High School Pick: Here To Stay

Here To Stay
by Sara Farizan
Algonquin Young Readers
2018
204 pages
ISBN: 9781616208721

Shy teen Bijan Mijadi  loves basketball and plays on his school's JV squad. When he's called up to the varsity squad and sinks  with the winning basket, he's his school's new  hero. Students congratulate him and the coach even asks Bijan to join the varsity squad for the rest of the season. Not everyone is happy to see Bijan join the team. Some people want him to fail.

When a photo of Bijan is photoshopped  to make him look like a terrorist, the school administrator is outraged and vows to find the culprit and punish him or her. Some students rally  together to champion Bijan, but he just wants the incident to go away. Islamophobia and hate speech does not just "go away" his mother insists. She and other parents meet and pass out flyers to rally the community. Bijan is now poster boy for a movement he wants no part of. Can't he just play basketball and crush on cute girl Elle in peace?

Play by play announcers,real-life basketball announcers Kevin and Reggie (Kevin Harlan and Reggie Miller),  provide narration for some of Bijan's inner thoughts and epic fails. Their tongue-in-cheek banter makes this novel special. Basketball terminology and the mention of game legends like Bill Laimbeer (legendary bad boy player fans loved to hate) make Here To Stay a smart addition to sports fiction. It's obvious that Farizan knows a thing or two about the sport.

This timely topic will resonate with readers of all backgrounds. Bijan is a character they'll fall in love with. Here To Stay will be on the top of all awards lists this season! Can you say TAYSHAS?

Highly, highly recommended grade 8-up. A MUST READ.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

Picture Perfect: Antoinette

Antoinette
by Kelly Dipucchio
illustrations by Christian Robinson
Antheneum Books for Young Reads
2017
32 pages
ISBN: 9781481457835
Available February 14, 2017

From the writer and illustrator that brought young readers Gaston (2014), their new picture book, Antoinette,  is bound to become a new favorite. Charming illustrations capture the beauty of Paris with its parks, cafes, streets and museums, Shop sign names are in French, and young readers will pick up a few French words. The playful puppies  are precious and lovable (just don't tell them!).

A family of bulldogs and poodles are friends and playmates. Antoinette's brothers all have a special asset: Ricky is fast, Bruno is strong and Rocky is clever, but Antoinette still has not found her secret talent. Mother bulldog tries to cheer Antoinette (who looks like the poodle family) up and tells her not to worry, that her talent will emerge some day.

One day at the park, the youngest poodle wanders off chasing a butterfly. Antoinette goes into high gear searching for Ooh-la-la! Using her incredible tracking skills and a nose that knows, Antoinette is able to track and save the little puppy from danger. Antoinette later becomes one of Paris's beloved police dogs!

Although the puppies are the main characters, the people who appear show ethnic diversity. Friendship, belonging, family, courage and taking a stand are embraced in a sweet story of fitting in and finding one's own voice.

Highly recommended ages 1-up.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

Middle Grades Book Giveaway: The Littlest Bigfoot

The Littlest Bigfoot

by Jennifer Weiner

Aladdin

2016

ISBN: 9781481470742

I have 5  FREE copies of The Littlest Bigfoot up for grabs! For your chance to win a copy, simply post a comment to the blog. Please include your first name, city, state, and email contact. The deadline for posts is Wednesday, October 19 at noon MST. Winners will be chosen randomly by Randomizer. Check your email on October 19. Winners have 24 hours to respond to my  email. Books will ship from New York. Good luck and start posting!

Reviews

"A charming story about finding a safe place to let your freak flag fly." (People)

"Bestselling adult author Weiner (In Her Shoes) makes a winning children’s book debut with this witty story of outcasts coming together, first in a trilogy. . . .Well-drawn characters, high comedy, and an open-ended finale will leave readers eager for the next installment."

  (Publishers Weekly)

"Weiner writes an engaging tale that helps children to understand both bullying and the difficulties faced by people who in some way deviate from the norm. . . . Enchanting right up to the sequel-beckoning end."

  (Kirkus Reviews)

"A heartwarming tale about friendship and belonging that will resonate with those young readers who have ever struggled to fit in or find their place in the world."

  (School Library Journal)

"Bigfoot believers and non-believers alike will enjoy this story that focuses on the importance of friendship and acceptance amidst bullying, loneliness, and a lack of self-confidence."

