Comp titles for middle-grade book about a kid who finds a lucky coin
April 2, 2022 10:15 PM Subscribe
I'm close to finishing a draft of a middle-grade novel about a kid who finds a magic/lucky coin and soon it will be time to write a query letter to agents. I'd like to include some good comp (comparison) titles and so I need to start reading now. Hoping for your suggestions!
Specifically, I'm looking for recent books where a normal kid in the normal world stumbles across something magical/supernatural. There's no big secret magical society or ancient prophecy or wizarding school, just a kid with a magical secret who goes about his ordinary life, going to school and doing homework and hanging out with friends.
Some possible comp titles from my childhood:
Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher by Bruce Coville
The Boy Who Reversed Himself, by William Sleator
The Castle in the Attic, by Elizabeth Winthrop
Some more modern comp title possibilities:
What Not to Do If You Turn Invisible, by Ross Welford
The Day I Was Erased, by Lisa Thompson
A little more about the book
On the first day of sixth grade in his new town, Stanley finds a mysterious coin. He and the clever boy down the street, Riggs, figure out the coin is incredibly lucky, but not before attracting the attention of two more kids at their school: book-smart Beth and brash Marissa. As the four of them scheme to use luck to ace tests, eat free pizza, and win the lottery, it becomes clear someone else knows they have the coin, and will stop at nothing to get it.
If you have other ideas, please let me know! (And on the off chance you know an agent who might be an especially good fit, feel free to send me a message.) Thanks!
Specifically, I'm looking for recent books where a normal kid in the normal world stumbles across something magical/supernatural. There's no big secret magical society or ancient prophecy or wizarding school, just a kid with a magical secret who goes about his ordinary life, going to school and doing homework and hanging out with friends.
Some possible comp titles from my childhood:
Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher by Bruce Coville
The Boy Who Reversed Himself, by William Sleator
The Castle in the Attic, by Elizabeth Winthrop
Some more modern comp title possibilities:
What Not to Do If You Turn Invisible, by Ross Welford
The Day I Was Erased, by Lisa Thompson
A little more about the book
On the first day of sixth grade in his new town, Stanley finds a mysterious coin. He and the clever boy down the street, Riggs, figure out the coin is incredibly lucky, but not before attracting the attention of two more kids at their school: book-smart Beth and brash Marissa. As the four of them scheme to use luck to ace tests, eat free pizza, and win the lottery, it becomes clear someone else knows they have the coin, and will stop at nothing to get it.
If you have other ideas, please let me know! (And on the off chance you know an agent who might be an especially good fit, feel free to send me a message.) Thanks!
Possibly Just Add Magic?
posted by dpx.mfx at 12:01 AM on April 3, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by dpx.mfx at 12:01 AM on April 3, 2022 [1 favorite]
Half Magic is my first association, though it's even older
posted by february at 3:54 AM on April 3, 2022 [5 favorites]
posted by february at 3:54 AM on April 3, 2022 [5 favorites]
Oh wow. Not recent, but there was one I remember from my childhood- maybe a short story? The magic coin didn't work the same way twice. The example I remember was one day they were running late for school and it expanded to the size of a disk and flew them there. On the way home they put the coin down and waited, but it didn't do anything so they ran all the way home, so weren't late...
There was also something to do with peanut butter sandwiches.
posted by freethefeet at 4:25 AM on April 3, 2022 [1 favorite]
There was also something to do with peanut butter sandwiches.
posted by freethefeet at 4:25 AM on April 3, 2022 [1 favorite]
Congratulations on getting so much done on your book. It sounds really cool.
My favorite writing podcast, The Shit No One Tells You About Writing, has recently started letting listeners call in and ask for comps. Then on the show, they have booksellers who provide comps. These are clearly researched - I've heard a bookseller say she's had to ask around about some books. I don't see a specific section for that on the website - perhaps there's more or a way to ask on their Facebook page (I'm not on Facebook, so I can't check).
They also have listeners send in their agent queries and first five pages, and the agents on the show then critique them. On extremely rare occasions, the agents have expressed interest in the books. That particular outcome is very unlikely - I don't think these agents even represent middle-grade books - but they do provide critiques for them, and that would be invaluable. I learn a lot just by listening to their critiques.
posted by FencingGal at 5:48 AM on April 3, 2022 [3 favorites]
My favorite writing podcast, The Shit No One Tells You About Writing, has recently started letting listeners call in and ask for comps. Then on the show, they have booksellers who provide comps. These are clearly researched - I've heard a bookseller say she's had to ask around about some books. I don't see a specific section for that on the website - perhaps there's more or a way to ask on their Facebook page (I'm not on Facebook, so I can't check).
They also have listeners send in their agent queries and first five pages, and the agents on the show then critique them. On extremely rare occasions, the agents have expressed interest in the books. That particular outcome is very unlikely - I don't think these agents even represent middle-grade books - but they do provide critiques for them, and that would be invaluable. I learn a lot just by listening to their critiques.
posted by FencingGal at 5:48 AM on April 3, 2022 [3 favorites]
The Strange Case of Origami Yoda by Tom Angleberger?
"In this funny, uncannily wise portrait of the dynamics of a sixth-grade class and of the greatness that sometimes comes in unlikely packages, Dwight, a loser, talks to his classmates via an origami finger puppet of Yoda. If that weren't strange enough, the puppet is uncannily wise and prescient. Origami Yoda predicts the date of a pop quiz, guesses who stole the classroom Shakespeare bust, and saves a classmate from popularity-crushing embarrassment."
posted by lizard music at 8:43 AM on April 3, 2022 [2 favorites]
"In this funny, uncannily wise portrait of the dynamics of a sixth-grade class and of the greatness that sometimes comes in unlikely packages, Dwight, a loser, talks to his classmates via an origami finger puppet of Yoda. If that weren't strange enough, the puppet is uncannily wise and prescient. Origami Yoda predicts the date of a pop quiz, guesses who stole the classroom Shakespeare bust, and saves a classmate from popularity-crushing embarrassment."
posted by lizard music at 8:43 AM on April 3, 2022 [2 favorites]
This is not a good comparison (it's not recent enough, and it's a very different story), but even so, you might want to be aware of The Queen's Nose by Dick King-Smith (1983, with a long-running TV series from 1995). It's a British middle-grade novel about a ten-year-old with a coin that grants wishes. It's the first thing I thought of when I read the post title.
posted by ManyLeggedCreature at 3:11 AM on April 4, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by ManyLeggedCreature at 3:11 AM on April 4, 2022 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: Thanks all! I have started reading/listening.
Some random notes:
- I love Half Magic, one of my favorite books as a kid.
- The magic coin that didn't work twice might have been a Ruth Chew? I loved those, too.
posted by imelcapitan at 11:44 AM on April 5, 2022
Some random notes:
- I love Half Magic, one of my favorite books as a kid.
- The magic coin that didn't work twice might have been a Ruth Chew? I loved those, too.
posted by imelcapitan at 11:44 AM on April 5, 2022
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I can think of . . .
the Aleca Zamm series by Ginger Rue
and
The House That Wasn’t There by Elena K. Arnold
posted by TEA at 10:24 PM on April 2, 2022 [1 favorite]