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Children's & YAPicture BookMiddle Grade

Treasured books to wrap in brightly colored paper

Feature by Alice Cary

Take a fresh look at some age-old classics, or stash away some ideas for family fun. It’s a bumper year for children’s gift books, and the stars of this year’s crop include something new for Harry Potter fans, a Star Wars extravaganza and an ingenious offering from David Macaulay for budding engineers.

There’s something extra special about passing along your favorite books to a new generation of young readers. Classic children’s tales really are gifts that keep on giving.

Whether you’re a longtime Harry Potter fan or are introducing a new reader to the series, check out the superbly illustrated edition of J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. Award-winning British illustrator Jim Kay has created more than 100 illustrations for this gorgeous book, full of colorful visualizations of Harry’s first adventure. Kay didn’t have an easy task, as so many fans already have fully formed images of these beloved characters and scenes. Never fear: His art glimmers with all the excitement, joy, mystery and thrills of this magical tale. Rowling has given her approval, saying she loves “his interpretation of Harry Potter’s world,” which “moved me profoundly.” This special edition features an attractive layout with text that’s easy on the eyes, a bonus for young and old alike, making it perfect for reading aloud. Avid Potter fans will want—no, need—to add this book to their collections.

Another classic tale gets a redo with Gillian Cross’ retelling of Homer’s The Iliad, with striking illustrations by Neil Packer. The duo previously collaborated on The Odyssey, and both books make an excellent introduction for middle schoolers discovering these ancient tales for the first time. Cross’ text is riveting, elegant and accessible, bringing epic battle scenes to life: “The Greeks threw huge rocks down onto them, but the Trojans replied by hurling bigger stones at the wall. They flew like snow in blizzard, clanging against helmets and shields and covering the ground.” Packer’s artwork is contemporary, colorful, dramatic and just right for luring in a preteen audience. A helpful introduction, an informative afterword and a reference spread showing the names and faces of major characters and their allegiances are also included.

Tales from the Brothers Grimm features the artwork of famed Swiss poster designer Herbert Leupin. After taking the advertising world by storm in the 1940s, the late graphic artist began illustrating fairy tales. Leupin’s legacy is given new life here, and his illustrations are indeed poster-worthy. These nine fairy tales include classics like “Hansel and Gretel” and “Snow White,” along with less familiar choices such as “Hans in Luck” and “The Wolf and the Seven Little Kids.” As noted in the book’s epilogue, Leupin infused his illustrations with humor and a magical glow, and most importantly, he made sure that when “danger threatens . . . children are not just afraid but also have something to laugh at.” Leupin’s creations burst with personality and color, and children as well as adults will delight in these offerings.

MOVIE NIGHT MADNESS
Star Wars fans eagerly awaiting the release of The Force Awakens will want to get their hands on Star Wars: Absolutely Everything You Need to Know. This is a book made for perusing and quizzing fellow enthusiasts, with graphics galore and numerous statistics, quotes, questions and trivia. Do you know what a nerf herder is, or the name of Hondo’s favorite ship? My favorites are the “Peek behind the scenes” tidbits, such as the fact that Han Solo was a big green alien in the original rough draft. Who knew that a termite infestation in George Lucas’ house inspired the buzzing swarm of Geonosians, and that he brought in specimens for his art designers? An index helps readers keep track of all of these facts and figures.

Planning a family movie night can be challenging, but things just got easier with 101 Movies to See Before You Grow Up: Be Your Own Movie Critic—The Must-See Movie List for Kids. Instead of trying to strong-arm your kids into watching an old favorite of yours, just hand them this book and let them decide. Suzette Valle’s interactive guide is aimed at third- to seventh-graders, but there’s something for everyone in a wide range of categories that includes everything from classics like It’s a Wonderful Life and Toy Story  to discussion-provoking choices like Life Is Beautiful and Super Size Me. Each page-long entry contains a synopsis, rating and run time, a variety of fun facts and space for viewers to make notes about their own reactions to the film. (A few classics, like The Wizard of Oz and The Sound of Music, get two-page spreads.) Natasha Hellegouarch’s illustrations and graphics add just the right touch of color and fun.

LESSONS THEY’LL LOVE
David Macaulay, celebrated for his best-selling The Way Things Work, has created a unique exploratory adventure in How Machines Work: Zoo Break!. First, it’s a story about two animals, Sloth and Sengi (a little elephant shrew), trying to break out of the zoo. More than that, however, it’s an interactive pop-up book that brings six simple machines to life in a wonderful way: wedge, wheel and axle, lever, inclined plane, screw and pulley. Sloth and Sengi try to put these simple machines to work, and the book succeeds grandly as both a fun story and an educational experience just right for the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) curriculum. Macaulay is a Caldecott Medal winner and a MacArthur Fellow, and his trademark humorous illustrations hold everything together with spreads that are equally intriguing and enlightening. A glossary at the end helps solidify the scientific concepts, while the madcap ending is perfectly pulled off.

Kids of all ages will enjoy SENSEational Illusions, an engaging book filled with quick and quirky activities to test your senses, as well as simple scientific explanations for each. Readers will find a variety of optical illusions, including a large pop-up sculpture with three hidden animals waiting to be found. There are scratch-and-sniff quizzes and directions for easy taste tests that require only simple ingredients. Experiments involving touch and balance include two mazes to be completed with one finger at the ready and both eyes closed, as well as a maze full of booby traps to be navigated by three small ball bearings (included). Chock-full of fun, it can be enjoyed solo or with buddies. Either way, it’s sure to be a hit.

ON-THE-GO FUN
Planning a road trip? Bring along The 50 States, a large book of fact-filled maps that allows young geographers to get lost in the many details. A two-page spread for each state includes the map, an introductory overview, a chart of key facts (capital, largest city, etc.) and a timetable of memorable moments in history. Also included are brief mentions of famous people from each state, from familiar faces to contemporary notables. Alabama’s pages spotlight Rosa Parks and Helen Keller, as well as track-and-field athlete Carl Lewis and actress Octavia Spencer. Author Gabrielle Balkan’s research and writing draws readers in with a fun mash-up of history, geography and pop culture, while Sol Linero’s illustrations make every spread a delight. I even learned a few new tidbits about my beloved West Virginia.

If you need to occupy a preschooler or an early-elementary student, grab a copy of Making Faces!: Star in Your Own Works of Art by Jacky Bahbout and illustrated by Momoko Kudo. This large, placemat-sized drawing pad has a simple, silly concept: Each page has a hole in the middle and contains drawings and a theme (party time, clown, soccer player, dragon, etc.) to which young artists can add their own details. The page titled “Moose on the loose!!!” encourages youngsters to draw their own antlers and add extra trees to the forest. Once complete, kids can tear out the page, put their face in the hole and pose for a photo. This is a great choice when waiting for restaurant meals and appointments, a creative alternative to video and phone distractions. Send the photo to Grandma and everybody’s happy!

 

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

Take a fresh look at some age-old classics, or stash away some ideas for family fun. It’s a bumper year for children’s gift books, and the stars of this year’s crop include something new for Harry Potter fans, a Star Wars extravaganza and an ingenious offering from David Macaulay for budding engineers.
Children's & YAPicture BookMiddle Grade

Vibrant introductions to poetry and wordplay

Feature by Hilli Levin

Spring into April with a new batch of children’s poetry books, just in time for the 20th anniversary of National Poetry Month. From a “wow”-worthy batch of concrete poems that dance across the page to a poetic guessing game and a touching trip through the seasons, three new collections make for accessible and thoroughly modern introductions to an enduring art.

