How will such a fragile child living with a history of cruelty and neglect survive? ​

December expects to be ridiculed and ostracized by her new classmates. True to form, a pack of "shiny" girls recognize a vulnerable target.  They zero in on this strange newcomer and begin to taunt her, riffling through December's backpack, discovering her secret journal and the owl stolen from Eleanor's workshop.   

​What she doesn't expect is Cheryllynn, the lonely girl wearing a pink raincoat, who wants to be December's friend. December initially rebuffs her friendly overtures. The two outcasts: transgender Cheryllynn, formerly known as Charlie, and physically and emotionally scarred December take tentative steps toward building a friendship. 
​December's developing relationships with her foster parent and a potential friend have several missteps. It is difficult for this girl to cast off her protective shell and trust anyone. Eleanor, ​Cheryllynn, and December each have deep-seated emotional wounds. They become the source of rescue and rehabilitation for one another.

Eleanor enlists December to help an injured red-tailed hawk. She must create a bond of trust with the bird and train it to fly again. The trajectory for the hawk to recover from debilitating circumstances and learn to take flight parallels her trainer’s path to healing. 

Sandy Stark-McGinnis has created a character that is brutally honest while simultaneously clinging to a distorted view of herself and her past. This is her story. "It's my story, and it belongs to only me."

Extraordinary Birds is poignant story of learning to trust. Of finding hope.

Kat and Robin meet at a Boston church youth group. They are invited to spend the summer in Kolkata. working with an organization that fights human trafficking and rescues young children. Both teens have their own reasons for deciding to go to Kolkata. ​Through alternating voices, Kat and Robin share their hopes for this summer of service in India.

Robin was born in Kolkata and longs to meet his birth mother and understand his history. Kat is struggling to overcome a traumatic assault. She reasons that teaching young girls to defend themselves will help heal her anguish and calm her fears. Interestingly, neither accomplishes his/her stated purpose for traveling to Kolkata. However, each finds the summer in India to be a turning point in their lives.

Perkins builds the story to a heart-pounding, potentially terrifying climax that will keep readers swiftly turning pages. The conclusion is open-ended, bittersweet yet satisfying.

This search for identity and recovery is a sweeping saga that explores the serious problem of international human trafficking. Gripping storytelling, eye-opening adventure in a faraway city, Forward Me Back to You packs an emotional gut punch that lingers long after the final page. A story not to be missed.

​When people I love are out of reach, I offer some kindness to another that I can’t give my dear ones. It brings peace to me.

Point three: Supporting characters, especially Bett's grandma and Avery's birth mother are not phantom shadows or cardboard standees. Even campers are not one-dimensional. ​The snobby camper reveals a surprising side near the end of the book. 

Point four: There are no simpering, sniveling, demanding rivals trying to destroy each girl's relationship with her father.  The adults are adults. Readers will be cheering for a resolution that will help all characters build fulfilling, happy lives. 

Point five: There are plenty of interesting plot twists to keep readers engaged. Some are telegraphed early on, others are hinted at as the story progresses. A few caught me by surprise.  This is not a Disney remake.  Prepare to be delighted and surprised in a good way.

After reading To Night Owl From Dogfish I found I had several questions.  After a quick internet search, I could not find answers to my questions, so am posing my questions for Holly Goldberg Sloan and Meg Wolitzer online.

'Bonus: The 1998 version of The Parent Trap opens with Nat King Cole's “L.O.V.E.” ends with Natalie Cole's “This Will Be An Everlasting Love.” Both songs make a terrific soundtrack for To Night Owl From Dogfish. 

Berry does not shy away from graphic descriptions of murder, racism, cruelty, and war-related injuries. Life for her characters is not simple nor is it always just.

Reading this novel and especially the book's final chapters will require either a large box of tissues or, if you want to stay true to the time period, a few dozen handkerchiefs.

Occasionally I encounter a book that I call a masterpiece. Lovely War is one such book. The writing is sublime, filled with tenderness and hauntingly exquisite imagery. There are battle scenes so real that I could taste the acrid smell of gunfire from deep in the trenches. A kiss delayed before finally being realized is as sweet as the ripest peach, waiting until the exact moment of perfection before it is plucked from the tree and savored in all its deliciousness. Juxtapositioning the agonizing story of a soldier's tragic death against a young toddler building and demolishing block towers is sheer brilliance. ​Berry relieves the tension with clever asides and sly humor.

This YA novel comes in at a substantial 500 pages, including a Historical Note, Selected Bibliography, and Acknowledgements. That's big enough to be a doorstop and may be a bit daunting for some teen readers. But don't let size deter you. Every chapter, every single word is pure gold.

Note: When I first picked up this historical novel and began to read, I was puzzled by the cover. After l finished reading, I understood its significance. You’ll get no spoilers from me. But after you read the book, let’s discuss!

The Moon Within by Aida Salazar

Celi's mother is thrilled that her daughter will soon have her first period.  She excitedly shares this news with friends and family and begins planning a tradition ancestral celebration to honor her daughter's first menses. Celi is mortified and feels that her privacy has been invaded. A clash between generations, cultures, and expectations leaves both mother and daughter at odds. Celi's internal dissonance extends to relationships with her peers.

She examines her feelings when Magda reveals her gender fluidity, requesting that family and friends refer to her as Mar because "I feel more boy than girl at the moment and because I can be both."  In addition, Celi develops a crush on skate boarder and capoeira dancer Ivan. Sadly, when Ivan and his friends mock Mar, Celi remains silent, refusing to speak in defense of her friend. ​​She finally realizes that she will have to take a stand. She must decide where her loyalties lie.

