Lisa Graff's A Tangle of Knots earned its spot on the National Book Award longlist because it treats middle-grade readers like clever detectives. Set in a slightly askew world where fortunate people have a modest 'Talent,' the story follows eleven-year-old Cady, an orphan whose gift is baking the exact cake a person's soul needs before she even meets them. Her path winds toward a mysterious address housing a lost-luggage emporium, a family hunting for their own abilities, a boy who doesn't speak, and a man who literally inhales other people's Talents to steal them.

If you have a kid who loved the quirky superpower rules of Ingrid Law's Savvy or the interlocking mystery of Rebecca Stead's When You Reach Me, this sits right at that intersection. It takes a few chapters to get all the pieces on the board, so impatient readers might need a nudge past the setup. Once the gears catch, it's a warm, inventive read that usually ends with flour on your kitchen counter.