Maybe you’re not ready for school to start, or maybe you’re excited to see your friends again. Either way, who can resist a great story that happens to take place at school?
GN = graphic novel MS = middle school
In Band Nerd, by Sarah Clawson Willis, Lucy’s dedication to playing the flute for the school band knows no bounds and helps her deal with her dad’s reliance on alcohol. But another girl is equally determined to be the best, and their competitive streaks may hurt them both. GN; MS
Jason Reynolds’s fourth book in his Track series is Coach, and it centers on young Otie Brody, a sprinter on his school’s track team with two idols: Olympian Carl Lewis and his father, who gives him a pair of Jordans. When the Jordans disappear one morning, Otie has to figure out who took them and how he can get them back. MS
In Fireblooms, by Alexandra Villasante, Sebas leaves his papa and abuela to care for his estranged mother and attend a new high school. Student ambassador Lu helps Sebas integrate with the TECH system at school, which blocks all hate speech but limits regular speech as well. When Sebas resists TECH, Lu questions their relationship and the city threatens to withhold cancer treatment for Sebas’s mother. Can he fix this?
Nathanael Lessore’s book King of Nothing follows Anton, who is the “king” of his school mostly due to his friends’ awe of his incarcerated father. After one fight too many, Anton is ordered to volunteer in the community, where he meets Matthew, a boy whose gentle nature challenges Anton’s sense of masculinity.
King of the Neuro Verse, by Idris Goodwin, tells how Pernell, who has undiagnosed ADHD, navigates his third summer in school with a bullying English teacher and a gift for impromptu rap battles in the cafeteria.
In Love Me Tomorrow, by Emiko Jean, Emma’s skepticism about love stems from watching her parents’ bitter divorce, so when her grandfather persuades her to make a wish, she asks for proof of love. When she receives letters from someone who knows specific details of her life and claims to be from her future, she wonders who is sending them: her dear longtime classmate, her gifted musical tutor, or the rich boy whose house she cleans? MS
In Curtis Campbell’s novel Lying, Stealing, and Other Ways to Save the Planet, high school reporter John tries to blackmail and humiliate the students who cruelly pranked him. When he learns that the boys who pranked him belong to a family whose country club is going to pave over the bird sanctuary John’s grandfather fought to save, he knows there is nothing that can stop him from bringing them down, not even his best friend.
Adib Khorram’s book One Word, Six Letters tells how Dayton yells a homophobic slur during a school assembly and the consequences he must face, and also tells how Farshid thinks the slur was directed at him, and how he must face the truth of who he is. MS
In This Could All Go Bad, by Spencer Hall, risk-averse Jensen joins his friends in an all-night dare contest to face his fears, impress his crush, and save his friendship when huge secrets are revealed. MS
Frederick Joseph’s book This Thing of Ours follows Ossie as he recovers from a career-threatening injury and must join a creative writing class to have a chance at getting into college. When the teacher is threatened by some of the other students for being woke, Ossie must work with his two new friends to find his voice if he is to be able to help her keep her job.
~Posted by Wally B.
