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When I Met Karana

ByKelly Keller

Today we begin a fun month-long celebration on the site. It’s Middle Grade March, paying attention to those books that take us from picture books to more grown-up ones. These books bridge a critical gap for young readers, giving them confidence and shaping their affections (for better or worse!).

We hope you and your kids will check in on the website and learn more about what we love about middle grade books. You’ll find recommendations, deals, and even a huge giveaway. Visit this post to get started and join the fun.

Sometime in late elementary school, I met Karana. She was an indigenous young woman, stranded alone on an island off the California coast. She is the protagonist in Scott O’Dell’s book Island of the Blue Dolphins*. Growing up in a small suburban town in central Massachusetts, surrounded by friends and family, I had nothing in common with Karana. But I could not leave her story alone.

Years later, I would learn that this story is based on a true event (for more, read here). But when I was first reading the adventure, I had no idea about that. All that mattered was O’Dell’s simple storytelling, depicting a woman alone fighting to live. After having been left behind when her family and village were taken aboard a ship, Karana lives alone on her island in the Pacific. She endures countless trials, including the death of her brother and her beloved dog. She carries on through seasons and years, wondering if one day the ship will return and carry her to be reunited with the community she loves and misses.

I think I must have read this book ten times or more. I had not encountered an adventure or survival story that featured a female main character. The book filled a gap for me. I returned to it time and again until my copy was well-worn and loved.

What is it about this time of reading books that captures kids’ hearts and doesn’t let them go? Whether it’s through a favorite series, taking you through many adventures with the same cast of characters, or a single story that rises above the rest to grab your heart, readers can be made for life when a middle grade book grabs them.

This month at Story Warren, we are celebrating the books in the middle—the ones that reach out for kids’ hands once they venture out from mom and dad’s read-alouds. These are the books that offer a bridge to young adult and adult reading, kindly keeping company with young readers and showing them the path ahead.

So today I’m wondering: what book did this for you? Was there a middle grade title that captured your heart and your imagination? Hit reply and let me know. You might already know that we love lists, so we’re hoping you will add to ours.

*Note: this book, with its descriptions of death and depictions of intense solitude, is not for everyone! Proceed with caution if you have a sensitive young reader.

Kelly Keller
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