Maybe, Maybe Marisol Rainey

Oooh. I loved this one. So much. Thank you to @andreabeatrizarango for always highlighting great MG lit that is also accessible for all students.

I think this book is onto something special. Maybe I’m biased but a story about a half Filipino girl living her very normal life and going through relatable hiccups? Yes please. The other thing that makes me so happy about this book is that it is a planned series. There are so many middle grade series because kids LOVE THEM. But a lot of them feature all white characters. Don’t get me wrong I loved Judy Blume, Junie B Jones, Harriet the Spy and the like when I was a kid, but I can’t imagine how stunned I would’ve been to see a little girl like me within the pages of a book at such a young age. Dear children’s publishers, more of this please. I want to see middle grade series featuring kids of color from all backgrounds, religions, and don’t forget about LGTBQIA+ kids. ALL OF IT. It’s not hard. There are authors out there, but for goodness sake give them a chance. And yes. There is room for everyone.

If you’re a middle grade teacher I highly suggest you add this to your library and please give @andreabeatrizarango a follow. She has a great eye for amazing middle grade lit and is a writer herself!!

[image description: The book Maybe, Maybe Marisol Rainey by Erin Entrada Kelly resting on other middle grade books like Junie B Jones and The Boxcar Children] #WeLoveMGLit #ErinEntradaKelly #ITeachFourth #Bookstagram #AlwaysReading #FilipinoAuthors #FilipinoKidLit #MiddleGradeFiction #MiddleGradeLit #MiddleGradeBooks #BooksForFourthGraders