Angela Leeper

YA FictionYA

Blurred lines between fact and fiction

Review by Angela Leeper

Indian-American Reshma Kapoor isn’t the smartest or the most beloved at her Silicon Valley high school, but she is the best. Through careful study and manipulation of the grading system, she has become valedictorian. But with sub-standard SAT scores and meager extracurriculars, she’s not the ideal student for Stanford, her dream school. After her op-ed is published by the Huffington Post and a literary agent contacts her, Reshma realizes that she finally has her hook into Stanford. She will write a YA novel, using herself as the protagonist. She’s willing to do anything—from blackmailing her way into a friendship to threatening to sue anyone who might oppose her—to move her story arc along.

Rahul Kanakia’s debut is a definitive metafiction experience. Readers will question whether Reshma is a satirical antihero who reflects today’s convoluted race relations, education system and need for fame, or simply a teen who wants acceptance and love. Readers may not always like Reshma, but they won’t forget her story.

 

This article was originally published in the August 2016 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

Indian-American Reshma Kapoor isn’t the smartest or the most beloved at her Silicon Valley high school, but she is the best. Through careful study and manipulation of the grading system, she has become valedictorian. But with sub-standard SAT scores and meager extracurriculars, she’s not the ideal student for Stanford, her dream school. After her op-ed is published by the Huffington Post and a literary agent contacts her, Reshma realizes that she finally has her hook into Stanford. She will write a YA novel, using herself as the protagonist. She’s willing to do anything—from blackmailing her way into a friendship to threatening to sue anyone who might oppose her—to move her story arc along.
YA FictionYA

A shadowy mystery on Cape Cod

Review by Angela Leeper

Everyone always does what Lorna says, especially her BFF, Jackie, her boyfriend, Finn, and Lucas, who is (not-so) secretly in love with her, too. When Lorna slips off the rocks in Provincetown on Cape Cod and into the icy Atlantic Ocean, her disappearance leaves a gaping hole in their lives. In Local Girl Swept Away, 17-year-old Jackie recounts the tense months after Lorna goes missing and how it affects their tight circle of friends.

Jackie’s initial disbelief and grief slowly give way to anger as she remembers the truth about Lorna. How easily Lorna could manipulate everyone, how she always seemed to get her way and captured Finn’s heart when Jackie loved him more. Slowly, Jackie begins to reclaim her independence, working on her photography and hoping, despite her fishing family’s expectations, to make a life as an artist beyond the Cape. She even discovers that there are other guys besides Finn, namely Cooper, an up-and-coming novelist, who’s cute, charming—and 30.

Just as Jackie starts to form secrets of her own, her taut narration takes on Gone Girl-style twists as she pieces together why Lorna disappeared. Author Ellen Wittlinger proves once again why she’s a master of realistic fiction, creating believable dialogue, events and emotions, especially as Jackie must decide if she’s still one of Lorna’s pawns in the end.

 

This article was originally published in the July 2016 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

Everyone always does what Lorna says, especially her BFF, Jackie, her boyfriend, Finn, and Lucas, who is (not-so) secretly in love with her, too. When Lorna slips off the rocks in Provincetown on Cape Cod and into the icy Atlantic Ocean, her disappearance leaves a gaping hole in their lives. In Local Girl Swept Away, 17-year-old Jackie recounts the tense months after Lorna goes missing and how it affects their tight circle of friends.
Children's & YAMiddle Grade

A little dog named Flip

Review by Angela Leeper

Trust is a challenging concept for 12-year-old Ben Coffin, who has spent most of his life in foster care with people constantly coming and going like a revolving door. But how can a boy’s life not change when a stray dog enters, even “a girly little dog” named Flip? In When Friendship Followed Me Home, Paul Griffin brings his hard-hitting, realistic fiction, once reserved for teens, to the middle grade set.

Meeting Flip is equally as important as meeting spunky Halley, dubbed the “Rainbow Girl” for the colorful accessories she wears to complement her appearance after chemotherapy treatments. Together, the trio forms a fierce bond, but when tragedy strikes the only home that has made Ben feel safe, he is left to forge his own way again.

People come and go from Ben’s life, but they all have a meaningful impact and give him the sense of belonging he needs—and deserves. Even hardened readers will find it impossible to keep a dry eye at the bittersweet ending, which is full of love’s magic.

