#G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers Tumblr posts

[quirkycatsfatstacks]

Review: One Last Breath by Ginny Myers Sain

Author: Ginny Myers SainPublisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young ReadersReleased: March 5, 2024Received: OwnFind it on Goodreads | More Thrillers | Paranormal Book Summary: Twenty years ago, two young women were murdered. It’s still the town gossip to this day, drawing in nearly as many tourists as the Cerulean freshwater springs. Tru grew up hearing their stories, knowing the risk of…

[thegirlwiththelantern]

2024 YA Books

While there are romances included in this list the books err more towards contemporary and social. Including one which I can’t tell you about, unfortunately, as it has been published through SMP. You can read about the boycott here. ASAP by Axie Oh | 15 / 02 / 24 – HarperTeen New York Times bestselling author Axie Oh’s ASAP is the much anticipated companion novel to beloved…

[overflowingshelf]

Review: Check & Mate by Ali Hazelwood

Check & Mate Ali Hazelwood Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers Publication Date: November 7, 2023 Series or Standalone: Standalone Links: Amazon – Barnes & Noble – Goodreads – StoryGraph Rating: MY REVIEW CW: Sexism; misogyny; death of a parent (off-page); chronic illness; grief; references to car accident; drunk driving, infidelity, Alzheimer’s/dementia, and forced…

[richincolor]

We've found quite a variety of books being released today. There is romance, fantasy, music, murder, and more in the pages of these books. What will you add to your TBR pile?

Wild Dreamers by Margarita Engle Atheneum Books for Young Readers

In this stirring young adult romance from award-winning author Margarita Engle, love and conservation intertwine as two teens fight to protect wildlife and heal from their troubled pasts.

Ana and her mother have been living out of their car ever since her militant father became one of the FBI’s most wanted. Leandro has struggled with debilitating anxiety since his family fled Cuba on a perilous raft.

One moonlit night, in a wilderness park in California, Ana and Leandro meet. Their connection is instant—a shared radiance that feels both scientific and magical. Then they discover they are not a huge mountain lion stalks through the trees, one of many wild animals whose habitat has been threatened by humans.

Determined to make a difference, Ana and Leandro start a rewilding club at their school, working with scientists to build wildlife crossings that can help mountain lions find one another. If pumas can find their way to a better tomorrow, surely Ana and Leandro can too.

Saint-Seducing Gold (Forge & Fracture Saga #2) by Brittany N. Williams Amulet Books

The second book in the stunning YA historical fantasy trilogy that New York Times bestselling author Ayana Gray called “nothing short of spectacular”

There’s danger in the court of James I. Magical metal-worker Joan Sands must reforge the Pact between humanity and the Fae to stop the looming war. As violence erupts across London and the murderous spymaster Robert Cecil closes in, the Fae queen Titanea coerces Joan into joining the royal court while holding her godfather prisoner in the infamous Tower of London. Now Joan will have to survive deadly machinations both magical and mortal all while balancing the magnetic pull of her two loves—Rose and Nick—before the world as she knows it is destroyed forever.

Off With Their Heads by Zoe Hana Mikuta Disney Hyperion

Fans of Chloe Gong and Judy I. Lin will devour this Korean-inspired Alice in Wonderland retelling about two very wicked girls, forever bonded by blood and betrayal . . .

In a world where Saints are monsters and Wonderland is the dark forest where they lurk, it’s been five years since young witches and lovers Caro Rabbit and Iccadora Alice Sickle were both sentenced to that forest for a crime they didn’t commit—and four years since they shattered one another’s hearts, each willing to sacrifice the other for a chance at freedom.

Now, Caro is a successful royal Saint-harvester, living the high life in the glittering capital and pretending not to know of the twisted monster experiments that her beloved Red Queen hides deep in the bowels of the palace. But for Icca, the memory of Caro’s betrayal has hardened her from timid girl to ruthless hunter. A hunter who will stop at nothing to exact her On Caro. On the queen. On the throne itself.

But there’s a secret about the Saints the Queen’s been guarding, and a volatile magic at play even more dangerous to Icca and Caro than they are to each other…

Lush, terrifying, and uncanny, Zoe Hana Mikuta—author of Gearbreakers and Godslayers —takes a delicate knife straight through the heart of this beloved surrealist fairytale.

Kill Her Twice by Stacey Lee G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers

Los Angeles, 1932: Lulu Wong, star of the silver screen and the pride of Chinatown, has a face known to practically anyone, especially to the Chow sisters—May, Gemma, and Peony—Lulu’s former classmates and neighbors. So the girls instantly know it’s Lulu whose body they discover one morning in an out-of-the-way stable, far from the Beverly Hills mansion where she moved once her fame skyrocketed.

