Tuesday, April 29, 2025
Black Sunflowers by Cynthia LeBrun - OPTIONAL
What a Desi Girl Wants by Sabina Khan - OPTIONAL
Junie B. Jones and the Stupid Smelly Bus: The Graphic Novel by Barbara Park, Colleen AF Venable and Honie Beam - ADVISABLE
Junie B. Jones and the Stupid Smelly Bus: The Graphic Novel by Barbara Park and Colleen AF Venable, illustrated by Honie Beam. GRAPHIC NOVEL. Random House Children's Book, 2025. $21. 9780593706701
BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3), EL - ADVISABLE
APPEALS TO: MANY
This is a graphic novel adaptation of Barbara Park's beloved series starter that introduces us to 6 year old Junie B. Jones, brand new kindergartner who has to ride the "stupid smelly bus" to school. Junie B. (don't forget the B!) is precocious and clever, and endearing with her limited vocabulary and typical kindergarten style of speech. In this story we get to go to Junie B.'s first day of kindergarten with her, and discover all the new, fun, scary and "stupid" things she gets to experience.
Confession time - I only read a Junie B. Jones book one time alongside one of my kids when he was young. So the story here was fresh and new for me, even though it was a retelling of a well-known and well-loved book. I thought the story was entertaining, and the graphic novel illustrations will be fun for Junie B. fans revisiting her stories in a new way. When I showed my 17 year old daughter that there was a graphic novel adaptation she actually got so excited and wants to read it herself! I'm know my elementary students will be excited about this book, and we'll all look forward to book 2 in the series coming later in 2025.
Graphic novel illustrations depict characters of different gender, race and ethnicity.
Angie Campbell - EL Librarian
Monday, April 28, 2025
Radiant by Vaunda Micheaux Nelson - ADVISABLE
Eve: How the Female Body Shaped Evolution by Cat Bohannon - OPTIONAL
Most Ardently: A Pride and Prejudice Remix by Gabe Cole Novoa - ADVISABLE
Sunday, April 27, 2025
Compound Fracture by Andrew Joseph White - OPTIONAL
Saturday, April 26, 2025
Radar and the Raft by Jeff Lantos - OPTIONAL
Radar and the Raft: A True Story About a Scientific Marvel, the Lives it Saved, and the World it Changed by Jeff Lantos, 186 NON-FICTION Charlesbridge/Imagine, 2024. $19
Between each story of the raft survivors is a chapter explaining the history of radar and the scientists who developed it. The tech behind radar sounded so far fetched that Hitler turned it down twice. Many of the scientists who worked on the final leg of radar development went to Los Alamos to work on the hydrogen bomb. " The story of the raft was interesting, though the alternating chapters were a bit jarring at first. The book is fairly science heavy. Anyone who is interested in radar would find this fascinating, though it may not be a book teens would pick up on their own. There are nice photos and watercolor prints that add to the read. May work for a science class. The Bell family is white American, and the scientists are from various parts of the world.
Aisle Nine by Ian X. Cho - OPTIONAL
Friday, April 25, 2025
Vivian Van Tassel and the Secret of Midnight Lake by Michael Witwer - OPTIONAL
Vivian Van Tassel and the Secret of Midnight Lake by Michael Witwer, 368 pages. Aladdin (Simon), 2023. $19
Content: G
BUYING ADVISORY: EL - OPTIONAL
APPEALS TO: SOME
12yo (13yo?) Vivian and her father have returned to Vivian’s mother’s hometown of Midnight Lake to start over. While her father seems to fail at every DIY project he attempts, Vivian is dealing with her anger over the move and life in general. RIght the mean girls at school have it out for her. The only place she seems to fit is with the Beasts and Battlements group that meets under the stairs in a hidden alcove. Strange happenings are afoot. As Vivian researches the history of the middle school, which is built in the old sanitorium, for an assignment, she discovers that whoever created B and B, seems to know all about the mysterious creatures that were described by the inhabitants of the sanitorium. It may be that Vivian, with some help from her new friends, may be the answer to an old prophecy.
Witwer tries really hard to create a new teen savior character for a new generation. In fact, Vivian herself mentions HP as often as she possibly can. I only found it to be extremely annoying. At least Vivian is more competent than HP! Only purchase if you have a large, steady stream of fantasy readers.
