Hey everyone –

I am constantly being asked for recommendations for books to read, so I figured I should just write a post about it.

The easiest way for me to introduce you to a trove of incredible authors is to direct you to the Renegades of Middle Grade website, which features the work of eighteen fantastic authors with links to their websites.  Plus, there’s even some fun games devised by my fellow author James Ponti that can keep you busy for a while.  Just click here to visit it.

Or click here to see a great trailer for books by thirteen of us, each talking up our books.

That said, I’ll single out some other great authors that I have become friends with over the years.  Just click on their names to access their sites.

Since I’ve already mentioned him, James Ponti writes great, clever mysteries and just published City Spies, which is excellent.

Sarah Mlynowski has books for just about every age that are all funny and extremely creative (sometimes with a bit of romance thrown in).

Christina Soontornvat also has a book for just about every age, although her newest, A Wish In The Dark, comes out the same day that my new book does and it’s wonderful.

Gordon Korman has published 96 books!  So it’s guaranteed that he’s written at least one that you will love.

Karina Yan Glaser writes the endearing Vanderbeekers series.

Ally Carter writes exceptionally good spy stories and has a brand new middle grade book out this month: Winterborne Home for Vengeance and Valor.

Max Brallier writes hilarious illustrated books like The Last Kids on Earth and Galactic Hot Dogs.

Varian Johnson wrote the award-winning Parker Inheritance and the very fun Great Greene Heist.

Liesl Shurtliff has her new Time Castaway series — and many other great books.

Leslie Margolis writes the Maggie Brooklyn mystery series.  (She’s also my neighbor!)

Julie Buxbaum writes the hilarious Area 51 Files series — and a lot of great YA.

Aly Gerber‘s Liar’s Society series is really fun — but her semi-autobiographical Focused, Braced and taking Up Space are excellent too.

Stamped by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X Kendi, just came out and could not have been published at a more appropriate time.

Genesis Begins Again by Alicia D. Williams has won so many awards, they can barely all fit on the cover.  And it deserves them all — and more.

The Parker Inheritance, by the very talented Varian Johnson, is a great mystery with great characters that will also really make you think.

New Kid, a graphic novel by Jerry Craft, has also won a slew of awards.  And deservedly so.

You have probably already heard of The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas.  But still, if you haven’t read it, you should.

And… this one is for all the adults out there.  My father just published his first book!  It’s an alternative history of the Revolutionary War that wonders what might have happened if George Washington was wounded in battle.  It follows the race to save his life and keep the British from taking advantage of the lack of leadership.  You can get it by clicking here.

And there are so many more that I could list!  Maybe I will get around to adding a few more names to this list when I have more time.  (I’m actually staying very busy right now wrangling my kids and writing more books for you to read.)  But for now, that ought to get you started.

As always, it would be great if you shopped at your local, independent bookstore, or bookshop.org — or even Barnes & Noble, rather than Amazon.