The sisters suspect Lulu’s death is the result of foul play, but the LAPD—known for being corrupt to the core—doesn’t seem motivated to investigate. Even worse, there are signs that point to the possibility of a police cover-up, and powerful forces in the city want to frame the killing as evidence that Chinatown is a den of iniquity and crime, even more reason it should be demolished to make room for the construction of a new railway depot, Union Station.

Worried that neither the police nor the papers will treat a Chinese girl fairly—no matter how famous and wealthy—the sisters set out to solve their friend’s murder themselves, and maybe save their neighborhood in the bargain. But with Lulu’s killer still on the loose, the girls’ investigation just might put them square in the crosshairs of a coldblooded murderer.

Punk Rock Karaoke by Bianca Xunise Viking Books for Young Readers

When life gives you guitars, smash them!

School is out for summer and Ariel Grace Jones is determined to make it one for the books! Together with their bestie bandmates, Michele and Gael, Ariel believes they’re destined to break into the music industry and out of Chicago’s Southside by singing lead in their garage punk band, Baby Hares.

But before Baby Hares can officially get into the groove, the realities of post grad life start to weigh on this crew of misfits. Ari begins to worry that it’s time to pull the plug on their dreams of making it big.

Just when all hope feels lost, a fellow punk and local icon takes an interest in their talent. It seems like he might be the only one Ariel can rely on as frustrations between bandmates reach at an all-time high.

Punk Rock Karaoke is a coming-of-age tale that draws upon the explosive joy of the underground scene, while raising questions about authenticity, the importance of community and what it means to succeed on your own terms.

Song of the Six Realms by Judy I. Lin Feiwel & Friends

Xue, a talented young musician, has no past and probably no future. Orphaned at a young age, her kindly poet uncle took her in and arranged for an apprenticeship at one of the most esteemed entertainment houses in the kingdom. She doesn’t remember much from before entering the House of Flowing Water, and when her uncle is suddenly killed in a bandit attack, she is devastated to lose her last connection to a life outside of her indenture contract.

With no family and no patron, Xue is facing the possibility of a lifetime of servitude playing the qin for nobles that praise her talent with one breath and sneer at her lowly social status with the next. Then one night she is unexpectedly called to the garden to put on a private performance for the enigmatic Duke Meng. The young man is strangely kind and awkward for nobility, and surprises Xue further with an irresistible offer: serve as a musician in residence at his manor for one year, and he’ll set her free of her indenture.

But the Duke’s motives become increasingly more suspect when he and Xue barely survive an attack by a nightmarish monster, and when he whisks her away to his estate, she discovers he’s not just some country noble: He’s the Duke of Dreams, one of the divine rulers of the Celestial Realm. There she learns the Six Realms are on the brink of disaster, and incursions by demonic beasts are growing more frequent.

The Duke needs Xue’s help to unlock memories from her past that could hold the answers to how to stop the impending war… but first Xue will need to survive being the target of every monster and deity in the Six Realms.

Blood Justice (Blood Debts #2) by Terry J. Benton-Walker Tor Teen

Cristina and Clement Trudeau have conjured the impossible: justice.

They took back their family’s stolen throne to lead New Orleans’ magical community into the brighter future they all deserve.

But when Cris and Clem restored their family power, Valentina Savant lost everything. Her beloved grandparents are gone and her sovereignty has been revoked—she will never be Queen. Unless, of course, someone dethrones the Trudeaus again. And lucky for her, she’s not the only one trying to take them down.

Cris and Clem have enemies coming at them from all directions: Hateful anti-magic protesters sabotage their reign at every turn. A ruthless detective with a personal vendetta against magical crime is hot on their tail just as Cris has discovered her thirst for revenge. And a brutal god, hunting from the shadows, is summoned by the very power Clem needs to protect the boy he loves.

Cris’s hunger for vengeance and Clem’s desire for love could prove to be their family’s downfall, all while new murders, shocking disappearances, and impossible alliances are changing the game forever.

Welcome back to New Orleans, where gods walk among us and justice isn’t served, it’s taken.

