Title: Red Rising
Author: Pierce Brown
Publisher: Del Rey (January 28, 2014)
ISBN: 978-0345539809
Genre: Science Fiction
Recommended Age Level: YA/New Adult 14+
Awards / Recognitions: Goodreads Choice Awards: Best Debut Goodreads Author 2014
Personal Rating: 5 / 5
​
Summary: 
16-year-old Darrow is a Red, the lowest caste of civilization. He and his people live under the surface of Mars in slavish and hellish conditions in order to mine and harvest the precious element, helium-3, that is needed to terraform the surface of Mars and make it habitable and livable for the rest of humanity. He and his people have been told for generations that they are the pioneers of the planet Mars, and that due to their efforts, they will pave the way for civilization to one day be able to exist on Mars. Hard work and loyalty are rewarded while resistance and rebellion are swiftly and harshly punished. When Darrow’s wife is executed for a mild rebellious act, Darrow decides to exact vengeance on the ruling class, the Golds. He is recruited by a rebel group and quickly learns that his meager existence has all been a cleverly constructed lie in order to keep the Reds passive and complicit. In reality, the Reds are slaves to the large civilizations already on the fully terraformed surface of Mars that has been there for centuries. Sparked by a renewed hatred for the Gold and the structure of the society in which he is now aware of, Darrow is chosen to infiltrate the upper echelon of society in order to overthrow the repressive government. He is genetically and physically augmented in order to look like a Gold, and is admitted into Mars’ most prestigious school. At that point, he is on his own, and must navigate the brutal and ruthless world of the Golds as he and his other “classmates” are put to the ultimate test: a brutal war game that determines the fate of the young people in the top tier of the Golds. Determined to lead his people to a better life, Darrow will stop at nothing to not only survive this competition, but to come out on top to ensure his mission will succeed. 

Professional Reviews:
“The characters are perfectly flawed, causing the reader to feel compassion and revulsion for both sides.” – Cindy Stevens, LibraryReads, 2014
 
“A fine novel for those who like to immerse themselves in alternative worlds.” – Kirkus Reviews, 2014
 
“Brown's debut novel is reminiscent of both Suzanne Collins's The Hunger Games and William Goldman's The Lord of the Flies but has a dark and twisted power of its own that will captivate readers and leave them wanting more.” – Jane Henriksen Baird, Library Journal, 2014
 
“Pierce offers a Hollywood-ready story with plenty of action and thrills.” – Publishers Weekly, 2014 

Personal Insights (upon my third re-read):
This may just be one of my all-time favorite books and series…. Apparently my two related decals on my Jeep are not enough because I am seriously considering getting a tattoo based on this series. If you enjoy science fiction at all, take the time to read this book, and at least the two books that follow it. (Golden Son and Morning Star). It has been a long time since I have really fallen for a book series…Harry Potter and Eragon are probably the last two that I have felt this sucked into a world and simultaneously wish I could literally jump into the universe but also wipe my memory so I can experience the magic of reading it for the first time all over again! The world-building is fantastic, the characters are layered, flawed, and relatable, and each book somehow manages to get better than the one before it. Pierce Brown, you have outdone yourself.
 
This book was actually one of the first books chosen for the book club that I started over two years ago, and it definitely helped set the tone and momentum to have kept us meeting all this time.
 
For those who ARE interested in reading this series, I do recommend that you start with the original trilogy and see how you like it. The second trilogy, that takes 10 years after the events in book three (a bit like the Star Wars saga), has a very different tone and energy to it. It is still fantastic (at least the two of the three that are currently published) but I want to give the caveat that if you go into reading the second trilogy expecting more of the same compared to the original, you might be a tad disappointed.

Oh, what I would be willing to give to be able to go back to this point in time
​and be reading this series for the first time......

Title: Loveless
Author: Alice Oseman
Publisher: HarperCollins Children’s Books
ISBN13:  9780008244125
Genre: YA/New Adult, Contemporary Realistic Fiction, Teen Romance
Topics/Themes: Self-discovery and identity, finding the true meaning of love
Diversity Tags: LGBTQIA+: Asexual, Aromantic, Lesbian, Pansexual Main Characters
Recommended Age Level: 17-21
Awards / Recognitions: 

• None yet, but it wouldn’t surprise me if it won some soon since it only came out in July of 2020.

Personal Rating: 5 / 5
​
Summary (from GoodReads):
It was all sinking in. I’d never had a crush on anyone. No boys, no girls, not a single person I had ever met. What did that mean?
 
18-year-old Georgia has never been in love, never kissed anyone, never even had a crush – but as a fanfic-obsessed romantic she’s sure she’ll find her person one day.

As she starts university with her best friends, Pip and Jason, in a whole new town far from home, Georgia’s ready to find romance, and with her outgoing roommate on her side and a place in the Shakespeare Society, her ‘teenage dream’ is in sight.

But when her romance plan wreaks havoc amongst her friends, Georgia ends up in her own comedy of errors, and she starts to question why love seems so easy for other people but not for her. With new terms thrown at her – asexual, aromantic – Georgia is more uncertain about her feelings than ever.

Is she destined to remain loveless? Or has she been looking for the wrong thing all along?

Professional Reviews:
“There is so much more I could say about Loveless, but to sum up, I completely adored it. From the heartfelt treatment of sexuality, to the diverse cast, to the intense connection I felt with it, this is undoubtedly going to be a long-term favourite of mine. And Alice Oseman might just be a new favourite author.” – Eleanor Maher, “Bookstacked” Book Review, 2020 https://bookstacked.com/reviews/book-reviews/loveless-review-alice-oseman/
 
“Loveless is a beautiful tale of self-discovery and self-acceptance, as well as a celebration of friendships. Alice Oseman offers one of her best works to date, unafraid to show the intricacies of human connection and the importance of valuing those around us to create a community of support and love in a world that always seems to go against us.” – Ankara C., “The Nerd Daily” Book Review, 2020 https://thenerddaily.com/review-loveless-by-alice-oseman/
 
Personal Insights:
I feel like this is an incredibly important book because it is one of the only ones I have found that has an asexual/aromantic teen as the main character (other than the two I mention in the Readalikes below). As it gets referenced in the book as Georgia is discovering her own identity, asexuality is a term that not a lot of people are familiar with, nor one that many understand even though it is considered part of the LGBTQIA+ spectrum. While this book may technically be considered a teen romance story (and there is an incredibly adorable romance budding between secondary characters), the beauty of this story is that it shows that true friendship can be just as powerful of a kind of love, and just as fulfilling as romantic love.
 
It was fascinating when I was looking at the recommended readalikes on Goodreads and Novelist, because every single one recommended was for a teen romance, or, even more jarring, a smutty romance book (complete with a bare-chested male on the cover). Which is completely antithetical to the message this story is trying to convey, and shows just how little the publishing world understands or factors in this specific identity.
 
Just one more level of awesomeness, this book is also, #ownvoices! Alice Oseman came out as asexual shortly after publishing this book, so it’s very cool to know that the experiences that Georgia is facing come from very real experiences. Also, can we take a moment to appreciate this amazing author?? She is currently only 26 years old and has published numerous and very successful novels and graphic novels. Her first book, Solitaire, was published when she was only 17, and her graphic novel series, Heartstoppers, was just announced earlier this year to have a Netflix adaptation in the works! She is definitely an author to keep on your radar in the world of LGBTQIA+ fiction in the near future. You can check out a great article by Alice Oseman here where she talks about her life experiences with identifying as asexual here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/articles/z2fk3j6
 
As far as content goes, I wanted to make a note that this story is set in England, where the drinking age is 18. While the main character is 18, I would almost want to classify this book as “New Adult” if not the upper end of YA. I say that because the use of alcohol and partying is very much an integral part of the story, and for American readers, there is a different culture around alcohol (not to mention age of legality), so some might have a little harder time relating to the story in that regard.

Notable Quotes:
“Give your friendships the magic you would give a romance. Because they're just as important. Actually, for us, they're way more important.”
 
“I've learnt some things. Like the way friendship can be just as intense, beautiful and endless as romance. Like the way there's love everywhere around me - there's love for my friends, there's love for my paintings, there's love for myself.”
 
“In the end, that was the problem with romance. It was so easy to romanticise romance because it was everywhere. It was in music and on TV and in filtered Instagram photos. It was in the air, crisp and alive with fresh possibility. It was in falling leaves, crumbling wooden doorways, scuffed cobblestones and fields of dandelions. It was in the touch of hands, scrawled letters, crumpled sheets and the golden hour. A soft yawn, early morning laugher, shoes lined up together by the door. Eyes across a dance floor. I could see it all, all the time, all around, but when I got closer, I found nothing was there.”

*These recommendations are based more on the fact that they were the only two other books
I could find with asexual main characters rather than any similarity in tone/pacing/content.*
​

Title: The Lion of Mars
Author: Jennifer L. Holm
Publisher: Random House Children’s Books
ISBN13:  978-0-593-12181-8
Genre: Middle Grade, Science Fiction
Topics/Themes: Space colonization, Importance of Community, Bravery
Diversity Tags: Incidental Diversity: main characters are non-white
Recommended Age Level: 9-12
Awards / Recognitions: 

• Colby Sharp - Recommended Reading: 5/5

Personal Rating: 5 / 5
​
Summary (from GoodReads):
Bell has spent his whole life - all eleven years of it - on Mars. But he's still just a regular kid - he loves cats, any kind of cake, and is curious about the secrets the adults in the US colony are keeping. Like, why don't have contact with anyone on the other Mars colonies? Why are they so isolated? When a virus breaks out and the grown-ups all fall ill, Bell and the other children are the only ones who can help. It's up to Bell - a regular kid in a very different world - to uncover the truth and save his family ... and possibly unite an entire planet.

Professional Reviews:
 “An unexpectedly cozy work of sf—celebrating science, community, and cooperation—that will have readers feeling right at home on Mars.” – Ronny Khuri, Booklist, 2021
 
“The characters are endearing, the story is compelling, and the book has a positive but not didactic message. A delightful space adventure.” – Kirkus Reviews, 2021
“Tween science fiction fans will enjoy this realistic-feeling adventure that has humor, warmth, and lots of food for thought about what it would be like to actually live on Mars.” – Andrea Beach, Common Sense Media review, 2021
 
Personal Insights:
This book was fun, exciting, and touched on some very important lessons that gave it some added depth. Some of these include: 1) The importance of belonging to a community in order to survive and thrive, 2) sharing ideas and resources can make life better for everyone involved, 3) holding on to hurtful and angry feelings from the past can cause you to miss out on important things today, 4) bravery is doing the right thing even when you are scared.
This book has a unique twist in that there is a mysterious illness going around and making all the adults sick, so it is up to the kids to save the day. If my sources are correct, this author wrote the book before the COVID-19 pandemic, but with it being published early 2021, it certainly adds some extra zing and relatability to the story!
This book also seems to be still fairly unknown, with less than 600 rating and 155 reviews on Goodreads. (For reference, all the other books on this Y’GRT have several thousand, if not tens of thousands of ratings and reviews on GoodReads). The only reason I heard about it was from Colby Sharp (teacher and big name in middle grade literature) who I started following on Instagram from this class. So knowing about this book makes you a bit of a literary hipster and you now know about a book that isn’t mainstream!

Below is a book talk from the legend himself, Colby Sharp!

Title: Lemons
Author: Melissa Savage
Publisher: Crown Books for Young Readers (2017)
ISBN13:  978- 1524700126
Genre: Middle Grade, Action/Adventure, Historical Fiction (Set in the 1970s)
Topics/Themes: Healing/Grief from loss of a parent, reconnecting with family, making new friends, living in a new place
Diversity Tags: Death of a parent/raised by grandparent
Recommended Age Level: 9-12
Awards / Recognitions: 

• No awards found, believe it or not....

Personal Rating: 5 / 5
​
Summary:
Ten-year-old Lemonade Liberty Witt, Lem for short, has just lost her mother and is being uprooted from San Francisco to go live with her grandfather, who she has never met, in Willow Creek, California. Unsure of how to make lemonade from such large lemons (the well-known phrase being her namesake), Lemonade inevitably meets the quirky boy next door, Tobin, who is OBSESSED with the local Bigfoot legend and is the self-proclaimed CEO and founder of Bigfoot Detective Inc (which he runs out of the ramshackle garage belonging to Lem’s grandfather). Since Tobin is the first person her own age she befriends, he is able to rope her in to being his (reluctant) assistant, even though she is a bigfoot skeptic. While most of the sightings and reports that Bigfoot Detective Inc receives are from indulging town-folk (such as the retired school teacher who uses it as an excuse to bake and feed cookies to these two kiddos), a few reports begin to come in that are stumping even the adults in town. Before they know it, Lem and Tobin are caught up in a case that impacts them more personally than they could imagine as they both cope with their own unique grief of losing a parent.

Professional Review:
“The book  is well paced, with plenty of humor to balance the heavy themes.” - Taylor Worley, School Library Journal, 2017
 
“An enjoyable and comforting middle-grade handbook on navigating new experiences and the heartache of losing loved ones early in life. A joyous celebration of cryptozoology, friendship, family love, and coping with loss.” – Kirkus Reviews, 2017
 
“Savage injects enough humor, mystery, and lively interaction among the characters to give this two-hanky debut a buoyant tone.” – John Peters, Booklist, 2017
 
Personal Insights:
I loved how much this story addressed the emotions of grief and loss in an age appropriate way, which is not surprising given that the author, Melissa Savage, is a child and family therapist. It’s clear that she pulled from a deep base of knowledge and experience from the kids she has worked with in the creation of this story.
I was also hooked immediately with this story because, like Tobin, I was OBSESSED with Bigfoot (and other cryptozoological creatures) in middle school. Almost every single free-choice research or report that was assigned I jumped at the chance to dive more into this realm where reality and fantasy begin to blur. So this story held a special place for me because of the deep nostalgic feelings it reawakened and helped me relive some great (and also slightly cringe-y) memories!