POEMS THAT POP
Bob Raczka’s newest book, Wet Cement: A Mix of Concrete Poems, “uses words like colors to paint pictures.” This playful collection of 21 poems takes inspiration from single words, similar to 2013’s Lemonade, and in the visually arresting style of classic concrete poets like E.E. Cummings or Carl Andre, brings his simple verse to life. Words slash the page in the shape of an electric bolt in “Lightning”; letters seem to thaw and drip into readers’ hands in “Icicles”; and the letters of “Hopscotch” skip across the page in the game’s instantly recognizable layout. But Raczka’s poems aren’t all whimsy. There are plenty of quiet moments where a sense of childlike awe shines through, as in wonderful “Dipper”: “Up here in the sky, / I’m a vessel of stars / my brim overflowing with night.” In today’s highly visual world, Raczka’s poems are a fantastic gateway into the genre.

WHO IN THE HAIKU?
The art of Japanese haiku and silly riddles collide in Deanna Caswell’s Guess Who, Haiku. Readers will love piecing together the clever clues for each animal and insect as each page asks, “Can you guess who from this haiku?” From a dairy cow—“new day on the farm / muffled mooing announces / a fresh pail of milk”—to a loyal dog— "Sitting for a treat / an eager tail smacks the ground / over and over"— Caswell runs through a cast of common critters, and her engaging bite-sized poems are just right for the preschool crowd. Bob Shea provides illustrations in his bold and lively graphic style, which make the big reveal of each mystery animal a pure delight. Caswell ends the book with a helpful note that breaks down exactly what haiku is, how it’s structured and how readers can recognize syllables, encouraging a deeper understanding of each line. Guess Who, Haiku makes a traditional form of poetry into a guessing game that almost feels like a poetic version of Fisher Price’s classic See ‘N Say toy, which is a sure sign that this could become a read-aloud favorite.

CELEBRATE THE SEASONS
The natural world’s seasonal transformations have been inspiring poets for centuries, and Julie Fogliano adds her own inspired collection to the mix with When Green Becomes Tomatoes: Poems for All Seasons. Beginning on the first day of spring with a cheerful bird’s song “poking / a tiny hole / through the edge of winter,” readers meet a diverse cast of children that explore, climb, swim and frolic their way through the days of all four seasons, and Fogliano devotes about a dozen reflective poems to each, all titled with a specific month and date. Pencil-and-gouache illustrations from Julie Morstad bring a delightfully vintage feel to scenes where wildflowers seem to blossom endlessly, piles of crisp fall leaves beckon and snow gently drifts outside of a window. From lazy summer days that are “hot and thick like honey” to the messy fun of pumpkin carving and the stillness of winter, this collection is sure to be one that little readers will love to pull off the shelf and flip through again and again.

Spring into April with a new batch of children’s poetry books, just in time for the 20th anniversary of National Poetry Month. From a “wow”-worthy batch of concrete poems that dance across the page to a poetic guessing game and a touching trip through the seasons, three new collections make for accessible and thoroughly modern introductions to an enduring art.

Children's & YAMiddle Grade

Beach reading for the younger crowd

Feature by Michael Sims

Why should adults be the only ones with beach books to entertain them when they aren't cavorting in the surf? This summer the kids, too, have plenty of books to choose from. Four examples demonstrate the feast available, beginning with books for toddlers and preschoolers and working our way up to preteen readers.

Younger children will appreciate the sand and surf more if they are prepared for it with a charming picture book by Alice Schertle, illustrated by Barbara Lavallee, All You Need for a Beach. What do you need for a beach? Lively illustrations portray young children acting out the process of adding one element at a time to the beach experience sand, sunlight, umbrella, seagulls and the ocean itself. The story builds well to prove that the book's reader is also an essential part of the perfect beach.

Preschoolers and early graders will enjoy a gorgeous book, My Life with the Wave, based on a story by the Mexican Nobelist Octavio Paz. The lively translation and adaptation for children is by Catherine Cowan, and the luscious illustrations are by Mark Buehner. This is a lyrical, highly imaginative story. One day a boy is playing in the surf. As he departs, one of the waves escapes the ocean and accompanies him. On the train ride home he hides her in the water cooler. At his house she creates as much delight and trouble as the Cat in the Hat. Pulled by moon and sun, the wave is moody. The boy brings her fish, but he becomes jealous of how long she plays with them. As winter approaches, the wave begins to have nightmares. A double-page panoply of these demons will give children a delicious shiver, but a closer look will reveal that the funnel cloud wears spectacles and the sea serpent has a red bow on its tentacle. The story takes a sad turn, but the ending is clever and upbeat.

Another new book reminds us that at any age nonfiction can be as compelling as fiction. Young readers will enjoy One Small Place by the Sea, by Barbara Brenner and illustrated by Tom Leonard. This is the story of the teeming life of a tidepool, "no bigger than a bathtub," among weedy rocks at the sea's edge. "Tides make it and unmake it twice a day." The book begins with a child standing beside the pool and looking at what is visible to the naked eye. Slowly the text and illustrations help us sort out the various plants and animals. Gradually we go beneath the surface and see the multitude of turban snails, blue mussels, hermit crabs, anemones and other wonders. The text is crisp and vivid, the illustrations bright and detailed. The child scoops water into a jar and the illustrations zoom in and magnify its denizens. Then we look more closely at each creature, at the cycles of life and death repeating daily in this miniature ecosystem, this exquisite microcosm.

Friends beneath the waves

Proving that there is a smart beach book for children of every age, Candlewick Press has published the lively and suspenseful The Tail of Emily Windsnap, by Liz Kessler. This first novel, by an English journalist, is already becoming something of an international sensation, and is being published in at least 10 countries. The book begins with Emily Windsnap, our narrator and heroine, asking an irresistible question: "Can you keep a secret?" We aren't revealing plot twists by telling you, because the book jacket does so: Emily is a mermaid. She doesn't know this tidbit about her family legacy when the book opens, but she finds out soon in a compelling scene that draws the reader into the story.

Emily has a convincingly tangled life even without her fishy tendencies. Her father abandoned the family and her mother has long hidden away traumatic memories that will prove crucial to her family's future. Soon Emily is sneaking away in the night to cavort far beneath the waves with newfound marine friends. Naturally the two stories come together in a satisfying ending.

Why should adults be the only ones with beach books to entertain them when they aren't cavorting in the surf? This summer the kids, too, have plenty of books to choose from. Four examples demonstrate the feast available, beginning with books for toddlers and preschoolers and working our way up to preteen readers.

Children's & YAPicture BookMiddle Grade

Magic at young readers’ fingertips

Feature by Alice Cary

All I want for Christmas this year is a box full of kids’ gift books. That’s exactly how I feel after perusing these inspiring selections, which include visual, musical and artistic treasures, plus boatloads of fun and games.

ALL ABOARD THIS BOOK
Preschoolers will eagerly hop aboard Train: A Journey Through the Pages Book, Mike Vago and Matt Rockefeller’s sure-to-be-a-hit creation. Young engineers can steer a small plastic steam engine across “tracks” built into the book’s pages, starting early in the morning in a train yard and traveling through a city full of skyscrapers, hillside towns, snow-capped mountains, wide-open prairies, a parched desert and a cheerful seaside bay. Colorful illustrations in this changing American landscape offer the feel of a cross-country journey as the train travels over rivers and navigates mountainous curves.

