Awesome Books for 10 Year Old Boys

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. The city’s superhero even recruits him 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 so many villains are around suddenly. This is an appealing graphic-prose release about superheroes, finding an identity that fits, and seeing people beyond the surface. Kids obsessed with superheroes, robots, and graphic novels will love this one.

Something terrible is happening in the skies! Rats are eating the MOON!There’s only ONE hero for the job, a bold and fearsome beast bioengineered in a secret lab to be the moon’s savior and Earth’s last hope! And that hero is . . . a cat. A cat who will be blasted into space!Accompanied by the imperious Moon Queen and LOZ 4000, a toenail clipping robot, the First Cat in Space journeys across a fantastic lunar landscape to save the world. Will these unlikely heroes save the moon in time? Can a toenail-clipping robot find its purpose in the vast universe? And will the First Cat in Space ever eat some pizza? This is a silly graphic novel with plenty of action and wacky humor.

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.

Miles is devastated to be moving from his town to another one called Yawnee Valley. He loved his town, had good friends, and, most importantly, was well-known as the best prankster around. When he arrives in Yawnee Valley, he immediately discovers that there’s already a superb prankster there — with a secret identity no less. When Miles gets out-pranked by the Yawnee Valley prankster, it starts a prank war between both kids until they decide to join forces. This is a riotous, animated middle grade book about pranks, unlikely friendships, and cows. This is a great bridge book for kids who like graphic novels and chapter books with wacky humor. It’s super short, and the audiobook is fantastic for the entire family.

When Ross is diagnosed with a rare lacrimal gland cancer (in his eye), it’s like a new trial for his seventh-grade existence. Add to that the fact that his mom died from cancer years before, he’s going blind in one eye, his best friend is moving away soon, and mean kids at school are making terrible memes about his illness, and you have a dumpster fire of a year waiting to happen. Or is it? This is a brilliant, funny, and thoughtful middle grade book about navigating a cancer diagnosis in 7th grade.

Twelve-year-old Jack is a no-stress student who doesn’t believe in working hard at school. He won’t even try hard to learn Spanish, which is his best friend’s first language. It doesn’t help that his school is about to be shut down. But when he eats a bunch of jellybeans created by a scientist and suddenly has a vast store of knowledge at his disposal, he might be able to compete in a contest to put his school on the map and save it from demolition. He doesn’t know that more sinister forces are working against the school. This is a relatable rib-tickling romp combining science, history, friendship, and suspense in an engaging way.

Cory’s dance crew is getting ready for a major competition. It’s the last one before they graduate eighth grade and go their separate ways to high schools all over New York City, so they have to make it count! The group starts to have problems as their crew captain gets increasingly intense about nailing the routine, and things go from bad to worse when Cory’s parents ground him for not taking his grades seriously. He gets stuck with a new tutor, Sunna, who he dismisses as a boring nerd… until he catches her secretly practicing cool yo-yo tricks. Cory wants to learn the art of yo-yo, and as his friendship with Sunna grows, he misses practice and bails on his crew — and they are not happy about it. With mounting pressure from all sides, how is Cory supposed to balance the expectations of his parents, school, dance, and new friend? I love the art in this book and all the dance scenes are so much fun to read.

In his debut memoir, Mexikid, author Pedro Martin relates a pivotal experience of his childhood. Pedro Martin and his family of 11 (NINE kids!) decide to drive from the US to Mexico to pick up his aging Abuelo and bring him to the US with them. Along the way, they encounter corrupt border patrol officers, diarrhea-inducing milk, bad haircuts, stories of his Abuelo’s past, and plenty of family.

Sixth grade is off to a rocky start for Rex. His district moved most of his elementary school to another middle school, his best friend ditches him for the popular crew, and his blurry vision means he has to get clunky new glasses–the only kind his family can afford. This sweet graphic novel for fans of Telgemeier is an ode to middle school, family, and finding your people.

