Picture books for everyone

It Happened on Sweet Street by Caroline Adderson

Adderson sets up a simple pattern, making the plot easy for a small child to follow. We see Sweet Street in it's normal state, meet a character who disrupts things, and return to uneasy stasis. This pattern escalates to a breaking point, exploding in a massive food fight that will amuse most children. Attributing the resolution to a small child empowers young readers to see the change they can make in the world. And the illustrations are brightly colored and whimsical without becoming riotous and overwhelming. It's a charming story with an accessible message.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley.

Book review - The Voting Booth

Title: The Voting Booth
Author: Brandy Colbert
Genre: realistic fiction
Similar books: This Train is Being Held by Ismee Amiel Williams
                      36 Questions that Changed My Mind About You by Vicki Grant
Rating:

raises some interesting issues

Summary (provided by publisher): Marva Sheridan was born ready for this day. She's always been driven to make a difference in the world, and what better way than to vote in her first election?
Duke Crenshaw is so done with this election. He just wants to get voting over with so he can prepare for his band's first paying gig tonight.
Only problem? Duke can't vote.
When Marva sees Duke turned away from their polling place, she takes it upon herself to make sure his vote is counted. She hasn't spent months doorbelling and registering voters just to see someone denied their right. And that's how their whirlwind day begins, rushing from precinct to precinct, cutting school, waiting in endless lines, turned away time and again, trying to do one simple thing: vote. They may have started out as strangers, but as Duke and Marva team up to beat a rigged system (and find Marva's missing cat), it's clear that there's more to their connection than a shared mission for democracy.
Romantic and triumphant, The Voting Booth is proof that you can't sit around waiting for the world to change?but some things are just meant to be.

My opinion: I assumed, at first, that the plot of this book would be primarily focused on voter suppression. While that issue is addressed, it's actually only tangentially present. It's not the main theme. There's quite a lot going on here: the assumptions people meake about teach other; the ways our parents influence our decision making; how we respond to finding out we were wrong; determining which issues are worth standing up for. All of those ideas hold equal footing in this plot and it's almost too much. It would be if these ideas weren't divided between two perspective characters. We see two sides to most issues, most events, giving balance to the plot. We see how their different experiences, privilege, and racial backgrounds influence their view of events and their responses to conflict. It's a lot of plot packed into a single day of book time, providing us with just a slice of life. The ending is left open, allowing us to contemplate what the future might hold for these characters. A solid choice for a group read, as it might prompt some solid discussion.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley

Mask

Protective masks have become a part of our every day lives. I have a fabric one I've been using when I have to be in public but having to wash it regularly is getting to be tedious. And there's always the concern that you'll forget to clean it. So this weekend I made a second mask. My first mask was just woven cotton with elastic bands. I had long term comfort in mind with this mask, so I lined it with flannel and made the ear bands out of t-shirt strips.

 

Book review - Part of Your Nightmare

Title: Part of Your NIghtmare
Author: Vera Strange
Genre: horror
Similar books: Curse of the Dead-Eyed Doll by Thomas Kingsley-Troupe
                      The Fearsome Foursome by Amicus Arcane
Rating:

pass

Summary (provided by publisher): Eleven-year-old Shelly Anderson just wants to be popular. Her parents have split and she has to start over at a new school with different classes, a brand new swim team and an unfamiliar social scene. So what if she just wants the cool kids to like her? Is that really too much to ask? So when Shelly finds a mysterious nautilus shell that summons the infamous sea witch, Ursula, she jumps at her chance to make a deal that will solidify her as one of the coolest girls in school. But when Shelly's wish quickly goes belly-up, she must figure out how to back out of the witch's deal before it forever binds her fate.
Grab your night-light, dear reader, and prepare to be CHILL-ed!

