MCBA (Massachusetts Childen's Book Award) 2023-24 Reading List

A Kind of Spark By Elle McNicoll Cover Image
$7.99
ISBN: 9780593374283
Availability: Available from Warehouse (minimum 2 days delivery time)
Published: Yearling - October 11th, 2022

Perfect for readers of Song for a Whale and Counting by 7s, a neurodivergent girl campaigns for a memorial when she learns that her small Scottish town used to burn witches simply because they were different.

"A must-read for students and adults alike." -School Library Journal, Starred Review
 


Air: A Novel By Monica Roe Cover Image
$8.99
ISBN: 9781250798268
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Square Fish - January 10th, 2023

An action-packed, empowering middle grade novel about a girl who has to speak up when her wheelchair motocross dreams get turned upside down.


Ana on the Edge By A. J. Sass Cover Image
$7.99
ISBN: 9780316458627
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers - October 19th, 2021

Perfect for fans of George and Ivy Aberdeen's Letter to the World: a heartfelt coming of age story about a nonbinary character navigating a binary world.

Twelve-year-old Ana-Marie Jin, the reigning US Juvenile figure skating champion, is not a frilly dress kind of kid.


Ancestor Approved: Intertribal Stories for Kids By Cynthia L. Smith Cover Image
$9.99
ISBN: 9780062869951
Availability: Available from Warehouse (minimum 2 days delivery time)
Published: Heartdrum - February 8th, 2022

Edited by award-winning and bestselling author Cynthia Leitich Smith, this collection of intersecting stories by both new and veteran Native writers bursts with hope, joy, resilience, the strength of community, and Native pride.

Native families from Nations across the continent gather at the Dance for Mother Earth Powwow in Ann Arbor, Michigan.


Andy Warner's Oddball Histories: Pests and Pets By Andy Warner Cover Image
$12.99
ISBN: 9780316463386
Availability: Available from Warehouse (minimum 2 days delivery time)
Published: Little, Brown Ink - September 7th, 2021

The bestselling author of Brief History of Everyday Objects explores the animals we love, the ones we make use of, and the ones that make use of us in this hilarious, informative mix of storytelling and factbook.Did you know that 32 pigeons have received medals for wartime valor? And a dog named Laika was the very first creature to orbit the Earth?


Another Kind By Trevor Bream, Cait May (Illustrator), Cait May Cover Image
By Trevor Bream, Cait May (Illustrator), Cait May
$12.99
ISBN: 9780063043534
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: HarperAlley - October 26th, 2021

Six kids search for a new place to call home in this middle grade graphic novel debut by comic creators Cait May and Trevor Bream, for fans of Marvel’s Runaways and The Witch Boy by Molly Knox Ostertag. Another Kind is not your average monster story.


City of Thieves (Battle Dragons #1) By Alex London Cover Image
$7.99
ISBN: 9781338716566
Availability: Available from Warehouse (minimum 2 days delivery time)
Published: Scholastic Inc. - October 4th, 2022

In a modern mega-city built around dragons, one boy gets caught up in the world of underground dragon battles and a high-stakes gang war that could tear his family apart.

Once, dragons nearly drove themselves to extinction. But in the city of Drakopolis, humans domesticated them centuries ago.


Falling Short By Ernesto Cisneros Cover Image
$7.99
ISBN: 9780062881731
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Quill Tree Books - March 14th, 2023

Ernesto Cisneros, Pura Belpré Award-winning author of Efrén Divided, is back with a hilarious and heartfelt novel about two best friends who must rely on each other in unexpected ways. A great next pick for readers who loved Ghost by Jason Reynolds or The First Rule of Punk by Celia C. Pérez.


Field Guide to the Supernatural Universe By Alyson Noël Cover Image
$8.99
ISBN: 9781534498242
Availability: Available from Warehouse (minimum 2 days delivery time)
Published: Margaret K. McElderry Books - March 28th, 2023

Stranger Things meets Sideways Stories from Wayside School in this quirky supernatural middle grade novel about a boy on an unlikely quest to uncover an enchanted book to defeat an unearthly nemesis—from New York Times bestselling author Alyson Noël.

When he first started seeing ghosts, Max mistakenly assumed everyone else could see them, too.


Finally, Something Mysterious (The One and Onlys #1) By Doug Cornett Cover Image
$8.99
ISBN: 9780593488317
Availability: Available from Warehouse (minimum 2 days delivery time)
Published: Yearling - November 22nd, 2022

The best mysteries can only be solved with your best friends. The perfect summer read for fans of Stuart Gibbs.


Frizzy By Claribel A. Ortega, Rose Bousamra (Illustrator) Cover Image
By Claribel A. Ortega, Rose Bousamra (Illustrator)
$12.99
ISBN: 9781250259639
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: First Second - October 18th, 2022

Winner of the 2023 Pura Belpré Award for Children's Text
Winner of the 2023 Eisner for Best Publication for Kids
October 2022 Indie Bestseller


Future Hero By Remi Blackwood Cover Image
$6.99
ISBN: 9781338790320
Availability: Available from Warehouse (minimum 2 days delivery time)
Published: Scholastic Press - August 2nd, 2022

The start of a thrilling, highly illustrated series about a boy who finds a portal to a legendary world in his local barbershop . . . and learns he’s the hero they’ve been waiting for. For younger fans of Black Panther and Last Gate of the Emperor!

Jarell has never quite known where he belongs.


How to Win a Slime War By Mae Respicio Cover Image
$8.99
ISBN: 9780593302705
Availability: Available from Warehouse (minimum 2 days delivery time)
Published: Yearling - May 9th, 2023

Two kids face off in an epic battle to see who can sell the most slime, while navigating sticky situations with friends and family.