  (School Library Connection)

"Plenty of youngsters—legendary creatures or not—will relate to this smartly crafted tale of appreciating your own quirks." (Bulletin of the Center of Children's Books)

Middle Grades Book Giveaway: The Littlest Bigfoot

The Littlest Bigfoot

by Jennifer Weiner

Aladdin

2016

ISBN: 9781481470742

I have 5  FREE copies of The Littlest Bigfoot up for grabs! For your chance to win a copy, simply post a comment to the blog. Please include your first name, city, state, and email contact. The deadline for posts is Wednesday, October 19 at noon MST. Winners will be chosen randomly by Randomizer. Check your email on October 19. Winners have 24 hours to respond to my  email. Books will ship from New York. Good luck and start posting!

Reviews

"A charming story about finding a safe place to let your freak flag fly." (People)

"Bestselling adult author Weiner (In Her Shoes) makes a winning children’s book debut with this witty story of outcasts coming together, first in a trilogy. . . .Well-drawn characters, high comedy, and an open-ended finale will leave readers eager for the next installment."

  (Publishers Weekly)

"Weiner writes an engaging tale that helps children to understand both bullying and the difficulties faced by people who in some way deviate from the norm. . . . Enchanting right up to the sequel-beckoning end."

  (Kirkus Reviews)

"A heartwarming tale about friendship and belonging that will resonate with those young readers who have ever struggled to fit in or find their place in the world."

  (School Library Journal)

"Bigfoot believers and non-believers alike will enjoy this story that focuses on the importance of friendship and acceptance amidst bullying, loneliness, and a lack of self-confidence."

  (School Library Connection)

"Plenty of youngsters—legendary creatures or not—will relate to this smartly crafted tale of appreciating your own quirks." (Bulletin of the Center of Children's Books)

YA Pick: The Hundred Lies of Lizzie Lovett

The Hundred Lies of Lizzie Lovett
Sourcebooks Fire
Chelsea Sedoti
2017
400 pages
ISBN: 9781492636083

Available January 2017

Twisted and taut, The Hundred Lies of Lizzie Lovett will pull at your heartstrings, make you angry, and leave you breathless. Set in a small town that nobody cares about and where nothing interesting ever happens, the story opens with the disappearance of a popular cheerleader. Lizzie is the golden girl that every boy dreams about and every girl tries to be or at least align herself with in the glorified atmosphere that surrounds Lizzie.

Introvert, passive Hawthorn throws  herself into the search for clues in Lizzie's disappearance. Although she hates Lizzie and is secretly jealous of her, Hawthorn will do anything--literally--to find the truth.  Driven by curiosity and a strange passion for wild storytelling, Hawthorn paints a picture of what might have happened to Lizzie.

Did she just disappear? Or did someone wish her harm? Hawthorn does not buy the idea that Lizzie's boyfriend Enzo did it. Maybe Lizzie somehow magically shed her human form and became a wolf. She was--after all--fascinated by wolves. Hawthorn begins to research werewolf lore obsessed with the idea that something magical must have happened to Lizzie.

In order to carry out her ruse, Hawthorn takes a job (Lizzie's old job) at a nearby diner. There she meets tortured musician and Lizzie's ex-boyfriend Enzo. Now Hawthorn is in the position she's always wanted. She is living Lizzie's charmed life. She has the boyfriend and the job.

The closer Hawthorn gets to  Enzo, the more she finds herself falling in love with him. This is all wrong. Enzo is an adult--several years older than Hawthorn. That, and the possibility that he's a murderer should be enough to give Hawthorn a pause, but it doesn't. If anything, it seems to drive her into his arms. Hawthorn's thoughts are  almost too painful to read at this point.


Hawthorn has a difficult time processing what really happened to Lizzie. With her imaginative storytelling behind her, Hawthorn is forced to face facts. How many times does a person lie to herself and to others? What if your entire persona is a lie? What if reality and persona are completely at odds? Wise Yoda-like hippie Sundog tells Hawthorn, "You only know the part of the story people want you to see."

The book comes to an end with Hawthorn learning about real life, not the magical dream world she seems to have built. The Hundred Lies of Lizzie Lovett is difficult to digest. It will haunt readers long after they have finished the book.

Recommended grade 9-up. Teen behavior, mean girls, bullying, mature content, teen sex.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received the ARC from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

YA Pick: Me Being Me Is Exacly as Insane as You Being You

Me Being Me Is Exactly as Insane as You  Being You
by Todd Hasak-Lowy
Simon Pulse
2015
646 pages (no kidding!)
ISBN: 978144495739


The girth of this novel will scare away some readers but not if they realize most of the book is written in short, choppy lists. The format is easy to love and easy to read.

