Riveting Middle Grade Mysteries for Puzzle-Loving Kids


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Margaret Kingsbury grew up in a house so crammed with books she couldn’t open a closet door without a book stack tumbling, and she’s brought that same decorative energy to her adult life. Margaret has an MA in English with a concentration in writing and has worked as a bookseller and adjunct English professor. She’s currently a freelance writer and editor, and in addition to Book Riot, her pieces have appeared in School Library Journal, BuzzFeed News, The Lily, Parents, StarTrek.com, and more. She particularly loves children’s books, fantasy, science fiction, horror, graphic novels, and any books with disabled characters. You can read more about her bookish and parenting shenanigans in Book Riot’s twice-weekly The Kids Are All Right newsletter. You can also follow her kidlit bookstagram account @BabyLibrarians, or on Twitter @AReaderlyMom.

I imagine most schools across the U.S. are back in session, and I hope everyone’s school year is starting out great. I reviewed some back-to-school picture books about a month ago, if you’re looking for some recommendations. Today, I’m reviewing four fantastic new middle grade mysteries, plus two new releases by Indigenous American authors.

New Children’s Books Out This Week

Cover of On Powwow Day by Traci Sorell, illustrated by Madelyn Goodnight

On Powwow Day by Traci Sorell, illustrated by Madelyn Goodnight

This is a wonderful new basic concepts board book by award-winning Cherokee author Traci Sorell, set during a powwow. Each page spread shows a scene from a powwow with a number and color. For example, two drumsticks beat on a family drum, and Sorell asks young readers to identify which part of the drum is orange. It’s rhythmic and engaging, and I love the warm illustrations by Goodnight.

Cover of Boozhoo! / Hello! by Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley, translated by Mary Ann CorbiereCover of Boozhoo! / Hello! by Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley, translated by Mary Ann Corbiere

Boozhoo! / Hello! by Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley, translated by Mary Ann Corbiere

This vibrant and adorable picture book is written in both English and Anishinaabemowin. It’s similar to Brown Bear Brown Bear, What Do You See?, following animals in a nature setting and asking what each animal sees or hears. It then ends with the children ready for bedtime. I love the illustrations, which look like wood carvings, and the animal expressions.

For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.

New Middle Grade Mystery Books

A couple of really excellent middle grade mysteries are releasing today, so I thought I’d round up a few more from this year!

Cover of The Sherlock Society by James PontiCover of The Sherlock Society by James Ponti

The Sherlock Society by James Ponti

School is out for the summer for Alex and Zoe Sherlock, just in time to start a detective club with two of their friends. They do have a perfect last name for detective work, after all. Their mother quickly foils their detective agency plans, but their journalist grandfather comes to their aid by suggesting the quartet attempt to solve some of his cold cases. They decide to find the location of Al Capone’s missing treasure, but in the process, they discover an environmental mystery that turns out to be a lot more important to solve. This is a fast-paced mystery and the first in a planned series.

cover image for The Queen of Ocean Parkwaycover image for The Queen of Ocean Parkway

The Queen of Ocean Parkway by Sarvenaz Tash

This clever new stand-alone mystery has a magical twist. 11-year-old Roya wants to be an investigative journalist when she grows up and currently has a podcast where she unravels mysteries concerning her apartment neighbors. When she overhears her favorite neighbors discussing a family curse and mysterious disappearances in the laundry room, she immediately takes note (literally, she brings a notebook everywhere she goes). Then one of those neighbors disappears, and it’s all connected to a fortune-telling machine on Coney Island. With the help of the new kid in the building, the two begin to investigate, and they discover a time-traveling mystery that they need to unravel fast to save the missing neighbor.

Cover of The Mystery of Locked Rooms by Lindsay CurrieCover of The Mystery of Locked Rooms by Lindsay Currie

The Mystery of Locked Rooms by Lindsay Currie

This is another clever mystery about finding lost treasure, this time centering escape rooms. Twelve-year-old Sarah Greene and her two best friends love puzzles and escape rooms. Sarah’s dad has chronic fatigue syndrome and can no longer work. When a foreclosure notice arrives in the mail, Sarah enlists the help of her two friends to pull off the hardest puzzle of their life. According to rumors, in the 1950s, three brothers built a funhouse maze with buried treasure hidden within. Sarah wants the trio to try and find that treasure to save her family home.

cover of The Swifts: A Gallery of Rogues by Beth Lincoln; illustration of four children in an art gallery looking down from a balcony on a mimecover of The Swifts: A Gallery of Rogues by Beth Lincoln; illustration of four children in an art gallery looking down from a balcony on a mime

The Swifts: A Gallery of Rogues by Beth Lincoln, illustrated by Claire Powell

This is the second book in a delightful and funny middle grade mystery series. The first book, The Swifts: A Dictionary of Scoundrels, released last year. The first book is a murder mystery, and this second is a museum art heist. When a painting is stolen from the Swifts’ home, siblings Shenanigan, Phenomena, and Maelstrom travel to Paris to unravel the mystery with the help of their cousins. It’s a charming and fun series, and I’m looking forward to reading more!

Bookish Good

Have a Bookish Birthday by LPHPHave a Bookish Birthday by LPHP

Have a Bookish Birthday by LPHP

My spouse celebrated his 40th birthday this week. I should’ve given him this birthday card! $5

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Superkitties cake, the kids are all rightSuperkitties cake, the kids are all right





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