‘22-‘23 Battle of the Books - Middle Grades

The Shape of Thunder

By: Jasmine Warga
Narrated by: Reena Dutt & Jennifer Jill Araya
Length: 7 hours 9 minutes

An extraordinary new novel from Jasmine Warga, Newbery Honor–winning author of Other Words for Home, about loss and healing—and how friendship can be magical. Cora hasn’t spoken to her best friend, Quinn, in a year. Despite living next door to each other, they exist in separate worlds of grief. Cora is still grappling with the death of her... Read more

When Stars Are Scattered

By: Victoria Jamieson & Omar Mohamed
Narrated by: Faysal Ahmed, Barkhad Abdi, Victoria Jamieson, Omar Mohamed, Robin Miles, Ifrah Mansour, Bahni Turpin, Hakeemshady Mohamed, Sadeeq Ali, Dominic Hoffman, Christine Avila, JD Jackson & Various
Length: 3 hours 42 minutes

“What a fun listen. I couldn’t recommend this graphic novel enough. I loved the narration as it brought the story to life. I can see this audiobook being played in classrooms. It’s enlightening to listen to a story about refugee life in Kenya and the emigration process. Read more

The War That Saved My Life

By: Kimberly Brubaker Bradley
Narrated by: Jayne Entwistle
Length: 7 hours 37 minutes

Winner of the 2016 Odyssey Award for Excellence in Audiobook Production

An exceptionally moving story of triumph against all odds set during World War 2, from the acclaimed author of Jefferson’s Sons and for fans of Number the Stars.
 
Nine-year-old Ada has never left her one-room apartment. Her mother is too humiliated by Ada’s twisted foot to... Read more

Starfish

By: Lisa Fipps
Narrated by: Jenna Lamia
Length: 3 hours 27 minutes

A PRINTZ HONOR BOOK • Ellie is tired of being fat-shamed and does something about it in this poignant novel-in-verse.

“In her debut novel, Starfish, Lisa Fipps confronts diet culture and fat phobia head-on. . . .  The book reads as if Ellie herself is writing these poems, which are accessible and engaging.”—The New York Times Book Review

Ever... Read more

To Night Owl From Dogfish

By: Holly Goldberg Sloan & Meg Wolitzer
Narrated by: Imani Parks, Cassandra Morris, Michael Crouch, Sullivan Jones, Bahni Turpin, Renata Friedman, Cassandra Campbell, Robbie Daymond, Giordan Diaz, Alexandra Harris, Johnathan McClain, Emily Rankin & Various
Length: 6 hours 13 minutes

From two extraordinary authors comes a moving, exuberant, laugh-out-loud novel about friendship and family, told entirely in emails and letters.

Avery Bloom, who's bookish, intense, and afraid of many things, particularly deep water, lives in New York City. Bett Devlin, who's fearless, outgoing, and loves all animals as well as the ocean, lives... Read more

The Ruins of Gorlan

Book One

Ranger's Apprentice: Book #1

By: John Flanagan
Narrated by: John Keating
Length: 8 hours 10 minutes

The international bestselling series with over 5 million copies sold in the U.S. alone!

They have always scared him in the past—the Rangers, with their dark cloaksand shadowy ways. The villagers believe the Rangers practice magic that makes them invisible to ordinary people. And now 15-year-old Will, always small for his age, has been chosen as... Read more

A Night Divided (Scholastic Gold)

By: Jennifer A. Nielsen
Narrated by: Kate Simses
Length: 7 hours 11 minutes

“Love this author and it's such a great narration of a story of the Berlin Wall's attempt to divide a family! Read more

Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus

Life of a Cactus: Book #1

By: Dusti Bowling
Narrated by: Karissa Vacker
Length: 5 hours 26 minutes

The audio edition of the bestselling middle grade novel about a spunky girl born without arms and a boy with Tourette syndrome navigating the challenges of middle school, disability, and friendship—all while solving a mystery in a western theme park.



Aven Green loves to tell people that she lost her arms in an alligator wrestling match, or a... Read more

I Am Malala

The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban

By: Malala Yousafzai
Narrated by: Archie Panjabi
Length: 9 hours 54 minutes

“Malala is so well read in this book. It’s important to see this book as an example of culture/society taking a dramatic shift. It’s always dynamic and anything can happen. It’s important to speak out for any injustice and not what only pertains to one’s self - there may not be anyone to speak for you if you sit back and watch everyone else go... Read more

House Arrest

By: K.A. Holt
Narrated by: Alex Kydd
Length: 4 hours 5 minutes

Timothy is on probation. It's a strange word—something that happens to other kids, to delinquents, not to kids like him. And yet, he is under house arrest for the next year. He must check in weekly with a probation officer and a therapist, and keep a journal for an entire year. And mostly, he has to stay out of trouble. But when he must take... Read more

Healer of the Water Monster

By: Brian Young
Narrated by: Shaun Taylor-Corbett
Length: 8 hours 59 minutes

Brian Young’s powerful debut novel tells of a seemingly ordinary Navajo boy who must save the life of a Water Monster—and comes to realize he’s a hero at heart. When Nathan goes to visit his grandma, Nali, at her mobile summer home on the Navajo reservation, he knows he’s in for a pretty uneventful summer, with no electricity or cell service.... Read more

City Spies

City Spies: Book #1

By: James Ponti
Narrated by: Lisa Flanagan
Length: 6 hours 50 minutes

A New York Times bestseller!
A GMA3 Summer Reading Squad Selection!
“Ingeniously plotted, and a grin-inducing delight.” —People
“Will keep young readers glued to the page…So when do I get the sequel?” —Beth McMullen, author of Mrs. Smith’s Spy School for Girls

In this thrilling new series that Stuart Gibbs called “a must-read,” Edgar Award... Read more

Black Brother, Black Brother

By: Jewell Parker Rhodes
Narrated by: Barrie Buckner
Length: 4 hours 36 minutes

From award-winning and bestselling author, Jewell Parker Rhodes comes a powerful coming-of-age story about two brothers, one who presents as white, the other as black, and the complex ways in which they are forced to navigate the world, all while training for a fencing competition.
Framed. Bullied. Disliked. But I know I can still be the best.

... Read more

The Bitter Side of Sweet

By: Tara Sullivan
Narrated by: JD Jackson
Length: 9 hours 20 minutes

Fifteen-year-old Amadou counts the things that matter. For two years what has mattered are the number of cacao pods he and his younger brother, Seydou, can chop down in a day. This number is very important. The higher the number the safer they are because the bosses won't beat them. The higher the number the closer they are to paying off their... Read more

Airman

By: Eoin Colfer
Narrated by: John Keating
Length: 11 hours 20 minutes

Conor Broekhart was born to fly. In fact, legend has it that he was born flying, in a hot air balloon at the Paris World’s Fair.

In the 1890s Conor and his family live on the sovereign Saltee Islands, off the Irish coast. Conor spends his days studying the science of flight with his tutor and exploring the castle with the king’s daughter,... Read more