Readers will empathize with the main character. Darren's life is messed up! His parents divorce, his older brother goes to college, his best friend moves away, his dad drops a bombshell (he's gay), and later Mom tells him that she's moving across country. No one is acting as they "should," and Darren begins listing everything wrong with everything.

The format works and lets readers see what's bothering Darren through third person point of view as Darren refers to himself in the third person. Emotions leap off the pages through Darren's lists. He feels grief, disappointment, sadness, loneliness, and surprisingly, great compassion.

Through the lists, Darren's voice comes through. He's just a kid who's learning how to fit in. He's a bit overweight and self-conscious, he's seriously crushing on a cute girl, he's not speaking to his dad, he's mad at this mom, and he's disappointed with his brother. All this adds up to the expected overblown teen angst so familiar in YA, but the author does it better. Darren is a character who comes through the pages. Readers will commiserate with him as he navigates through the problems and obstacles with sarcasm and wit.

I thought the novel dragged in several places and easily could have been cut 150 pages or so and still would be a compelling read. A shorter book may have packed a stronger punch. Boys will believe in Darren and girls can study teen boy behavior. It's quite entertaining.

Recommended grade 9-up. This is NOT for middle school. At all. Sex, drugs, rock and roll, profanity. The usual suspects.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

Middle Grade Book Giveaway and Review: The Girl in the Well Is Me

I have THREE copies of The Girl in the Well Is Me up for grabs. For your chance to win, simply post a comment to the blog. Be sure to include your first name, city, state, and email. Deadline for posts is Thursday, February 18 at noon MST. Winners will be chosen on that date randomly by Randomizer. Check your email shortly after noon MST. Winners have 24 hours to respond to my email. Books will ship from the publisher. Publisher is able to ship to U.S. addresses. Good luck and start posting! Pamela


The Girl in the Well Is Me
by Karen Rivers
Algonquin Young Readers
2016
224 pages
ISBN: 9781616205690

Available March 15, 2016

Praise for The Girl in the Well Is Me:

"A brilliantly revealed, sometimes even funny, exploration of courage, the will to live, and the importance of being true to oneself. The catastrophe draws readers in, and the universality of spunky Kammie's life-affirming journey will engage a wide audience. Moving, suspenseful, and impossible to put down."—Kirkus Reviews, starred review

“I dare you to pick up this riveting novel without reading straight through to its heart-stopping conclusion. Karen Rivers has penned a dazzling voice, at once hilarious, heartbreaking, and searingly honest. The Girl in the Well Is Me is a triumph.”—Katherine Applegate, Newbery Medal-winning author of The One and Only Ivan

“A gripping story that doesn’t shy away from dark places but explores them with heart, humor, and light . . . This book will spark thoughtful conversations about choices, consequences, and what makes us who we are.” —Kate Messner, author of All the Answers

“Funny, surreal, occasionally heartbreaking…a compulsively readable story.” —School Library Journal

“This is a fascinatingly well told story that strongly reminded me of Libba Bray’s Going Bovine, but with a completely believable middle grade flavor.”—Teen Librarian Toolbox / School Library Journal

 

MY REVIEW:

Poignant, profound, and heart-warming, The Girl in the Well Is Me will speak to readers on every level. At times, laugh out loud funny, at times grippingly sad, at times over the top optimistic, at times irreverent, at times harsh, but at all times rich in voice and full of heart and character.

Kammie Summers  is a spunky eleven  year old uprooted from a comfortable existence  in New Jersey where her life was full of a loving family, shared jokes, expensive ice skating lessons, riding lessons and all the trappings of a upper middle class family. It all comes crashing down when her  father is arrested for embezzlement. Now Kammie  lives in a dusty town in Texas with her mother and brother in an old  trailer where  her mother is suddenly hoarding cats and her father is in prison. Kammie's mom works two jobs and her once fun and friendly older brother turns into  a  teenager with an anger problem. Kammie's grandmother recently passed away but Kammie fondly remembers all of her wit and wisdom. Kammie longs for her other life in New Jersey, her normal life. In Texas, she has nothing; all her dreams are dashed. There is no more laughter in her home. Their trailer isn't home; Texas isn't her home.

