Hello! I'm Afoma.
  • Book Reviews
    • Picture book
    • Chapter Books
    • Middle-Grade
    • Graphic Novels
    • Young Adult
    • Adult Fiction
    • Adult Non-Fiction
  • Book Lists
    • Picture Book Lists
    • Middle Grade Book Lists
    • Book Lists by Theme
    • Book Lists by Grade
    • Audiobook Recommendations
  • Join My Newsletter!
  • Go to the Blog
  • Summer Reading

Reading Middle Grade

Books for Kids and Grown Ups

  • Book Reviews
    • Picture book
    • Chapter Books
    • Middle-Grade
    • Graphic Novels
    • Young Adult
    • Adult Fiction
    • Adult Non-Fiction
  • Book Lists
    • Picture Book Lists
    • Middle Grade Book Lists
    • Book Lists by Theme
    • Book Lists by Grade
    • Audiobook Recommendations
  • Join My Newsletter!
  • Go to the Blog
  • Summer Reading

Book Lists, Middle Grade Book Lists · January 30, 2023

Middle Grade Fiction & Non-Fiction Pairings

Have you ever read a fiction title and immediately thought of a non-fiction title it would pair well with? Or does everyone’s brain not work like that? Several teachers have asked for a list of middle grade fiction and non-fiction pairings, and my brain was so happy to oblige! On this list, you’ll find 20 books (or 10 pairings) of middle grade fiction and non-fiction titles with a shared theme. The idea behind pairings is both books complement each other and provide readers with a well-rounded view of the topic at hand. I hope you’ll enjoy these picks!

Middle Grade Fiction & Non-Fiction Pairings

10 Best Middle Grade Fiction and Non-Fiction Pairings

Here are 10 of the best middle grade fiction and non-fiction pairings:

Amelia Lost: The Life and Disappearance of Amelia Earhart | The Amelia Six

buy on amazon
read my review
buy on amazon

Amelia Lost is a non-fiction middle grade book about the life and mysterious disappearance of Amelia Earhart. In Kristin L. Gray’s middle grade mystery, six girls work together to solve the mystery of Earhart’s goggles. This book also weaves in lots of history about Earhart’s life and career.


My Name Is Tani . . . and I Believe in Miracles | Not An Easy Win 

buy on amazon
read my review
buy on amazon

Tani Adewunmi’s memoir documents his inspiring journey from refugee to chess prodigy. In the same vein, young Lawrence has to work through many struggles, including poverty, homelessness, and an incarcerated parent, until he finds belonging in chess.


BFF or NRF (Not Really Friends): A Girl’s Guide to Happy Friendships | Dear Friends

buy on amazon
read my review
buy on amazon

Friendship is hard in the tween years, but Jessica Speer’s BFF or NRF provides a helpful guide to enjoying happy friendships. In Lisa Greenwald’s middle grade fiction, Dear Friends, young Eleni learns what it means to be a good friend.


Welcome to Mars: Making a Home on the Red Planet | A Rover’s Story

buy on amazon
read my review
buy on amazon

Mars is getting more and more buzz! If your kids are into space and all things Mars, this pairing will do the trick. Welcome to Mars walks kids through the planet’s quirks, and in A Rover’s Story, kids can follow Res, a Mars rover on his adventure from the lab to Mars.


On the Horizon | Soul Lanterns

buy on amazon
buy on amazon

On the Horizon tells the story of people whose lives were lost or forever altered by the twin tragedies of Pearl Harbor and Hiroshima. In Soul Lanterns, a memorial lantern-floating ceremony changes the way a young Japanese girl’s sees the historic and tragic bombing of Hiroshima.


This Promise of Change: One Girl’s Story in the Fight for School Equality | The Long Ride

buy on amazon
read my review
buy on amazon

Kids can learn about the experience of integrated schools after years of segregation. This Promise of Change is brilliant narrative non-fiction, but The Long Ride is fiction and also explores how the friendship between three girls changes when they’re chosen to be part of a desegregated school in the seventies.


Total Garbage: A Messy Dive into Trash, Waste, and Our World | One Kid’s Trash

buy on amazon
read my review
buy on amazon

Who knew garbage could be so fascinating! Rebecca Donnelly’s new non-fiction title explores our trash, why we have so much of it, and how we can be more thoughtful about generating waste. In Jamie Sumner’s One Kid’s Trash, Hugo uses his classmates’ trash to learn more about them and gain a bit of popularity. This book is less a study of trash in the environmental context. If you’d rather that, check out Donnelly’s middle grade fiction, The Friendship Lie explores this better!


