Tag Archives: Novel in Verse

MG/YA – Louder Than Hunger

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Schu, John. Louder Than Hunger. Candlewick Press, 2024.  978-1-536-22909-7. $16.97. 528 p. Grades 5-9.

John Schu tells the fictional story of Jake, a middle school student who is very self-conscious of his appearance. He tries to control his feelings about his body by controlling his eating. But Jake spirals and continues to force himself not to eat, until he becomes critically malnourished. Schu shows readers Jake’s experience in battling anorexia nervosa, OCD, anxiety, clinical depression,  and being admitted to residential treatment as well as out-patient treatment. This is an authentic novel about not only mental illness and the battles that those with them face, but the hope and power that those who push through the darkness experience.

THOUGHTS: This book belongs in every single middle school, high school, and public library. It is an authentic look at anorexia nervosa, anxiety, depression and OCD and will surely help many teens feel seen. While this book discusses some tough topics, it is written in such a heartfelt and genuine way that teens will undoubtedly enjoy it.

Realistic Fiction 

MG – And Then, Boom!

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Fipps, Lisa. And Then, Boom! Nancy Paulsen Books, 2024. 978-0-593-40632-8. 256 p. $17.99. Grades 5-8.

In Lisa Fipps’ new verse novel, Joe is being raised by his Grandmum. His mom gets “the Itch” and leaves town all too often. After her daughter gets arrested, Grandmum puts up her house as bail collateral. Unfortunately, Joe’s mother fails to appear in court, leaving both Joe and Grandmum unhoused. While living out of a car, Joe’s school friend shares with him a trailer for rent. The two move in, and things begin to look up…until terrible tragedy strikes, and Joe is all alone. Joe keeps his situation a secret from everyone but his two friends, Nick and Hakeem. Food dwindles. The gas is shut off. Then, the electricity all together. Adults like Mrs. Swan, a teacher, and Uncle Frankie, the trailer park owner, help Joe without knowing he has been left on his own. After summer break begins, the situation becomes dire. Add an F2 tornado into the mix. This is a story of survival against all things.

THOUGHTS: A powerful book that is going to absolutely break your heart before making it better. This is a realistic story of survival against childhood neglect and poverty in America. Lisa Fipps uses the verse format to heighten emotional impact and quicken the pace. Readers will grasp onto hopeful details like Joe finding a dog and two puppies (dubbed ‘the Lucky pups’). While the ending is hopeful, getting there is emotionally difficult. Highly recommended for all middle school fiction collections.

Elem./MG – Force of Nature

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Burg, Ann E. Force of Nature: A Novel of Rachel Carson. Illustrated by Sophie Blackwell. Scholastic Press, 2024. 978-1-338-88338-1. 304 p. $19.99. Grades 3-7.

Ann E. Burg’s well-researched historical novel-in-verse explores Rachel Carson’s life and research. Rachel Carson is best known as the groundbreaking American environmental conservationist who wrote Silent Spring. This fictionalized account follows Carson’s life through her first-person perspective. The story begins with Carson’s childhood during World War I and ends with her death in 1964. Throughout this telling, we also follow Carson’s family and collegial relationships through time, including the close bond she held with her nieces and great-nephew (although she had no children of her own). Carson journeys to college and then onward to obtain her masters degree at Johns Hopkins University. There, she marries her talent of writing with her scientific expertise in order to produce widely read and understood arguments about nature. She wins a National Book Award for The Sea Around Us (1952), and Silent Spring follows in 1962. Carson’s work largely catalyzed the modern environmental movement.

THOUGHTS: Force of Nature’s accessible format will allow upper elementary and middle school students to explore Carson’s story and her legacy. Students who love nature and biology will feel inspired by Ann E. Burg’s novel in verse long before they may actually read Silent Spring or other full-length nonfiction books about climate conservation. The story is also filled with moments highlighting nature’s quiet beauty. Burg does an excellent job of humanizing Carson and framing her as a pioneer for future female scientists. While this story can be read and enjoyed by anyone, students without background knowledge or strong inference skills may miss historical references in Force of Nature because they are written so subtly. Recommended for addition to upper elementary and middle school collections where historical fiction and verse memoirs are popular.

Historical Fiction

YA – Kin: Rooted in Hope

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Weatherford, Carole Boston. Kin: Rooted in Hope. Illustrated by Jeffrey Boston Weatherford. Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2023. 978-1-665-91362-1. 220 p. $18.99. Grades 8-12.

Weatherford has shared her collections of lyrical poems accompanied by the powerful illustrations of Jeffrey Boston Weatherford.  The poems follow her ancestors’ stories from the time that they were forced aboard the slave ships in Africa and up to the present day in America. The reader is immersed in these stories that Weatherford has woven beautifully into a powerful tribute to their family. Her poems are told through the voices of her family as well as Frederick Douglass and Harriet Tubman.