Zeke tries to be a good kid, but most days, he can’t resist pulling a great prank or instigating his classmates into mayhem. So, imagine his shock when he gets an invitation to join The Greatest Kid in the World contest. As a camera follows him and his family for days, Zeke gains a new perspective on life and what it means to be a “great” kid. This book is surprisingly profound and ridiculously funny.

Ant isn’t your average 10 year old. He loves a good game of spades and he and his best friend are planning to revamp their reputation after losing badly at the last spades tournament. But things are changing in Ant’s life. His dad is acting weird, asking him to hide things from his mom. There’s a new girl in class who Ant maybe likes and who plays spades better than many boys he knows. When his best friend is grounded, Ant teams up with Shirley, hoping to impress his father and finally be tough like Joplin men should be. But instead, he learns what it really means to be a man—and it’s not about never crying. There’s SO MUCH going on in this story, but the author does a stunning job of keeping all the threads in place. I was very surprised by all the protagonist has to manage at his age and the fact that it all remains believable. The story is told by Ant’s ancestor, lending a touch of magic realism. There are also many details about playing a game of spades and I loved, loved the audiobook narrator.

This is a fantastic middle grade book about a boy raised in a correctional facility where his mom is an inmate. When Perry moves to the “outside” world, he feels trapped. Desperate to be reunited with his mom, Perry goes on a quest for answers about her past crime. Ultimately, a wonderful examination of what family really means and the importance of seeing inmates as more than just wrongdoers.

William “Scoob” Lamar is hoping to make a clean getaway with his white G-ma. Especially because his dad is mad at him after an unpleasant school incident and subsequent suspension. At first he’s happy to be spending time with this G-ma, but soon, he realizes that this isn’t quite the trip he expected. As Scoob and G-ma travel through the US South, G-ma lets him into family history: his grandfather’s life, G-ma’s misdeeds and what life was like when Black people needed the Green Book to move through the US. Nic Stone’s middle grade debut is a fast-paced, clever story full of twists and a sense of adventure. 

In Falling Short, we meet Marco and Isaac. They’ve been besties for as long as they can remember and now they share one pain in common: both their dads aren’t in their lives as they’d like. Isaac’s dad is attentive but currently struggling with alcoholism. Marco’s dad wishes Marco were more athletic, instead of nerdy. At the start of middle school, both boys decide to help each other reach their goals. For Isaac, it’s getting better at more than just basketball — getting better grades and being more responsible. And for Marco, it’s learning a sport: basketball. Can they reach their goals? And will their friendship survive it? I loved this look at a warm friendship bond between boys. There’s plenty of basketball, Latin-American family and warmth, and middle school antics including bullying, comparison, and budding friendships.

One Kid’s Trash is about a boy who’s always been small for his age, thanks to being born premature. Hugo’s family has moved from Denver to a smaller skiing town in Colorado after his father quit his job as a computer engineer to become a ski instructor. For Hugo, this is a terrible development as he’s only just found his people in his former city and now has to start from scratch. Thankfully, his cousin Vijay is somewhat popular and brings Hugo into his friend group — the kids who run the school newsletter. But when the kids in his school realize that Hugo can tell a lot about a person from their trash, Hugo finds new popularity that threatens to upturn his new friendships. This is a funny, poignant, and engaging story about adjusting to new circumstances and finding and appreciating your people.

This is a great book that lends itself perfectly to the audio format since it’s written in part as interviews. When a new student arrives at a middle school, she discovers that the class can’t stop talking about a former classmate. As she tries to learn more about him, she and the other kids learn a lot about themselves, the many layers of a person, and how to be kinder to others. This one took a while to get into, but once I did, it was fantastic.

Twelve-year old Sara Martinez is a hacker bouncing from foster home to foster home in Brooklyn, New York. After getting arrested for hacking into the NYC foster care system to expose her foster parents as criminals, she meets a man named Mother who is not a lawyer but convinces her to take on her case. Mother somehow wins and Sara gets released only to join a team of kid spies operating out of a base in Scotland. This is an excellent start to an exciting mystery series that both kids and adults can enjoy. 