Title: Minecraft: The Island
Author: Max Brooks
Publisher: Del Rey (2017)
ISBN13:  978-0399181771
Genre: Middle Grade, Action/Adventure, Video Game Tie-In
Topics/Themes: Problem Solving, Facing a difficult problem, Perseverance
Recommended Age Level: 8-12
Awards / Recognitions: 

• New York Times Bestseller

Personal Rating: 5 / 5

Summary:
This is the story of a hero who finds himself stranded on an island in the world of Minecraft (although he has no idea where he is or what Minecraft is). If he wants to have any hope of survival from the monsters that creep around in the dark, he must use logic and perseverance to discover the secrets of the island and the unusual rules that this mysterious world throws at him.

​Personal Insights: 
So, first off the bat, this book is probably not for everyone…. Like the review cited above explains, this book is going to be the biggest hit with kids who are already familiar with the game Minecraft. While it is written so that kids who have NOT played the game can understand it and follow along in the story, the evident game mechanics and world building are much easier to follow along if you have played the game before. Regardless of your familiarity with the game, I DO think it is a creative and captivating story about using logic and persevering to overcome any difficult challenges a kid may face.
While I do not play the game much anymore, I was a huge fan back when it first came out back when I was in my undergrad years. For those who are not familiar, Minecraft is an amazing, non-violent video game that inspires kids to use logic, critical thinking, and creativity in order to survive the nighttime hours when monsters are out and about. It’s actually kind of hard to explain in words, so I’ll link a short video below so you can see for yourself!
The thing that caught my attention with this book was actually the audiobook: it is narrated by none other than the great Jack Black! He brought so much life and energy to this story in his unique way, and he really is the perfect narrator for this story.

Professional Reviews:
Jason Sheehan, NPR (2017): “’The Island’ is one of four things, depending on who's reading it.

1. If you're a grumpy adult, devoid of imagination, who picked this book up just because you recognized Max Brooks' name on the cover, it's a massive piece of fan fiction written by one of the most famous authors on the scene. It's fun, in its way, but you're gonna get bored (or annoyed, or both) very quickly.
2. If you're a weird book critic who (maybe, sometimes) reads WAY too much into things, The Island is a fascinating experiment in worldbuilding and storytelling. To see an author like Brooks forced to work within the strictures of a universe that literally makes no physical sense — where even something as basic as eating comes with its own set of rules that are fundamentally nonsensical and different than ours here on Earth Prime — is to see all the spokes and gears of craft exposed. I liked the thing purely as a master's thesis on internal consistency in genre literature.
3. If you're a kid — a Minecraft freak, or maybe just someone who's curious and likes a good story — it's a rollicking adventure yarn; Robinson Crusoe for the digital age. You actually don't even have to know anything about the game to like it. Everything's laid out for you on the page, from the odd physics to the creepers. Plus, there are exploding cows and poop jokes so, you know, good fun.
4. And finally, if you're a parent considering whether or not this is appropriate summer reading material for the pint-sized nerds in your life, you should know that the entire thing is structured as a clever series of life lessons, couched in language and an environment that will make it more palatable to children who maybe don't like being lectured at for 200-some easy-reading pages.

Title: You Should See Me in a Crown
Author: Leah Johnson
Publisher: Scholastic Press (2020)
ISBN13:  978- 1338503265
Genre: Realistic Fiction, YA, Romance
Topics/Themes: Stepping outside your comfort zone, coming-of-age, first love, navigating friendship
Diversity Tags: BIPOC: Black Main Character, LGBTQIA+: Lesbian Main Character, Death of a parent/raised by grandparents
Recommended Age Level: 14-19
Awards / Recognitions: 

• Stonewall Honor Book (2021)
• ALA - Rise: A Feminist Book Project List (2021)
• Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Young Adult Fiction (2020)

Personal Rating: 5 / 5
​
Summary: Senior Liz Lighty is on track to graduate at the top of her class and head to her dream college, Pennington, to study medicine and play in their world famous orchestra. Her plan is to become a hematologist to work with patients who have Sickle Cell Anemia, the blood disorder that took her mother’s life and her little brother is struggling with. When her music scholarship unexpectedly falls through, Liz realizes that she must take matters into her own hands since her grandparents cannot afford to pay for her college. Her solution: run for prom queen in the annual competition that her school and small town are weirdly obsessed with because the prize is a scholarship that would more than pay for the rest of her tuition. Though it goes against every fiber of her spotlight-avoiding being, Liz will not let anything get in the way of her dreams to make it to Pennington, not even the gauntlet of public events and social media that she despises. Although she is the top of her class, Liz has always struggled with feelings of not fitting in as “too black” or “too poor” in her rich, midwestern school. Launching herself at this prom queen campaign, Liz must confront these fears head on as she meticulously works to create an image for herself. When Liz begins to fall for the smart and funny new girl, it seems she must make the impossible decision of whether stopping at nothing to achieve her dreams or finding love and being true to herself are more important.

Professional Reviews:
“Johnson puts a fresh spin on this novel with an unlikely romance, heartwarming friendships, and the tension of being Black, poor, and queer in a small town. Readers will revel in the growth of the entire cast, as their high-school years come to an exciting and wildly unanticipated close. A feel-good title for sure.” – Melanie Kirkwood, Booklist, 2020
 
“Readers will fall in love with this refreshing book  that celebrates the beauty of individuality.” – Cicely Lewis, School Library Journal, 2020
 
“Johnson does an excellent job of portraying the anxiety and internalized self-hatred from being different in a mostly white, affluent small town. The queer prom romance you didn’t know you needed.” – Kirkus Reviews, 2020
 
Personal Insights: Since this story took place in a fictional town just outside of non-fictional Indianapolis, I loved the many references to Indiana, and felt an added connection to the culture and environment that Liz found herself in in this story. I was also a big fan of how much this story was able to pack in and address: not only is it a beautiful queer romance story, but it’s also a fantastic success story about a Black girl finding her way in a very white school.
Also, yet another great examples of an #ownvoices story by a LGBTQIA+ and Black author! You can read more about the author’s journey and writing of the book here: https://electricliterature.com/leah-johnson-you-should-see-me-in-a-crown/

Notable Quotes:
“I never needed this race, or a hashtag, or the king to be a queen. I was born royalty. All I had to do was pick up my crown.”
 
“And I know then what I've always known: Campbell is never going to make a space for me to fit. I'm going to have to demand it.”
 
“Silence and shame aren’t the same thing—not by a longshot. But sometimes silence is simpler.”
 
“Loyalty between lifelong friends is complicated and runs deep. More deeply, even, than I think you realize, until just how different you and your friends have become is practically unavoidable.”

Readalikes: (Summaries from GoodReads)
 
If It Makes You Happy by Claire Kann (2019) - High school finally behind her, Winnie is all set to attend college in the fall. But first she's spending her summer days working at her granny’s diner and begins spending her midnights with Dallas—the boy she loves to hate and hates that she likes. Winnie lives in Misty Haven, a small town where secrets are impossible to keep—like when Winnie allegedly snaps on Dr. Skinner, which results in everyone feeling compelled to give her weight loss advice for her own good. Because they care that’s she’s “too fat.”
Winnie dreams of someday inheriting the diner—but it'll go away if they can't make money, and fast. Winnie has a solution—win a televised cooking competition and make bank. But Granny doesn't want her to enter—so Winnie has to find a way around her formidable grandmother. Can she come out on top?
 
The Summer of Jordi Perez (and the Best Burger in Los Angeles) by Amy Spalding (2018) - Seventeen, fashion-obsessed, and gay, Abby Ives has always been content playing the sidekick in other people's lives. While her friends and sister have plunged headfirst into the world of dating and romances, Abby has stayed focused on her plus-size style blog and her dreams of taking the fashion industry by storm. When she lands a prized internship at her favorite local boutique, she’s thrilled to take her first step into her dream career. She doesn't expect to fall for her fellow intern, Jordi Pérez. Abby knows it's a big no-no to fall for a colleague. She also knows that Jordi documents her whole life in photographs, while Abby would prefer to stay behind the scenes.
Then again, nothing is going as expected this summer. She's competing against the girl she's kissing to win a paid job at the boutique. She's somehow managed to befriend Jax, a lacrosse-playing bro type who needs help in a project that involves eating burgers across L.A.'s eastside. Suddenly, she doesn't feel like a sidekick. Is it possible Abby's finally in her own story?
But when Jordi's photography puts Abby in the spotlight, it feels like a betrayal, rather than a starring role. Can Abby find a way to reconcile her positive yet private sense of self with the image that other people have of her?
 
Ask the Passengers by A.S. King (2012) - Astrid Jones desperately wants to confide in someone, but her mother's pushiness and her father's lack of interest tell her they're the last people she can trust. Instead, Astrid spends hours lying on the backyard picnic table watching airplanes fly overhead. She doesn't know the passengers inside, but they're the only people who won't judge her when she asks them her most personal questions--like what it means that she's falling in love with a girl.
As her secret relationship becomes more intense and her friends demand answers, Astrid has nowhere left to turn. She can't share the truth with anyone except the people at thirty thousand feet, and they don't even know she's there. But little does Astrid know just how much even the tiniest connection will affect these strangers' lives--and her own--for the better.

Title: Wish
Author: Barbara O’Connor
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (2016)
ISBN13:  978- 0374302733
Genre: Realistic Fiction, Middle Grade
Topics/Themes: Moving to a different city/culture, Adopted family/family history, Making new friends
Diversity Tags: Mental Illness: Parent with depression, People with Disabilities: Physical limp
Recommended Age Level: 9-12
Awards / Recognitions: 

• Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children's Book Award Nominee (2018)
• Bluestem Book Award (2019)
• New York Times Bestseller
• Junior Library Guild Selection
• American Booksellers Association Best Books of the Year (2016)
• Nerdy Book Club Award (2016)
• SCBWI Crystal Kite Award (2017)

Personal Rating: 5 / 5
​
Summary: Short-tempered 11-year-old Charlie Reese is sent to live with her aunt and uncle in “hillbilly country” (the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina) since her mama can’t get up off the couch to take care of her and her father, Scrappy, is in jail getting “corrected. Resentful of her older sister who gets to stay in Raleigh with her friend, Charlie finds solace in a sacred ritual she has had since fourth grade: making the same wish every day, in every way possible (and there are A LOT of ways she knows how to make a wish). The longer she is there, the more unlikely it seems that her wish will come true…that is until she meets a dog she calls Wishbone, a scared and unwanted stray who she immediately feels a connection with, and Howard, an odd, but kind-hearted neighbor boy. As time passes living with her aunt and uncle, Charlie begins to realize that her wish may be coming true after all, just not in the way she ever imagined.

Professional Reviews:
“Poignant and genuine, this is a tale that will resonate with readers long after they finish it and have them cheering for the underdogs—both of the two-legged and four-legged varieties. – Michele Shaw, School Library Journal, 2016
 
“A warm, real, and heartfelt tale.”– Kirkus Reviews, 2016
 
Personal Insights: This was such a beautiful story, and O’Connor had the perfect mix of humor and emotion to really make it resonate. While the direction of the story is predictable from the get-go, the journey that Charlie makes is still an enjoyable and meaningful one that kept my attention all the way through. The characters in the story are all flawed in their own lovable kind of way, which adds a lot of depth to this otherwise pretty straightforward story. The setting of the Blue Ridge Mountains are tangible through the pages, and the southern dialect and the attention to detail really help the reader get into the story!

Notable Quotes:
“You'd think that a redheaded boy with glasses who was named Howard and had an up-down walk would have a lot more to wish for than being friends with me. But I admit I felt a smile on my face and hope in my heart, 'cause maybe wishes really do come true. Maybe some wishes just take longer than others.”
 
“You can't judge people for the mistakes they make. You judge them for how they fix those mistakes.”
 
“As I pedaled up the road, I turned and glanced back at the Odoms’ house. I remembered that first day on the school bus when I had seen it and thought it was so sad-looking. Then I pictured all those boys in that little kitchen getting loved on by their mama and that house didn’t look one bit sad anymore.”
 
“On the line beside ‘Describe your family’, I wrote, ‘Bad.’
What is your favorite subject in school? ‘None.’
List three of your favorite activities. ‘Soccer, ballet, and fighting.’
Two of those favorite activities were lies but one of them was the truth.
I am fond of fighting.”

Readalikes: (Summaries from GoodReads)
 
Crenshaw by Katherine Applegate (2015) - Jackson and his family have fallen on hard times. There's no more money for rent. And not much for food, either. His parents, his little sister, and their dog may have to live in their minivan. Again.
Crenshaw is a cat. He's large, he's outspoken, and he's imaginary. He has come back into Jackson's life to help him. But is an imaginary friend enough to save this family from losing everything?
 
Lemons by Melissa Savage (2017) - What do you do when you lose everything that means anything?
Ten-year old Lemonade Liberty Witt doesn’t know the answer to that question, except what her mom taught her. When life gives you lemons, you make lemonade. But what if those lemons are so big that you forget how?
How do you make lemonade out of having to leave everything you know in San Francisco to move to the small town of Willow Creek, California and live with a grandfather you’ve never even met? In a town that smells like grass and mud and bugs. With tall pines instead of skyscrapers and dirt instead of sidewalks. Not to mention one woolly beast lurking in the woods.
That’s right, Bigfoot.
A ginormous wooden statue of the ugly thing stands right at the center of town like he’s someone real important, like the mayor or something. And the people here actually believe he’s real and hiding somewhere out in the pine filled forests.
How can anyone possibly be expected to make lemonade out those rotten lemons?
Everything is different and Lem just wants to go back home. And then she meets Tobin Sky, the CEO of Bigfoot Detectives, Inc. and sole investigator for the town. He invites her to be his Assistant for the summer and she reluctantly agrees. At least until she can figure out her escape plan.
Together, Lem and Tobin try to capture a shot of the elusive beast on film and end up finding more than they ever could have even imagined.
 
Summer of a Thousand Pies by Margaret Dilloway (2019) - When twelve-year-old Cady Bennett is sent to live with the aunt she didn’t even know she had in the quaint mountain town of Julian, she doesn’t know what to expect. Cady isn’t used to stability, or even living inside, after growing up homeless in San Diego with her dad.
Now she’s staying in her mother’s old room, exploring the countryside filled with apple orchards and pie shops, making friends, and working in Aunt Shell’s own pie shop—and soon, Cady starts to feel like she belongs. Then she finds out that Aunt Shell’s pie shop is failing. Saving the business and protecting the first place she’s ever really felt safe will take everything she’s learned and the help of all her new friends. But are there some things even the perfect pie just can’t fix?