THOUGHTS: Powerful, lyrical, such an important collection of the voices of the ancestors of the author. This is not an easy read, but a necessary one. This is a mother-son duo who put together this collection.

Historical Fiction

MG – Ultraviolet

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Salazar, Aida. Ultraviolet. Scholastic Press, 2024. 978-1-338-77565-5. 304 p. $18.99. Grades 6-8.

Eighth grader Elio Solis falls in love with fellow classmate Camelia, but Elio doesn’t know quite what to do with his burgeoning feelings…and his hormones. Coming from several generations of ‘machismo’ Latino men, Elio struggles to reconcile his new unregulated emotions with the need to be traditionally ‘masculine’: stoic and strong. Elio is kind and caring toward Camelia. He is the best new boyfriend he can possibly be. When Elio discovers Camelia has also started to text with a rival classmate, Chava, he seethes with anger and sorrow. Then, to make matters worse, Chava sends Elio bikini pictures of Camelia to further taunt him. Elio has a decision to make: will he fight Chava, make Camelia also feel the hurt he feels, or will Elio learn to forgive and move forward?

THOUGHTS: Ultraviolet is a fresh novel-in-verse examining the dangers of toxic masculinity, navigating romantic relationships, consent, and friendship. I truly empathize with Elio—first, with his feelings of bursting love, and later, with his angst. Salazar includes a number of timely and relevant teen topics without ever feeling didactic: lots of Elio’s thoughts are about physical changes associated with puberty, consent, social media, and gender. Yes: the words ‘cap’ and ‘rizz’ are also in there. The story is written from Elio’s sole perspective, which means we miss out on knowing exactly what Camelia is feeling except through her direct dialogue. However, standing (in discomfort) in Elio’s shoes with his conflicting feelings is quite effective. I can’t recall having read many other stories that cover these topics from a middle school cisgender boy’s perspective, and certainly not in this accessible verse format. Recommended for addition to middle school collections.

Realistic Fiction

YA – Dear Medusa

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Cole, Olivia A. Dear Medusa. Labyrinth Books, 2023. 978-0-593-48573-6.  377 p. $18.99. Grades 9-12.

This feminist novel in verse interspersed with texts details the aftermath of Alicia, a young white girl, presumably from Ohio, who has been sexually abused by a seemingly affable, popular teacher whom the reader never meets. Alicia’s parents are recently divorced because of her father’s infidelity; her mother is depressed and her once-accomplished older brother takes to hanging out with a less desirable, racist group of boys. Traumatized by her sexual experience which she has kept secret, Alicia has lost her best friend, dropped out of her beloved track team, and resorted to bad behavior and casual sex with random partners, often men older than she. She is well aware of her bisexuality and her sensual effect on men. Now in her junior year of high school, she starts getting unsigned notes in her locker implying a commiseration. She takes some refuge in her job at the fast food restaurant, Meat Palace–at least when her creepy manager isn’t present, and the support of two new friends: Deja, a straight-talking African American asexual girl and Geneva, a intuitive Pakistani girl who proves to be Alicia’s love interest. As the school year progresses Alicia grows deeper into depression. Though readers are given no description of the abuse, they learn that Alicia returned to her abuser several times. Alicia infers her feelings of guilt and compunction for this conduct.When she is chosen to be part of special all-female study led by a charismatic visiting professor, she starts to find her voice and finally makes a connection with the secret note-writer who has also suffered sexual abuse from the same teacher. The professor encourages the girls to accept their sexuality and speak frankly of sexual matters. In the end, the other girl reveals the abuse to the authorities, but Alicia finds a new sense of freedom and a new connection with her mother.

THOUGHTS: This dark story takes the reader within the mind of a sexually abused girl who reacts to this trauma by taking random sexual partners, often older than herself. It contains some foul language, but no graphic descriptions of her sexual encounters. The writing is the highlight of this novel, but the story is a sad and troubled one. Not many adults come off well in this story, only Alicia’s mother finally comes to her aid and one older co-worker at the Meat Palace.

Realistic Fiction      

MG – Mascot

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Waters, Charles, and Traci Sorell. Mascot. Charlesbridge, 2023. 978-1-623-54380-8. 248 p. $17.99. Grades 5-8.

In the greater D.C metro area, eighth grade students grapple over an English assignment where they must debate the pros and cons of indigenous mascots. Callie, one of the students involved, catalyzes the debate project after sharing her original poem. The poem disparages the school’s indigenous mascot and the offensive “tomahawk chants” students perform (and, in turn, must endure) at school sporting events. All perspectives and feelings about this issue are represented. During the course of the multiple-perspective verse novel, each stakeholder develops their argument, and some change their minds in the process. The students are also empowered to take action by addressing the school board.

