January Recommendations

Novels:

DAD'S GIRLFRIEND AND OTHER ANXIETIES, by Kellye Crocker, is a terrific middle grade debut. Sixth-grade-graduate Ava should be happy now that summer vacation has begun. Her life is “simple, sweet, and exactly as she like[s] it.” But, suddenly, “practical, responsible, and sort of boring” Dad surprises Ava by dragging her to “super dangerous” Colorado to meet his new girlfriend and said girlfriend’s daughter. Ava’s anxiety kicks in and, because too many changes are coming at her too fast, she decides to plan some surprises of her own. Crocker’s novel is a well-written and satisfying read.

MIDNIGHT AT THE BARCLAY HOTEL, by Fleur Bradley with illustrations by Xavier Bonet, is a super-fun whodunnit that reads like Agatha Christie for middle graders meets the game of Clue—with ghosts! When fancy invitations draw five people and a couple of “stragglers” (kids) to the fancy Barclay Hotel way up in the Colorado Rockies, it turns out most of the adults are suspects in the recent murder of the hotel’s owner. Twelve-year-old JJ, a fledgeling ghost hunter, eleven-year-old Penny, granddaughter of a retired police detective, and twelve-year-old Emma, who lives at the hotel and really wants some kids to hang out with, all decide that they’re going to be the ones to solve this crime. Winner of a Colorado Book Award, this inviting mystery will keep kids turning the pages as fast as they can.

Picture Books:

In POOPSIE GETS LOST, by Hannah E. Harrison, pampered Poopsie enjoys her plush kitty bed, until the narrator of this droll picture book challenges Poopsie to be a “daring adventurer.” So, out the cat door Poopsie struts. She's goaded into some extremely dangerous situations which involve unmarked trails, large snakes, larger tigers, and… well, let’s face it—the narrator of this book is simply not reliable! Will Poopsie get herself out of the “fine pickle” she is in??? This picture book is surprisingly excellent!

TOASTY, by Sarah Hwang, well, it’s weird. Toasty is a slice of bread who wants to be a dog. Yes, there are differences—Toasty doesn’t have hair or fur and he sleeps in a toaster. And instead of four legs, Toasty has “two legs and two arms.” But Toasty tries to act like a dog, anyway. When he goes to the park, things get a bit fraught, but they turn out just fine in the end! “Woof. Woof. Woof. Woof. Woof.” The acrylic, colored pencil, and digitally-collaged art is playful and bright, and the whole package is oddly refreshing.

In WOMBAT SAID COME IN, written by Carmen Agra Deedy and illustrated by Brian Lies, when a dreadful fire causes Wombat’s friends Wallaby, Kookaburra, Platypus, Koala, and Sugar Glider to seek shelter in Wombat’s underground home, Wombat repeatedly says “come in, my friend, come in!” As the days pass, his patience is sorely tested… and his kindness prevails. Great language, a repeating refrain, and an abundance of generosity, along with superb acrylic and colored pencil illustrations by the always wonderful Lies, give this picture book plenty of heart.

In MOON LIGHT, by Stephen Savage, “something is on the move.” It swings and slithers, streaks, slips, and tumbles through a forest, over a waterfall, swirling on and out to sea, drifting, hiding, making its way “into your bedroom,” where “it rests for a while… next to you, softly fading.” But never fear, because the moon “will come back tonight.” It’s lyrical and lovely, the art created with linocuts and water-based ink.

--Lynn

Shelf Awareness--The Stranded

YA Review: The Stranded

The Stranded by Sarah Daniels (Sourcebooks Fire, 464p., ages 12-up, 9781728258126)

Sarah Daniels fills her breathtaking futuristic YA thriller with hard-hitting social and political commentary to create a dystopia that seems eerily possible.

