Christian books for 7th graders

I of course recommend that you check these out yourself first :)

Alone Yet Not Alone (historical fiction)
Anxious for Nothing young readers edition (nonfiction)
Behind Enemy Lines (nonfiction)
Beyond (fiction)
Blades of Eternity series (fantasy)
Case for Christ, young readers edition (nonfiction)
Case for Heaven, young readers edition (nonfiction)
A Chameleon, a Boy, and a Quest (fiction)
Christian Heroes biographies (nonfiction)
Cooper Kids series (mystery)
Daughters of the Faith series (historical fiction)
Dreamkeeper Saga (fantasy)
The Edge of Everywhen (fiction,  one of my very favorites!)
Evan Miller is Waking Down (dystopian fiction)
From Sadie's Sketchbook (fiction)
Gifted Hands: young readers edition (nonfiction)
Goliath Must Fall, young readers edition (nonfiction)
Good News Shoes series (fiction)
Grace Not Perfection for young readers (nonfiction)
Hunger Winter series (historical fiction)
Jack Staples series (fantasy)
Jack Zulu series (fantasy)
Keeping Holiday (fantasy)
Life Behind the Wall (historical fiction)
Lightglider Origins (fantasy)
Lightseekers series (fantasy)
The Misadventured Summer of Tumbleweed Thompson (historical fiction)
No Place Like Holmes (mystery)
Passages series (fantasy)
Rainbow Garden (fiction)
Red Rock Mysteries (mystery)
Sapphire Sword series (fantasy)
Secret at Pheasant Cottage (fiction)
Seven Sleepers series (fantasy)
So You're About to be a Teenager (nonfiction)
Sons of Angels series (fantasy)
Soul Surfer (nonfiction)
Star of Light (fiction)
The Tanglewood's Secret (fiction)
This Seat's Saved (fiction, one of my very favorites!)
Treasures of the Snow (fiction)
Vanished (mystery) (I don't recommend book 2) 

Three great new releases for kids

📗 Becoming You for Boys... Books about puberty are often very frustrating for parents. I've checked so many of them! It often seems that the more modern books contain content I don't agree with but the older ones often include body image negativity, illustrations I find inappropriate, and more. Some are too vague and some give way too much information. Every parent should of course check for themselves but I was truly completely happy with this book. I also appreciate that it briefly goes over the changes that girls will experience while encouraging young men to be respectful about it all, and also goes over technology safety including never sending someone certain pictures of yourself. Finally, a quote I think parents will appreciate so they can get a feel for the worldview here: "The world says a lot of confusing things about what it means to be a boy or a girl, but God is clear and kind. You don't have to like everything people say boys should like. You don't have to love sports and be tough all the time to be a boy! But you can trust that God chose your body and who you are with love."

📕 Becoming You for Girls... I have tried several puberty books for girls and this really is my favorite! Along with an approach that repeatedly reminds a young lady that her changing body is good and God-designed, I found it to be informative and appropriate. While it's full of color illustrations, there aren't any that I find to be inappropriate in any way.

📘 God and Me... I absolutely loved this first Bible study! This is exactly what a kid needs to prepare them for a life long habit if thinking and reflecting on their Bible reading. It starts by actually explaining the Bible- how it's broken up, what are those numbers all through it (chapters + verses), and how to study the Bible. Then it's truly fun- Bright, colorful, a few games, lots of questions to make your kiddo really think about what they've read. I'm so excited to do this one with my toddler in a few years but I think my 8-year-old is going to enjoy it in the meantime. 

* I received a free copy of each of these from New Growth Press in exchange for an honest review. 

July reads

This was a great month for kid books! Adult books, not so much. I spent a lot of time on/procrastinating my book club's read this month (Life, and Death, and Giants) which I ultimately did not finish and was a bit uncomfortable with. There were mixed feelings. Two women loved it, one didn't finish it either and doesn't plan to, and two did finish it but didn't necessarily enjoy the process. I'm super excited for our next read!

