The Light in Hidden Places

The Light in Hidden Places by Sharon Cameron. Grades 7+ Scholastic, 2020. 400 pages. Review copy provided by publisher. 

If someone needed your help, would you give it? Even if it could cost you your life? Stefania Podgórska was a teenager when she started hiding Jews in her tiny apartment in Poland during WWII. It started with a close friend and as more and more people needed her help, she ended up with 13 Jews hiding in her attic. It was a life or death situation for them and a life or death situation for Stefania - she would be shot by  the Gestapo if anyone ever found out. She worked night and day to keep everyone fed and safe. And then the Nazis showed up at her door and commandeered her apartment. Two Nazi nurses who worked at the hospital across the street were moving in to her second bedroom. Stefania had no choice, she had to let them stay there. And she had to hope that they never discovered the 13 Jews living right above their heads. 

This absorbing historical novel is based on a true story about a real woman and it was Reese Witherspoon's December YA book club pick. It is definitely a fascinating story and if you love historical fiction that you can really sink your teeth into, this is a great one to pick up. It takes place over a number of years during WWII as Stefania moves to the city from her family farm and starts working for a Jewish family running a shop. As the war moves in and her employers find themselves in increasing danger, Stefania has to grow up quick and make a lot of decisions about what she will do. The hook in this booktalk doesn't happen until about three quarters of the way through, but I was so interested and invested in Stefania's story that I found myself completely absorbed. 

Author Sharon Cameron has done her research and includes a section at the end with photos of the real Stefania and information about what happened to her and her family after the war. This is a story about a little-known hero of WWII that needed to be told. It's teen, appropriate for middle school and up, and has a ton of adult crossover appeal. I added a short booktalk of this title to my Wowbrary email this week and it immediately got 5 new holds, even though it's not a new book. 

Readalikes:

Pick this one up if you've enjoyed immersive historical fiction like The Book Thief by Markus Zusak or The Girl in the Blue Coat by Monica Hesse. 

A Song of Wraiths and Ruin

A Song of Wraiths and Ruin by Roseanne A. Brown. Grades 7+  480 pages. Balzer + Bray, 2020. Review copy purchased. 

This is the lush teen Afrofantasy that you want if you were a fan of Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi. As I was listening to the audiobook, I got flashes of The Hunger Games, too, so I think if you enjoyed any or all of that, you should seek this one out. Malik will stop at nothing to save his younger sister from the vengeful spirit that's holding her hostage, and when he's tasked with killing the princess of Ziran, he figures out a way to enter the Solstasia contest to get close her. Princess Karina's mother has been assassinated and Karina's only hope is a resurrection spell that calls for the blood of a king. So she makes her hand in marriage the Solstasia prize. As the fates of these two teens wind closer and closer together, they start getting to know each other, each with an ulterior motive. I loved the twists and turns and the well-built fantasy world that incorporates magic and legend. 

Heartstopper

Heartstopper: Volume 1 by Alice Oseman. Grades 7+ 288 pages. Graphix, 2020. Review copy provided by my local library. 

Oh, this book, it did make me squee. This delightful graphic novel is the story of two high schoolers, Charlie and Nick. On the surface, they're complete opposites. Charlie's a brooding, openly gay drummer and Nick is a popular, athletic rugby star. They meet by chance, seated next to each other in class, and when Nick sees how fast Charlie can run in PE class, he invites him to join the school's rugby team. And although Charlie's best friend teases him for liking a straight, rugby player, Charlie agrees. 

One thing to know is that this is the first volume of the story and it ends on a cliffhanger that actually make me say "Noooooo" out loud. The next volume is due out in the US in November. But a further thing to know, which is possibly a slight spoiler, is that the entire graphic novel trilogy is a prequel to a teen novel starring Charlie's older sister, so if you're concerned about Charlie & Nick, you can go look that one up. There's a reason I'm filing this under "romance", is what I'm saying. 

Hand this to fans of Rainbow Rowell's Pumpkinheads or Kevin Panetta's Bloom. 

We Are Not Free

We Are Not Free by Traci Chee. Grades 7+. HMH Books for Young Readers. September 2020. Review copy provided by publisher. 

So, this book didn't have me at hello. It took me a little bit to get into it, but after the first chapter or two I couldn't put it down. This book is a masterpiece. It's not only a brilliant piece of historical fiction that brings the Japanese incarceration during WWII to brutal light for young readers, but it's a striking portrait of teen life. These kids are living in desert camps in the 1940s, but they're also falling in love and rebelling against their parents and playing sports and staying out too late and trying to figure out their futures. 

Each chapter is narrated by a different teen and the story unfolds over the years Japanese Americans (American citizens!) were held in prison camps. I wasn't sure how I would like that many narratives, but I loved that each chapter is unique and the narrators really stand out. It's an amazing accomplishment of writing. 

Hand this to fans of Ruta Sepetys, particularly her works that are told from multiple perspectives like Salt to the Sea and The Fountains of Silence. I would also hand it to fans of George Takei's wonderful graphic novel memoir They Called Us Enemy. 

Coming in September! Pre-order today! 

If You Like Cursed

Have a fan of the new Netflix show Cursed, based on the YA book by Thomas Miller, illustrated by Frank Miller, in your house? This retelling of Arthurian legend asks the question: what if the sword Excaliber  had chosen a queen instead of a king? Nimue, the Lady in the Lake, is the starring role in this beautiful fantasy show. Outcast for her ability to use magic and on her own after religious zealots raze her village, Nimue is entrusted with a sword and told to deliver it to Merlin. But the way will not prove easy. 