Period Power: A Manifesto for the Menstrual Movement | Go with the Flow

buy on amazon
buy on amazon

We can’t have enough of middle grade books about periods and puberty because this is such an integral part of the tween years! These are two books that explore this topic. Go With the Flow is a graphic novel.


Long Walk to Water | Thirst

buy on amazon
buy on amazon

These two titles have an obviously similar theme: the search for water. Both are moving and realistic, even if just one is non-fiction.


Enchanted Air: Two Cultures, Two Wings: A Memoir | Isla to Island

buy on amazon
buy on amazon

These two books (one non-fiction free verse, the other an almost wordless graphic novel) explore the feeling of being between two worlds.


There they are: 10 great middle grade fiction and non-fiction pairings. Which of these pairings would you like to try? Any suggested or tried and true pairings? I’d love more recommendations!

More Middle Grade Book Lists

  • My favorite middle grade books of 2022
  • Middle grade books about robots
  • The best non-fiction books for tweens

Pin This Post – Middle Grade Fiction & Non-Fiction Pairings

10 Great Fiction & Non-Fiction Pairings for Tweens

Don't Forget to Share!

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Pocket
  • Email
  • WhatsApp
  • LinkedIn

Related

Posted In: Book Lists, Middle Grade Book Lists

Join My Newsletter

Like what you just read? Sign up for my Friday kidlit newsletter!

Privacy Policy

You’ll Also Love

Best Middle Grade Books About 9/11
Picture Books About Dragons
43 of the Best Middle-Grade Series and Companion Titles

Comments

  1. Tracy Abell says

    January 30, 2023 at 3:49 pm

    This is an excellent resource. Thank you!

    Reply
    • Afoma Umesi says

      January 30, 2023 at 5:03 pm

      You’re welcome!

      Reply
  2. Holly says

    February 3, 2023 at 8:35 am

    I love this post! I am a seventh grade ELA teacher, and I am always looking for nonfiction titles to pair with fiction. This is quite helpful. Thank you!

    Reply
    • Afoma Umesi says

      February 3, 2023 at 9:55 am

      Ah, I’m glad! You’re welcome 🙂

      Reply
  3. Amanda says

    February 3, 2023 at 3:27 pm

    Do you usually read one then the other or simultaneously?

    Reply
    • Afoma Umesi says

      February 3, 2023 at 4:05 pm

      I do one after the other, but simultaneously could work too!

      Reply
  4. Tameka S Raven says

    February 6, 2023 at 12:10 pm

    Do you have this in a printable list?
    Thanks

    Reply
    • Afoma Umesi says

      February 7, 2023 at 3:53 am

      Hi Tameka! Please send an email to [email protected], and we’ll send you the printable! Thanks.

      Reply
  5. EM says

    March 4, 2023 at 12:19 am

    Fun idea. I think there are some good looking books here!

    Reply

What do you think? Leave a comment Cancel reply

Next Post >

Middle Grade Books About Baseball

About Me
Hi, I'm Afoma! Thank you for stopping by. Learn more about me here.

Get 2 Months Free on Scribd


Follow on Bloglovin’

Follow

We’re Social Too!

  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest

Stock photos courtesy of our partners at DepositPhotos 📸

Find me on Instagram

whatafomareads

📚 Sharing the best middle grade (and adult) book recommendations
💌 [email protected]

Afoma
🏡 The Parent Trap meets The Holiday 🏡 🏴 🏡 The Parent Trap meets The Holiday 🏡 

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 In The House Swap, tweens Allie and Sage are forced together when their families plan to swap houses goes awry. Allie is a British girl living in the countryside and preparing to be a spy when she grows up. She’s also the (overlooked, she feels) middle child, stuck between a teen brother and a talkative little sister. 

🇺🇸 Sage is an only child in sunny California, growing up with parents who seem to be growing apart. She gets more worried when she discovers that only her mom will be coming with her to the English countryside. Both girls realize that they have more in common than they think and decide to help each other — Ally with Sage’s parents and Sage with being Allie’s friend.

🏄‍♀️ The House Swap is a cozy, charming middle grade book about family (history & secrets), new friendships, and navigating parental divorce. Reminiscent of the beloved movie, The Holiday, this middle grade book is perfect for anyone looking for a feel-good reading experience with a touch of history, family drama, and characters you can root for.
I’m a contemporary fiction girl through and thro I’m a contemporary fiction girl through and through but the only historical fiction I’ll make room for (besides TJR) is middle grade historical fiction! I’ve read and loved so many in the last few years and here are some I recommend — including forthcoming & backlist titles!

