Our middle grade book spotlight this week is all about books that have been nominated for the Virginia Reader’s Choice (VRC) Middle School award for the 2021-2022 school year!! The VRC award was started back in the 1980s with the goal being that students across the state choosing what they thought the best book of the year is instead of adults. Every year, there are 10 middle grade books nominated for the award by a committee; readers then have a few months to read as many of the 10 as they can and then they will cast their vote for which one they think is the best. The book with the most votes wins the award!! Every tween, as long as you live in Virginia, qualifies to participate in this amazing experience and you can vote right here at your local Handley Regional Library System library (if you are interested just stop by and see someone in Youth Services!). These books and more can be found by searching the catalog using the search tag #vrcmiddle2021 as well as on Libby and Hoopla. Check back next week for a new middle grade book spotlight and if you have any book suggestions, please let us know!!
A Few Red Drops by Claire Hartfield--Explores the 1919 race riot in Chicago prompted by a single act of violence against a young black man. Driven by white European immigrants and black migrants from the South, the two races were pit against each other for jobs and living space, which created a breeding ground for racial hatred. Includes black-and-white photographs and examples of propaganda materials.
Genesis Begins Again by Alicia Williams--Thirteen-year-old Genesis keeps a list of all the things she hates about herself--she's up to ninety-six--the last of which is her very dark skin. Her gambling-addict father has once again lost their rent money, so Genesis moves in with her grandmother who claims that none of this would've happened if her mother had married a light-skinned man. At school, Genesis tries out for the talent show, but is ashamed of her dark skin, so she tries a number of skin-lightening techniques to no avail. She is now faced with either getting that list to 100 and beyond, or learning to love the skin she has.
The Line Tender by Kate Allen--Years after her marine biologist mother suddenly died, now twelve-year-old Lucy Everhart also loses a friend who might have been more than just a friend, and who also helped her as an amateur scientist. Lucy decides to take up her mother's research into sharks as a way to connect and grieve after the two losses. She joins a small, eclectic group to follow the great white sharks that her mother loved so much.
Child of the Dream by Sharon Robinson--Sharon Robinson, daughter of baseball legend Jackie Robinson, reflects on her unique coming of age during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. While on the front lines of the struggle as her father's daughter, and helping host get-togethers and fundraisers for notable civil rights dignitaries such as Martin Luther King Jr., she also struggled with all the challenges of puberty as well as being one of the only black children in her wealthy neighborhood, and the pressures that accompany such as role.
Other Words for Home by Jasmine Warga--When violence erupts in her seaside home in Syria, young Jude and her mother flee and go to stay with family in America. Though she's seen American movies, Jude doesn't feel prepared for the loud, fast lifestyle that Americans lead, nor is she prepared for starting a new school with the label of Middle Easterner. But Jude soon meets new friends, enjoys her family, and just might try out for the school musical.
Maybe He Just Likes You by Barbara Dee--A group of male classmates begin inappropriately touching seventh-grader Mila, and while some argue that they are merely flirting, others encourage her to report them for bullying. Hesitant to lay her burdens on her overworked mother, Mila begins taking karate lessons and learns to stand up for herself.