Superheroes: Diverse Stories for Middle Grades and Young Adults

Green Lantern Legacy

These books tell the stories of a wide range of superheroes — some whom you've heard of and some who never knew they'd be called on to save the day!

Amira & Hamza (Book 1): The War to Save the Worlds

Illustrations of two siblings running
Age Level: 9-12, Middle Grade

On the day of a rare super blue blood moon eclipse, twelve-year-old Amira and her little brother, Hamza, can’t stop their bickering while attending a special exhibit on medieval Islamic astronomy. While stargazer Amira is wowed by the amazing gadgets, a bored Hamza wanders off, stumbling across the mesmerizing and forbidden Box of the Moon. Amira can only watch in horror as Hamza grabs the defunct box and it springs to life, setting off a series of events that could shatter their world — literally.

Garza Twins, Book 1: The Smoking Mirror

Leopard in front of a purple light
Age Level: 9-12, Middle Grade
Language: Spanish vocabulary featured

Carol and Johnny Garza are 12-year-old twins whose lives in a small Texas town are forever changed by their mother's unexplained disappearance. Shipped off to relatives in Mexico by their grieving father, the twins soon learn that their mother is a nagual, a shapeshifter, and that they have inherited her powers. In order to rescue her, they will have to descend into the Aztec underworld and face the dangers that await them. Winner Pura Belpré Author Honor Award.

Green Lantern: Legacy

Green Lantern: Legacy
By: Minh Lê
Illustrated by: Andie Tong
Age Level: Middle Grade

Thirteen-year-old Tai Pham lives in the apartment above his grandmother's store, where his bedroom is crammed with sketchpads and comic books. But not even his most imaginative drawings could compare to the colorful adventure he's about to embark on. When Tai inherits his grandmother's jade ring, he soon finds out it's more than just a piece of jewelry. Suddenly he's inducted into a group of space cops known as the Green Lanterns. He is about to learn that being a superhero takes more than just a ring.

Kiki Kallira (Book 1): Kiki Kallira Breaks a Kingdom

Illustration of young heroine jumping with sword
Age Level: 9-12, Middle Grade

Kiki Kallira has always been a worrier. Did she lock the front door? Is there a terrible reason her mom is late? Recently her anxiety has been getting out of control, but one thing that has always soothed her is drawing. Kiki's sketchbook is full of fanciful doodles of the rich Indian myths and legends her mother has told her over the years. One day, her sketchbook's calming effect is broken when her mythological characters begin springing to life right out of its pages.

Lotería

A girl holding lotería cards
Illustrated by: Dana SanMar
Age Level: Middle Grade
Language: Spanish

In the hottest hour of the hottest day of the year, a fateful wind blows into Oaxaca City. It whistles down cobbled streets and rustles the jacaranda trees before slipping into the window of an eleven-year-old girl named Clara. Unbeknownst to her, Clara has been marked for la Lotería. Life and Death deal the Lotería cards but once a year, and the stakes could not be higher. Every card reveals a new twist in Clara’s fate — a scorpion, an arrow, a blood-red rose. If Life wins, Clara will live to a ripe old age.

Miles Morales: Shock Waves (Graphic Novel)

Mile Morales running
Illustrated by: Pablo Leon
Age Level: 9-12, Middle Grade

Miles Morales is a normal kid who happens to juggle school at Brooklyn Visions Academy while swinging through the streets of Brooklyn as Spider-Man. After a disastrous earthquake strikes his mother's birthplace of Puerto Rico, Miles springs into action to help set up a fundraiser for the devastated island. But when a new student's father goes missing, Miles begins to make connections between the disappearance and a giant corporation sponsoring Miles' fundraiser. Who is behind the disappearance, and how does that relate to Spider-Man?

Shadowshaper

Shadowshaper

Sierra Santiago was looking forward to a fun summer of making art, hanging out with her friends, and skating around Brooklyn. But then strange things start to happen. Sierra soon discovers a supernatural order called the Shadowshapers, who connect with spirits via paintings, music, and stories. But someone is killing the shadowshapers one by one. Diversity and themes of social justice and identity are skilfully woven into this urban fantasy novel.

