Reluctant reader boys need a skeleton key. It’s that mythical thing that could unlock anything, but in this case, we just need to get them to enjoy reading. Thus, it’s a bit ironic that Middle School is the closest thing that we’ve seen in recent memory for those elementary-aged reluctant readers. Night of the Vam-Wolf-Zom is the fourth book in the Middle School Bites series and it has every element that grades four through six require in their reading.
A magic pencil is the real-life sibling of Creepy Crayon! However, in reality, Creepy Crayon! is the third book in the Jasper Rabbit-led series by Aaron Reynolds with art by Peter Brown. Creepy Carrots! and Creepy Pair of Underwear! were the first two and have since become ubiquitous in elementary school libraries and classrooms. Moreover, these books are everywhere and kids actually want to read them. Let’s take that a step further and say that these books, in addition to the newest entry, Creepy Crayon!; straddle the line between illustrated book noir, funny and spooky like no other books those ages will read. If Rod Serling made an illustrated book it would be in league with these books.
The 80s were chaotic, riddled with bad fashion that people thought was cool, produced some fabulous music, and is entertaining legions of teens nowadays. For the record ‘nowadays’ is possibly the oldest sounding word in the English language and is usually followed up with ‘back in my day’. Dead Flip is mglit that is all but served up with a heaping serving of Raisin Bran, featuring the iconic dancing raisins from 1989. It’s a fun book that today’s tweens and lower teens will enjoy because of the accurate 80s and 90’s shoutouts, as well as, the age-appropriate scares and drama.
What’s the difference between a gay weightlifter and a weightlifter who is gay? That’s kind of a trick question because there is no correct answer and it’s one that just popped into my head as I was trying to recap Strong. Strong is an illustrated book and the story of Rob Kearney, a professional Strongman who is openly gay. Or would that be an openly gay professional Strongman? Regardless he competes on a global scale, but his biography describes him as the latter. However, either way you describe it, it leads to one of the main issues that school librarians will have with Strong, not that there’s anything wrong with that.
Upper elementary school readers and older want to be respected, and-to an extent, challenged when they read for fun. There comes a point when elementary and middle school readers become aware of the fact that the books that they read are a direct reflection of who they are. They’ve got the staples that most of them are reading in fourth and fifth, with a few brave souls venturing out to discover something unique. That funnel opens up much more in middle school. Crocs is our first encounter with a book in the Sharks Inc. book series by New York Times-Bestselling author Randy Wayne White. It checks off so many columns in what ages nine through 15 are looking for in a great fiction book that it resembles a dog’s shopping list at the meat market.
Sometimes we write about all-age comic books. What distinguishes a great comic book from a great all-age comic book is that the latter doesn’t dumb down the content in order to be appreciated by younger audiences. It’s a great read that just happens to not have any content that would prohibit it from being voraciously enjoyed by elementary or middle school readers. City Spies is a book series that’s mglit, middle-grade literature, and one might presume from that categorization that it’s only for grades three through eight. That’s where the catch-all description of leisure reading kicks in and puts the series, including City Spies: Forbidden City, into the age-defying group of mglit without boundaries.
Imagine that you are tasked with creating a book about someone whose life has made a worldwide impact. They help found an entire industry and the look of their creation is one that every kid aged three and up knows. That is a daunting task. Now take this person’s life and make an illustrated book on it without directly using the style that most people are familiar with. The task is even more daunting now. With Great Power, The Marvelous Stan Lee is an unauthorized biography that nails the early life of Stan Lee to the floor. It’s entertaining, has great non-Marvel type illustrations, as well as, nuggets of information that even the comic or Marvel kids in elementary school will be surprised to learn.
There are books that kids want to read, books that parents/educators want them to read, and those books that sometimes straddle both camps. Saving Stella is one of those books that will keep a foot in each of those categories to some extent, due to its true story, soft visuals, and the always appealing element of a lovable dog.
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