THOUGHTS: After reading this verse novel in its entirety, I am moved by how Charles Waters and Traci Sorell use diverse character perspectives to artfully build an argument against the use of indigenous mascots. The plot itself takes its time building through exposition because Waters and Sorell use the diverse character perspectives to weave in necessary historical context for middle grade readers. It’s worth the wait. Mascot contains a diverse cast of characters with different opinions about the issue. I was concerned that the teacher in this novel would assign a debate project about such a triggering issue, but my fears were put to rest almost immediately through the novel’s carefully planned development. Recommended as a relevant addition to all middle school realistic fiction collections. 

Realistic Fiction

MG – Eb & Flow

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Baptist, Kelly J. Eb & Flow. Crown Books for Young Readers, 2023. 978-0-593-42913-6. 212 p. $16.99. Grades 4-8.

This realistic novel in verse begins after Ebony and De’Kari (who go by the nicknames Eb and Flow) are suspended for fighting at school. First, Eb poured sauce on Flow’s sneakers, and then, Flow called her a name. A physical fight followed and was recorded by other students. Flow is ashamed he “hit a girl,” and that notion is repeated again and again by his family members. Ebony, in turn, knows her ‘joke’ of fake-pouring sauce onto Flow’s shoes went terribly wrong. The book takes place over the course of the next ten days while both seventh graders serve their out-of-school suspension. Told in verse with alternating perspectives, the story follows what happens to each student during their time out of school. While peers and even some family members fuel the ongoing fight, Eb and Flow have to overcome their frustrated, angry feelings about each other and work to get back to school. While the story ‘ebbs and flows,’ the two characters learn they have way more in common than they think.

THOUGHTS: This story opens a window to the emotions and motivations of two seventh grade students as they serve a suspension for fighting. Eb and Flow’s two families also are written with complexity, and readers get to see a window into the heart of their family dynamics. This creates an enormous amount of empathy for the two main characters, and I found myself constantly hoping Eb and Flow wouldn’t let the escalation between friend groups or family members pull them back down into a cyclical or violent fight. It took me a little bit to catch on to the constant back-and-forth between the two character perspectives, but this might be because Kelly J. Baptist includes so many parallels between their two lives. This is done purposefully and creatively to show how enemies might not be so different after all. This story touches on a number of issues such as older siblings with issues, deployed parents, poverty, and the potential impact of gang involvement on families. All characters present as BIPOC. 

Realistic Fiction

Elem./MG – The One and Only Ruby

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Applegate, Kathrine. The One and Only Ruby. Harper Collins, 2023. 978-0-063-08008-9. 240 p. $19.99. Grades 3-7.

Ruby’s story picks up a few months after the events of The One and Only Bob. Ruby is now living in a wildlife sanctuary that is right next to her friend Ivan. Of course, Bob comes to visit often. When Ruby discovers that her old caretaker from the elephant orphanage in Africa is there, Ruby’s story unfolds. Happy and sad memories surface as readers finally learn Ruby’s backstory.

THOUGHTS: The story we’ve been waiting for has finally arrived!  Applegate does not disappoint in the final book in her series.

Fantasy

YA – Spin

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Caprara, Rebecca. Spin. Simon & Schuster, 2023. 978-1-665-90619-7. 393 p. $19.99. Grades 9-12.

“You must learn to question/ the stories you hear” (84). “The bards and poets/ often get it wrong, especially/ when they speak of/ girls and women” (4). Arachne is unattractive and destined to be nothing and be heard by no one, they say in town. But Arachne grows, learns to weave from her mother, loves her younger brother and friend Celandine fiercely, and questions the wisdom of the gods. Even as her mother shares stories of the gods (including Persephone, Leucothoe, and Aite) and leaves gifts at Athena’s altar, Arachne in her anger dares to question what the gods have done for them in their harsh, illiterate lives. As the years pass and Arachne grows from girl to young woman, she avoids others, distrusts the gods especially in their treatment of women, and learns to weave so skillfully she begins to feel pride in her own abilities as well as earn approval from others, including her father. But tragedy steals her family, and when beautiful Celandine is assaulted by a group of boys, the two flee to the city of Colophon. There, finding work as a weaver, Arachne again becomes known for her increasingly exquisite handiwork, but she will not give credit to the goddess Athena, who Arachne feels never offered her anything. Even as Arachne feels an attraction to Celandine, the two are pulled apart by anger and misunderstanding, and Arachne pours her emotions into her weaving. The resulting showdown between Arachne and Athena is powerfully described as Arachne stands boldly–in words and in weaving–for herself and all women misused, overlooked, and judged harshly. 

THOUGHTS: This masterful novel in verse will appeal to young readers, especially those interested in mythology or strong women.  

Fantasy (Mythology)