The ABCs of Black History

I love alphabet books.  This rhyming one is beautiful, written by Rio Cortez and illustrated by Lauren Semmer.  Each page spread highlights a letter of the alphabet and all of the words that link to black history.  B is for bold, brave and brotherhood.  D is for diaspora.  P is for power.  R is for relentless.  S is for scientists.  Touching on all apsects of black history, including very current happenings, it is a wonderful homage to black heritage.  Several pages in the back offer deeper explanation of some people and terms mentioned in book.  (PIC COR)

Because of the Rabbit

This sweet, realistic fiction story centered around Emma.  She is attending school for the first time at the beginning of fifth grade.  She loved home schooling but is looking forward to public school - mostly because she knows she can make friends.  When that doesn't happen right away, she takes comfort in the new rescue animal at her house - a sweet bunny she has named Lapin.  The bunny ultimately becomes something she can have in common with her classmate - a sweet boy named Jack.  Soon, she realizes that when she stops trying so hard, and just presents her true self to her classmates, she has everything she needs.  (FIC LOR)

Wink

This middle-grade realistic fiction story was deep.  Ross is a 7th grader diganosed with eye cancer.  As he navigates the horror of the treatments and the potential side effects, his best friend Abby is by his side.  Unfortunately, middle school kids can be hurtful and mean... especially when you are different.  His radiologist and another cancer patient add some joy to this story. I loved both Frank and Jerry's roles in helping Ross navigate the process and find some joy.  A bit of the language was mature as well as the content, obviously.  I may leave this one for a MS collection.  (FIC HAR)  

The Lion of Mars

I thoroughly enjoyed Jennifer Holm's (Fourteenth Goldfish, Full of Beans) latest novel set on Mars in the future.  Bell has grown up in the American settlement on Mars.  They have no contact with the other national settlements.  The children are told of an accident that triggered the isolation.  But when all the adults in his settlement get sick, Bell and his "brother" Trey have to go for help.  Bell finds his courage for his "family". This was a wonderful testament to society's need for one another.  It takes a village. (GN HOL)

Consent (For Kids!) Boundaries, Respect, and Being in Charge of You

This is an important book teaching children what consent is and how to get and give it.  Delivered in a graphic novel format, it is very accessible and not scary or explicit at all.  It is perfect for an elementary-aged child.  I shared it with my guidance counselors and will have it my collection.

Nat Enough

Can you still call someone a friend when they treat you badly?  Even if they were once what you thought was your best friend?  Nat is desperate to regain her best friend even though she is cruel and petty.  "Focus on who are are instead of who you are not," a classmate told her.  Once Nat did that, she found the confidence to make real friends.  I enjoyed the theme of this graphic novel.  Students can never hear enough of it.  I wish there was no boy-girl crush stuff in it, but it was minor and benign in this first of the series.  It is not the case in its sequels. though.  (GN SCR)

CatWad

This laugh-out-loud graphic novel for the younger set is sure to be a hit.  Catwad is a grumpy, pessimistic cat.  His friend, Blurmp, although a bit dim-witted, is the exact opposite - always positive, smiling and looking on the bright side.  Readers will love them both and giggle through the whole thing.  I hope Jim Benton writes many more of these.

The Girl Who Speaks Bear

Yanka stands out in her village.  She is head and shoulders bigger than the other kids her age.  Sometimes she likes the attention.  People seem to be marveled at her strength.  But she has a feeling in her heart she doesn't belong here.  A part of her is pulled to the moutain where her mom found her.  Her friend Anatoly tells her stories of his travels around the forest, as well as magical tales.  One morning, Yanka wakes up and discovers her legs and feet have been tranformed into those of a bear.  She starts to think Anatoly's stories may be true.  She leaves her beloved mother and friend Sasha and follows her heart to gain answers.  This is a story of adventure, love, courage, friendship, and finding out who you were meant to be.  (FIC AND)