So if you enjoyed this show and/or the book it's based on, what should you read next? I have some ideas. 

The Guinevere Deception by Kiersten White (Delacorte, 2019). This new series starter is another reimagining of Arthurian legend featuring a strong female lead, focusing on Guinevere's early days. Readers and viewers who are intrigued by fresh takes on Arthurian legend may enjoy this one. 

Once and Future by Amy Rose Capetta & Cori McCarthy (Little, Brown, 2019). Here's another recent King Arthur remix, this time set in space. This one also features a strong female lead as King Arthur is here reincarnated as seventeen-year-old Ari, a female king trying to stop a corrupt government with the help of teenage Merlin. 

Seven Endless Forests by April Genevieve Tucholke (Farar, Straus, & Giroux, 2020). Viewers and readers who love strong female-led fantasies may also enjoy this richly detailed quest story, loosely based on Arthurian legend. This is a standalone companion book to The Boneless Mercies, which is a female-led take on Beowulf, so that may be another title to seek out if strong heroines and literary retellings are your thing. 

Have you watched Cursed or read the book? What did you think? 

Darius the Great is Not Okay

You guys, I can't get Darius out of my head.

Darius is a teen who's half Persian and half white and he feels like that doesn't actually add up to a whole.

Darius loves tea and Star Trek and Tolkien. He feels like he's never good enough and that his dad is always disappointed in him. He's never had a true friend... until he meets Sohrab. Sohrab cares about him and makes his feel valued and seen and connected to... but the problem is that Sohrab lives in Iran and Darius is just visiting with his family.

There are so many things I loved about this book.

Darius the Great is Not Okay by Adib Khorran is a realistic story of a teen living with mental illness. Darius and his dad both have diagnosed depression and take medication. When Darius visits Iran, a country where mental illness has a seemingly impossible-to-overcome stigma, he's forced to confront his brain chemistry in a different way.

Darius's thought patterns are so realistic for someone with depression and anxiety. Throughout the book I wanted to pick him up and give him a hug or sometimes shake him. But his thoughts are his reality. The reader may realize that Darius's dad cares for him, but to Darius the reality that he's experiencing is that he's worthless and no one cares. That he doesn't have a place. This is exacerbated by his feeling like an outsider in many different ways - in America he's different because he's Persian, in Iran he's not Persian enough.

This is a story about a boy having feelings who feels like he's not allowed to have feelings. I think this is probably something that is pretty prevalent no matter where you're growing up, and it's great to read about a protagonist who not only has feelings but remains true to himself by expressing those feelings. Darius feels like he's an outsider no one will love because he can't help that he is the way he is. He doesn't realize that people might look up to him for staying true to himself even when it makes him an outsider.

Throughout the book there's this chorus of "That's normal. Right?" usually said about stuff that is not really okay with Darius. And the journey in this book is Darius beginning to realize and accept that sometimes he's not okay. And that it's okay not to be okay.

I loved experiencing and learning about details of Iranian life through Darius's story, too. Because Darius is visiting Iran for the first time, he's learning a lot too, so his sharing of details and explanations feels very organic. And I personally loved the Star Trek jokes throughout the book - not every reader will get those and that's okay, but it added something extra for those who are familiar with The Next Generation.

I'd hand this to fans of John Green looking for more thoughtful teen protagonists. It's out August 28, so pre-order now!

Darius the Great is Not Okay by Adib Khorran. Grades 7 and up. Dial, August 2018. 320 pages. Reviewed from galley provided by publisher.

The Summer of Jordi Perez

This book is just what I wanted to kick off summer: a light, fun romance with enough meat on its bones to keep it interesting and great characters. I would definitely recommend starting this season with The Summer of Jordi Perez (And the Best Burger in Los Angeles) by Amy Spalding. I mean, just look at that bright rainbow cover and you know what a fun book you're getting into.

When Abby scores the fashion internship of her dreams at a boutique store near her home, she's determined to do a good job. She's heard that this summer internship usually leads to a part-time paid position in the fall and Abby is determined to get the job and start her career in fashion. She has no idea she's going to meet the girl of her dreams, fellow intern Jordi Perez. Abby goes to school with Jordi and rumors fly about how Jordi committed arson and went to Juvie, but all Abby can think about is how good it feels to earn a rare Jordi smile. Oh, and the fact that they're competing against each other to earn the fall job.

And Abby's got abundant free time to obsess over Jordi since her best friend is newly in a relationship and her older sister is not coming home for the summer for the first time ever. Luckily, a new unlikely friend, lacrosse-playing Jax, recruits Abby for a quest to find the best burger in Los Angeles. And Jax is a ready sounding board for Abby's pursuit of her crush. 

The combination of summer romance, a quest for burgers, and Abby's passion for fashion made this a really fun read that's perfect for light summer reading. I really appreciate Abby's body positive attitude - she's defined vaguely as "plus sized" - and her quest to enjoy and promote fashion fun at all sizes. I also think this was a very realistic portrayal of a bigger girl being body positive but also being unsure about some things. Abby doesn't love having her photo taken and refuses to post her own photo on her fashion blog. She's self-conscious about being in a swimsuit, even just with her friends. Even though Abby's on the path to body acceptance and she's an advocate for enjoying fashion at any size, she's still got her hangups and that's very realistic.