[musingsofmonica]

April 2024 Diverse Reads

April 2024 Diverse Reads:  

•”All We Were Promised” by Ashton Lattimore, April 2, Ballantine Books, Historical/Saga/African American & Black/Women

•”Real Americans” by Rachel Khong, April 30, Knopf Publishing Group, Contemporary/Family Life/Cultural Heritage/Asian American

•”The Cemetery of Untold Stories” by Julia Alvarez l, April 2, Algonquin Books, Literary/Fantasy/Magical Realism/Cultural Heritage/Hispanic & Latino/World Literature/Caribbean & West Indies

•”The Stone Home” by Crystal Hana Kim, April 2, William Morrow & Company, Literary/Historical/Saga/Psychological/World Literature/Korea/Multiple Timelines

•”Indian Burial Ground” by Nick Medina, April 16, Berkley Books, April 2, Horror/Thriller/Supernatural/Cultural Heritage/Native American & Aboriginal

•”A Magical Girl Retires” by Park Seolyeon, translated by Anton Hur, April 30, Harpervia, Contemporary/Fantasy/Feminist/World Literature/Korea

•”Bite by Bite: Nourishments and Jamborees” by 

Aimee Nezhukumatathil, April 30, Ecco Press, Essays/Short Essays/Essay Collection/Memoir in Essay

•”Disability Intimacy: Essays on Love, Care, and Desire” by Alice Wong, April 30, Vintage, Essays/Short Essays/Essay Collection/People with Disabilities/Love & Romance/Human Sexuality/Social Science

•”The Backyard Bird Chronicles” by Amy Tan, April 23, Knopf Publishing Group, Personal Memoir/Personal Memoir in Journal/Animals - Birds/Motivational & Inspirational/Illustration

•”Knife: Meditations After an Attempted Murder” by Salman Rushdie, April 16, Random House, Personal Memoir/Literary Figure/Survival/Cultural, Ethnic & Regional/Discrimination & Race Relations/Social Justice 

•”Just for the Summer” by Abby Jimenez, April 02, Forever, Contemporary/Romance/Romantic Comedy/Women/Small Town & Rural

•”How to End a Love Story” by Yulin Kuang, April 09, Avon Books, Contemporary/Romance/Romantic Comedy/Multicultural & Interracial/Diversity & Multicultural/Cultural Heritage Asian American/Workplace/Family Life/Siblings/Women

•”When I Think of You” by Myah Arie, April 16, Berkley Books, Contemporary/Romance/Romantic Comedy/Women/Hollywood/Workplace/Diversity & Multicultural

•”Canto Contigo” by Jonny Garza Villa, April 09, Wednesday Books, Contemporary/Romance/Culwtural Heritage/Hispanic & Latino/LGBTQ

•”Table for One: Stories” by Ko-Eun Yun, translated by Lizzie Buehler, April 09, Columbia University Press, Literary/Short Stories/Women/World Literature/Korea

•”One of Us Knows” by Alyssa Cole, April 16, William Morrow & Company, Thriller/Suspense/Psychological/Mystery & Detective/Women Sleuths/Women

•”Ocean's Godori” by Elaine U. Cho, April 23, Zando - Hillman Grad Books, Science Fiction/Space Opera/Romance/Asian American/LGBTQ

•”Kill Her Twice” by Stacey Lee, April 23, G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers, YA/Historical/20th Century/Mysteries & Detective/Women Sleuths/Women/Culwtural Heritage/Asian American

•”You Know What You Did” by K. T. Nguyen, April 16, Dutton, Thriller/Psychological/Culwtural Heritage/Asian American

•”The Spoiled Heart” by Sunjeev Sahota, April 16, Viking, Contemporary/Political/Family Life/World Literature/England 

[ash-and-books]

Rating: 4.5/5

Book Blurb: Gripping, romantic, and impossible to put down, this dark and immersive post-apocalyptic debut YA novel is about two teen girls who loved each other before the end of the world — and before one of them became infected with the virus that turned her into a monster.

Perfect for fans of Krystal Sutherland, Adam Silvera, and the darkly human side of the HBOMax horror-drama, The Last of Us.

Seventeen-year-old Mara is dead—mostly.      

Infected with a virus that brought the dead back to life and the world to its knees, she wakes up in a facility to learn a treatment for the disease has been found. No longer a Tick, Mara is placed in an experimental resettlement program. But her recovery is complicated by her destination: she’s sent to live with the best friend she hasn’t seen since the world ended—and since their first and only kiss.      Seventeen-year-old Rory is alive—barely.      

With impaired mobility from an injury and a dead sister, Rory’s nightmares are just as monstrous as the Ticks that turned her former best friend. Even after the Island—one of a handful of surviving communities—rebuilds itself, Rory is prepared for the Ticks to return at any time. She never expected them to come in the form of the only girl she’s ever loved.      

As the girls struggle with their pasts and the people they’ve become, the Island’s soldiers go rogue and come after the Ticks and anyone harboring them. With the Island’s fragile peace in the balance, Rory and Mara must lean on each other to survive—or risk losing the girl they love all over again.