Bloom

Kenneth Oppel, author of Inkling, wrote this spooky, thrilling story about an agressive, invasive, carnivorous, alien plant species that colonized Earth.  It threatened life itself. Three kids: Anaya, the allergic-to-everything kid, Seth, the misfit foster kid and Petra, the pretty, shallow girl - are immune to its poisons.  When they are studied to potentially find a vaccine for the poisons, they learn more about their special traits, and why they have them.  Maybe they are the only ones who can save the planet.  This was the first in a thrilling series, made for middle school readers and older. (FIC OPP)

Starfish

 

Holy cow.  Just wow.  This book was utterly amazing.  I needed both a box of tissues and a punching bag to deal with my emotions while reading it.  Ellie is larger than most twelve year olds and she is mercilessly bullied for it, mostly by her mother.  Luckily she has her dad and two dear, true friends to remind her that her value and beauty are not defined by her weight.  This is a truly important book, highlighting a horrible fat-phobic society in which we live.  Told in verse, it is gorgeous in its language and insights.  (FIC FIP)

Liar, Liar

I love the level of kids I teach.  K-5 is a great group.  But this book made me wish I taught older kids - just so I could read this out loud to them!  The main character, Kevin, is a 14-yr-old 8th grader.  A book with a protagonist that old MAY be o.k. but it usually means that content is probably too mature for my libraries.  And that proved correct with this one, unfortunately. Some vocabulary that was advanced, boy-girl drama, along with puberty all combined to put it out of reach for MY collection.  Insert sad face here.  I will suggest it strongly for any MS collection, though!  Kevin is a great liar and in his attempt to get the love of his life to notice him, he embarks on a string of lies that get out of hand and teaches him about honesty.  Hilarious, inventive and beautifully written, I loved it.  (FIC PAU)

Donut Feed the Squirrels

This is a sweet, lower level graphic novel.  It is the first in a series featuring Norma and Belly.  Is has a few chapters, but one storyline, rather than separate stories.  In this one, the two main characters try to get into a food truck to get some donuts.  Perfect for first or second grade readers, students will love these sweet and funny characters and want to read the series.  (GN SON)

Hike

This is a gorgeous wordless picture book, illustrated by Pete Oswald.  A dad and his son wake up early and head out for a day in the mountains where they plant a tree, investigate wildlife and just enjoy each other's company in the great outdoors.  (PIC OSW)

Going Down Home With Daddy

I heard about this book after it received a Caldecott Honor at the ALA Awards this January.  A family heads out for the yearly trek to their Dad's childhood home for a reunion.  Lil Alan can not think of any way to pay tribute to their family at the celebration until he looks into his heart and speaks of the gifts the land has given them.  There is also a deep knowledge of the past, the history of cotton and slavery, and its impact on their ancestors. The techniques and colors by Daniel Minter were glorious.  Among other various techniques, background heart shapes on every page, I learned, harkened to a West African symbol of love and a reminder to learn from the past.   It was a beautiful, moving read celebrating African American history and culture.  (PIC LYO)

Unplugged

 

In this latest from Gordon Korman, author of Unteachables and Restart among many others, we meet Jett.  He is the son of a tech billionaire and is spoiled rotten.  He has gotten into some troubles with his entitlement and lack of control, so his dad enrolls him in a summer camp in Arkansas.  There he has to forfeit all electronics, go to yoga class, and eat vegetarian foods.  People are nuts about this place.  He can't figure out why.  Needless to say, he is not happy.  However, in true Jett fashion, he rebels and hijacks a boat to head downstream to the nearest town to buy candy and burgers.  However, on his way there, he spies a mansion and starts to wonder who lives there.  In his investigation, he stumbles on a secret that threatens not only the camp and its members, but the town as well.  I enjoyed his growth as a character.  It is a perfect mystery for upper elementary school.  (FIC KOR)

Eyes That Kiss In The Corners

 

When you look different from others, you may wish you didn't.  But the moral of this story is that you should be proud of your glorious differences, as is the little girl in this book.  Her eyes "kiss in the corners and glow like warm tea", just like the amazing other people in her family.  And she wouldn't want it any other way.  Every collection needs this book, which celebrates diversity and confidence.  (PIC HO)

Hair Love

 