This is a light romance without a lot of physical action, so a good choice for teens who like romance but don't want graphic physical scenes. Hand it to teen romance fans looking for a breezy, fun summer read.

Readalikes:

Everything Leads to You by Nina LaCour is another teen lesbian romance that has a similar light, romantic tone and gives a peek into the world of film production much like Jordi gives a peek into the world of boutique fashion.

I Believe in a Thing Called Love by Maurene Goo is another light teen romance with an upbeat, breezy tone and that doesn't have a lot of physical romance.

Book info: 

The Summer of Jordi Perez (And the Best Burger in Los Angeles) by Amy Spalding. Grades 7+ Sky Pony Press, April 2018. 224 pages. Review copy provided by my local library. 

Love, Simon

Have you seen Love, Simon yet??




My husband and I went to see it this weekend and I L-O-V-E loved it.

And, confession: I have not (yet!) read the book. If you aren't aware, the movie Love, Simon is based on the YA book Simon Vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli (Balzer + Bray, 2015).

I'm sure you're all aware of this movie and this book; librarians can't stop talking about it. When I told my husband we were seeing it this weekend and that everyone I knew said it was great, he said, "Are they all librarians?" Umm...... yes.

But afterwards, he agreed with all my librarian friends that this was an excellent weekend viewing choice. More than just entertainment, it's so important that this movie was made, that this movie exists for today's teens and future teens. That more teens than before can see themselves in the media and know that others have experienced first love many different ways. But it's also just a great movie.

I laughed and I cried. I cried so much. I had all the feels. For Simon, for Simon's parents, for Simon's friends. This movie got how people (teens, yes, but all people) can manipulate their friends, that feeling when your back is against the wall and you do something that you know isn't right, but you do it anyway because it feels like your only choice.

I feel like a cheater-pants for posting about this movie without having read the book (yet!), but I couldn't keep it inside. I laughed, I sobbed, I just want to see it again AND read the book. And probably all of Becky Albertalli's books.

If you haven't seen it, I urge you to go! And then pick up the book (which I will be doing, too) to experience more of Simon's world.

Long Way Down

You had me at Jason Reynolds.

Yes, I am a fangirl for Jason Reynolds (join the club, right?!). He is a master of voice and voice is the way to my reading heart. My first Jason Reynolds was When I Was the Greatest, which I listened to on audiobook.

Audiobook is a great way to experience Jason Reynolds's work. It really feels like a character is sitting down and telling you their story. VOICE, MAN.

And my latest Jason Reynolds read is his National Book Award-longlisted novel in verse Long Way Down. (I picked up the print for this one.)

Will knows the Rules. When someone you love is killed, you don't cry, you don't snitch, and you do get revenge. That's how it's always been, how his pop dealt with matters, how his uncle dealt with matters, how his brother dealt with matters. And it's how he's going to deal with matters.

When Will's older brother Shawn is shot and killed, Will grabs his brother's gun and heads down the elevator, on a mission to complete Rule #3 and take care of the guy he knows shot his brother.

But Will's not expecting the past to catch up with him. He's not expecting ghosts from his past to visit him in the elevator. In a modern, tragic twist on A Christmas Carol, Long Way Down explores how it feels to lose a loved one. And how it feels to lose your way, even when you've never been more certain about the path you're about to take.

Written in verse, the text is short. Fitting, since the entire book takes place during a 60-second elevator ride. The verse is visceral, infused with emotion. It's expertly crafted to pack a huge punch into a small number of words.

Here's a sample from page 37:

ANAGRAM

is when you take a word
and rearrange the letters
to make another word. 

And sometimes the words
are still somehow connected
ex: CANOE = OCEAN. 

Same letters, 
different words, 
somehow still make 
sense together, 

like brothers. 

This is a book that makes it clear how easy it can be to fall into a cycle of violence, even if it's the last thing you ever thought you'd do.

And (no spoilers) THAT ENDING, FOLKS. I need everyone to read this book so we can talk about that ending.

I would hand this to teens who devour Ellen Hopkins or who like books about modern issues like The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas or Lockdown by Walter Dean Myers.

Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds. Grades 7+ Atheneum, Oct. 2017. 320 pages. Review copy provided by my local library.

Seasons Readings

When I read the wonderful book Savvy by Ingrid Law, a book about a family with extraordinary powers they call savvies, I started imagining what my savvy would be, if I could choose. While it would be awesome to have a savvy that would give me some kind of superpowers, I thought I'd love to have the savvy of being able to pick up the exact right book for each moment in my life. Is there much more satisfying than finishing a book that was the exact perfect book for you to read at that time in your life?

When I look back on my reading memories, I can remember some books that were just perfect for the time I was reading them.

I remember listening to the audiobook of The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo as I drove home from Chicago for the first time in late spring. I had the windows down and the smell of freshly turned fields in northern Indiana wafting through the car as I listened to this poignant adventure story.

I remember reading A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly when I had moved home after college and was still figuring out what I wanted to do with my life. Reading about a strong young woman figuring out her own life, despite all the hardships she faced, was just what I needed. And I was just beginning to discover the amazing world of children's and YA literature as I pondered over my first career steps and decided to apply to library school.

Last year, I was listening to the audiobook Ghost by Jason Reynolds as I was walking miles around my neighborhood in the heat of late summer, the perfect time to be reading a book about track (and so much more!).

