25 Chapter Books & Young Middle Grade Books for 3rd Graders

This illustrated young middle-grade verse novel about Isabel Beane, a quiet autistic girl who often gets lost in her loud family, is so endearing. Between never feeling heard at home, dealing with a mean classmate, and struggling to follow social cues, Isabel isn’t having an easy go at things. Eventually, a series of events forces her family to listen to her and readers will root for Isabel as she comes out of her shell.

Oh, what a charmer! This is an illustrated young MG book (under 150 pages long) about Miguel, an art-loving boy who finds a stray cat near his parents’ bodega. I loved the bodega setting and the Latino representation in this book. But here’s the kicker. It’s written in alternating chapters, so we get to hear from the boy and the cat named Lolo. I was enchanted! It’s so sweet hearing how a new pet adjusts to a new home and how safe it feels, as well as seeing Lolo reckon with his past and open up his home to other people. Hand to fans of Dogtown, Katherine Applegate books in general, and, of course, kids who love cats.

Emma McKenna is stoked for third grade until she discovers that her former best friend is also in her class. As she tries to make new friends and use her voice in her class, Emma learns that it’s okay to be herself and share her opinions, even if it’s different from others. This is the first book in the new series featuring several acclaimed authors including Karina Yan Glaser, Rajani LaRocca, and others. Each book in the series will focus on a different kid and be written by a different author.

Third grader Anisa is excited about her class’s international day. She’s going to ask her mom to bring samosas for the class and share her Pakistani culture with everyone. But before she gets to reveal her plans, another classmate snags the samosa spot. As a creative, Anisa is desperate to be unique. With her aunt getting married soon, she decides that Mehndi is the perfect activity to introduce. But first, she’ll need to resolve a friendship misunderstanding. Anisa’s International Day is a delightful, heartwarming, and culturally expressive young middle grade book.

In this sweet, delightful story, Marya Khan has gotten herself in a fix by claiming she’s having a henna party for her birthday when, in reality, she’s having no party. Marya is convinced that all her classmates have more exciting lives than she does but over time, she realizes that no one has a perfect life and she needs to appreciate hers more.

Ten-year-old Zara has been crowned Queen of the Neighborhood by a loving neighbor. Zara makes fair rules for all the games she and her brother Zayd play with the other kids and Zara likes things just like that. But when her neighbor, Mr. Chapman moves out, a new family moves in. Their daughter Naomi has other ideas for playing and the other kids seem to like many of her ideas too. To win back her crown, Zara decides she’ll try to break a World Guinness Record. But as time goes on, she realizes that it may just be better to share her crown instead. This is the start of a beautiful chapter book series about a young Pakistani-American heroine and her friends and family.

Eight-year-old J.D. has to devise a means to correct a haircut gone wrong. His mom obviously doesn’t care much about lining his cut evenly, and J.D. gets laughed at school by his friends. Eventually, after using his little brother as a subject, J.D. figures out how to cut his own hair — and he does a fantastic job! J.D. gets so good at cutting hair and coming up with creative hairstyles that his schoolmates start asking him to do theirs. The only barbershop in town is owned by an elderly man Mr. Henry and run by his son, Mr. Henry Jr. Unlike J.D., they only know three cut styles, so there’s no real competition. Until Mr. Henry Jr. tries to stop J.D. from running the business out of his house and the two have to engage in a “Barber Battle.” This is the first in a fun new chapter book series about a Black boy who discovers his barbing skills and entrepreneurial spirit.

When an encounter with a thrift store blanket turns Felix Powell into a dog, he’s delighted to finally be able to talk to animals, wag his tail, and get super smell senses, but he soon realizes that being a dog isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Will he ever be a boy again? This book is so whimsical, with just the right amount of action and a lovable male protagonist. Perfect for kids who love dogs!

