Monthly Archives: November 2022

YA – Some Kind of Hate

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Littman, Sarah Darer. Some Kind of Hate. Scholastic Press, 2022. 978-1-338-74681-5. 336 p. $18.99. Grades 7-12.

Content Warning: “The contents include white nationalist ideas based on antisemitic conspiracy theories, Islamophobia, racism, misogyny, and violence.”

Declan Taylor is at the top of his game – literally. His school baseball team just won the state tournament, and he was their star pitcher. If Declan just could figure out how to talk to his longtime crush, Megan, he would be set. When an attempt to impress Megan during an end of the school year celebration goes horribly wrong, Declan’s summer plans derail. No more baseball means no future for Declan, at least not the future he was envisioning. Drowning in self-pity while the rest of his family is working long hours, Declan spends most of his day gaming. His baseball friends, including his best friend and longtime teammate Jake, are too busy with summer league and don’t understand Declan’s situation or his anger. Plus Jake seems to be spending more time with his friends from synagogue than worrying about how Declan is doing. With their family’s finances crumbling, Declan is forced to get a summer job. Now he’s spending more time away from home and with his co-workers. Finn and Charlie introduce Declan to a better way to escape the lack of acceptance from his family and friends. It’s in the game world that Declan is able to avoid reality and find understanding: The world needs to wake up to the globalists who are tipping the scale in their favor and stealing opportunities from families like Declan’s. Though his twin sister and baseball friends question some of the things Declan has been saying, Declan’s anger surfaces and he writes them all off, opting to join his new friends in fighting back. Will Declan lose himself to his anger, or is there hope that he can crawl back and redeem himself?

THOUGHTS: Told in alternating chapters between Declan and Jake, this novel explores how, given the right conditions, one’s hate can blossom. Haunting and at times difficult to read, this story will stay with readers and belongs in every YA collection. It would pair well as a modern tie-in to Night, To Kill a Mockingbird, and other classics that deal with social issues. Highly recommended.

Realistic Fiction          Maryalice Bond, South Middleton SD

Elem. – To Change A Planet

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Soontornvat, Christina. To Change A Planet. Scholastic Press, 2022. 978-1-338-62861-6. 40 p. $18.99. Grades PreK-2. 

To Change A Planet is a picture book that focuses on how one person can affect the world both positively and negatively. There is minimal text, and there isn’t necessarily a story; however, the author does get their message across. The end of the book has an extensive author’s note which delves into more detail about climate change and what people can do. The illustrations have a dreamy, almost underwater type quality to them which gives them a blurry type look to them.

THOUGHTS: This is a beautifully done picture book that can be used as a great introduction to climate change or just a beautiful book to share with readers. A must own for any elementary school collection.

Picture Book            Mary McEndree, Lehigh Valley Regional Charter Academy 

Elem. – Sprinkles and Swirls

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Schaefer, Lola M. Sprinkles and Swirls. Little Simon, 2022. $17.99 ea. Unpaged. Grades PreK-1. 

A Cool Day at the Pool. 978-1-665-90332-5.
Oh, What a Show! 978-1-665-91795-7.

Adventurous best friends (and cupcakes) Sprinkles and Swirls have returned in two new graphic novels. In A Cool Day at the Pool, the pair enjoy a fun day out at the pool, where they enjoy swimming, floating in inner tubes and going down the water slide. After swimming, they relax on the beach towels in the sun, but their sweetness soon attracts some ants! They take a break and travel to the nearby Spray-Ground to enjoy the water there before returning to the pool to wrap up the day on the diving board. In Oh, What  a Show!, Swirls wants to sign up for the talent show, but Sprinkles protests she has no talent. Sprinkles tries out some of the talent the other participants are planning to do–gymnastics, juggling, and biking, but she is unable to master any of them. The pair decide to help the ants in building the talent show stage, but an accident with a hammer leaves Sprinkles bleeding (and the sight of blood makes Swirls a little woozy). Despite Swirls’ encouragement, Sprinkles just can’t seem to discover her talent, and she gets increasingly upset. Swirls needs some help in practicing for her dance routine, so Sprinkles agrees to help out…and she discovers her talent–dancing! They decide to team up and enter the contest, where they are a big hit!

THOUGHTS: This enjoyable series is a great way to introduce young readers to the concept of graphic novels. In fact, the book starts with a few panels in which Sprinkles and Swirls explain to readers how to read the graphic novel format. The panels and text are large and use simple text, ideal for young readers. Both books emphasize the importance of friendship, being a supportive friend, and working as a team. A worthwhile purchase for schools serving younger elementary students looking to add to their graphic novel collections.

Graphic Novel            Elizabeth Henry, Lampeter-Strasburg SD

Elem. – Adventures in Fosterland (Series Fiction)

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Shaw, Hannah. Adventures in Fosterland. Aladdin, 2022. $17.99 ea. $44.95 set of 3. Grades 1-3.