Besides the events going on in your life, the seasons can also have a lot to do with creating those perfect reading moments. Do you have certain genres that you gravitate towards more in certain seasons? For me, I always get a craving for historical fiction in November as a chill sets in and the nights get long. And after Thanksgiving, as snow maybe starts to fall (iffy here in Southern Indiana!), I start picking up fantasy books. Once the new year begins, I'm more likely to branch out, to think about reading challenges and expanding my own horizons, to try something new or pick up that book that everyone's talking about that didn't seem like something I'd normally like.

As we head into these next few seasons, here are a few that I'm looking forward to picking up (or finishing!):

Pachinko by Min Jin Lee (Grand Central, February 2017). This multigenerational family epic about a Korean family starting in the 1920s and spanning decades is right up my alley. I'm in the middle of it and really enjoying it. If you like character-centered books, historical fiction, and/or multigenerational stories, this is a great one.

Dread Nation by Justina Ireland (Balzer + Bray, April 2018). This alternate historical fiction about a zombie uprising during the Civil War is inspired by retelling like Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, but asks hard questions about whose lives really matter in this country. I've started the very beginning of it and I'm hooked, y'all.

Ahimsa by Supriya Kelkar (Lee & Low, October 2017). From publisher summary: "In 1942, when Mahatma Gandhi asks Indians to give one family member to the freedom movement, ten-year-old Anjali is devastated to think of her father risking his life for the freedom struggle. But it turns out he isn't the one joining. Anjali's mother is... When Anjali's mother is jailed, Anjali must step out of her comfort zone to take over her mother's work, ensuring that her little part of the independence movement is completed."

La Belle Sauvage (The Book of Dust #1) by Philip Pullman (Knopf, October 2017). I have this book waiting on my shelves and as a huge fan of the His Dark Materials trilogy, I am eagerly looking forward to diving in!

Do you like to read certain genres during certain seasons? And what books do you associate strongly with certain moments in your life?

The Sun is Also a Star

The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon. Grades 7+ Delacorte Press, November 2016. 348 pages. Review copy provided by my local library.

Book Talk: 

Do you believe in love at first sight?

No? You're like Natasha. She doesn't believe in love, she believes in science. Love is just chemical reactions in your brain, nothing to lose your head over. And she's got more important things to worry about right now. Until she meets Daniel.

Do you believe in love at first sight?

Yes? You're like Daniel. The poet headed to an interview for Yale. Because his parents demand that he attend "second-best school" Yale if he's not going to follow his brother to "best school" Harvard. But Daniel doesn't care about Yale or Harvard or maybe any college at all. He wants to grab the words in his head and put them down on paper and figure out how to do that. And from the moment he sees Natasha, he knows he feels something. He just has to convince her.

But they only have one day.

Natasha is an undocumented immigrant and her family is being deported back to Jamaica. Tonight.

They are two kids with nothing in common, total opposites in some ways, who meet by happenstance and figure out that they just might believe in love at first sight.

This is an un-put-downable romance story that takes place in a single day, over the course of 12 hours. If you believe in love or if you're ready to be convinced, this is the book for you.

My thoughts:

Yeah, everyone told me this one was great, and that's why I saved it for the 24 in 48 Readathon and I definitely agree. Told in super short chapters that alternate perspectives (mostly between Natasha and Daniel, but occasionally another character jumps in there), the pages in this novel flew by.

It's a sweet love story that has a lot to offer fans of romance books, but there's also a lot being said here about immigrant families and their children. Daniel's parents immigrated to the United States from South Korea and he and his brother were both born in the US. Natasha's family came to New York when she was eight and the city has been her home since then. Now that she's facing the final stretch, her senior year and college applications, she's crushed to learn that they may have to leave.

Both kids have different pressures placed on them by their families. Daniel's parents want him to have a good future - their idea of a good future only. Natasha's parents count on her a lot to help take care of things. At this point, they've both given up on their dreams of America, so it's up to Natasha to try a hail Mary pass and see if there's any loophole that might keep them there.

Along the way, readers get a glimpse into the lives of a few of the supporting characters: a security guard at the immigration building, the paralegal in the lawyer's office, members of Daniel's and Natasha's families. These little glimpses help to flesh out the story completely and also emphasize the way that little ripples can have a big effect on people's lives.

Readalikes:

For readers who enjoy the whirlwind romance I'd suggest Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist by David Levithan and Rachel Cohn or Let It Snow: Three Holiday Romances by John Green, Maureen Johnson, and Lauren Myracle.

For readers who enjoy a romance between two teens who are very different, I'd suggest Like No Other by Una Lamarche or Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles.

For more stories from an immigrant's point of view, I'd suggest Something in Between by Melissa de la Cruz, American Street by Ibi Zoboi or the memoir In the Country We Love by Diane Guerrero.

Allegedly

Allegedly by Tiffany D. Jackson. Grades 9-12. Katherine Tegan Books, January 2017. 400 pages. Reviewed from egalley provided by publisher.

Book Talk:

Mary Addison is familiar with the system. She was arrested and put in juvie (what she calls "baby jail") when she was nine years old for murdering a white baby. Allegedly.

Mary never confessed to her crime. In fact, she remained stubbornly silent through much of the proceedings. She spent years in baby jail and three months ago they moved her to a group home for troubled teens. Life in the group home is depressing and dangerous: there's nobody Mary can trust, including the adults who are supposed to be taking care of them.

