Roar Cat Reads

Tag: Middle Grade

  • Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor by Xiran Jay Zhao

    Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor by Xiran Jay Zhao

    Genre | Middle Grade Fantasy
    Page #s | 340
    Publishing Date | May 2022

    Zachary Ying never had many opportunities to learn about his Chinese heritage. His single mom was busy enough making sure they got by, and his schools never taught anything except Western history and myths. So Zack is woefully unprepared when he discovers he was born to host the spirit of the First Emperor of China for a vital mission: sealing the leaking portal to the Chinese underworld before the upcoming Ghost Month blows it wide open.

    The mission takes an immediate wrong turn when the First Emperor botches his attempt to possess Zack’s body and binds to Zack’s AR gaming headset instead, leading to a battle where Zack’s mom’s soul gets taken by demons. Now, with one of history’s most infamous tyrants yapping in his headset, Zack must journey across China to heist magical artifacts and defeat figures from history and myth, all while learning to wield the emperor’s incredible water dragon powers.

    And if Zack can’t finish the mission in time, the spirits of the underworld will flood into the mortal realm, and he could lose his mom forever.

    Goodreads

    I will forever compare middle grade mythology adventures to the Percy Jackson series (which I love), and I’m happy to say that Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor captures the same energetically educational vibes while also introducing some very compelling moral ambiguity into the story.

    Using Augmented Reality goggles as the gateway to introducing and interacting with the powerful spirits of Chinese emperors who offer 12-year-olds enormous powers was ingenious, as was the Pokemon GO-style game that is mimicked in the book. It’s very fun and feels written in a very forward-facing, technology-driven mindset while exposing readers to legends and stories from thousands of years ago.

    For me, there were two real highlights to the book. First, Zachary is a Chinese-American who was raised to assimilate into American culture, so he wrestles with his cultural identity throughout the book as he has to interact with people, places, and languages that he is totally unfamiliar with. He is the perfect way for readers with little to know background knowledge of Chinese lore to catch up alongside him, but it’s also a very poignant story about embracing your culture, no matter what age or “how late.”

    Second, this novel plays around with moral ambiguity in a way that is pure catnip to me! Zachary and his friends have inherited the power of emperors, and emperors have historically gained their power through violent, paranoid, and oppressive means. This book embraces this fact and forces Zachary to wrestle with the nature of power and figuring out whether the people he is working with are the heroes…or the villains. It’s very compelling, and I can’t wait for the sequel for more!

    What Make This Book Queer?

    This is a middle grade adventure book, so Zachary’s sexuality is not the focus by any stretch of the imagination. However, he mentions being attracted to boys, and he’s disappointed when a cute boy shows interest in a girl. It’s all very innocent and sweet, and I think representing gay or queer kids at this age is so important!

    Also, there’s a throwaway comment about Zachary being very pretty. He says that’s not a good thing in American culture, and his new Chinese friend assures him he would be very popular in China because of it. It was a brief but powerful statement about the cultural construct that is gender!

    Who Do I Recommend This Book To?

    Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor is a fast, fun read that brings Chinese mythology to life in a dramatic and accessible adventure. A definite recommendation to anyone in Percy Jackson withdrawal.

    Check out our Queer Lil Library for more book recommendations and reviews!

  • Snapdragon by Kat Leyh

    Snapdragon by Kat Leyh

    Genre | Fantasy Middle Grade Graphic Novel
    Page #s | 224
    Publishing Date | February 2020

    Kat Leyh’s Snapdragon is a magical realist graphic novel about a young girl who befriends her town’s witch and discovers the strange magic within herself.

    Snap’s town had a witch.

    At least, that’s how the rumor goes. But in reality, Jacks is just a Crocs-wearing, internet-savvy old lady who sells roadkill skeletons online. It’s creepy, sure, but Snap thinks it’s kind of cool, too.

    Snap needs a favor from this old woman, though, so she begins helping Jacks with her strange work. Snap gets to know her and realizes that Jacks may in fact have real magic—and an unlikely connection to Snap’s family’s past.

    Goodreads

    I had the pleasure of seeing Kat Leyh speak at a panel at Emerald City Comic Con, and combined with my love for her graphic novel Thirsty Mermaids, I knew it was time to read more of her work. I picked up Snapdragon, read it in one go, and left it on my girlfriend’s pillow. She also read it in a day, and we agreed that it is an utter delight!

    Snapdragon is a middle grade graphic novel about outcasts, young and old. Snap is a passionate, rambunctious kid who befriends the local witch and helps her care for animals, both living and deceased. I have never cared about possums until this book, and now I am cooing over online videos of possum moms laded with piggyback riding babies.

