The Clackity

As much adventure with quest elements as horror, a good mix. 
Protagonist is managing grief, anxiety/panic attacks even as she is coming up against other less everyday challenges. Central message appears to be that empowerment is gained not only by how you brave and conquer new experiences alone, but also how you are supported by active efforts of friends as well as known love from family, how that allows you to move forward with confidence.
Thread of animal welfare/vegetarian concerns running through the story which I appreciated.
Credit to Alfredo Cáceres for the cover and the illustrations within. 
Very happy to read further in this series whenever the next is published.
I could quibble at the relative ease of the journey's stops: obstacle met, obstacle overcome, helped by most who are first glance were adversaries, check, onto the next. But it kept a refreshing pace and I've suffered through enough tales that get bogged down with the minutiae of sidelines to appreciate the opposite problem. Also, middle grade means easier reading in a lot of senses, and my brain needs that today.