 

This article was originally published in the June 2016 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

Trust is a challenging concept for 12-year-old Ben Coffin, who has spent most of his life in foster care with people constantly coming and going like a revolving door. But how can a boy’s life not change when a stray dog enters, even “a girly little dog” named Flip? In When Friendship Followed Me Home, Paul Griffin brings his hard-hitting, realistic fiction, once reserved for teens, to the middle grade set.
YA FictionYA

A teen’s shaken identity

Review by Angela Leeper

Of course Jack isn’t Tess’ real dad. He’s thin to her fat, small to her tall, and ginger to her blond. But the 15-year-old never noticed these differences—until she accidentally reads Jack’s blog entry for the Donor Conception Network, in which he reveals that Tess was conceived with the help of a sperm donor.

All teens grapple with identity, but Tess doesn’t simply struggle to find the words to express how she feels—she loses her words altogether. Tess’ heartbreaking and sardonic first-person narration features her distinct inner voice as she sorts through the calamity that has become her life. Responding to Tess’ inner monologue is Mr. Goldfish, a pocket flashlight in the shape of a fish that sheds light on and offers a voice of reason to Tess’ chaotic thoughts. While the concept may sound silly, the result is realistic and effective. Tess relies on Mr. Goldfish even more when her new math substitute is charismatic Mr. Richardson, who resembles her physically, and she becomes the victim of online bullying. 

Together, Mr. Goldfish and Tess have a lot to say about truth, friendship and family.

 

This article was originally published in the May 2016 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

Of course Jack isn’t Tess’ real dad. He’s thin to her fat, small to her tall, and ginger to her blond. But the 15-year-old never noticed these differences—until she accidentally reads Jack’s blog entry for the Donor Conception Network, in which he reveals that Tess was conceived with the help of a sperm donor.
Children's & YAPicture Book

Inviting a miniature world

Review by Angela Leeper

Engrossed in her book on fairies, a little girl with a pixie haircut doesn’t notice the actual fairies flying all around her, but her loyal bulldog companion is more observant. With the help of Sue Fliess’ delightful rhyming text, young readers can learn right along with the little girl all the tricks and tips to befriending fairies. It’s not as simple as lifting rocks or looking in hollow logs to find them. Fairies need a home, so the little girl builds one out of twigs and blooms and begins to decorate it: “Thistle fluff for fairy’s bed,/ Willow fuzz to rest her head.” Once the house is complete, with empty nutshells for swings, the little girl entices the fairies with a flower-petal stew. And once the fairies accept the girl’s open hands, they return their friendship by keeping her safe and teaching her how to fly.

It’s not just the storyline that’s reminiscent of a Disney movie. Disney animator Claire Keane offers a decidedly retro Disney flare to her charming, loosely drawn illustrations, rendered in watercolors and pastels. Daytime scenes feature earthy tones befitting the outdoors, while enchanting purple evenings allow twinkling fairy light to shimmer. For anyone who’s ever created a backyard fairy garden or placed a fairy door at the base of an old tree, hoping fairies would come and stay, this book will tug at your heart. For young readers first learning about the secret lives of fairies, this book will open up a world of imagination.

Engrossed in her book on fairies, a little girl with a pixie haircut doesn’t notice the actual fairies flying all around her, but her loyal bulldog companion is more observant. With the help of Sue Fliess’ delightful rhyming text, young readers can learn right along with the little girl all the tricks and tips to befriending fairies.

YA FictionYA

Charting complex emotional territory

Review by Angela Leeper

“The way Mads and Billy Youngwolf Floyd met was horrible, hideous.” While starting the day with a swim in a Seattle Lake, Madison Murray bumps against the body of a woman who ended her life by jumping off a bridge. After such a horrifying moment, how could anything get better? Just hang on for the beautiful parts, beseeches the omniscient narrator in the eloquently crafted Essential Maps for the Lost.

Mads shouldn’t even be at the lake. She should be hanging out with friends back home instead of finishing up high school early, living with relatives and taking real estate courses to take over her narcissistic mother’s business. When she discovers that the body belongs to Billy’s mother, Mads has a new focus: finding out about this depressed woman and following her son.

