GIFT GUIDE 2007
Middle School Gifts
From toys that stand the test of time to board games that are anything but boring, we found the best middle school products that will build your child's brain, as well as being chock full of fun. Our list of loot is kid-tested, teacher approved, and full of options for any family, so get wrappin'!
Haroun and the Sea of Stories
Haroun's father, a famous storyteller, regularly performs for huge standing-room-only crowds. Until he loses his gift for gab. This fantastic fable is a father-son quest through magical lands in an attempt to regain his inspiration. Just under the surface of all this fun and adventure, it hints at ...
The Thief Lord
Mix the magic of Harry Potter with a taste of Oliver Twist, and you'll have some notion of the yarn that awaits young readers with this book. Two orphaned brothers arrive in Venice, attempting to escape from the nasty couple who want to adopt them. They're sheltered by a band of young urchins and ...
Or Give Me Death: A Novel of Patrick Henry's Family
Students know Patrick Henry as one of our founding fathers. But to his kids, he was just dad. This book tells the story of Henry's family from the perspective of his two eldest daughters, growing with an absent father and a mentally ill mom. Although fiction, the text is grounded in historical ...
Howl's Moving Castle
This novel was made into a movie. Which means that most kids will skip it. That's a shame, because the book packs a potent punch of wonderful characters, outrageous plot twists, and dry humor. Sophie Hatter is a bookworm, and she knows from her reading that as the eldest of 3 daughters, she's bound ...
Magic With Cards
Cross a deck of cards with a wide-eyed, wise-mouthed middle schooler, add this delightful collection of "113 Easy-to-Perform Miracles" and you've got Magic with Cards, a how-to book that should keep your kid enthralled for hours at a stretch. Under the capable guidance of authors Garcia ...
The Seems: The Glitch in Sleep
12-year-old Becker Drane works as a "Fixer" in The Seems, the world behind our world that is responsible for existence as we know it. A glitch in the Department of Sleep is keeping everyone up at night, and Becker is called in to remedy the problem. But, this is no routine mission and he will have ...
