Novel In Verse: Radiant

 

Radiant

by Vaunda Micheaux Nelson

Dutton Children's Books

an impint of Penguin Random House LLC

2025 

320 pages

ISBN: 9780593855782

The year is 1963 and Cooper Dale is in fifth grade, and she is not at all happy to be in Mrs. Keating, aka the Queen of Darkness's, class. 

Set in history, this novel in verse tells the story of turbulent times: there's a bombing in the Baptist church in Alabama, and four little black girls are killed. Cooper is worried about the violence and afraid the KKK might come to her church or her neighborhood. She wonders why white people hate black people so much. She hears Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech and wonders when it will be that people are not judged by the color of their skin. She sometimes wishes she were white, "But sometimes I don't want to be black...but sometimes, sometimes, I just want to be white." In a poem called "If," Cooper says, "If I could--/I would/take my box of crayons/and color the world/the way I want."

Cooper's personal problems include growing apart from her now fourteen-year old sister and a mean boy named Wade in her class who calls her "Mud Face" and bullies her. What's worse is that Cooper's mother works as a maid for the mean boy's mother. Cooper is embarrassed her mother has to clean up after Wade and his family.

One problem is solved when Beatlemania (notice the album cover the girl is holding on the book cover art) takes over the country, both Cooper and her sister Maxine are crazed. They are brought back together in their shared love of the Fab Four. 

As the British Invastion sweeps the nation and teens are brought to tears, the entire country comes to a complete stop on November 22, 1963, the day beloved President John F. Kennedy is assassinated. The adults watch the news and talk about politics, and, of course, Cooper hears what's transpiring around the country. Her mother and father debate the activism of Malcom X. 

Wade's mother dies, and Cooper and her mother attend the funeral. Wade eventually comes back to school, but he's a changed person. Cooper empathizes with him even though he's been nothing but a terror to her all year. Cooper even changes her mind about Mrs. Keating. She's not the Queen of Darkness after all. 

Perfect for reluctant readers, Radiant shines! It will likely be a contender for awards season this year. Vaunda Micheaux Nelson, the winner of the Coretta Scott King Award, may have to clear off more space on her mantle. 

Highly recommended grades 4 and up. Radiant would be great for classroom reading. Savvy librarians will purchase a class set and a few other copies for circulation. 

Non-Fiction Picture Book: Dinosaurs in Space

 

Dinosaurs In Space

by Todd Sturgell

Illustrations by the author

Sourcebooks

2024

40 pages

ISBN: 9781728236278

A dinosaur named Austro gives a lesson on dinosaur fossils and the asteroid that wiped them out and blasted pieces and bones into space. Pachy (another dinosaur) keeps interrupting the lesson and adding fun tidbits for young readers to think about. Could there be dinosaurs on the moon? On Mars? Maybe there's dinosaur zombies out there. Austro assures him there are not. The fun banter between the two is full of whimsy and will entertain the reader. Pages follow with more information about various dinosaurs and the asteroid that hit earth. 

Fantastic illustrations by Sturgell make this picture book a winner. It will be one of the most frequent check-outs in any library, so savvy librarians will order several copies. With "dinosaur" in the title, many kids will be attracted to this book. 

Highly recommended grade 3 and up independent readers. Younger children will love the book, but an adult will have to read it to them. 

Picture Book Pick: When Alexander Graced the Table

 

When Alexander Graced the Table

by Alexander Smalls and Denene Millner

Illustrated by Frand Morrison 

Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

an imprint of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division

2025

40 pages

ISBN: 9781534488724

Gorgeous illustrations by Coretta Scott KIng Award winner Frank Morrison and a story based on James Beard Award winning chef Alexander Smalls own childhood make this book a must have for every library and child's book shelf. 

