What are you currently reading?
Everything We Never Had by Randy Ribay - Four generations of Filipino men living in the United States
What did you recently finish reading?
All the Blues in the Sky by Renee Watson - A girl copes with grief after the sudden death of her best friend.
What do you think you'll read next?
The Secret of Moonrise Manor by Stephanie Bearce
I can't quite settle on how I feel about this book. From the start, when it was clear that the protagonist's prepper tendencies were rooted in a traumatic incident, I was anticipating a dramatic reveal. Because Adia very carefully talks around what happened without ever making it clear. And that reveal never came. There were a couple of other grand dramatic encounters that I expected that were never realized. In that way Adia defies the cliche scenes but it may not be to the book's ultimate benefit. There is no emotional resolution to some pretty significant set up. While the characters are compelling and the line by line reading is engaging, the book on the whole left a little something lacking.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley
Author: Channelle Desamours
Age range: teen
Genre: mystery
Similar book: To Whatever End by Lindsey Frydman
Summary (provided by publisher): Sariyah Lee Bryant can hear what people need—tangible things, like a pencil, a hair tie, a phone charger—an ability only her family and her best friend, Malcolm, know the truth about. But when she fulfills a need for her friend Deja who vanishes shortly after, Sariyah is left wondering if her ability is more curse than gift. This isn’t the first time one of her friends has landed on the missing persons list, and she’s determined not to let her become yet another forgotten Black girl.
Not trusting the police and media to do enough on their own, Sariyah and her friends work together to figure out what led to Deja’s disappearance. When Sariyah’s mother loses her job and her little brother faces complications with his sickle cell disease, managing her time, money, and emotions seems impossible. Desperate, Sariyah decides to hustle her need-sensing ability for cash—a choice that may not only lead her to Deja, but put her in the same danger Deja found herself in.
What I liked: I love this variant of the psychic ability. I've seen a lot of restrictions on abilities but they usually are limits on the moment a person sees or a need for physical contact. Sariyah's ability and its intrusive nature make for an excellent plot device.
What I didn't like: The mystery here, while initially compelling, never made a lot of sense to me and that only deepened as the plot progressed. It goes in directions that are too extreme. While it makes an effort to highlight the unequal treatment of missing persons based on race, the plot follows dubious logic that ultimately harms its message.
More information: Needy Little Things releases February 4.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley
What are you currently reading?
Digger by Deborah Cholette - A middle grade dystopian novel about kids in a race against time against a climate crisis.
What did you recently finish reading?
Needy Little Things by Chanelle Desamours - A teen with the innate ability to give people the thing they most need searches for answers when her friend goes missing.
What do you think you'll read next?
A Better Nightmare by Megan Freeman
Author: Libba Bray
Age range: teen
Genre: historical fiction
Similar books: Across So Many Seas by Ruth Behar
The Lost Year by Katherine Marsh (this one skews younger but has similar bones)
Summary (provided by publisher): It was said that if you write to the Bridegroom’s Oak, the love of your life will answer back. Now, the tree is giving up its secrets at last.
In 1940s Germany, Sophie is excited to discover a message waiting for her in the Bridegroom's Oak from a mysterious suitor. Meanwhile, her best friend, Hanna, is sending messages too—but not to find love. As World War II unfolds in their small town of Kleinwald, the oak may hold the key to resistance against the Nazis.
In 1980s West Germany, American teen transplant Jenny feels suffocated by her strict parents and is struggling to fit in. Until she finds herself falling for Lena, a punk-rock girl hell-bent on tearing down the wall separating West Germany from East Germany, and meeting Frau Hermann, a kind old lady with secrets of her own.
In Spring 2020, New York City, best friends Miles and Chloe are slogging through the last few months of senior year when an unexpected package from Chloe’s grandmother leads them to investigate a cold case about two unidentified teenagers who went missing under the Bridegroom’s Oak eighty years ago.
What I liked: It is apparent to the reader from very early on how these three narratives are connected. Sort of. We know that characters in the 80s and 2020 sections represent the older versions of characters from the earliest narrative; it isn't entirely clear until the end who is who, though. I spent a fair amount of my reading time guessing and changing my mind about identities. This is a deeply complex narrative but with enough in each section to drive the reader forward towards the inevitable conclusions.
What I didn't like: It is, perhaps, overly wordy at passages, lingering unnecessarily on some descriptions. And there is an element of predictability that will drive some readers away.
More information: Under the Same Stars releases February 4.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley
Author: Tamika Burgess
Age range: middle grade
Genre: realistic fiction
Similar book: A Long Pitch Home by Natalie Dias Lorenzi
Summary (provided by publisher): Danilo Osorio Jr.’s baseball skills were once the pride of his father and entire hometown of El Chorrillo, Panamá. But that was then, and this is now…
Following 1989's Operation Just Cause, a US military invasion that left his neighborhood decimated, Danilo couldn’t care less about baseball or the father who abandoned him for opportunities in the States. Now Danilo’s focus is taking care of his mamá and sister and trying to save them all from needing to relocate to a refugee camp.