Title: Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus
Author: Dusti Bowling
Publisher: Sterling Children’s Books (2017)
ISBN13:  978- 1454923459
Genre: Realistic Fiction, Mystery, Middle Grade
Topics/Themes: Adopted family/family history, Living with a visible disability, Making new friends
Diversity Tags: People with Disabilities: People with no arms, Tourrete’s Syndrome
Recommended Age Level: 10-14
Awards / Recognitions: 

• South Carolina Book Award Nominee for Junior Book (2020)
• Evergreen Teen Book Award Nominee for Middle School (2020)
• Bluestem Book Award Nominee (2020)
• Rebecca Caudill Young Readers' Book Award Nominee (2020)

Personal Rating: 5 / 5
​
Summary: 13-year-old Aven Green loves to make up and tell stories to people about how she lost her arms when they inevitably give her weird looks or ask nosy questions. The truth, a rare genetic disorder, gets boring to tell after so many times, so she likes to push herself to see how wild her improv imagination can get. Her lack of arms has not kept her from doing anything she sets her mind to: living in Kansas with her parents, who adopted her when she was 2-years-old, she is loving life with her friends on the soccer team, and everyone else in her middle school has pretty much accepted who she is and has gotten used to the different ways she accomplishes daily activities at school.
All that comes to a screeching halt when her parents announce they are moving to a small town in Arizona to run a wild-west themed amusement park called Stagecoach Pass… Not only does she have to finish up middle school as the new kid, she has to go through the entire process of surviving the stares and weird looks everywhere she goes. After a rough few days, her only bright spot at school is a boy named Connor, who struggles with his own disability and fitting in.
As she adjusts to her new life living in a theme park, Aven and Connor quickly become friends as they explore the quirky theme park her parents now run. When they stumble upon a hidden room in an abandoned building, the secrets they uncover a hold a mystery that hits a little too close to home for Aven…

Professional Reviews:
“Charming and memorable. An excellent choice for middle grade collections and classrooms.” - Evelyn Khoo Schwartz, School Library Journal, 2017
 
“[The] portrayal of characters with rarely depicted disabilities is informative, funny, and supportive.” – Kirkus Reviews, 2017
 
“Bowling’s sensitive and funny novel . . . demonstrates how negotiating others’ discomfort can be one of the most challenging aspects of having a physical difference and how friendship can mitigate that discomfort. . . . [an] openhearted, empathic book.” - Publishers Weekly, 2017
 
Personal Insights: This might be one of, if not the favorite book I have read so far this semester! It is such a wholesome, heartwarming, and inspiring story, and the characters are relatable and lovable. It also provides some valuable insight to some rarely depicted disabilities while also being silly and entertaining.
I also highly recommend the sequel to this book, Momentous Events in the Life of a Cactus, which takes place about a year later as Aven starts high school. It dials up the maturity and the struggles the characters face as crushes and first love are incorporated while maintaining its heartfelt message and emotional undercurrent. Aven confronts whether she can stay true to herself in the face of confusion, humiliation, fears, and loss.
I listened to both of these books as audiobooks and I also have to recommend consuming these books in this format: the narrator, Karissa Vacker, performs both books and is absolutely phenomenal. It feels like she is Aven, capturing so much emotion in her voice, and not at all like she is reading something that is already written.

Notable Quotes:
"I got so tired of telling them the same boring story about being born without arms that I started making stuff up. It was stinking hilarious. I knew from the first moment I told a girl my arms had burned off in a fire, I had found a great hobby: making up stories. I loved the way her eyes grew wide with shock and the way her voice went all high-pitched with excitement as he asked me a bunch more questions about my charred arms."
 
“I think Connor would be the last person to label you like that. You shouldn't get so offended if someone calls you disabled, Aven. You DO have extra challenges that others don't have. It DOES take you longer to do most tasks. Your movements ARE limited. There's a big difference between saying you're disabled and saying you're incapable.”
 
"I am an entirely insignificant event in the life of this cactus. I try to remember that as the sky darkens and the lights of Scottsdale and Phoenix brighten the earth -- millions of lights for millions of people. And then there's just me, sitting in the dirt on a mighty hill..." 

Readalikes: (Summaries from GoodReads)
 
Roll With It by Jamie Sumner (2019) - Ellie’s a girl who tells it like it is. That surprises some people, who see a kid in a wheelchair and think she’s going to be all sunshine and cuddles. The thing is, Ellie has big dreams: She might be eating Stouffer’s for dinner, but one day she’s going to be a professional baker. If she’s not writing fan letters to her favorite celebrity chefs, she’s practicing recipes on her well-meaning, if overworked, mother.
But when Ellie and her mom move so they can help take care of her ailing grandpa, Ellie has to start all over again in a new town at a new school. Except she’s not just the new kid—she’s the new kid in the wheelchair who lives in the trailer park on the wrong side of town. It all feels like one challenge too many, until Ellie starts to make her first-ever friends. Now she just has to convince her mom that this town might just be the best thing that ever happened to them!
 
Macy McMillan and the Rainbow Goddess by Shari Green (2017) - Sixth grade is coming to an end, and so is life as Macy McMillan knows it. Already a For Sale sign mars the front lawn of her beloved house. Soon her mother will upend their little family, adding an unwelcome stepfather and pesky six-year-old twin stepsisters. To add insult to injury, what is Macy s final sixth grade assignment? A genealogy project. Well, she'll put it off―just like those wedding centerpieces she's supposed to be making.
Just when Macy's mother ought to be sympathetic, she sends her next door to help eighty-six-year-old Iris Gillan, who is also getting ready to move―in her case, into an assisted living facility. Iris can't move a single box on her own and, worse, she doesn't know sign language. How is Macy supposed to understand her? But Iris has stories to tell, and she isn't going to let Macy's deafness stop her. Soon, through notes and books and cookies, a friendship grows. And this friendship, odd and unexpected, may be just what Macy needs to face the changes in her life.
 
Wink by Rob Harrell (2020) - Twelve-year-old Ross Maloy just wants to be normal. Not to have a rare eye cancer, not to lose his hair, not to have to wear a weird hat or have a goopy eye full of ointment. Just normal. But with a sudden and horrifying diagnosis, Ross can't help standing out. His new life is medical treatments that feel straight out of a video game, vision loss in one eye, disappearing friends who don't know what to say to "the cancer kid," cruel bullying, and ultimately, friendships new and old that rise above everything.
Just when Ross starts to feel like he's losing his footing, he discovers how music, art, and true friends can change everything. Filled with Rob Harrell's comic panels (Batpig for the win!) and spot art, this novel brings effortless humor and hope to an unforgettable, uplifting story of survival.

Title: In Other Lands
Author: Sarah Rees Brennan
Publisher: Big Mouth House (2017)
ISBN13:  978-1618731203
Genre: Fantasy, Romance, YA
Topics/Themes: Found family, self-discovery, coming-of-age, navigating friendships/romantic relationships, violence is not the answer
Diversity Tags: Main Characters: LGBTQIA+: Gay, Bisexual
Recommended Age Level: 14-19
Awards / Recognitions: 

• Locus Award Nominee for Best Young Adult Novel (2018)
• Mythopoeic Fantasy Award Nominee for Adult Literature (2019)
• Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for YA Fantasy & Science Fiction (2017)
• Lodestar Award Nominee (2018)

Personal Rating: 5 / 5
​
Summary: This is the tale of Elliot. Elliot is 13 years old, smart, witty, and only a tiny bit obnoxious… On a class field trip, he sees a wall that no one else can see, and on the other side of that wall is a magical world called “The Borderlands”. In the Borderlands, technology doesn’t work, but there are magical creatures, such as elves, dwarves, harpies, and even mermaids. Elliot has the opportunity to leave his world behind in exchange for this new one and to study and train to help protect this magical land. Without a second thought Elliot jumps at the chance because who wouldn’t want to study an entirely new land and its equally amazing magical creatures. As he begins his training, he meets fellow recruit Serene, a strong independent elven warrior, who also happens to be the most beautiful girl that Elliot has ever laid eyes on, and her friend Luke, the blond-hair, blue-eyed, annoyingly likeable human. Over the next several years, Elliot must navigate and find his place in this strange new world that is obsessed with war and violence with the help of his begrudging allies (NOT friends, mind you) Serene and Luke. “Amid shifting relationships, the threat of war, and substantial growth among the characters, Elliot’s razor-edged wit and general inability to keep his mouth shut make for blissfully entertaining reading.” (Publishers Weekly, 2017)
 
Professional Reviews:
“Smart explorations of gender stereotypes, fluid sexuality, and awkward romance only add to the depth and delight of this glittering contemporary fantasy.” – Publishers Weekly, 2017
 
“A stellar, if dense and lengthy, coming-of-age novel; those with the patience to sit through our hero's entire adolescence will find it a wholly rewarding journey.” – Kirkus Reviews, 2017

Personal Insights: This book was snarky, hilarious, and so very entertaining (but also had some serious and heartfelt moments). Brennan’s writing style and format of this book feels very different than a “normal” novel, and more like an internet fan-fic written in installments……which is in fact how this story came to be! In the author’s notes, Brennan explains that this story started out as a short story she wrote on her blog that people loved so much, she just kept adding to the story. While this style may not be for everyone, I thought it was a great way to make the story just a little bit different and unique.
One of my favorite things about this story is how the stereotypical ideas of gender get flipped on their head and poked fun at. For instance, the Elvish culture is matriarchal, and to an extreme: the men are the “gentler sex” who stay home and take care of the family while having domestic hobbies, while the women are the leaders and breadwinners. The women elves are all incredibly sexist towards men and vocal about it (think stereotypical sexist language that was frequently used by men all throughout history, but if women were saying it about men) One of the main characters, a female elf, is constantly at odds with the human males in her classes, and the culture clashes make for some highly entertaining, but also incredibly thought provoking moments.
 
Notable (and also some hilarious) Quotes:
“And he did not want to be loved as a second choice, as a surrender. He had spent his whole life not being loved at all, and he had thought being loved enough would satisfy him. It would not. He did not want to be loved enough. He wanted to be loved overwhelmingly. (...) He had never been chosen, so he had never had a chance to know this about himself before now: he wanted to be chosen first.”
 
“I am not winning any arguments because I know how to hurt someone. How does that prove that you're right? How does being stronger or more vicious prove anything, except that all this talk about honor is stupid? Where's the honor in being better at hurting somebody? Telling me I have to do this is insulting, as if I can't win any other way. As if I can't win in a better way.”
 
“If you must know, she is the one soul destined for my own, and we are going to be together forever,” he declared loftily. “That’s weird,” Luke told him. “We’re thirteen.”
 
“I don’t need you to explain to me the concept of a magical land filled with fantastic creatures that only certain special children can enter. I am acquainted with the last several centuries of popular culture. There are books. And cartoons, for the illiterate.”
 
“There isn’t any kind of relationship that’s all problem-free delightful unicorns. You can’t have a relationship without issues and prejudices. The way to be equals is if both people agree to be equals, and treat themselves and each other as equals, despite all that.”

Readalikes: (Summaries from GoodReads)
 
Carry On by Rainbow Rowell (2017) - Simon Snow is the worst Chosen One who's ever been chosen.
That's what his roommate, Baz, says. And Baz might be evil and a vampire and a complete git, but he's probably right.
Half the time, Simon can't even make his wand work, and the other half, he starts something on fire. His mentor's avoiding him, his girlfriend broke up with him, and there's a magic-eating monster running around, wearing Simon's face. Baz would be having a field day with all this, if he were here — it's their last year at the Watford School of Magicks, and Simon's infuriating nemesis didn't even bother to show up.
 
The Rules and Regulations for Mediating Myths & Magic by F.T. Lukens (2017) - Desperate to pay for college, Bridger Whitt is willing to overlook the peculiarities of his new job—entering via the roof, the weird stacks of old books and even older scrolls, the seemingly incorporeal voices he hears from time to time—but it’s pretty hard to ignore being pulled under Lake Michigan by… mermaids? Worse yet, this happens in front of his new crush, Leo, the dreamy football star who just moved to town.
Fantastic.
When he discovers his eccentric employer Pavel Chudinov is an intermediary between the human world and its myths, Bridger is plunged into a world of pixies, werewolves, and Sasquatch. The realm of myths and magic is growing increasingly unstable, and it is up to Bridger to ascertain the cause of the chaos, eliminate the problem, and help his boss keep the real world from finding the world of myths.
 
Winger by Adam Smith (2013) - Ryan Dean West is a fourteen-year-old junior at a boarding school for rich kids in the Pacific Northwest. He’s living in Opportunity Hall, the dorm for troublemakers, and rooming with the biggest bully on the rugby team. And he’s madly in love with his best friend Annie, who thinks of him as a little boy.
With the help of his sense of humor, rugby buddies, and his penchant for doodling comics, Ryan Dean manages to survive life’s complications and even find some happiness along the way. But when the unthinkable happens, he has to figure out how to hold on to what’s important, even when it feels like everything has fallen apart.

Title: Felix Ever After
Author: Kacen Callender
Publisher: Balzer + Bray (2020)
ISBN13: 978-0062820259
Genre: Realistic Fiction, YA
Topics/Themes: Finding love, self-discovery, navigating friendships
Diversity Tags: #ownvoices, Main Character: LGBTQIA+: Transgender, BIPOC: Black
Recommended Age Level: 14-19
Awards / Recognitions:

• Goodreads Choice Awards Nominee Young Adult Fiction (2020)

Personal Rating: 5 / 5
​
Summary: 17-year-old Felix Love is secretly terrified he is one marginalization too many to ever find true love. Being Black, queer, and transgender, he realizes he has a pretty good life. Hell, it’s a pretty damn good life, given what many people like him have had to go through in the past. He has a loving and supportive father, even if he sometimes calls Felix by his deadname every once in a while. He has a best friend, Ezra, who is there for him no matter what. And he is on track to graduate high school and pursue his lifelong dream of being an artist. And yet, Felix still feels like he is missing something….
Felix’s pretty decent life gets harshly interrupted when someone plasters his pre-transition photos and his deadname all over the school’s art gallery and an internet troll anonymously starts harassing him and sending him transphobic messages. Felix plots a course of revenge against his leading suspect, which launches him into a reevaluation of the people he surrounds himself with and sets him on a new journey of self-discovery.

