Friday, April 26, 2024
Pearl by Sherri L. Smith and Christine Norrie - ESSENTIAL
Only If You Dare by Josh Allen, illustrated by Sarah J. Coleman - ADVISABLE
Maid For It by Jamie Sumner - ESSENTIAL
Jerry Changed the Game! by Don Tate and Cherise Harris - ADVISABLE
Thursday, April 25, 2024
Drawing Deena by Hena Khan - ADVISABLE
Wander in the Dark by Jumata Emill - OPTIONAL
Ready, Set, Dough by Kelly J. Baptist - ADVISABLE
Ready, Set, Dough by Kelly J. Baptist 165 pages. Crown, 2023. $17.
Language: G (0 swears 0 'f'); Mature Content: G; Violence: G;
BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ADVISABLE
APPEALS TO SOME
When her teacher announces a cookie dough sale, 6th grader Zoe is desperate to win, because first prize is a brand-new laptop. Zoe desperately needs one, but her parents can’t afford it. She’s even willing to neglect her friends to achieve her goal.
I liked this book. Zoe is spunky and not afraid to go after what she wants. She is positive and happy, but she really wants to win. She has to win. It was good to read about a child who knew what they wanted and set out to get it. It does not specify
Ellen-Anita Librarian
What is the Story of Jurassic World by Jim Gigliotti and Dede Putra - OPTIONAL
Wednesday, April 24, 2024
Dead Things Are Closer Than They Appear by Robin Wasley - OPTIONAL
The Darkness Rises by Stacy Stokes - OPTIONAL
Unbreakable, the Spies Who Cracked the Nazis' Secret Code by Rebecca E. F. Barone - ADVISABLE
There Was a Hole by Adam Lehraupt illustrated by Carrie O'Neill - ADVISABLE
Includes tips at the end on "how to make a patch." This would make a great addition to an SEL collection. I liked that it showed big feelings of sadness and loss in a realistic, tangible way for kids. Lily does not have a mom in this story which could allude to divorce, the death of a parent, or a non-traditional family. Lily and her dad have dark hair. The other characters are ethnically diverse.
Tuesday, April 23, 2024
Hearts Still Beating by Brooke Archer - OPTIONAL
Beautiful Noise: The Music of John Cage by Lisa Rogers and Il Sung Na - ADVISABLE
Running Past Dark by Han Nolan - ADVISABLE
Beastly Beauty by Jennifer Donnelly - ESSENTIAL
Monday, April 22, 2024
Something Kindred by Ciera Burch - OPTIONAL
Sunday, April 21, 2024
Alterations by Ray Xu - ADVISABLE
The Thieves Gambit by Kayvion Lewis - ESSENTIAL
The Thieves Gambit by Kayvion Lewis, 364 pages. Nancy Paulsen Books, 2023. $20
Language: PG-13 (29 swears 0 'f'); Mature Content: PG-13 (underage drinking, mentions of sexual topics, and drugging of a character); Violence: PG-13 (characters getting beaten up and shot; some mentions of blood)
BUYING ADVISORY: HS - ESSENTIAL
APPEALS TO MANY
17yo Rosalyn Quest has been trained since childhood to be an expert thief by her family of thieves, who dominate the North American crime world. In a heist gone wrong, her mother gets kidnapped just as Rosalyn planned to leave the family business. To save her mom, Rosalyn enters the Thieves Gambit, an exclusive competition for thieves she was invited to compete in. If she wins, her prize is the fulfillment of any wish. With her desire to rescue her mom in mind, she is desperate to win and faces challenges not only to her abilities as she faces off with the best teen thieves in the world but also to the beliefs that her mother has instilled in her about herself and the world.
The Thieves Gambit was gripping from the beginning and had great action, twists, and excitement throughout. I read it in a day because I couldn't put it down. The characterization and emotional journey of Rosalyn was realistic as she deals with real-life struggles—not just ones connected to her thieving lifestyle—and these elements were integrated well into the fast pace of the book. Sometimes Rosalyn gets in her own way, which is annoying, but also felt true to her age. The side characters come from around the world and were delightful, and I only wished that we had been able to have more from them. My only slight negative was that some of the physical descriptions of the action were confusing to me, but it didn't detract from my enjoyment of the story. The book resolved, but it was left open for the next in the series, which I'm looking forward to reading! Rosalyn is black and from the Caribbean. Devroe is black and from England. Noelia is from France.
Marinda, librarian
Saturday, April 20, 2024
Wander in the Dark by Jumata Emill - OPTIONAL
Friday, April 19, 2024
Unstuck by Barbara Dee - ADVISABLE
Thursday, April 18, 2024
A Pocketful of Stars by Aisha Busby - ADVISABLE
A Pocketful of Stars by Aisha Busby, 236 pages. Carolrhoda, 2019. $20.
