New Middle-Grade Books Publishing FEB 2024
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Middle-Grade books are some of my very favorite books! I love reading them, I love reading them to my kids, and I love helping others find awesome books for their own kids! This year I am hoping to dedicate a couple of blog posts each month to Middle-Grade books! One will hopefully be review based where I can share a book that I have absolutely adored…and the other will be something like this post…dedicated to sharing upcoming new releases! In hindsight I wish I had thought to start this in January…but we are only a month behind, right? SO let’s jump right into it. There are so many amazing Middle-Grade Books publishing in February, 2024…and here are a few that I am MOST looking forward to! Let’s chat!
Drawing Deena by Hena Khan
First up we have Drawing Deena by award winning author Hena Khan. I absolutely adored her book Amina’s voice and am so looking forward to Drawing Deena! Publishing on Feb 6th, 2024, Drawing Deena is the story of a young Pakistani American artist who is trying to manage her anxiety while find her way on a creative path. As someone who deals with anxiety and also has a daughter that deals with anxiety I absolutely adore books that tackle this topic. My daughter also uses art as a creative outlet so this book definitely hits close to home and sounds like another gem from Hena Khan! Here is some info!
Goodreads Synopsis
Deena’s never given a name to the familiar knot in her stomach that appears when her parents argue about money, when it’s time to go to school, or when she struggles to find the right words. She manages to make it through each day with the help of her friends and the art she loves to make.
While her parents’ money troubles cause more and more stress, Deena wonders if she can use her artistic talents to ease their burden. She creates a logo and social media account to promote her mom’s home-based business selling clothes from Pakistan to the local community. With her cousin and friends modeling the outfits and lending their social media know-how, business picks up.
But the success and attention make Deena’s cousin and best friend, Parisa, start to act funny. Suddenly Deena’s latest creative outlet becomes another thing that makes her feel nauseated and unsure of herself. After Deena reaches a breaking point, both she and her mother learn the importance of asking for help and that, with the right support, Deena can create something truly beautiful.
Across So Many Seas by Ruth Behar
I can’t even tell you how ecstatic I am to read this next book. Also publishing on Feb 6th, 2024, Across So Many Seas is written by Pura Belpré Award winning author Ruth Behar. Across So Many Seas is a book that spans 500 years and follows four girls from different generations of a Jewish family, many of whom are forced from their homes and countries to start new lives. This book sounds absolutely spectacular and the cover is positively swoon worthy. I love the idea of each of these young women being connected over the generations and each standing on the shoulders of the previous generations. Just amazing. I know I will be back with a review for this book…cannot wait to read it.
Goodreads Synopsis
In 1492 , during the Spanish Inquisition, Benvenida and her family are banished from Spain for being Jewish, and must flee the country or be killed. They journey by foot and by sea, eventually settling in Istanbul.
Over four centuries later, in 1923 , shortly after the Turkish war of independence, Reina’s father disowns her for a small act of disobedience. He ships her away to live with an aunt in Cuba, to be wed in an arranged marriage when she turns fifteen.
In 1961 , Reina’s daughter, Alegra, is proud to be a brigadista, teaching literacy in the countryside for Fidel Castro. But soon Castro’s crackdowns force her to flee to Miami all alone, leaving her parents behind.
Finally, in 2003 , Alegra’s daughter, Paloma, is fascinated by all the journeys that had to happen before she could be born. A keeper of memories , she’s thrilled by the opportunity to learn more about her heritage on a family trip to Spain, where she makes a momentous discovery.
Though many years and many seas separate these girls, they are united by a love of music and poetry, a desire to belong and to matter, a passion for learning, and their longing for a home where all are welcome. And each is lucky to stand on the shoulders of their courageous ancestors.
Daughters of the Lamp by Nedda Lewers
I am a sucker for a fairy tale. Daughters of the Lamp by Nedda Lewers is described as being Percy Jackson meets Arabian Fairy Tales and I am Here. For. It. I also adore any book set in Egypt so I am thrilled that we will be heading to Cairo in Daughters of the Lamp. Here is a synopsis so you can learn a bit more about the book! Daughters of the Lamp publishes February 20th, 2024.
Goodreads Synopsis
Sahara Rashad lives by logic. Loves science. And always has a plan. Except her dad just whisked her away to her uncle’s wedding in Egypt, upending every single plan she had for the summer.