Clever construction allows the train to stay on its “tracks,” moving seamlessly from page to page. Finally, at the end, a tunnel built into the book allows train lovers to start their journey all over again. 

A YEAR OF LEGO FUN
Does your LEGO lover need inspiration? From the creative team that developed the bestselling The LEGO Ideas Book and LEGO Awesome Ideas comes 365 Things to Do with LEGO Bricks. It’s packed with a variety of activities, games, challenges and pranks that will appeal to everyone from elementary students to young-at-heart grown-ups. A small timer allows builders to race against the clock during select challenges, or use its random number generator to decide which project to pursue.

This is not a book for beginners, nor does it offer step-by-step instructions, but the projects are incredibly varied, colorful and appealing. Build an animated bear’s head or a model of your bedroom. Put on a magic show, or film your own LEGO movie. Construct a small pinball machine, a shark that bites or a carnival shooting gallery. This is creativity at its best, and it’ll keep your builder busy all year long.

MUSIC TO YOUR EARS
Kids tend to love “sound books,” but endless pushing of those buttons can quickly drive parents over the brink. Not so with Katie Cotton’s The Story Orchestra: Four Seasons in One Day, the story of a girl and her dog set to the sounds of Vivaldi’s “Four Seasons,” the first in a series of books to bring classical music to life for kids. 

As readers follow young Isabelle and her dog, Pickle, through the year, beginning with a Spring Festival and ending on a snowy winter’s eve, buttons on each spread play snippets of movements from Vivaldi’s opus. Artwork by Jessica Courtney-Tickle is a gorgeous riot of color and detail, guaranteed to hold readers’ interest as they listen to the music. 

An informative spread at the end contains a capsule biography of the composer, a short glossary and brief explanations of the music featured on each spread. The Story Orchestra is an innovative little master class for young listeners.

BRINGING ART TO LIFE
What might Vincent van Gogh have been thinking about when he was about to paint one of his most famous masterpieces? Elementary school students will be in the know after reading Vincent’s Starry Night and Other Stories: A Children’s History of Art, a creative and comprehensive look at masterworks from cave paintings to Chinese artist and activist Ai Weiwei.

Art historian Michael Bird brings 68 stories to life using fact-filled creative nonfiction. For instance, Bird describes Jackson Pollock’s creative process through the eyes of the artist’s wife: “He dips a wooden stick into another pot, and flicks and drips the paint—here, there, too quick for thinking. All the time, he strides and kind of dances around the canvas, bent over it, a magician casting a spell.”

Each chapter offers an intriguing and informative tale and is accompanied by a photograph of the artwork being discussed, as well as Kate Evans’ evocative illustrations of the artist at work. This lovely book is rounded out by a map, timeline, glossary and list of artworks.

ABRACADABRA
There is no end of children’s magic kits and books, but The Magic Show Book has everything young illusionists need, including props, pop-up tricks and materials to make your own special “shrinking” magic wand—a trick in itself. (Parents will particularly appreciate this self-contained aspect.)

Each colorful page includes a flap with hidden instructions showing how to practice and perfect tricks such as “Tricky Chicken,” “The Astonishing Slicer” and “Eyes on the Ace.” Additional pages explain a variety of rope (shoelace), coin and card sleights of hand. There’s even a pop-up magic hat. 

The Magic Show Book is bound to appeal to a broad spectrum of elementary students; just prepare to watch and be amazed.

TRULY MAGICAL NATURE
Kids and adults alike may fight over Illuminature: Discover Hidden Animals with Your Magic Three Color Lens. The Italian artistic duo known as Carnovsky (Silvia Quintanilla and Francesco Rugi) bring their RGB Project (red, green and blue) to the world of children’s books, providing a unique journey through 10 of the world’s habitats, from the Andes Mountains to the Ganges River Basin.

Something amazing happens when you view Carnovsky’s artwork through the provided viewing lens. See daytime animals through the red lens, plant life abounds with the green lens, and nocturnal and crepuscular animals appear through the blue lens. A total of 180 are hidden within, waiting to be discovered.

While observers are busy staring at the wonderful transformations on these oversize pages, they’ll be soaking in plenty of data as well. Rachel Williams’ well-organized text provides facts about each destination as well as the varieties of species seen on each page. Leaping lizards, don’t miss this book!

 

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

All I want for Christmas this year is a box full of kids’ gift books. That’s exactly how I feel after perusing these inspiring selections, which include visual, musical and artistic treasures, plus boatloads of fun and games.
Children's & YAPicture BookMiddle Grade

Stories to inspire: Picture books for Black History Month

Feature by Julie Hale

February is a special time for celebrating seminal figures and events from African-American history. Six new books pay tribute to the black pioneers of the past—trailblazers who made progress on the road to equality.

FINDING THE RIGHT PATH
Sandra Neil Wallace’s engaging biography Between the Lines: How Ernie Barnes Went from the Football Field to the Art Gallery (ages 4 to 8) is a powerful story about the importance of dreams. Young Ernest loves to draw. When it rains, he scribbles figures in the mud with a stick. In his sketchbooks, he captures scenes from his Durham, North Carolina, neighborhood. He wants nothing more than to become an artist, but in the 1940s South, his chances are slim. When a coach recruits him for the high school football team, Ernest begins a successful career in sports. He’s offered 26 scholarships and plays with the pros. But through it all, he holds onto his desire to express himself—and in the end his dreams pay off. The story of his transition from athlete to artist is brought to vivid life through Bryan Collier’s rich illustrations. Featuring breathtaking examples of Barnes’ work, this is a top-notch introduction to an important artist.

CELEBRATING FEARLESS WOMEN
Vashti Harrison’s mini-encyclopedia of African-American heroines, Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History (ages 8 to 12), is accessible, informative and appealing. Featuring 40 brave and brilliant women who made significant contributions in the areas of politics, art, sports, education and entertainment, the book includes capsule biographies and magical portraits that capture each woman’s unique vocation. Readers will find a wide range of notables in this delightful anthology. Sojourner Truth, Harriet Tubman, Ella Fitzgerald, Zora Neale Hurston and Raven Wilkinson are among those who receive tribute. Harrison also spotlights contemporary figures such as Maya Angelou, Oprah Winfrey and Julie Dash, and she provides a thoughtful reading list and information on additional resources. Her inviting illustrations—certain to capture the imaginations of little readers—make the book extra special. This outstanding volume is a great way to connect kids with role models and a title that’s sure to spark further study.

BEFORE HE PLAYED BALL
In The United States v. Jackie Robinson (ages 4 to 8), Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen delivers a fascinating chronicle of the early life of baseball legend Jackie Robinson. Young Jack grows up under segregation in Pasadena, California. His family is shunned by the neighbors, but Jack’s mother encourages her children to believe in themselves. A star athlete in college, Jack enlists in the army after Pearl Harbor is attacked, and there he continues to experience discrimination. One day, he sits down in the middle of the army bus, and the driver orders him to move to the back. When Jack refuses, he’s court-martialed and finds himself facing the threat of jail time. During the agonizing trial that follows, he holds tight to his beliefs—and comes out on top. R. Gregory Christie’s textured, impressionistic illustrations add a wonderful sense of history to the story. Youngsters will find a hero in this compelling tale.