Alexander loves to help his mama in the kitchen, and Sunday dinner is a major production in their home. So big, in fact, they'd start planning and cooking on Saturday night. His mama includes his help in every dish: he picks peas and collards from the garden and lemons from the tree, he peels eggs for the potato salad and grates the cheese for mac and cheese. All of this is done with commitment and love. The entire family gathers on Sunday to share the bounty and joy. Even though the dinners are special and filled with love, his papa never seems impressed. 

Alexander wishes he could impress his father. One Saturday evening, his mother says 
Alexander can make a special dessert for Sunday dinner. He is so proud, and gets right to work, making lemon icebox pie, his father's favorite. Mama puts it on a fancy cake stand and Alexander delivers it to the table. Papa says the pie looks great, and Alexander holds his breath, hoping his father will love the taste. His father takes a bite and is impressed. Alexander beams with pride, and the memory of his father trying his pie and loving it will stay with him forever.

Highly recommended ages 3 and up. When 
Alexander Graced the Table will likely be a popular pick in awards this award season. 

Graphic Novel PIck: PAWS: Hazel Has Her Hands Full

 

PAWS: Hazel Has Her Hands Full

by Nathan Fairbairn

Illustrated by Michele Assarasakorn

G.P. Putnam's Sons 

an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC

2025

176 pages

Color Illustrations

ISBN: 9780593695807

Book Four in the PAWS series follows twelve-year old Hazel who has moved from Toronto to Vancouver. At first, she was worried she wouldn't be able to make friends or that some people might be mean to her, but she quickly makes friends with Gabby and Priya and later their friend Mindy. They happily welcome her to their PAWS group which stands for Pretty Awesome Walkers where the girls walk other people's dogs for pay. Even though Hazel uses a wheelchair, she can use her legs but only for short distances due to her spinal muscular atrophy. 

With school almost out for the summer, the girls share their summer plans. Gabby is in too many camps to count, Mindy must visit her father for a month and Priya doesn't want to ride the bus twice a day to get to their clients' houses. Hazel is on her own: no one can help her with PAWS. Her mother has made it clear she is only to walk dogs with others, never alone. When a cat sitting job presents itself, Hazel takes the gig and lies to her mother telling her Gabby is helping her. Hazel worries her mom will find out, but she's too afraid to come clean. 

Balancing walking the dogs while her friends are gone and cat sitting for her new clients, Hazel begins to get fatigued. She worries she got herself into a real mess. When the cats accidentally escape, Hazel turns to her friends and their families to help her search for them. One thing she knows for sure: In a crisis, people get together. 

Highly recommended for fans of graphic novels and readers of the series. It is not necessary to read the first three books to understand book four; however, most readers may want to find the first three after reading Hazel Has Her Hands Full. 

Grades 5 and up. 

Community Center Pick: Saturday Morning at the 'Shop

 

Saturday Morning at the 'Shop

by Keenan Jones

Illustrations by Ken Daley

Beach Lane Books

Simon & Schuster, LLC

32 pages

2025

ISBN: 9781665940801

What a joyous and positivie picture book that celebrates a Saturday morning tradition! 

Every Saturday a young boy goes to the barber shop to see all his friends, neighbors and relatives. The 'Shop is the heartbeat of the community. It is not just about the haircuts and the shaves. The 'Shop is a history lesson taught by barbers and friends. It's a playground for the boys until Mr. Charles tells them "to settle down." It's a fashion show, a comedy club, a sports bar, and even a showroom for the neighborhood tailer, and a listening booth to hear David Jr.'s new tracks. Every Saturday is like a family reunion and a time to learn about black history. Every Saturday, the young boy learns something new. 

Illustrations by Ken Daley capture the movement, the joy, and the personality of the shop: it is welcoming, colorful, vibrant and noisy. You can almost hear the noises of the shop from the illustrations. This neighborhood is lucky indeed to have a weekly meeting place for young boys and men to share stories and tell jokes. Saturday Morning at the 'Shop exudes happiness, belonging and love. 

Highly, highly recommended ages 3 and up. 

