Summer reads

Kid-approved titles that’ll keep them turning pages.

On a long subway ride with his older sister, Milo takes in the other faces around him and imagines what their lives might be like or where they may be headed — especially the boy in nice sneakers and a suit. But when they get off at the same stop and walk the same route, he realizes you can’t always know everything about someone just from looking at them.

Sorry, but this description gets me: “This emotional exploration of being big in a world that prizes small is a tender portrayal of how you can stand out and feel invisible at the same time.” This award-winning book is sure to leave your child feeling seen and special.

Amira can’t wait to skip a day of school and stay home to celebrate Eid at the end of Ramadan. But... that’s picture day! She can’t miss picture day. But how can she be in two places at once? This book seems like such a fun way to celebrate child-like excitement and teach your kids about a new culture.

According to Goodreads, this book is “a mesmerizing, stunning, and magical masterpiece that proves how we can shape our pain and struggle into one of joy and power.” The illustrations are so striking, and the words are a poetic ode to Asian American women of all kinds.

Boog and her friends have heard stories about the Vanquishers all their lives — the infamous group who finally killed off the vampire horde plaguing their town. It’s been decades since, and everyone enjoys their safer lives. But when a pal goes missing, Boog can’t help but wonder if the vampires are really gone for good.

Following a huge Muslim convention, four kids are stranded in the airport when all their families’ flights are grounded for the night. Told in alternating points of view, we learn about each kid’s internal life, like why Hanna’s so determined to find a lost cat in the airport (she’s trying to avoid her dad, who wants to discuss marrying his new girlfriend), or how badly Feek wants to write a poem that will impress his dad. It’s a really sweet look into what matters to kids, and I kind of want to read it myself.

Beetle, age 12, wishes she could just skip homeschooling and spend all her time with her best friend, Blob Ghost. But B.G. is cursed to haunt the mall, and it’s pretty boring there, Beetle’s former bestie Kat is visiting town to start a sorcery apprenticeship with her Aunt Hollowbone. Can Beetle become who she wants to be, help Kat stand up to her family, save Blob Ghost’s soul, and master her own magic?

OK, this one wasn’t published recently, but the movie remake has skyrocketed it back into the spotlight. Roz the robot crash lands on a remote island blanketed by wilderness. She quickly learns that in order to survive, she’ll need to adapt and act more like the animals around her.

As the author herself puts it in a Goodreads shoutout, her debut book “is a joyful story about a proud young Muslim girl navigating friendships, family drama, and her beliefs, just like any other middle school kid.” The story follows young Barakah, who decides to find her own voice by joining the school’s most popular all-boy band.

If you know your kid loves all things fantasy, especially Dungeons & Dragons, they’re going to be very into this series. Best friends Jess and Olivia escape the humdrum of middle school by playing D&D and diving all the way into their imaginations. But when Olivia invites some new players to the table, will their campaign, and their friendship, withstand the change?

This book is a Goodreads Choice Award winner and a nominee for Readers' Favorite Graphic Novels & Comics in 2022. This review has me signed all the way up: “The graphic novel that has it all: girls + swords, girls + swords realizing their heroes were manufactured imperial propaganda, girls + swords fighting their way toward a different kind of heroism alongside a ragtag band of empire's exiles. i read it out loud to my 5yo. twice. in one day.”

In this West African-inspired fantasy, Zélie remembers a world where burners ignited flames, tiders could beckon waves, and her own mother, a reaper, could summon souls. And then, one night, magic disappeared, and her mother was murdered. She has one chance to bring magic back to Orïsha, but it won’t be easy.

This book has been on my personal TBR for quite some time, and the Goodreads readers say it’s so worth it. When Bree’s mother dies in an accident, she leaps at the chance to get away and attend a residential college program for promising high schoolers. That’s where she witnesses a demon feeding on a human’s soul, and a young mage tries to wipe her memory — unsuccessfully. Instead, his attempt awakens her own magic and changes the course of her life forever.

One Goodreads review literally just says “*cries in queer Vietnamese*”, so that’s promising. In this graphic novel we meet Tiến, who loves reading his favorite stories to his parents, who are struggling with their English. He wants to know if there’s a word for how he’s feeling or a good way to tell them he’s gay. Layered with the fairy tales he shares with his parents, follow along and see how this family’s moment in time unfolds.