When Danilo unintentionally catches the eye of a baseball recruiter and is offered the opportunity to visit and train in California—the same place as his father’s last known address—he is tasked with deciding to go or stay. But if playing baseball could help him find his father and secure the extra funds his family needs, Danilo is willing to travel anywhere, even to the very country responsible for destroying his home.
Between his tough-as-nails baseball coach, ultracompetitive teammates, and overly enthusiastic host family, Danilo’s plans encounter some curveballs. And when his turn to bat finally comes, he’ll have to decide what and who he’s actually fighting for.
What I liked: I'm all for a book that explores the impact of an historical event, especially one that we learn next to nothing about. Personally, I'm not sure that I could have told you that the US invaded Panama. Seeing the impact on the people of the region was certainly eye-opening. Not only do we learn about the destruction, Burgess is careful to point out the impact of relief efforts, the ways that it dehumanizes the victims. That makes for some pretty compelling reading.
What I didn't like: I won't say that I didn't like this, exactly, but I will admit that this is not a comfortable read. Danilo is very self-centered. While that's certainly normal for a character in this age group it makes for some pretty bad decision making and blindness to other's feelings. So this is not a book if you, like me, get itchy when characters are setting themselves up for embarrassment or to destroy their own friendships.
More information: Danilo Was Here releases January 21.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley
What are you currently reading?
The Vanished Ones by Chad Lucas - When boys start disappearing from the Mission and no one in charge seems to care, a young trainee searches for answers.
What did you recently finish reading?
Safe Harbor by Padma Venkatraman- A verse novel about a young immigrant struggling to fit in.
What do you think you'll read next?
Under the Same Stars by Libba Bray
Over the summer, a friend of mine gifted me with a rabbit. Galactus the Devourer of Worlds is a fuzzy French Lop and while she was still a baby when I got her she's now around 10 pounds of attitude and fur.
Author: Kimberly Newton Fusco
Age range: middle grade
Genre: historical fiction
Similar books: Light and Air by Mindy Nichols Wendell
Bea and the New Deal Horse by L. M. Elliot
Summary (provided by publisher): A recipe for The World’s Most Comforting, Twelve-Layer Honeycake:
1 quiet girl named Hurricane, who runs like the wind along the Mighty Atlantic with her old dog Brody-Bear.
1 imperious aunt, who steps up when Hurricane’s world turns upside down.
1 kind-hearted boy, who helps wounded animals (and may smell a little of fish)
1 lonely and flea-bitten cat with a ragged ear and a crooked tail.
1 gentle chauffeur, who knows exactly what to say…and when not to say a thing.
Mix them all together in big, fancy house in the city. What you get might surprise you.
What I liked: This is a surprisingly gentle story. With short chapters that say exactly what they need to, the reader moves quickly through the plot. Characters are allowed to develop naturally and while they aren't always likeable they are believable. All around, a solid read.
What I didn't like: Not much about this one jumps out as a problem for me. The historical setting may be a challenge for some but it doesn't lean too hard into those elements.
More information: The Secret of Honeycake releases January 21.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley
I had a plain t-shirt in my craft supplies that I decided to decorate for my mother for her birthday (which is today - Happy Birthday to Mom!). I decided on this fellow from Animaniacs for the theme:
Here's my take on him, painted with silver fabric paint.
What are you currently reading?
Where the Heart Should Be by Sarah Crossan - A verse novel about the Potato Famine
What did you recently finish reading?
The Secret of Honeycake by Kimberly Newton Fusco - When her sister falls ill with TB, a girl is sent to live with her strict aunt
What do you think you'll read next?
Danilo Was Here by Tamika Burgess
I've read books about kids being raised by preppers, but this may be the first I've read where the teen is the one instigating the changes. This book promises a protagonist responding to climate anxiety and trauma with prepping and a boy who turns her world upside down.
Until the book Al Capone Does My Shirts I hadn't given much thought to the lives of children of Alcatraz guards. Most schools teach little about the prison, focusing primarily on it's fearsome reputation, but not much about the details of life there. This book aims to change that. We learn about the way the prison was set up, allowing for some families to live on island, and how the prison was a part of their daily lives. This book is very accessible, with simple language and easy to follow text all well-supported by photos and charts. There is, of course, little detail but it's compelling reading.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley
Let's start out the year with excitement and wonder. And what better way to do that than with a book filled with magic? Some of these books feature a whole fantasy world populated by faeries and witches. Others have a small element of magic existing in an otherwise familiar world. No matter how it is represented, magic sparks our imagination and suggests that anything is possible. Here are six books published in the past six months that feature some form of magic.
Six new magical novels
When I started this blog ten years ago, I established a set structure for book reviews that I've followed ever since. It's worked for me thus far but recently I've found it more confining than helpful. So I've decided that 2025 is the year of new things. We're going to experiment with some different formats and find the one that works going forward. I'd love to hear any feedback you have as I implement these changes.
What are you currently reading?
Same Page by Elly Swartz
Girl Forgotten by April Henry
assorted Asterix books
What did you recently finish reading?
Holler of the Fireflies by David Barclay Moore
What do you think you'll read next?
Ravencave by Marcus Sedgwick
What's a cool book you reread last year?
Primates by Jim Ottaviani
What book are you looking forward to this year?
The Greatest Stuff on Earth by Steve Tomecek
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