Shadows of Sherwood

 
Shadows of Sherwood: A Robyn Hoodlum Adventure
By Kekla Magoon

I've always loved the tales of Robin Hood, so when I heard about this brand-new series with a dystopian, urban twist--the Robyn Hoodlum Adventures--I was pretty excited!
This first book in the series, Shadows of Sherwood, introduces Robyn, a street-smart teen with a daring taste for adventure, and her eclectic merry band of new friends. From a mixed-race family of political importance and privilege, Robyn suddenly finds herself alone and terrorized one night when her parents are disappeared by the very creepy Sheriff Marissa Mallet.
Nott City is changing, and not for the better; an evil governor, Ignomus Crown, has taken power and Sheriff Mallet will stop at nothing to please him. Innocent people are being arrested all over town, and Robyn finds herself at the top of the Most Wanted list once she begins to bravely help the poor and needy citizens of the city....
Stay tuned for more from Kekla Magoon!

Chained

Chained 
By Lynn Kelly

In northern India, Hastin lives with his mother and younger sister in a small village. After his sister contracts a serious illness from mosquitoes, Hastin decides to leave home to work off his family's debt for the hospital bill. Unfortunately, the circus master who "hires" Hastin has no intention of actually paying him anything, and treats him terribly. Hastin's job as the elephant keeper for a baby elephant he helped trap is the only thing that provides any comfort; he and the elephant develop a strong bond, and protect each other from the cruelty of the awful circus master.
Hastin must escape and get back to his home--but he can't leave the young elephant at the circus...he must figure out a way to save them both. It seems impossible!
A real page-turner for animal lovers.

Gracefully Grayson

Gracefully Grayson
By Ami Polonsky

Grayson appears to be a regular 6th grade boy--but inside, for as long as she can remember, Grayson has felt much more like a girl.
And she is dying to dress and act and be who she really is, and to let everyone else know too...but major obstacles stand in her way--misunderstanding, teasing, bullying.
A compassionate teacher boldly gives Grayson the lead role of Persephone in the school play, and this causes upheaval in the school community and within Grayson's own family. An understanding uncle also helps pave the way for Grayson to gain the courage and confidence to finally show the world who she really is: a girl.

I am Malala

I am Malala: how one girl stood up for education and changed the world
By Malala Yousafzai
With Patricia McCormick

(Young Readers Edition)

Malala always had a passion for education--ever since she was a very little girl, she loved school and excelled at learning. When the Islamist militant group known as the Taliban began to take control of her hometown in Pakistan, all girls were suddenly forbidden to attend school. Along with her father, Malala spoke out about this injustice (she was 11 years old at the time) and through interviews and blog postings she gave the world an understanding of the horrors of Taliban occupation.
One day, inside the school bus on the way home from school, Malala was shot in the head by the Taliban...miraculously, she survived, though she underwent many serious operations.
To this day Malala speaks passionately all over the world about the rights of children and women to receive an education.
In 2014, at age 17, Malala Yousafzai won the Nobel Peace Prize--the youngest person ever to win this prestigious honor.
An amazing, inspiring true story of courage and perseverance.

Counting by 7s

Counting by 7s
By Holly Goldberg Sloan

I believe this is one of my favorite books, ever.
It is hard to imagine a novel that begins with a tragedy, is all about the agonizing process of grief, and somehow also makes the reader laugh out loud.
That is what Holly Goldberg Sloan has created--a beautiful, heart-wrenching and humorous story of a genius middle school girl dealing with the worst thing that has ever happened.
The quirky, eventually-lovable characters in this book are full of spirit but have real-life flaws and problems...they work together to make the impossible happen!
I love that the setting is Bakersfield, California, too.

The Thickety

The Thickety: A Path Begins
By J.A. White

Witchcraft, fantasy, horror, magic...this first book in the Thickety series (4 books altogether) is pretty gripping!