Billy, who plays his life like the video game “Night Worlds,” has his own secrets, such as carrying the map from the children’s book From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, which his mother used to read to him. Together, Mads and Billy try to navigate through their losses—and, eventually, first love. But even love is hard when there isn’t a map.

This seemingly quiet story becomes increasingly nuanced as Mads and Billy’s lives run parallel and intersect in shared dreams. This look at uncharted territories of the heart is a real find.

 

This article was originally published in the April 2016 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

“The way Mads and Billy Youngwolf Floyd met was horrible, hideous.” While starting the day with a swim in a Seattle Lake, Madison Murray bumps against the body of a woman who ended her life by jumping off a bridge. After such a horrifying moment, how could anything get better? Just hang on for the beautiful parts, beseeches the omniscient narrator in the eloquently crafted Essential Maps for the Lost.
Children's & YAMiddle Grade

Little literary greats

Review by Angela Leeper

Truman Capote (“Tru”) and Harper Lee (“Nelle”) not only penned some of the finest American literature, but as children they spent numerous summers as next-door neighbors during the Great Depression in Monroeville, Alabama. In a departure from his gritty, urban fiction, author G. Neri brings their endearing friendship to light.

When Tru, in his fancy white suits, arrives at the home of his second cousins (thrice removed) after he’s abandoned by his scheming father and self-absorbed mother, he forms a seemingly unlikely yet fierce bond with Nelle, a scruffy tomboy whose “peculiar” mother is away “getting the treatment.” Often seen as outsiders, they share a love of big words and reading Sherlock Holmes stories, and they eventually find a sense of belonging.

Basing the book on true events, Neri captures Monroeville’s small-town charm and lively characters. But Tru needs big excitement, which he finds when someone breaks into the town drugstore and smashes the windows at school. As the would-be Sherlock and Watson set out to find the culprit, they also uncover more serious problems, from poverty to racism.

The harsh realities of the time are balanced with fun nods to To Kill a Mockingbird, such as trips to the courthouse and words of wisdom from Nelle’s lawyer father, and hints of the pair’s later literary successes. A delightful tale on its own, Tru and Nelle will enchant younger readers with its introduction to these distinguished writers and older readers with their influential backstory.

 

This article was originally published in the March 2016 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

Truman Capote (“Tru”) and Harper Lee (“Nelle”) not only penned some of the finest American literature, but as children they spent numerous summers as next-door neighbors during the Great Depression in Monroeville, Alabama. In a departure from his gritty, urban fiction, author G. Neri brings their endearing friendship to light.
Children's & YAPicture Book

Family book says ENJOY

Review by Angela Leeper

Summer may be drawing to a close, but it’s not over yet when “Grandma and Grandpa say COME.” In Marc Harshman’s latest picture book, One Big Family, a regular-sized family does just that. But a visit to see grandparents often means a road trip, and road trips can be long and boring, so “Dad says COUNT” to the eager yet verging-on-cranky children in the back seat. When they finally arrive to greet their grandparents at the same time as aunts, uncles and cousins, “Mom says KISS.”

Just being present together doesn’t make one big family, though. Sara Palacios’ digitally enhanced textured and patterned illustrations in earthy tones follow this family as they embark on a camping trip together and return to the grandparents’ house for additional indoor and outdoor activities. More action verbs reveal Harshman’s poetic background and emphasize their fun as together they eat meals, swim in the lake, sing songs around a camp fire, listen to stories and play games.

Like many families, both big and small, this family ends their time together by lining up in rows as “the photographer says SMILE.” For one of the youngest in this family, the resulting photograph leaves memories that will last for years. But no one will have to say what to do next time; the smiles will just happen.

Children will say READ again and again to this loving, intergenerational story, and the adults in their lives will say SHARE to include all family members in their reading.

Summer may be drawing to a close, but it’s not over yet when “Grandma and Grandpa say COME.” In Marc Harshman’s latest picture book, One Big Family, a regular-sized family does just that.

Children's & YAPicture Book

A little mime’s quiet charm

Review by Angela Leeper

Dennis’ closet appears normal, and why not? He’s an ordinary boy. But items in his open wardrobe—black-and-white striped shirts, white gloves and a picture of Marcel Marceau—suggest more. And why not? He also expresses himself in extraordinary ways. By adding white face makeup, Dennis becomes a mime. While others show and tell and play, Dennis is happy to mime what he has to say. But “being” a tree rather than climbing one can be isolating.