GROWN-UP READS:

📖 Bible study: 2 Peter // Ephesians using Worthy // Slowly studying Ezekiel with my husband 

📖 The Girl From Tomorrow's Town* (Christian, historical fiction)... I still have yet to meet a circus book I didn't enjoy. This one got a full review here.  

📖 Your Life Signature* (Christian, nonfiction)... What a book! This book made me think and reflect so much, which I always love. The author uses a lot of imagery and illustration to express his points so it was really jam-packed with gold that led me down some wonderful paths, my favorite being the story of Sir Nicholas Winton in the beginning or middle of the book. I have thought a lot about my purpose for years and this book only made me that much more excited to see what else God has planned for me and my one little life. 

YA & MIDDLE GRADE READS 

📖 Falling Out of Time (secular, fiction)... Another Margaret Peterson Haddix- this one is a sequel to Running Out of Time I never knew existed! I enjoyed it and then my oldest did, too.

📖 Game Changers (secular, middle grade, fiction)... Truthfully, I didn't like it. I'm not into sports books. There was a bit of rudeness but not too bad and I do think kids who like sports books will probably like it.
📖 Hand Lettering God's Word for Girls* (Christian, middle grade, nonfiction)... I enjoyed this kind of art book-devotional combo and put up a full review here. 

 📖 Island Dreamer (Christian, YA, fiction)... This is the 5th book in the Christy Miller series and I still find them compulsively readable. I do think I would have loved it as a teenager.

📖 The Legend of Bluebell Forest (secular, middle grade, fiction, TGTB)... This was the free book from the TGTB summer reading program. I liked it and think my daughter will like it, but we'll see if she wants the second!
📖 The Nine Moons of Han Yu and Luli (secular, middle grade, historical fiction, time slip)... I really enjoyed this ancient China / 1930s Chinatown time slip! I can't wait for a few of my kids to read this one.
📖 Nory Ryan's Song (secular, middle grade, fiction, TGTB Book List)... This is a historical fiction about the Irish potato famine, a subject I've only encountered in fiction one other time. I found it interesting, though it wasn't a new favorite or anything, and I'll be curious to see what my oldest thinks if/when he picks it up!
📖 Raising Dragons (Christian, YA, fantasy, fiction)... I mean, fantasy is not for me so I kind of hated it but I get the appeal and can see that my oldest will love it. There was a bully teasing a girl and implying that she isn't a virgin, and later that girl implies that she was abused in a specific way by her father. Both issues are one single line and are implied, not said. I decided I'm okay with it for 8th grade but I do wish those things weren't in there. 

📖 Resist (secular, middle grade, historical fiction)... This was a short but good WWII resistance story and I'll definitely try more Alan Gratz books.
📖 The Story of Simone Biles (secular, chapter book, nonfiction, TGTB book list)... I liked Simone Biles' memoir and I enjoyed this version for the younger crowd.
📖 A Summer Secret (Christian, upper middle grade / YA, Amish fiction)... This was a good 8th grader-ish story. I thought it would be more of a mystery but the mystery is solved pretty quickly and then it becomes more of a social dilemma. I liked it and will definitely try book 2.  

📚 PICTURE BOOKS WE LOVED: God Bless You and Goodnight (not new, but this is the current favorite bedtime book) // The Heart Who Needed a Friend (full review here) // Play With Me (this month's Imagination Library gift) // Thank You Bear 

* I received a free copy of The Girl From Tomorrow's Town, Your Life Signature, and Hand Lettering God's Word for Girls in exchange for an honest review. 

4 New Releases

Blades of Eternity #2: The Curse of the Black Saber* (Christian, middle grade, fantasy, fiction)... This second book was just as engaging as the first. I'm truly not a fantasy fan I'm the slightest but most of my children are so here I am! There is some really great imagery on this one but of course parents should be aware of standard fantasy battles (good vs evil) as with most fantasy. I like this series more for the upper middle grade-middle school group. This series is a new smash hit for my oldest and we'll eagerly await book 3. 