Picture Book Pick: The Hare Who Wouldn't Share

 

The Hare Who Wouldn't Share 

by Steve Small 

Illustrations by the author

A Paula Wiseman Book

Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

Originally published in 2024 in Great Britain by Simon & Schuster, UK Ltd 

32 pages

2025

ISBN: 9781665972932

When a family of rabbits show up and become his neighbors, Hare in not friendly. In fact, he sends them away hungry, refusing to give them any of HIS turnips. He tells the rabbits to keep on moving and he does not share his food. 

Hare stays to himself, enjoying his solitude while the rabbits work to plant a big garden of carrots. Even Hare is impressed when he sees it. The rabbits invite him to share their carrot soup, but Hare declines and says he does not need nor want their friendship. Hare cannot believe the kind rabbits would share the food that they worked so hard to grow. 

One night, a ravenous wild boar shows up and steals Hare's turnips. The boar is not sated and goes in search of more free food. He heads off toward the rabbits' home. Hare realizing they are in danger, does something completely unexpected! He races to trick the boar and save his neighbors. His plan works, and the rabbits and their carrots are safe. 

Hare rushes back home to save his turnips, but the greedy boar has eaten every single turnip. The rabbits plead with the Hare to stay with them for the long winter. As Hare watches the rabbits share and work together, he begins to change his mind. He decides being around others isn't so bad. In fact, it's quite nice. 

The Hare Who Wouldn't Share is an uplifting story of a curmudgeonly, selfish hare who learns to live and work with others and most importantly, learns to share. Ages 2 and up. 

Fail-A-Bration

 

Fail-A-Bration

by Brad and Kristi Montague

Dial Books for Young Readers

An imprint of Penguin Random House LLC 

2024

40 pages 

ISBN: 9780593697146

Maybe things didn't turn out the way you wanted. Maybe the cake you baked turned out messed up. Maybe you failed at something important, but author Brad and Kristi Montague have a positive message for all the messers, missers, the late to the party, the ones who came in last place--everyone makes mistakes. The important thing is to realize that you learned from your mistake and tomorrow, you will "...fail better." 

The concept of throwing a Fail-A-Bration is lovely. Everyone is invited to share and talk and learn from each other. Bring your messed up cake, show up in your shirt you spilled chocolate milk on earlier, share the time you fell down and got embarrassed, and talk about the time you tried so hard but failed. You learned! 

What a simple, positive concept. Children need this book, libraries need this book, parents need this book. The positive message that failure happens to everyone and it is okay to feel sad or mad or cry, but you could throw a Fail-A-Bration to make your failure a positive experience for you and everyone else.

The rhyming text keeps the message light-hearted and positive. Illustrations are mixed media and include collage elements, string, cardboard, double sided tape, acrylic paint and even cookies! All the pieces were "rescued" from the authors' recycling bin, Use this picture book to teach about the concept mixed media art of reusing and repurposing common items from the recycling bin to create art. 

Highly recommended for all. Ages 2 and up. 

Cute Picture Book Pick: Have You Seen My Acorn?

 

Have You Seen My Acorn? 

by DK Ryland

illustrations by the author 

Flamingo Books

an imprint of Penguin Random House, LLC
2024

32 pages

ISBN:9780593622421

A clueless squirrel is in a tizzy when he can't find his acorn. He runs to each of his friends in the woodland: Skunk, Raccoon, Deer and Fox but none of them can find it. Squirrel is in such a huge hurry, he never stays long enough to hear what each friend is trying to tell him. He rushes off in search of his elusive acorn all the while right under his nose! Finally Owl drops an acorn from his tree, and Squirrel is so happy to see his missing acorn, so he decides to bury it! Young readers will solve the mystery of the missing acorn long before Squirrel "finds" his new acorn. 

Clever banter between the animals uses new and fun words for readers: chitchat, skedaddled, scurried, literally and morals. The use of onomatapeoia allows the adult, or older reader, the chance to embellish the word sounds including sounds animals make like "rat-tat-tat" and "whoo! whoo!" Words in bold and all caps direct the reader to make sure and put emphasis on them. 

