Fantasy books are the perfect type of books for children – the stimulate the imagination while also driving home important lessons. Here is a list of 8 best middle grade fantasy books for children of middle grade age.
8 Best Middle Grade Fantasy Books to Read:
Inkheart By Cornelia Funke
In this ode to Books and reading, Meggie’s father, a bibliophile, reads books aloud to Meggie every night. While he is reading Inkheart one day, the characters escape the story and lines between fiction and reality become blurry. When Meggie’s father disappears, she is thrust into a world of adventure she has read about only in books.
Coraline by Neil Gaiman
This middle grade fantasy novel is the story of Coraline, who moves into a new flat with her family. Her new house has fourteen doors, thirteen of which open. When Coraline accidentally opens the fourteenth, she is stunned to find a passage to a mirror house with angels. There’s also another father, who wants Coraline to come stay with him. However, it’s full of trapped girls, and Coraline must devise a way for them to get out.
The Girl Who Drank The Moon by Kelly Barnhill
The residents of Protectorate have an annual tradition to leave a baby at the doorstep of a forest witch as a sacrifice to protect the others. But they don’t know that the witch is a kind and gentle woman, who lives with a wise Swamp Monster and a tiny dragon Fyrian. But when she feeds a sacrificial baby moonlight instead of starlight and she develops magical prowess, the witch must raise her differently.
Aru Shah and the End of Time by Roshani Chokshi
This fantasy series draws heavily on Indian mythology, spinning the story of Aru Shah, who accidentally awakens a djinn from the Lamp of Bharata. It is the duty of this djinn to awaken the God of Destruction, and Aru and her friends must race against time to stop this. This book is one full of adventure, perfect for a middle grader.
Nevermoor: The Trials of Jessica Morrigan Crow by Jessica Townsend
Morrigan Crow is cursed to die on the midnight of her eleventh birthday, but a strange man called Jupiter whisks her away from her fate. She discovers that he has chosen her to participate in a contest to be a part of the city’s most prestigious organization. But she must win four very hard tasks to make it.
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’engle
On a story night, a strange man enters the Murry household. He then takes Meg, her brother Charles Wallace and their friend Calvin O’Keefe on the wildest adventure of their lives – one full of the ‘W’ women and creatures in the guise of humans. This book is a middle grade fantasy classic, and deserves a place on every middle grader’s bookshelf.
The Okay Witch by Emma Steinkellner
In this witchy book, a thirteen-year-old discovers her family is closely attached to witchcraft on the eve of Halloween. Soon, she is dragged into a world of new possibilities, like talking cats, enchanted diaries and alternate worlds. This book is full of wisdom and wonder, but also deals with important topics like bullying.
Breadcrumbs by Anne Ursu
This retelling of Hans Christian Anderson’s The Snow Queen is the story of two best friends (who might just be more than friends). Jack and Hazel fit like pieces in a puzzle, but one day Jack just stops talking to Hazel. Hazel soon discovers that Jack is frozen in time and lives in an ice palace. It is now upon her to rescue him.
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