2026-2027 Chapter Books

VA Reads Elementary Chapter Book Selections for 2026-2027

• Bodega Cats: Picture Purrfect by Hilda Eunice Burgos. Illustrated by Siara Faison. Henry Holt and Co. (9781250903747). Miguel wants to be an artist, and his parents want him to find something more stable and practical. Lolo wants a warm home away from the hungry alley cats. Can Miguel and Lolo work together to meet both of their goals, even if it means truly trusting each other?

• Chickenpox by Remy Lai. Henry Holt and Co. (9781250863300). 12-year-old Abby wants nothing more than to hang out with her friends without her annoying siblings. When the whole family comes down with a case of chickenpox and Abby is quarantined, Abby will have to learn to get along with her brothers and sisters in a new way.

• Gabby Torres Gets A Billion Followers by Angela Dominguez. Roaring Book Press. (9781250901361). Gabby Torres gets a brilliant idea to start a social media page for her environmental protection club, the Sea Musketeers. When she gets some negative responses to her page, though, will Gabby be able to handle it on her own?

• The House Next Door by Ellen Oh. HarperCollins. (9780062875822). Rory knows that kids are never safe in the house next door. There are ghosts and creatures that have nefarious plans for any children who step foot in that house. When two kids move in next door, he goes against a lifetime of knowledge to save them from their own house.

• Inside the Park by Andrea Williams. HarperCollins. (9780063285330). Pumpsie finally has the opportunity to see his #1 team-The Nashville Wildcats-win the championship. When he gets locked inside the stadium overnight with two men that have corrupt intentions for Pumpsie’s beloved Wildcats, he uses his knowhow to stop them.

• Kingdom of Dust by Lisa Stringfellow. Quill Tree Books. (9780063043480). Amara has lived in the dry, dusty kingdom of Kun her entire life. When she and her adoptive mother are attacked in the street after a festival, Amara learns that her homeland has more secrets and intrigue than she ever thought possible and she goes on an adventure to save her home.

• Pecan Sheller by Lupe Ruiz-Flores. Carolrhoda Books.(9798765610527). 13-year-old Petra dreams of being a writer, but growing up in 1930s San Antonio without her father and siblings to take care of makes that dream seem farther and farther away. When the Pecan Sheller strike takes over San Antonio’s pecan factories where Petra works, she has to decide what is more important: her job or her future.

• Shiny Misfits by Maysoon Zayid. Illustrated by Shadia Ann. Graphix. (9781338752502). Bay Ann knows she is a star, but when an accident happens and her classmate/crush “saves” her in front of a crowd, Bay Ann has to prove to the world that she is more than her disability. She’s amazingly talented, too!

• Vanya and the Wild Hunt by Sangu Mandanna. Roaring Book Press. (9781250899835). Vanya has always felt like an outsider. She has ADHD, and the books in her parents bookshop talk to her. When her family is attacked by a monster that she thought only existed in fairy tales, Vanya is swept into an adventure she can only imagine.

• The Zuzu Secret by Miriam Chernik. Charlesbridge Moves. (9781623545734). Josie wants to be a vet more than anything, and wants to go volunteer at the vet hospital. Unfortunately, her parents are distracted with big life changes  and her brother Abe, who has Prader-Willi Syndrome. Abe has his own secrets, and these siblings tell the story in alternating points of view.