    As Leyh mentioned in her panel, this is a book about queerness that isn’t about sexuality (because the protagonist is a kid who isn’t thinking about that yet). Snap’s friend comes into confidence as trans throughout the pages, and Snap’s mom is a master class in how to support your kids and their friends. The witch that Snap befriends has a queer history with some sweet twists that I don’t want to spoil for you!

    This is a beautifully drawn story full of characters diverse in gender, sexuality, race, and size. I cannot recommend it enough.

    Who Do I Recommend This Book To?

    Honestly, I can’t imagine who would dislike Snapdragon, but this book is especially for the intense animal lovers in your life. You know, not just those that love kittens and puppies, but who will get weepy over a sea turtle documentary.

    Check out our Queer Lil Library for more book recommendations and reviews!

  • The Golden Hour by Niki Smith

    The Golden Hour by Niki Smith

    Genre | Middle grade graphic novel
    Page #s | 256
    Publishing Date | November 2021

    From the author of The Deep & Dark Blue comes a tender graphic novel, perfect for our time, that gently explores themes of self-discovery, friendship, healing from tragedy, and hope for a better tomorrow.

    Struggling with anxiety after witnessing a harrowing instance of gun violence, Manuel Soto copes through photography, using his cell-phone camera to find anchors that keep him grounded. His days are a lonely, latchkey monotony until he’s teamed with his classmates, Sebastian and Caysha, for a group project.

    Sebastian lives on a grass-fed cattle farm outside of town, and Manuel finds solace in the open fields and in the antics of the newborn calf Sebastian is hand-raising. As Manuel aides his new friends in their preparations for the local county fair, he learns to open up, confronts his deepest fears, and even finds first love.

    Goodreads

    The Golden Hour is a gorgeously drawn graphic novel that visually captures the feeling of PTSD and anxiety perfectly. Manuel is a sweet boy who is struggling to readjust after witnessing a school shooting and the injury of his art teacher. The violence is implied and occasionally depicted in a roundabout way, but the instance itself is not this book’s focus; Manuel’s healing process is.

    Central to this healing process are his two friends. They are endlessly supportive, understanding, and simply the best. They draw Manuel into their world of farming and the Ag-Club. Their companionship combined with peaceful country living provides him with a safe space to re-enter the world. Additionally, his therapist suggests he use photography as a coping strategy. It is a way for him to see the world one step removed, which feels safer. It’s also a way for him to focus on one small thing (his screen) when his anxiety starts to take over. All of this is drawn effortlessly; it’s truly impressive how Smith manages to convey psychological and emotional experiences artistically.

    There is no explicit queer representation, unlike Smith’s earlier middle grade graphic novel The Deep & Dark Blue. However, there are soft boys exploring friendship with meaningful looks between them; they’re totally going to date.

    Who Do I Recommend This Book To?

    The Golden Hour has broad appeal; if you’re into sweet stories about young people growing up after tragedy with the help of nice people, you will enjoy this graphic novel!

    Check out our Queer Lil Library for more book recommendations and reviews!

  • 7 Queer Reads for Little Beans

    7 Queer Reads for Little Beans

    Yes, little kids need LGBTQIA+ books. From affirming their family lives to providing information for their inquiring minds, these picture and chapter books are age-appropriate and perfect for every bookshelf. 

    Love is Love by Michael Genhart

    Dealing with bullying and homophobia, we see the story from a little boy’s point of view. He loves wearing his rainbow shirt and supporting his two dads, but when children at school tease him for his shirt, his sadness radiates off the page. Talk about a heart-breaker. And as the story goes on, we see his family, their love, and the love shared between families and children with a very important, very simple message: love is love, and that is universal and beautiful.

    Julian Is A Mermaid by Jessica Love

    A 2019 Stonewall Book Award winner! An absolutely charming picture book about a little boy who lives with his abuela and has an obsession with mermaids. It’s all he thinks and dreams about. So when he sees three women on the subway dressed as mermaids, he goes home and wraps a curtain around his waist. When his grandmother sees his ensemble, she takes him to a festival where people of all kinds and shapes are dressed in fabulous, outrageous costumes. The illustrations are gorgeous, the message so very sweet, and the honesty of it makes this book a keeper.

    My Rainbow by DeShana Neal and Trinity Neal

    Oh my heart for this book, and it’s a true story! Trinity is an autistic, transgender Black girl and she really wants long hair. DeShana, her mother, helps her by creating a fabulous, colorful wig and giving her love and reassurance. It is an incredibly endearing, heartwarming picture book featuring the struggles and reality of helping a child dealing with identity and gender expression.