Professional Reviews:
“Callender populates Felix’s world with a cast of queer, trans, and racially diverse individuals, genuinely reflecting the lives of many who work hard to build a supportive chosen family. From its stunning cover art to the rich, messy, nuanced narrative at its heart, this is an unforgettable story of friendship, heartbreak, forgiveness, and self-discovery, crafted by an author whose obvious respect for teen readers radiates from every page.” – Rob Bittner, Booklist, 2020

“Full of warmth, love, and support, this is an important story and an essential purchase.” – Amanda MacGregor, School Library Journal, 2020

“This top-notch depiction of a messy, complicated, romantic young artist navigating the bumpy road to self-love and self-determination sticks its landing at every turn.” – Publishers Weekly, 2020

Personal Insights: I love books that push my own boundaries, and this is definitely one of those books! I have been on a personal mission for the past year to try and add more LGBTQIA+ fiction to what I read in order to broaden my horizon and get a view of the world through eyes that are not my own. Not only does this book address many struggles that someone who is transgender faces, it also gets into the nuances of gender identity as Felix grapples with finding a label that fits him. Is he truly transgender if that label doesn’t describe him 100% of the time? Why does he even feel the need to have a label in the first place?
This book is also a wonderful example of #OwnVoices: not only is the author, Kacen Callender, Black and transgender like his protagonist Felix, but the narrator for the audiobook, Logan Rozos, is also Black and transgender. There is some wonderful representation embedded into every facet of this story!

Notable Quotes:
“It can be easier, sometimes, to choose to love someone you know won't return your feelings. At least you know how that will end. It's easier to accept hurt and pain, sometimes, than love and acceptance. It's the real, loving relationships that can be the scariest.”

“It could've been easy to say I was hurt because I'm trans, because someone singled me out for my identity, but there's something weird about that - something off, about suggesting that my identity is the thing that brought me any sort of pain. It's the opposite. Being trans brings me love. It brings me happiness. It gives me power.”

“I want to be in love. I’ve never, you know—felt the kind of passion great artists talk about. I want that. I want to feel that level of intensity. Not everyone wants love. I get that, you know? But me—I want to fall in love and be broken up with and get pissed and grieve and fall in love all over again. I’ve never felt any of that. I’ve just been doing the same shit. Nothing new. Nothing exciting.”

“It’s like every identity I have . . . the more different I am from everyone else . . . the less interested people are. The less . . . lovable I feel, I guess. The love interests in books, or in movies or TV shows, are always white, cis, straight, blond hair, blue eyes. Chris Evans, Jennifer Lawrence. It becomes a little hard, I guess, to convince myself I deserve the kind of love you see on movie screens.”

Readalikes: (Summaries from GoodReads)

Birthday by Meredeth Russo (2019) - Two kids, Morgan and Eric, are bonded for life after being born on the same day at the same time. We meet them once a year on their shared birthday as they grow and change: as Eric figures out who he is and how he fits into the world, and as Morgan makes the difficult choice to live as her true self. Over the years, they will drift apart, come together, fight, make up, and break up—and ultimately, realize how inextricably they are a part of each other.

I Wish You All The Best by Mason Deaver (2019) - When Ben De Backer comes out to their parents as nonbinary, they're thrown out of their house and forced to move in with their estranged older sister, Hannah, and her husband, Thomas, whom Ben has never even met. Struggling with an anxiety disorder compounded by their parents' rejection, they come out only to Hannah, Thomas, and their therapist and try to keep a low profile in a new school.
But Ben's attempts to survive the last half of senior year unnoticed are thwarted when Nathan Allan, a funny and charismatic student, decides to take Ben under his wing. As Ben and Nathan's friendship grows, their feelings for each other begin to change, and what started as a disastrous turn of events looks like it might just be a chance to start a happier new life.

Symptoms of Being Human by Jeff Garvin (2016) - Riley Cavanaugh is many things: Punk rock. Snarky. Rebellious. And gender fluid. Some days Riley identifies as a boy, and others as a girl. The thing is…Riley isn’t exactly out yet. And between starting a new school and having a congressman father running for reelection in uber-conservative Orange County, the pressure—media and otherwise—is building up in Riley’s so-called “normal” life.
On the advice of a therapist, Riley starts an anonymous blog to vent those pent-up feelings and tell the truth of what it’s REALLY like to be a gender fluid teenager. But just as Riley’s starting to settle in at school—even developing feelings for a mysterious outcast—the blog goes viral, and an unnamed commenter discovers Riley’s real identity, threatening exposure. Riley must make a choice: walk away from what the blog has created—a lifeline, new friends, a cause to believe in—or stand up, come out, and risk everything.

Title: Things You Can’t Say
Author: Jenn Bishop
Publisher: Aladdin (2020)
ISBN13:  978-1534440975
Genre: Realistic Fiction, Middle Grade
Topics/Themes: Friendship, Family History, Loss of a parent
Diversity Tags: Suicide
Recommended Age Level: 9-13
Personal Rating: 5 / 5
​
Summary: Ever since 12-year-old Drew’s father died of suicide a few years ago, his favorite place to be during the summers is performing with puppets for little kids at the local library kid’s room. His summer hours are spent either volunteer there while his librarian mom works upstairs, or he is hanging out with his neighbor and best friend Filipe. Drew’s perfect summer plans get thrown through a loop when Filipe begins hanging out with an older kid from school and a know-it-all new volunteer, Audrey, invades his private sanctuary of the children’s room. The cherry on top is that an “old friend from high school” unexpectedly comes to visit his mother, making Drew suspicious and wary about his parent’s past when Phil takes a genuine interest in getting to know him. With Filipe busy hanging out with his “new” friend, Drew has no one to talk to except for Audrey. Reluctantly, they begin to hit it off as they try to solve the mystery of who Phil really is, and why he is so interested in getting along with Drew and his family.

Professional Reviews:
“A sensitive exploration of suicide, forgiveness, and the difficulty of navigating friendships.” – Sharon Rawlins, Booklist 2020
 
“Bishop's emotional novel may provide a way for readers whose lives have been impacted by suicide to navigate a complex topic and will appeal to those who appreciate tales of trauma and healing.” – Shelley Sommer, School Library Journal 2020
 
“In a story about the aftermath of parental suicide, former children’s librarian Bishop tells a touching and believable story about the ways worries feed on each other, the difference that honesty makes to kids, and how much emotional growth a child Drew’s age can experience in just a few weeks.” – Publishers Weekly, 2020
 
“A thoughtful examination of the slow, uneven recovery that follows a devastating loss.“ – Kirkus Reviews, 2019

Personal Insights: This story covers a lot of heavy topics, ranging from typical middle school troubles, such as changing friendships and first crushes, to life altering experiences, such as the aftermath of parental suicide. While this may be triggering for some young readers who have lost parents, others may find it relatable and helpful to them in figuring out how to navigate those weird things that come up, like when your mom starts dating again. Poignantly weaving a story of anxiety and the non-linear grief journey, Bishop shows one way to walk the path to healing from a seemingly impossible sadness.
 
Readalikes: (Summaries from GoodReads)
 
See You In the Cosmos by Jack Cheng (2017) - 11-year-old Alex Petroski loves space and rockets, his mom, his brother, and his dog Carl Sagan—named for his hero, the real-life astronomer. All he wants is to launch his golden iPod into space the way Carl Sagan (the man, not the dog) launched his Golden Record on the Voyager spacecraft in 1977. From Colorado to New Mexico, Las Vegas to L.A., Alex records a journey on his iPod to show other lifeforms what life on earth, his earth, is like. But his destination keeps changing. And the funny, lost, remarkable people he meets along the way can only partially prepare him for the secrets he'll uncover—from the truth about his long-dead dad to the fact that, for a kid with a troubled mom and a mostly not-around brother, he has way more family than he ever knew.
 
The Doughnut Fix by Jessie Janowitz (2018) - Tristan isn't Gifted or Talented like his sister Jeanine, and he's always been okay with that because he can make a perfect chocolate chip cookie and he lives in the greatest city in the world. But his life takes a turn for the worse when his parents decide to move to middle-of-nowhere Petersville―a town with one street and no restaurants. It's like suddenly they're supposed to be this other family, one that can survive without bagels and movie theaters.
His suspicions about his new town are confirmed when he's tricked into believing the local general store has life-changing chocolate cream doughnuts, when in fact the owner hasn't made them in years. And so begins the only thing that could make life in Petersville worth living: getting the recipe, making the doughnuts, and bringing them back to the town through his very own doughnut stand. But Tristan will soon discover that when starting a business, it helps to be both Gifted and Talented, and it's possible he's bitten off more than he can chew…
 
The Science of Breakable Things by Tae Keller - How do you grow a miracle?
For the record, this is not the question Mr. Neely is looking for when he says everyone in class must answer an important question using the scientific method. But Natalie's botanist mother is suffering from depression, so this is The Question that's important to Natalie. When Mr. Neely suggests that she enter an egg drop competition, Natalie has hope.
Eggs are breakable. Hope is not.
Natalie has a secret plan for the prize money. She's going to fly her mother to see the Cobalt Blue Orchids--flowers that survive against impossible odds. The magical flowers are sure to inspire her mother to love life again. Because when parents are breakable, it's up to kids to save them, right?

Title: The Wild Robot
Author: Peter Brown
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (2016)
ISBN13:  978-0316381994
Genre: Science Fiction/Fantasy, Middle Grade/Elementary
Topics/Themes: Friendship, Finding your purpose
Diversity Tags:
Recommended Age Level: 7-12
Awards / Recognitions: 

• A New York Times Bestseller
• An IndieBound Bestseller
• An Entertainment Weekly Best MG Book of the Year
• An Amazon Best Book of the Year Top Pick
• ALA Notable Book for Children
• New York Public Library Best Books for Kids Pick
• Kirkus Best Children’s of the Year Pick
• School Library Journal Best of the Year Pick

Personal Rating: 5 / 5
​
Summary: A mysterious crate washes up onto the shore of remote island after a cargo ship is caught in a hurricane, and from within the crate, Roz the robot opens her eyes for the very first time. While her robot brain is programmed to learn and master tasks, she begins to realize that she is not meant to live in the wild, especially since all the local animals view her as a “monster” and are afraid of her because she is so different from them. But when an accident occurs and she rescues an orphaned gosling, she begins to win over the animals as they teach her how to survive and raise her “son”. When catastrophe befalls the island, Roz must use everything she has learned, as well as her own special skills as a robot to help her new friends and family.

Professional Reviews:
“Brown has written a lively tale that is sure to engage young readers.”―The New York Times
 
“The novel carries a subtle but powerful message about harmony between technology and the natural world, brought to life with painterly prose and eloquent illustrations.”―Financial Times
 
“Roz may not feel emotions, but young readers certainly will as this tender, captivating tale unfolds.”―The Washington Post
 
“Brown’s picture books are consistent bestsellers and critically acclaimed. Expect readers to go wild for his robot-themed novel.”―Booklist, starred review
 
“Thought-provoking and charming.”―Kirkus Reviews, starred review
 
“This strong debut middle grade novel by the acclaimed picture book author/illustrator is a first purchase for most middle grade collections.”―School Library Journal, starred review
 
“Simultaneously unsentimental and saturated with feeling.”―Publishers Weekly, starred review

Personal Insights:This is a delightful little story that is simple and straightforward, but at the same time educational and entertaining. Finding the perfect reader for this book might be a bit of a challenge…. The bigger vocabulary is better suited for a more advanced reader, but the simple story is geared more towards younger readers. I think this book would make for a perfect read-aloud for grades 3-4 with its short chapters, likeable characters, and the dead-pan silliness. And who doesn’t love a talking robot and animals?? Not to mention the illustrations throughout the book are beautiful, striking, and a great addition to the story.
 
Notable Quotes:
“As the robot looked out at the island, it never even occurred to her that she might not belong there. As far as Roz knew, she was home.”
 
“If you stand in a forest long enough, eventually something will fall on you. And Roz had been standing in the forest long enough.”
 
“But I do not know how to act like a mother.” “Oh, it’s nothing, you just have to provide the gosling with food and water and shelter, make him feel loved but don’t pamper him too much, keep him away from danger, and make sure he learns to walk and talk and swim and fly and get along with others and look after himself. And that’s really all there is to motherhood!”

Readalikes: (Summaries from GoodReads)
The Last Human by Lee Bacon (2019) - In the future, robots have eliminated humans, and 12-year-old robot XR_935 is just fine with that. Without humans around, there is no war, no pollution, no crime. Every member of society has a purpose. Everything runs smoothly and efficiently. Until the day XR discovers something impossible: a human girl named Emma. Now, Emma must embark on a dangerous voyage with XR and two other robots in search of a mysterious point on a map. But how will they survive in a place where rules are never broken and humans aren’t supposed to exist? And what will they find at the end of their journey?
 
The Boy, The Boat, and the Beast by Samantha M. Clark (2018) - A boy washes up on a mysterious, seemingly uninhabited beach. Who is he? How did he get there? The boy can’t remember. When he sees a light shining over the foreboding wall of trees that surrounds the shore, he decides to follow it, in the hopes that it will lead him to answers. The boy’s journey is a struggle for survival and a search for the truth—a terrifying truth that once uncovered, will force him to face his greatest fear of all if he is to go home.

Brambleheart: A Story About Finding Treasure and the Unexpected Magic of Friendship by Henry Cole (2016) - Twig has always wondered who he will become. In the Hill, everyone studies a craft and becomes a master’s Apprentice, but first you have to be good at something.
Twig tries very hard in all his classes, but his imagination wanders to his favorite books or the delicious mayapples growing beyond the scavenge yard...and then he loses his focus.
Unsure he’ll ever amount to anything, Twig sets out on a journey to discover himself. However, instead of finding answers, he stumbles upon a strangely colored globe that contains a curious secret.
Protecting his secret is all Twig wants to do. But when he learns that his secret might hurt others, he’s forced to make a choice between his place in the world and the feelings in his heart.