Super Spinach. 978-665-90125-3.
Emmett and Jez. 978-1-665-90119-2.
Baby Badger. 978-1-665-92555-6. (Expected in February 2023)

Adventures in Fosterland is a new series written by Hannah Shaw, who is involved with kitten rescue. Each volume is inspired by an actual animal rescue story. Emmett and Jez tells the story of a tiny piglet named Emmett who falls off a truck and is wandering on the side of the road when he is rescued and taken to “Fosterland.” Fosterland the home of a nice lady who fosters animals until they are adopted. There, Emmett soon becomes fast friends with Jez, a kitten who is healing after surgery to remove an injured leg. As time passes, Emmett realizes that he and Jez are different in many ways from one another, and this means they might go in separate directions once they leave Fosterland. Will they find their forever homes? In Super Spinach, readers are introduced to Spinach, a kitten at an animal shelter. Spinach needs to have surgery on her ribs and is quite scared. An older cat tells her she will have to have superpowers to recover from the surgery. So when Spinach wakes up wearing a hard chest plate that will protect her while she recovers, she decides she must be a superhero with armor! Sent to Fosterland to recover, Spinach teams up with Chickpea, another kitten in Fosterland, and they soon are gaining confidence and taking on challenges they never would have dreamed of previously. When it’s time for Spinach’s chest plate to come off, she is worried that it means the end of her superpowers. But she soon discovers that you don’t need armor or a costume to be brave. 

THOUGHTS: Hand this series to fans of animal stories, particularly cat lovers (each book in the series thus far features a kitten as one of the protagonists). Readers will enjoy these stories of friendship and will also learn important lessons about kindness and bravery. Each title contains a closing chapter where Shaw shares the real stories of the animals who inspired the series and the back cover features photos of the real Emmett, Jez, Spinach, and Chickpea. Recommended.

Animals          Elizabeth Henry, Lampeter-Strasburg SD

Elem. – The Long Ride Home

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Graegin, Stephanie. The Long Ride Home. Random House Studio, 2022. 978-0-593-42602-9. Unpaged. Grades K-2. 

Little Koala is on a car ride home. As her mother drives through town, the locations the car passes by remind Koala of her best friend Little Cheetah and all the fun times they have shared together. The ice cream parlor reminds her of the times they would sit at a table, sharing stories and enjoying their favorite ice cream. The big hill prompts memories of bicycling trips and a mishap resulting in a skinned knee. When the car passes the library, Koala remembers sitting on the floor inside, side by side with Cheetah, reading their favorite book. Every location evokes a memory of Cheetah; in fact, the text is told in first person, as Koala speaks to her friend. In the closing pages of the book, the reader learns why Cheetah is on Koala’s mind so much and why her thoughts seem to have a melancholy and longing tone. Cheetah and her family  have moved away, and the girls are no longer able to spend time together on a regular basis. The story ends on a positive note when it is revealed that the friends now maintain a long-distance friendship and that Cheetah is thinking about Koala at the same time Koala is thinking about her. 

THOUGHTS: This gentle story would be ideal for children dealing with feelings of loss and grief over friends or family members that have moved or passed away. The emotion of the text is enhanced by Graegin’s digitally created illustrations, which are rendered in a more muted-style color palette. Highly recommended.

Picture Book          Elizabeth Henry, Lampeter-Strasburg SD

Elem. – Up and Down and Other Stories

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Ruzzier, Sergio. Up and Down and Other Stories. Chronicle, 2022. 978-1-452-18339-8. 46 p. $14.99. Grades K-2.

Fox and Chick have returned in this volume featuring three short stories. While Fox and Chick may not seem like obvious friends, they compliment each other–Chick with his enthusiasm and impulsiveness and Fox with his patience and logic. In “Up and Down,” Chick excitedly climbs a tree, only to become too frightened to climb down–will he be there forever or will the always steady Fox be able to figure out a way for him to get down? In “Seventeen Snowflakes” Chick can’t wait for it to snow so he can use his sled. He understandably is disappointed when Fox informs him that it will take more than just a few snowflakes to fall so there is enough snow to sled. In “The New Bookcase,” Fox presents Chick with a present – a book! When Chick laments that he has nowhere to store the book, Fox suggests he build a bookcase. Of course, Chick decides to build one that minute. Each story is told in graphic novel style panels, although the number of panels varies per page–some pages have one panel, others contain as many as four panels.

THOUGHTS: This collection will no doubt hold appeal for early readers who are sure to enjoy the humorous situations Chick seems to get into. Fox and Chick show readers you can be friends with people who are different from you. These stories easily could be included in lessons on friendship and accepting others.

Picture Book          Elizabeth Henry, Lampeter-Strasburg SD

Elem. – Pets of Presidents (Series NF)

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Hansen, Grace. Pets of Presidents. Abdo Kids, 2022. $21.95 ea. $131.70 set of 6. 24 p. Grades K-2. 