Omar is a young Muslim boy with a huge imagination. He and his family (his mom, dad, and two siblings) are adjusting to a new move (new house, new school) and approaching the month of Ramadan. Unfortunately, the adjustment process is NOT smooth. First, there’s a neighbor who doesn’t seem to like Omar’s family and a bully at school who keeps making fun of him. Things come a head when Omar and Daniel, the bully get lost together during a school trip. Can Omar escape all this trouble he keeps attracting? This is a charming chapter book about the life of a Muslim imaginative boy during Ramadan, adjusting to a new school, befriending a bully, and navigating family/sibling relationships.

Too Small Tola is a new chapter book from Atinuke featuring three stories about a girl living with her grandmother and siblings in Lagos, Nigeria. Everyone teases Tola — sometimes lovingly — for being so small. They think she can’t lift heavy loads or do other things because of her size. But Tola’s grandmother reassures her that you can be small, but mighty, and Tola proves that she is! The first story Too Small Tola shows what happens when Tola accompanies Grandmommy to the market. In the second story, Small but Mighty, Tola deals with a bully while trying to fetch water at a public tap. The last story, Easter and Eid shows how Tola comes to the rescue when their beloved tailor sustains an injury. This is a short, engaging collection of three stories about a young Nigerian girl, Tola.

It’s set in modern times and follows two best friends (soon-to-be sixth graders) who stumble upon a family heirloom of Nancy Strong Smith. In solving the mystery, they learn a ton about Revolutionary period history. The story is under 200 pages long, and I think younger kids grades 3+ will like it as a read-aloud because of the mystery element, but it also fills a gaping hole for historical fiction set in the Revolutionary period.

I ADORED this young middle grade historical fiction set in the 1930s Vinegar Hill community in Charlottesville, Virginia. Albeit set during the Jim Crow era, it focuses on a thriving African American community, especially 10-year-old Allie Lewis, who is desperate to find her mom a husband and herself a father after her no-good father left them when she was a baby. She’s also dealing with a nemesis in her class named Gwen, who always seems to want to outdo Allie. Imagine Allie’s despair when her mom likes no other man than Gwen’s uncle and Allie’s band teacher. This book is short, FUNNY, charming, and historically enlightening without being full of Black pain. It would make a wonderful read-aloud for families who enjoy Anna Rose Johnson’s and Kate Albus’s writing but want more Black stories with less slavery and strife. Perfect for grades 3-5.

Harriet’s family is undergoing a change. Her mom is pregnant and has been placed on bed rest until the baby is born. Harriet, an energetic child, has been sent to Marble Island, where her grandmother lives and runs a bed and breakfast. She’s understandably frustrated and feeling abandoned by her parents. Thankfully, she takes her cat, Matzo Ball, with her. When she arrives at Marble Island, Harriet starts to learn more about her father’s childhood and discovers that they have more in common than she expects. This is a charming, engaging chapter book/young middle grade book with a memorable, relatable protagonist.

Mr. Whiskers is a street-wise stray dog with a nose for trouble and a fondness for two girls he calls the Shenanigan Sisters. So when Misty and Zelda’s professor father is kidnapped, Mr. Whiskers follows that car, picking up vital clues. With the help of his street friends and the Shenanigan sisters, Mr. Whiskers leads the way to finding Mr. Shenanigan. I liked this better on audio and if your kids like gentle, quirky animal-led mysteries, they’ll enjoy this.

Lola is absolutely delightful! A female soccer star who’s not ashamed of her love for sports or writing or anything. This is one of those chapter books where I felt the main character’s parents were well developed! Loved and would recommend especially for any soccer-loving kids!

When Jada Jones’s best friend moves away, school feels like the last place she wants to be. She’d much rather wander outside looking for cool rocks to add to her collection, since finding rocks is much easier than finding friends. So when Jada’s teacher announces a class project on rocks and minerals, Jada finally feels like she’s in her element. The only problem: one of her teammates doesn’t seem to like any of Jada’s ideas. She doesn’t seem to like Jada all that much, either. Can Jada figure out a way to make a winning science project and a new friend?

