The Queen’s Granddaughter by Diane Zahler, - OPTIONAL

The Queen’s Granddaughter by Diane Zahler, 304 pages. Roaring Brook (Macmillan), MARCH 2026. 

Content: G (mild danger) 

BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - OPTIONAL

APPEALS TO: FEW

When 12yo Blanca finds out that her grandmother, dowager Queen Eleanor, is on her way to her home of Castile to choose her older sister Urraca as the bride for Louis the IX, the heir of the French throne, Blanca is devastated.  She is even more devastated when Eleanor instead chooses Blanca to be that bride. Together the two, with an entourage, embark on a perilous journey from Castile to Paris. While Blanca is also accompanied by her maid and friend Suna, a Castilian Jew, danger, in the form of Eleanor’s enemies.

As much as I usually like historical fiction, I was not interested in Blanca’s story.  Historical fiction can already be hard to interest students, but this story lacks a heart and drama that will normally draw them in. I found Zahler’s Wild Bird to be more interesting, but still hard to sell.

Cindy, Middle School Librarian, MLS

Talk to Me Nice by Minda Harts - OPTIONAL

Talk to Me Nice by Minda Harts, 240 pages. NONFICTION. Flatiron Books (Macmillan), 2025. $15.

Language: PG13 (16 swears, 0 “f”); Mature Content: PG; Violence: PG

BUYING ADVISORY: ADULTS - OPTIONAL

APPEALS TO: FEW

An employee since her teenage years, Hart’s résumé has given her lots of experience with various managers and coworkers. One thing she has learned is that trust is vital—but different people need trust shown in different ways. Hart introduces the seven trust languages that, when implemented, will make the workplace better for you and everyone else around you.

Admittedly, I only picked this book up because it reminded me of the five love languages, and I was interested to see this new take on the concept. While focused on workplace relationships, these trust languages can be applied to other relationships, though Hart goes into a lot of detail specifically for implementing them at work. Hart offers templates and examples to enable her readers to advocate for themselves and their needs at work—to gain, build, and restore trust with managers and colleagues. A very niche topic, but interesting nonetheless.

The mature content rating is for mentions of sexual harassment, and the violence rating is for mentions of school shootings.

Reviewer: Carolina Herdegen

Black Sunflowers by Cynthia LeBrun - OPTIONAL

Black Sunflowers by Cynthia LeBrun, 475 pages. Fitzhenry & Whiteside, 2024. $22

Language: PG-13 (18 swears, 0 ‘f'); Mature Content: PG (dead bodies, threats of death, overarching fear, alcohol consumption); Violence: PG-13 (beatings, starvation, war related violence)

BUYING ADVISORY: HS, ADULT - OPTIONAL

APPEALS TO: FEW

For the first 6 years of Veronika's life, she lived a quiet life on her family farm surrounded by loving aunts, uncles, and cousins. Unfortunately, her family lived in Ukraine, which is under Soviet control. Stalin's communist policies targeted the Ukrainian people and led to starvation and fear. As she grows up, Veronika experiences the reality of these policies first hand. The tragedy of the oppressive government takes its toll on the people Veronika loves, but she survives and learns to live within that terrifying reality. 

I liked that it's a true story and historically accurate. I learned about what it was like to live during the Holodomor. I also loved the authentic, loving relationship between Veronika and her family. It's more of a memoir than a novel and it definitely reads like that. There's no real plot and it basically just tells Veronkia's life story. I don't see that any kids would read it on their own. It's likely only people who are interested in this historical time period would read it. Veronika is 6 years old when the book starts and 19 at the end. Veronika and her family are Polish Catholics living in Ukraine. 

Andrea R 

An Unlikely Proposition by Rosalyn Eves - OPTIONAL

An Unlikely Proposition by Rosalyn Eves, 293 pages. Farrar Straus Giroux (Macmillan), 2024. $21.

Content: PG (historical romance tropes)

BUYING ADVISORY: MS, HS  - OPTIONAL

APPEALS TO: FEW

At 17yo, Eleanor is already a widow.  She has come to London after a year of mourning and wants to enjoy her independence. To that end she hires a young companion from the country, Thalia, who only wants to start over after her first Season was such a wreck. Eleanor’s plans for a fun Season may collide with Thalia’s tender feelings for the very man to whom Eleanor is pretending to be engaged.

Even writing this all out I am kind of bored. I had such a good time with Eves first novel - An Improbable Season - that I was looking forward to reading #2.  Nope.  Less interesting this time around.  I think the author was so caught up in making things complicated that she forgot to also make it engaging.

The characters are white English people.

Cindy, Middle School Librarian, MLS