The Heart Who Needed a Friend* (Christian, fiction, picture book)... This was a cute little wintertime picture book focused on friendship from a Biblical perspective. I thought it was sweet and I know it'll be a fun read for a lot of families!

 

Worthy* (Christian, nonfiction, Bible study material)... This is a Bible study commentary on Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians and Philemon. It's exactly what I want in a Bible study! I want to understand the Bible, not just hear about how this relates to your sister's husband's cousin. Right at the beginning of each section is a Bible Background Check to help me understand genre, key verses, author, audience, historical context, and cross-referencing. I have been loving this and will absolutely be saving it forever for my family and I to reference down the road.

Your Life Signature* (Christian, nonfiction)... What a book! This book made me think and reflect so much, which I always love. The author uses a lot of imagery and illustration to express his points so it was really jam-packed with gold that led me down some wonderful paths, my favorite being the story of Sir Nicholas Winton in the beginning or middle of the book. I have thought a lot about my purpose for years and this book only made me that much more excited to see what else God has planned for me and my one little life.

* I received a free copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Christian Books for 6th Graders

100 Days of Adventure (nonfiction) 
The Aedyn Chronicles (fiction, fantasy) 
Andi Unexpected (fiction, mystery) 
Arcade series (fiction) 

Beyond the Orphan Train series (historical fiction) 
The Chronicles of Narnia (fiction, fantasy) 
Dream Traveler's Quest series (fiction, fantasy) 
Emma's Secret (historical fiction) 
A Girl After God's Own Heart (nonfiction) 
Girls of Harbor View: Girl Power // Mystery Bus (fiction) 
Heaven for Kids (nonfiction) 
Indescribable Atlas Adventures (nonfiction) 
The Inkwell Chronicles (fiction, fantasy) 
Jones and Parker Case Files (fiction) 
The Key House (fiction) 
Marvel at the Moon (nonfiction) 
No Place Like Holmes (fiction, mystery) 
Princess in Camo series (fiction) 
The Promise and the Light (Biblical fiction) 
The Restorationists series (fiction, fantasy) 
Road Trip Rescue series (fiction) 
Rosa Takes a Chance (historical fiction) 
Sleuth Family Robinson (fiction, graphic novel) 
The Songs of a Warrior (Biblical fiction) 
The Sower's Secret (fiction) 
Sugar Creek Gang series (fiction) 

They Found Dragons series (fiction, fantasy, sci-fi) 

Viking Quest series (historical fiction) 

Hand Lettering God's Word for Girls

I was so excited to be offered a wonderful devotional resource for tween girls, Hand Lettering God's Word for Girls.

Not only does this book teach basic cursive and hand lettering skills (and provide supply recommendations), it also includes devotionals perfect for a young girl. 

I appreciate that this melds creative expression with treasuring the word and I am excited to see all the lovely new scripture art my loves create! I do believe scripture memorization to be powerful and important, and I also find a lot of value in displaying scripture in my home. This will be a wonderful resource for both! 

* I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review 

Middle grade Christian fiction about animals

🐾Brightwing Tales: Mole's Misadventure...  I do believe this was the very first time I'd ever read a story about a mole! There were of course other animals too. 

🦗 The Bug Bandits... Maybe it's cheating to put a bug book on an animal list but I don't think so! My nature child really enjoyed this one. 

🦎A Chameleon, a Boy, and a Quest... This one was set in Africa and, as the title suggests, heavily featured a chameleon. It's a four-book series but I've only read book 1 so far. This one is for older kids, more middle school age, and does contain some sad content. 

🐇Green Ember... This series, with three spin-off series, is all about rabbits. These are favorites among my children.

🦁The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe... This famous classic Christian fantasy series is full of animals. Along with Aslan the great lion we also see beavers, a mouse named Reepicheep, a horse, and so much more.

🐇Little Pilgrim's Progress... The original version of this book is about a human child but this newer version is about a young rabbit!

🐕Operation: Happy... This one is published by a Christian publishing house but didn't feel very Christian. This one features a dog.

🐕Road Trip Rescue... This trilogy is my girls' favorite and is fully focused on a dog story.