Review:

The Last of Us meets a love story about two girls dealing with the aftermath of of a virus taking over the world and what happens when one of them is infected... and now is being let back out into the world. Mara and Rory were best friends, they've even thought about being more... until a virus known as "the Tick" happened turning people into flesh hungry zombies essentially and Mara gets infected... and that was two years ago... and now she has been rehabilitated and been put on a treatment program to treat her disease. Mara is put into an experimental resettlement program... and who better than to be her host family than her godparents... aka the same family with her old best friend and the girl she loved who she knows now hates her lives. Mara is still traumatized from what happened to her, she remembers everything she did as a Tick... everyone's she's killed including her parents. Rory is reeling from losing her younger sister, having sene her been killed, and she has impaired mobility from an injury. She is still plagued by nightmares and she's dreading facing Mara again. Rory has spent her time preparing to face off against Ticks, what she didn't expect was facing it in the form of the only girl she's ever loved. Both girls struggle with dealing with their pasts and the girls they have become since then, all the while the island's soldiers have gone wrong and are coming after the rehabilitated ticks and anyone who is harboring them... with the leader of the island's soldier particularly going after Rory and Mara, the girls will have to learn to lean on each other and grow past their differences in order to survive this new horror... and maybe fall for the new girls they are now. This was the perfect read for anyone who loved The Last of Us or loves a post-apocalyptic Romance!! The angst was real and the tension was so good. The world building in this one was fantastic and I loved how the book has you so interested in what was happening all the way to the end of the book. The romance was so well done and I loved that the girls were both healing and trying to get to know the new version of the person they loved. This is a fun read and I would absolutely recommend it!

*Thanks Netgalley and PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group, G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

[reviewsthatburn]

CURSES is a Beauty and the Beast retelling which takes a few specific element of the older story: one person cursed to appear as a Beast, and one person who is generally considered beautiful being required to help them break the curse in exchange for forgiving a parent’s trespasses. Onto this basic premise the author has built a small world by which a larger story is supported. I like the story, I like the dynamic between merit and Tevin, between Merit and her various suitors, and generally with her group of friends and collaborators for them to help break the curse with as little meddling from her mother as possible. 

[fearsmagazine]

The 2022 Bram Stoker Awards® Final Ballot

The Horror Writers Association (HWA) announced the Final Ballot for the 2022 Bram Stoker Awards®, an award they’ve been presenting  in various categories since 1987 (see http://www.thebramstokerawards.com/)

Works appearing on this Ballot are Bram Stoker Award® Nominees for Superior Achievement in their Category, e.g., Novel.  Congratulations to all those appearing on the Final Ballot.

THE 2022 BRAM STOKER AWARDS® FINAL BALLOT

Superior Achievement in a Novel • Iglesias, Gabino – The Devil Takes You Home (Mullholland Press) • Katsu, Alma – The Fervor (G.P. Putnam’s Sons) • Kiste, Gwendolyn – Reluctant Immortals (Saga Press) • Malerman, Josh – Daphne (Del Rey) • Ward, Catriona – Sundial (Tor Nightfire)

Superior Achievement in a First Novel • Adams, Erin – Jackal (Bantam Books) • Cañas, Isabel – The Hacienda (Berkley) • Jones, KC – Black Tide (Tor Nightfire) • Nogle, Christi – Beulah (Cemetery Gates Media) • Wilkes, Ally – All the White Spaces (Emily Bestler Books/Atria/Titan Books)

Superior Achievement in a Middle Grade Novel • Dawson, Delilah S. – Camp Scare (Delacorte Press) • Kraus, Daniel – They Stole Our Hearts (Henry Holt and Co.) • Malinenko, Ally – This Appearing House (Katherine Tegen Books) • Senf, Lora – The Clackity (Atheneum Books for Young Readers) • Stringfellow, Lisa – A Comb of Wishes (Quill Tree Books)

Superior Achievement in a Graphic Novel • Aquilone, James (editor) – Kolchak: The Night Stalker: 50th Anniversary (Moonstone Books) • Gailey, Sarah (author) and Bak, Pius (artist) – Eat the Rich (Boom! Studios) • Manzetti, Alessandro (author) and Cardoselli, Stefano (artist/author) – Kraken Inferno: The Last Hunt (Independent Legions Publishing) • Tynion IV, James (author) and Dell’Edera, Werther (artist) – Something is Killing the Children, Vol. 4 (Boom! Studios) • Young, Skottie (author) and Corona, Jorge (artist) – The Me You Love in the Dark (Image Comics)

Superior Achievement in a Young Adult Novel • Fraistat, Ann – What We Harvest (Delacorte Press) • Jackson, Tiffany D. – The Weight of Blood (Katherine Tegen Books) • Marshall, Kate Alice – These Fleeting Shadows (Viking) • Ottone, Robert P. – The Triangle (Raven Tale Publishing) • Schwab, V.E. – Gallant (Greenwillow Books) • Tirado, Vincent – Burn Down, Rise Up (Sourcebooks Fire)