MAKING HER OWN KIND OF MUSIC
Libba: The Magnificent Musical Life of Elizabeth Cotten (ages 5 to 8) by Laura Veirs is a spirited homage to a folk icon. Libba finds music in everything, from the sound of the river to the movement of the train. She tries out her brother’s guitar, but because he’s right-handed, Libba—a leftie—has to flip the instrument over and play it backwards: “Nobody else played that way, but it was the way that felt right to Libba.” Libba practices and writes her own tunes, but as the years go by, her music falls by the wayside. When she goes to work for composer Ruth Crawford Seeger, Libba finds the inspiration to play again. With the Seegers’ help, she launches a successful musical career with engagements around the world. In her delicate, expressive illustrations, Tatyana Fazlalizadeh does a masterful job of tracing the arc of Libba’s life from eager girl to dignified grande dame. Readers will love learning about this innovative performer.

POEMS OF PRIDE
Sharing history through verse, Andrea Davis Pinkney tells the story of the final days of Martin Luther King Jr. in Martin Rising: Requiem for a King (ages 9 to 12). Featuring lyrical, impressionistic pieces as well as more concrete compositions, the book looks at the key events of 1968 via a diverse group of 39 poems. “Roar” chronicles a march in Memphis by striking sanitation workers, whose cause precipitates Martin’s fateful April visit: “They cling / to the peace-dream / of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.” The bold, exclamatory “Shattered” captures the spirit of the March 28 protest Martin leads in Memphis: “Four words / shout simple affirmations / of their humanity: I AM A MAN.” From the sense of portentousness that grows on April 3 to the dramatic events of the following day, Pinkney portrays the passing of a remarkable man, using language in innovative ways. Brian Pinkney’s swirling, cascading, colorful illustrations provide an exhilarating backdrop for an outstanding collection of poems that’s destined to become a classic.

YOUNG LEADERS UNITE
Monica Clark-Robinson’s Let the Children March (ages 6 to 9) is a stirring account of the 1963 rally in Birmingham, Alabama, known as the Children’s Crusade. Clark-Robinson presents the story from the perspective of an African-American girl who goes to church with her family to hear Martin Luther King Jr. speak. When she learns that her mother and father will lose their jobs if they take part in the upcoming demonstration, the girl joins other young people who protest on behalf of their parents: “Hand in hand we marched—so frightened, yet certain of what was right for our freedom.” Beautifully realistic illustrations by Frank Morrison communicate the upheaval of the day—the girl is arrested with other youngsters—but there’s also a sense of hope in the story’s final scene of a desegregated playground filled with children. This is an impressive tribute to a group of courageous leaders.

February is a special time for celebrating seminal figures and events from African-American history. Six new books pay tribute to the black pioneers of the past—trailblazers who made progress on the road to equality.

Children's & YAYA FictionYAMiddle Grade

Summer fantasies to keep young readers flipping pages

Feature by Hilli Levin & Savanna Walker

Sweeping fantasies are this year’s biggest trend in children’s and teen literature—think breathtaking action, complex world building, magical abilities and bands of young heroes who must save the day.

Like any great high fantasy should, Jaleigh Johnson’s The Door to the Lost opens with a series of maps depicting the land of Talhaven and the grand city of Regara, where “magic is dying,” only to be found in the abilities of 327 seemingly orphaned children who have been mysteriously jettisoned from their magic-filled homeland known as Vora.

A young girl known as Rook happens to be one of these magical refugees, and she and her friend Drift survive in Regara by offering their magical skills on a sort of black market. Rook’s particular talent is creating doors—she simply draws a rectangle with a piece of chalk and channels thoughts of her destination in order to open a portal. But one client’s door goes horribly wrong, and Rook lets in a giant Fox, whom she discovers is actually a shape-shifting boy from a snow-filled world. Can Rook and Drift get Fox back home again when they’re not even sure how to get there?

Johnson’s spell-casting cast of young heroes will entertain and endear, and their sweet adventure will help young readers grasp some key details of the refugee crisis in a way that never feels ham-fisted.

MAGIC OF FRIENDSHIP
The latest middle grade novel from Printz Honor-winning author Garret Weyr, The Language of Spells, is an extraordinary tale that meshes real historical events with a winning cast of magical creatures.

As this magic-filled journey begins in 1803, we meet a young dragon known as Grisha in the Black Forest. He’s young and carefree and enjoys eating acorns and playing by the stream—until one day, a heartless sorcerer imprisons him in a teapot. Grisha’s teapot is sold to the highest bidder, and for hundreds of years, he silently observes the world as it changes around him. When his enchantment is finally broken, he’s reunited with a group of dragons in Vienna during World War II. But the lives of the once mighty dragons are now controlled by the Department of Extinct Exotics, an organization that refuses to allow them to return to the forest and instead assigns them strict jobs and curfews. On a night off in a hotel bar, Grisha meets a human girl named Maggie, and the two forge a sweet and powerful friendship built on empathy and honesty. Soon, the two join forces to face their fears and investigate what happened to the city’s missing dragons.

Katie Harnett’s black-and-white illustrations kick off each chapter and add to the classic European fairy-tale atmosphere, and Weyr’s allegorical tale never glosses over a heart-rending detail or passes up a chance for a gorgeous turn of phrase, making this an ideal read-aloud that fantasy lovers of all ages can enjoy.

EPIC TRAGEDY
Puccini’s opera Turandot is based on a Persian fairy tale about a princess who challenges her suitors to solve three riddles in order to win her hand. If they fail, they will be executed. As one would expect from an opera written in 1924 set in the “mystical East,” there isn’t much historical accuracy to be found—but the original fairy tale was inspired by a Mongol warrior woman named Khutulun, who declared she would only marry a man who could beat her in a wrestling match. It is within this Mongol Empire that author Megan Bannen sets her retelling of Turandot, The Bird and the Blade (Balzer + Bray, $17.99, 432 pages, ISBN 9780062674159, ages 13 and up).

Slave girl Jinghua is on the run with deposed Mongol Khan Timur and his kindhearted son Khalaf. Timur wants to raise an army to take back his lands. Khalaf wants to marry the princess Turandokht by solving her riddles and, as her husband, restore his father to power. Jinghua, who thinks both plans are idiotic, is hilariously blunt about her chances of surviving either of them, but less open about her growing feelings for Khalaf.

Bannen plays with time in her YA debut, beginning with the trio’s arrival at Turandokht’s palace and then flashing back to their dangerous journey there. The awkward attraction between Jinghua and Khalaf, plus Timur’s caustic sarcasm, makes this novel surprisingly funny. But after Bannen reveals the utter devastation behind one character’s self-deprecating facade, it’s a relentless rush to the finale as Jinghua tries to save Khalaf.

Bannen’s prose grows ever more lyrical, soaring to match her ambition as The Bird and the Blade arrives at an unforgettable climax.

LOST GIRLS
For some reason, there are an awful lot of new YA novels in which women are endangered or oppressed. Grace and Fury by Tracy Banghart is one of the most compelling of the bunch.

Serina Tessaro and her sister, Nomi, travel to the capital city of Bellaqua where Serina will compete for a chance to become one of the Heir’s Graces. Banghart doesn’t spell it out all at once, but Graces are essentially glorified concubines who represent the ideal subservient woman. The sisters are shocked when rebellious Nomi is chosen, and soon Serina takes the fall for one of Nomi’s crimes and is sent to Mount Ruin, a prison island.