Forty years ago, when "war broke out in Europe" and biological warheads were deployed, Esther's grandparents were ticket holders aboard the cruise ship Arcadia. The captain "managed to squeeze on hundreds more who were fleeing for their lives" as the Virus spread. It's now 2094 and although there is no trace of the Virus "in living memory," most of the Stranded are confined to the ship. Sixteen-year-old, "pale"-skinned Esther is training to be a medic but, when she's forced to treat a member of the rebellion, her plans derail. Impulsive, brown-skinned Nik was shot by security forces while pulling an illegal prank and he's put in jeopardy the rebels' mission to escape the ship. Esther, now aware of the revolutionaries' plans, must decide whether she will take on a dangerous undercover mission to help the rebels or stay the course as a medic.

Daniels's riveting futuristic debut uses multiple points of view and careens along at a breakneck pace. Her well-drawn characters grapple with issues of corruption and betrayal, duty and loyalty, as they navigate life aboard this fascinating yet truly dysfunctional ship. A high-stakes ending wraps up the episode, but a planned sequel promises there will be more Arcadia excitement in the future. --Lynn Becker, reviewer, blogger, and children's book author.

January's Book of the Month--The Queen in the Cave

January’s Book of the Month is The Queen in the Cave, a wonderfully surreal 64-page picture book by Julia Sardà.

Franca, who feels “strange,” convinces her two younger sisters, Carmela and Tomasina, to venture out alone, “for the first time ever,” to visit “a marvelous queen who lives in the darkest cave, deep in the forest.” What follows is a magical adventure into the unknown. At times frightening, at times exciting, at times frightening and exciting, the three sisters experience the wild and the wondrous as they journey through the darkening forest. When they finally reach the cave and the queen, Carmela, the youngest, convinces Tomasina to turn back for home, where lasagna, cake, and a soft bed await. But Franca forges ahead to join the witch’s party, going “deeper into the heart of the cave,” to a place where she can be free…

An abundance of fabulous creatures populate Sardà’s eery tale, and her one-of-a-kind, dream-infused, digitally-created landscape is full of fantastical life and energetic motion. This creative, fairy tale-like adventure offers a fresh take on growing up; Franca’s two younger sisters aren’t ready to complete the journey, but one day they just might be…

--Lynn

Shelf Awareness--Hanged!

YA Review: Hanged! Mary Surratt & the Plot to Assassinate Abraham Lincoln

Hanged! Mary Surratt & the Plot to Assassinate Abraham Lincoln by Sarah Miller (Random House Studio, 352p., ages 12-up, 9780593181560)

Sarah Miller (Violet and Daisy) delves into the conflicting narratives concerning the guilt of Mary Surratt--the first woman ever executed by the United States government--in yet another absorbing work of nonfiction for teens.

After midnight on April 15, 1865, government officers "very violently" rang Mary Surratt's doorbell and demanded to search her boarding house for John Wilkes Booth and John Surratt. Earlier that evening, Booth had fired his "single-shot derringer pistol" at President Lincoln's head, then fled Ford's Theatre. Mary Surratt was an acquaintance of Booth and the mother of John Surratt, Booth's good friend and known "Confederate operative." Secretary of State William Seward had also been killed, and investigators realized another Booth associate had been preparing to assassinate Vice President Johnson. Detectives were deployed, and two days later "Mary Surratt and everyone else at 541 H Street" was arrested. Eight suspects faced a military tribunal, were tried as conspirators and charged with treason. While some of the men with whom Mary was on trial were certainly guilty, Mary's case, which turned on "knowledge" and "intent," remains inconclusive.

Hanged! uses transcripts, books, articles and archival documents to deliver a captivating look at the lead-up to Mary Surratt's trial, a feel for the day-to-day experiences of those attending and an unflinching look at what followed. Contradictory evidence presented by witnesses is endlessly fascinating and should convince readers that, regardless of the guilt or innocence of Mary Surratt, this dark episode constituted an egregious miscarriage of justice. --Lynn Becker, reviewer, blogger and children's book author.

