2025-2026 Middle School List

VA READS Middle School Selections 2025-2026

And then, Boom! by Lisa Fipps ISBN: 9780593406328

Joe escapes into comics, where heroes survive their "BOOM" moments. But when his mother vanishes and the power shuts off, he's alone until an abandoned dog and her pups give him a new reason to fight.

Buzzing by Samuel Sattin ISBN:9780316628419

Twelve-year-old Issac, who has OCD, finds relief from his intrusive thoughts in an after-school role-playing game. When his mom forbids him from playing, he must prove the game helps him more than it hurts.

Chronically Dolores by Maya Van Wagenen ISBN: 9780147512550

This summer, eighth grader Dolores hopes to win back her former best friend Shae and recover from an embarrassing incident at the end of the school year due a chronic bladder condition called interstitial cystitis. As part of her ill-fated plan, Dolores accepts help winning her friend back from the autistic Terpsichore, in exchange for agreeing to be her fake friend in order to get Terpsichore's helicopter mother to believe she can attend public school.

Give Me a Sign by Anna Sortino ISBN: 9780593533802

Lilah, who wears hearing aids, returns to a summer camp for the Deaf and Blind as a counselor, eager to improve her ASL and find her place in the community, but she did not expect to also find romance along the way.

Hands by Torrey Maldonado ISBN: 9780593323793 

Twelve-year-old Trevor has an adult problem to deal with: how to protect himself, his sisters, and his mother from his abusive stepfather (currently in prison) and he thinks the way to do that is to take up boxing, although he would really rather draw.

Kareem Between by Shifa Saltagi Safadi ISBN: 9780593699263

Seventh grader Kareem struggles with his best friend moving away, a failed football tryout, welcoming a new Syrian student, and his mom being stuck in Syria.When the star quarterback offers him a second chance in exchange for writing his essay, Kareem must find the courage to stand up for himself and hold onto hope.

Parachute Kids by Betty Tang ISBN: 9781338832693 

After their two-week family tour of Los Angeles, ten-year-old Feng Li Lin and her older brother and sister learn they will remain in California while their parents return to Taiwan, forcing them to navigate a new school, a new language, bullies, racism, and the pressures of running a household.

Shark Teeth by Sherri Winston ISBN: 9781547608508

Kita hopes her mom has truly changed, so her family can stay together, but she’s always waiting for the other shoe to drop. When she joins the school dance team and her coach starts asking questions, she becomes determined to keep up appearances no matter the cost.

Snowglobe by Soyoung Park ISBN: 9780593484975

In a frozen dystopian world, sixteen-year-old Chobahm dreams of escaping to Snowglobe, the domed city where life is glamorous and broadcast to the outside. When she’s chosen to replace her idol after a mysterious death, she soon realizes that life inside the dome is far more dangerous than it seems.

Weirdo by Tony Weaver Jr. ISBN: 9781250772862

Eleven-year-old Tony is bullied for loving comics, anime, and video games, making him question where he belongs. At a new school, he finally finds his people, but when the school is at risk of shutting down, he and his friends must fight to save it.