Nomi’s storyline has the romantic entanglements and sparkling settings common to YA fantasy, but Banghart presents both with queasy suspicion. The beautiful rooms and pretty gowns of the Graces are mere decoration for another type of prison, and it is impossible to fall in love with a man who might see you as a possession or a tool.

Meanwhile, the all-female prisoners of Mount Ruin are forced to fight for rations, and Serina’s lifelong training to become a Grace surprisingly helps her excel in her new environment. As she begins to enjoy the camaraderie and mentorship of other women for the first time in her life, Serina’s feminine ideal quickly transforms from elegant consort to ferocious warrior. After all, in a society that constrains women at every turn, both roles offer a way to survive.

 

This article was originally published in the July 2018 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

Sweeping fantasies are this year’s biggest trend in children’s and teen literature—think breathtaking action, complex world building, magical abilities and bands of young heroes who must save the day.

Children's & YAPicture BookMiddle Grade

Tips for teachers: At home in a new world

Feature by Emmie Stuart

“For most immigrants, moving to the new country is an act of faith. Even if you've heard stories of safety, opportunity, and prosperity, it's still a leap to remove yourself from your own language, people, and country. Your own history. What if the stories weren't true? What if you couldn't adapt? What if you weren't wanted in the new country?”—Nicola Yoon

Amidst the recent news headlines surrounding immigration and border laws, it’s easy to forget that many of these immigrants are children. As migrant children adjust to a new home, a new language and a new set of customs, they need books that authentically reflect and affirm their experiences and feelings. Equally important is the need for children born in the United States to gain small insights into life as an immigrant. These five stories of struggle and triumph, loneliness and connection, and isolation and belonging will spark classroom conversation, affirm migrant children’s feelings, and build empathy for those who are making a home in a new world.

Mustafa by Marie-Louise Gay

“Mustafa and his family traveled a very, very long way to get to their new county.” He dreams of his old country “full of smoke and fire and loud noises” and wakes up to find himself in a new country but, as him mom reminds him, “under the very same moon.” Mustafa ventures down into a neighborhood park and takes great joy in the green trees, bugs that remind him of jewels, and flowers that look like his grandmother’s teacups. He crosses paths with a girl and her cat but is intimidated when he can’t understand her words. As the weeks pass, Mustafa continues to visit the park taking delight in the changing seasons. One day he waves to a group of playing children, but they don’t notice prompting him to ask his mother, “am I invisible?” At last, the young girl with the cat succeeds in communicating with Mustafa and a new friendship is born. A gentle and honest story, Mustafa is accessible for children of all ages and a valuable read aloud for all classrooms.

• Creative Writing—Invite students to examine the title and dedication pages. They show Mustafa’s family with their belongings on their heads and backs as they board a ship that carries them to their new country. Ask to children to imagine moving to a new country and only being able to take a few possessions. After a brief class discussion let them journal about the items they would bring if they had to flee to a new country.

• Nature Walk—Mustafa loves to explore the park next to this apartment building. He takes great delight in things Americans take for granted—green grass and red birds hiding in trees. With their journals in hand, take your students outside for a nature walk and encourage them to look anew at the world around them. After 5-10 minutes of walking, stop and let children draw or write about the things they noticed “with their new eyes”. Mustafa sees flowers shaped like his grandmother’s pink teacups and others that look like dragon tongues. Encourage children to create metaphors for the things they find on the nature walk.

Saffron Ice Cream by Rashin Kheiriyeh

Rashin can’t wait for her first trip to an American beach. As she and her family make the trip from Brooklyn to Coney Island, Rashin reminisces about her trips to the Caspian Sea beach in Iran. Through her memories, readers will the understand that the differences between the two beaches are significant. In Iran, after a breakfast of halim, the family drives five hours to the beach where “big, long curtains divided the sea into two sections—one side for men to swim in and the other side for women.” On the subway headed to Coney Island, Rahsin misses her friend Azadeh and wonders if the sea in America will be as endless, blue, and beautiful as it is in Iran. When they arrive, Rashin’s homesickness reaches its peak and when she discovers the ice cream truck doesn’t carry saffron flavored ice cream, she begins to cry. A young girl behind her in line encourages Rashin to try chocolate crunch ice cream. The two girls become fast friends and Rashin has no problem following the Coney Island beach rule: To have fun, fun, fun. By focusing on a single experience, Saffron Ice Cream shows how very different daily experiences can be in a new country. The colorful illustrations and lighthearted prose make for an upbeat and relatable immigrant story.

• Venn Diagram—Saffron Ice Cream begs for a venn diagram. As a class, create a venn diagram comparing the Coney Island and Caspian Sea beaches. Be sure to leave enough room in the overlapping portion to list the ways the beaches are similar. Use this diagram to spark a conversation about similarities and differences between cultures. If you have migrant children in your class, let them talk about experiences and traditions they remember from their home country and how they are similar and different to those in the United States.

• Geography—Using a world map and Google Earth, locate Coney Island and the Caspian Sea. Let the children make observations comparing the two beaches. Show them Coney Island’s Stillwell train station as well. For many students in rural and suburban classrooms, riding a subway is a foreign experience.

• Different, but essentially the same—Young Rashin is homesick for Iran and her Caspian beach, but at the end of the book she understands that though the two beaches are different, the most important aspects (family, friendship) transcend cultures. In the past few years, I have discovered several strong picture books highlighting the differences and (more importantly) the similarities between cultures. Make these pictures books a part of your classroom for the entire year. Culture awareness and acceptance is a gift that will stay with children for the rest of their lives. My favorites include This Is How We Do It (Lamothe) Same, Same, But Different (Kostecki-Shaw), This is the Way We Go to School (Bauer), The Sandwich Swap (Al-Abdullah), Everybody Cooks Rice (Dooley), Mirror (Baker) and Around the World in a Bathtub: Bathing All Over the Globe (Bradford).

The Dress and the Girl by Camille Andros, illustrated by Julie Morstad

Beginning in Greece, “back when time seemed slower and life simpler, there was a dress. A dress much like many others, made for a girl by her mother.” The girl and the dress enjoy their life in Greece, but long for something “singular, stunning, or sensational.” They don’t wait long because one day their story changes and they board a ship headed for a new life in America. The dress is put in a trunk—a trunk that gets lost during the journey. The dress is separated from the girl for many years and travels the world searching for the girl. At long last, it comes to rest in a thrift store where the girl, now a mother herself, finds it and passes it along to her daughter. Showing the importance of family history, The Dress and the Girl is a simple story with magnificent illustrations recounting the journey to Ellis Island that was common for so many immigrants at the turn of the century.

• Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty—Peek under the book’s jacket at the cover. You will be greeted by a magnificent illustration of the Statue of Liberty as seen by immigrants as they disembark the ship. Take a virtual field trip to the Statue of Liberty National Park and let students view the statue from across the water. Zoom in closer and read the inscription at the base of the statue. Write it on the board or a piece of chart paper. After a class discussion, keep it hanging in your classroom to remind students that the United States is open to all people. My students also loved the live cam view located in the torch of the statue.

• Oral family history—The dress holds significance for the girl because it is a family heirloom and traveled with her from her home country of Greece. Use the story to launch an oral family history project. With the help and input of students, develop a short family history questionnaire for them to use with their parents, grandparents, or other relatives. One of the questions can be about treasured family heirlooms. Use this opportunity to teach and develop students’ interviewing and conversational skills. Let them practice interviewing each other before conducting a family interview.

