Heavy Medal Mock Newbery Finalist: MID-AIR by Alicia D. Williams
Introduction by Heavy Medal Award Committee Member Lauren Taylor
The first thing I did after finishing MID-AIR by Alicia D. Williams was to get on my library’s website and put a hold on everything in her back catalog. The prose, the plot, the rumination on what it means to change time and place. This novel in verse takes on multiple tropes and tried & true conventions in children’s fiction to create something that feels magical and new. I was surprised each time the plot shifted and the direction changed, yet I was always happy to follow along where Williams and the novel’s main character, Isaiah, led me. From the city to the South, from the death of a friend to first love. I couldn’t believe how much was packed into this novel, especially as it’s in verse with way less text than many middle grade chapter books.
“I Bet You
is how it always begins.
No matter the game or record.
One of us’ll throw out the first bet,
another’ll pick it up & double it,
Another’ll snatch it back, triple it, like – …
So on & so on
adding time to feats
we ain’t hardly gonna reach.
But it’s the talking that gets us psyched,
Got us believing in gladiator might.
And it’s the believing that counts.” (p.33)
The novel opens with best friends Darius, Drew and Isiah betting on who can do a wheelie for the longest. But instead of the whooping celebration when Darius completes his dare, it ends in tragedy. Darius is struck by a car while Isiah and Drew are distracted by a man yelling at them for being in his neighborhood. I thought this novel was going to be solely focused on Isiah dealing with the death of a friend, but it upended my expectations almost immediately. The reader learns that Isiah loves rock bands and t-shirts. He likes to wear nail polish and is worried about how he needs to be “tough” and fit in with his classmates. Drew is distant and never wants to talk about Darius leaving Isiah feeling more adrift than ever before. When he goes to pay homage to Darius at the site of his death, he is chased and attacked by the same man who Isiah holds responsible for Darius’ death. Fearing for his life, Isiah shuts down and is unwilling to talk about the event HE. IS. FINE. With summer break approaching, his parents decide to send him to stay with his Uncle Vent and Aunt Terri for the summer. The break from the everyday, the slower pace of his relatives’ small town and the new friendships of Grady and Kiana, allow Isiah to process the trauma and find people he can trust again.
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I was unsurprised after finishing MID-AIR to find out that Alicia D. Williams has already netted several awards including a Newbery Honor. MID-AIR is the work of an author at the top of her craft and although I haven’t read her other works (yet), I can’t imagine that MID-AIR won’t do well this award season. This book is excellent and I can’t imagine the Newbery Committee finding it anything short of excellence. If an author can use words so skillfully to describe one of the more gross things our bodies can do like this: “my head faces the ground introducing the earth to the contents of my stomach,” (p. 123) I think she deserves an award. Plus, Williams tackles a full range of subjects from race to grief to gender roles all while keeping the book relatable and readable. I know this introduction post is getting long, so I’ll wrap it up with a question and a poem. What did you think of MID AIR?
“Girls
can use power tools,
wear blue, play football and hockey,
box, wrestle, drive race cars too. Girls can
be firefighters, construction workers, police, and
security guards. Girls can pretend, dress up, play with
dolls, without ever being too old. They can be brave
or scared, cry without being told to stop. They can
even do karate! Girls can feel or not.
They can not wear polish, dresses,
or heels, and still be
girls.
But…
it’s a big deal if boys wear polish.” (p. 108)
Heavy Medal Award Committee members and others are now invited to discuss this book further in the Comments section below. Let the Mock Newbery discussion begin!
Filed under: Book Discussion, Heavy Medal Mock
About Steven Engelfried
Steven Engelfried retired from full-time library work a couple years ago and now works as a part-time Youth Librarian at the West Linn Public Library in Oregon. He served on the 2010 Newbery committee, chaired the 2013 Newbery Committee, and also served on the 2002 Caldecott committee. You can reach him at sengelfried@yahoo.com.
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I agree with Lauren – this was an excellent book, in part because of how much is going on, but never in a way that felt crowded or confusing. Race, identity, grief, love, friendship, family, it’s all here, and each theme adds to the others. Top three on the shortlist for me, I’d love for it to get recognition.
Along with QUAGMIRE TIARELLO, are we getting a new trope of “if you need to work some things out, go to your uncle/aunt’s farm and work for a while”? (Just kidding, it was a funny parallel, though.)
COLOR OF SOUND also came to mind, not just for the getting-away-from-things-for-the-summer-at-your-relatives plot but the thematic role of photos.