Birds of Presidents. 978-1-098-20923-0.
Cats of Presidents. 978-1-098-20924-7.
Dogs of Presidents. 978-1-098-20925-4.
Farm Pest of Presidents. 978-1-098-20926-1.
Horses of Presidents. 978-1-098-20927-9.
Unusual Pets of Presidents. 978-1-098-20928-5.

This series focuses on a unique part of presidential history – the pets of presidents and their families. Each two page spread features age appropriate text identifying the president and the pet(s) owned by their family. A historical image of the president (or family) is accompanied by a contemporary photo of the pet species they owned. This reviewer had an opportunity to read Birds of Presidents. While the overall book was very informative, the spread featuring the Teddy Roosevelt family and their macaw had text that simply mentioned “The Roosevelts” and a photo showing Teddy Roosevelt, Jr. with the macaw. It would have been clearer to the reader had the text indicated that “The Roosevelts” referred specifically to the Theodore Roosevelt family (since, after all, two Roosevelts have occupied the Oval Office). Each volume also features a picture glossary and a link to additional online resources. 

THOUGHTS: An interesting angle on presidential history that will appeal to both animal fans and history fans, this series is a worthwhile additional purchase for libraries looking to add to their presidential collections. 

973 American History          Elizabeth Henry, Lampeter-Strasburg SD

YA – This Vicious Grace

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Thiede, Emily. This Vicious Grace. Wednesday Books, 2022. 978-1-399-70305-5. 436 p. $18.99. Grades 9-12.

Alessa’s gift has killed three people, and she somehow needs to convince someone to marry her again…which isn’t going well. There is an army of demons headed to destroy her island in a few weeks. There is a priest who is convincing people that Alessa needs to die, and her own soldiers are trying to kill her. All of these things are causing Alessa to feel like she needs to take desperate measures to save herself, and her island.  Enter Dante, an outcast who Alessa hires to try to protect her; however, he wants nothing to do with her or her plan to save the island. Will Alessa be able to protect the island she calls home? Will she be able to convince someone to marry her? Or she is destined to fail at everything, no matter how hard she tries, while Dante is hiding a secret from her that could ruin everything. 

THOUGHTS: This is a fast paced young adult fantasy novel with some romance throughout. There are some predictable twists and turns, but the writing is really well done. There is a sequel planned for this book coming out in 2023.

Fantasy            Mary McEndree, Lehigh Valley Regional Charter Academy

Tags: demons, romance, friendship. 

Elem. – The Katha Chest

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Chowdhury, Radhiah. The Katha Chest. Salaam Reads, 2022. 978-1-665-90390-5. Unpaged. $17.99. Grades K-2.

The Katha Chest follows a young girl named Asiya who loves to visit her Nanu’s house because she gets a chance to go through the katha chest. Each quilt tells a story, and Asiya loves learning about her family in this way. The illustrations are beautifully done, and when Asiya is looking at each quilt there is a spread of pages that just show the woman from the family who is attached to each quilt. On those pages, the illustrations demonstrate and show more about each woman from the family without having any words to describe them. At the end of the book, there are both author and illustrator notes delving more into the katha chest and what that means to each of them. 

THOUGHTS: This book is a beautifully done story about the katha chest, as well as what each woman in Asiya’s family means to her. A great story for a read aloud that will cause readers to want to know more about this skill of making the katha quilts.

Picture Book           Mary McEndree, Lehigh Valley Regional Charter Academy

Tags: Quilts, family, grandmothers, mothers, authors, Bangladesh, saris. 

Elem. – Singing with Elephants

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Engle, Margarita.  Singing with Elephants. Viking, 2022.  978-0-593-20669-0. 217 p. $16.99. Grades 4-6.

This Newbery Honor and Pura Belpre Award winning author’s latest offering is a historical novel in free verse set in 1947 California. A young girl called Oriol is finding life in Santa Barbara challenging. Her veterinarian parents, her abuelita, and her older sister came to the United States from Cuba. After the death of her beloved grandmother, Oriol has found it harder to cope with her classmates who call her a smelly “zoo beast” and mock her accent and appearance. One day she meets her neighbor Gabriela Mistral, the celebrated Latin poet (la poeta) and winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature. Gabriela becomes a mentor to Oriol and encourages her to deal with her feelings by writing poetry.  The young girl learns about a pregnant elephant under her parents’ care at a movie star’s ranch. Her encounters with the elephant inspire her writing, and the family is thrilled when the elephant delivers twins, Song and Dance. When one of the baby elephants goes missing, suspicion falls on the actor, who believes he can teach the animal to do tricks and even talk. Oriol is determined to reunite Dance with her mother and brother and needs to enlist the help of the community to save her and other animals from abuse. In helping the animals, Oriol comes to realize her own strength. This uplifting lyrical text is peppered throughout with Spanish words. The author’s note discusses the life of Gabriela Mistral, who was also a peace activist and teacher. One of her poems is included.

THOUGHTS: A gem of a book, which will surely delight readers. Highly recommended for elementary collections.

Historical Fiction          Denise Medwick, Retired, PSLA Member
Novel in Verse