Shelf Awareness--Namaste Is a Greeting

PB Review: Namaste Is a Greeting

Namaste Is a Greeting by Suma Subramaniam, illus. by Sandhya Prabhat (Candlewick, 32p., ages 4-8, 9781536217834)

In this charming, sparely worded picture book, Namaste Is a Greeting, a child shares possible definitions--and associated kindnesses--of the word "namaste."

The big-hearted, bindi-wearing narrator informs readers that "namaste is a greeting" as they lift hands to forehead in acknowledgement of their elderly neighbor and the new day. The brown-skinned child, dressed in a sunshine-yellow dress, acts upon other meanings of namaste--"A smile. A friendship. A celebration"--as they leave home and engage with their vibrant neighborhood. Namaste is a bow to a juice vender, an acknowledgment of a yoga practice, enjoyment in a moment of silence, an understanding that "namaste is loving the world." But namaste is more. Namaste also "calms your heart when things aren't going right," serves as "a path when the road is unclear" and can be offered as a way "to heal and comfort." Because, above all, as this loving child explains, "Namaste is the divine in me honoring the divine in you."

Debut author Suma Subramaniam has penned a lyrical narrative that thoughtfully explores the impact of a series of respectful and earnest interpretations of namaste. Sandhya Prabhat (I Am Brown) guides the plot with her brilliantly colorful digital illustrations, which showcase the caring acts the child performs. Namaste Is a Greeting poetically shows how small actions can spread comfort and goodwill throughout a neighborhood--and perhaps even the world. --Lynn Becker, reviewer, blogger, and children's book author.

December's Book of the Month--Poo-Dunnit?

December’s Book of the Month is really funny—and you just might learn something from it. POO-DUNNIT? A FOREST FLOOR MYSTERY, is written by Katelyn Aronson and illustrated by Stephanie Laberis.

When “once upon a forest floor, a snout poke[s] out a burrow door,” it’s Mouse, who finds a pile of poo sitting there. With a “sniff, sniff!” and a “whiff, whiff!” the investigation begins, because of course Mouse wants to know “Poo-dunit?” First on the suspect list is Squirrel, who says the poo is too big, then Skunk, who says it’s too thick, then Porcupine, who says it’s too long, then, well, you get the idea. None of the animals fesses up. But this big, thick, long, un-pointy, dark, messy poo must belong to someone!

The extremely entertaining story, fabulous to read aloud, is told in bouncy, clever rhyme, punctuated by Mouse calling out the progressively larger animals in an attempt to solve the mystery. Lively digital illustrations are expressive and comical. But the genius of this book is that there really is a non-fiction element to all the fun—it’s a beginner’s guide to scat! Back matter includes a guessing game and a brief introduction, while end papers use animal tracks to reinforce who poops what.

POO-DUNNIT? A FOREST FLOOR MYSTERY will surely delight kids of all ages. C’mon, who can resist a funny, rhyming book about poo? Not me!

--Lynn

Shelf Awareness--The Storyteller's Handbook

PB Review: The Storyteller's Handbook

The Storyteller's Handbook by Elise Hurst (Compendium, 128p., ages 4-up, 9781970147766)

Elise Hurst's The Storyteller's Handbook is a marvelous volume of intricately rendered illustrations expressly intended to serve as doorways to creativity. In a foreword, Neil Gaiman sets the stage with a welcoming tale of his own--a story about stories. Hurst then issues an invitation to readers to "fire your imagination," with her art offering "fragments--pieces of story, intriguing characters and animals, strange lands, and mythical beings." More than 100 pages of Hurst's detailed and fanciful art include outlandish structures, never-before-seen flora, "emotions," "possibilities, and many things out of place and out of time." Hurst intersperses her scenes with statements meant to encourage dreaming, storytelling and creativity. It's a splendid compendium with "no rules and no set stories... but so many peculiar ingredients waiting" within! --Lynn Becker, reviewer, blogger and children's book author.