Books mentioned:

A SKY FULL OF SONG by @susanlynnmeyer 
FAR OUT by @annebustard 
THE SECRET DIARY OF MONA HASAN by @salmahwrites 
IT AIN’T SO AWFUL, FALAFEL by Firoozeh Dumas
A PLACE TO HANG THE MOON by @kealbus 
STEALING MT. RUSHMORE by @daphnekalmar 
HOOPS by @tavaresbooks 

You’ll see there’s a few extra in the cover picture too! 😉 What’s your favorite middle grade historical fiction? And do you particularly like them?
🏊‍♀️ Aniana is a child of Dominican paren 🏊‍♀️ Aniana is a child of Dominican parents growing up on Galveston, an island in the state of Texas. Her mom has undiagnosed PTSD from the death of her (Aniana’s mother’s) brother years ago in a storm back in their home country, so she doesn’t want her daughter near the water. Aniana’s father wants his daughter to pursue her passion and takes her to swim meets without her mother’s knowledge. 

🦴 But when Aniana wakes up one day with painfully swollen joints and other weird symptoms after swimming, their secret is exposed, and Aniana is faced with a new diagnosis that may threaten the one sport she loves.

🏝️ Aniana Del Mar Jumps In is a tender, moving middle grade verse novel about disability, sports, family trauma, and standing up for your dreams. 

❤️This verse novel is excellently written and painfully honest about the challenges of bridging the culture and communication gap when a parent has unresolved emotional trauma. Ani does a fantastic job of standing up for her goals, and the ending is very satisfying.
Which middle grade authors are your auto-buys? I h Which middle grade authors are your auto-buys? I have so many that I’m making this a series! So excited to spotlight more of my favorites 🥰❤️
If you’re big on graphic novels like I am, here If you’re big on graphic novels like I am, here are 3 exceptional MG options to put on your TBR this year 😍

Books mentioned:

HOOPS by @tavaresbooks 
FOUR EYES by @thirdrex 
DOODLES FROM THE BOOGIE DOWN by @stephguez 

Books shown in montage in order of appearance:
SUNNY MAKES A SPLASH
ALLERGIC
HOOPS
I often get messages from readers looking for more I often get messages from readers looking for more children’s books set in Africa (because I’m from & live in Africa). Unfortunately, there aren’t that many realistic, contemporary middle grade books or chapter books set here, but at least we have Atinuke! 🥲

Atinuke is a British- Nigerian author of chapter books and picture books who spent her formative years in Nigeria. Her stories are whimsical but realistic and focus more on the character and their family than they do on locale. I love her storytelling and I love that more kids are getting to see Nigeria through the eyes of her characters.
Middle grade books written in a unique format can Middle grade books written in a unique format can be hit or miss for some. Here are 3 (+1) of my favorite unique format stories done right!

Books mentioned:

WHAT HAPPENED TO RACHEL RILEY by @claireswinarski 
ANNIE’S LIFE IN LISTS by @kristinmahoneybooks 
LASAGNA MEANS I LOVE YOU by @kloshaughnessy 
THE NIGHT DIARY (which is written in letters in her diary to her deceased mom — voiceovers are hard!) by @veerawrites 

Do you love any stories written in multiple/unique formats? I’d love to hear!
🫁 the first own voices cystic fibrosis novel ✨

🐬 centers young Penny, a middle schooler with cystic fibrosis. Penny has to take digestive enzymes and do her breathing treatments to help her lungs get rid of mucus that affects her breathing. While her CF case is relatively mild-moderate, she still struggles with being chronically ill. 

🚤 One day a dolphin shows up in the lake near their house and Penny feels a strong connection with the animal. It turns out the dolphin (who Penny names Rose) is also sick and needs to return to her pod to get better. Penny may be the only one who can help the scientists take Rose back. But can she do that, when she feels so drawn to the animal?

🫁 No Matter the Distance is a beautiful middle grade verse novel about living with cystic fibrosis and finding belonging in community. Also starring an adorable dolphin and warm family dynamics, this book will appeal to kids who love animals, books about sisters, and stories about chronic illness and disability.
Load More Follow on Instagram
  • Blog
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact

Copyright © 2023 Reading Middle Grade · Theme by 17th Avenue

 

Loading Comments...