Content: G
BUYING ADVISORY: MS - ADVISABLE
APPEALS TO: SOME
Struggling to connect with her mom, 13yo Safia chooses to live with her dad post-divorce, facing frequent arguments during weekend visits with her mom. Cultural differences between her Kuwaiti mom and English dad exacerbate their conflicts. After a severe argument, Safia discovers her mom has had a stroke. Dreaming, she learns about her mom's youth in Kuwait, believing that sharing these memories could help her mom recover. Despite a dire prognosis, Safia dedicates hours at her mom's bedside, sharing stories.
I really enjoyed this book and it made me think about how we treat our families and those around us. We should always be kind.
Ellen-Anita Librarian
Wednesday, April 17, 2024
I'm Trying to Love Germs by Bethany Barton - ESSENTIAL
Tuesday, April 16, 2024
Skybound! by Sue Ganz-Schmitt and Jacopo Bruno - ADVISABLE
Monday, April 15, 2024
The Fabulous Fannie Farmer by Emma Bland Smith and Susan Reagan - ADVISABLE
Sunday, April 14, 2024
The Fastest Drummer: clap your hands for Viola Smith by Dean Robbins and Susanna Chapman - ADVISABLE
Saturday, April 13, 2024
The Wrong Kind of Weird by James Ramos - OPTIONAL
BUYING ADVISORY: HS - OPTIONAL
AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE
Cameron is a bicultural senior (mom is latina, father is black), who has a small group of geek friends in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They even have a club (GANU - Geeks And Nerds Unite) where they watch anime, design cosplays, and celebrate that #geeklife. However, when one of the most popular girls in school starts working with Cameron, he tries to break down the rigid clique system at his school to make their relationship more acceptable to their different friend groups. However, Cameron's complicated web of half-told truths and posturing catches up with him and falls to pieces around him. Can Cameron figure out who he really is and what he really wants?
This was not my favorite contemporary YA rom-com that I’ve ever read. I had a hard time getting into it and the storyline kept jumping back and forth, from the summer when Cameron and Karla first met to the current school year, without a lot of rhyme or reason. Add to that, there was a LOT of language throughout the book. The one thing I liked about it was the celebration of multicultural students in geek culture. It shouldn’t be that revolutionary, but it was nice to see someone other than sickly white boys being the nerds.
Reviewer: Kiera Beddes, #bookswithbeddes
Friday, April 12, 2024
The Reappearance of Rachel Price by Holly Jackson - HIGH
The Reappearance of Rachel Price by Holly Jackson, 448 pages. Random House Children's/Delacorte Press, 2024. $16
Language: R (53 swears 121 'f'); Mature Content: PG (kissing); Violence: PG-13 (assault)
BUYING ADVISORY: HS - OPTIONAL
AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH
Rachel Price, mother of 18yo Bel, has been missing for over sixteen years. Bel’s father needs money to care for his elderly father, so he decides to participate in a documentary about the disappearance of his wife, Rachel Price. Bel doesn’t want to rehash everything over and over again but she wants to help her dad. She wonders if the documentary will help find her mom by rekindling the investigation. Also, Bel can’t shake the thought that her mom abandoned her all those years ago and that she just might be alive somewhere. The documentary is just the beginning of the chaos that's to come.
I thoroughly enjoyed this mystery! The character development was interesting and the author showed Bel’s coping mechanisms of cruelty and shoplifting small items as a way to deal with the abandonment she’s had in her lifetime. The documentary idea was great as it helped show the changes in the family and Bel’s perspective of the situation. The ethnicity is predominantly white with mention of a brown skin background character.
LynnDell Watson, DHS Library
Thursday, April 11, 2024
Murtagh by Christopher Paolini - HIGH
Wednesday, April 10, 2024
A Place for Vanishing by Ann Fraistat - OPTIONAL
Tuesday, April 9, 2024
Evil Spy School: The Graphic Novel by Stuart Gibbs and Anjan Sarkar - ADVISABLE
Monday, April 8, 2024
Bright Red Fruit by Safia Elhillo - ESSENTIAL
Sunday, April 7, 2024
The Gilded Ones by Namina Forna - OPTIONAL
I love the cover of this book. Deka's strength is inspiring. Deka and Keita have a cute romance. "Deka has dark skin and her father is pale with blonde hair. The Emperor has bluish black skin. People with dark brown skin, golden skin, pink skin, and every shade from deep brown to eggshell are mentioned.
