Middle Grade Fun Pick: City Spies

City Spies
Book 1
by James Ponti
Aladdin
2020
384 pages
ISBN: 9781534414914

Slick, clever and fun, City Spies is a dynamic new series opener by James Ponti.

Sara Martinez is a computer genius who can hack into any site. Usually, Sara doesn't cause any trouble. She only hacked the New York foster care database to report on the latest of her foster homes. She gets caught, and now awaits court. Enter a stranger who claims to be her lawyer.

He is an enigma and clearly (at least to Sara) NOT a lawyer. Sara agrees to work with this man in order to gain her freedom. The judge agrees for him to take Sara into custody, and he spirits her off to Scotland to meet his team of teen spies. Sara's savior is an MI6 agent who goes by the name "Mother." He has recruited kids from all over the world to train at FARM: The Foundation for Atmospheric Research and Monitoring, which is cover for  covert operations and tons of satellite feeds. Mother has a few enemies of his own (what did you expect from a career MI6 agent?)

Sara meets the team, each nicknamed for the city Mother found them in: Rio, Sydney, Paris and Kat. Each teen has skills that will be useful on any spy team. Sara, now named Brooklyn, is the team's computer genius. The team does several training drills before Mother tells them what their mission is: keep billionaire philanthropist Stavros Sinclair safe during a global youth summit. Everyone has a reason to be there, even the bad guys.

Sara is an engaging character who will resonate with readers. Fans of this book will probably follow the next books in the series. Ponti tells a smart story with enough high stakes details to engage middle grade kids.

Recommended grade 5 and up.

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.

Slam Dunk: The Crossover

The Crossover
by Kwame Alexander
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company
2014
237 pages
ISBN: 9780544107717

Praise for The Crossover

Soaring, swift, and strong, The Crossover, a novel told in verse, will appeal to vast majority of readers. Not just a sports book, the novel tells the story of a close-knit family including Mom, the assistant principal and Dad, an ex-basketball prodigy whose career is cut short due to an injury. Twins Josh and Jordan Bell are both basketball stars on their middle school team. The boys are as close as brothers can get and their relationship is even stronger due to the good natured competitive games they play with each other.

Josh Bell, aka Filthy McNasty, loves his dreadlocks. They give him power and he even calls them his "wings." In "Ode to My Hair," Josh says, "If my hair were a tree/I'd climb it./ I'd kneel down beneath/and enshrine it./I'd treat it like gold/then mine it..." Later, after losing a bet to Jordan, he is forced to part with his beloved locks.

The poetry is both tough and punchy yet sometimes sweet and subtle. When a new girl turns Jordan's head in the cafeteria, Josh says, "JB's eyes are ocean wide, his mouth swimming on the floor..." Jordan's concern ends up being well deserved. The brothers disagree when Josh gets jealous but like brothers, it's over before either of them can let it fester.

Change is inevitable. Growing up is tough even in a loving family. The brothers will need each other more than ever to face the future.

The Crossover just won the Newbery Medal, but that's not why I'm recommending this book. I received this book some time ago but discovered it again when trimming down my "To Read" pile. I picked it up and read the book jacket. Once I read the first few pages, I was in love. From this ex-high school English teacher and poetry lover to you, READ this book and share it with READERS. It is a book that calls for reading aloud. Students and kids will love to HEAR this book. Give them that gift.

This would make a fantastic gift for anyone who loves sports and/or basketball. Fans of hip-hop and rap will appreciate the beats. Poetry lovers will also be huge fans. Reluctant readers will devour this in one sitting and will likely want to read it again.

Highly, highly recommended. A MUST HAVE. All grades.

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

High School Pick: Winger

Winger
by Andrew Smith
Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
2013
439 pages

Winger is a top-notch YA read that will resonate with readers long after they have finished it. It is that rare book that speaks to all teens, male and female. Who doesn't love an underdog? And an underdog like Ryan Dean West speaks to the humanity in all of us.

 Ryan Dean West is a scrawny 14 year old junior, younger than others in his class, but he's scrappy and fierce both on and off the rugby field at Pine Mountain. He's rooming with Chas--a real zero and the typical "meathead" jock-- in O-Hall (Opportunity Hall); O-Hall is the place the "really bad kids" are sent to on campus. Ryan Dean is sent there for hacking a cell phone account. Ryan Dean knows he has to watch his back in O-Hall and around Chas in order to stay alive.

Ryan Dean is clever and quick. He tells readers that at Pine Mountain, kids can't have cell phones or electronics. Ryan Dean says, "...the kids here actually talk to each other. And they write notes, too. I know these are both ridiculously primitive human behaviors, but what else can you do when your school forces you to live like the xxxx-ing  Donner party?"( xxxx-expletive)

Coach McAuliffe, the rugby coach, is from England and he is short (like Ryan Dean) and a former winger. Ryan Dean describes his coaching style, coach "...could talk the most civilized-sounding xxxx you would ever hear, and he could cuss you out with the most vicious obscenities and it would sound like he was reading from Shakespeare."

Ryan Dean describes the O-house chaparones Mr. Farrow and Mrs. Singer as "Satan's minions." When Ryan Dean isn't slamming into people on the rugby field, he's hoping to get Annie Altman, his best friend, to think of him in a romantic way. Friendships are tested when Ryan Dean strays, but good friend and rugby teammate Joey tries to keep him on track.

Winger is a terrific YA novel that will entertain and amuse readers, but it will also force them to face bullying, teenage cruelty and angst, anxiety, depression, fear, fitting in, and friendship. Be prepared to laugh and cry with Ryan Dean.

The ending is unexpected and traumatic; don't cheat and read the ending first. Get to know Ryan Dean. Live in his world, in his heart and in his head. You'll be a better person for it.

If you know any reluctant reader, this is THE book for him/her. Boys will empathize with Ryan Dean and girls will love him.

Highly, highly recommended grade 9-up. Language, mature situations, drinking, gambling, bad prep school behavior.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received this book 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)