The color red plays an important role in these muted scenes, from pointing out key words to creating typical mime gestures (pulling a rope, riding a bicycle, walking down stairs, etc.). Red dotted lines emphasize Dennis’ feelings of being invisible in a “box” or standing on the other side of a “wall.” 

But when lonely Dennis kicks an imaginary ball, a girl named Joy catches it. Together, there are no walls, only mirrors (mime style, of course). As Dennis and Joy “row” a boat and laugh with jazz hands, their actions speak louder than words. Their behavior is so contagious that soon other children are “jumping rope” with them. 

Salina Yoon’s clever story demonstrates that acting is fun, but being a friend is even better.

 

RELATED CONTENT: Read a Behind the Book essay by Yoon about Be a Friend.

This article was originally published in the January 2016 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

Dennis’ closet appears normal, and why not? He’s an ordinary boy. But items in his open wardrobe—black-and-white striped shirts, white gloves and a picture of Marcel Marceau—suggest more. And why not? He also expresses himself in extraordinary ways. By adding white face makeup, Dennis becomes a mime. While others show and tell and play, Dennis is happy to mime what he has to say. But “being” a tree rather than climbing one can be isolating.
Children's & YAPicture Book

Let your imagination run wild

Review by Angela Leeper

With reoccurring images of crowns, tigers, teapots and spheres, Pamela Zagarenski’s The Whisper takes readers back to the fantastical world created in her Caldecott Honor-winning books, Sleep Like a Tiger and Red Sings from Treetops.

A red-capped girl who loves stories notices a mysterious book in her classroom. When her teacher lets her borrow this magical book of stories, the girl rushes home to read it. In her eagerness, however, the girl doesn’t notice the words spilling out behind her or the clever fox collecting the words in a net. At first the girl is disappointed when she only finds pictures. Where are the words to make the story? But a whisper on the wind reminds her that imagination can provide the stories, and with no rules to limit her imagination, the story can be different each time.

So begins a distinctive picture book adventure. Intricate mixed-media illustrations with wondrous animals and tiny folk in stylized costumes combine with elements reminiscent of Marc Chagall and Paul Klee. Instead of the text taking a prominent place, the girl reads the book along the bottom and provides prompts to her version of a story. Readers can follow along, alter or ignore the subtle text and make up their own story to the wordless pictures.

Throughout the story, the fox has been observing it all, and when the fox returns the words to the girl’s book, the girl finds she doesn’t need them after all. In a twist and a nod to Aesop, the fox realizes she doesn’t either. Zagarenski’s stunning creation shows imagination at its best.

With reoccurring images of crowns, tigers, teapots and spheres, Pamela Zagarenski’s The Whisper takes readers back to the fantastical world created in her Caldecott Honor-winning books, Sleep Like a Tiger and Red Sings from Treetops.

Children's & YAPicture Book

Chubby little cubby

Review by Angela Leeper

BookPage Children's Top Pick, November 2015

When Cole asks his mother for a story about a bear, she shares a true tale, one forgotten by time. It all starts with Harry Colebourn, a veterinarian from Winnipeg, Manitoba. During World War I, Harry travels by train across Canada to care for soldiers’ horses. At one of these stops, Harry gets off to stretch his legs and sees a trapper with a bear cub. Noticing something special about the bear, Harry’s “heart made up his mind,” and he buys the bear for 20 dollars.

Finding Winnie

The bear, named Winnipeg, or Winnie for short, quickly becomes a mascot for Harry and his fellow soldiers. Whether in the fields of Canada, crossing the Atlantic Ocean or on England’s rainy plains, Winnie impresses all with her remarkable tricks. But when Harry is called to the front in France, his heart makes up his mind again, and he takes Winnie to the London Zoo, where she will be cared for.

Finding WinnieThis touching story, enhanced with Sophie Blackall’s expressive and characteristically patterned illustrations, could end there. But in London, there’s a little boy named Christopher Robin. He not only names his stuffed bear Winnie-the-Pooh after visiting—and playing with—the real Winnie, but his father, Alan Alexander Milne, writes stories about them.

