Night Ride - book review #iLoveMG

Welcome to #iLoveMG where I share middle grade books that my fifth graders recommend. (Please note that my fifth graders read a wide variety of books across a wide variety of genres, levels, and topics. Do not think that these books are "only" for fifth graders.) Or check out #3rdfor3rd for recommendations from when I taught third grade.

The Night Ride

Recommended by Lydia 

The Night Ride by J. Anderson Coats, is a charming fiction novel about a girl named Sonnia, who loves horses, and hopes to buy one of the king's horses named Ricochet, but soon, Ricochet gets moved to a nearby racetrack to be one of the kings racing horses, and Sonnia decides to move with him. She soon finds out that all the kids are participating in an illegal race at night, and the winner gets a grand prize of a lot of money! Sonnia is sure she can't ride in the night ride, but soon her beloved Ricochet is put at risk, and she knows she must. This thrilling middle grade novel, will capture your heart with adventure, love, and surprising twists. 

I would recommend this book to fantasy readers because even though it is fiction, it has that fantastical feeling to it, but even if you prefer non-fiction, this has a lot of difficult situations that Sonnia has to deal with, and so much to learn about herself, and others. She said: "Just because you have good memories with someone, doesn't mean they're a good person", and that is an important lesson we can all learn from. In conclusion, I would give this book a 10/10 for the emotional roller coaster, and because you feel like you're there experiencing everything with Sonnia.

Click here for all of our #iLoveMG posts. What are your favorite middle grade books?

PS Have you seen J. Anderson Coats's newest book, A Season Most Unfair? My fifth graders from '21-22 got to give input on the cover and were DELIGHTED their top choice made the cut! 

Diversify your Magic and Magical Schools Books

Every Friday I share one or more books with my students as part of #FirstChapterFriday. It's an amazing way to build your reading community and get kids excited about books

This week was one of my highest-demand categories...

Diverse Magic and Magical School Books

Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky by Kwame Mbalia

Lia Park and the Missing Jewel by Jenna Yoon (book two is out now!)

Nic Blake and the Remarkables: the Manifestor Prophecy by Angie Thomas

Lei and the Fire Goddess by Malia Maunakea

Shad Hadid and the Alchemists of Alexandria by George Jreije

The Marvellers by Dhonielle Clayton (book two is out now!)

The Witchlings by Claribel Ortega (book two is out now!)

Amari and the Night Brothers by B.B. Alston (book two is out now!)

Which have you read? I'm 4 for 8 and might have to request the rest from the public library, because these are going to be going hand-to-hand in my classroom for the rest of the year! 

Click here for all of our #iLoveMG posts. 

Sweep - book review #iLoveMG

Welcome to #iLoveMG where I share middle grade books that my fifth graders recommend. (Please note that my fifth graders read a wide variety of books across a wide variety of genres, levels, and topics. Do not think that these books are "only" for fifth graders.) Or check out #3rdfor3rd for recommendations from when I taught third grade.

Title

Recommended by Eliana

Sweep is a capturing story written by Jonathan Auxier. It is a fantasy story about friendship and hope, which captures the reader’s mind with its descriptive details that set the reader in the moment. The story opens in a city in Victorian England, set in the late 1800s. It starts with Nan Sparrow, a young 11 year old orphaned chimney sweep. The author describes her life as hard and brutal, as she lives under the watchful eyes of her master, Wilkie Crudd. The book also goes back and forth between chapters, sometimes referring to Nan as “the girl” and telling mysterious stories about her beloved Sweep, who supposedly took care of her for her childhood. 

After The Sweep mysteriously disappears, Nan’s life falls into ruins. Ever since the Sweep has disappeared, Nan’s childhood has been a dismal journey, until Nan discovers something shocking about a piece of char that The Sweep left for her, along with his hat. The piece of char has come alive! Nan decides to name this creature Charlie, and they go through a perilous journey to find out what Charlie really is. Read more to find out what happens next. 

The author, Jonathan Auxier, includes so much detail and feeling into this book that you can really feel like you are there with Nan. In some chapters, Charlie’s personality had me laughing because he is just so hilarious to read about. The author has also included a bunch of real life events, like the holidays that Charlie and Nan learn about. Overall, this is a great book, and I would definitely read a sequel. I think that the author makes this story tie up perfectly with comedy, while also including facts from the real world. If I had to rate this book, it would be a 8/10.

Click here for all of our #iLoveMG posts. What are your favorite middle grade books?