Luckily, Mary has plans. She's been saving her meager allowance, studying for the SATs as best she can, and she aims to get her GED and go to college, to build a better life for herself. Her dreams of her life to come are sometimes all she has to cling to. She keeps quiet, always silent, and does what she has to do to keep her dream alive.

And then Mary gets pregnant. And suddenly her dreams take on a whole new importance. She's got to survive, she's got to get out and move on to something better, not only for herself but for her unborn child.

But when Mary learns that the system may not let her keep her baby, that she may be forced to give him up to foster care, she knows that it's time to come clean. It's finally time to talk, to share the truth about this horrific crime that she was accused of.

Buckle up, it's going to be a wild ride.

My thoughts: 

This book gripped me from the very beginning and I knew that it was going to be a book I wouldn't want to put down. Oh, how true that turned out to be. It's a compelling page-turner with a character that it's easy to root for.

The dramatic plot twists kept me turning the pages, but this is also a book with a lot to say between the lines. Because the bottom line is that if the baby Mary's accused of killing hadn't been white, the trial wouldn't have exploded the way that it did. When Mary lifts her head up and starts to get interested in changing the verdict, she discovers that she's achieved an impressive level of notoriety: everyone knows her story.

The book opens a window and shines a mirror into the life of a teen who really has nothing. For those of us raised with privilege, it's amazing the obstacles that Mary faces to something relatively simple like take the SAT. She doesn't have ID and she doesn't have a parent who can just grab her birth certificate out of the safe and help her get one. She has to depend on public transit to get wherever she's going, making it difficult to get to some places on time. She doesn't have the right calculator and the price tag on a graphing calculator makes her jaw drop.

Maybe Mary's biggest obstacle is that nothing is expected of her. The social workers dump her into a vocational course on cosmetology when she's capable of so much more. But Mary knows they would laugh in her face if she asked them for help in achieving what she really wants: a college degree.

Bottom line, this is a compulsively readable novel that's great entertainment but also a commentary on race and poverty. Well done.

Readalikes:

I would hand this in a heartbeat to teens who enjoy the edgy novels of Ellen Hopkins.

Readers who are looking for more strong, gritty heroines facing difficult situations might like Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson or All the Rage by Courtney Summers.

Readers who want to read more about teens in prison or who have committed crimes might enjoy After by Amy Efaw or Monster by Walter Dean Myers or The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly by Stephanie Oakes.

My Lady Jane

My Lady Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows. Narrated by Katherine Kellgren. Grades 7+. HarperAudio. 13 hours 47 minutes. Review copy provided by publisher.

Take everything you thought you knew about King Edward and Jane Grey and throw it out the window. You've been told wrong. You don't have the whole story. And here it is, for the first time.

This is a wild romp through a reimagined Tudor England where a portion of the population can shape-shift into animals. A teenage King Edward sits reluctantly on the throne, dying of The Affliction. On his deathbed, he signs over the throne to his cousin, Jane Grey, a teenage girl who's recently been married to a nobleman's second son who turns out to be a horse (well, half the time, anyway).

Hi-jinx ensue as Jane, her husband Gifford, and Edward get caught up in a conspiracy to seize the throne.

My thoughts:

The tone of this book is similar to The Princess Bride and it's a wacky story that doesn't stop for a minute. There is a strong romance, but the action never goes farther than kissing (and occasionally contemplating consummation of the marriage, but never in detail), which makes it a good choice for younger teen readers or teens who like romance but aren't ready for hot and heavy action.

This is a book with a really strong feminist message wrapped up in a fun story. Jane stands up for herself, even as she's caught in a society that restricts her to certain roles. She's a bookish heroine to the extreme, even encouraging wedding guests to bring a book to the ceremony in case they get bored.

Fun and funny in its own right, the audiobook narration really elevates the story, Master narrator Katherine Kellgren gives a fully voiced performance for a large cast of characters with a wide variety of British accents. I especially appreciate Kellgren's mastery of volume as she reads - she is completely able to yell without getting shrill or blasting the listener out of their seats. I was literally laughing out loud as I was listening to this one, both due to the writing and the narration.

Readalikes: 

Definitely The Princess Bride by William Goldman for its similar wacky and adventurous tone.

Readers who liked reading about British royalty (even though a lot of it is imagined) might enjoy The Raucous Royals by Carlyn Beccia. And readers may be looking for books that will give them the real story of the Tudors, so keep nonfiction and other historical Tudor fiction in mind.

If I Was Your Girl

If I Was Your Girl by Meredith Russo (Grades 7+). Flatiron Books, May 2016. Review copy provided by my local library.

Amanda is starting over. She's moved to a small town in Tennessee to live with her dad and fly under the radar as she completes her senior year of high school. She dreams of getting into NYU and leaving the South for good. She doesn't plan on making friends or going to football games or bringing any attention to herself whatsoever.

If the other kids at her high school knew the truth about her, Amanda's pretty sure she knows how it would go. If everyone knew that she was assigned male at birth and had only recently transitioned to female, she's pretty sure everyone would freak out. So she keeps her secret. And stays under the radar.

But it's not that simple. This is, after all, Amanda's first chance to really live the way she was meant to live. To live without being bullied, to live as her true self. And she finds herself making friends and going to football games and falling in love... knowing that as easy as anything it could all fall to pieces around her.

