Finding My Spark by
When puberty hits, Alex begins to realize he’s been misgendered as a girl his whole life.
First, he stops wearing dresses and paints his room a dark color. Then he cuts his hair short. But people still aren’t seeing the real him. His mom has always called him her “little star,” but he doesn’t feel like shining. Instead, he feels like hiding away.
Alex knows he should tell people who he really is, but he can’t seem to get the words out. Will his parents be mad? Will his friends still like him? He decides to write a letter to his mom telling her the truth. Slowly but surely, he starts telling others―first the rest of his family, then his class. The big explosion he worried about never comes, just love and support. He’s still his mom’s little star, and he can finally be himself and shine.
Continue reading Most Anticipated LGBTQ+ Middle Grade: July-December 2026
Meet the kids in Mrs. Z’s wacky and wonderful third grade class! Sebastian Metzger is overjoyed when he checks out a brand-new book on octopodes from the school library, but everything goes awry when the book gets ruined.