In Cairo, Sahara’s days are filled with family—and mystery. First, Sahara’s cousins claim the pretentious bride-to-be is actually a witch. Then her late mother’s necklace starts glowing—and disappears.
Sahara’s attempts to recover the necklace lead her to the greatest mystery yet. Deep in an underground chamber lies Ali Baba’s magical treasure. Hidden from a line of sorcerers who threatened to use its powers for evil, the treasure was given to Sahara’s ancestor Morgana for safekeeping and passed down from mother to daughter for generations. Now only Sahara stands in the sorcerers’ way.
Can the girl who’s never believed in magic trust the unknown and claim her legacy as the treasure’s keeper?
The Partition Project by Saadia Faruqi
Next up we have The Partition Project by Saadia Faruqi! Publishing on February 27th, 2024, The Partition Project is the story about a contemporary Pakistani-American girl who has a passion for journalism. This passion leads her to start a conversation with her grandmother about her experience with the Partition of India and Pakistan. I adore inter-generational stories…especially ones that tie in history. So excited to read this one. Here is a little info!
Goodreads Synopsis
When her grandmother comes off the airplane in Houston from Pakistan, Mahnoor knows that having Dadi move in is going to disrupt everything about her life. She doesn’t have time to be Dadi’s unofficial babysitter—her journalism teacher has announced that their big assignment will be to film a documentary, which feels more like storytelling than what Maha would call “journalism.”
As Dadi starts to settle into life in Houston and Maha scrambles for a subject for her documentary, the two of them start talking. About Dadi’s childhood in northern India—and about the Partition that forced her to leave her home and relocate to the newly created Pakistan.
As details of Dadi’s life are revealed, Dadi’s personal story feels a lot more like the breaking news that Maha loves so much. And before she knows it, she has the subject of her documentary.
Unstuck by Barbara Dee
Also publishing on Feb 27th, 2024 is Unstuck by Barbara Dee. This is another example of Kelly falling in love with a book cover again! How beautiful is this?!? I also really loved the premise of this story…it seems quite fresh and original. This is the story of Lyla who is thrilled to learn that her English class is beginning a daily creative writing project. This is perfect for Lyla because she has been writing her own epic fantasy novel…in her head. Now is the chance for her to get it all on paper…but that proves to be a little more difficult than she imagined. The story goes much deeper than that and seems to cover sibling relationships, friendships, school deadlines, competition and more. Here is a quick synopsis!
Goodreads Synopsis
Lyla is thrilled when her seventh-grade English language arts class begins a daily creative writing project. For the past year, she’s been writing a brilliant fantasy novel in her head, and here’s her chance to get it on paper! The plot to Lyla’s novel is super complicated, with battle scenes and witches and a mysterious one-toed-beast, but at its core, it’s about an overlooked girl who has to rescue her beautiful, highly accomplished older sister.
But writing a fantasy novel turns out to be harder than simply imagining one, and pretty soon Lyla finds herself stuck, experiencing a panic she realizes is writer’s block. Part of the problem is that she’s trying to impress certain people—like Rania, her best friend who’s pulling away, and Ms. Bowman, the coolest teacher at school. Plus, there’s the pressure of meeting the deadline for the town writing contest. A few years ago, Lyla’s superstar teen sister Dahlia came in second, and this time, Lyla is determined to win first prize.
Finally, Lyla confides about her writing problems to Dahlia, who is dealing with her own academic stress as she applies to college. That’s when she learns Dahlia’s secret, which is causing a very different type of writer’s block. Can Lyla rescue a surprisingly vulnerable big sister, both on the page and in real life?
Eyes on March
I am really hoping to continue these posts throughout the year! Having new books to look forward to every month makes me so happy! I hope that this helps you to find a new book or books for yourself or your kids! This is just a small portion of the amazing books publishing this month! These are definitely the ones I am most excited for!
Stay tuned for March because I already have my eyes set on some amazing new releases. There are some exciting additions to popular book series coming as well as some books from some very well known Newbery Award winning authors. It is going to be a great month!
I am thinking of doing this for some adult books as well. Should I do just a general post or would it be helpful to break it down by genre??
Happy reading, my friends!
3 Comments
Sherri
Love all of these and promptly adding to my TBR pile…they sound amazing!
home-admin
Ahhh Yay! That makes me so happy! I hope you love them!
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