Kara Westfall, a young witch, must figure out whether her powers are evil or for good--or some strange combination of the two... Long ago her mother was murdered before her eyes by the community for being a witch, and Kara has always wondered about her mother's powers and how they were used. The community watches Kara closely to determine whether she should share the same fate as her mother.

Isolated on an island, the town Kara lives in with her dad and little brother borders a creepy forest, the "Thickety." In this magical forest live horrific beasts and strange beings. Kara must enter the Thickety in order to find out the answers she needs to know...

Shooting Kabul

Shooting Kabul 

By N.H. Senzai

Taking place around the time of the September 11th terrorist attacks in 2001, middle school student Fadi faces harassment and bullying for being Muslim in his new community of Fremont, California. Along with his family, Fadi recently fled his home country of Taliban-controlled Afghanistan, but his 6-year-old sister was accidentally left behind. Fadi is determined to find her by any means and cooks up some wild plans to get to Pakistan, where he thinks his little sister might be.
I loved this story, and especially the surprising and clever end..!

Revolution

Revolution
By Deborah Wiles

This is a hefty book, almost 500 pages. But along with the gripping Civil Rights-era story are pages of photos, leaflets, song lyrics and quotes from the Mississippi Freedom Summer project in 1964.
"The overthrowing of Jim Crow [state laws] by the federal government was a revolution. And it came with its battles. One of those battles was Freedom Summer," writes the author in the book's afterword.
Revolution is an incredible documentary novel about what it took to ensure African Americans in the south could vote and access their rights as citizens of this country. It truly took a  revolution.

Vango

Vango: Between Sky and Earth
 By Timothée de Fombelle

This is a cliff hanger, no doubt...good thing the second book is now out (Vango: A Prince Without a Kingdom)!
An action-packed adventure that includes some WWII history--and even a photograph of the giant "airship" blimp, the Graf Zeppelin--this is the story of one very interesting boy, Vango. Mysteriously orphaned as a toddler, he travels the globe seeking refuge from enemies while trying to uncover his past. Along the way he meets and befriends some colorful characters: a pirate/priest on a secret island, an orphaned girl who lives in a castle in Scotland, the captain of the Graf Zeppelin in Germany, and many others. Always running (or scaling buildings or trains or the Eiffel Tower or other tall structures), Vango somehow manages to survive one crazy adventure after another!

Tokyo Heist

Tokyo Heist
By Diana Renn

Nothing like a good mystery for summer reading!
I enjoyed the twists and turns in Tokyo Heist, and I liked the teenage characters a lot. Violet, especially, is creative and smart; I loved her ideas for her own super-hero manga story about Kimono Girl...
The plot in this novel is clever, and includes cool manga-related details and background, along with the art-theft-Japanese-mafia theme!
And since I spent a few hours in the Tokyo airport earlier this summer, I especially enjoyed the reference to some interesting, unusual toilets...
A fun story!

Fair Weather

Fair Weather
By Richard Peck

I've been noticing all of these books by Richard Peck on the library shelves--some with gold or silver book award stickers--and I'd never read a single one. So I borrowed this, read it, and now I can't wait to read all the others!
It's 1893, the year of the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago, and Rosie and her older sister, little brother and goofy grandpa head from their isolated farm by train to experience the magic and wonder of the big city and the Fair. Electric lights, running water, Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show, the world's first Ferris wheel and many other marvels await them....
Richard Peck describes the time period in such wonderful detail, I felt like I was right there, and I learned quite a lot about both country life and city life at the turn of the last century!

Doll Bones

Doll Bones
By Holly Black

I thought Doll Bones was just as great as it looks and sounds!
A creepy underlying story about a supposedly-murdered-girl-turned-into-a-ceremic-doll really makes for an excellent plot.
And the three middle school-aged friends, Zach, Poppy and Alice are very endearing and believable. Dealing with their own issues about growing up and getting too old to "play dolls", they embark upon an exciting adventure with many twists and turns, and some unexpected disappointments too.
An excellent book that truly kept me up--reading--at night!

