(For people who’ve already read Real Friends)

Best Friends is the second book of the series, and Shannon is now a good friend of Jen’s. But her troubles aren’t over just yet…

Jenny’s back, and ready to do anything it takes to become a member of the group once again. Jen starts hearing horrible lies about Shannon, and Jenny’s the prime suspect. But Jenny has been Jen’s number one for so long, so how will Shannon be able to convince Jen that she is lying? Shannon starts to feel left out, especially after the rules keep changing for the group. This book is packed with even more drama for Shannon and the group.

For more like this:

http://sagarikablogs.com/category/graphic-novels/

Real Friends

Real Friends, By Shannon Hale

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is 4-stars-clipart-7.png — Age 8+
When best friends are **not** forever…

Real friends is an inspiring book about bullying and finding true friends who care about and love you. In this book, a girl named Shannon shares the story of her life to finding her real friends. Her best friend Adrienne is now part of the “group” and best friends with Jen, the most popular girl in school. On top of that, everyone in the group would do anything to be Jen’s favorite…even bully Shannon and the others.

When news of Adrienne’s house being sold starts spreading, Shannon is absolutely heart-broken. Her best friend is moving, and the group she’s in doesn’t like her. Along the way, Shannon meets more new people, and learns a new kind of popular she’s ready to try out! But is Shannon still a part of the group? And is Jen, the most popular girl in the grade, who she really seems to be? Find out in this amazing true story!

I recommend this book to people who want to learn how to deal with bullies and finding real friends in the journey.

For more like this:

http://sagarikablogs.com/category/graphic-novels/

Drama – Book Review

Drama, By Raina Telgemeier

Summary

Drama is a heartfelt book about a girl named Callie, who is the set designer for a theater club. Everything is going well, and she has so many great ideas for their show, Moon over Mississippi. She wants to create the best set designs, but problems such as crew members not getting along, interfere between her dreams. Then real drama starts to erupt when two twins join the club. It didn’t help when Callie started to grow close to the twins, and love was in the air for her. Now with everything going on offstage and on, Callie’s life has become a lot crazier.

Review

The book certainly deserves its title. There is drama everywhere, from the the club, to the actors, crew members, and Callie’s personal life. The author captured it all perfectly and I loved it.

Somehow though, the romance in this book started to become one of the main storylines. This was a distraction from the overall plot of the story. It also made the characters unrealistic, especially since readers are younger audiences. Most people, like me, didn’t want the main character to be so impractical. I thought Callie was a little too crazy over boys, and this also distracted her from focusing on the play.

But the actual scenes that include the club working on theater productions was a great read because there were many positive messages such as determination, hard work, teamwork, and respecting each other’s talents/differences.

I think the author could have done better, but overall, it was a good read. I recommend this book to people who like stories about love, drama, and friendship.

Sisters – Book Review

Sisters, By Raina Telgemeier

Summary

Sisters is about a girl named Raina. She is an only child, and has always wanted a little sister. Her wish finally comes true, but nothing is how she had expected it to be. For instance, Amara (her sister) hates everyone, including her. So when a new baby brother is born, and their dad loses his job, Raina doesn’t know what she should do. One day, their mother announces a surprise trip to visit their cousins in Colorado. This means they all have to cramp together in a car for one long road trip. It slowly becomes obvious that the family is growing apart, and now it’s up to Raina and Amara to set aside their differences in order to be the glue that keeps everyone together.

Review

Sisters shares the drama Raina and her sister have experienced while growing up. Readers get to join them in their journey of a very long trip and humorous flashbacks to learning how to work together with one another. I love how the POV sometimes alternates from the past to the present, because it vividly describes the family’s background with visuals. The illustrations are so beautifully drawn, and they express the words in a colorful, artsy way. The cute and funny moments in this book will bring a smile to your face.

It is a honest, and very relatable story that people of all ages will love. The connections I made with the characters in this book improved my experience while I was reading. Overall, this was one of the most engaging true stories that I have read.

Smile – Graphic Novel – Book Review

Smile, by Raina Telgemeier

Summary

Smile is a book about a girl named Raina who severely damages her two front teeth in an accident. From that point on, she has been seeing doctor after doctor in order to fix the injury. It seems as the treachery is never-ending. She never would have imagined starting a new school year like this. But things get worse when her so-called friends start bullying her about her teeth and the fact that she needs braces. How will Raina survive her last years of middle school, and more importantly, her first year of high school?

Review

Smile is a true story about the author’s experience as a teenager. It comes from the heart, and is touching, sad, and funny. Readers will be able to learn from the important lessons in this book such as standing up for yourself, letting go of fake friends, and making new ones. Raina Telgemeier perfectly captures the ups and downs in a teenager’s life through beautiful illustrations.

Follow this girl on her hilarious journey to discovering true friends, and learning how to deal with bullies. I give this book five stars and recommend it to anybody who enjoys a mixture of emotions in an amazing story like this.

Wonder – Book Review

Wonder, By R. J. Palacio

Summary

Wonder is about a boy who has a condition that affects his face. He had always been homeschooled, but one day his parents decided to send him to a real school. The story portrays Auggie’s experience in middle school, and what he learned during these times. He faces the difficulties of many fake friends, bullies, and much more. It takes a while, but he does finally find his place and make his first true friend – and enemy.

