New Year, New Middle Grade Faves!

Confidentially Yours 5:
BROOKE'S BAD LUCK
by Jo Whittemore
1/3, HarperKids

A charming MG series about middle school advice columnists, perfect for fans of CUPCAKE DIARIES or BABYSITTERS CLUB!

​Brooke Jacobs never considered herself to be the superstitious type. But after she and her friends visit a psychic who tells Brooke she's in for some bad luck, the panic sets in. To make matters worse, the school paper team is competing in an important contest. Brooke, Vanessa, Heather, Tim, and the rest of the team need to put together their best issue yet. There's no time for bad luck . . . but that's all Brooke seems to have.

Not wanting to let everyone down, Brooke must decide, once and for all, who's in charge of her life: a silly superstition or herself. And she better find out fast, because bad luck or not, the contest must go on.

STEF SOTO:
TACO QUEEN 
by Jennifer Torres
1/17, Little Brown

A heartwarming and charming debut novel about family, friends, and finding your voice. 

​Estefania "Stef" Soto is itching to shake off the onion-and-cilantro embrace of Tia Perla, her family's taco truck. She wants nothing more than for Papi to get a normal job and for Tia Perla to be a distant memory. Then maybe everyone at school will stop seeing her as the Taco Queen. 
​
But when her family's livelihood is threatened, and it looks like her wish will finally come true, Stef surprises everyone (including herself) by becoming the truck's unlikely champion. In this fun and heartfelt novel, Stef will discover what matters most and ultimately embrace an identity that even includes old Tia Perla.

Ranger in Time 5
JOURNEY THROUGH ASH AND SMOKE
by Kate Messner
​1/31, Scholastic

The time-traveling golden retriever goes on his most dangerous mission yet!

​Ranger is a time-traveling golden retriever with search-and-rescue training. In this adventure, he goes to Viking age Iceland, which proves to be tough terrain for Ranger to navigate. Usually it's Ranger's job to save the day before he can return to his family, but he meets a girl named Helga who rescues him more than once. And when a nearby volcano threatens to erupt and Helga's new baby brother or sister starts to come early, they must journey through ash and smoke to find Helga's father. But if Helga doesn't need Ranger's help, how will he ever get home?