Kammie tries to make friends with a popular triad of mean girls who pretend they want her to join their group, but they trick her into standing on a piece of wood on the ground. The wood breaks, sending Kammie into an abandoned well. At first, Kammie is mad at the three girls. She knows they did it on purpose and are probably  laughing. As the hours pass and the girls seemingly abandon Kammie, she begins thinking about everything that brought her to this place, this well, where she could quite possibly die. Kammie begins to get claustrophobic and that makes her worry about her asthma. She can't have an asthma attack in the well, and even if she had her inhaler with her, she wouldn't be able to reach it. She can't move her arms at all; they are pinned to the sides of the well. As oxygen in the well begins to dissipate Kammie hallucinates about a coyote who speaks French and zombie goats and dying. She thinks of her dog Hayfield and cries. She cries about missing her grandmother, and about her dad and his lies, she cries that everyone over eleven is a liar.

Readers will LOVE Kammie. She has great heart, resiliency, strength and character. She holds a mirror up to the adults around her and shows their flaws. She holds that same mirror up for herself and realizes that she is a grape...and not a raisin like the liars--she wants her dad to be a grape.

Karen Rivers has crafted an intelligent middle grades read that should be a must read for all ages. Book clubs will have so much to discuss after reading this little gem. I expect the author to be inundated with state and national honors this year. Kudos, Karen Rivers!

So highly recommended I will shout it from the mountaintop (Mt. Franklin), READ this book immediately. It is truly that outstanding. It is a blessing that I was able to read and review the ARC; I am so lucky. Thank you, Algonquin!

Recommended grade 4-up and every reader of every age. This book will speak to you about life, love, truth, forgiveness, and family.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received the ARC from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

 

 

Fairy Tale Twist: Prince of a Frog

Prince of a Frog
story and illustrations by Jackie Urbanovic
Orchard Books (Scholastic Inc.)
2015
32 pages
ISBN: 9780545636520


Prince of a Frog takes the classic fairy tale and twists it in such a way that it will have kids giggling and their parents and grandparents amazed at the transformation from classic tale to new story.

Hopper is a gregarious frog who longs for fun and games, so much so, that he just doesn't fit in at the small pond. A wise old turtle advises him that he may not be a frog at all; perhaps he is a prince. Hopper isn't sure what that means but he knows he has to find a princess and kiss her. He looks high and low and nearly runs into trouble in the woods but is saved by a likeable, outgoing dog. The dog is kind and sweet and shows him that he truly is a prince and has been one all along.

Charming and sweet, Hopper and Princess are two cute characters bound to become favorites. Jackie Urbanovic hits all the right notes in this retelling of a well-known tale.

The illustrations capture the friendship and joy between the two main characters and the final page is sheer beauty!

Highly, highly recommended for any beginning reader and perfect for a friendship story.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received the F & G from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

This review has been posted in compliance with the FTC requirements set forth in the Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising (available at ftc.gov/os/2009/10/091005revisedendorsementguides.pdf)

High School Pick: Girl Wonder

Girl Wonder
by Alexa Martin
Hyperion, 2011
304 pages

Book available May 3, 2011



Changing schools is hard enough but it's crazy when it's your last year of high school! When Charlotte's mother accepts a job in Seattle, clear across the country from Tallahassee, the family is forced to move. Charlotte's test scores and grades don't qualify her for the ritzy Barclay School where her genius younger brother gets in, so she goes to Shady Grove High School, which seems aptly named--kids aren't encouraged to excel and Charlotte finds that her new school is eons away from the "normal" school she's always attended. At Shady Grove, kids are tough, bathrooms are off limits unless you want to fight, and it's hard to make friends. When Charlotte joins the debate team, she makes friends with the ruling queen of the school, Amanda, and falls for handsome hunk Neal.

Charlotte's new friend Amanda is beautiful, outgoing, popular, talented, smart and rich--all the things Charlotte is not. As Neal and Charlotte bond and Charlotte finds herself really falling for him--the trouble is, he seems ashamed to let anyone else know about their relationship. Is he hiding something?

This novel has all the teen drama a teen girl faces--relationship woes, fear, jealousy, disappointment, heartbreak, and finally accepting who you are for real--not what you think you should be but what you can be. Charlotte is a touching underdog and readers will empathize with her as she finds herself and realizes that outward appearances are deceiving and shallow.

Sometimes the boy you think is the ONE turns out to be a frog and the boy who has been there all along turns out to be the ONE! And sometimes, weird quirks make someone even more appealing.

Recommended for high school collections. Not appropriate for middle school. Sex and mature situations.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for my review.