If you've perused the shelves at any of our library locations, you may have passed by a section labeled JR HIGH. What is JR HIGH? This collection focuses on the concerns and interests of middle school students, bridging the gap between elementary and YA fiction. It is a small but mighty collection, where you'll find Rick Riordan, AVI, and Soman Chainani, but it is FULL of hidden gems. Here are just a few that we love!
Sal and Gabi Break the Universe by Carlos Hernandez
Sal Vidón, a type 1 diabetic and amateur magician with the inexplicable ability to open holes in the space-time continuum, adjusts to his new life at Miami's Culeco Academy of the Arts. The teachers are eccentric, his fellow students think he's a brujo (a bad witch), and every so often, Sal brings versions of his deceased mother over from other dimensions. Making friends with ambitious journalist Gabi Real and her unconventional family helps ease the transition. When Gabi's hospitalized baby brother takes a turn for the worse, Sal's power might be the solution they need—unless it destroys the universe.
York: The Shadow Cipher by Laura Ruby
This alternate-history series depicts three kids who try to solve a modern-world puzzle and complete a treasure hunt laid into the streets and buildings of New York City. Twins Tess and Theo Biedermann and their friend Jaime Cruz are determined to solve the clues left behind by legendary inventors who dazzled New York with fantastic technology and skyscrapers before vanishing. As the intrepid trio follows a chain of previously undiscovered hints, they're drawn deeper into the truth behind the so-called Old York Cipher. Come for the puzzles, stay for the robot caterpillars.
Mascot by Antony John
After a car crash leaves Noah in a wheelchair, he is adjusting to the changes in his life and the way that those around him treat him differently. With the help of his longtime friend Alyssa and new friend Dee-Dub, Noah embarks on a series of hilarious challenges to beat the bully, drive away his mom's new love interest, and right other wrongs.
Nothing but Trouble by Jacqueline Davies
Two smart girls in one small town use their combined genius to liven up their world--one prank at a time. Maggie never knew her father, but she has inherited his gift for pranks and uses his old notebooks as a guide. Once she joins forces with new student Lena, there's no stopping the girls from livening up their dismal middle school with playful surprises for classmates, much to the principal's dismay.