This is such a fun book! Any reader will giggle as Squirrel scampers all over the forest when the entire time, his acorn has been visible...except it's turning into a small plant that will grow to a giant oak. 

Ages 3 and up. A must-have, must-read for every child and every library. 

Non-Fiction Picture Book Pick: The Dog That Dug For Dinosaurs

 

The Dog Who Dug For Dinosaurs

Ready-To-Read Level Three

by Shirley Raye Redmond

Illustrations Simon Sullivan 

Simon Spotlight

An imprint of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division

2024

Text and illustrations copyright 2004

32 pages

ISBN: 9781665963329

Even the most reluctant reader will want to read about a real life dog who loved to dig for fossils. One day, Mary Ann and her dog Tray discover giant bones on the cliff. They run and find grown ups to help them. The town is surprised to find the largest bones anyone has ever seen. A wealthy man offers to buy the bones and give them to the British Museum in London. The "monster" discovered by Tray was an ichthyosaur, or fish lizard. 

Soon people were flocking to Lyme Regis to see where the bones were found. Scientists were deeply interested in the find and an Oxford scientist, William Buckland, visits and asks Mary Ann to show him where Tray discovered the bones. Tray comes through again. He sniffs out the bones of a plesiosaur and later a pterodactyl--a fossil never seen in England before. The little dog that dug for dinosaurs became famous and people visited Mary Ann's village to buy fossils and search the cliffs. 

The bones and fossils discovered by Tray and Mary Ann are on exhibition at the Natural History Museum in London today. 

Highly recommended for readers who like non-fiction and dinosaurs, but Tray is charmingly captivating and will keep any reader entertained as they learn about fossils, dinosaurs and discovery. 

Grades 3 and up. Level Three books feature more character development, more difficult vocabulary, longer sentences and more complex sentence structure. 

Funny Getaway Picture Book: Stop That Mop!

 

Stop That Mop!

Ready To Read Level One

by Jonathan Fenske

Illustrations by the author 

Simon Spotlight

An imprint of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division

2025

32 pages

ISBN: 9781665932721

An unhappy mop is sick and tired of having to mop and mop and mop all the slop and glop, so they decide to run away. They run away from the pig who's chasing them. A bunny joins in the chase followed by a pony and a fishy. The group of animals continues to chase the nimble mop until they all reach a stop sign, warning of a cliff drop off ahead. 

The mop is not done yet. They fall the cliff and are saved by a bird, but the mop wins freedom as the flabbergasted and tired chasers look on. 

The fun rhyming story will likely be your toddler's favorite book. The mop is winsome, silly, entertaining and speedy. Fenske captures each animal's personality using colorful, almost cartoon-like facial expressions and body language. This book is a rare gem and a must-read. Beginning readers will be captivated by the easy rhymes featuring easy words to sound out and it will help them with their first sight words. 

This picture book is a Theodor Seeuss Geisel Honor Winner and a Junior Library Guild Selection and will be a popular pick for awards this year. 

Highly, highly recommended ages 18 months and up. 

Reinventing Robert Frost: A Picture Book Rewrites Robert Frost's Poetry

 

Stopping By the Jungle on a Snowy Evening 

by Richard T. Morris

Illustrated by Julie Rowan-Zoch

A Caitlain Dlouhy Book

Atheneum Books for Young Readers 

2025

40 pages

ISBN: 9781482478021

This clever redux of Robert Frost's "Stopping By the Woods on a Snowy Evening" is witty, irreverent, and entertaining. 

Frost's famous poem is set in a snowy wood on the "darkest evening of the year."  In the poem, the narrator describes the setting as having "easy wind" and "downy flake" and the "woods are lovely, dark and deep." He halts his horse to watch the snow fall, enjoying the silence and darkness. 