Middle School's a Drag, You Better Werk! By Greg Howard Cover Image
$8.99
ISBN: 9780525517542
Availability: Temporarily Out of Stock
Published: Puffin Books - April 27th, 2021

In this new novel from Greg Howard, an enterprising boy starts his own junior talent agency and signs a thirteen-year-old aspiring drag queen as his first client. Now in paperback.


My Life as an Ice Cream Sandwich By Ibi Zoboi Cover Image
$17.99
ISBN: 9780399187353
Availability: Available from Warehouse (minimum 2 days delivery time)
Published: Dutton Books for Young Readers - August 27th, 2019

National Book Award-finalist Ibi Zoboi makes her middle-grade debut with a moving story of a girl finding her place in a world that's changing at warp speed.


New from Here By Kelly Yang Cover Image
$18.99
ISBN: 9781534488304
Availability: Available from Warehouse (minimum 2 days delivery time)
Published: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers - March 1st, 2022

An instant #1 New York Times bestseller!

This “timely and compelling” (Kirkus Reviews) middle grade novel about courage, hope, and resilience follows an Asian American boy fighting to keep his family together and stand up to racism during the initial outbreak of the coronavirus.

When the coronavirus hits Hong Kong, ten-year-old Knox Wei-Evans&


Rez Dogs By Joseph Bruchac Cover Image
$17.99
ISBN: 9780593326213
Availability: Available from Warehouse (minimum 2 days delivery time)
Published: Dial Books - June 8th, 2021

Renowned author Joseph Bruchac tells a powerful story of a girl who learns more about her Penacook heritage while sheltering in place with her grandparents during the coronavirus pandemic.


Sisters of the Neversea By Cynthia L. Smith Cover Image
$9.99
ISBN: 9780062869982
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Heartdrum - May 3rd, 2022

Five starred reviews! In this beautifully reimagined story by NSK Neustadt Laureate and New York Times bestselling author Cynthia Leitich Smith (Muscogee Creek), Native American Lily and English Wendy embark on a high-flying journey of magic, adventure, and courage to a fairy-tale island known as Neverland…


Starfish By Lisa Fipps Cover Image
$17.99
ISBN: 9781984814500
Availability: Available from Warehouse (minimum 2 days delivery time)
Published: Nancy Paulsen Books - March 9th, 2021

A Printz Honor winner!
 
Ellie is tired of being fat-shamed and does something about it in this poignant debut novel-in-verse.

Cover may vary.
 


Stella: Volume 1 By McCall Hoyle Cover Image
$7.99
ISBN: 9781639930555
Availability: Available from Warehouse (minimum 2 days delivery time)
Published: Shadow Mountain - September 6th, 2022

Stuntboy, in the Meantime By Jason Reynolds, Raúl the Third (Illustrator) Cover Image
By Jason Reynolds, Raúl the Third (Illustrator)
$13.99
ISBN: 9781534418165
Availability: Available from Warehouse (minimum 2 days delivery time)
Published: Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books - November 30th, 2021

A Schneider Family Award Honor Book for Middle Grade

From Newbery Medal honoree and #1 New York Times bestselling author Jason Reynolds comes a hilarious, hopeful, and action-packed middle grade novel about the greatest young superhero you’ve never heard of, filled with illustrations by Raúl the Third!

Portico Reeves’s superpower is making sure


The Deep & Dark Blue By Niki Smith Cover Image
$12.99
ISBN: 9780316486019
Availability: Available from Warehouse (minimum 2 days delivery time)
Published: Little, Brown Ink - January 7th, 2020

The Witch Boy meets The Legend of Korra in this breathtaking, epic graphic novel.
After a terrible political coup usurps their noble house, Hawke and Grayson flee to stay alive and assume new identities, Hanna and Grayce. Desperation and chance lead them to the Communion of Blue, an order of magical women who spin the threads of reality to their will.


The Hero Next Door: A We Need Diverse Books Anthology By Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich (Editor) Cover Image
$8.99
ISBN: 9780525646334
Availability: Available from Warehouse (minimum 2 days delivery time)
Published: Yearling - January 5th, 2021

From We Need Diverse Books, the organization behind Flying Lessons & Other Stories, comes another middle-grade short-story collection--this one focused on exploring acts of bravery--featuring some of the best own-voices children's authors, including R. J.


Thirst By Varsha Bajaj Cover Image
$8.99
ISBN: 9780593354414
Availability: Available from Warehouse (minimum 2 days delivery time)
Published: Nancy Paulsen Books - April 18th, 2023

A New York Times Bestseller

The riveting story of a heroic girl who fights for her belief that water should be for everyone.


Unsolved Case Files: The 500 Million Dollar Heist: Isabella Stewart Gardner and Thirteen Missing Masterpieces By Tom Sullivan, Tom Sullivan (Illustrator) Cover Image
By Tom Sullivan, Tom Sullivan (Illustrator)
$12.99
ISBN: 9780062991577
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Balzer + Bray - August 30th, 2022

The third book in this graphic nonfiction series about real FBI cases details the Isabella Stewart Gardner heist—the largest, and one of the most famous, art thefts in the world.

CASE NO. 003: THE GARDNER

MARCH 18, 1990

BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS

1:24 a.m.


We Could Be Heroes By Margaret Finnegan Cover Image
$8.99
ISBN: 9781534445260
Availability: Available from Warehouse (minimum 2 days delivery time)
Published: Atheneum Books for Young Readers - February 23rd, 2021

“A coming-of-age story of friendships young, old, and canine.” —Kirkus Reviews
“[A] good-natured tale of two unlikely friends determined to save a life.” —Publishers Weekly

Shiloh meets Raymie Nightingale in this funny and heartwarming debut novel about a ten-year-old that finds himself in a whole mess of