Top Fives: Scholastic’s Summer 2018 Mailing

Posted on by missprint

This week I realized that although I don’t go to preview events for Scholastic, I can definitely still do a recap of books I receive in their seasonal mailings of middle grade and YA arcs. Here are my top fives from their Summer 2018 box.

Middle Grade

  1. Lovely, Dark, and Deep by Justina Chen: I love Justina Chen. She’s one of the first YA authors I ever met and her books still hold a special place in my heart. This one could technically by YA but I think it also counts as upper middle grade. Violia Li is determined to lead a normal life, even as her extreme case of photosensitivity promises to make that difficult. With a swoony boy that the blurb describes as a Thor look-a-like it’s safe to say that this will be a great read-a-like for fans of Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon.
  2. From Me to You by K. A. Holt: In a departure from her verse novels, Holt tackles grief and moving on in this story where Amelia decides to try to complete her older sister Clara’s middle school bucket list as a way to move on now that Clara has died. Publishing in May.
  3. Strays Like Us by Cecilia Galante: Surly foster child trying to stay detached until she can go home. A motley band of misfit friends. A rescue dog. All the makings of a poignant middle grade. Publishing in June.
  4. Two Dogs in a Trench Coat Go to School by Julie Falatko and Colin Jack: Waldo and Sassy decide that they have to save their boy Stewart from the horrible nightmare of school. All they have to do is disguise themselves as a human with a handy trench coat and tag along. The rest should be simple, right? This is a series starter and it sounds like a riot. Publishing in May.
  5. Confusion is Nothing New by Paul Acampora: Ellie uses 80s music, Cyndi Lauper, and perseverance to navigate the confusion world of modern girlhood–especially for a girl like her being raised by her single father. Publishing in May.

 

Young Adult

  1. Give Me Some Truth by Eric Gansworth: I pushed really hard to get Gansworth’s earlier novel If I Ever Get Out of Here on this year’s summer reading list (it made it, yay). I’m excited to see what Gansworth does with a contemporary setting in this story about teens becoming unlikely friends as they try to make their mark (on and off the reservation). Publishing May 2018.
  2. I Felt a Funeral in My Brain by Will Walton: My friend Estelle adored Walton’s debut Anything Could Happen and the author has been on my radar since. This book is a little bit about poetry and a lot about grieving. I’m assuming some Emily Dickinson connection from the title and I am here for it. Publishing May 2018.
  3. Listen to Your Heart by Kasie West: Obviously I had to put a new Kasie West on here. I absolutely loved her last book Lucky in Love (I pushed that book so hard I felt like it was my job) and I am very excited to see what she does in this story about a girl who reluctantly winds up dispensing advice via podcast. Publishing May 2018.
  4. The Fandom by Anna Day: This one actually sounds bananas and I’m still not totally clear on the plot. The story starts with a girl at Comic-Con with her friends who are cosplaying. Only to then be catapulted into the story. Where the main character dies? I don’t know. This one is getting a big marketing push and I think it’s probably going to be big. Publishing in April.
  5. Storm-Wake by Lucy Christopher: YA fantasy, Tempest retelling. Need I say more? Publishing in July.