MMGM: EXILE by Shannon Messenger with a Giveaway!

It seems appropriate to come back from another break from Marvelous Middle Grade Monday with a review of EXILE by MMGM founder Shannon Messenger. And I have even better news: I get to meet Shannon tonight! She’s doing a signing at a bookstore five minutes from my house, and I’m taking along a middle school…

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MMGM: THE SINISTER SWEETNESS OF SPLENDID ACADEMY by Nikki Loftin

Yay! I’m back to Marvelous Middle Grade Monday! Well, for this week anyway. I’ve been on a bit of a young adult kick lately since that’s what I’m writing at the moment. However, I managed to squeeze in a middle grade read last week, and it’s definitely worthy of a review. So here’s THE SINISTER…

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MMGM: DESTINY, REWRITTEN by Kathryn Fitzmaurice

A few weeks ago Kimberley Griffiths Little reviewed this book, and I was immediately intrigued by the premise. An eleven-year-old who loves romance novels? This was so me, except I’ve never read Danielle Steel. I’m totally with Emily on the happy endings, though. Anyway, here’s the description. Eleven-year-old Emily Elizabeth Davis has been told for…

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MMGM: SECRETS FROM THE SLEEPING BAG by Rose Cooper

I came across this book as I was looking for stories set at camps, and I really enjoyed it. SECRETS FROM THE SLEEPING BAG is actually the third book in a series, but you don’t need to read the others first. Here’s a brief description: During four weeks at Camp Krakatow (pronounced Crack-A-Toe), Sofia Becker…

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MMGM: ONCE UPON THE END by James Riley

So, I usually wouldn’t review two books by the same author in the same series so close together, but I can’t help myself. It’s been a while since I read a book and just had to read the next, and the next right away. But that’s how I felt about the HALF UPON A TIME…

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MMGM: VANISHED by Sheela Chari

Two weeks ago, I was intrigued by Akoss’ post on VANISHED by Sheela Chari. A middle grade book about a mysterious instrument? Plus, I love this cover. I had to read it! Here’s the blurb: Eleven-year-old Neela dreams of being a famous musician, performing for admiring crowds on her traditional Indian stringed instrument. Her particular…

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MMGM: HALF UPON A TIME by James Riley

I’m back! I took a couple of weeks off from Marvelous Middle Grade Monday to go on vacation and then catch up, but I do have a review this week. It’s a book I first heard about on Shannon Messenger’s blog. She recently reviewed the final installment in this series, and I had to check…

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MMGM: IN A GLASS GRIMMLY by Adam Gidwitz

First of all, the winner of the paperback copy of MY VERY UNFAIRY TALE LIFE is: Jennifer Rumberger Thanks to everyone who entered! I’m excited to share IN A GLASS GRIMMLY this week for MMGM. I read Adam Gidwitz’s first book, A TALE DARK AND GRIMM, before I started this blog, so I didn’t get…

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MMGM: THE HERO’S GUIDE TO STORMING THE CASTLE by Christopher Healy

Happy Memorial Day! Today I’m featuring THE HERO’S GUIDE TO STORMING THE CASTLE, the sequel to one of my favorite middle grade reads of 2012. If you haven’t read THE HERO’S GUIDE TO SAVING YOUR KINGDOM, I highly recommend you do, and definitely before this one. Here’s the description: Prince Liam. Prince Frederic. Prince Duncan….

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MMGM: RUMP by Liesl Shurtliff

It’s particularly appropriate for me to cover Liesl Shurtliff’s RUMP: THE TRUE STORY OF RUMPELSTILTSKIN this week for MMGM. Why, you might ask? Because I was first introduced to Liesl through The Writer’s Voice contest, which is happening this week. My coach, Krista Van Dolzer, is one of Liesl’s critique partners (her name’s in the…

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