🐕The Sapphire Sword... another fantasy series, another dog! But this one talks.

🐕SAVE Squad #1: Dog Daze... Again, a dog story! This one is a series where each book is about a different animal but we've only read the first one, the dog story.

🦡The Shadow and the Promise... This series explores biblical stories through the animals who were there! This one is an Eden story from the perspective of rock badgers. We've only read the first book so far but look forward to more!

🐎Winnie the Horse Gentler... Horses, of course! We've read the Horse Gentler in Training chapter book series but only book one of this older series. 

Christian books for 5th graders

How cute is this little garden trinket? I spotted it at a Dollar General last month. 

Amon's Adventures and Tabitha's Travels (Biblical fiction)... These are Biblical fiction stories about Jesus combined with devotionals. I learned about these from Read Aloud Revival and the recommendation was to just read the story portion so that's what I did.

Baxter Family series (fiction)... This is a five book set and my daughters wish there were more. These are focused on a big family, Told from the perspectives of two of the sisters (Kari and Ashley, for those who are familiar with the adult series).

Danger on the Flying Trapeze (fictionalized biography)... I always enjoy good Circus book so I liked this fictionalized story about DL Moody.

Devos for Brave Boys / Devos for Brave Girls (nonfiction, devotional)... I previously had a copy of each of these and found that my children enjoyed them quite a bit at this age.

Everybody Always for Kids (nonfiction)... My kids and I love these Bob Goff books and find the stories inspiring and motivating.

Flight of the Fugitives (fictionalized biography)... This is the Gladys Aylward story and we found it interesting and exciting.

Green Ember series (fantasy fiction)... This is a long-standing favorite series for my children, including the three accompanying series (Old Natalia, Archer, and Lost Tales). My younger kids got to start the series early and they love it, too. There's a new addition releasing May 25th and we pre-ordered it :)

Hero Tales (nonfiction)... This is a great collection of short biographies and stories about various Christian heroes and missionaries. I found that several of these caught my attention and led me to seek out a longer book on the person.

Imagine series (Speculative/Biblical fiction)... These are a fun kind of Time travel/Biblical fiction series that really captured my kids' attention.

Ivan series (fiction)... This communist Russia series was on the Good and the Beautiful Book list. I found it interesting but my oldest did not so you'll have to see what you think!

Landon Snow series (fantasy fiction)... This fun, light fantasy involves talking books!

Lena in the Spotlight series (fiction)... This trilogy, about a Girl who is suddenly thrown into the spotlight is a definite favorite for my girls.

Lizzie and the Redcoat (historical fiction)... We listened to the audio version of this one last summer and it really brought the Revolutionary War to life for my girls.

My Name is Tani (nonfiction, memoir)... We all love this memoir about a refugee who came to America and became a fantastic chess player. Some of my kids have read this one multiple times.

The Power of a Praying Kid (nonfiction)... I've read a few Stormie Omaritan books but this is the only kid book. Only one of my children has read this one so far but she was very inspired.

The Seed of Faith (fiction, Christmas)... This Christmas read, which I do think is a better personal read than read-aloud, is short but sweet.

The Shadow and the Promise (fiction)... This is fun... basically, Biblical fiction from the perspective of animals who were there. I think animal lovers will enjoy this one. It's a series but I've only read book 1 so far.

Soul Surfer series (fiction)... this is my girls' favorite of all the Faithgirlz books they've read do far. This is a series that talks about surfing and amputation, just like Bethany Hamilton's real story. 