Title: Closer to Nowhere
Author: Ellen Hopkins
Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons (2020)
ISBN13:  978-0593108611
Genre: Realistic Fiction, Novel in Verse, Middle Grade
Topics/Themes: Dealing with mental illness, trouble at home, familial abuse
Diversity Tags: Depression, anxiety, abuse
Recommended Age Level: 10-15
Awards / Recognitions: 

• NCTE Notable Novel in Verse (2021)

Personal Rating: 5 / 5
​
Summary: Hannah likes to believe she has a perfect life. Well, she USED to have a perfect life, that is, until her cousin Cal came to live with her and her parents. Until then, Hannah was an only child, loved by both of her parents, a rising star on the gymnastics team, and popular at school. While she tries to be understanding of Cal since his mom died and his dad is now in jail, she can’t help but sometimes wish he never moved in, especially since Cal is constantly pranking her, getting into trouble, and taking the valuable attention of her parents away from her. To top it all off, since he came to live with them, her parents have been fighting more and more.
 
Cal, on the other hand, is just trying to fit in and do his best to not let his past control his life. He misses his mom like crazy all the time, and his dad…. well, let’s just say he’s glad he doesn’t have to live with him anymore. Cal copes by inventing wild and creative stories, but no one else seems to appreciate them, or his unique sense of humor. He doesn’t always mean to piss off Hannah, but he can’t seem to do anything right around his adoptive family either. He can tell he is only making things worse, and while he desperately wants to belong and feel loved, he is afraid he is only going to mess up this family as well. Cal and Hannah have to come to terms with what it means to be family if they want to have any hope in saving the one they have.

Professional Reviews:
“Hopkins creates realistic portrayals of two kids trying to do their best even when it’s not easy.” —Publishers Weekly 2020
 
“Hopkins’ use of free verse provides a canvas for sure-handed, brush-stroke development of the backstory and plot and emotional investment and identification with the characters. . . Compassionate and compelling.” —Kirkus Reviews 2020

Personal Insights: This is the very first book I have read that is in verse. I even had to look up online how to read one. After skimming the first couple of pages, it felt very awkward to try and read the non-rhyming poetry in a traditional rhyming cadence with pauses and emphasis, and I was actually considering putting it down and moving on to a different book. Boy, am I glad I took a little extra time to research how to read them and appreciate them! This story was phenomenal… so incredibly moving and touching as it addressed some REALLY serious subjects such as abuse, parental death, and imprisonment.
 
Hopkin’s earlier YA novel, Crank, both highly-awarded and one of the most banned books in recent years, is a gritty story based on Hopkin’s daughter’s vivid struggle with meth. Incredibly talented at taking hard real-life topics to the page, Closer to Nowhere tackles Hopkin’s experiences of adopting and raising that daughter’s son. I find myself appreciating these books much more for the adept way in which Hopkins translates her personal, adult hardships into books for younger audiences.

Readalikes: (Summaries from GoodReads)
Lost in the Sun by Lisa Graff (2015) - Everyone says that middle school is awful, but Trent knows nothing could be worse than the year he had in fifth grade, when a freak accident on Cedar Lake left one kid dead, and Trent with a brain full of terrible thoughts he can't get rid of. Trent’s pretty positive the entire disaster was his fault, so for him middle school feels like a fresh start, a chance to prove to everyone that he's not the horrible screw-up they seem to think he is. 
If only Trent could make that fresh start happen.
It isn’t until Trent gets caught up in the whirlwind that is Fallon Little—the girl with the mysterious scar across her face—that things begin to change. Because fresh starts aren’t always easy. Even in baseball, when a fly ball gets lost in the sun, you have to remember to shift your position to find it.
 
All Rise for the Honorable Perry T. Cook by Leslie Connor (2016) - Eleven-year-old Perry was born and raised by his mom at the Blue River Co-ed Correctional Facility in tiny Surprise, Nebraska. His mom is a resident on Cell Block C, and so far Warden Daugherty has made it possible for them to be together. That is, until a new district attorney discovers the truth—and Perry is removed from the facility and forced into a foster home.
When Perry moves to the “outside” world, he feels trapped. Desperate to be reunited with his mom, Perry goes on a quest for answers about her past crime. As he gets closer to the truth, he will discover that love makes people resilient no matter where they come from . . . but can he find a way to tell everyone what home truly means?
 
Speechless by Adam P. Schmitt (2018) - As if being stuffed into last year's dress pants at his cousin's wake weren't uncomfortable enough, thirteen-year-old Jimmy has just learned from his mother that he has to say a few words at the funeral the next day. Why him? What could he possibly say about his cousin, who ruined everything they did? He can't recall one birthday party, family gathering, or school event with Patrick that didn't result in injury or destruction. As Jimmy attempts to navigate the odd social norms of the wake, he draws on humor, heartfelt concern, and a good deal of angst while racking his brain and his memory for a decent and meaningful memory to share. But it's not until faced with a microphone that the realization finally hits him: it's not the words that are spoken that matter the most, but those that are truly heard.

Title: Wink
Author: Rob Harrell
Publisher: Dial Books for Young Readers (March 31, 2020)
ISBN13:  978-1984815149
Genre: Realistic Fiction, Autobiographical Fiction, Middle Grade
Topics/Themes: Dealing with illness, overcoming bullies/trolls, the power of friendship
Diversity Tags: Cancer, Loss of Vision
Recommended Age Level: 9-14
Personal Rating: 5 / 5
​
Summary: Seventh-grader Ross Maloy wants nothing more than to be able to go back to being a “normal” kid. Ever since he started some pretty intense treatments for his rare eye cancer, no one seems to be able to know how to interact with him: not his classmates and not his teachers. Even his best friends have started treating him differently. Granted, his mandatory brimmed hat and eye patch don’t exactly help him to blend in, but why can’t everyone see that he is still the same Ross he has always been? He must figure out a way to deal with his rising anger and grief, not only from the fact that he might very well go blind, but with anonymous internet trolls, changing friendships, and all the landmines that come from middle school. As Ross continues with his treatments, he learns some valuable lessons and tools from some unexpected sources to help him cope with all that life is throwing at him.

Professional Reviews:
“This title is delightfully good and different. Readers will be interested to know that Harrell draws from his personal experience. There are witty comic panels and other art interspersed throughout the text. Highly recommended.” – Lisa Gieskes, School Library Journal 2020
 
“Harrell, himself a cancer survivor, offers a frank account of cancer’s effects while keeping the subject matter accessible for middle grade readers. Ross never takes himself too seriously, and amusing black-and-white comics trace his unsavory experiences, capture the ironies of his predicament, and underline his creativity and sense of humor. Told in the first person, this lively novel showcases the author’s understanding of middle school angst amid the protagonist’s experience with a serious illness.” – Publishers Weekly, 2020

 Personal Insights: For such a serious topic, this book has a delightful sense of humor that comes through the story to undercut and soothe the brutal reality of cancer. Interspersed with hand-drawn comics, Harrell has found a way to perfectly balance an important discussion about how being diagnosed with a serious illness affects your relationships and day to day life, and packages it in a story laced with humor and relatability so that kids in middle school can understand and see themselves reflected in the characters.
 
 Notable Quotes:
"Different moves the needle. Different is where the good stuff happens. There's strength in different." 

Readalikes: (Summaries from GoodReads)
 
Halfway Normal by Barbara Dee (2017) - Norah Levy has just completed two years of treatment for leukemia and is ready to go back to the “real world” of middle school. The hospital social worker warns her the transition back may be tricky, but Norah isn’t worried. Compared with battling cancer, how tricky can seventh grade be?
Very. Everyone is either treating Norah like she will break at any second, or acting weird about all the attention she’s getting. Her best friend, Harper, does her best to be there for Norah, but she doesn’t get it, really—and is hanging out with a new group of girls, leaving Norah feeling a little unsteady. Norah’s other good friend, Silas, is avoiding her. What’s that about, anyway?
When Norah is placed with the eighth graders for math and science she meets Griffin, a cute boy who encourages her love of drawing and Greek mythology. And Norah decides not to tell him her secret—that she was “that girl” who had cancer. But when something happens to make secret-keeping impossible, Norah must figure out a way to share her cancer story. But how do you explain something to others that you can’t explain to yourself? And then, once you find the words, how do you move forward with a whole new ‘normal’?
 
 
Squint by Chad Morris and Shelly Brown (2018) - Flint loves to draw. In fact, he’s furiously trying to finish his comic book so he can be the youngest winner of the “Find a Comic Star” contest. He’s also rushing to finish because he has keratoconus—an eye disease that could eventually make him blind.
McKell is the new girl at school and immediately hangs with the popular kids. Except McKell’s not a fan of the way her friends treat this boy named Squint. He seems nice and really talented. He draws awesome pictures of superheroes. McKell wants to get to know him, but is it worth the risk? What if her friends catch her hanging with the kid who squints all the time?
McKell has a hidden talent of her own but doesn’t share it for fear of being judged. Her terminally ill brother, Danny, challenges McKell to share her love of poetry and songwriting. Flint seems like someone she could trust. Someone who would never laugh at her. Someone who is as good and brave as the superhero in Flint’s comic book named Squint.

When Friendship Followed Me Home by Paul Griffin (2016) - Ben Coffin has never felt like he fits in. A former foster kid, he keeps his head down at school to avoid bullies and spends his afternoons reading sci-fi books at the library. But that all changes when he finds a scruffy abandoned dog named Flip and befriends the librarian’s daughter, Halley. For the first time, Ben starts to feel like he belongs in his own life. Then, everything changes, and suddenly, Ben is more alone than ever. But with a little help from Halley’s magician father, Ben discovers his place in the world and learns to see his own magic through others’ eyes.

​Title: Beyond the Bright Sea
Author: Lauren Wolk
Publisher: Dutton Books for Young Readers (May 2, 2017)
ISBN13:  978-1101994856
Genre: Historical Fiction,  Mystery, Middle Grade
Topics/Themes: Personal Identity, The Power of Found-Family, Self-discovery
Recommended Age Level: 10-14
Awards / Recognitions: 

• Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction (2018)
• Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Middle Grade & Children (2017)
• Carnegie Medal Nominee (2018)

Personal Rating: 5 / 5
​
Summary: 12-year-old Crow has only known one home: her tiny isolated island off the coast of Massachusetts. She has been raised by a man named Osh who rescued Crow from a small boat when she was only a few hours old, and Miss Maggie, the fierce but loving neighbor from the other side of the sandbar.  While she loves her life with Osh, as Crow has grown older, she has become more curious about her mysterious past and has started to question the simple and isolated way of life that Osh and Miss Maggie are so content with. When Osh finally reveals to her the only clue he has from the night he rescued her, Crow is overwhelmed with a desire to find out who she is and where she came from. As she begins to pull at the strings of clues, Crow begins to unravel the mystery of her past and must come face to face with who her true family is.  

Professional Reviews:
“This is a tear-jerking yet ultimately uplifting tale of establishing one's place in the  world and realizing that sometimes your family is the  one you make, not the  one you are born into. VERDICT A stellar story full of heart, action, and emotion that will make readers feel like they are a part of Crow's family.” - Christopher Lassen, School Library Journal 2017
 
“A beautiful, evocative sophomore effort from Newbery honoree Wolk” – Kirkus Reviews 2017
 
Personal Insights: This was an incredibly powerful and moving story. The three main characters, Crow, Osh, and Miss Maggie, are so well developed that you can’t help but feel as if you are a part of their family. While this book is written for middle grade kids, I would be hard pressed to find any adult who would not fully appreciate this work of art. The writing and prose that Lauren Wolk uses is simultaneously beautiful and concise. She doesn’t waste words, but the ones she uses pack a vivid punch.

The historical setting also plays a significant role. Set in 1920s New England, there are real historical events that weave through this story (that I won’t mention by name to avoid spoilers). The way in which Crow, a young, non-white girl, is treated by the rest of society also sets the undertones to this story and adds a deeper layer to the events that happen.

I listened to this book in audiobook format. The narrator, Jorjeana Marie, wonderfully captured the characters in different voices, and rich in emotion.
 
Notable Quotes:
“Don't you understand, Crow?" he said, his voice so sad, so tender, that I couldn't breathe. "You're the one worth finding.” - Osh
 
“I'm just looking at you. Exactly as you are right now. And not because you'll change, though you will of course. Treasure or not. But because if I could have built a human being, I would have built you. Just so.” - Osh
 
“Wouldn't that be a good thing? Not to feel pain?" -Crow
"There's more than one kind of pain...and if you don't feel it, you can get hurt" -Miss Maggie
"But it hurts when you do feel it, too" -Crow
"Yes, but feeling hurt and being hurt aren't always the same thing" -Miss Maggie”
 
“Mrs. Pelham's face was old but she moved like someone younger, and when she smiled I could see that her teeth were still strong. I wondered what had mapped her face like that" -Crow
 
Readalikes: (Summaries from GoodReads)
 
Orphan Island by Laurel Snyder (2017) - On the island, everything is perfect. The sun rises in a sky filled with dancing shapes; the wind, water, and trees shelter and protect those who live there; when the nine children go to sleep in their cabins, it is with full stomachs and joy in their hearts. And only one thing ever changes: on that day, each year, when a boat appears from the mist upon the ocean carrying one young child to join them—and taking the eldest one away, never to be seen again.
Today’s Changing is no different. The boat arrives, taking away Jinny’s best friend, Deen, replacing him with a new little girl named Ess, and leaving Jinny as the new Elder. Jinny knows her responsibility now—to teach Ess everything she needs to know about the island, to keep things as they’ve always been. But will she be ready for the inevitable day when the boat will come back—and take her away forever from the only home she’s known?

 The Same Stuff as Stars by Katherine Paterson (2004) - Her daddy is in jail, and her mother has abandoned Angel and her little brother, Bernie, at their great-grandmother's crumbling Vermont farmhouse. Grandma spends most of her time wrapped in a blanket by the wood stove.
There is one bright spot in Angel's world: a mysterious stranger who teaches Angel all about the stars and planets and constellations. Carving out a new life proves harder than Angel ever imagined. But she feels a tiny spark of hope when she remembers what the stranger said that she is made of the same stuff as stars.
 