Salazar lyrically weaves several themes throughout this poetic first-person account. Reading becomes a sensory experience though explorations of rhythm "dancing bomba feels like warm Caribbean water swishing and swaying happiness inside of me," hearts "a locket in my heart ... holds all of the questions that do cartwheels in my mind,' and of course, the moon "I look into the dark and sway with Luna's moonbeams..."

Ultimately, Celi acknowledges that her Mexican and Puerto Rican heritage are an important part of her identity. She accepts and appreciates the biological changes taking place in her body. She celebrates the girl she is and the woman that she is becoming.

A timely reminder of the universal nature of menstruation and cultural differences:  "Period. End of Sentence" won a 2019 Oscar Award for Best Short Documentary.

He's a 7th grade student who enjoys sharing books, comics, movies, and gaming with his nerdy friends. He fluidly moves between two countries, navigating crowded middle school hallways and the bustling pulga. He is equally comfortable communicating in Spanish, English, Spanglish, and colloquial Texan. ​English teacher Mrs. Wong expands his multicultural view of the world, incorporating Aztec, Mayan, Chinese and Korean mythology into the curriculum. ​

This first person memoir takes shape through multiple poetic forms such as haiku, rhyming couplets, and free verse.  "Mis Otros Abuelos" is a concrete poem which narrows as the family crosses the bridge connecting the two countries and expands as the family travels further into the interior of each country. 

Draper has fashioned a compelling portrait of a biracial girl living with conflict.  In addition to the tension between her parents, Isabella faces racial hostilities: her best friend Imani discovers a noose in her locker. Who would do something like that? And why? On a shopping trip Imani and Izzy discover an exclusive dress shop. They are tailed by security and eventually asked to leave the store.  Is it because of the color of their skins? Their young age? When her soon-to-be brother is accused of theft, things take a frightening turn. These encounters leave her shaken.

Blended combines questions of identity, racism, friendship, and family.  Like a Sonatina and an old-time swing tune, Draper's novel for young readers hits all the right notes. Melody and harmony blend in one dazzling performance.

Izzy/Isabella prepares for the Pianopalooza by learning music composed in the eighteenth century. She also discovers a treasure trove of old boogie-woogie and blues numbers. Want to hear these two very different musical numbers? 

We have a saying in Farsi. It translates ‘your place was empty.’ We say it when we miss somebody.

Michael Levi Harris' delivers a nuanced performance. He expertly moves the narrative through the voice of vulnerable young Darius with palpable anxiety and fragility. Supporting characters receive stellar treatment with unique character accents in English, broken English, and Farsi. Harris nails the personality of each: Laleh's exhausted whining, Trent Bolger's taunts, and grandfather Babou's proud yet often blustering confusion. However, it's the emotional interactions of Darius between friend Sohrab, grandmother Mamou, and father Stephen Kellner that bring the story into sharp focus.
Harris' narration invites listeners into the world of Darius the Great is Not Okay. It's an experience as rich and satisfying as an elaborate Persian meal. The memories will linger long after the final literary morsel is consumed.

I experienced both the print and audio versions of Darius the Great is Not Okay. I enjoyed each for different reasons. Reading names of Iranian attractions is helpful in locating and picturing specific places: Dowlatabad, Atashkadeh, Jameh Mosque. (They are stunning sites. Take a look.) Thanks Dial Books and Adib Khorram for an outstanding young adult novel! Hearing Farsi phrases is a bonus. I appreciate the decision to have all Persian-speaking characters place a vowel sound between initial consonants. Thanks Michael and Listening Library!

• How many times has Khorram watched Star Trek? Does he keep some kind of record of his favorite episodes?
• Precisely how particular is Khorramabout about his tea?
• Where did he come up with all of the detailed descriptions of the food? Did he grow up with Persian food? How much eating was involved in the development of the book?
• Is the version of Rook that I learned to play as a child similar to the game played in Iran?

Release date: August 28, 2018, 2018 Publisher: Listening Library

​Audiobook accessed via Overdrive

The girls must locate Princess Sparkle, Destroyer of Worlds and possibly save her life (or is it lives?) They hope to discover the cause of the station's devastation and exonerate themselves. Under cover of night, creeping through air ducts, the girls are on the case. They discover the shocking truth and realize that the entire space station could be destroyed. It is up to the kids, with a huge assist from their parents, to save Wilnick.

Brooks doesn’t even try to get too scientific or technical, peppering the girl’s dialogue with terms such as taffimatter, dual-core turbinate, and gravity grenade. Readers will be captivated by the campy wild adventure without becoming overly concerned with how these things actually work.

The dialogue is snappy and spot on, capturing the spunky young explorers, their stressed-out parents, and the inner politics of a closed-community in outer space. Panels are drawn with a sure hand, featuring plenty of action and highly expressive faces. Use of numerous viewpoints brings added dimension.  Of special note, the view from inside the air duct openings, looking out on the scene below is fantastic. And the pink. Did I mention all that vivid pink?

Sanity and Tallulah is the real deal. A dynamic duo who are willing to go where no one else dares to go. They are astute and more than a little bit reckless. The girls are constantly tinkering and experimenting, much to the chagrin  of their parents, who view them with equal parts pride and exasperation. I hope Ms. Brooks is taking good care of her inking hand because demand for more Sanity and Tallalah is inevitable.

We've Got the Whole World in Our Hands  features stunning art on every page. 

What can you do with a ball of string? Try your hand at replicating the string game pictured in the book. These instructional videos can help you. Create a Cat’s Cradle with a friend. Jacob’s Ladder requires only one set of hands. However, it’s great fun to gather a couple of friends and create these fascinating string patterns.