How does author Lindsay Mattick know all of this? She’s Harry’s great-granddaughter, and she named her son, Cole, after him. A concluding album features photographs of all the participants. 

This tender tribute will inspire a new generation of Winnie fans—for the books and the historic bear.

 

Illustrations © 2015 by Sophie Blackall. Reprinted with permission of Little, Brown.

This article was originally published in the November 2015 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

When Cole asks his mother for a story about a bear, she shares a true tale, one forgotten by time. It all starts with Harry Colebourn, a veterinarian from Winnipeg, Manitoba. During World War I, Harry travels by train across Canada to care for soldiers’ horses. At one of these stops, Harry gets off to stretch his legs and sees a trapper with a bear cub. Noticing something special about the bear, Harry’s “heart made up his mind,” and he buys the bear for 20 dollars.
Children's & YAPicture Book

Takes all kinds (of birds)

Review by Angela Leeper

He doesn’t have the worm-fed physique of the robin, the glossy red pompadour of the cardinal, or the impressively sculpted chest muscles of the eagle. No, Nerdy Birdy’s glasses are too big, his wings are too small, and he’s allergic to birdseed. He’s not good at fishing or football like Eagle, singing like a rock star and attracting fans like Cardinal, or insulting and eating worms like Robin. No, Nerdy Birdy is good at reading and video games, particularly reading about video games.

So why should Nerdy Birdy care about these cool birdies? Because he knows that being alone is awfully lonely. Just when he’s at his loneliest, Nerdy Birdy looks up to see a whole gang of nerdy birdies nestled together on a power line. Many have glasses that are too big, wings that are too small, and allergies and inhalers, while others like to read and play World of Wormcraft. But they’re all his friends now.

While the story, with its comical pen-and-ink and watercolor illustrations, could stop with this life lesson, a black vulture with contact lenses, enormous wings and “weird” eating habits arrives on the scene. And while his new friends quickly turn their tail feathers on Vulture, Nerdy Birdy remembers what it was like to be all alone and accepts Vulture, dead things and all. A humorous ending shows that there’s always room for more—and even bigger—friends. Reynolds’ entertaining tribute to nerds reveals that birds of a feather should definitely flock together.

He doesn’t have the worm-fed physique of the robin, the glossy red pompadour of the cardinal, or the impressively sculpted chest muscles of the eagle. No, Nerdy Birdy’s glasses are too big, his wings are too small, and he’s allergic to birdseed.

YA FictionYA

No superpowers necessary

Review by Angela Leeper

The indie kids are dying again. This time it’s not vampires or soul-eating ghosts but the Messenger of the Immortals seeking a Permanent Vessel. As an ordinary teen, Mikey is safe from the romances and battles with supernaturals, but he still has plenty of problems. Graduation is only weeks away, and he still hasn’t confessed his love to Henna. This uncertainty has increased his obsessive-compulsive disorder, leaving him raw inside and out.

At least Mikey’s not alone as he faces these major life events, as well as the glowing blue lights that hint of death around town. His older sister, Mel, is graduating a year late as she tries to keep her anorexia in check. Henna has to spend the summer before college in a war-torn African country with her missionary parents, and their friend Jared has even bigger secrets than being the gay son of a goddess of cats.

All this transpires as the dark, humorous mystery of the indie kids runs in the background. No matter that Patrick Ness never fully describes what an indie kid is; readers are sure to have already met one of these uber-emotional teens with enabling parents. Despite—or perhaps because of—the witty outlandishness, Mikey displays a vulnerability that will resonate with readers. He may not solve the world’s problems, or even those in his own suburb, but he finds resilience to rival any superhero. Ness continues to surprise in this sarcastic yet honest depiction of teen angst.

 

This article was originally published in the October 2015 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

The indie kids are dying again. This time it’s not vampires or soul-eating ghosts but the Messenger of the Immortals seeking a Permanent Vessel. As an ordinary teen, Mikey is safe from the romances and battles with supernaturals, but he still has plenty of problems. Graduation is only weeks away, and he still hasn’t confessed his love to Henna. This uncertainty has increased his obsessive-compulsive disorder, leaving him raw inside and out.

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