Are we to understand that Drew’s explanation for his bruises were to be taken at face value? Usually they would have been a clear indicator of an abuse subplot, but they weren’t so I am not sure what the purpose was.
Of all of the verse novels on our list, I believe that Mid-Air has the most complexity and nuance. It is the one verse novel that I would not consider an “easier” reading experience than many other novels, a factor that I do consider when recommending books to my students. The vocabulary is at a higher level and the poetry requires thought and interpretation to translate into narrative. I appreciate the novelty of the different formats throughout the book, with a standout being “Mom Frets” on page 159.
This is a high-level contender for me in this year’s Newbery line up!
I appreciate Kate’s insight about the “complexity and nuance” of MID-AIR compared to other verse novels. In some books, the verse format kind of slims down the story, so we’re only exposed to the most central events and emotions. MID-AIR. Books like AND THEN, BOOM! and DEEP WATER are more direct, mostly following the one key plot thread and the main character…and that works well for both books, but MID-AIR is a little broader. There is room for humor and more casual character developments. There are big moments and emotions for sure, but you don’t feel like everything in the text is dependent on those. And what an interesting and powerful choice to not even describe the assault at the time it occurs. We learn the essence, but not the details, until we finally get most of it when he tells it to Kiana (268-274) and it has even more impact because we’ve seen how it’s affected Isaiah through all that time.
I missed yesterday’s discussion of MAX, but I wanted to make sure to post today because I agree, MID-AIR is excellent! Top 5 for me. The illustrations aren’t many, so they are very effective, especially the one on the page after Darius dies. The tone of that entire poem was on a crescendo right up until the moment of that illustration that quietly communicated such intense sorrow. I had the same experience as Kate – I thought this was going to be a quicker read than my previous one, which was MALLORY. I was so wrong. I took quite some time to read and re-read my favorite poems, which were the ones in which Isaiah has internal monologues and asks why he can’t just be himself. Thematically, that’s something many preteens and teens can relate to, but there’s also so much more going on here for readers looking for something broader and with more social commentary than teenage introspection. The character development was also top-notch. I loved Isaiah so much and wish that he hadn’t lost Darius – but the way he was (understandably) too wrapped up in his grief and perceived guilt to realize that Drew was also having a hard time was realistic and something he had to learn from. I can go on and on – and hope we get to do that during our live discussion of our top 5!
I have really changed my mind about this book the more I have looked at it and thought about it. My first read I was mainly interested in the story and while I liked it I wasn’t really sold on Newbery. On my second read I was focused more on why it was getting Newbery buzz and looked at the writing which is really good – such imagery and flow. The characters are all well fleshed out and real – how different people deal with grief, self-doubt, etc. I was a bit hung up on my second read with the pacing – and I am still not quite sure how I feel about it to be honest. Most of Isaiah’s journey toward healing is the 6 weeks he is at his uncle and aunt’s house but he doesn’t get there until more than 1/2 the book is over. I know there needed to be the build up that resulted in his going there – I just felt like I needed more about that time. Maybe it needed over 500 pages like Louder Than Hunger ;0.
I have now read parts of it a third time just today based on what people have said here and other reviews I have read. Isaiah is such a strong character and Williams does such an excellent job portraying his character, his grief, his insecurities, and his growth which is what really propels this book into that Newbery realm.
Overall, I am still undecided on the 5 I most want to see on our final discussion. It may take some more pondering and rereading of several of the titles but this one is rising in my ranks.
I missed yesterday’s discussion of MAX, but I wanted to make sure to post today because I agree, MID-AIR is excellent! Top 5 for me. The illustrations aren’t many, so they are very effective, especially the one on the page after Darius dies. The tone of that entire poem was on a crescendo right up until the moment of that illustration that quietly communicated such intense sorrow. I had the same experience as Kate – I thought this was going to be a quicker read than my previous one, which was MALLORY. I was so wrong. I took quite some time to read and re-read my favorite poems, which were the ones in which Isaiah has internal monologues and asks why he can’t just be himself. Thematically, that’s something many preteens and teens can relate to, but there’s also so much more going on here for readers looking for something broader and with more social commentary than teenage introspection. The character development was also top-notch. I loved Isaiah so much and wish that he hadn’t lost Darius – but the way he was (understandably) too wrapped up in his grief and perceived guilt to realize that Drew was also having a hard time was realistic and something he had to learn from. I can go on and on – and hope we get to do that during our live discussion of our top 5!
MID-AIR is worthy of a place on the 2025 Newbery podium. Bet.
“Front hand slap, back hand slap, dap, dap, palm clasp.”
