10 Middle Grade Island Adventures to Thrill and Delight Young Readers

Lalani of the Distant Sea, by Erin Entrada Kelly
Lalani’s island home, Sanlagita, is dominated by Mount Kahna, home to a beast whose goodwill determines if the islanders will prosper or starve. There’s another island, Mount Isa, rumored to be a paradise, but when sailors set off to find it they never come back. Mount Kahna is a forbidden place, but when her favorite animal escapes up its slopes, Lalani sets off after it. There she meets the beast, and it grants her a wish. Blamed for the disaster her wish brings, and desperate to find a cure for her dying mother, Lalani sets off for Mount Isa. Her adventures are filled with magical creatures, hardships, and wonders, and Sanlagita will be forever changed by her homecoming. The weaving together of the folktales and myths with the story of a brave girl determined to seize the possibility of hope makes for entrancing reading!

The Jumbie God’s Revenge, by Tracey Baptiste
Corinne barely has time to catch her breath after her first two adventures with the Jumbies (dangerous elemental beings) who share her Caribbean island home and the waters around it (The Jumbies, and Rise of the Jumbies). When ferocious storms begin to pummel the island, Corinne learns there’s a supernatural being behind the mayhem. The powerful god Huracan is angry, and Corinne takes on the challenge of figuring out why. With the help of both her human friends and family, and powerful jumbies who are also in harm’s way from the storm, Corinne sets of to bring calm back to her island. It’s a richly detailed adventure, full of magic, wonder, and danger, that will be remembered long after the last page is read.

Island Book, by Evan Dahm
A beautiful graphic novel about a small green person who is (maybe) cursed. When a monster rose out of the sea, bringing panic and violent waves sweeping over Sola’s island home, Sola just looked at it, and it looked back. Tired of being shunned by everyone but the wise old astronomer, Sola sets out alone in a small boat to find out just what the monster is. Journeying from island to island, each with its own different type of people, Sola gains comrades, who also don’t quite fit in on their homes. One wants to be the hero who kills the monster. One wants to weave it into stories. And one, Sola, simply wants to understand…The artwork of islands and the vast ocean that surrounds them is magical, as is the final encounter with the monster. Those who like clear, crisp endings might be bothered; those who love to dream will be enchanted.

Island War, by Patricia Reilly Giff
11-year-old Izzy is taken by her ornithologist mother for an extended stay on a remote Alaskan island, and 14-year-old Matt arrives at the same time, unwillingly visiting his own father. Though they both have troubles adjusting to their new home, they don’t become friends. Then Pearl Harbor is bombed. The Japanese army invades the island, rounds up all its inhabitants and sends them to camps in Japan. Matt and Izzy escape, and are left behind. They are forced to join forces in order to survive, scavenging for food and always fearful that they will be found. When winter comes, and Matt falls ill, survival becomes even more difficult. This gripping adventure, based on a little-known piece of American history, will appeal to any kid who loves stories of kids surviving danger on their own.

Nation, by Terry Pratchett
When a ferocious storm ravages his island Nation, Mau is the only survivor, alone among the devastation and questioning the existence of his gods. Then he meets Daphne, a castaway from an English ship caught in the same storm. They don’t know each other’s language, but gradually begin to help each other. Other survivors from outside start joining them, bringing conflict and violence. Mau and Daphne, each of whom have begun to hear the ancestral voices of Mau’s people, discover that the island hides tremendous secrets from its past, and they being to forge a new Nation. Like all of Pratchett’s books, it’s witty and wise. There’s lots to think about—faith and loss, tradition and progress, memory and courage. Mau and Daphne are great characters, and the island too, with its secrets and strange creatures (like intelligent, tree-climbing octopuses), is almost a character in its own right.

The Island at the End of Everything, by Kiran Millwood Hargrave
Ami’s remote island home is beautiful, but isn’t a place people want to visit. It is a place where those afflicted by leprosy are taken away from their families to die. Ami was born on the island after her mother was taken there, and doesn’t have leprosy herself. She and her mother love each other dearly, so when the government determines that the kids who aren’t sick must be taken to an orphanage on one of the more settled islands of the Philippines, Ami’s heart breaks. The orphanage isn’t completely horrible, but it isn’t home, and when Ami learns her mother is dying, she’ll risk everything to get back to her. It’s a story of love and loyalty, with lots of great characters (and lots of beautiful butterflies), based on a real time and place.

August Isle, by Ali Standish
Miranda’s parents have to spend the summer travelling, so they send her to August Isle, Florida, to stay with family friends she barely remembers. It’s where her mother spent her own summers as a girl, but Miranda’s never been there. She’s never even seen the ocean before, and is afraid of water, and she’s also afraid that her mother doesn’t care about her. “Aunt” Clare is warm and welcoming, and her daughter Samira is happy to befriend Miranda. August Island turns out to be more than just beaches and ice cream and the sea turtle nests the girls enjoy together. When Miranda, Samira, and a lonely local boy find themselves stuck helping an eccentric old seafarer sort through his papers and possessions, and writing down the stories he’s gathered in his travels, answers to all Miranda’s questions start spilling out, bringing both pain and peace. It’s a magical island summer, that the reader will want to last longer…

The Floating Islands, by Rachel Neumeier
When a volcano kills his family, Trei must travel to the Floating Islands, to live with family he’s never met. When he first sees the islands, suspended above the ocean by the magic of the wind dragons, with men flying on the winds, he is awestruck, and wants to fly himself. But can a boy who is only half an islander become one of them? His cousin Araene has her own dream of escaping the restrictive life of island woman, and when a door opens for her into the school of the mages, she enters. Trei is accepted by the flyers, and begins his training, and Araene begins to explore her magical gifts. But when war comes to the islands, they both are put to the test before they are ready, and both play a role in saving the magical place they love. A great one for fans of magical schools, and for stories of kids finding their place in the world. There’s also a bonus baby dragon, to add even more magic!

Queen of the Sea, by Dylan Meconis
Here’s a great new graphic novel for fans of historical fiction! The only home Margaret has ever known is the tiny convent on an isolated island where she was left as a baby. The women have been kind, but her life is lonely until a boy her own age arrives with his mother, and at last she has a companion. Then another arrival disturbs the peace of the island. The newcomer is a princess exiled by her older sister, and Margaret discovers her island home is actually a prison for everyone who lives there. Confronted with this dark reality, Margaret must decide if she is willing to fight for a chance at life in the wider world across the sea. She’s a truly wonderful character, smart and spirited, and young readers will love her. They’ll also love the absolutely gorgeous illustrations that don’t just show the island and its people, but add to the story beautifully.

Orphan Island, by Laurel Snyder
Nine children (with no adults) live on island where everything is perfect—the island gives them food and shelter and is a wonderful place to play, where nothing will hurt them. It is always nine children, a year apart from each other. Once a year, a boat comes through the ocean mist with a new little one, and the oldest child must climb into the boat and leave forever. When Jinny’s best friend Deen leaves in the boat, Jinny’s now the oldest kid, responsible for teaching and looking after the new little girl. The thought of her own leaving day troubles Jinny. She rebels against it, and the island responds, in dangerous ways. It’s a fascinating set-up, and Jinny’s struggle with her loyalty to the other kids, to the island, and to herself and her own desire to stay is gripping!