Evelyn Maguire: Editing Middle Grade

During my visit to Simon & Schuster two weeks ago, I met with an acquisitions editor for their Children's department, a very intelligent and frankly very intimidating young woman whose intense character was a definite juxtaposition to the colorful and zany books that surrounded her. When I asked about her current projects, she was exceptionally excited about an upcoming middle grade book to be released this spring: The Remarkable Inventions of Walter Mortinson by Quinn Sosna-Spear.

On my way out, she offered an advanced copy of this book that she was so excited about, asking me to read it and let her know what I thought. I'm currently about 3/4 of the way through The Remarkable Inventions, and what I keep thinking is that I have literally no idea  how to judge a middle grade book. When I find the writing clever, I wonder if it's too clever for readers aged 8-12. When I find the book lacking in detail or character development, I wonder if it's because I'm used to adult literary fiction, and thus should lower my expectation.

The acquisitions editor was convinced that this book will be a huge success, so I can only assume as I read through this that I should be taking in every detail as something a middle grade author should strive for. Feeling so unsure of whether a book is good or not has made me realize the huge differences in genre, and as What Editor's Do points out, you have to well-read to be a great editor!