Saturday, April 6, 2024
The Summer She Went Missing by Chelsea Ichaso - OPTIONAL
Friday, April 5, 2024
Kendrick Lamar Platinum Rap Artist by Heather E. Schwartz - OPTIONAL
Thursday, April 4, 2024
The Heartbeat of the Universe by Emily Hockaday - OPTIONAL
The Heartbeat of the Universe by Emily Hockaday, 110 pages. POETRY. Interstellar Flight Press, 2024. $18.
Language: PG (1 swear, 0 “f”); Mature Content: PG; Violence: PG
BUYING ADVISORY: HS - OPTIONAL
AUDIENCE APPEAL: LOW
Hockaday believes that poetry is not limited by reality or literalness, and the poems in this collection illustrate her belief. With facts and emotions meeting over topics of identity, love, discrimination, hope, family, time, and more, there is a poem for everyone.
I loved the meeting point between science and creativity that these poets embrace, though overall only a couple of the poems spoke to me. The concept was enjoyable. The mature content rating is for mentions of alcohol and sexual harassment. The violence rating is for mentions of assault.
Reviewer: Carolina Herdegen
Wednesday, April 3, 2024
One Last Breath by Ginny Myers Sain - OPTIONAL
Thursday, March 28, 2024
Otherworldly by F. T. Lukens - OPTIONAL
Otherworldly by F. T. Lukens, 352 pages. Margaret K. McElderry Books (Simon and Schuster), 2024. $20.
Language: R (22 swears, 9 “f”); Mature Content: PG13; Violence: PG13
BUYING ADVISORY: HS - OPTIONAL
AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE
Winter began five years ago and then never turned to spring. With the farm failing, Ellery (17yo) had to move and work in the city while her parents continued to foolishly petition the goddess. When a regular at the diner Ellery works at runs her over, he introduces himself as Knox, a magical familiar that serves the goddess Ellery no longer believes in—and he needs her help.
The magic and mythological creatures are the most interesting parts of the story. Most of the characters are flat, and the story was more about Ellery and Knox’s growing relationship than about solving the winter issue. While I was expecting more from the story than fluff romance, Lukens did the fluff romance well, and the conclusion was satisfying.
Ellery and Knox are described as “pale,” Zada is described as having “dark brown” skin, Lorelei is described as having “golden brown” skin, and the goddess is described as having “olive” skin. Charley and Zada are part of the LGBT community. The mature content rating is for mentions of alcohol, innuendo, and sexual harassment. The violence rating is for blood, assault, and fantasy violence.
Reviewer: Carolina Herdegen
Tuesday, March 26, 2024
The Perfect Guy Doesn’t Exist by Sophie Gonzales - OPTIONAL
Language: R (101 swears, 15 “f”); Mature Content: PG13; Violence: PG
BUYING ADVISORY: HS - OPTIONAL
AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE
Living across the street from her ex-best friend, Mack, is made impossible when Ivy’s parents ask Mack’s family to check in on Ivy while they’re out of town. On her first night alone, a huge storm comes, and all Ivy wants is to not be alone—so she writes a short fanfic about her favorite TV character being with her. And, when she wakes up, he is.
Honestly, the whole situation with the TV character appearing in Ivy’s life is as disorienting for the reader as for Ivy and her friends—maybe more so because they accepted the situation faster than I did. The creativity involved in crafting this story astounds me, and I laughed out loud several times. Furthermore, Gonzales writes about struggling friendships and trying to get a grip on how to life in a way that makes readers happier with imperfect reality.
Ivy is White on the cover, and Mack is Black on the cover. Also, Ivy is bi, Mack is lesbian, and Henry describes himself as “aroace.” The mature content rating is for innuendo and mentions of sex. The violence rating is for assault and for mentions of murder and fantasy violence.
Reviewer: Carolina Herdegen
Monday, March 25, 2024
What Was the Children's Blizzard of 1888? by Steve Korté and Dede Putra - ADVISABLE
Sunday, March 24, 2024
Guts for Glory by Joanna Lapati - ADVISABLE
Cindy, MS Librarian, MLS
Saturday, March 23, 2024
One Last Breath by Ginny Myers Sain - OPTIONAL
Friday, March 22, 2024
Snowglobe by Soyoung Park - OPTIONAL
17yo Jeon lives with her twin brother, mother, and grandmother in the extremely harsh environment surrounding Snowglobe. The main job for residents is producing power by running on giant hamster wheels for ten hours each day. Jeon is asked to leave her home and family to be a replacement for the Snowglobe star Goh Haeri. Jeon is thrilled because this means her family will be taken care of and her mother will no longer have to work but can stay home with her grandmother instead. Jeon arrives in Snowglobe excited and happy but things aren’t adding up and when she discovers secret passages by accident, her existence is threatened.
Strange concept that’s hard to grasp and become engrossed in. I enjoyed the mystery behind Goh Haeri. The story has an interesting and unique concept. The ethnicity is predominantly Korean.