Great Christian books for 4th graders

📚Adventures of Lily Lapp (fiction)... My little Amish fiction fan and I have read the first two books in this series so far and she's definitely looking forward to the next one. This one will probably appeal most to girls. 
📘Concord Cunningham: The Scripture Sleuth (fiction)... I was surprised by how much one of my kids loved this one, I guess because I expected it to be too dated. 
📔Decisions, Decisions (nonfiction)... This is kind if like choose your own adventure meets devotional, but with very obvious consequences for the wrong choice. Some of my kids found this one to be very fun. 
📗The Drummer Boy (fiction, Christmas)... We loved this short dystopian Christmas story, in a place where the name of Jesus is never spoken. 
📘Everyone a Child Should Know (nonfiction)... We loved this book of short, mini biographies of people important to Christian history. We read this in our homeschool morning time years ago, just one short biography at a time, and all loved it! 
📕Fiasco in Florida (fiction)... This time travel adventure story was the first in a series but I haven't gotten to the next one yet. 
📚Glimmer Girls series (fiction)... This one is definitely girly, but it's a favorite for my girls. I Really appreciate the depth involved (especially in book 4) and the sisters working through struggles with each other. 
📚Imagine series (fiction)... This is a Biblical fiction time travel adventure situation my kids really liked. 
📚In Grandma's Attic series (fiction)... I wondered if this one would be too preachy but my daughter's really loved it and one has read this series multiple times. This is another that will likely appeal most to girls.
📘Indescribable (nonfiction)... We loved this devotional full of science and nature facts tied into scripture and thoughts on the Christian life. This was an excellent way to start homeschool mornings for a while and we loved the sequel and atlas book, too. 
📔Love Does for Kids (nonfiction)... Bob Goff is a fantastic storyteller and this was a fantastic book of short little stories inspiring us to love people well. 
📕One Wintry Night (fiction, Christmas)... We did this as a Christmas read- aloud a few years back and then I moved it into our fourth grade shelves. This is another good one. 
📚Prince Warriors series (fiction)... My kids loved this fantasy series by Priscilla Shirer and all of them have read the series multiple times. 
📗The Serpent Slayer (fiction)... I loved this one, another kind of time travel Bible fiction adventure story. 
📘Stand-Up Guys (nonfiction)... Mini biographies of inspiring Christian figures- specifically focused on males. 

All Things Narnia

I read The Chronicles of Narnia when I was about 11 years old and immediately fell in love. I wrote my own version and forever carried a fondness for all things Narnia! Now my children love Narnia, too. We've discovered all kinds of fun Narnia books over the years so I thought I'd finally share them here.

First, of course, the seven-book series itself. There are so many lovely editions but this is the kind I had as a kid. We think this, this, and this set are beautiful.

Board book of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe... We recently received this for our youngest. This is what gave me the idea to finally share this post!

Picture book of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe... I have so many fond memories of this one! It was so very, very long, but delighted each of my older children to no end. I do hope to get another copy someday.

Now, for the books we love outside of the series itself!

CS Lewis: Master Storyteller  (middle grade... I have enjoyed several of these Benge biographies and really enjoyed this one all about CS Lewis' life, faith, and of course work.

Finding Narnia: The Story of CS Lewis and His Brother (picture book)... This one covered plenty but especially focused on the author's relationship with his brother.

Through the Wardrobe: How CS Lewis Created Narnia (picture book)... Some of my children are budding fantasy writers who very much enjoyed this one.

The Mythmakers (YA, graphic novel)... John Hendrix does it again! This gorgeous graphic novel explores a lot but especially CS Lewis's time in the war and his friendship with JRR Tolkien.

Once Upon a Wardrobe (adult, Christian fiction,  great for teens)... I really enjoyed this fiction story, about a young college girl taking a class from CS Lewis and her chronically ill little brother who loves Narnia. I'll definitely pass this one onto my teens.

Painting Wonder (picture book)... we loved this picture book biography about the woman who illustrated the original Narnia books!


Extra Narnia fun- Cookbook // so many awesome offerings from A Fine Quotation and Carrot Top Paper Shop // this print // this mug // Narnia wardrobe reading nook // You can actually enter the children's section through a wardrobe at Fabled Books in Waco, Texas. 

Middle grade novels in verse

One of my kids absolutely adores a good novel in verse, one loathes them, and the others are cheerfully ambivalent. I know these aren't for everyone but here are our favorites if they're a hit with one of the kids in your life. 

Brown Girl Dreaming (secular, nonfiction)... This is a memoir, set in the 60s. I enjoyed it and added it to our 8th Grade book list. 