Cindy, Middle School Librarian, MLS
The Cookie Crumbles by Tracy Badua and Alechia Dow - OPTIONAL
The Cookie Crumbles by Tracy Badua and Alechia Dow, 320 pages. Harper, 2024. $20
Content: G (mild tension)
BUYING ADVISORY: EL - OPTIONAL
APPEALS TO: SOME
Rising 8th graders and best friends Laila and Lucy are headed to the prestigious Sunderland Academy for a long weekend. Laila is hoping to win the Golden Cookie competition and a scholarship to the school, while Lucy is there to add to her writing portfolio, as she has already been accepted to Sunderland for high school. During the first round of judging, however, the acerbic chef judge, Chef Remi, actually passes out right after sampling Laila’s cookie - turning her into the prime suspect, or scapegoat. Even Lucy seems to suspect her. Since a late storm has swept in, all of the contestants are stuck together.
I love GBBO, and I enjoyed Knives Out - this is not a sterling combination of the two. If you have kids who like mysteries, or baking contests with intrigue, then by all means, purchase. Laila is way too high strung for my taste. And a contest only based on cookies felt limiting and boring. The book did not need 300+ pages - maybe 200 pages would have made a tighter, more exciting read.
Laila is Black, Lucy, I think, is Indian.
I listened to the audiobook provided by libro.fm.
Cindy, Middle School Librarian, MLS
Thursday, April 24, 2025
The Lumbering Giants of Windy Pines by Mo Netz - ADVISABLE
The Lumbering Giants of Windy Pines by Mo Netz, 208 pages. Harper, 2024. $19
Content: PG (mild danger)
BUYING ADVISORY: EL - ADVISABLE
APPEALS TO: SOME
11yo Jerry and her mom have just arrived at the latest of a string of temporary homes - this one at a motel right next to a creepy wood with a disturbing past - a lot of people have disappeared over the years within it. Jerry may be confined to a wheelchair, but that doesn’t keep her from doing everything she wants - including investigating a midnight only radio station and diving in when her own mother seems to be the latest victim of the woods. With the help of Chapel, a new friend who also lives at the motel, and with the encouragement, Jerry’s imaginary pocket-sized dragon companion, Jerry will plunge into the woods - for better or worse.
A bit ghost story, a bit evil trolls, and plenty of magic and fortuitous happenings. I like that Jerry;s wheelchair is never ignored - but she is VERY GOOD at maneuvering it as she wants to. Lots of magic creatures and happenings - but the bit of ghosts brings it to another level.
Jerry is white, Chapel is Black. I listened to the audiobook provided by libro.fm, which was narrated by Hope Newhouse.
Cindy, Middle School Librarian, MLS
Will’s Race for Home by Jewell Parker Rhodes - ADVISABLE
Will’s Race for Home by Jewell Parker Rhodes, 208 pages. Little Brown, 2025. $18
Content: PG (mild violence, some dead mentioned)
BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ADVISABLE
APPEALS TO: SEVERAL
12yo Will, his parents, and his paternal grandfather are barely eking out an existence as Black sharecroppers in Texas in 1889 - 25 years after the Emancipation Proclamation. When his father gets word of an open land rush in Oklahoma, WIll convinces his father to take him along as he will try to stake a 100 acre claim for their Black family where they can work for their own futures. Along the way they will come up against the prejudices and anger still harbored by those who fought for the Confederacy, but also find some kindness. Also, the dangers of trail don’t only come in human form.
I love Rhodes’s look at another dimension of US history, and Black history in particular. A great classroom read aloud choice for elementary schools. If you have any kids who like reading Westerns, point them here! There are so many other details that Rhodes exposits so well - I believe she could easily write a 10 book series a la Louis L’amour touching on Black history in the West. I love that the book is just at 200 pages - room for a story, but Rhodes had to keep the writing tight and interesting.
Cindy, Middle School Librarian, MLS
Wednesday, April 23, 2025
Where Only Storms Grow by Alyssa Coleman - ADVISABLE
Where Only Storms Grow by Alyssa Coleman, 256 pages. Farrar, Straus, Giroux (Macmillan), AUGUST 2025. $18
Content: G (some deaths from the dust, one accident)
BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ADVISABLE
APPEALS TO: SOME
12yo Joanna has dealt with her scoliosis all her life - a life already made difficult by the degrading conditions on her family farm and Oklahoma in general, as the land around them seems to dry right up. Her father has headed off to California, hoping to find work to send money back; and when her older brother breaks his leg in an accident, JOanna’s twin, Howe, has to leave school, which he loves, to help his mother keep the farm going. Joana finds purpose in helping the Red Cross nurses who have come to tend the victims of the dust, while Howe struggles to find his own way to happiness, but no one seems to be listening to him.
I love learning about history through novels - I don’t think our students are as eager for historical fiction as I am - especially when it is not war related. I would suggest you show this to a classroom teacher, especially in elementary, as it covers a wide variety of issues of the time, not just the Dust Bowl. I think it would be a great classroom read.
