Silverwing
A vivid, sensory-rich adventure that makes the bat's world feel tangible and urgent without being overly dark.
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The Defender
by Nicholas Kalashnikoff
Middle grade · ages 8–12 · 720L · 1993
A solid survival-and-loyalty story with dog-centered appeal, though the pacing feels a touch dated compared to modern animal-protagonist fiction.
The School for Good and Evil
by Soman Chainani
Middle grade · ages 8–12 · 770L · 2015
A clever deconstruction of fairy-tale binaries wrapped in genuine adventure; the alternating-perspective structure makes readers question assumptions about good and evil in a way that feels earned, not preachy.
The Jungle Book
by Rudyard Kipling
Middle grade · ages 8–12 · 820L · 2022
The original novella is denser and more philosophical than the Disney version — Kipling's Mowgli is resourceful and complicated, not innocent, and the animal mentors have real moral complexity.