Superior Achievement in Long Fiction • Allred, Rebecca J. and White, Gordon B. – And in Her Smile, the World (Trepidatio Publishing) • Carmen, Christa – “Through the Looking Glass and Straight into Hell” (Orphans of Bliss: Tales of Addiction Horror) (Wicked Run Press) • Hightower, Laurel – Below (Ghoulish Books) • Katsu, Alma – The Wehrwolf (Amazon Original Stories) • Knight, EV – Three Days in the Pink Tower (Creature Publishing)

Superior Achievement in Short Fiction • Dries, Aaron – “Nona Doesn't Dance” (Cut to Care: A Collection of Little Hurts) (IFWG Australia, IFWG International) • Gwilym, Douglas – “Poppy’s Poppy” (Penumbric Speculative Fiction Magazine, Vol. V, No. 6) • McCarthy, J.A.W.  – “The Only Thing Different Will Be the Body” (A Woman Built by Man) (Cemetery Gates Media) • Taborska, Anna – “A Song for Barnaby Jones” (Zagava) • Taborska, Anna – “The Star” (Great British Horror 7: Major Arcane) (Black Shuck Books) • Yardley, Mercedes M. – “Fracture” (Mother: Tales of Love and Terror) (Weird Little Worlds)

Superior Achievement in a Fiction Collection • Ashe, Paula D. – We Are Here to Hurt Each Other (Nictitating Books) • Joseph, RJ – Hell Hath No Sorrow Like a Woman Haunted (The Seventh Terrace) • Khaw, Cassandra – Breakable Things (Undertow Publications) • Thomas, Richard – Spontaneous Human Combustion (Keylight Books) • Veres, Attila – The Black Maybe (Valancourt Books)

Superior Achievement in a Screenplay • Cooper, Scott – The Pale Blue Eye (Cross Creek Pictures, Grisbi Productions, Streamline Global Group) • Derrickson, Scott and Cargill, C. Robert – The Black Phone (Blumhouse Productions, Crooked Highway, Universal Pictures) • Duffer Brothers, The – Stranger Things: Episode 04.01 "Chapter One: The Hellfire Club" (21 Laps Entertainment, Monkey Massacre, Netflix, Upside Down Pictures) • Garland, Alex - Men (DNA Films) • Goth, Mia and West, Ti – Pearl (A24, Bron Creative, Little Lamb, New Zealand Film Commission)

Superior Achievement in a Poetry Collection • Bailey, Michael and Simon, Marge – Sifting the Ashes (Crystal Lake Publishing) • Lynch, Donna – Girls from the County (Raw Dog Screaming Press) • Pelayo, Cynthia – Crime Scene (Raw Dog Screaming Press) • Saulson, Sumiko – The Rat King: A Book of Dark Poetry (Dooky Zines) • Sng, Christina – The Gravity of Existence (Interstellar Flight Press)

Superior Achievement in an Anthology • Datlow, Ellen – Screams from the Dark: 29 Tales of Monsters and the Monstrous (Tor Nightfire) • Hartmann, Sadie and Saywers, Ashley – Human Monsters: A Horror Anthology (Dark Matter Ink) • Nogle, Christi and Becker, Willow – Mother: Tales of Love and Terror (Weird Little Worlds) • Ryan, Lindy – Into the Forest: Tales of the Baba Yaga (Black Spot Books) • Tantlinger, Sara – Chromophobia: A Strangehouse Anthology by Women in Horror (Strangehouse Books)

Superior Achievement in Non–Fiction • Cisco, Michael – Weird Fiction: A Genre Study (Palgrave Macmillan) • Hieber, Leanna Renee and Janes, Andrea – A Haunted History of Invisible Women: True Stories of America's Ghosts (Citadel Press) • Kröger, Lisa and Anderson, Melanie R. – Toil and Trouble: A Women’s History of the Occult (Quirk Books) • Waggoner, Tim – Writing in the Dark: The Workbook (Guide Dog Books) • Wytovich, Stephanie M. – Writing Poetry in the Dark (Raw Dog Screaming Press)