The Unforgettable Logan Foster #1 is a fantasy middle grade debut by author Shawn Peters. Logan is a foster kid at a boys’ foster home. He’s on the autism spectrum, has a photographic memory, and isn’t the best at picking up on social cues. But just when Logan is sure that he’ll never be adopted, a new couple Margie and Gil show up. After a rocky start, Logan is settling in with his new foster parents when he starts noticing some weird things. Gil never seems to eat and are Margie’s tears silver? He’s only processing the fact that his new parents might be superheroes when they get kidnapped by a supervillain and it’s up to Logan to save them.

A Rover’s Story is the story of a Mars rover (a robot sent to survey the planet, find another out-of-service rover, and help determine whether Mars is suited to human living. The story is told from several perspectives, including that of the rover (whose name is Res, short for Resilience) and Sophie, the daughter of one of the programmers who’s building the rover. After months of testing and tinkering in the lab, Res discovers that he’s experiencing human emotions. His twin rover, Journey, repeatedly tells him that robots should be logical, not emotional, so Res tries unsuccessfully to restrain his emotions. Finally, Res is sent to Mars with a friendly drone he calls Fly. But can he accomplish his mission? Or will his emotions get in the way? This is a fresh, heartwarming middle grade sci-fi book about family, science, coding, and robots. 

Houston is finally one step closer to his astronaut dreams when he gets into the Junior Astronaut Recruitment Program. He only wishes he could bring his younger brother Robbie with him. Robbie has cerebral palsy and needs to use a wheelchair, so even though Houston has always promised to take his brother to space, the odds seem unlikely now. At camp, Houston meets a group of kids he feels at home with and develops a crush on one of his teammates. But he also runs into his grandfather, who’s estranged from his mom. With all those things in the mix, can Houston honor his promise to Robbie? I care zero about space but I loved the characters in this story and the disability rep is so thoughtfully done.

Wes is your average sixth grader, except his style is fly. He may not win awards for being the best at math, but he will win the Best Dressed award. He also has a great crew of friends with whom he has lived in Kensington Oaks all his life. His parents believe in getting involved with social activism and are always dragging Wes to one protest after another. After initial major resistance to neighborhood activism, Wes is forced to dive in when developers threaten to tear down his neighborhood. The attempt at gentrification begins to divide the community as some members elect to sell their properties while others flat out refuse. Up close and personal with the effects of gentrification, Wes and his friends are moved to use their voices. This is an insightful, inspiring, and hearty middle-grade book about community, friendship, and speaking up.

A young teacher is diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. However, her illness isn’t the focus of the story. The author turns the focus on three of her students — Brand, Topher, and Steve. Ms. Bixby has touched each of these boys’ lives in one way or another. The story alternates between past and present as the boys share their stories of their favorite teacher, Ms. Bixby. But, besides that, they also share stories about their unlikely friendship, their families, and life in middle school. The most action in this story, however, results from the adventure all three boys take to say goodbye to their teacher. This middle-grade novel is sad without being crushing. There’s an unmissable hopeful gleam and so many children — boys and girls alike, but especially boys — will appreciate reading it.

Elliot has ADHD and loves to cook. He lives with his mom and spends time with his dad and step-mom regularly. His step-mom is pregnant and Elliot feels a bit threatened since his dad already seems disappointed in his seemingly scatter-brained behavior and the fact that he’s not an A+ student. He also wants to go to cooking camp and his dad refuses to pay for it, insisting that Elliot can go if he himself pays for it. When Elliot gets the chance to execute a food-related pop-up as part of a school-wide entrepreneurial project, he sees it as a chance for redemption. Unfortunately, he’s paired with popular girl Maribel who can’t eat gluten and wants them to make yummy pies without gluten. Can Elliot and Maribel pull this off without butting heads? The two quickly find that they have a lot more in common than they thought. This is a sweet, heartwarming coming-of-age story featuring a protagonist with ADHD who just loves to cook!