Emmy in the Key of Code (secular, fiction)... This one is a little unique in that it's focused on a coding class (and family, friendship, music, insecurity...) so is at times written in code. Some of my kids are really into Scratch and HTML coding so this one is fun for that reason. I added this to our 7th grade list. 

Enemies in the Orchard (Christian, historical fiction)... This one is from a Christian publishing house but wasn't super faith-focused. This WWII book is likely to be a bit much for younger readers. I added it to our 8th Grade list. 

Heartbeat (secular, fiction)... This main character has a pregnant mom so my kids enjoyed reading this one during my pregnancy. It's also about art, running, friendship, and a grandparent with dementia.  I added this to our 6th grade list. 

Little Dog Lost // Little Cat's Luck (secular, fiction)... These are fun for animal lovers. I added these to our 4th Grade book lists. 

May B (secular, historical fiction)... This a story about May and her grit as she's left alone in a cabin for an extended period of time. May also deals with dyslexia. This is on our 4th Grade list. 

On the Horizon (secular, historical fiction)... This WWII book is less intense than the one listed above. It's on our 5th grade list. 

The One Thing You'd Save (secular, fiction)... This is a class discussing the one thing they'd save if they could only save one thing from a house fire. I added it to our 5th grade list. 

Salt (secular, historical fiction)... This is a friendship story from the war of 1812. I added this one to our 7th grade list. 

Faithgirlz Master List

 

If you liked my American Girl master list, you'll like my FaithGirlz list! We hope they'll release many more of these books in the future. 

📖 Best Hair Book Ever... This one is a nonfiction with all kinds of fun hairstyles for girls who enjoy trying those. 

📖 Boarding School Mysteries... I really liked the first one but the second was a one-star read that really bothered me so I never continued the series. 

📖 From Sadie's Sketchbook... So far I liked the first and plan to continue. I expected this one to be full of drawings and doodles but it's not and is more geared toward the upper middle grade crowd. 

📖 Glimmer Girls series... I liked the messages in this fun series and it was a big hit around here. I was tempted to assume it was all just silly playfulness because of the covers but there was a lot of great depth woven into each book, especially the last two! 

📖 Good News Shoes series... So far I've read the first two and really liked them. These are way more of an exciting action-adventure story than I'd ever have guessed from the covers. 

📖 Faithgirlz journal... Lots of good prompts in this journal. 

📖 Lena in the Spotlight series... I liked this trilogy about a young lady becoming a movie star overnight. Lots of good faith content in these. The Daniels Sisters series is a companion series.

📖 Princess in Camo series... These are light and fun in general and are about a fictional family + their fictional TV show so you don't need to have watched the Duck Dynasty show to understand it all. 

Ultimate Bible for Girls... We had a different cover and I do prefer other Bibles, just my own personal preferences, but this is a nice Bible. I did not read every extrabiblical word but I saw nothing objectionable in what I read. 

Still on my list to try: 622 Harbor View series // The Daniels Sisters // Lucy // Samantha Sanderson series // Sophie series // Soul Surfer series

What I read in February

I tried to be really intentional about my first month of postpartum healing this time around and I feel like I did a good job! I napped or rested in bed reading during a lot of baby's naps plus I employed the same trick with this baby that I used to use during nighttime (early morning) feedings- read on the Kindle so I don't engage/stimulate baby during sleep hours yet don't fall asleep! But I didn't do much audio book listening since I wasn't doing the workouts, driving, or chores that normally make sense as audio book time.

First, grown-up reads...

📖 Bible study: Proverbs! Still focused on a very slow bible study- quality, not quantity.

📖 All That Really Matters (Christian, fiction)... I am really fascinated by the overall idea of influencers (it's such a strange byproduct of an internet-heavy world, isn't it?) and really enjoyed this novel about a popular makeup influencer and her time mentoring young adults who have aged out of the foster care system. I'm not at all interested in book 2 but I am really loving Nicole Deese lately so I'll be reading it anyway!