This GORGEOUS picture book is based on the short film Hair Love, by Matthew Cherry.  In it, a girl whose hair has a mind of its own needs her dad to make it special.  I loved the beautiful relationship between her and her dad and his patience and love in working hard to get it just right.  Vashti Harrison is the illustrator and her characters are sweet and real and full of emotion.  (PIC CHE)

Science Comics

 

What a find these were!  Thanks to a colleague in a workshop on graphic novels, I discovered these beauties.  Most graphic novels are fiction.  Kids gravitate toward them.  Thank you to the authors and publishers who decided to bring nonfiction into this format.  This series has books about sharks, the solar system, coral reefs, volcanoes, dinosaurs, flying machines, dogs, plagues, robots, rockets, trees and the brain.  These will fly off the shelves.

Amari and the Night Brothers

What a magical (pun intended) book B.B. Alston has written!!!!  I loved Amari and the begininning of this series!  Amari's brother has disappeared.  She receives a briefcase with an invitation to attend a summer camp - at the Bureau of Supernatural Affairs!  She never knew magic existed.  And now she finds out that her brother was a superstar agent who imprisoned the worst magician of all time.  In order to get her brother back, she needs to become an agent herself and investigate his disappearance. But much like her fancy prep school where she attended on a scholarship, this school has bigoted people who don't want her there.  But she is used to that and she can handle herself.  The book gave me vibes from other fantasy stories I have read - Divergent, Harry Potter, and Star Wars, but it was unique enough that I enjoyed it and could not predict what would happen.  I will defintely get this for my collections!  And I can't wait for the sequel!  The kids will love it!  (FIC ALS)

Breakout (Messner)

This one surprised me.  The format was unlike anthing I had read beefore.  Written in notes, transcripts, cartoons, and letters, three girls create submissions for a time-capsule for their town, to be opened in 50 years.  I found myself wishing it was a normal narrative, maybe written from each of their perspectives, rather than the different formats.  Lizzie, Nora and Elidee start to create the submissions as extra credit, but grow to like writing about what is going on in their lives and their town.  The normally quiet town is shaken up when two inmates from the local prison escape.  The tension it causes highlights a undercurrent of racism in the town, expressed mostly by Elidee, a new black girl in town. (FIC MES)

Tristan Strong Punches A Hole In The Sky (Mbalia)

In this latest publication from Rick Riordan's publishing house, readers are reacquainted with African folk heroes and legends, rather than Greek, Roman, or Egyptian, as in his other series.  At its core, it is a fantasy-adventure story.  A creature steals Tristan's prize possession - his deceased best friend's journal of stories. Tristan chases the creature but unwittingly releases an evil spirit from his gradparents' woods in Alabama and they all fall down a hole into another realm.  This realm is ruled by African and Black American legends and gods, like John Henry and Anansi the story weaver.  By bringing the spirit into the realm, he unleashes an evil horde who would destroy their worlds.  Tristan must figure out a way to seal the hole in the sky he created before it's too late. Tristan battles demons but he also tackles his own feelings of loss and guilt over his friend's death, as well as the disappointment he believes he is to everyone in his life.  I loved the message of storytelling and its power.  I loved the theme of owning painful memories.  I also loved seeing powerful and strong black characters in a book, telling of black history.  However,  I found it quite confusing.  A lot of the characters' stories were not explained fully enough.  I also found it too long.  The climax was satisfying though.  It will speak to many kids who have knowledge of both the old folktales and of America's shameful and dark history of slavery.  It could be confusing without that schema.  (FIC MBA)

I am Every Good Thing (Barnes)

This beautiful and inspiring picture book was written by Derrick Barnes and illustrated by Gordon C. James.  It celebrates all the wonderful things a child is.  It is a gorgeous and joyful book encouraging children to look deep and see what defines them and what makes them special, beautiful, and unique.  (PIC BAR)   

All Because You Matter (Charles)

This affirming story written by Tami Charles was absolutely beautiful.  Written to all children, but targeted specifically to those of color who see in society that they do not, it boldly tells them theat they are beautiful, strong and that they matter.  I adored the gorgeous illustrations - sometimes joyous, sometimes troubling and thought-provoking.  We can not have enough books broadcasting this message.  (PIC CHA)