A young boy reimagines the poem. He sees the woods, but his ride is a hippopotamus with a jingle bell collar. Robert Frost appears at a window, correcting  the  boy, telling him it's not a hippo, it is in fact supposed to be a horse. The boy, not convinced, asks the man who he is. Frost defends his poem, "I wrote this poem." The boy says he only sees his hippo, no horse at all, and changes Frost's work to a jungle setting. Frost disagrees, saying it does not snow in the jungle. As Frost continues to pontificate, the boy says it's boring, so boring that the hippo has fallen asleep. The boy continues to add fun to the poem with a giant snake, a hippo that does karate, an incoming meteor, a tidal wave, and an alien invasion. 

The surprise ending uses lines from another Frost poem and ties the new poem and its exciting story together. The Frost character ends up loving the redux and riding off with the boy atop the blue hippo.

At the beginning of the book, you can almost hear the disdain in Frost's voice as he points his finger and "schools" the young boy. When he says he wrote the poem, the word "wrote" is in bold font, directing the reader to give more emphasis, or inflection, to this word. Frost carries a notebook and pen, further showing him as a man of learning. He pulls out a podium to recite the last stanza of his poem, emphasizing the fact he is a writer/poet who recites his poems in the public. He's soon interrupted when the aliens show up and he must hop on the rhino with the boy as the boy shouts, "Run for your lives!" 

This fun interpretation includes the original poem after the story. For younger kids, read the poem after the story. For older children, read the poem first so that they have a starting point. The humor will make much more sense if they are familiar with the poem. This is a great conversation opener for a unit on modern poetry (by modern, I am including the twentieth century to the present). 

Highly, highly recommended ages 3 and up. It would be a fun creative writing lesson to have students choose a famous poem and rewrite it to "jazz it up a bit." Who knows? Maybe their outcome becomes a picture book! 

Picture Book Pick: Freedom Braids

 

Freedom Braids 

by Monique Duncan

Illustrations by Oboh Moses

Lantana Publishing

Lerner Publishing Group, Inc. 

first published in the U.K. 

2024

32 pages

ISBN: 9781915244802

Freedom Braids is the story of a young girl named Nemy who lived in Columbia on a plantation that harvested sugar cane. The author's note explains her story is based on people who were taken from Africa and enslaved in North and South America. In Nemy's case, she escapes with a group of women led by one known as  "Big Mother," a slave who leads them to freedom. 

The braids the women wove in their hair represented paths to freedom, and even where Spanish troops were encamped.  A style called "El Undihito" was used for women who hid gold and seeds in their braids, These seeds were transported and used to plant crops when they arrived on free soil. The people fled to the mountains where they could hide in the dense forests in freedom. They built "palenques," or communities, and often would help others escape to join them. 

Beautiful art by Oboh Moses captures the women braiding each other's hair by the light of a fire. In one spread, the darkness of the forest at night is stunning in black and colors of dark blue. As the page turns, it is sunrise as Nemy looks to the mountains, the back of her head dominant to highlight her braids that zigzag like the river in front of her. The dark blues and black are replaced by hues of purple, pink and green with a blue river winding down the mountain. Nemy and the women reach freedom, "And in the light of a new dawn, she found a way home." 

It is a rare experience to encounter such a powerful picture book. Its beauty is only eclipsed by the amazing story told by a master storyteller, Monique Duncan. The end pages feature each of the braided hairstyles. 

Freedom Braids is a MUST HAVE, MUST READ for everyone of all ages. Libraries should plan on purchasing multiple copies as this will be a popular check-out. 

The most highly of recommended! Ages 3 and up. 

Picture Book Pick: Who's Writing This Story?

Who's Writing This Story?

by Robin Newman

Illustrated by Deborah Zemke 

Creston Books, LLC

2024

32 pages

ISBN: 9781954354296

A brilliant take on "The Three Little Pigs" features an author who is writing the story and the characters, the three little pigs, who step in and take over! What happens to a writer when the characters steer the ship? 