Superior Achievement in Short Non–Fiction • Murray, Lee – “I Don’t Read Horror (& Other Weird Tales)” (Interstellar Flight Magazine) (Interstellar Flight Press) • Pelayo, Cynthia – “This is Not a Poem” (Writing Poetry in the Dark) (Raw Dog Screaming Press) • Wetmore, Jr., Kevin J. – “A Clown in the Living Room: The Sinister Clown on Television” (The Many Lives of Scary Clowns: Essays on Pennywise, Twisty, the Joker, Krusty and More) (McFarland and Company) • Wood, L. Marie – “African American Horror Authors and Their Craft: The Evolution of Horror Fiction from African Folklore” (Conjuring Worlds: An Afrofuturist Textbook for Middle and High School Students) (Conjure World) • Wood, L. Marie, “The H Word: The Horror of Hair” (Nightmare Magazine, No. 118) (Adamant Press)

[roesolo]

More Construction Fun with Pigs Dig a Road

Pigs Dig a Road, by Carrie Finison/Illustrated by Brian Biggs, (Sept. 2024, G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers), $19.99, ISBN: 9781984816542 Ages 3-7 A construction crew is getting ready to build a new road to the Hamshire County Fair. Headed up by Rosie, the crew chief, this crew of pigs is ready to work, but they can’t seem to get things quite right and rely on Rosie to fix things. But…

[quirkycatsfatstacks]

Review: The Glass Scientists Vol. 2

Author/Artist: S.H. CotugnoPublisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young ReadersReleased: September 24, 2024Received: NetGalleyFind it on Goodreads | More Graphic Novels Summary: All Dr. Henry Jekyll wanted to do was make a refuge for fellow scientists. He wanted to erase the very notion of adding “mad” in front of their titles. Unfortunately, his counterpart is making this goal harder, by the…

[thegirlwiththelantern]

2024 YA Fantasy Books

I didn’t really notice it while I was putting this list together but scrolling down just to check the formatting really put into perspective how many utterly amazing books there are. There might be more YA fantasy than adult fantasy that’s pulling at me this year. Sky’s End (Above the Black #1) by Marc J Gregson | 02 / 01 / 24 – Peachtree Teen Exiled to live as a Low, sixteen-year-old Conrad…

[darthnaderer]

Firebird by Misty Copeland, illustrated by Christopher Myers

Category: Coretta Scott King, 2015 Illustrator Award Winner

Summary: Written by ballerina Misty Copeland, this poetic children's book is written as a dialogue between Copeland and a young, unnamed, aspiring Black ballerina. It encourages the young ballerina to believe in herself and not give up on her dream to be as good as Copeland one day on stage.

Justification: Christopher Myers won the 2015 Coretta Scott King Award for his breathtaking illustrations, acknowledging him as an African American illustrator who beautifully depicted the Black experience.

Evaluation:

Texture - Myers uses broad strokes to capture motion and texture in his paintings. Readers almost feel as though they could touch these three-dimensional images and feel something other than a flat surface.

Color - The vibrant, brilliant colors capture the unbreakable spirit of Copeland's story. Both Copeland and the aspiring ballerina are the typically the brightest spots on the pages.

Dialogue - The story is told as a back-and-forth between Copeland and the young ballerina. They talk about the struggles and challenges they both faced, and Copeland encourages her to not give up, and to keep reaching for her dreams because "The space between you and me is longer than forever."/"And I will show them that forever is not so far away."

Copeland, M. (2014). Firebird: Ballerina Misty Copeland shows a young girl how to dance like the Firebird (C. Myers, Illus.). G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers.

[richincolor]

New Releases - Week of September 17, 2024

It's almost like the releases in September are preparing us for the scary time of the year. Three out of four of these releases are nightmarish, thriller types. They look like they will give folks a few chills. We have fear and magic to look forward to this week. 

Ruin Road by Lamar Giles Scholastic Press

Sometimes a little fear is a good thing…

Cade Webster lives between worlds. He’s a standout football star at the right school but lives in the wrong neighborhood–if you let his classmates tell it. Everywhere but home, people are afraid of him for one reason or another. Afraid he’s too big, too fast, too ambitious, too Black.

Then one fateful night, to avoid a dangerous encounter with the police, he ducks into a pawn shop. An impulse purchase and misspoken desire change everything when Cade tells the shopkeeper he wishes people would stop acting so scared around him, and the wish is granted…

At first, it feels like things have taken a turn for the better. But it’s not just Cade that people no longer fear–it’s everything. With Cade spreading this newfound “courage” wherever he goes, anything can happen. Fearless acts of violence begin to escalate in both his neighborhood and at school. Something monstrous is clearly at work and it’s up to Cade to stop it. But just what did he buy and what’s the price to undo the damage? After all, the devil’s in the details.

Such Lovely Skin by Tatiana Schlote-Bonne Page Street YA

An evil video game A lying Twitch streamer A demon hungry for her secrets

After spending the summer wracked with guilt about causing the accident that killed her little sister, ambitious gamer and chronic liar Viv returns to Twitch streaming. She never told her parents the truth about the accident, but she hopes that maybe making it big in streaming and giving the money to them is penance enough for her mistakes.

