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Author/Illustrator Jarrett J. Krosoczka tells his story of growing up among a family of addicts, trying to find normalcy in his not-very-normal existence. His loud and loving grandparents raise him and pay for his comic-making classes—thank heavens. Art is how he survived. And his art is remarkable. Hey, Kiddo is a National Book Award Finalist.
Afro-Latino heroine, Xiomara Batista, doesn’t feel that she’s being heard in her Harlem barrio, what with her Dominican mother making Catholic demands and men disrespecting her. So she pores out all her frustrations into her little leather notebook. And then she starts speaking the poems. Everything changes.
If you love animals, you’ll love this book (published as an adult book) which is perfect for young adults. If you don’t love animals, you really should read this book. The naturalist and adventuring author rights about her relationship to three border collies over a life time, emus in Australia, an enormous spider, an octopus and others.
Gretchen Whipple bargains with the Vickery twins, Lee and Felix. If they help her solve the death of Essie Hastings, she’ll help them break the Agreement. That means that Felix won’t have to apprentice Death, nor will Lee apprentice Memory. They discover that things in town have gone very wrong and Death is running rampant.
Around the clock news coverage descends on Makersville, Indiana, when a private zookeeper releases his collection of wild animals (cheetah, wolf, python, etc.) then shoots himself. Fifteen year old Ronney is already taking care of his kid sister, repairing the damaged house because his depressed father sure isn’t. His Mom is just barely hanging on, going to work, popping prescription drugs to stay calm.
A psychological thriller has a teen boy hiding in his ex-girlfriend’s house, unknown to her or anyone in the family. What will happen if he’s discovered? Why is he here? He starts in the basement and ends up in her bedroom. Will the surveillance cameras see him? Should they?
Two Stories. Nadja’s in war-torn Bosnia during the 1990s. Zara’s in present-day Rhode Island. Both are teenagers. Nadja is Zara’s mother. Nadja’s teenaged years were spent surviving. Zara is an aspiring artist—a photographer. How can they communicate? Can a terrorist attack unite them?
Jake Liddell doesn’t think he’s a hero, but everyone else does. He’s just returned home from war in Iraq. He doubts the army, the draft, and JROTC. Should he get the Silver Star? He’s got six months left of his tour of duty—could he not return after his rehab at Walter Reed? His life in action was unbearable and he’s lost so many comrades.
This novel-in-verse pulls the reader along with an emotional tug that can’t be ignored. The story delves into big questions. And just maybe a tragedy is necessary to make the point about the death penalty.
Sarah is fierce, confident, fearful, and loathe to be the monster she must be to infiltrate the Nazi elite girls boarding school and succeed in her mission to befriend Hitler Youth girls. It’s 1939 Germany and she’s lost everything—her mother, her safety—she has nothing else to lose. She’s Jewish. Why not risk her life and spy. She’s a good actress, after all.
Uproarious, pithy, graphic novel biographies of thirty women (well, a couple of those thirty are clusters of sisters—like The Shaggs. Their father insisted his daughters become rock stars. They didn’t want to. They weren’t successful, but decades later they’re lauded for their raw sound). From the fourth century through a young Afghan rapper of today, of many races and ethnicities women have been conquering the world. Wow!
Marin is profoundly lonely. She’s a college freshman in wintery New York State, far from her old home, sunny California. And who is her family? Her mother died when she was a toddler, her grandfather died the end of last summer. Thank Heavens for a friend like Mabel.