This is a powerful and important book. I know that Amanda's story is going to stick with me for a long time. At its heart, it's a book about first love, a book about finally finding the place where you fit in and you feel free. It's a book about being the new kid, albeit with a complication that most new kids may not have to worry about. It's also a book about a girl connecting with her father, the father who she never really related to, a father who is imperfect but trying to accept this new situation.

The author of this book is a trans woman and pieces of the story are based on her own experiences. Meredith Russo is able to incorporate some "teachable moments" (for lack of a better term) in a way that seems organic to the story. For example, when she eventually confides in a friend, Amanda is very clear about a few types of questions NOT to task (don't ask about genitals - it's none of your business, etc.).

I appreciate that Russo leaves us with two notes - a note to cisgender readers explaining that this book about a trans experience does not stand for ALL trans experiences and particularly outlining some points where she stretched reality to make the story work more smoothly. And she includes a note to trans readers, reaching out to let them know they are not alone.

This is Meredith Russo's first novel and I hope to see much more from her.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone who loves realistic, contemporary fiction. I would also recommend it to folks interested in reading about the trans experience. This is an important book for us to have on library shelves and to display and to share with teens.

Readalikes:

Being Jazz: My Life as a (Transgender) Teen by Jazz Jennings. In her memoir, Jazz shares her story of growing up as a transgender teen.

Beautiful Music for Ugly Children by Kirstin Cronn-Mills. Elizabeth was assigned female at birth, but she has always known she is a boy. When she gets the opportunity to do her own late night radio show, she decides to take the plunge and host the show as her true self, Gabe.

Faceless

Faceless by Alyssa Sheinmel. Grades 7 & up. Scholastic, 2015. 345 pages. Review copy provided by publisher.

Booktalk:

What if you looked in the mirror and saw someone you didn't recognize?

When Maisie wakes up, she's in the hospital. Her memory is fuzzy, but she slowly learns the truth: she was running and it started storming. Lightning hit electrical wires which hit her and she was burned. She has second-degree burns all down her left arm and side. But worse than that, her face was burned. Her face was burned off. And she gets a face transplant.

Everyone keeps telling Maisie that she's lucky. She's lucky that a donor came up just when she needed it. She's lucky that the fire didn't take her eyes or her mouth. But Maisie doesn't feel lucky. Now, she's kept on a strict regimen of intense medications to ensure that her body doesn't reject the new tissue. Her boyfriend Chirag remains steadfastly by her side, but he can't bring himself to touch her.

What if you had to go to school wearing someone else's face?

My thoughts:

I picked up this book because the plot sounded absolutely fascinating and it did not let me down. I'm always a little wary with books like this that could easily veer into sensationalism, but what I found here was a well-grounded contemporary story about a girl piecing her life back together after a traumatic event. It's fascinating to me (and, I think, to teen readers) to put myself in Maisie's shoes. How would I deal with this if it happened to me?

Alyssa Sheinmel has that angsty teen voice down in a way that is realistic and recognizable without being annoying. Maisie's actions and decisions were realistic in a way that made me sympathize and root for her, even when I could see that she was making mistakes.

I especially liked Maisie's relationships with people in her life and how they evolved after her injury and as she started to accept what had happened to her. Her boyfriend Chirag is trying to "be a good guy" and stand by her, even though Maisie is a different person now (both physically and mentally). Her best friend Serena actually does remain steadfastly loyal, even when Maisie is not able to give much back to their friendship. As Maisie comes to grips with what happened to her, these relationships change in ways that are both interesting and believable.

Readalikes:

I would hand this book to middle schoolers and high schoolers who enjoy reading stories about teens dealing with something bad happening to them. The Running Dream by Wendelin Van Draanen and/or A Time to Dance by Padma Venkatraman would both make good readalikes for kids who enjoy reading about teens dealing with traumatic physical events (leg amputation in both those books).

Teens who are fascinated by the concept of dealing with facial injury might enjoy Lucy Grealy's memoir Autobiography of a Face, published for adults in 1994.

Tumbling

Tumbling by Caela Carter. Grades 7+. Viking. June, 2016. 432 pages. Review copy provided by publisher.

Booktalk:

There's the gymnast who hasn't played along with the Olympic coach's master plan. There's the gymnast who would rather be anywhere than at the Olympic trials. There's the gymnast who isn't eating anything. There's the gymnast who doesn't think she has a chance. There's the gymnast carrying a secret.

For these five girls, the next two days are a pivotal point in their lives. It's the Olympic trials, an intense last gymnastics meet that will decide the American Olympics team. Dreams will be realized. Dreams will be crushed. Mind games will be played. Secrets will be spilled. Friends will be betrayed. Decisions will be made.

And at the end of it, there will be an Olympic team. A handful of girls who will go on to compete for gold and glory.

This behind-the-scenes look at the Olympic trials is a great choice for anyone who's waiting eagerly for the Olympics to start back up in August.

My thoughts:

Couldn't. Put. This. Down.

I am definitely one of those people who can't wait for the Olympics in August, so this was right up my alley. I don't have the experience to know for sure, but the book seems very well researched, including lots of details of the minutiae of gymnastics life. A lengthy glossary includes lots of gymnastic terms.

Besides being a solid sports book, this is a great book for teens who enjoy the ~drama~ of it all. Any sport has psychological aspects to it. Combine that with a gaggle of teenage girls, all thirsty for a chance at their Olympic dreams, and you get quite the soap opera (in a good way, I mean).