My opinion: Let's be frank: I found this a failure across the board. It fails to create  complex characters, a frightening atmosphere, or a compelling plot. Shelly is a middle grade trope: a girl trying to be popular and willing to abandon all of her interests and beliefs to achieve that end. This might work if she were at all conflicted with her decisions. But she's not. She throws it all away without a thought. And the secondary and tertiary characters are no better. They have no depth, no complexity, no reality. There is no real tension in the progression of the plot, no threat that puts us on edge, no shivers or eeriness. The plot follows a predictable pattern up until the final chapters, each element telegraphed well in advance. This makes the ending that much harder to accept. It doesn't really resolve the plot. It just ends. If you're looking for a kid friendly scare, I'd look elsewhere.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley

Pick 6: Sci-fi

There are many levels of science fiction, from mostly realistic with some mild sci-fi elements to tales entirely set in a fictional world. While my personal tastes lean more towards the former, I try to read novels that fit all over the spectrum. Luckily, there are some really good sci-fi novels being written for young people these days. Here are six sci-fi novels, from beginning readers to teen novels with a special emphasis on graphic novels, written in the last six months.

6 new sci-fi novels:

1. Subject A36 by Teri Polen
2. Samurai 8 by Masashi Kashimoto
3. Alien Nate by Dave Whamand
4. GenPet by Damion Campanario
5. Once Upon a Space-Time by Jeffrey Brown
6. Nowhere on Earth by Nick Lake

Non-fiction book review - Into the Streets

Into the Streets by Marke Bieschke

It's important to get a full understanding our our nation's history, both it's triumphs and it's failings. And a history of protest is going to inherently contain both elements. Why else do people protest than because they have been failed in some fundamental way? Bieschke starts at the nation's formation gives us an overview of times that people have turned to public protest to regain rights that have been denied them. This includes movements with which we are familiar (the Boston Tea Party, Suffrage March, Bus Boycotts, the Grape Strike) and some that are likely to be foreign (the Stonewall Riots, the Miss America Protest, the Occupation of Alcatraz). The reasons they protested were varied, as were the results of their action. And importantly, the protests highlighted include some we might consider "bad", like Klan rallies, highlighting the importance of rights for everyone, regardless of the unpopularity of their opinions. Highly readable, this is an excellent addition to resources for young people needing to understand their rights.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley.

Book review - The Dream Weaver

Title: The Dream Weaver
Author: Reina Luz Alegre
Genre: realistic fiction
Similar books: In Your Shoes by Donna Gephart
                      The Dollar Kids by Jennifer Richard Jacobson
Rating:

simple but decent

Summary (provided by publisher): Zoey comes from a family of dreamers. From start-up companies to selling motorcycles, her dad is constantly chasing jobs that never seem to work out. As for Zoey, she’s willing to go along with whatever grand plans her dad dreams up—even if it means never staying in one place long enough to make real friends. Her family being together is all that matters to her.
So Zoey’s world is turned upside down when Dad announces that he’s heading to a new job in New York City without her. Instead, Zoey and her older brother, José, will stay with their Poppy at the Jersey Shore. At first, Zoey feels as lost and alone as she did after her mami died. But soon she’s distracted by an even bigger problem: the bowling alley that Poppy has owned for decades is in danger of closing!
After befriending a group of kids practicing for a summer bowling tournament, Zoey hatches a grand plan of her own to save the bowling alley. It seems like she’s found the perfect way to weave everyone’s dreams together...until unexpected events turn Zoey’s plan into one giant nightmare. Now, with her new friends counting on her and her family’s happiness hanging in the balance, Zoey will have to decide what her dream is—and how hard she’s willing to fight for it. 

My opinion: We are seeing an increasing number of books about biracial kids trying to figure out their place in the world, how they fit into two cultures and feel isolated from both, torn between the two sides of their family. Alegre adds to the conflict by showing us the extended family, the father brother and grandfather, at odds with one another. We have not only culture clash but ideological conflict and years of resentment. That alone is interesting. Then we add in peers and their interactions. Bullies, class divide, and social pressure. All of that together could easily have been too much, but Alegre keeps it in check. Mostly side issues are introduced in small moments and resolved within a few chapters. Characters clash over an issue and hash it out just a few scenes later. None of these side plots carry on very long. The final resolution is a bit rough, the conflict underdeveloped. So there are flaws, but its readable and enjoyable.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley