Tag Archives: hope

Controlled Burn

by Erin Soderberg Downing

Conditional Recommendation: After a fire evicts her family from their home and puts her younger sister in the hospital, 12-year-old Maia must learn to face her fears while staying with her grandparents in Minnesota.

Age: Middle Grade
Series: Stand Alone
Pages: 237
Published: 2022
Genre: Fiction

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The Green Ember

by S. D. Smith

Unconditional Recommendation: Two young brother and sister rabbits are forced to flee their home and find their place in the wider world of creatures at war and endeavoring to regain a better world.

Age: Middle Grade
Series: The Green Ember, Book 1 of 4
Pages: 365
Published: 2014

Genre: Fantasy, Animal

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If I Live (If I Run #3)

by Terri Blackstock

Conditional Recommendation: In this thrilling conclusion, fugitive Casey Cox must stay alive a little longer to expose the true criminals, but she’s running out of places to hide from both the police and the people who want her and those she loves dead.

Age: Young Adult
Series: If I Run, Book 3 of 3
Pages: 352
Published: 2018

Genre: Christian Thriller

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Scribbler of Dreams

by Mary E. Pearson

Conditional Recommendation: Senior Kaitlin Malone is Juliet to Bram Crutchfield’s Romeo in this contemporary retelling of a hateful family legacy and one girl’s journey to love and understanding.

Age: Young Adult
Series: Stand Alone
Pages: 223
Published: 2002

Genre: Romance

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Waiting for Normal

by Leslie Connor

Conditional Recommendation: 12-year-old Addie perseveres in her optimism and hope for a normal life while living in a little trailer with an unreliable mom who keeps abandoning her.

Age: Middle Grade
Series: Stand Alone
Pages: 290
Published: 2008
Genre: Contemporary

Award: Schneider Family Book Award for Middle School Book (2009)

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The Tiger Rising

by Kate DiCamillo

Conditional Recommendation: With the help of a feisty friend and a caged tiger, a 12-year-old boy learns how to process his bottled-up grief.

Age: Middle Grade
Series: Stand Alone
Pages: 128
Published: 2001
Genre: Contemporary

Awards: Charlie May Simon Children’s Book Award Nominee (2004), National Book Award Finalist for Young People’s Literature (2001)

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Esperanza Rising

by Pam Muñoz Ryan

Unconditional Recommendation: When 13-year-old Esperanza moves from a ranch in Mexico to a farm labor camp in California, she learns to rise above her circumstances.

Age: Young Adult
Series: Stand Alone
Pages: 304
Published: 2002
Genre: Historical

Awards: Jane Addams Children’s Book Award for Older Children (2001), California Young Readers Medal for Middle School/Junior High (2003), Judy Lopez Memorial Award for Children’s Literature (2001), Pura Belpré Award for Narrative (2002)

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The Secret Garden

by Frances Hodgson Burnett

Unconditional Recommendation: A story of mystery, transformation and new life for a neglected young girl, her fearful cousin, and an abandoned garden.

Age: Middle Grade
Series: Stand Alone
Pages: 358
Published: 1911

Genre: Classic

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