The weekend before school starts, Viv finds the perfect horror game to make her Twitch comeback, and during an offline practice run, an NPC asks Viv for a secret. She decides to tell them the truth about her sister’s death since a game could never share her secret―in doing so, she accidentally welcomes a demonic mimic into her life.

No one believes Viv when she tells them about her evil doppelganger. Viv has lied to get her best friend’s sympathy and has spread rumors for attention, so why should anyone trust her now? The only person who believes her is Ash, a cute social outcast whom Viv once bullied. In trying to clear her name and kill the mimic, Viv discovers that her lies have hurt people who never deserved it, herself included.

We Are Hunted by Tomi Oyemakinde Feiwel & Friends

A boy, his family, and other resort guests must fight for their lives after the island’s unusual animals turn feral, in this horrifying fast-paced survival story!

Experience paradise, reimagined.

When 17-year-old Femi Fatona and his older brother are forced to accompany their dad to an island resort, Femi is not looking forward to it. After all, he hasn’t exactly been getting along with either of them lately. At least the resort promises to be full of all the extravagant luxuries they’re used to. Yet not much is actually known about it, as it’s on a recently-discovered island and shrouded in nondisclosure agreements.

Once they arrive, Femi is thrilled to find that the island is bursting with new and spectacular species of plants and animals. But he soon realizes that sometimes pretty exteriors hide ugly truths—truths that are begging to come to light.

When the animals suddenly become feral and the island is thrown into chaos , what was meant to be a peaceful bonding experience quickly becomes the stuff of nightmares. Femi will have to put aside tension with his family and work with other guests in order to escape the animals, the island. . .and his own guilt at the part he may have played in all of it.

Spells to Forget Us by Aislinn Brophy G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers

Fate brought them together. Magic made them strangers.

Luna is a powerful witch. Known for her skills and feared for her temper, she’s set to preserve her family’s legacy by becoming the head of Boston’s Witch Council—a job she does not want.

Aoife is a non-magical girl. Raised under the lens of her influencer family, she’s grown up in the public eye. Now she yearns for privacy—but knows her parents won’t oblige.

Just when they are at their lowest, Aoife and Luna find each other and start dating. As decreed by magic law, Luna casts a spell that will erase Aoife’s memories of their history together if they ever break up. But when Aoife and Luna end things, it’s both of them who forget . . . that is, until they meet again, fall for each other, and recover all the memories of their last attempt at dating.

So begins the story of two star-crossed lovers who keep finding their way into each other’s orbits, even as the universe pulls them apart. When they set out to break the cycle, will they be strangers forever or together at last?

[bibliobile]

Locomotion by Jacqueline Woodson

Woodson, Jacqueline. Locomotion. G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers, 2003.

Summary- Locomotion tells the story of a young boy named Lonnie Collins Motion. Lonnie is on the brink of adolescence as he learns to navigate his feelings of nostalgia, grief, and overwhelming emotion, from his teacher Ms. Marcus. Ms. Marcus teaches Lonnie how to express himself through different forms of poetry, which he utilizes to describe his life before and after the death of his parents. Lonnie lost both of his parents in a housefire when he was eight years old, which forced both him and his little lister, Lili, to enter the foster care system. Eventually Lili was adopted, but Lonnie remained in foster care with a woman named Mrs. Edna. Lonnie uses poetry to give readers a first-hand account of what it is like to try and present yourself in a way that pleases others while recognizing you do not belong to the dominant culture of power and that is something you cannot change, even if they ask you to.

Personal Response-

When I first started reading Locomotion, I was worried that the book would not qualify as Young Adult Literature, but as I continued reading, I recognized Lonnie’s account of the liminal space that is the in between gray area of being a child, and being ‘grown up’. Despite his age, 12 years old, Lonnie’s words and recollections of his life are often wise beyond his years. This book, in opinion, is one of the exact examples of why adolescence cannot be pinpointed to a specific age. Because of the life Lonnie has lived so far, he has been forced to mature faster than other kids his age. The dichotomy between his mental age, which in my opinion is around 14-15, and his physical age, 12, places Lonnie in a confusing liminal space of being expected to act one way, feeling a completely different way, and realistically acting in another manner entirely, which is the adolescent experience in a nutshell. Even as a 20-year-old, white, female, college student, from the rural south, I found myself relating to the feelings Lonnie, a 12-year-old, Black, male, middle school student, from inner city New York, describes in his poetry.

