Ellie Engle Saves Herself - by Leah Johnson

About the Book

As twelve-year-old Ellie Engle navigates seventh grade and her changing relationship with her best friend, a freak accident occurs and gives Ellie the ability to bring things back to life through touch.

Book Synopsis

Now in paperback!

From award-winning YA author Leah Johnson comes her magical middle grade debut: a laugh-until-you-cry, cry-until-you-laugh story about an ordinary girl whose life is turned upside down by some extraordinary powers.

Kirkus Best of 2023

Chicago Public Library's Best of the Best Books of 2023

Named a Best Book of 2023 by School Library Journal

Shortlisted for the 2024 LGBTQ+ Middle Grade Lambda Literary Award The Bank Street Best Books of the Year List, 2024 (Star for Outstanding Merit) Selected for the ALA Booklist Rainbow List, 2024

Ellie Engle doesn't stand out. Not at home, where she's alone with her pet fish since her dad moved away and her mom has to work around the clock . Not at the bakery, where she helps out old Mr. Walker on the weekends. And definitely not at school, where her best friend Abby--the coolest, boldest, most talented girl in the world--drags Ellie along on her never-ending quest to "make her mark." To someone else, a life in the shadows might seem boring, or lonely. But not to Ellie. As long as she has Abby by her side and a comic book in her hand, she's quite content.

Too bad life didn't bother checking in with Ellie. Because when a freak earthquake hits her small town, Ellie wakes up with fantastical powers that allow her to bring anything back to life with just her touch. And when a video of her using her powers suddenly goes viral, Ellie's life goes somewhere she never imagined--or wanted: straight into the spotlight.

Surviving middle school is hard enough. Surviving middle school when paparazzi are camped out on your front lawn and an international pop singer wants you to use your powers on live tv and you might be in love with your best friend but she doesn't know it? Absolutely impossible.

Review Quotes

Praise for Ellie Engle Saves Herself

*"Joyful and magical."
--School Library Journal (starred review)

*"A delightful, magical middle-grade debut . . . Excellently harnesses the anxiety that is prevalent throughout the junior-high years."
--Booklist (starred review)

*"A warmly rendered, lightly speculative love story about a girl learning to believe that she's anything but ordinary."
--Publishers Weekly (starred review)

*"Johnson deftly explores identity and responsibility to ourselves and others in this joyful coming-of-age story. Marvelous."
--Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

"Ellie Engle is a force!"
--Kwame Mbalia, #1 New York Times best-selling author of the Tristan Strong series

"Leah Johnson's middle-grade debut does it all, and more."
--Kyle Lukoff, winner of the Newbery Honor Award and the Stonewall Award for Too Bright to See

"A funny, heartfelt reminder that we are all worthy of standing in the sun, rather than hiding in the shadows."
--Erin Entrada Kelly, Newbery Medal winner for Hello, Universe and Newbery Honor winner for We Dream of Space

"Belongs on middle-grade shelves everywhere."
--Kacen Callender, National Book Award, Lambda Literary Award, and
Coretta Scott King Honor-winning author of King and the Dragonflies

"A sheer delight from beginning to end!"
--Julie Murphy, #1 New York Times best-selling author of Dumplin'

About the Author

Leah Johnson always wanted to be a superhero, but she became a writer instead, which she thinks is the next-best thing. Her debut novel, You Should See Me in a Crown, was a Stonewall Honor Book, the inaugural Reese's Book Club YA Pick, and named one of Time's 100 Best Young Adult Books of All Time. You can find Leah online at ByLeahJohnson.com and on Instagram and TikTok @ByLeahJohnson.