• Book pairing—Read aloud one of my all-time favorite picture books, My Grandfather’s Coat by James Alyesworth and compare the two stories.

Ella and Monkey at Sea by Emilie Boon

Told through the eyes of a young girl and her stuffed monkey, Ella and Monkey at Sea is perfectly pitched for young children. The story opens with Ella hugging her grandmother, Oma, before boarding a ship bound for America. During the long journey across the ocean, Ella’s emotions are transferred to monkey. Monkey “wants his own bed at home,” he “misses Oma and dinners at home,” and “says no” when the other children ask him to play. Eventually, Ella moves through feelings of homesickness to feelings of hope and excitement for their new country. I read this simple yet effective story aloud to a group of kindergarten students and the empathy stirred by Ella’s honesty was evident on their young faces.

• Creative Writing—Ella’s emotions are transferred to her beloved stuffed monkey. Allow children time to share a special recent experience. Afterward, tell them to retell/write the story from the perspective of their most beloved stuffed friend.

• Art Therapy—When Ella is sad she colors a picture with “angry black,” “scared gray” and “cold blue.” At the end of the book, she colors a picture of a cheerful yellow sun. Discuss how colors reflect emotions. Put some soft music on and let children create their own feelings pictures. For more color and emotion books, be sure to read Niko Draws a Feeling (Chris Rackza) and My Blue Is Happy (Jessica Young).

Front Desk by Kelly Yang

Ten-year-old Mia Tang works the front desk at her parents' Calivista Motel. Life isn’t easy for Mia’s family, Chinese immigrants who have been in the United States for two years. Living in a room behind the motel’s office, they work around the clock serving the customers of the motel and ensuring that the customers are happy. The American dream seems anything but dreamy as the family battles several unfortunate events including an abusive robber, a broken washing machine and a stolen car. Equally hard are the cultural challenges and racism Mia faces at school. Raw and believable, Mia’s voice is strong making her struggles relatable for students who share her migrant experience and opens a window for students who have never felt the isolation and confusion that accompanies navigating a life in a new country.

• Struggles and Triumphs—Reflecting the story of most immigrants, Mia experiences many challenges as she adjusts to life in America. Because of her hard work and grit and the kindness of others she also experiences several triumphs. Before reading Front Desk, make a “Struggles & Triumphs” chart. Keep it easily accessible so that it can be updated at the conclusion of each read-aloud time.

• If I owned a motel—Mia dreams of being a writer, and toward the end of the story she enters an essay contest with an essay titled, “If I Owned a Motel.” Encourage children to design and plan their own motel or restaurant. Visit the websites of several family-owned businesses and discuss components of a small business including marketing, theme and customer service. Invite children to write their own essays and share their small business plans with the rest of the class.

These five stories of struggle and triumph, loneliness and connection, and isolation and belonging will spark classroom conversation, affirm migrant children’s feelings, and build empathy for those who are making a home in a new world.
Children's & YAMiddle Grade

Illustrated tales of nonstop fun

Feature by Alice Cary

Fans of Lincoln Peirce’s Big Nate series will adore the author and cartoonist’s Max & the Midknights, a superb hybrid of chapter book and graphic novel that’s packed with nonstop adventure, dragons, wizards and flying rats. The daring, wise-cracking Max (who discovers she’s actually a girl) is stuck in the Middle Ages, longing to become a knight but acting as an apprentice to bumbling Uncle Budrick, a troubadour who’s anything but tuneful. This down-on-their luck pair courts catastrophe when they enter the Kingdom of Byjovia, where the evil King Gastley carts Uncle Budrick off to be his jester. While Max and her merry band of misfits bear a noticeable resemblance to Charlie Brown and his buddies (Charles Schulz is one of Peirce’s inspirations), these characters have a modern Wimpy Kid vibe.

In the second adventure of his Mac B., Kid Spy series, Caldecott Medal-winning author Mac Barnett recounts his supposed youthful adventures in 1989 as an espionage agent in Mac B., Kid Spy: The Impossible Crime. One moment, young Mac B. is playing mini golf in Castro Valley, California, and the next the queen of England is summoning him via pay phone to help her protect the crown jewels. Three hundred years ago, Colonel Thomas Blood stole them, and the queen believes one of his heirs will try to steal them again on the anniversary of this real-life 17th-century crime. The action never stops in this light-hearted adventure that’s fueled by Barnett’s jaunty narration, jokes galore and Mike Lowery’s entertaining, full-color cartoon illustrations. The plot may be preposterous, but it’s hard not to enjoy the ride.

Family dynamics are decidedly tricky for Happy Conklin Jr., a 10-year-old who has to shave three times a day after being experimented on by his inventor father. In 2018’s How to Sell Your Family to Aliens, Hap battled his authoritarian grandma, and in How to Properly Dispose of Planet Earth, he longs to be lab partners with Nevada Everly, the new girl in his science class. Hap manages to befriend her, but he also opens up a black hole that threatens to swallow his school—and the solar system. In this rollicking sci-fi adventure by New Yorker cartoonist Paul Noth, Hap and his superpowered sisters endure extraordinary exploits reminiscent of Netflix’s “Stranger Things,” with appearances by Genghis Khan, magical lizards and a gigantic robot. There’s never a dull moment in this outlandish romp. 

 

This article was originally published in the January 2019 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

Playful illustrations make super stories even better, and these three action-packed novels for young readers are chock full of them.
Science Fiction & FantasyFictionChildren's & YAWorld FictionMiddle Grade

The Hold List: February 2019

Feature by bookpagedev

All of our crushes are fictional characters. But what if we actually had the opportunity to date one of our imaginary loves? Just how good (or bad!) would that first date be? The editors have some thoughts.

Hagrid from the Harry Potter series
By J.K. Rowling

There are so many characters from Rowling’s world who’d be great on a date: Sirius Black, Hermione once she’s 30 (if Ron’s OK with it), either of the Weasley twins. But if I want to feel fancy, I’m taking Hagrid. Sure, his beard is out of control, and he’ll probably smell strongly of damp wool, but he gives the best hugs, and you know he’ll try really hard to make it a nice evening. He’ll get dressed up in his best suit, I’ll bring the (oversize, low-priced) bottle of wine, and he’ll show me his favorite clearing in the forest to watch the moon rise. I fully expect the date to be ruined by whatever magical creature is hidden away in his breast pocket, but that’s just fine with me.

—Cat, Deputy Editor

Nino from the Neapolitan Quartet
By Elena Ferrante

Ah, Nino Sarratore. What shy girl hasn’t had their own Nino Sarratore—the brilliant, somewhat pretentious boy you know would love you if you ever worked up the courage to talk to him. However, with the benefit of having read the rest of Ferrante’s brilliant Neapolitan novels, I know what lurks behind Nino’s appealing exterior. And ladies, he’s not worth any of our time. So this Valentine’s Day, I’ll take one for the team. I’ll go on a date with Nino and let him talk at me and think that I’m falling for his “more brilliant than you” act. And then, after I’ve gained his trust and made him think he’s gained a new acolyte-admirer, I’ll stomp on his heart on behalf of bookish girls everywhere.