Cindy, Middle School Librarian, MLS
Snow White and the Dragon or Sleeping Beauty and the Seven Dwarves (The Princess Swap) by Kim Bussing - OPTIONAL
Snow White and the Dragon or Sleeping Beauty and the Seven Dwarves (The Princess Swap) by Kim Bussing, 311 pages. Random House, 2025. $18.
Language: G (0 swears, 0 “f”); Mature Content: G; Violence: G (mild danger)
BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - OPTIONAL
APPEALS TO: SOME
Snow White was a pampered princess stuck in a castle with an evil stepmother, but now she is in a cottage in the woods. She desperately needs to get back to her kingdom, or the stepmother maybe able to usurp the crown. Meanwhile, Rose now finds herself in the castle after having been raised in a simple woodland cottage. The girls’ destinies are entwined in a way that they could have never predicted.
The swap only has a little to do with dragons and only a little to do with dwarves - I didn’t find it as successful as the first Swap book I read. Plus, if you were paying only a tiny bit of attention, the villain is obvious, though the characters in the book seem to have to clue up until the final reveal.
Cindy, Middle School Librarian, MLS
Tuesday, April 22, 2025
Wild Dreamers by Margarita Engle - ADVISABLE
Cinderella and the Beast or Beauty and the Glass Slipper (The Princess Swap) by Kim Bussing - OPTIONAL
Cinderella and the Beast or Beauty and the Glass Slipper (The Princess Swap) by Kim Bussing, 292 pages. Random House, 2025. $18.
Language: G (0 swears, 0 “f”); Mature Content: G; Violence: G (mild danger)
BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - OPTIONAL
APPEALS TO: SOME
Once Ella is the prisoner of her evil stepmother - then suddenly she is in a room that is not her own, with a father who is not hers either. But this father needs help, because his daughter Belle is missing and he is in trouble with a beast who lives in a mysterious castle. Meanwhile, Belle may think she is clever, but she can’t seem to outwit this stepmother who is determined to have Belle be her new slave, since Ella is now missing.
The best thing to do is to completely forget the stories as you know them and buy into the timelines. When the girls’ stories collide, Bussing varies widely from the original, or even the Disney tales. Once I surrendered, I enjoyed them much more. Both girls are very resourceful and courageous.
Cindy, Middle School Librarian, MLS
Monday, April 21, 2025
Riot Act by Sarah Lariviere - OPTIONAL
Riot Act by Sarah Lariviere, 298 pages. Knopf Books (Random House), 2024. $20.
Language: R (30 swears, 10 ‘f'); Mature Content: PG-13 (Mature dialogue and innuendos and some drinking and smoking); Violence: PG-13 (rioting, death and police raids)
BUYING ADVISORY: HS - OPTIONAL
APPEALS TO: SEVERAL
17yo Gigi Durant is just trying to survive senior year in a world where the government has taken over everything—even school plays and music. Her best friend Max is dead (he’s also the ghost narrating the story), her favorite teacher is gone, and everything creative is getting shut down by the SYXTEM, a powerful regime that punishes anyone who speaks out. But Gigi’s not the type to stay quiet. Along with her friends, she plans a secret theater production to fight back using the one thing she still believes in: art.
I really liked this book because it felt real—even in a made-up world. Gigi is the kind of main character who messes up, speaks her mind, and refuses to let anyone silence her. Her best friend Max narrates the story after he dies, which sounds weird, but it totally worked—he’s hilarious, honest, and full of heart. I liked how the book mixed punk music, secret theater, and rebellion in a way that makes you want to stand up and say something too. It was a little hard to get into and a bit confusing with it switching back and forth between the past and present, but once I got into it, I thought it was a fun book to read.
The characters are all white.
Jessica Nelson CTHS Librarian
Libertad by Bessie Flores Zaldívar - OPTIONAL
Sunday, April 20, 2025
Don’t Squish a Slug by Yussef Rafik, illustrated by Riley Samels - ADVISABLE
Don’t Squish a Slug by Yussef Rafik, illustrated by Riley Samels. 61 pages. NON-FICTION. Words & Pictures (Quarto), 2025. $17. 9780711293441
BUYING ADVISORY: EL - ADVISABLE
APPEALS TO: SEVERAL
Rafil introduces us to many members of the bug family - not just slugs. Using the umbrellas of Disguises, Evolution, Defense, Record Breakers, and Other Relationships, we see the many different ways bugs try so hard to stay out of not just humans’ way, but also from each other. Each page is loaded with information about its bug. I like Samels’s illustrations rather than photographs, as it allows for some clever interactions and tiny details that might not be caught in a photo.
Cindy, Middle School Librarian, MLS