All of the following books were nominated for the Cybil Award for Middle Grade Fiction. Links are to a Semicolon review of the book in question.

For the gifted child looking for special opportunities: The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart.

For the baseball fan: The Aurora County All-Stars by Deborah Wiles or Edward’s Eyes by Patricia Maclachan.

For the strong, silent type: No Talking by Andrew Clements.

For the spiritual seeker: Leap of Faith by Kimberley Brubaker Bradley.

For the entrepreneur: The Lemonade War by Jacqueline Davies.

For the wild would-be writer: The Wild Girls by Pat Murphy.

For the dog lover and the soldier: Cracker by Cynthia Kadohata.

For the prospective spy: Clarice Bean, Don’t Look Now by Lauren Child or The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart.

For the guide dog trainer: The Friskative Dog by Susan Straight.

For the horse-lover: Paint the Wind by Pam Munoz Ryan.

For the songwriter and the artist: Louisiana’s Song by Kerry Madden.

For the upwardly mobile shopper chick: The Secret Identity of Devon Delaney by Lauren Barnholdt.

For the girl scientist who aspires to popularity: Social Experiments of Dorie Dilts: Dumped by Popular Demand by PG Kain.

For the person with hidden talents: The Talented Clementine by Sara Pennypacker.

For the student of African-American history: Celeste’s Harlem Renaissance by Eleanora E. Tate or Elijah of Buxton by Christopher Paul Curtis.

For the logical and the singular (and for those who live with a logically left-brained person): Emma-Jean Lazarus Fell Out of a Tree by Lauren Tarshis.

For the internet addict: Dear Jo by Christina Kilbourne.

For the bear-lover: Bearwalker by Joseph Bruchac.

For the organist/pianist: A Crooked Kind of Perfect by Linda Urban.

For the ambitious adventurer: Isle of Swords by Thomas Wayne Batson or Leepike Ridge by Nathan D. Wilson.

For the chess strategist with or without anger issues: Chess Rumble by G. Neri.

For the immigrant: Home of the Brave by Katherine Applegate.

For the Korean-American adoptee: Kimchi and Calamari by Rose Kent.

For the girl who would be queen: The Broken Bike Boy and the Queen of 33rd Street by Sharon G. Flake.

For the communication specialist: Miss Spitfire by Sarah Miller.

For the potential desert survivor: Camel Rider by Prue Mason.

For the scrapbooking middle schooler: Middle School is Worse Than Meatloaf by Jennifer L. Holm.

For the puzzle-solver: The Puzzling World of Winston Breen by Eric Berlin.

For the gardener/poet: Reaching for Sun by Tracie Vaughn Zimmer.

For the grower of giant pumpkins (or any giant vegetable): Me and the Pumpkin Queen by Marlane Kennedy.

For the older sister with responsibilities: The Middle of Somewhere by J.B. Cheaney.