Finding Diverse Books 2026 | Grades 6-8

Updated January 16, 2026
LINCC (Libraries in Clackamas County) Oregon City Public Library
This is your list in printable form. Simply print this page using your browser's print command.

Finding Diverse Books 2026 | Grades 6-8

Drag items up and down to your preferred order then select the "Save Order" button.
Speak up, Santiago : a Hillside Valley graphic novel
Anta, Julio
Paper Book
Welcome to Hillside Valley! 12 year-old New York city kid Santi is heading upstate, in the debut of this irresistible contemporary graphic novel series about friends, family, community and identity--just right for fans of Mexikid and the Click series! Named one of the...

A Colombian American middle schooler who doesn't speak Spanish well struggles to fit in with his fluent peers during a summer visit to his grandmother in this graphic novel exploration of identity and acceptance.

Also available as an e-book.

Max in the land of lies
Gidwitz, Adam
Paper Book
Instant New York Times bestseller! USA Today bestseller! "A heartrending masterpiece of middle-grade historical fiction.″ -Booklist, starred review "The whip-smart combination of intrigue and adventure along with thought-provoking...

In the conclusion to Max in the House of Spies, an evacuated Jewish boy returns to his hometown of Berlin in 1940 as a British spy intent on infiltrating the Nazi radio propaganda machine--and a secret plan to find his missing parents. A fast-paced, kid-friendly thriller that explores what life was like in Hitler's Germany.

Also available as an e-book, a digital audiobook, and a Playaway audiobook.

Refugee
Gratz, Alan 1972-
Paper Book
The award-winning, #1 New York Times bestselling novel from Alan Gratz tells the timely--and timeless--story of three different kids seeking refuge. A New York Times bestseller! JOSEF is a Jewish boy living in 1930s Nazi Germany. With the threat of concentration...

A graphic novel adaptation of Alan Gratz's wildly popular novel, which intertwines the stories of three refugees from different times and places: 1930s Germany, 1990s Cuba, and 2010s Syria. An easy sell to fans of the original book as well as striving readers.

Also available as an e-book.

Fooled
Haas, Susan
Paper Book
In this fresh, funny, and fast-paced story, chaos ensues when the kids at a down-on-its-luck middle school come to believe that fake magic is the real deal! Magic loving, wheelchair user Lil Evers wishes she could start sixth grade at a real...

A group of kids with disabilities--who cope with being sequestered from their peers in a separate Special Education classroom by roleplaying that they're at magic school instead--inadvertently trick the rest of the school into believing they can cast real spells. A fun premise that explores an important issue; hand to fans of Wonder and Harry Potter alike.

How to free a jinn
Idil, Raidah Shah
Aru Shah meets Aladdin in this "fast-paced...delightful" (School Library Journal, starred review) debut middle grade fantasy about a curious girl who discovers she has the power to control an all-powerful jinn. ...

A neurodiverse Australian girl discovers an ability to tame jinn's when her family moves to Malaysia to care for her ailing grandmother. A great choice for fans of the Rick Riordan Presents series and other fantasy epics inspired by world mythology.

The blossoming summer
Johnson, Anna Rose
Paper Book
When English thirteen-year-old Rosemary is evacuated to her grandmother in America at the start of World War II, she uncovers the family secret--they are Anishinaabe and passing as white. Life in England is all Rosemary has ever known. . . but as WWII changes the world, no one's...

A WWII evacuation story about a British American girl who discovers her Anishinaabe heritage when she's sent to live with her American relatives during the Blitz. With its similar theme and tone, this novel is a must-read for fans of The War That Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley.

Also available as an e-book and a digital audiobook.

Will's race for home : a western
Rhodes, Jewell Parker
Paper Book
★ Winner of the Coretta Scott King Book Award! ★ ★ A New York Times bestseller! ★ ★ "Rhodes deftly captures a unique ­aspect of this historical event, with a perspective...

A twelve-year-old boy and his father team up with a former Union army officer to make it to Oklahoma in time for the 1889 Land Rush. With short sentences, clear language, and fast-paced chapters, this action-oriented Western is a great choice for striving readers. Pair with Birchbark House, Prairie Lotus, A Sky full of Song, and One Big Open Sky for a multi-faceted look at the Pioneer Era.

Also available as an e-book and a digital audiobook.

Find this list online

https://librarian.syndetics.com/syndeticsunbound/lp/806.1169/list/7162

Library staff! You can create and contribute to lists. Contact your catalog administrator or log in here.