    This Is Our Rainbow by Katherine Locke and Nicole Melleby

    The only book like this for older elementary and middle grade kids! It’s a delightful anthology of stories about different ways LGBTQIA+ kids can express themselves, and the realities that come along with being part of a marginialized group. From fantasy and sci-fi to contemporary, these stories are joyous and perfect for readers who want to understand themselves better, or understand someone else in their lives.

    Too Bright To See by Kyle Lukoff

    It’s a ghost story, a book about grief and understanding, and honestly just a beautiful story. Bug is a transgender boy and he lives in a haunted house, which feels more claustrophobic and less joyful now that his Uncle Roderick, who was gay, has passed away. When an unamed ghost starts following him around, Bug turns to find comfort in his friend Moira, who is detached and going through her own difficulties as the start of middle school looms over them. Rightfully so, the book is a National Book Award finalist.

    How To Become A Planet by Nicole Melleby

    I can’t resist this book – and that cover! This is a very gentle coming-of-age story about Pluto, who loves astronomy but is reeling from her recent diagnosis with anxiety and depression. Her family isn’t taking the news well, either, and her single mother worries, but still expects an awful lot from her daughter. When Pluto meets Fallon, a girl questioning her identity, they form an immediate, special bond. It’s a valuable book for a number of reasons, but the setting and characters truly shine with gentle authenticity and relatability.

    Our Subway Baby by Peter Mercurio

    “Some babies are born into their families. Some are adopted. This is the story of how one baby found his family in the New York City subway.” Possibly my favorite book on this list, and that was a tough call to make! Based on the true story of when Peter’s husband Danny discovered an abandoned baby on the subway station in New York while on his way home from work. Together they work to adopt the little boy, who they name Kevin, and give this child a loving home. The soft illustrations from Leo Espinosa sing on every page, and create a beautiful backdrop for a dear story that hit me right in the heart.

    Halli Starling (she/her) writes fantasy worlds, vampires, and romance, focusing on stories with deep emotional investment. And the occasional bloody bit of violence.

    Website | Twitter

  • A High Five for Glenn Burke by Phil Bildner

    A High Five for Glenn Burke by Phil Bildner

    Genre | Middle Grade Contemporary Fiction
    Page #s | 274
    Publishing Date | February 2020

    A heartfelt and relatable novel from Phil Bildner, weaving the real history of Los Angeles Dodger and Oakland Athletic Glenn Burke–the first professional baseball player to come out as gay–into the story of a middle-school kid learning to be himself.

    When sixth grader Silas Wade does a school presentation on former Major Leaguer Glenn Burke, it’s more than just a report about the irrepressible inventor of the high five. Burke was a gay baseball player in the 1970s–and for Silas, the presentation is his own first baby step toward revealing a truth about himself he’s tired of hiding. Soon he tells his best friend, Zoey, but the longer he keeps his secret from his baseball teammates, the more he suspects they know something’s up–especially when he stages one big cover-up with terrible consequences.

    A High Five for Glenn Burke is Phil Bildner’s most personal novel yet–a powerful story about the challenge of being true to yourself, especially when not everyone feels you belong on the field.

    Goodreads

    A High Five for Glenn Burke is a sweet story about a sweet kid starting his journey toward accepting his sexuality and coming out to those closest to him. And baseball. I was more interested in one of these things.

    Silas is obsessed with baseball, both playing on his team, the Renegades, and researching baseball history. He is especially interested in Glenn Burke, an African American baseball player who lost everything when he came out as gay. He also invented the high five, which is the only part of Burke’s story that Silas shares in a school speech. Nevertheless, he is simultaneously proud of himself and deathly afraid that someone will realize he talked about a person who was gay. This is a piece of the coming-out narrative that I had never seen represented before, but immediately recognized.

    Silas comes out to his best friend Zoey and Coach Webb. They are supportive, and it was nice to see the difference of support available from a peer vs. an adult authority figure. Silas is a lucky kid surrounded by supportive people, but he’s still terrified of coming out, which is a story I think we will see a lot during this in-between cultural moment where homosexuality is becoming more accepted…but you never know for sure.

    This was a nice little middle grade book that captures a lot of the young queer experience alongside just, so much baseball. You are forewarned!

    Who Would I Recommend This Book To?

    It would be perfect for a queer middle schooler who loves baseball. If that is too specific, I think any queer middle schooler would relate to Silas’s passion and fear.

    Rating: 5 out of 5.

    Check out our Queer Lil Library for more book recommendations and reviews!

    Find more books nominated for Lambda Literary Awards reviewed here.