Review

Wonder changed how I look at people who are ‘different’ because it teaches us that everyone in the world is unique, but you can’t just determine that by looks. This book and every character in it – especially Auggie – stole my heart. I loved how most of the characters changed for the better by the end. Some didn’t, and I loved that too, because at least the book was realistic about it. The POV also alternates between the characters, which makes it interesting to read.

The whole story has different themes displayed throughout, all of them coming to one central message. Younger readers can find these positive themes as a role model.

Overall, I give this book five-stars because it has everything, tearjerkers, drama, good themes, realism, and humor.

Inspiring Stories

These book reviews are my all time favorites, because of the stories. All of these stories are inspiring and can really change how a person looks at the world…

Wonder, By R.J. Palacio

Five-stars!

Reading Wonder has changed the way I look at people who are ‘different’. This is a book about a kid named Auggie who has a facial disorder called Treacher Collins syndrome. Because of this syndrome, Auggie gets teased and pointed at by so many people. But he makes his first true friend and enemy when he starts school. This book talks about Auggie’s experience in middle school, and how some people didn’t want anything to do with him. This book teaches us that everyone in the world is unique, but you can’t just determine that by looks. I give this book five-stars because it has everything, tearjerkers, drama, happiness, friendship, and comedy.

El Deafo, By Cece Bell

(5/5) A hilarious story!

At first, she’s ashamed. Ashamed of her hearing disability. She wasn’t born like this. At the age of six, her hearing started to worsen, until she needed a huge hearing aid that was strapped to her chest. But after starting school, Cece makes friends, and learns the meaning of friendship. At school, she learns to convert her disability into a superpower for herself. There is no stopping El Deafo now, as her hearing aid, the thing she was ashamed of, is now her most special possession, as well as her new superpower! Ultra hearing is just one thing she can do…

This story is so hilarious, and it was a joy to read!

Graphic Novels

Reading is one of my favorite hobbies. I read all kinds of books such as comics, novels, fantasies, mysteries, friendship, and more! If you are looking for good graphic novels to read, check out my book reviews to find out the best one for you…

Smile, by Raina Telgemeier

Age: 10+
Remember to smile!

Smile is a book about a girl named Raina who damages her front two teeth severely in an accident. From that point on, she has been seeing doctor after doctor in order to fix the injury. It seems as the treachery is never-ending. Starting school like this was the last thing she had imagined, and things get worse when her so-called friends start bullying her over and over about her teeth and the fact that she needs braces. Follow this girl on her hilarious journey to discovering true friends, and learning how to deal with bullies. I give this book five stars and recommend it to anybody who enjoys a mixture of emotions in a story like this.

Sisters, by Raina Telgemeier

Age: Everyone
Two sisters, one car…

This book is about how Raina had always wanted someone to play with, specifically a little baby sister. Her wish comes true one day, but nothing is like how she had expected it to be. For instance, Amara (her sister) hates everyone, including her, and when their dad loses his job, and a baby brother Will comes along, Raina feels like she is falling apart. One day, their mother announces a surprise trip to visit their cousins, and they all have to cramp together in one car. The family is slowly growing apart, and it’s up to Raina and Amara to learn to work together in order to save their family…

This true story shares the drama Raina and her sister have experienced while growing up, so join them in their very long trip and humorous flashbacks to learning how to work together with one another. I definitely give this book five stars and recommend it to anyone and everyone.

Drama, by Raina Telgemeier

Age: 10+
Places Everyone!..

Drama is a heartfelt book about a girl named Callie, who is the set designer for a drama club. But this club isn’t just an ordinary one, it is full of talented people, all of whom Callie knows and loves. But things change when two twins join Callie and her friends, and real drama starts to erupt. Things didn’t help when Callie was starting to grow close to the twins, and love was in the air for her. She just wants this to be the best set crew ever, and design the best sets for the stage. With the boys in the picture, offstage and ONstage drama made things a whole lot crazier! Will Callie and her friends be able to save the show? Read more to find out!

I give this book 4 stars and recommend it to people who love a good book about love, drama, and friendship!

Real Friends, by Shannon Hale

Age: 8+
When best friends are not forever…

When news of Adrienne’s house being sold starts spreading, Shannon is absolutely heartbroken. Her best friend is moving, and the group she’s in doesn’t like her. Along the way, Shannon meets more new people, and learns a new kind of popular she’s ready to try out! But is Shannon still a part of the group? And is Jen, the most popular girl in the grade, who she really seems to be? Find out in this amazing true story!

I recommend this book to people who want to learn how to deal with bullies and finding real friends on the journey.

Best Friends, by Shannon Hale

(For people who’ve already read Real Friends)

Best Friends is the story after Real Friends, and Shannon is now Jen’s best friend. But her troubles aren’t over just yet…

Jenny’s back, and ready to do anything it takes to become a member of the group once again. Jen starts hearing horrible lies about Shannon, and Jenny’s the prime suspect. But Jenny has been Jen’s number one for so long, so how will Shannon be able to convince Jen that Jenny is lying? Shannon starts to feel left out, especially after the rules keep changing for the group. Part two of Real Friends, Best Friends is packed with even more drama for Shannon and the group.

But, i became a little mean. So, my parents killed it. However, it backfired. After, they hated it. Now, I hate it too. So, the moral of the story. Then, I saw him.