Connections-

Locomotion is made up entirely of poetry from beginning to end, which allows students to make deeper connections from their own lives to Lonnie’s story, even if the character could not be more different from the reader. I do not think I would use the entire book in my classroom, but I would gladly use excerpts from the book as examples of different styles of poetry that may be more relatable to students, and examples of symbolism for students to work with. I would also happily place this book in my classroom library. Locomotion is a book that is far easier to read and comprehend than a lot of Young Adult Literature, which would make it perfect to keep in my classroom as an available resource for future students who may struggle with reading comprehension or high-level literacy.

[ash-and-books]

Rating: 3/5

Book Blurb:

A spine-tingling LGBTQIA+ YA horror about queer teens who accidentally invoke a twisted spirit who promises help but delivers something sinister. Perfect for fans of Kayla Cottingham, Andrew Joseph White, and Ryan La Sala. "A searing and poignant portrait of queer identity wrapped in an unflinching tale of terror." —Kalynn Bayron, New York Times bestselling author of You’re Not Supposed to Die Tonight "Modern horror at its best." —Bram Stoker Award Nominee Sarah Henning

It's never been safe for Fern, Jaq, or Mallory to come out to their families. As kids their emerging identities drove them into friendship but also forced them into the woods to hide in an old, abandoned house when they needed safety. But one night when the girls sought refuge, Mallory never made it back home. Fern and Jaq did, but neither survivor remembered what happened or the secrets they were so desperate to keep. 

Five years later, Fern and Jaq are seniors on the verge of graduation, seemingly happy in their straight, cisgender lives—until a spirit who looks like Mallory begins to appear, seeking revenge for her death, and the part Fern and Jaq played in it. As they’re haunted, something begins to shift inside them. 

Review:

Three friends, all dealing with their own coming outs, and a house in the woods that took one of them.... and now the remaining two girls don't remember what happened to their friend and what happened to them... only that they are being drawn back in by the spirit of their dead friend. Fern, Jaq, and Mallory are three different people who know it's not safe to come out to their families... yet their friendship grows as they emerge into their identities, yet after an incident makes one of the girls come out to her mother and all three girls run into the woods to hide in an old abandoned house..... things go different as Mallory never makes it back home. Fern and Jaq lose their memories and are desperate to keep their own secrets, but after five years and on the verge of their graduation where they have seemingly happy straight cisgender lives....Mallory's spirit begins to haunt them. Fern and Jaq can't tell if Mallory is seeking revenge or if its something else... all they know is that they have to work together to get their memories back and find out what really happened to Mallory as well as come out themselves. This was part ghost mystery part coming out/coming of age story. It explores the queer identity, friendship, and growing pains. It's definitely a good read to add to your halloween tbr if you are looking for a queer read with a touch of spooky! While it started off great it fell off a bit for me and got a bit muddled in the end, but overall I would say it was a book worth reading at least once.

Release Date: August 27,2024

Publication/Blog: Ash and Books (ash-and-books.tumblr.com)

*Thanks Netgalley and PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group | G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

[fairysbookshelf]

Check and Mate by Ali Hazelwood

Book Stats:

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️(5/5)

Romance Rating/Spice Level: YA Rating

Tropes: Miscommunication, he falls first

Publisher: ‎G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers

Review:

Surprise! Two book reviews in two days! Not going to lie, I destroyed this book at dance competition in 6 hours on Tuesday. Full discloser though, wasn’t planning on completely reading and finishing the book at that time. It just sort of happened. 🤷🏼‍♀️. I think it’s because it was so good!

I am very much of a can of Ali Hazelwood like everybody else, but unlike other people, I didn’t really enjoy The Love Hypothesis as much as everyone else did. Love on the Brain(4/5 stars) and Love Theoretically(5/5 stars) we’re definitely more my style.

It honestly why I went into this book nervous because as with most Ali Hazelwood books, I don’t know anything about chess except it’s a game my little brothers like to throw in my face about knowing more about, but agian as usual I learned ALOT. More than I was expecting.

This book also breaks the barrier of being adult romance. It’s Young-Adult and I am honestly very happy it was. The characters are 18 and 19 and it just works perfect that way.

As a young reader, I honestly related to this book more than I ever than possible. The character is currently in my same life stage and I honestly really related to the pressure that the MC feels. I think Hazelwood handles this pressure perfectly as it didn’t feel forced or anything like many authors of older age trying to right a book for a younger audience. It felt real and was really well written.

The romance and love interest are amazing. He falls first, and it’s so sweet! Now, I’m not a fan of the miscommunication trope, but it was written very, very well! I also like how the climax was solved realistically, and the main characters are not overcoming with so much emotion that everything is forgotten and they just get together like so many other romance books!

Basically, no criticism at ALL. Definitely worth picking up!