Comic-book like illustrations by Deborah Zemke will enthrall as young readers laugh their way through the pages as the silly antics of the three little pigs unfold. Even the Big Bad Wolf has his own "take" on the story. He's tired of being the bad guy and wants to be the good guy, the protagonist. He wants friends. As each character steps up, the writer changes the setting and the story, but she takes a stand on the five elements of a story: plot, setting, characters, conflict and resolution. The pigs and the wolf disagree and, "...wrote the writer right out of their story." 

Creative and funny, Who's Writing This Story is a standout among all other picture books. It's likely both the author and illustrator will earn awards for this one. Anyone teaching any writing class or English class needs this book. Every writer needs this book to remind them of the basics while entertaining them with a new twist to an old story.  Never as "The Three Little Pigs" been both winsome, necessary and funny. 

Highly, highly recommended. You NEED this book for every collection and writer's desk. A fantastic gift for any budding writer; furthermore, even a seasoned author like David Baldacci or Stephen King will enjoy the storytelling. 

Ages 7 and up and recommended as a gift for everyone who is writing. 

Picture Book Pick: Still My Tessa

 

Awards:

Award Winner, CBC Kids Reads, 2024

Commended, Best Books for Kids and Teens, Canadian Children's Book Centrre, 2024

Nominated, OLA Blue Spruce Award, 2025

My Review: 

Still My Tessa

by Sylv Chiang

Illustrated by Mathias Ball 

North Winds Press

Scholastic Canada Ltd. 

2024

32 pages 

9781443196239

Younger sister Evelyn misses her older sister Tessa, but Tessa doesn't want to play or talk. She stays in her room or wears her headphones everywhere. When Tessa confronts her older sis, Tessa tells her that she is not her sister anymore. Tessa instructs Evelyn to refer to her as her sibling, not sister nor brother. 

Tessa explains that pronouns are important, and she uses "they" or "them." It takes about a week, but Evelyn learns the correct pronouns, and Tessa seems happier. When the family goes on a bike ride and gets ice cream, their parents warn the siblings that it's not necessary to tell everyone Tessa's gender. Evelyn disagrees, knowing it is important. Later, Mom uses "non-binary" as she refers to Tessa and Tessa smiles. Readers see the personal growth of the entire family of four: Tessa is much happier when people use her pronouns and understand that she is neither a boy nor a girl, Evelyn becomes her sibling's ally and instructs others about how important pronouns are, the parents use the correct pronouns and introduce Tesssa as "non-binary." 

Included in the book are pages defining the terms: non-binary, ally and pronouns as it refers to gender and tips to become a "pronoun ally." 

Still My Tessa is a powerful story about a family learning to use pronouns and understand how important being an ally is for any person, young or old. 

This picture book is a must-have for all library collections. Ages 3 and up. 

Middle Grade Pick: Camp Twisted Pine

 Camp Twisted Pine 

by Ciera Burch

Margaret K. McElderry Books

An imprint of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division

2024

256 pages

ISBN: 9781665930574

Camp Twisted Pine is a spooky middle grade read with just the right amount of the elements kids love about summer camp. The author dedicates the book to, "...all the kids who wanted to go to summer camp but weren't allowed to...," and those readers will visit Camp Twisted pine through the eyes of eleven-year old Naomi. 

Although she doesn't want to go to camp, she finds out that she and her twin younger brothers are being shipped off for the summer while her parents sort out their separation and impending divorce. While Naomi was ready to hate camp, once she's there, it's not so bad. The counselors are okay, the cabin is decent and she gets along with the other campers and becomes friends with Jackie. Jackie is hard of hearing and teaches Naomi ASL (American Sign Language) as the girls become closer. 

There's something amiss in the woods, and the scary stories told at the campfire has Naomi on edge. When a kid goes missing, Naomi convinces Jackie that they better solve the mystery of just what is out there in the woods. Could the Jersey Devil be real? 

Readers will cheer for Naomi as she unravels the mystery: she's fearless, smart and driven. For all those readers who have never been to camp, Camp Twisted Pine is the answer. 

Recommended grades 5 and up. A little spooky, but no gore.