P.S. I had to look up whether bone china is really made from bones...It is...!

Ninth Ward

Ninth Ward
By Jewell Parker Rhodes

Lanesha sees ghosts--all around her neighborhood in New Orleans, including her own mama who died giving birth to her. Growing up with her adopted grandmother, Mama Ya-Ya, Lanesha has become comfortable with the ghosts and even appreciates their company.
When Hurricane Katrina hits the city, Lanesha needs to be stronger than she's ever been, drawing on all the skills and knowledge Mama Ya-Ya has taught her over the past 12 years. Even the ghosts are called upon to help out as Lanesah, Mama Ya-Ya, a neighbor boy and their dog end up in a serious survival situation: the Mississippi River flooding into their home and the waters are rising and rising...
This is an intense book based on the real events of Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

Brown Girl Dreaming

Brown Girl Dreaming
By Jacqueline Woodson

This is a beautiful collection of story-poems about author Jacqueline Woodson's own childhood in both the South and in New York. Her perspective of the Civil Rights Movement is particularly interesting and engaging, since she was a little girl at the time and just beginning to understand what it was all about.
Brown Girl Dreaming won the National Book Award in 2014 for YA literature; click here to see the author speaking about her book when she received this prestigious award!

Joey Pigza

Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key
By Jack Gantos

Joey Pigza is a funny, smart, quirky kid who struggles daily with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). His medication doesn't always work, his mom has been in and out of his life, his grandma has had her own challenges being a substitute mom...things are not always very easy!
Joey gets in trouble at school, all the time--and sometimes really endangers himself and classmates. Like the time he's running with scissors...
But Joey is an awesome kid and everybody knows it. He wants to learn how to have more control, and luckily Joey has some supportive people in his life to help him out.

Firegirl

Firegirl
By Tony Abbott

Tom, an introverted 7th grader, is challenged by some difficult feelings and decisions when a new girl joins his class for a brief period of time. His classmates ruthlessly tease Jessica, who has been horribly burned in an accidental fire and receives treatments at a nearby hospital. Tom befriends Jessica, despite his fear of her, and this is ultimately an action that changes his life and forces him to rethink what friendship means.

Eleanor & Park

Eleanor & Park
By Rainbow Rowell

For Valentine's Day I thought I'd treat myself to a love story; my librarian friend Chalida told me, "this one will tear you apart!" so I picked it up...and couldn't put it down! And she was so right.

The alternating voices of high school juniors Eleanor and Park tell a magnificent love story. Eleanor, proud and stoic, puts up with bullying at school and at home, while Park appears to have it all. Who would have thought they would fall in love with each other on the school bus--a true, deep love--and who would have thought there would be such a beautiful book that captures every single feeling?

Sigh....

The One and Only Ivan

The One and Only Ivan

By Katherine Applegate

Just finished this one last night...sniffling, wiping my eyes a little, I'll admit. I can understand why it was selected for a Newberry medal.
Told simply but powerfully, from the perspective of a gorilla locked in a cage (for 27 years!) in a shopping mall, this novel is based--sadly--on a true story.
But author Katherine Applegate gives Ivan some special friends to keep him company in her story, including a stray dog and a couple of amazing elephants...and Ivan, who is a dedicated artist, really perseveres against all odds.

Bomb

Bomb: The race to build--and steal--the world's most dangerous weapon
By Steve Sheinkin

Steve Sheinkin tells the gripping true tale of the construction of the first atomic bomb, dropped on Japan and ultimately ending WWII.
A story chock full of the world's "greatest scientists,  the most expert spies, hardened military commandos, and some of the most ruthless dictators who ever lived. The prize: military dominance over the entire world."
Read and find out what it took to build such a weapon, and why it is so important for countries to avoid using them now.