This summer, our theme for the Summer Reading Club is Reading Rocks. Here are a handful of books great for middle schoolers who want to rock out this summer!

Blackbird Fly by Erin Entrada Kelly (2015; 296 pages). Middle school can be really tough. For Apple, who moved to Louisiana with her mother from the Philippines when she was little, it’s hard to tell who her friends are. She feels different from everyone and then disaster strikes. Apple finds out she’s on the Dog Log, a list the boys keep of the ugliest girls in school. When Apple has nowhere else to turn, she can always turn to music. She’s obsessed with the Beatles and longs to write and perform songs. If she can just save up enough money for a guitar, maybe it would change everything. This is a poignant, realistic story for any kid who’s felt like they just didn’t belong.

Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie by Jordan Sonnenblick (2004; 182 pages). Steven’s just a normal 8th grader – he plays drums in the school jazz band, he has a crush on a girl, and he’s constantly annoyed by his younger brother Jeffrey. But when 5-year-old Jeffrey is diagnosed with leukemia, everything changes. Suddenly, Steven would give anything for his brother to be his annoying self again. The worst part is, it seems like there’s nothing that Steven can to do help. But with the help of his music, he might find a way to make a difference. You probably don’t think a book about cancer can be funny, but you’re wrong. This is one of my favorite types of books: laugh-out-loud funny and also serious and sad. Kids who like to laugh or cry or both should pick up this book.

The First Rule of Punk by Celia C. Perez (2017; 310 pages). Maria Luisa (call her Malú) is not too happy to be moving to Chicago for 2 years with her mom. She’s going to miss her dad who owns a record store and she has to start seventh grade at a brand new school. To make matters worse, she violates the dress code with her punk rock look on the very first day and gets made fun of by some of her Latino classmates because she doesn’t speak Spanish well. When the school bans her punk rock act for the talent show, claiming it’s not appropriate for school, Malú and her new friends decide to fight back by holding their own alternative talent show. This is a book for any nonconformist kids who march to the beat of their own (punk rock) drums.

Like Vanessa by Tami Charles (2018; 284 pages). It’s 1983 and middle-schooler Vanessa Martin has just watched Vanessa Williams crowned as the first African American Miss America. It gives her hope for her own dreams of being Miss America one day – never has someone who looked so much like Nessy been crowned. But when her middle school puts on a pageant, Nessy is not so sure she should compete. She’s bigger than the other girls and darker – could someone like her win the crown? With help from a dedicated music teacher and a posse of friends, Nessy just might have a chance. This is a great choice for readers who like books with characters that feel so real it’s as if you’re meeting an actual person.

Any of these might make a great pick for middle schoolers. If you’d like more suggestions for books to read this summer, feel free to stop by our Children’s or Teen desks on the lower level of the library. We have friendly librarians waiting to help you pick out great books to read this summer!

— Abby Johnson, Collection Development Leader