[ghostgirl Posts: 611 Status: Offline Any day, now...I can feel it...!]

I may have missed it if someone already suggested it, but I used Neil Gaiman's CORALINE with my college kids and it was awesome! 

[dwrites]

Most of my favorites have been listed. Savvy readers here. I would second HUGO CABRET and WEDNESDAY WARS and add HATTIE BIG SKY.

You also might want to go to From the Mixed-Up Files of Middle Grade Authors for author interviews and current book lists.

http://www.fromthemixedupfiles.com/

[Barbara Etlin Posts: 2,242 Status: Offline]

RULES
TOUCH BLUE
THE WEDNESDAY WARS
WHEN YOU REACH ME
11 BIRTHDAYS
A CROOKED KIND OF PERFECT

[Judith Posts: 36 Status: Offline]

The Underneath by Kathi Appelt   Wonderful description, strong character development, and creative plot
Finding My Place by Traci Jones  focus on an African American girl transferring into a ritzy suburban high school. (It's important to remind teachers to provide for diversity in literature experiences.

Are you looking for PBs as well?
Judith

[LizLong]

The Devil's Arithmetic by Jane Yolen (Nazi Germany, Jewish girl)
The Skin I'm in by Sharon Flake (inner city, African-American girl)
The Secret School by Avi (1930s remote Colorado, poor white farm girl)

They aren't brand-new, but they're all award-winners and represent very different times and place. Some extras to keep in mind since you have so many suggestions.

[Kim Baker Posts: 18 Status: Offline]

What a great list!
Humor-wise, I really liked Attack of the Fluffy Bunnies, The Strange Case of Origami Yoda, The Mysterious Benedict Society, & Alvin Ho.

[dave r Posts: 103 Status: Offline I love kids' books!]

Kim,
  Fluffy Bunnies was just LOL funny!
  I just finished Angleberger's next novel Horton Halfpott (ARC). Very funny and fun book.
  And if you  haven't heard, there is a sequel for Origami Yoda called Darth Paper.  Can't wait.

keep writing and reading,
dave r

[elissacruz Posts: 726 Status: Offline]

Not that you have time to rummage through lists, but I thought I'd mention our ever growing list of booklists on our middle-grade-focused group blog.  You might be able to find something there that fits your criteria that one wouldn't think of at first glance.

http://www.fromthemixedupfiles.com/book-lists/

Good luck!  It sounds like a great course!


ETA: Ah, I just noticed that dwrites already mentioned our blog.  Thanks for the shoutout! 

[Franzilla Posts: 997 Status: Offline Gah!]

I'm late to this...

But I wanted to add Al Capone Does My Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko. And A Brief History of Montmaray by Michelle Cooper. Also The Year of Secret Assignments by Jacylyn Moriarty too. All three would bring up great issues to discuss. 

I also loved Palace Beautiful. Millicent Min too.

Too many good ones!

[shoniker]

I will agree to Al Capone..., When You Reach Me, Hugo Cabret, and Mockingbird.  I would also like to recommend:
*anything by Jerry Spinelly (especially Milweed, Maniac Magee, Crash, Stargirl, and Eggs)
*The Boy in the Striped Pajamas
*The Book Thief
*Maus I and Maus II by Spiegelman
*Speak by Anderson
*The Graveyard Book by N Gaimen
*Monster by WD Meyers
*Athletic Shorts by Chris Crutcher
*First Light by Rebecca Stead

[Bigfoot Posts: 35 Status: Offline]

Kathi Appelt's KEEPER

THE MOSTLY TRUE ADVENTURES OF HOMER P. FIGG by Rodman Philbrick

GROUNDED by Kate Klise

EDGAR ALLAN'S OFFICIAL CRIME INVESTIGATION NOTEBOOK by Mary Amato

[ShannonH]

THE RED UMBRELLA by Christina Diaz Gonzalez.

THE LEMONADE WAR by Jacqueline Davies.

[AnneB Posts: 3,797 Status: Offline]

A lot of my favorites have already been mentioned, but let me add:
Escaping the Tiger, by Laura Manivong
Do the Math: Secrets, Lies & Algebra and The Writing on the Wall, by Wendy Lichtman
...and just about anything by Lisa Yee.

[217mom Posts: 1,153 Status: Offline "Keep the child in view"- Charles Dickens]

Richard Peck and our own Elizabeth Bunce are two authors you should look at.

[hazelnut Posts: 285 Status: Offline Write with faith, hope and clarity.]

Especially for the students who are teachers or teachers-to-be, wonderful newer books with a strong "school" component include:

EXTRA CREDIT by Andrew Clements, which involves an Afghan pen pal and goes well with the young reader's edition of THREE CUPS OF TEA by Greg Mortensen
NO TALKING by Andrew Clements
DIARY OF A WIMPY KID by Jeff Kinney, if only because this book is such a wildly popular funny book
EMMA-JEAN LAZARUS FELL OUT OF A TREE by Lauren Tarshis

And, although this book dates back to 2000, JOEY PIGZA SWALLOWED A KEY gives insight into the kind of kid (student) almost everyone misunderstands.

[Toothpaste]

I might be a wee bit biased, but my books have been used as teaching tools - and I think one of the reasons they could work for a university class is that, especially ALEX, they are homages to Middle Grade novels in general (ALEX is divided into three parts - my Roald Dahl section, Alice in Wonderland, and Peter Pan/Treasure Island).

Can't define my own work as "REALLY AWESOME", feels weird - but I'd still like to put mine out there.  They might not be as famous as some of the others listed, but they are both award winning and have been nominated for the Forest of Reading prize in BC and the equivalent in Manitoba which are voted on by students and taught by teachers.  The audio book for TIMOTHY was also nominated for the Audie which is the Oscars of the American Audio Book industry.

Anyway . . .

Here are the titles:

ALEX AND THE IRONIC GENTLEMAN
TIMOTHY AND THE DRAGON'S GATE