What if you woke up to new powers every day? Such is the fate of our protagonist in this graphic novel-prose hybrid. Daily, he develops and loses everything from potent superpowers like telekinesis and super speed to cute but not-so-useful ones like bubbles and speaking cat. He’s even recruited by the city’s superhero to help fight the villains popping up everywhere. The one thing he can’t seem to figure out, though, is where his scientist mom is. As each day passes, readers follow Switcheroo one step closer to the mystery of his mom’s whereabouts and why there are so many villains around all of a sudden. Kids who are obsessed with superheroes, robots, and graphic novels will love this one.

This is a hilarious graphic novel for fans of Squished and The Vanderbeekers about a girl who is sick of her little siblings but gets stuck at home with them when they all get chickenpox. Set in Indonesia and roughly based on Lai’s own experiences but written from her older sister’s perspective, this book will sing to firstborns but also to any sibling in a large family who’s trying to find their voice and see the gift their siblings are to them. I loved the funny depictions of life with chickenpox, the tween angst and gossip as Abby navigates her friend group and friendships that may or may not be crushes. While there is some sibling angst, this one has a lovely, heartwarming resolution and will appeal to kids between the ages of 8 and 12.

I LOVED this forthcoming young graphic novel by the author of the Stella Diaz series. This is the perfect illustrated graphic-prose series for fans of Dory Fantasmagory and Ryan Hart in grades 2-4 and stars a precocious, funny female protagonist who gets a whiff of the dark side of social media in her first adventure. The formatting of this one is just gorgeous, with graphic panels and short prose sections livened by full-color illustrations. It also has cute Spanish vocabulary tips, a mom who’s a bookstore owner and is set in the same world as Stella Diaz (Gabby looks up to Stella, who’s now a middle schooler).

This charming illustrated book about a robot who ends up in the wild and survives by building community and caring for others is heartwarming but also surprisingly suspenseful and full of adventure. Soon to be a major motion picture, this would make a delightful classroom readaloud for 3rd and 4th graders.

This series is so quirky and humorous and my heart always goes out to Alvin on his quest to make new friends and talk at school despite being nervous and afraid of everything. Kids who are shy or struggle with social situations will find a sure friend in Alvin.

Anna has been best friends with Sadie for as long as she can remember. So Anna is utterly perplexed when, on Anna’s birthday, Sadie unceremoniously stakes claim to Anna’s new pony necklace, then suddenly stops speaking to Anna altogether. Did Anna do something wrong? With a little help from her wiener dog, Banana, as well as some sage advice from her family, Anna makes some important discoveries about what it means to stand up for herself, and how to be a true friend.

Mindy and her father have recently moved from the city to a suburb in Florida where she is the only Asian girl in her school. On top of that, Mindy’s mom died shortly before their move and her dad is adjusting to being a single parent. Like any normal child, Mindy wants to be liked at her new school. She’s fortunate to meet a new friend on her first day, even though the kids complain about the way her Korean lunch smells. Things start to look up for Mindy when the kids try and love her seaweed snacks. At first, she starts a snack trade-off, but later decides to start selling the snacks so she can save up money to buy a puppy. However, Mindy’s new business and friendship run into some problems along the way.

Julia LOVES to swim and is excited to participate in Personal Best Day with her swim team. Unfortunately, she develops an ear infection and the doctor’s orders are clear: stay out of the water. But Julia won’t give up and tries several wacky ways to stop water from getting in her ears when she swims, with disappointing and hilarious results. Eventually, she learns there are different ways to be part of a team. I loved this chapter book, especially the depiction of Julia’s immigrant parents, their sushi shop, and Julia’s adventures in the library and with frenemies. It’s an excellent choice for older readers who want the comfort of pictures in their stories.

Ryan Hart and her family are moving to a new (old) house because her dad lost his post office job and his new job doesn’t pay as much. Ryan is unhappy about the change for many reasons. Still, there are small joys. She doesn’t have to change schools and is still close enough to one of her best friends. With the new house, and selling one of their cars, her parents can better deal with their financial struggles. Throughout this slice-of-life book, Ryan learns how to believe in herself, enjoy public speaking, be a bigger person, and love who she is. This is an absolutely delightful early middle-grade book with a memorable protagonist.