The Sword of Summer
by Rick Riordan
Middle grade · ages 10–14 · grades 5–9 · 730L · 568 pages
Why we'd hand it over
Riordan's strongest mythology opener for this age—sharper and less quippy than Percy Jackson, with a protagonist who feels genuinely new and whose identity markers (homelessness, ADHD, mixed race, implied queerness) matter to the plot rather than decorate it.