The Misfits by James HoweAladdin, 2003 (originally 2001)

Sometimes this book is annoyingly meta-textual, like when the narrator refers to things that are going to happen, or calls other characters “characters,” but mostly it’s a quirky and cute story about a group of seventh-grade kids who are the class outcasts. I like how matter-of-factly everything is handled, how having divorced parents or a dad who used to drink too much, or a mom who died when you were a kid, or being queer (or being fat or being tall or being shy) isn’t turned into a big issue to deal with/is just something that’s there as a part of life. I also like that how Howe doesn’t turn this into a totally unrealistic book where the unpopular kids suddenly become popular and everyone becomes friends with one another, either.