Solimar: The Sword of the Monarchs

Monarchs flying around young girl
Age Level: Middle Grade

Ever since Solimar was a little girl, she has gone to the ouamel forest bordering her kingdom to observe the monarch butterflies during their migration, but always from a safe distance. Now, on the brink of her quinceañera and her official coronation, Solimar crosses the dangerous creek to sit among the butterflies. There, a mysterious event gives her a gift and a burden — the responsibility to protect the young and weak butterflies with her magical rebozo, or silk shawl. Solimar is committed to fulfilling her role, and has a plan that might have worked.

Star Daughter

Young woman surrounded by celestial starlight
Age Level: Young Adult

The daughter of a star and a mortal, Sheetal is used to keeping secrets. Pretending to be “normal.” But when an accidental flare of her starfire puts her human father in the hospital, Sheetal needs a full star’s help to heal him. A star like her mother, who returned to the sky long ago. Sheetal’s quest to save her father will take her to a celestial court of shining wonders and dark shadows, where she must take the stage as her family’s champion in a competition to decide the next ruling house of the heavens — and win, or risk never returning to Earth at all.

Super Indian: Volume 1

Super Indian: Volume 1
Age Level: Middle Grade

Hubert Logan was an ordinary Reservation boy until he ate tainted commodity cheese infused with Rezium, a secret government food enrichment additive. Known as Super Indian, Hubert fights evil forces who would overtake the Reservation's resources and population. Assisted by his trusty sidekicks Mega Bear and Diogi, they fight crime the way they know how — with strength, smarts, and humor.

Superman Smashes the Klan

Superman Smashes the Klan
Illustrated by: Gurihiru
Age Level: Middle Grade

The year is 1946. Teenagers Roberta and Tommy Lee just moved with their parents from Chinatown to the center of Metropolis, home to the famous hero, Superman. Tommy makes friends quickly, while Roberta pines for home. Then one night, the family awakens to find their house surrounded by the Klan of the Fiery Kross! Superman leaps into action, but his exposure to a mysterious green rock has left him weak. Can Roberta and Tommy help him smash the Klan?

The Lost Dreamer

Young woman surrounded by plants and birds
Age Level: Young Adult

Indir is a Dreamer, descended from a long line of seers; able to see beyond reality, she carries the rare gift of Dreaming truth. But when the beloved king dies, his son has no respect for this time-honored tradition. King Alcan wants an opportunity to bring the Dreamers to a permanent end ― an opportunity Indir will give him if he discovers the two secrets she is struggling to keep. As violent change shakes Indir’s world to its core, she is forced to make an impossible choice: fight for her home or fight to survive.

The Secret of the Himalayas (The Unicorn Rescue Society, Book 6)

Illustration of two children near Himalayas
By: Hena Khan
Age Level: Middle Grade

When Uchenna and Elliot’s classmate publishes an article in the school newspaper about the Schmoke Brothers, Professor Fauna notices something alarming in a photo. Mounted on the wall of the Schmoke’s living room is a single spiral horn that he’s certain could have come from only one animal — a unicorn! To save these magical creatures — and to finally see a unicorn themselves — the Unicorn Rescue Society heads to the rugged mountains of Pakistan.  
 

The Supernatural Society #1: The Supernatural Society

Three young people exploring
By: Rex Ogle
Age Level: 9-12, Middle Grade
Language: Spanish

Will Hunter thought his life couldn’t get any worse. His parents just got divorced, his best (and only) friend now is his dog, Fitz, and his mom moved them from New York City to the middle-of-nowhere town called East Emerson. But Will was wrong — things are about to get way worse. Because East Emerson is filled with a whole lot of monsters, and he’s the only person who can see them.

The Tiger's Apprentice (Book 1)

The Tiger's Apprentice (Book One)
Age Level: Middle Grade

Tom is his Chinese grandmother's somewhat reluctant apprentice in magical arts, but after she dies while defending a mysterious coral rose from evil foes, the eighth grader finds himself enmeshed in a dangerous world where Chinese myth is a reality.