—Savanna, Editorial Assistant

Leonard from The Marriage Plot
By Jeffrey Eugenides

Listen, I know he’s trouble. But I am in love with Leonard Bankhead. I love his brilliance, his passion, his intensity and his dark and terrible understanding of the world. If Leonard met me, he would realize that we were meant to be together. No one understands him like I do. Leonard and I are going to a dive bar, we’re getting shots of whiskey, and I don’t care what my mother says about it. We’ll talk about our favorite books and how messed up everything is. We’ll get into a heated argument about if reality television has any worth (it does, and I will introduce him to “Vanderpump Rules,” which he will admit to loving). Later, his career on track, he’ll name a type of algae after the color of my eyes: mud.

—Lily, Associate Editor

Matsu from The Samurai’s Garden
By Gail Tsukiyama

For intelligence and thoughtfulness, I’d turn to the devoted gardener from Tsukiyama’s tender, melancholy second novel, set in 1937. In this story about gracefully weathering loneliness and sorrow, Matsu tends his exquisite garden and frequently journeys to a leper colony, where he continues to care for his beloved. But readers only ever see Matsu through the eyes of Chinese student Stephen, and this gentle man deserves to rise above his secondary-character status. He’s such a classic kind of man that I’d love to see his reaction to a contemporary art museum some summer afternoon. Assuming that I’ve learned to speak Japanese for the date, it would be nice to walk silently through a gallery and debrief afterward. 

—Cat, Deputy Editor

Lilliet from The Queen of the Night
By Alexander Chee

James Bond, Holly Golightly, Jay Gatsby—how much fun would it be to go on a first date (but probably not a second) with one of fiction’s most notorious partiers? For glitz, glamour, scandal and an all-around epic night on the town, it would be hard to beat a visit to 19th-century Paris for a decadent costume party with soprano Lilliet Berne. In Chee’s second novel, Lilliet is a woman of many secrets—too many for a long-term relationship—and drama swirls around her to an improbable degree. But dressed in a fabulous costume and swathed in dazzling jewels—and with the possibility of dramatic escapes and scheming aristocrats—an evening spent with this rags-to-riches diva would be quite an adventure.

—Hilli, Assistant Editor

 

This article was originally published in the February 2019 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

All of our crushes are fictional characters. But what if we actually had the opportunity to date one of our imaginary loves? Just how good (or bad!) would that first date be? The editors have some thoughts.

Hagrid from the Harry…

FictionChildren's & YAAudioMiddle Grade

Audio: April 2019

Feature by Anna Zeitlin

Top Pick
A Malaysian woman of Chinese descent, Yangsze Choo is an enchanting storyteller, and she ably narrates her own novel, The Night Tiger, set in the melting pot of 1930s colonial Malaya. Her narration is more than a reading; Choo has a deep empathy for her characters, and these emotions come out in her telling. The book weaves together the stories of Ren, a young houseboy on a mission to find his dead master’s severed finger and reunite it with his body in time for his soul to be at peace, and Ji Lin, a dressmaker’s apprentice and dance-hall girl who dreams of being a doctor and comes to possess the finger. Meanwhile, there seems to be a pattern to a series of tiger attacks. Are they magic or something else? Part mystery, part love story, The Night Tiger is draped in folklore, as traditions of the past butt up against a modern world of hot rods and tango dances. It deals with themes of death, family, marriage and ambition and questions what we owe the dead.

The New Me follows Millie, a 30-year-old temp who starts planning a whole new life for herself when she mistakenly believes she is being offered a full-time position. Her best friend barely tolerates her, and she rubs her co-workers the wrong way. She has an acerbic sense of humor but can’t gauge when to rein it in. Halle Butler narrates her own novel with a wickedly cynical tone that adds to Millie’s characterization and helps explain why the world seems to have it out for her. With glimpses from more well-adjusted characters’ perspectives that reinforce Millie’s disillusionment, The New Me is a funny, tragic portrait of an ambitionless millennial woman, as well as a dark vision of capitalism and consumerism.

Norton Juster’s The Phantom Tollbooth broke the mold in 1961 with its humor and respect for young readers’ intelligence, curiosity and playfulness. A new audiobook of the classic begins with an introduction from the now-89-year-old author, originally penned for the 50th anniversary edition. Juster shares the story behind the book, and it feels like he’s letting you in on a secret: What began as a short story inspired by a conversation with a young boy about infinity turned into the piece of literary canon we have today. The story itself—which follows a boy named Milo on an adventure through Dictionopolis and Digitopolis and over the Mountains of Ignorance to reunite the Kingdom of Wisdom—is narrated by Rainn Wilson (Dwight from “The Office”), who does a fantastic job. His original voices for each character fit perfectly, and he adroitly navigates all the wordplay to add a richness to Juster’s imagined world. This story may have been written for children, but it merits a listen at any age.

Top Pick A Malaysian woman of Chinese descent, Yangsze Choo is an enchanting storyteller, and she ably narrates her own novel, The Night Tiger, set in the melting pot of 1930s colonial Malaya. Her narration is more than a reading; Choo has a deep empathy…
Children's & YAMiddle Grade

Self-discovery is key in three summer stories set on sunny beaches

Feature by Lori K. Joyce

In a new crop of exciting and emotional middle grade reads, summers spent by the water take center stage, but not necessarily how readers might imagine. Whether these stories take place by a lake or on an island, their coming-of-age themes will echo as young readers deal with their own families and friends and weather the storms of growing up. 

In Josephine Cameron’s debut Maybe a Mermaid, an 11-year-old girl named Anthoni is looking forward to her first summer at the Showboat Resort at Thunder Lake, a place that her mother has spoken of as almost mythical. Mother and daughter have been constantly on the move in order to sell her mother’s Avon-like beauty products, so Anthoni is looking forward to spending time in one spot long enough to make a “True Blue Friend.” But when they arrive at the Showboat, it’s clear the resort’s heyday has long passed. This is the final straw for Anthoni, who realizes she must confront mother—who has been her rock and moral compass—about her increasingly unethical behaviors. Soon Anthoni befriends Charlotte, the former Boulay Mermaid who now owns the resort. While helping the aging performer, Anthoni discovers secrets from the resort’s past. Amid all of these unexpected twists, Anthoni begins to spend time with the other children living at the resort, and she still believes that the summer holds the promise of a true friend. But has Anthoni breached the trust of DJ, the most likely friend candidate, while vying for the attention of popular girl Maddy? How far will Anthoni go to redeem herself? This summertime coming-of-age story chronicles how a young girl discovers life’s many shades of gray.

Ali Standish, author of The Ethan I Was Before, addresses more of life’s big questions with another summer book set on the water. August Isle offers personal and public mysteries for three friends to solve. Having grown up seeing her mother’s postcards of August Isle, an island off the coast of Florida, Miranda has always yearned to visit this wonderful place. But when work assignments come up, Miranda’s parents have to leave home for the summer. When Christy, Miranda’s mother’s friend, comes to take Miranda to the island for the summer, nothing goes the way she imagined. Determined to make the best of her summer situation without her mother, Miranda timidly agrees to take sailing lessons, even though she has yet to make it out of the tadpole level in her swimming class. Eventually she decides the time is right to become Miranda the Bold when she accepts a dare to enter the neighborhood’s (reportedly deserted) haunted house at night. When Miranda is caught by the owner of the house, she and her friends have to spend the rest of the summer helping him sort through his old boxes of treasures. As Miranda sorts through the man’s things and gets to know him, she realizes her strained relationship with her mother is tied to a secret on August Isle—a secret that everyone is keeping from Miranda. With dogged determination, Miranda swallows her fears and pursues the mystery, but she puts herself in harm’s way trying to unravel the truth about her family. In August Isle, young readers will learn that bravery comes in many different forms and that internal bravery is even more important than external bravado.