The cast of narrators is diverse in a surface-level way (there's the African American, the Jewish girl, the half-Asian girl, the closeted lesbian), but the focus here is on the sport and the relationships of the characters to one another and to their own goals.

Readalikes:

For younger teens looking for more gymnastics this summer, try Gold Medal Summer by Donna Freitas (Arthur A. Levine, 2012). Older teens might enjoy gymnastics memoirs like Off Balance by Dominique Moceanu (Touchstone, 2012).

Readers who gravitate toward the drama between the girls might like Tiny Pretty Things by Sona Charaipotra and Dhonielle Clayton (HarperTeen, 2015).

Readers may also enjoy dance stories like Up to This Pointe by Jennifer Longo (Random, 2016) or Pointe by Brandy Colbert (Penguin, 2014).

The Hired Girl

The Hired Girl by Laura Amy Schlitz. Grades 6-10. Candlewick Press, September 2015. 400 pages. Reviewed from ARC provided by publisher.

What it's about: 

Sick of the demands and abuse her father heaps on her after her mother passes away, fourteen-year-old Joan runs away from the family farm to seek work as a hired girl in Baltimore. The year is 1911 and Joan ends up with a position in a society house. She's determined to take advantage of the city with all its cultural opportunities; her mother always wanted her to become a schoolteacher. But life in the city and life as a hired girl is much more overwhelming than Joan anticipated.

Inspired by the author's grandmother's journals, this is a rich story about turn-of-the-century society, religion, romance, and more.

My thoughts:

Oh, I loved this book, but with its early-1900s setting and plucky girl heroine, it was pretty much made for me. That's my favorite period to read about and the book reminded me of a couple of my all-time favorite books.

The beauty of this book is that it's written simply, but it delves into many complex issues without getting too weighed down by them. I completely bought Joan's voice and it really felt like I could have been reading someone's diary. The realistic voice immersed me in the story and I found myself not wanting to put the book down.

Joan is a little flighty, quite taken with all the new clothing she can buy now that she has a salary, but she's also a religious girl. Her quest to join the Catholic Church (her mother was Catholic) is sometimes at odds with the reform Judaism practiced in her master's home. Joan ends up learning quite a lot about both religions and dealing with conflicting feelings. This, also, speaks to the realistic nature of the book, as religious questions are something a lot of 14-year-old girls deal with.

I appreciated the glimpse into a 1911 Jewish household and really came to love every character in the book. Supporting characters are just as engaging as Joan herself and they're finely and completely drawn.

Overall, I just loved it and I would love to read more and more about Joan's adventures in Baltimore.

Readalikes:

Daddy Long-Legs by Jean Webster. This is an all-time favorite of mine, a classic that was written around the same time that The Hired Girl is set. It also features a plucky, intelligent heroine who longs to be educated and the book follows Judy's journey to college.

A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly. This is ANOTHER all-time favorite of mine (you can see why I feel that The Hired Girl was designed for me). Mattie Gokey's story about taking care of her family while longing to go continue her education hits many of the same notes as Joan's.

Dumplin'

Dumplin' by Julie Murphy. Grades 8+. Balzer + Bray, September 2015. 384 pages. Reviewed from e-galley.

Summary:

High school sophomore Willowdean Dickson has never had a problem with being fat. Despite occasional criticism from her mom, a former beauty queen, Willowdean has always been confident about her body, her right to wear a bathing suit ("her thoughts on having the ultimate bikini body? Put a bikini on your body"*).

But when she starts working at the local burger joint Harpy's, she meets Bo, a dreamy Catholic school boy on whom she forms an instant crush. When it seems like Bo actually likes her back, Willowdean is suddenly filled with doubt - about her body and herself.

She's also still a little shaken about the death of her aunt Lucy, another woman of size whom Willowdean had always looked up to. As her mom starts sorting through Lucy's things, Willowdean discovers a blank application for the local Miss Teen Blue Bonnet pageant and discovers that her aunt had dreamed of competing. As Willowdean contemplates this, she wonders what else Lucy didn't do because she let her size hold her back.

So she decides to do one thing that the fat and ugly girls in her town have never dared to do: enter the Miss Teen Blue Bonnet pageant.

* Quoted from publisher summary

My thoughts:

You guys. This book. THIS BOOK.

This book is the book I want all fat girls to read. No, actually, I want all girls to read it. NO, actually I want EVERYBODY to read this book.

This is an engaging story with a realistic, humorous voice and it's a body-positive story without being message-y. It's so easy to get fat girl books wrong, but this one gets it right. Willowdean is funny and sassy, but also occasionally vulnerable. She has some great things to say about being confident about your body, but she also has times when she doesn't love everything about her body, which makes her a realistic character.

Plus, it's just a fun story, a little campy at times with its Dolly-Parton-singing drag queens and all the pomp of the pageant world. It's a really enjoyable read.

Readalikes:

My next-favorite fat girl book is Big Fat Manifesto by Susan Vaught, which is another fat girl book done right but VERY different in tone.

Revenge of the Girl with the Great Personality by Elizabeth Euhlberg also touches on the pageant scene as a plain girl deals with being overshadowed by her younger sister on the pageant scene.

The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly

The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly by Stephanie Oakes. Grades 8+ Dial Books, June 2015. 400 pages. Review copy provided by publisher.