Louisiana’s Way Home by Kate DiCamillo (2018) - When Louisiana Elefante’s granny wakes her up in the middle of the night to tell her that the day of reckoning has arrived and they have to leave home immediately, Louisiana isn’t overly worried. After all, Granny has many middle-of-the-night ideas. But this time, things are different. This time, Granny intends for them never to return. Separated from her best friends, Raymie and Beverly, Louisiana struggles to oppose the winds of fate (and Granny) and find a way home. But as Louisiana’s life becomes entwined with the lives of the people of a small Georgia town — including a surly motel owner, a walrus-like minister, and a mysterious boy with a crow on his shoulder — she starts to worry that she is destined only for good-byes. 

​Title: Strange the Dreamer (Strange the Dreamer series #1)
Author: Laini Taylor
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (March 28, 2017)
ISBN13:  978-0316341684
Genre: Fantasy, Romance, Young Adult
Topics/Themes: Personal Identity, The Power of Stories, Imagination, and Dreams
Recommended Age Level: 14-19
Awards / Recognitions: 

• Printz Award Nominee 2018
• Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Young Adult Fantasy and Science Fiction 2017
• South Carolina Book Award Nominee for Young Adult 2020
  
  

Personal Rating: 5 / 5
​
Summary: Lazlo Strange loves books and stories. Growing up an orphan, his dreams and imagination have been his only safe haven, and ones he feeds and nourishes from the myths and fairytale section of the Great Library of Zosma he now works for. Specifically, since he was 5 years old, he has been enraptured with the mythical city of Weep: a place of unimaginable happiness and opportunity. Lazlo dreams of someday crossing the massive desert that supposedly separates Zosma from the city of Weep, leaving his life behind. But his lot in life as a lowly librarian, not to mention the dangers of traversing the desert, prevent him from ever being able to fulfill his dream. That is, until, the Godslayer and his band of legendary warriors from Weep appear in Zosma. In one day, Lazlo, and the rest of Zosma, find out that Weep is far from mythical, is in fact very real, and it has a very real problem of its own. Lazlo jumps at the chance to not only visit the city he loves, but to help rescue it from whatever caused it to disappear from history 200 years before. In the adventure that follows, Lazlo uncovers more than a lifetime of mysteries surrounding Weep, including how the name “Godslayer” was earned as he pieces together the identity of a blue-skinned goddess that continues to appear in his dreams.
 
Professional Reviews:
“The characters are carefully, exquisitely crafted; the writing is achingly lovely; and the world is utterly real. While a cliff-hanger ending will certainly have readers itching for book  two, make no mistake—this is a thing to be savored.” – Maggie Reagan, Booklist 2017
 
“Gorgeously written in language simultaneously dark, lush, and enchanting, the book will leave readers eager for the next.” – Jane Putch, Publishers Weekly 2017
 
Weep [the main city in the story] becomes a laboratory in which Taylor examines slavery, trauma, memory, and appropriation, ending this first installment with a cliffhanger that leaves readers wondering if healing is even remotely possible. Lovers of intricate worldbuilding and feverish romance will find this enthralling.” – Kirkus Reviews 2017
 
Personal Insights: This book is 100% going to be on my top list of the year. I normally don’t go for the romance side of things, but even with the romance aspects, the fantasy world building and story far surpassed anything else I have read in while. The fantasy components had a unique spin of influence from middle eastern culture and there was a diverse set of characters represented, both racially and in terms of sexual orientation.
I will say that this story has some very heavy topics, namely the aftermath of sexual assault, that are key components of the story that would definitely require a more mature mindset (middle school would probably be a bit too young for readers) Everything is tastefully done, however, and there are no graphic scenes as it is more hinted at in the memories of some of the characters.
The romance itself has some elongated steamy scenes, but there are no explicit details. Any sex that does occur is skimmed over, focusing more on the kissing, hand-holding, and gentle caresses. Like I said earlier, this component is not my cup of tea, but I do know that there are many readers out there who eat this stuff up (my wife being one!)
I listened to this book via audiobook, and the narrator, Steve West, does an amazing job with the performance. I would highly recommend listening to this book!
 
Notable Quotes:
“You’re a storyteller. Dream up something wild and improbable," she pleaded. "Something beautiful and full of monsters."
“Beautiful and full of monsters?"
“All the best stories are.”
 
“It was impossible, of course. But when did that ever stop any dreamer from dreaming.”
 
“I think you’re a fairy tale. I think you’re magical, and brave, and exquisite. And I hope you'll let me be in your story.”
 
“And that's how you go on. You lay laughter over the dark parts. The more dark parts, the more you have to laugh. With defiance, with abandon, with hysteria, any way you can.”
 
“You think good people can't hate?" she asked. "You think good people don't kill?"[...}"Good people do all the things bad people do, Lazlo. It's just that when they do them, they call it justice.”
 
“Life won't just happen to you boy, he said. You have to happen to it.”
 
“As for fairy tales, he understood that they were reflections of the people who had spun them, and were flecked with little truths - intrusions of reality into fantasy, like toast crumbs on a wizard's beard.”
 

Readalikes: (Summaries from GoodReads)
 
Daughter of Smoke & Bone (series #1) by Laini Taylor - Around the world, black hand prints are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky.
In a dark and dusty shop, a devil’s supply of human teeth grows dangerously low.
And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal otherworldly war.
Meet Karou. She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that may or may not be real, she’s prone to disappearing on mysterious "errands", she speaks many languages - not all of them human - and her bright blue hair actually grows out of her head that color. Who is she? That is the question that haunts her, and she’s about to find out.
When beautiful, haunted Akiva fixes fiery eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh, the result is blood and starlight, secrets unveiled, and a star-crossed love whose roots drink deep of a violent past. But will Karou live to regret learning the truth about herself?
 
Deeplight by Frances Hardinge (2019) - The gods are dead. Decades ago, they turned on one another and tore each other apart. Nobody knows why. But are they really gone forever? When 15-year-old Hark finds the still-beating heart of a terrifying deity, he risks everything to keep it out of the hands of smugglers, military scientists, and a secret fanatical cult so that he can use it to save the life of his best friend, Jelt. But with the heart, Jelt gradually and eerily transforms. How long should Hark stay loyal to his friend when he’s becoming a monster—and what is Hark willing to sacrifice to save him?
 
Shadow and Bone (#1 in trilogy) by Leigh Bardugo (2012) - Surrounded by enemies, the once-great nation of Ravka has been torn in two by the Shadow Fold, a swath of near impenetrable darkness crawling with monsters who feast on human flesh. Now its fate may rest on the shoulders of one lonely refugee.
Alina Starkov has never been good at anything. But when her regiment is attacked on the Fold and her best friend is brutally injured, Alina reveals a dormant power that saves his life—a power that could be the key to setting her war-ravaged country free. Wrenched from everything she knows, Alina is whisked away to the royal court to be trained as a member of the Grisha, the magical elite led by the mysterious Darkling.
Yet nothing in this lavish world is what it seems. With darkness looming and an entire kingdom depending on her untamed power, Alina will have to confront the secrets of the Grisha . . . and the secrets of her heart.

Title: Story Thieves (Story Thieves series #1)
Author: James Riley
Publisher: Aladdin (December 15, 2015)
ISBN13:  978-1481409209
Genre: Fantasy/Sci-Fi, Action/Adventure
Topics/Themes: Personal Identity, The Power of Stories, Imagination
Recommended Age Level: 9-13
Awards / Recognitions: 

• MSTA Reading Circle List
  
  

Personal Rating: 5 / 5
​
Summary:  Owen Connors’ life is incredibly boring. Between school, homework, and chores, he wishes with his whole heart that real life could be more like his favorite books, and that he could have the life of his favorite character, Kiel Gnomenfoot (a boy wizard-in-training who fights a mad scientist trying to wipe out the world of magic in the name of science). All that changes when he accidentally witnesses a girl in his class, Bethany Sanderson, climbing OUT of a book while they are in the library his mother runs. As impossible as it seems, Owen discovers that Bethany is half-fictional herself and that she has been searching through books in order to find her missing father. In exchange for keeping Bethany’s secret, Owen makes a deal that she has to take him into any one book of his choice. His obvious choice is the Kiel Gnomenfoot series, since it’s been his lifelong dream to visit, and Bethany tentatively agrees. But as he soon finds out, his ENTIRE dream may yet come true as he gets stuck in the story and is forced to live out Kiel Gnomenfoot’s final adventure, regardless of how it ends.
 
Professional Reviews:
“A droll and clever opener likely to leave readers breathless both with laughter and anticipation.” – Kirkus Reviews 2014
 
“Aimed at avid readers (the Kiel stories are a spoof of the Harry Potter books), this series starter is packed with humor, adventure, and twists, and it bodes quite well for the second volume. Giddy, book -based fun.” – Sarah Bean Thompson, Booklist 2014
 
Personal Insights: This book (and the entire five book series) absolutely blew me away. This book was recommended indirectly when someone in one of my classes offhandedly mentioned their love of the author, James Riley, and I figured I would give it a chance. I am SO glad I did because I now own the entire series, am forcing my wife to read them as well, and I will be definitely recommending this series to any middle school kids that are looking for something fun and exciting.
This story can be appreciated on so many levels: for kids who are already avid readers, they will love the nods and homages to famous books and other nerdy bookish things. For those who are more reluctant readers, the nonstop action and dry wit humor will capture the love of kids who don’t like reading the slower paced and realistic fiction that is often required reading in school. The characters are well developed and appealing, the storyline is brilliant and witty (and also incredibly meta!), and my attention was captured for every last page, which is a considerable claim given that each book in the series is at least 350 pages.
Added audiobook review: I finished this book as a hybrid of audiobook and reading the physical book (which is the first time I’ve tried that) and the narrator, Kirby Heyborne, performed fantastically and played each character better than I could have imagined them in my own head. Very much worth your time to listen to this book in audiobook format if that is your preference!
 
Notable Quotes:
“The second rule they taught us in librarian school is that you can have as many favorite books as there are books.”
 
"Don't worry. Maybe you just haven't found your favorite book yet. I honestly don't think anyone has. Just when you think you might have a favorite, something better comes along."
 
“Why imagine a world in your head when you could just go visit another one in a book?”
 
“Embrace the impossible! Find the magic within! BE MORE FICTIONAL.”
 
"You don't ever speak to me again, do you understand? And if you ever tell anyone about me, I'll find the deepest, darkest math book I can find, and drop you into the most boring part!"
 
​
Readalikes: (Summaries from GoodReads)
 
If you liked this book, you HAVE to read the rest of the series. Seriously, start there. It only gets better, and there are 4 more books to read!!
 
The Revenge of Magic (The Revenge of Magic series #1) by James Riley (2019) - Thirteen years ago, books of magic were discovered in various sites around the world alongside the bones of dragons. Only those born after “Discovery Day” have the power to use the magic.
Now, on a vacation to Washington, DC, Fort Fitzgerald’s father is lost when a giant creature bursts through the earth, attacking the city. Fort is devastated, until an opportunity for justice arrives six months later, when a man named Dr. Opps invites Fort to a government run school, the Oppenheimer School, to learn magic from those same books.
But life’s no easier at the school, where secrets abound. What does Jia, Fort’s tutor, know about the attacks? Why does Rachel, master of destructive magic, think Fort is out to destroy the school? And why is Fort seeing memories of an expelled girl every time he goes to sleep? If Fort doesn’t find out what’s hiding within the Oppenheimer School, more attacks will come, and this time, nothing will stop them!
 
The Wishing Spell (The Land of Stories series #1) by Chris Colfer and Brandon Dorman (2012) - Alex and Conner Bailey's world is about to change, in this fast-paced adventure that uniquely combines our modern day world with the enchanting realm of classic fairy tales.
The Land of Stories tells the tale of twins Alex and Conner. Through the mysterious powers of a cherished book of stories, they leave their world behind and find themselves in a foreign land full of wonder and magic where they come face-to-face with the fairy tale characters they grew up reading about.
But after a series of encounters with witches, wolves, goblins, and trolls alike, getting back home is going to be harder than they thought.
 
Book Scavenger (Book Scavenger series #1) by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman and Sarah Watts (2015) - A hidden book. A found cipher. A game begins . . . .
Twelve-year-old Emily is on the move again. Her family is relocating to San Francisco, home of her literary idol: Garrison Griswold, creator of the online sensation Book Scavenger, a game where books are hidden all over the country and clues to find them are revealed through puzzles. But Emily soon learns that Griswold has been attacked and is in a coma, and no one knows anything about the epic new game he had been poised to launch. Then Emily and her new friend James discover an odd book, which they come to believe is from Griswold and leads to a valuable prize. But there are others on the hunt for this book, and Emily and James must race to solve the puzzles Griswold left behind before Griswold's attackers make them their next target.

Title: To Night Owl from Dogfish
Author: Holly Goldberg Sloan and Meg Wolitzer
Publisher: Dial Books (February 12, 2019)
ISBN13: 978-0525553236
Genre: Realistic Fiction, Middle Grade, Epistolary (story told exclusively through emails)
Topics/Themes: Friendship, Sisterhood, Unconventional Families
Recommended Age Level: 10-15
Awards / Recognitions: 

• Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Middle Grade and Children’s 2019
  
  

Personal Rating: 5 / 5
​
Summary:  Avery Bloom and Bett Devlin couldn’t be more different. Avery is intense, bookish, no-nonsense, and a follow-the-rules-at-all-costs kind of girl. Bett, is outgoing, spontaneous, fearless, and a bit of a rebel. On top of all that, they live across the country from each other, Avery in New York and Bett in California. By all means, they never should have met in the first place, but here they are, emailing each other after they find secret correspondence from their dads, who, unbeknownst to the girls, are dating and quite a bit in love. Their dads have a plan to send them to summer camp together to get to know each other and hopefully become friends, because possibly, one day, they might become sisters.  Neither girl wants to change or upend their lives and they make a pact to do everything they can to NOT become friends because their dads SURELY won’t get married. But as they are shipped off to camp, plans quickly go awry as the two girls find themselves on a summer adventure neither of them could have seen coming. Before they know it, they are facing a far worse crisis: they have become each other’s’ closest friend but their dads are breaking up. Faced with the ever uncertain future, the two girls do everything they can to get them back together to have the family they never even knew they wanted in the first place.
 