Gillian McDunn’s debut novel, Caterpillar Summer, is another island-set story of finding family. Fifth-grader Cat, short for Caterpillar, is the glue that holds her small family together. This summer, Cat and her brother Chicken expect to spend three weeks with Cat’s best friend’s family, but when her friend’s grandmother has a stroke, that plan falls through. Meeting Chicken’s special needs in a new city would be too hard for Cat to do alone, so Cat’s mother decides to leave them with her parents (Cat’s grandparents) on an island off the coast of the Carolinas. This comes as a shock to Cat because she doesn’t know anything about her mother’s parents. While Cat’s grandmother is warm and welcoming, her grandfather is a bit scary and aloof. Cat longs to ask her grandfather about her mother and the issues that stand between him and her mother, but that conversation doesn’t seem likely. After a few heartwarming gestures, Cat and her grandfather begin to understand each other little by little, bonding through fishing and walks on the beach. Eventually, Cat does learn what separated their family, and she comes up with a plan to bring them all back together. Readers will cheer for Cat’s development and maturity and will hope her mother can let go of the pain she suffered as a child.

Young characters chase family mysteries and find themselves over the course of a summer in three new middle grade stories set on sunny beaches.
Children's & YAMiddle Grade

Two sweet stories for baking enthusiasts

Feature by Billie B. Little

In two middle grade novels, intelligent and lovable young heroines solve problems and find their sense of self through baking. Growing up is tough, but it can also be filled with sweet victories.

In Margaret Dilloway’s Summer of a Thousand Pies, 12-year-old Cady is sent to live in a new town with her Aunt Shell, who feels like a total stranger. Cady’s father is in jail and struggling with addiction. Since her mom died when she was 3, it’s always been just Cady and her dad, homeless and living in a beat-up van.

Cady’s dad kept her from meeting her extended family, so she doesn’t know anything about Aunt Shell or her housemate, Suzanne. Cady has always wanted to learn to bake but hasn’t had a kitchen to practice in, so she’s happy to discover that her aunt runs a pie shop. Cady misses her dad, but her new life seems a perfect fit, especially when Cady makes a new friend, Jay, whose family lives on Shell’s property. Shell tells Cady she has to bake 1,000 pies to become an expert, and Cady happily takes on the challenge, but soon her new, nearly perfect life is threatened. The pie shop is failing and may be sold, and it will take more than Cady’s baking skills to turn the shop around. And when Cady learns that Jay is an undocumented immigrant, she begins to realize that everyone—not just her—has their problems.

Dilloway shines in her complex portrayal of Cady. Mistrustful and lacking confidence, Cady responds to new situations with anger, but as time passes, she’s able to depend on others, make friends and forge relationships. Dilloway’s gentle humor and lively dialogue make this warm-hearted story ring true.

Midsummer’s Mayhem, Rajani LaRocca’s debut novel, is as dense, flavorful and complex as an artisanal cupcake. And though the story is all about baking, it’s also about magic and mysterious woods, Indian folklore and food, friendship and family.

There is mayhem of all sorts in 11-year-old Mimi’s life. Unlike her talented siblings, she feels like a failure. Her successful mom works too hard to notice her much, and her dad has changed on a dime. A food editor, he has begun cramming sweets into his mouth without the smallest amount of discernment. Worse yet, her father has always been her biggest fan, but now, when she needs his expertise to help win a baking contest, he doesn’t have time for her.

Numerous threads intertwine through this story of Mimi, the youngest in a family of impressive siblings, as she tries to figure out a niche where she, and only she, can excel. Mimi’s desire to be good at something will feel familiar to many young readers, as will the dismissive siblings, busy parents and, naturally, the way-too-pretty mean girl.

Based on Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, this story may be a tad convoluted for readers who aren’t familiar with the source material, but Mimi’s desire to succeed and her quest to win a baking contest carry the story.

In two middle grade novels, intelligent and lovable young heroines solve problems and find their sense of self through baking.

Children's & YAMiddle Grade

Finding freedom

Feature by Julie Hale

Everyday pleasures like spending time with family or watching a favorite TV show are things we often take for granted. Reminding readers to count their blessings, two new adventured-filled titles feature brave heroines who struggle to survive despite government oppression.

J. Kasper Kramer’s impressive debut novel, The Story That Cannot Be Told, begins, appropriately enough, with the words “Once upon a time . . . ” The tale opens in 1989 in Communist Romania. Ten-year-old Ileana lives in Bucharest with her parents. Their life is somewhat bleak—they have access to one TV channel for two hours each week (it broadcasts Communist Party sessions), and their apartment has been bugged by the authorities—yet they’re a loving and tight-knit trio.

Ileana has inherited a passion for writing from her father, a literature professor, and they share a unique bond. “He could hear what was inside a story’s heart—what made it beat or let it die—and he’d shared that gift with me,” she says. Ileana makes up her own narratives in her special book, which she calls “Great Tome”—an assemblage of construction paper and spiral-notebook sheets with a glitter-encrusted cover.

That book, her prized possession, becomes an outlet for escaping the grim reality that her uncle Andrei, a subversive poet recently arrested by the secret police, may be dead. When her parents realize that they, too, could be in danger, they send Ileana to live in a remote village with grandparents she doesn’t know. As her love for newfound family members and their little town develops, Ileana finds her courage tested in ways she never imagined.

Kramer mixes elements of fairy tale, folklore and factual history into an irresistible adventure. It’s a novel readers will love getting lost in, a moving tribute to the power of shared stories and the value of cultivating an independent spirit.

Similar themes can be found in R.J. Palacio’s White Bird, one of fall 2019’s most anticipated titles for young readers and an important act of storytelling. In this beautifully executed graphic novel, Palacio revisits Julian, whom many readers will recognize from the beloved bestseller Wonder, along with his French grandmother, Sara.

Julian, who is writing an essay about Sara for school, contacts her (via FaceTime), and she relates her extraordinary experiences as a young Jewish girl in World War II France. In a narrative enlivened by plot twists, betrayal and a cast of remarkable characters, Sara recalls how German troops came to her school to arrest her and the other Jewish students. After she hid from the soldiers, she was rescued by a boy named Julien, whose family allowed Sara to live in secret in their barn. Because of their compassion and generosity, Sara survived. Hers is an unforgettable account of wartime years lived in fear, but it also highlights the importance of kindness, which she describes as “a light in the darkness” and “the very essence of our humanity.”

Filled with striking thematic juxtapositions—between history and modernity, nature and civilization, freedom and oppression—White Bird succeeds, in part, because of the author’s marvelous artwork. Palacio renders human figures with straightforward clarity, placing them against backdrops that range from sharply detailed to subtly impressionistic, and her panels lend the narrative a what-happens-next urgency that keeps the reader invested.

Resurfacing in the present day, the story comes full circle in the end, as Julian makes a poignant promise to Sara. This ultimately affirming entry in Palacio’s Wonder chronicles is destined to become a classic of its kind.

Everyday pleasures like spending time with family or watching a favorite TV show are things we often take for granted. Reminding readers to count their blessings, two new adventured-filled titles feature brave heroines who struggle to survive despite government oppression.

J. Kasper Kramer’s impressive debut…

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