📖 Bitter and Sweet (Christian, fiction)... Yet another book exploring family dynamics and character development. I am forever drawn to deep, rich stories like these. This one is set in South Carolina and focuses on a toxic adult sister relationship + some ties to their great grandmother's past.

📖 Boost Your Breast Milk (secular, nonfiction. Parenting? Health?)... Good, short and to the point, helpful!

📖 The Brain's Way of Healing (secular, nonfiction, health)... I didn't read the whole super long book, just parts that matched up with a loved one's condition. So fascinating!

📖 Formula of Deception (Christian, fiction, suspense)... I was really into this Alaska suspense book but there was a point right near the end that kinda pulled me out of the story. I will try more Carrie Stuart Parks in the future.

📖 Habits of the Household (Christian, nonfiction)... I adored this book! But I do think you won't get much out of it if you aren't actively parenting young children.

📖 Meet Me in the Margins (Christian [but not really], fiction)... I read this because Janssen said it was a good clean read for teens + I'm a sucker for a good book about books/writing. I am not a sucker for romance but they're growing on me IF they're done right. I loved this one! 

📖 A Time to Stand (Christian, fiction)... I was so curious to see how this one would go- a black lawyer who feels called to defend the white police officer who shot an unarmed black teenager. I have liked the other Robert Whitlow books I've read and I liked this one, too. 

📖 Plus the designated chapters of my ongoing baby reads this year, What to Expect: The First Year // The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding // The Wonder Weeks 

And for my kids' shelves...

📖 All of Creation (Christian, upper middle grade, nonfiction)... I've always thought it so strange that an environmental sustainability focus is so often seen as almost anti-Christian. The environment was hand-created by God, we live here, it's the thief who came to destroy, and besides, God is pretty clear in Genesis that we're supposed to take care of our world. This book did a good job of laying out practical things we can do to protect specific plants/creatures/habitats in a very Biblical, faith-focused way. #Christianhippie 🤷🏼

📖 The Blind Girl's Song (Christian, middle grade, fictionalized biography)... This was a well-done, engaging biography about the author of many famous hymns. I enjoyed this one and think a lot of music-minded kids will enjoy it, too. 

📖 Can You Survive: an Alien Invasion (secular, middle grade, fiction, choose-your-own-adventure)... Something that interested my son... Fluff of course, overall fine. Like most of these kinds of books, some adventure paths were better than others.

📖 DNA by Alvin and Virginia Silverstein (secular, middle grade, nonfiction)... Short and informative with fun tidbits thrown in.

📖 Flight of the Eagles (Christian, middle grade, fantasy)... I was curious to see if this 90s story would be too old and outdated for my oldest but it wasn't! He definitely plans to continue the series.

📖 Heroes: Incredible True Stories of Courageous Animals (secular, nonfiction)... These are all stories about animals helping during wars. Some stories end sadly but it's a good read for kids who can handle that.

📖 Kate and the Spies (Christian, middle grade, historical fiction)... This Revolutionary war novel is the third Sisters in Time book I've read and it's going to be a definite hit with one of my kids.

📖 Lena in the Spotlight series- Hello Stars // Daydreams and Movie Screens // Shining Night (Christian, middle grade, fiction)... I liked this Faithgirlz series about a young lady becoming a movie star overnight. Lots of good faith content in these.

📖 The Misadventured Summer of Tumbleweed Thompson (Christian, middle grade, historical fiction)... Really liked this one and know my kids will love it so already planning to use it as our next read-aloud! 

📖 The Mythmakers (secular, YA, nonfiction, graphic novel)... This is a great look at the lives + relationship of JRR Tolkein and CS Lewis which I'll definitely hand to my kids as high schoolers. I also loved this author's Bonhoeffer graphic novel in a similar style.

📖 Nicholas Quick and the Man from the Chaos Dimension (secular, middle grade, fiction, fantasy)... Fantasy is never my favorite but this one was fun and then was a hit with my oldest.

📖 Who Were the Navajo Code Talkers? (Secular, middle grade, nonfiction, history)... I don't love every book in this series but I did really enjoy this one!

