Melissa Pimentel loves Jane Austen’s portrayal of tricky family dynamics in Persuasion. The One That Got Away takes that notion into the 21st Century.

Kayla Cagan has been keeping a journal since fourth grade, but she never considered writing a novel as a journal until Piper Perish popped into her head.

Girl with the Red Balloon is an intense and, at times, very dark, book. What makes it work is compelling material — both real and imagined.

The Henry Whiskers series by Gigi Priebe is an excellent example of books for the lower middle-grade that are enjoyable and don’t talk down to readers.

I’ve never been a fan of soccer. So when I received Ten: A Soccer Story, by Shamini Flint, I opened it with some trepidation. I was pleasantly surprised.

I’ve never been a fan of soccer. So when I received Ten: A Soccer Story, by Shamini Flint, I opened it with some trepidation. I was pleasantly surprised.

Alan Gratz’s Refugee is a profoundly moving novel. And it’s particularly poignant against the backdrop of today’s politics around the world.

“I think teaching has given me a heightened sense of empathy,” says Karen English, author of the middle-grade novel It all Comes Down to This.

Busy Builders: Construction Site is darling. I wouldn’t hesitate giving it. In fact, I already have two kiddos in mind for Christmas…

The Road Home, by Sarah Jacoby and Katie Cotton, and Through the Gate, by Sally Fawcett, explore the nuances of home in different, yet heartwarming, ways.

Busy Builders: Construction Site is darling. I wouldn’t hesitate giving it. In fact, I already have two kiddos in mind for Christmas…

Will Hillenbrand’s latest book is Share, Big Bear, Share with Maureen Wright. The following is a video interview with Cracking the Cover.