MID-AIR is relevant, excellent, and distinctive. While all Newbery rubrics were achieved, the book’s greatest strengths were pacing and plot in developing multi-faceted characters with creative language choices. Young readers will recognize the ups and downs of middle school friendships as circles change and that desire to yell “I’M FINE!”(p 179) when struggling to navigate the minefield of middle school.
I was immersed in the setting and dialogue. The occasional secondary illustrations confirmed my picture of the main character as a bewildered teenager and a heartbroken friend.
For example, I wrote in my notes: ‘True. I felt this all through 7th grade. Changes made me feel frantic. Kids are on their phones scrolling for a like and dopamine hit while their friends are struggling right next to them. This is a problem. Universal?’ after annotating pages 58-59:
” Sup?’ I ask.
Nothin’, he answers.
I wait for him to start yapping again.
He doesn’t.
I stuff my hands in my pockets
go back to rocking while Drew’s steadily swiping.
Yeah. I hate when things change. Like the time I was finally okay with my tablemates & Mr. Hart rearranged seats to ‘change things up.’ ”
I also laughed out loud at the 8th-grade vision of High school on page 71:
“we walk through halls of giant football-palying-looking-dudes with mustaches & beards- beards yo! Girls I’ll never ever have the nerve to step to & teachers whose faces are chiseled in I don’t play. This school is monstrously huge.” Every kid I know has this moment. I remember it in 7th grade, and I see it now when middle schoolers walk into the gym all bug-eyed and trying to play it cool. Legit, funny. (This book also contains one of my favorite lines that I am waiting to use at the gym: “My arms are John Cena attitude adjustment strong. Don’t believe me? Feel” (p. 31)
I also enjoyed the world-record attempts, reference to 1980’s and 90’s ‘Gawds of rock’ music (p29/99), and mental health messages such as “Grief, he says, is one of the emotions that’ll consume you, if you don’t take care of yourself. Trust me, I know.” (p.68
With precision, Alicia Williams subtly layered in complex questions about race and socio-economic disparities that are delicate. I appreciated that there is a space for the reader to think about this without feeling pushed, rushed, or lectured. My flagged note is on page 47, a conversation between Isaiah and his dad when he is talking about the altercation with the antagonist on Rosewood Street. When trying to understand this character’s rage, his dad says, “It’s…. complicated. It’s… ignorance….” Readers aren’t given a physical description of the antagonist. We don’t need one to understand.
Williams delivers on this nuanced social justice theme best in her character development of Isaiah and his friend Drew through their father-son revelations and intersecting plot lines. Through these family relationships, the reader explores how the young characters are being influenced by generational identity and “authentic Black experiences.” (p.93) There is a reference to the 1963 bombing/ 2015 hate crime shooting at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, the oldest black church in the Southern United States. Still, it is bookended by descriptions of positive Black lives and experiences. This gave the framework to examine the main character’s struggle as he tries to manage his emotions and be his authentic self while looking for models of that in his community. This element of the book made me think about one of my favorite Newbery honoree books, THE LONG WAY DOWN (Jason Reynolds, 2017.) Alecia Williams has captured this theme in her own distinct and powerful way.
In my second reading of the book, I noticed the contrast in neighborhoods and the tension the author’s descriptions create. I marked the best example on page 34, Saturday, March 24, which talks about the setting of Rosewood Lane.
“Here the houses are big…
It’s quiet. A man walks his Corgi, casually.
Up the street, two ladies push stroller, leisurely.
Cedar street cuts Rosewood in two,
with cul-de-sacs on each end.
Got no potholes or cracks.
No hills or bumps. No traffic either.
Snow cleared from the street.
Racetrack smooth.”
I did not write this review yesterday because I was thinking about the fires in LA. I came back to Williams’s page 34 and then tried to picture the predominately wealthy neighborhood of Pasadena and neighboring Altadena, a historically black neighborhood that has now been destroyed. I thought about Isaiah and Darius. About friendship, loss, and grief, and how to get through that. I thought about the beanie that Isaiah wears like a cocoon – while he tries to grow into it, hide his differences while effectively growing into it. As a youth reviewer, I can picture that contrast and see the need for community support BECAUSE of books like MID-AIR.
In 2023, I was all about the incredible Graphic Novel memoirs that pushed the format into the literature category. 2024 was a year where I recognized the range of novels in verse. I was rooting for MID-AIR to win the 2024 National Book Award for Young People’s Literature, but I hope its awards path has just begun.
MID-AIR has confidently secured my vote as a top 5 finalist for the 2025 HMAC.
spelling correction: Alicia D. Williams.