📖 Winning the War in Your Mind for Teens (Christian, YA, nonfiction)... Wow, what a powerful read period but especially for supporting teens through those hard angsty times. 

Picture books we enjoyed this month: The Book Bus // Buzzing With Questions // Captain Cat // I Will Rejoice // I've Loved You Since Forever // The King Without a Shadow // Pa, Me, and the Sidewalk Pantry // The Prince and the Porker // Race to Kindness // Take Heart My Child // What's Inside a Flower // The Wonderful Things You Will Be // You Are My Happy  

Christmas middle grade favorites

Cute bookish decor spotted while running errands in the city... Top two were at Target, bottom two at Michael's

 

🎄 American Girl- Josefina, Kirsten, Addy (secular, historical fiction)... I don't love every American Girl book I've ever read (full master list of my American Girl reviews here) but I loved these three series and enjoyed all of the Christmas stories (book 3 in most girls' series), too.

🎄The Angel Tree (secular, fiction)... This one has a bit more snark than I usually go for but it didn't get too bad and I enjoyed both the message and the mystery as a group of kids worked to figure out who is their town's mysterious Christmas benefactor.

🎄 The Best Christmas Pageant Ever (secular with a great Christian message, fiction)... My third grade teacher read this to our class and my goodie two shoes lil Enneagram 1 wing was deeply offended. All I could see was a book full of bad examples set by those naughty Herdmans. But after Amy reviewed it with such high regard I gave it another chance and found myself tearfully moved. My mom sent us on a family movie date last weekend and we loved the new movie! 

🎄The Drummer Boy (Christian, dystopian fiction)... One of my kids loved this book so much, about a young boy in a society where Jesus's name isn't spoken learning about him anyway. It's a good one for sure.

🎄The Family Under the Bridge (secular, fiction, TGTB book list)... This might be a stretch as middle grade, kinda somewhere between an early chapter book and a true middle grade, but I really enjoyed this touching story about homeless people (a newly homeless family + a curmudgeonly old man) at Christmastime.

🎄A Grandma for Christmas (secular, fiction, TGTB book list)... This one is super, super short but it was a fun and sweet read-aloud we all enjoyed a few Christmases ago.

🎄Horse Diaries: Jingle Bells (secular, historical fiction)... This series is written about completely different horses (in different time periods) by different authors... So no need to have read any others! We loved the cozy Norwegian family. One of my kids adores horse books and adored this one, too.

🎄 The Light at Tern Rock (secular, fiction, TGTB book list)... This is another short read but this one brought us such great discussion! I don't think I'd expected it to be Christmassy when I read it but now we call it a Christmas read around here.

🎄One Wintry Night (Christian, fiction)...  I love this one by Ruth Bell Graham, mother of Billy Graham! It's definitely a fast read for the middle grade crowd but with such a lovely Christmas message!

🎄 The Promise and the Light (Christian, Biblical fiction)... My oldest thoroughly enjoys Katie Morgan's middle grade Biblical fiction and especially loved reading this one last Christmas.

🎄Tabitha's Travels (Christian, Biblical fiction)... I adored Amon's Adventure at Easter and then I loved reading this one at Christmas. I took the advice of Sarah Mackenzie and read just the fiction portions- fantastic Biblical fiction about the birth of Jesus!

🎄Treasures of the Snow (Christian, fiction, TGTB book list)... This is not truly a Christmas book but so much of it takes place over several different Christmases that it really felt like it!

🎄The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street (secular, fiction)... This was our read-aloud in 2022. There was a tad more sass than I remembered but we still really enjoyed this story about the five Vanderbeeker children banding together to save their home in time for Christmas!

🎄Winterfrost (secular, fantasy)... This was our 2023 read-aloud and it was such a hit for my kids. They loved learning more about the nisse (we got the cutest ornament to symbolize our read-aloud that year!) and we're rooting for Bettina and Klakke the whole time.

I also always think of Little Women (secular, classic, fiction) as a Christmas book even though it technically isn't.