What it's about:

When Minnow was five years old, her parents moved the family to the remote woods of Montana to join a religious cult led by a Prophet named Kevin. Good Kevinian girls didn't read or write. They obeyed the prophecies that came to Kevin. They didn't doubt or question. They prepared for the war that the evil Gentiles would one day wage on them. But Minnow didn't quite buy it. And when she rebelled, they cut off her hands.

Now the Prophet is dead. The Community has burned to the ground. A green-eyed boy was beaten almost to death. And Minnow sits in a juvenile correction center, trying not to remember the horrors that came before. The FBI is investigating what happened and Minnow might be the key to unraveling the events of that horrifying night.

My thoughts:

We have been doing so much booktalking this year that sometimes I feel like that's all my reading is - prepping for booktalks I will do. So it's been hard for me lately to get into books that I know I can't booktalk (YA stuff, since we only cover the elementary schools and early middle school grades).

Not so with this book.

I had heard some rave reviews and I picked this book up Sunday night and I seriously could not put it down. I finished it less than 24 hours later. That has NOT been happening lately, so you know this is a special book!

Minnow is a really compelling character, a strong girl who has escaped from those who would harm her and who is trying to stand on her own two feet. And her story is compelling, as well. Author Stephanie Oakes metes the back story out at a nice pace, keeping tension taut in the story while still giving you enough to keep you invested. I was also riveted by Minnow's time in prison, how she navigated the waters and how she managed with no hands. I was so engrossed in the story that it was hard to get it out of my head. I went to lunch with a friend and kept thinking about what it would be like if I had no hands myself.

The book reads like part crime-thriller, part religious cult expose, and it reminded me of several of my favorite TV shows - Orange is the New Black and The Unbreakable Kimmie Schmidt (not the tone of that last one, but a little bit of the premise).

I would totally booktalk it to 8th grade and up if I was doing teen booktalks. I think the premise alone (they CUT OFF HER HANDS!) makes a great booktalk and this is one that kids who like thrilling stories will clamor for.

Readalikes:

After by Amy Efaw - another ripped-from-the-headlines type of story about a girl in juvie for abandoning her newborn baby in the trash.

The Year We Disappeared by Cylin Busby and John Busby - this true crime story has the same compelling style where you just can't put the book down until you know what happens.

I'd also hand this book to fans of Jodi Picoult, especially Plain Truth and The Pact.

Hold Tight Don't Let Go

Hold Tight, Don't Let Go: A Novel of Haiti by Laura Rose Wagner. Grades 9+. Abrams, January 2015. 264 pages. Review copy provided by my local library.

Cousins Magdalie and Nadine are inseparable best friends. Ever since Magda's mother died when she was little, Nadine's mother has been manman to both girls, raising them as sisters. But when an earthquake strikes Haiti, Manman dies and the house in which the family lived is destroyed. With no resources, the fifteen-year-old girls move to a ramshackle camp where they live with an uncle. The camp is horrifying, but as long as she has her cousin by her side, Magda knows she can survive anything. When Nadine's father in Miami sends for her, Magda is left alone for the first time in her life, and although Nadine promises to get her cousin a visa and bring her to America, Magda soon realizes that this may be an impossible dream.

I ask myself if I am jealous... She is leaving. She is going to a better place - to a place I have only seen in photos and in films, to a place where everyone has money, everyone has a car and a lawn and a flush toilet, where the streets are straight and flat and clean. To a place where she will go to university, and she can have a good life, where it will be easy to accomplish whatever she sets her mind to... I search the darkest places in my heart, but the truth is, I don't feel jealous at all. I just feel sad. [page 43]

This is a vivid portrayal of Haiti after the earthquake. Magda's life has changed in an instant. Suddenly, she has no real home. She doesn't have money for school fees, she sometimes doesn't have money for food. This survival story is an account of Magda's day-to-day life after the disaster and her journey to gain power over her own destiny.

Several times bystanders and folks on the street remark "Look at this country" as if they still can't believe the situations they're seeing in their own country. People are devastatingly aware of a need for change, but just as devastatingly powerless to create change.

This is also a portrait of a country and a people picking up the pieces after a terrible disaster. At one point Nadine remarks that in America people thought she was crazy for running out of a store when she thought she felt the ground shake, even though Miami is not on a fault line. She says people in Haiti would have understood, it would have been normal.

But although this is a story set in an impoverished country, Laura Rose Wagner has also created a love letter to Haiti here. This book is a sensory experience - the sounds of the language and the tastes of the foods drawing the reader in. Magda returns to her birth village in the southern mountains of Haiti to bury her Manman, showing the reader the seemingly paradisiacal farm where Magda's relatives live.

And just as Wagner paints a picture of Haiti, she paints Magda's emotions. This is, above all, a story of Magda's emotional journey from denial of her situation to acceptance and the ability to move forward and create a new plan for herself.

Readalikes:

For more on Haiti and Haitian women, definitely check out everything by Edwidge Danticat. Her books are published for adults, but I started reading them in high school and I think they have crossover appeal.

Lost Girl Found by Laura M. DeLuca and Leah Bassoff is another story about a strong teenage girl surviving after a devastating event costs her her home. In this case, it's soldiers destroying her Sudanese village.

For teens who are more into the close female friendship between Magda and Nadine, I kept thinking about Sister of My Heart by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni while I was reading. That's another book that's published for adults, but I think has high school crossover appeal.