Professional Reviews:
“An imaginative and compelling middle-grade novel depicting modern friendships and modern families.” – Katherine Hickey, School Library Journal 2019
 
“Featuring a dramatic climax and a host of surprising twists, the novel affirms that families conventional and unconventional are families just the same.” – Publishers Weekly 2018
 
“A sweet and amusing tale that celebrates diversity while reinforcing the power of love and the importance of family.” – Kirkus Reviews 2018
 
Personal Insights: If I had to give an elevator pitch for this book (and it was to someone who remembers the 90s) I would describe this book as a modern day retelling of “The Parent Trap”.  (Which feels REALLY weird to say about a movie that came out in my lifetime….)
This book was able to capture so many warm and fuzzy emotional moments, as well as many complex and deeper topics that come from having complex and unconventional families, all within the epistolary medium of emails.
I also had a unique perspective with this book in that I listened to the audio book rather than reading the physical book (something new I have been trying out recently!). I have to say, I was VERY impressed with the audio book narrators. Not only did they have a different actor for every character, but they all performed incredibly well. The only odd part was when the narrators read the email subject headings verbatim including the “RE:RE:RE:RE:RE:RE:RE:RE:RE:RE:RE:RE…” that comes from a long chain of email correspondences. But that is a small complaint that is vastly overshadowed by the performances given. I would highly recommend listening to the audiobook version of this book!
 
Notable Quotes:
“Gay people having families doesn't seem like something anyone should have to shout about anymore. Some people are a lot more interested in raising kids than other people. From what I can see, the person most interested usually does the best job" -Bett (Dogfish)”
 
“I really like reading stories with an unreliable narrator, because the person telling you what happened can't be trusted with the facts and you have to figure it out.
Maybe when it's your own story, you're always going to be an unreliable narrator" -Avery (Night Owl)”
 
“But I think it's not bad to have a blowup with someone you really care about. Once that happens, you can be even closer. Maybe because sharing bad things as well as good things means you're in it for real. That's what being honest with someone does." -Avery (Night Owl)”
 
“I don't know why they try to sell smaller candy bars as being more fun than the bigger ones. That's just a lie" -Bett (Dogfish)”
 
“No one’s supposed to tell anyone, “You two shouldn’t love each other.” But maybe, also, no one’s supposed to tell anyone, “You two should love each other.”

Readalikes: (Summaries from GoodReads)
 
The Best Man by Richard Peck (2016) - When Archer is in sixth grade, his beloved uncle Paul marries another man—Archer’s favorite student teacher. But that’s getting ahead of the story, and a wonderful story it is. In Archer’s sweetly naïve but observant voice, his life through elementary school is recounted: the outspoken, ever-loyal friends he makes, the teachers who blunder or inspire, and the family members who serve as his role models. From one exhilarating, unexpected episode to another, Archer’s story rolls along as he puzzles over the people in his life and the kind of person he wants to become…and manages to help his uncle become his best self as well.
 
The Thing About Leftovers by C.C. Payne (2016) - Fizzy is a good Southern girl who just wants to be perfect. And win the Southern Living cook-off. The being perfect part is hard though, since her parents’ divorced and everything in her life has changed. Wary of her too-perfect stepmom and her mom’s neat-freak, dismissive boyfriend, she’s often angry or upset and feels like a guest in both homes. She tells herself to face facts: She’s a “leftover” kid from a marriage that her parents want to forget. But she has to keep all of that to herself, because a good Southern girl never yells, or throws fits, or says anything that might hurt other people’s feelings—instead she throws her shoulders back, says yes ma’am, and tries to do better. So Fizzy tries her best, but it’s hard to stay quiet when her family keeps getting more complicated. Fortunately, the Southern Living cook-off gives her a welcome distraction, as do her new friends Miyoko and Zach, who have parent issues of their own.
 
Two Naomis by Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich and Audrey Vernick (2016) - Other than their first names, Naomi Marie and Naomi Edith are sure they have nothing in common, and they wouldn’t mind keeping it that way.
Naomi Marie starts clubs at the library and adores being a big sister. Naomi Edith loves quiet Saturdays and hanging with her best friend in her backyard. And while Naomi Marie’s father lives a few blocks away, Naomi Edith wonders how she’s supposed to get through each day a whole country apart from her mother.
When Naomi Marie’s mom and Naomi Edith’s dad get serious about dating, each girl tries to cling to the life she knows and loves. Then their parents push them into attending a class together, where they might just have to find a way to work with each other—and maybe even join forces to find new ways to define family.

Title: The Terrible Two (The Terrible Two series #1)
Author: Mac Barnett, Jory John, and Kevin Cornell (Illustrator)
Publisher: Harry N. Abrams (January 13, 2015)
ISBN13:  978-1419714917
Genre: Graphic Novel/Text Hybrid, Humor
Topics/Themes: Friendship, New School, Rivalry
Recommended Age Level: 8-12
Awards / Recognitions: 

• E.B. White Read Aloud Award for Middle Reader 2015
• ILA Children’s Choices 2016 Reading List
• Chicago Public Library Best Books of 2015, Fiction for Older Readers
• Amazon.com Best Books of the Year 2015, Ages 9-12
• Cybils Awards Nomination Middle Grade Fiction 2015
  
  

Personal Rating: 5 / 5
​
Summary:  Miles Murphey is the new kid at school in Yawnee Valley, a small town known for its cows. Miles knows that on your first day at a new school you get to be whoever you want to be, but he only wants to be who he worked hard to be at his old school: the number one prankster. On that first day, however, he realizes he has some stiff competition for that title as an anonymous prankster outwits him at every turn, threatening to frame him as the principal hunts down the source of the escalating prank war. To make matters worse, the principal has partnered him with the obnoxious goody-two-shoes student as his guide and the school bully has targeted Miles as his newest prey. Is this rival going to be his mortal nemesis or can Miles form an alliance and combine forces to pull off the greatest prank in the history of pranks?
 
Professional Reviews:
“Coauthors and friends Barnett and John have created a fast paced, laugh-out-loud novel sure to appeal to those who appreciate a good prank and have a sense of justice. The caricature-like protagonists, particularly the childlike adult characters, add to the absurdity of the book, and the evolving relationship between the Miles and Niles is pure fun. Cornell's varied graphics perfectly capture the humorous tone and add their own comic appeal. This is a good candidate for reluctant readers and a natural next read for fans of Jeff Kinney's "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" series.” – Juliet Morefield, School Library Journal 2015
 
“Cornell's goofy cartoon illustrations (especially the blasé cows) add giggles aplenty. Fluffy, fast, fun reading for fans of Clueless McGee and the  Wimpy Kid.” – Kirkus Reviews 2014
 
Personal Insights: As the reviews above mention, this book favors humor above all, and the hybrid of illustrations and text make for a perfect book for reluctant readers in grades 3-6. The authors have a simple and straightforward writing style that oozes deadpan humor and paired with the hilarious illustrations that perfectly match the text, I found myself chuckling to myself many times through this book, even reading it through my adult lens. I can imagine that kids, particularly the more ornery boys in a class, would get a kick out of this book (and series).
 
Notable (and silly) Quotes:
 
“Principal Barkin had a list of suspects that was exactly one kid long.”
 
“That was a rhetorical question! Don't you even know what a rhetorical question is?"
Miles didn't know whether to answer.”
 
“Inside, Miles was wild, sweaty, jittery. Outside, Miles was boring, normal, like a shoe box.”

Readalikes: (Summaries from GoodReads)
 
My Like as a Potato by Arianna Costner (2020) - Ben Hardy believes he's cursed by potatoes. And now he's moved to Idaho, where the school's mascot is Steve the Spud! Yeah, this cannot be good.
After accidentally causing the mascot to sprain an ankle, Ben is sentenced to Spud duty for the final basketball games of the year. But if the other kids know he's the Spud, his plans for popularity are likely to be a big dud! Ben doesn't want to let the team down, so he lies to his friends to keep it a secret. No one will know it's him under the potato suit . . . right?
 
The Detention Club by David Yoo (2011) - Sixth-grader Peter Lee, in a desperate attempt to regain the popularity he had in elementary school, discovers that serving detention can win him important friends, much to the dismay of his over-achieving eighth-grade sister, Sunny.
 
Desmond Pucket Makes Monster Magic by Mark Tatulli (2013) - Someday Desmond will be famous for his special effects wizardry, but for now he's just trying to make it through sixth grade at Cloverfield Memorial Junior High, which means he needs to stay one step ahead of the school's disciplinary officer, Mr. Needles.
The only problem is Desmond just can't stop pulling pranks---like the time he attached a shrieking rubber goblin to the toilet seat in the teachers' bathroom. Mrs. Rubin screamed so loudly her wig flew off! Or the time he put giant motorized worms into the mashed potatoes in the cafeteria. Or the time Desmond and his best friend, Ricky, arranged for a three-headed ghost to crash his sister's slumber party. Rachel still hasn't forgiven him.
And now Desmond has to stay prank-free for the rest of the year, or he won't be able to go on the class trip to Crab Shell Pier, home of the Mountain Full of Monsters ride! It's going to be tough, but Desmond has to try.

Title: The Field Guide to the North American Teenager
Author: Ben Philippe
Publisher: Balzer + Bray (January 8, 2019)
ISBN13:  978-0062824110
Genre: Realistic Fiction, Young Adult
Topics/Themes: Friendship, New School, Identity, Navigating High School
Recommended Age Level: 14-19
Awards / Recognitions: 

• William C. Morris Award (YA Debut) 2020
  
  

Personal Rating: 5 / 5
​
Summary:  16-year-old Norris Kaplan must adapt to life in Austin, Texas when his mother gets a new job at the university there. It wouldn’t be so bad, except that Austin is literally the polar opposite of Montreal, Canada, where Norris has lived up until now. Not only does no one care about hockey and the heat is unbearable, but his best friend is still in Montreal and he is a black French-Canadian kid in the middle of cowboy country.  Snarky and witty Norris has resolved to build an ironclad emotional barrier to keep everyone out to protest his new life while secretly keeping a “field guide” journal of everyone he meets to humor himself. All he has to do is keep his head down and run out the clock for a year, which is when his mother promised they would move back if he truly didn’t like it there. But his loud-mouth and sarcastic ways attract more attention than he planned from unexpected friend and foe alike, not to mention falling head-over-heels for a girl. Suddenly his straightforward plan to get back to Montreal gets a lot harder than he expected.
 
Professional Reviews:
“Readers looking for a diverse, fun, coming-of-age tale need not look any further than this fantastic debut.” – Reindardt Suarez, Booklist 2018
 
“A witty debut with whip-smart dialogue that will find much love among fans of authors like John Green and Jason Reynolds.” – Kristin Lee Anderson, School Library Journal
 
“Philippe has a gift for dialogue and touches on a few instances of racism with sensitivity and humor in this crowd-pleaser.” – Publishers Weekly, 2018
 
Personal Insights: This book is jam-packed with such wit and snark, that I couldn’t help but laugh out loud many times while reading this book. On top of that, Philippe is able to seamlessly add several deeper layers to this story such as immigrant heritage and racial identity that allow this story to transcend a stereotypical high school fiction book. Norris as a character is likeable while still exhibiting realistic flaws that pushes this clichéd setting into a unique and compelling story.
 
Readalikes: (Summaries from GoodReads)
 
The Absolutely True Story of a Part Time Indian by Sherman Alexie and Ellen Forney (2007) - Bestselling author Sherman Alexie tells the story of Junior, a budding cartoonist growing up on the Spokane Indian Reservation. Determined to take his future into his own hands, Junior leaves his troubled school on the rez to attend an all-white farm town high school where the only other Indian is the school mascot.
Heartbreaking, funny, and beautifully written, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, which is based on the author's own experiences, coupled with poignant drawings by Ellen Forney that reflect the character's art, chronicles the contemporary adolescence of one Native American boy as he attempts to break away from the life he was destined to live.
 
Not So Pure and Simple by Lamar Giles (2020) - Del has had a crush on Kiera Westing since kindergarten. And now, during their junior year, she’s finally available. So when Kiera volunteers for an opportunity at their church, Del’s right behind her. Though he quickly realizes he’s inadvertently signed up for a Purity Pledge.
His dad thinks his wires are crossed, and his best friend, Qwan, doesn’t believe any girl is worth the long game. But Del’s not about to lose his dream girl, and that’s where fellow pledger Jameer comes in. He can put in the good word. In exchange, Del just has to get answers to the Pledgers’ questions…about sex ed.
With other boys circling Kiera like sharks, Del needs to make his move fast. But as he plots and plans, he neglects to ask the most important question: What does Kiera want? He can’t think about that too much, though, because once he gets the girl, it’ll all sort itself out. Right?
 
Frankly in Love by David Yoon (2019) - High school senior Frank Li is a Limbo--his term for Korean-American kids who find themselves caught between their parents’ traditional expectations and their own Southern California upbringing. His parents have one rule when it comes to romance--“Date Korean”--which proves complicated when Frank falls for Brit Means, who is smart, beautiful--and white. Fellow Limbo Joy Song is in a similar predicament, and so they make a pact: they’ll pretend to date each other in order to gain their freedom. Frank thinks it’s the perfect plan, but in the end, Frank and Joy’s fake-dating maneuver leaves him wondering if he ever really understood love--or himself--at all.

Title: New Kid
Author: Jerry Craft
Publisher: Quill Tree Books (February 5, 2019)
ISBN13:  9780062691200
Genre: Realistic Fiction, Graphic Novel
Topics/Themes: Friendship, New School, Racism, Bullying, Peer Pressure
Recommended Age Level: 9-13
Awards / Recognitions: 

• Newberry Medal 2020 – First Graphic Novel to win!
• Coretta Scott King Award 2020
• Kirkus Prize for Young Readers’ Literature 2019
• GoodReads Choice Award Nominee for Middle Grade and Children’s 2019

Personal Rating: 5 / 5
​
Summary:  Jordan Banks wants nothing more than to go to art school to be able to pursue his passion of drawing. Instead, his parents are sending him to the prestigious prep school across town where he is only one of a handful of non-white kids there. As he adjusts to his new life in this new school, can Jordan find a balance between his old friends and his new friends, cultures that are so drastically different? Which world does Jordan really belong to, and can he ever really fit into one or another again?
 
