Outstanding International Books for Middle Grade

Updated November 25, 2024
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Caravan to the north : Misael's long walk
Argueta, Jorge
Paper Book
An urgent and eloquent account of a boy traveling in a caravan from his beloved homeland of El Salvador to the US border. This novel in verse is a powerful first-person account of Misael Martínez, a Salvadoran boy whose family joins the caravan heading north to the United States. We learn...
Crossing the Farak River
Aung Thin, Michelle
Paper Book
Fourteen-year-old Hasina is forced to flee everything she knows in this gripping account of the refugee crisis in Myanmar. For Hasina and her younger brother Araf, the constant threat of Sit Tat, the Myanmar Army, is a way of life in Rakhine province--just uttering the name is enough to...
Catherine's war
Billet, Julia
Paper Book
"A shining story of a young girl who struggles to come of age and find her place in a world fraught with danger." --Susan Campbell Bartoletti, Newbery Honor-winning author of Hitler Youth * Winner of the Youth Prize at the Angoulême International Comics Festival (voted by readers) * Winner...
Living with Viola
Fung, Rosena
Paper Book
"unforgettable . . . will shake middle grade readers to the core"--School Library Journal, starred review "Beautifully illustrated, relatable, and genuine." --Molly Brooks, creator of Sanity & Tallulah "Everyone needs to buy this book now. ...
Bone talk
Gourlay, Candy
Paper Book
Shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal (UK)Shortlisted for the Costa Prize (UK)Sunday Times Children's Book of the WeekThe Guardian Book of the MonthThe Times Books of the Year"Hotly Anticipated Historical Fiction for Young Adults" Amazon.co.ukIt is 1899. Ten year old Samkad...
Music for tigers
Kadarusman, Michelle
Paper Book
From Governor General's Literary Award finalist Michelle Kadarusman comes a novel about a young violinist who discovers her mother's family secretly harbor a sanctuary for extinct Tasmanian tigers in the remote Australian rainforest Shipped halfway around the world to spend the...
Soul lanterns
Kuzki, Shaw
Paper Book
The haunting and poignant story of a how a young Japanese girl's understanding of the historic and tragic bombing of Hiroshima is transformed by a memorial lantern-floating ceremony. Twelve-year-old Nozomi lives in the Japanese city of Hiroshima. She wasn't even born when the...
The barren grounds
Robertson, David
Paper Book
Narnia meets traditional Indigenous stories of the sky and constellations in an epic middle grade fantasy series from award-winning author David Robertson. Morgan and Eli, two Indigenous children forced away from their families and communities, are brought together in a foster...
How war changed Rondo
Romanyshyn, Romana
Paper Book
A Kirkus Best Book of 2021: A Best Picture Book for Starting ConversationsA USBBY Outstanding International Book of 2022A Bank Street College of Education Best Book of 2022 War has come to the idyllic town of Rondo. Can...
The girl who rode a shark & other stories of daring women
Ross, Ailsa
Paper Book
An inspiring biographical collection celebrating the adventurousness and ingenuity of girls and women around the world. Now more than ever, the world is recognizing how strong women and girls are. How strong? In the early 1920s, Inuit expeditioner Ada Blackjack survived for two...
The Night Raven
Rundberg, Johan
Paper Book
Mika is not your average twelve-year-old--and she's about to prove it. It's 1880, and in the frigid city of Stockholm, death lurks around every corner. Twelve-year-old Mika knows that everyone in her orphanage will struggle to survive this winter. But at least the notorious serial...
The wanderer
Van den Ende, Peter
Paper Book
Society of Illustrators, Dilys Evans Founder's Award Winner A New York Times Best Book of 2020 A Wall Street Journal Best Book of 2020 PRAISE "Electrifying. Extraordinary. Enigmatic and gorgeous." --The Wall Street Journal "An epic dream...
Migrants
Watanabe, Issa
Paper Book
A heartstoppingly beautiful wordless picture book about migration and empathy. The migrants must leave the forest. Borders are crossed, sacrifices made, loved ones are lost. It takes such courage to reach the end. At last the journey is over and the migrants arrive....
The kaya girl
Wolo, Mamle
Paper Book
An extraordinary tale of two teenagers from vastly different walks of life, this page-turner transports readers to a bustling market in Ghana's capital city where one friendship transforms two lives.  Writing with effortlessly engaging prose, Wolo showcases the...

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