  • Flamer by Mike Curato

    Flamer by Mike Curato

    Genre | YA Graphic Novel
    Page #s | 368
    Publishing Date | September 2020

    Award-winning author and artist Mike Curato draws on his own experiences in Flamer, his debut graphic novel, telling a difficult story with humor, compassion, and love.

    I know I’m not gay. Gay boys like other boys. I hate boys. They’re mean, and scary, and they’re always destroying something or saying something dumb or both.

    I hate that word. Gay. It makes me feel . . . unsafe.

    It’s the summer between middle school and high school, and Aiden Navarro is away at camp. Everyone’s going through changes—but for Aiden, the stakes feel higher. As he navigates friendships, deals with bullies, and spends time with Elias (a boy he can’t stop thinking about), he finds himself on a path of self-discovery and acceptance.

    Goodreads

    Using spare colors with an inviting cartoon aesthetic, Curato has created a beautiful graphic novel about a young boy on the cusp of adolescence who struggles to accept his attraction to boys during a Boy Scouts summer camp. Occasionally haunting but ultimately uplifting, I adored this book and want everyone to read it.

    This is Aiden’s last summer before high school, and he wants his camp experience to be a fun, safe space for him to be fully himself. Unfortunately, he is at camp with a bunch of boys, and they throw insults and gay slurs at each other with abandon. Curato captures these microaggressions with nuance, showing how they hit differently for someone who worries he actually IS gay while also showing how good it can feel to turn the tables and call a bully a f*****.

    Although this is a quick read, the length of the novel allows us to get a full sense of Aiden’s life. The main action takes place during summer camp, but we get flashbacks to his family, his school, and his church that better inform what he is experiencing in the present day as he participates in orienteering, archery, and basket weaving.

    Aiden is such a cute boy who can’t, and doesn’t want to, hide his feminine side despite being very in the closet when it comes to accepting his attraction to bunkmate Elias. Every night he dreams of the two of them together. These were my favorite sections of the book, as he imagines the pair of them as Frodo and Sam or Wolverine and Jean Grey, in an adorable fantasy that increasingly turns dark as he tries to push the feelings aside.

    The story culminates in a dark moment that might be triggering for some readers, though the scene is handled with care. The fires that Aiden worries will engulf himself ultimately manifest as his own life energy, a fire full of strength and vitality that cannot be put out. It’s a lovely book, drawn with skill and passion, that should be on the shelf of every school library.

    Who Would I Recommend This Book To?

    It’s great for readers of all ages, but this is a book to prioritize giving to young queer kids who will see themselves in Aiden.

    Rating: 5 out of 5.

    Check out our Queer Lil Library for more book recommendations and reviews!

    Find more books nominated for Lambda Literary Awards reviewed here.

  • The Deep & Dark Blue by Niki Smith

    The Deep & Dark Blue by Niki Smith

    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.

    As the twins learn more about the Communion, and themselves, they begin to hatch a plan to avenge their family and retake their royal home.While Hawke wants to return to his old life, Grayce struggles to keep the threads of her new life from unraveling, and realizes she wants to stay in the one place that will allow her to finally live as a girl.

    Goodreads

    This was an excellent graphic novel that I would seriously love to see made into a movie. There is action and political intrigue, fascinating world building, and deep character development. Not bad for a middle grade graphic novel!

    When royal twins find their family under attack, they escape and hide in the women’s section of the city. There is one panel in particular that shows a land mass within a bustling city circled by a river, high walls guarding feminine secrets, and I want in! Dressed as girls, they are initiated into the Communion of the Blue, which is a fabulous society based on religious myths of a Mother Weaver whose proclivity for blue bestows life. One twin, Hawke aka Hannah, is taken into the guards, where he struggles to learn weaponless combat after a young life of sword training. The other twin, Grayson aka Grayce, is welcomed into the inner sanctum to learn how to spin blue wool. Oh, and I mention that spinners can perform magic with their spinning? This whole premise gives me serious Avatar: The Last Airbender vibes, and I love it.

    What Makes This Book Queer?

    When Grayson enters the Communion of the Blue, everyone around comments on what a lovely girl they make, which causes Grayson to blush with obvious pleasure. While Hawke is eager to return to their old life and reclaim the throne, Grayce feels at home in the women’s world, seen and understood for the first time.

    It’s a very sweet transgender narrative. Her brother is unobservant, but when a more savvy mutual friend points out Grayce’s happiness, he quickly understands and supports his sister. And even though I knew it was coming, seeing the magic of the tapestry confirm Grayce’s identity was absolutely moving. I really hope Smith writes more in this world!

    Rating: 5 out of 5.

    Check out our Queer Lil Library for more book recommendations and reviews!

    Find more books nominated for Lambda Literary Awards reviewed here!