Professional Reviews:
“Speaking up about the unrepresented experience of so many students makes this a necessary book , particularly for this age group. Possibly one of the most important graphic novels of the year.” – Jesse Karp, Booklist 2018
 
“An engrossing, humorous, and vitally important graphic novel that should be required reading in every middle school in America.” – Kirkus Review 2018
 
Personal Insights:
As someone with their own host of white privileges, for me this book was a fantastic example of being a window to show someone a glimpse of what someone else’s life looks like that they have no way of experiencing themselves. Craft so skillfully portrays a myriad of ways in which subtle, or not so subtle, racism appears in a person of color’s life, all in an easy-going artistic style captured in the pages of this graphic novel. As someone who does not read a lot of graphic novels, I can definitely see the appeal now, and I do not think this story could have had the impact it did if it were text only. The power of this book’s message rests in the perfect marriage between the illustrations and conversations captured.

Readalikes: (Summaries from GoodReads)
 
Other Words for Home by Jasmine Warga (2019) - Jude never thought she’d be leaving her beloved older brother and father behind, all the way across the ocean in Syria. But when things in her hometown start becoming volatile, Jude and her mother are sent to live in Cincinnati with relatives. At first, everything in America seems too fast and too loud. The American movies that Jude has always loved haven’t quite prepared her for starting school in the US—and her new label of “Middle Eastern,” an identity she’s never known before. But this life also brings unexpected surprises—there are new friends, a whole new family, and a school musical that Jude might just try out for. Maybe America, too, is a place where Jude can be seen as she really is.
 
It All Comes Down to This by Karen English (2017) - It’s 1965, Los Angeles. All twelve-year-old Sophie wants to do is write her book, star in the community play, and hang out with her friend Jennifer. But she’s the new black kid in a nearly all-white neighborhood; her beloved sister, Lily, is going away to college soon; and her parents’ marriage is rocky. There’s also her family’s new, disapproving housekeeper to deal with. When riots erupt in nearby Watts and a friend is unfairly arrested, Sophie learns that life—and her own place in it—is even more complicated than she’d once thought. 
 
Unidentified Suburban Object by Mike Jung (2016) - The next person who compares Chloe Cho with famous violinist Abigail Yang is going to HEAR it. Chloe has just about had it with people not knowing the difference between someone who's Chinese, Japanese, or Korean. She's had it with people thinking that everything she does well -- getting good grades, winning first chair in the orchestra, etCETera -- are because she's ASIAN. Of course, her own parents don't want to have anything to DO with their Korean background. Any time Chloe asks them a question they change the subject. They seem perfectly happy to be the only Asian family in town. It's only when Chloe's with her best friend, Shelly, that she doesn't feel like a total alien. Then a new teacher comes to town: Ms. Lee. She's Korean American, and for the first time Chloe has a person to talk to who seems to understand completely. For Ms. Lee's class, Chloe finally gets to explore her family history. But what she unearths is light-years away from what she expected.

The official book trailer

An introduction to the book by author Jerry Craft

Title: Sweep: The Story of a Girl and Her Monster
Author: Jonathan Auxier
Publisher: Puffin Books (September 25, 2018)
ISBN: 978-1419731402
Genre: Historical Fiction
Recommended Age Level: 9-15
Awards / Recognitions: 

• Book Riot’s Top 100 Children’s Books of 2018
• The Boston Globe's Best Children’s Books of 2018
• Wall Street Journal’s Best Children’s Books of 2018
• Horn Book Fanfare's Best Books of 2018
• Publishers Weekly's Best Children’s and YA Books 2018
• New York Public Library’s Best Books for Kids 2018

Personal Rating: 5 / 5
​
Summary:  Nan Sparrow, an eleven-year-old orphan, is the best chimney climber out of the kids that are indentured to Wilkie Crudd, their heartless and cruel chimney sweep master. He provides food and a place for them to sleep in exchange for long days of extremely dirty and dangerous work. For five years her skills and wit have gotten her out of many tight situations, but she meets her match when she gets stuck in a flue with a chimney fire roaring beneath her. The next thing she knows, she is safe, waking up in the attic of the building, but with a small creature made of ash and coal next to her. Together, Nan and this creature (which she later discovers is a Golem), create a new life, away from the cruel and abusive master, who thinks she died in the fire. Nan raises and cares for the Golem, and as she allows herself to love and be vulnerable in a world that has always been cruel and indifferent to her, she comes to realize that she just might be able to change their corner of the world for the better, with the help of her new friend and “monster”.
 
Professional Reviews:
“A stunning historical fantasy novel about the power of friendship, our potential for courage, and the beauty of remembering loved ones, set in Victorian England.” – Amy McInerney, School Library Journal
 
“Auxier wipes away the grime from a bleak chapter in history where children were forced to work dangerous jobs that claimed many lives. He questions what makes one a monster and applauds helping others, activism, education, earthly marvels, and the possibility of magic.” – Julia Smith,  Booklist
 
Personal Insights:
The part that most amazed me about the story was reading through the author’s notes at the end and realizing just how much research went into this book to make it so historically accurate (fantastical “monsters’ aside). Auxier is able to describe the setting so well that you can’t help but feel transported in time. He gives such a stark look at the harsh realities of life in that day while also weaving an intricate and glowing story that leaves the readers feeling as if they are holding their own, little piece of warm char.
 
Notable Quotes:
“Am I a monster?”
Nan hesitated a long moment before answering. She thought about Crudd and Trundle and the cruel indifference of every person in the city who didn’t care if she lived or died. “I’ve met monsters before,” she said, resting her head atop his. “And you are not one of them.”
 
“That’s what it is to care for a person,” Toby said. There was not even a hint of mocking in his voice. “If you’re not afraid, you’re not doing it right.”
 
“That’s how it works, doesn’t it? We are saved by saving others.”


Readalikes: (Summaries from GoodReads)
The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick (2007): Orphan, clock keeper, and thief, Hugo lives in the walls of a busy Paris train station, where his survival depends on secrets and anonymity. But when his world suddenly interlocks with an eccentric, bookish girl and a bitter old man who runs a toy booth in the station, Hugo's undercover life, and his most precious secret, are put in jeopardy. A cryptic drawing, a treasured notebook, a stolen key, a mechanical man, and a hidden message from Hugo's dead father form the backbone of this intricate, tender, and spellbinding mystery.
 
Rooftoppers by Katherine Rundell (2013): Everyone thinks that Sophie is an orphan. True, there were no other recorded female survivors from the shipwreck which left baby Sophie floating in the English Channel in a cello case, but Sophie remembers seeing her mother wave for help. Her guardian tells her it is almost impossible that her mother is still alive, but that means still possible. You should never ignore a possible. So when the Welfare Agency writes to her guardian threatening to send Sophie to an orphanage, she takes matters into her own hands and flees to Paris to look for her mother, starting with the only clue she has - the address of the cello maker. Evading the French authorities, she meets Matteo and his network of rooftoppers - urchins who live in the sky. Together they scour the city for Sophie's mother before she is caught and sent back to London, and most importantly before she loses hope.
 
Wolf Hollow by Lauren Wolk (2016): Growing up in the shadows cast by two world wars, Annabelle has lived a mostly quiet, steady life in her small Pennsylvania town. Until the day new student Betty Glengarry walks into her class. Betty quickly reveals herself to be cruel and manipulative, and while her bullying seems isolated at first, things quickly escalate, and reclusive World War I veteran Toby becomes a target of her attacks. While others have always seen Toby’s strangeness, Annabelle knows only kindness. She will soon need to find the courage to stand as a lone voice of justice as tensions mount.

Title: Zoey and Sassafras (#1): Dragons and Marshmallows
Author: Asia Citro Pictures: Marion Lindsay
Publisher: The Innovation Press (March 14, 2017)
ISBN: 9781943147090
Genre: Fantasy
Topics: STEM, Animals, Science, Mystery, Adventure
Recommended Age Level: 6-10
Awards / Recognitions: 

• 2018 Washington State Book Young Readers Award Winner
• A Mighty Girl Book of the Year
• A NYPL Best Book for Kids Selection
• Illinois Monarch Award Nominee
• Washington Otter Award Nominee
• Florida SSYRA Award Nominee
  
  

Personal Rating: 5 / 5
​
Summary:  Zoey and her sidekick Sassafras, the cat, discover that her mother has been caring for and rehabilitating magical creatures since she was a little girl. When Zoey’s mom needs to leave on a business trip, this responsibility falls to Zoey to care for any creatures who may come while she is away. No one else can see them, not even her father, so it is up to Zoey to use problem solving, the scientific method, and her knowledge of regular animals to help save these creatures in need of help.
 
Professional Reviews:
“Concepts are explained concisely and clearly, and a short glossary provides valuable vocabulary building. The slightly larger font makes the text inviting for emerging readers, and the illustrations blend perfectly into the story. This book is a natural fit for STEM collections and deserves a place in all libraries serving young readers.” – Sarah Wetheren, School Library Journal 2017
 
Personal Insights: There are two main elements that make this story (and series) rise to the top of quality literature for this reading level. The first being a strong sense of connection to STEM and introduces problem solving and the scientific method to the young readers of this book in an engaging way at their reading level. The second being the cast of diverse characters portrayed, and illustrated, in this book: Zoey is an intelligent and science-minded girl of color who uses her own ingenuity and determination to save the day.


Readalikes: (Summaries from GoodReads)
 
March of the Mini Beasts (The DATA Set #1) by Ada Hopper and Sam Ricks (Illustrator) (2016): Gabe, Laura, and Cesar live on a quiet cul-de-sac. They are the whiz kids of Newtonburg Elementary and each specializes in their own subject. In fact, everyone in town lovingly refers to them as the Data Set. However, their quiet days of learning take a sudden turn for the exciting when they meet Dr. Gustav Bunsen—a mad scientist who throws the kids into a wild spiral of adventures.
When Dr. Bunsen’s latest invention, a growth ray, hits several tiny animal toys, the mini beasts don’t just grow, they come to life! The DATA Set love their new tiny pets…until they continue to grow. Now there’s an actual elephant in the room—not to mention a chimp, a giraffe, and a dinosaur. When the beasts wander off, it’s up to the DATA Set to track them down. But will they catch the mini beasts before they grow big enough to start trouble in town?
 
Frankie Sparks and the Class Pet by Megan Frazer Blakemore and Nadja Sarell (Illustrator) (2019): The best thing EVER is happening in Frankie Sparks’s third grade class: They are getting a class pet! Their teacher, Miss Cupid, tells them they will vote on their pet, but it has to meet some “parameters.” Their pet must:
1. Fit in aquarium.
2. Cost less than $50.
3. Be easily portable.
4. Be able to be left alone for the weekend.
Frankie thinks that a rat—just like the rats in her beloved Aunt Gina’s lab—would be the perfect fit. But her best friend, Maya, doesn’t think a rat would be great at all. They are kind of gross and not as cool as a hermit crab, which is Maya’s top choice. Using her special workshop, can Frankie find a way to convince her teacher and her best friend that Team Rat is the way to go?
 
Mighty Meg and the Magical Ring (Mighty Meg #1) by Sammy Griffin and Micah Player (Illustrator) (2019): Eight-year-old Meg's life is turned upside-down when the ring she received from her Aunt Nikki, an archaeologist, gives her superpowers, but can she find the courage to be the superhero her town needs?

Title: Peter & Ernesto (#1): A Tale of Two Sloths
Author: Graham Annable
Publisher: First Second (April 10. 2018)
ISBN13:  9781626725614
Genre: Fantasy, Graphic Novel
Topics/Themes: Friendship, Courage, Overcoming Fear, Adventure, Value of Home
Recommended Age Level: 6-10
Awards / Recognitions: 

• Eisner Award Nominee
  

Personal Rating: 5 / 5
​
Summary:  Peter and Ernesto, two sloth besties, enjoy their lazy life of snacking on hibiscus leaves and watching cloud atop their tree home. One day Ernesto decides he wants to see ALL of the sky and promptly sets off on an adventure without giving much more thought. Peter, on the other hand, is terrified by the idea of leaving the safety of their tree home and is left behind when he is overwhelmed by fear and indecision. Eventually Peter leaves to go after Ernesto in order to convince him to come back, but Ernesto is already on the adventure of his life. Will the two B.F.F.’s ever see each other again, and if they do, can they ever be as close as they once were?
 
Professional Reviews:
“Annable’s gift for caricature and zippy dialogue shines through, as he celebrates his characters’ contrasting temperaments without a hint of snark.” – Publishers Weekly 2018
 
“Recommended for beginning reader shelves and elementary graphic novel collections.” – Jennifer Costa, School Library Journal 2018
 
Personal Insights: This books is all sorts of silly and quirky and Peter and Ernesto make me think of some goofy hybrid of Sid the Sloth from the film “Ice Age” and the sloth bank teller from Zootopia.  This is a great introduction to the graphic novel format due to its simple and straightforward layout, and would be a great pick for reluctant readers!
​

Readalikes: (Summaries from GoodReads)
 
Narwhal: Unicorn of the Sea (Narwhal and Jelly #1) by Ben Clanton (2016): Narwhal is a happy-go-lucky narwhal. Jelly is a no-nonsense jellyfish. The two might not have a lot in common, but they do they love waffles, parties and adventures. Join Narwhal and Jelly as they discover the whole wide ocean together.
 
CatStronauts (#1): Mission Moon by Drew Brickington (2017): When the world is thrust into darkness due to a global energy shortage, the World's Best Scientist comes up with a bold plan to set up a solar power plant on the moon. But someone has to go up there to set it up, and that adventure falls to the CatStronauts, the best space cats on the planet! Meet the fearless commander Major Meowser, brave-but-hungry pilot Waffles, genius technician and inventor Blanket, and quick thinking science officer Pom Pom on their most important mission yet!
 
Hippopotamister by John Patrick Green (2016): The zoo isn't what it used to be. It's run down, and Hippo hardly ever gets any visitors. So he decides to set off for the outside with his friend Red Panda. To make it in the human world, Hippo will have to become a Hippopotamister: he'll have to act like a human, get a job, and wear a hat as a disguise. He's a good employee, whether he's a construction worker, a hair stylist, or a sous chef. But what he really needs is a job where he can be himself.

Below is the official book trailer!