Tag Archives: Schools

MG – Vanya and the Wild Hunt

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Mandanna, Sangu. Vanya and the Wild Hunt. Roaring Brook Press, 2025. 978-1-250-89983-5. 277 p. $17.99. Grades 4-6.

British-Indian Vanya Vallen always has had a hard time fitting in. Being British-Indian in a mostly white English town and the fact that her parents never talk about their families, coupled with having ADHD and the ability to talk to books all starts to weigh on her. When she comes home to find her mother battling the Gildencroft Bogeyman, Vanya springs into action to help her defeat this terrifying monster. She then finds out that her parents come from a society of magic users, archwitches and archivists, who are tasked with keeping monsters and mythical creatures in check. She is soon sent to Auramere, a magical library and school, to find better protection from the monsters as well as learn how to become an archwitch like her mother. She is under the care of Jasper Blackburn, an old family friend and finds friendship in some of her other classmates. However, her mother’s dark past looms overhead. And when the school becomes the target of more monster attacks, Vanya must find a way to protect herself and her new friends.

THOUGHTS: I loved how seamlessly Mandanna included diverse characters, especially the way she wrote neurodiverse tweens. This beautiful story is a must-read for all fantasy and adventure lovers.

Fantasy

YA – The Meadowbrook Murders

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Goodman, Jessica. The Meadowbrook Murders. G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers, 2025. 336 p. $19.99. Grades 9-12. 

It’s senior week – the week before classes begin and all of the underclassmen arrive – at prestigious New England boarding school Meadowbrook Academy. Soccer players and roommates Amy and Sarah are ready for a year of lasts before they embark on new firsts. Then the best friends get into a massive fight at a boathouse party, to which everyone present has a front row seat. When Amy wakes up the next morning ready to forgive and forget, Sarah doesn’t respond to her texts. Then Amy notices something is off. When she enters Sarah’s bedroom, she finds Sarah and her boyfriend brutally murdered. Sarah and Ryan were perfect in every way, so who would want them dead? Meadowbrooke Gazette (school newspaper) editor Liz is determined to write a career defining article and earn a highly sought after college scholarship. Campus is in somewhat of a lockdown until a suspect can be apprehended, and everyone is paranoid. When the administration prevents Liz from writing about the case, she has to find a new angle; that’s when Amy is moved into Liz’s suite – the only other available senior room on campus. With limited access to their dorm suite on the night of the murders, suspicious glances – especially from her soccer teammates – turn towards Amy. Is the campus really safe once a suspect is taken into custody? Liz knows the whole truth isn’t being told, and she’s intent on uncovering what happened, no matter the consequences. Alternating between chapters between Amy and Liz, readers will race to discover who killed Sarah and Ryan and what secrets they may have been hiding.

THOUGHTS: Full of secret underground passages, mysteries, and lies, Goodman’s (They’ll Never Catch Us, 2021; They Wish They Were Us, 2020) newest title will find readers among fans of mysteries or boarding school books.

Mystery

MG – Happy & Sad & Everything True

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Thayer, Alex. Happy & Sad & Everything True. Aladdin, 2024. 978-1-665-95524-9. 272 p. $17.99. Grades 5-7. 

Dee Hiller is having a tough start to sixth grade. She’s always been able to rely on Juniper, her best friend, for support and camaraderie. But this year, Juniper is in another class and is developing a new group of friends who gossip about Dee and say unkind things. To make matters worse, Dee’s mother embarrassed her in front of the whole school at Parent PE Day. In order to avoid her peers, Dee takes to hiding in the restroom during her class’ “Snack & Stretch” time. One day, when hiding in the restroom, Dee hears a noise–it turns out to be Henry, one of her classmates, kicking a grate that connects the girls’ and boys’ restrooms. Henry is upset about a situation with his father; Dee lends a listening ear and her support. The next day, Dee chats with an elementary schooler upset about his spelling. Soon, word of Dee’s caring and supportive nature spreads, and she realizes she is pretty good at listening and supporting fellow students with their everyday, school-related problems. Slowly, Dee comes out of her shell, befriending Henry, while also gaining new appreciation for her mother.

THOUGHTS: This gentle story will resonate with many middle grade students, who may be feeling lonely due to fracturing friendships or struggling socially. Told in the first person, readers will appreciate Dee’s growth over the course of the story as she learns more about her strengths (and weaknesses) and gains a stronger sense of self. Recommended.

Realistic Fiction

YA – The Secret Year

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Hubbard, Jennifer R. The Secret Year. Viking Books for Young Readers, 2025. 978-0-593-69532-6. 208 p. $11.99. Grades 9-12.

For the past year seventeen-year-old Colt secretly has been meeting Julia by the river near his home in the flats. What started out as an innocent run in quickly became a dysfunctional “relationship” that neither Colt or Julia has shared with anyone else. Julia’s life up on Black Mountain – full of country club events, parties, and unimaginable wealth – seems to be worlds away from Colt’s. His front yard is more like dumping ground for rusting, broken down vehicles. The two couldn’t be from more different backgrounds, but they click. But Julia is dating Austin and is fine keeping things casual with Colt. Then Julia dies suddenly, and Colt can’t show his grief because no one else knows he even knew Julia. Lost in a bit of a grief fog, Colt goes about his normal routines until he’s approached at school by Julia’s younger brother Michael who gives him Julia’s journal. Then begins Colt’s healing process as he reads the journal entries Julia wrote to him about their time together. But will Colt ever be able to move on when no one else knows what he’s experienced?

THOUGHTS: This title is a reprint (originally published in 2010) and is being heavily marketed for fans of If He Had Been with Me (also republished) and If Only I Had Told Her by Laura Nowlin. Though Colt and Julia share a mature “relationship,” much of it is assumed and is mostly off page (“What happens between us is amazing. It’s not just the sex.”). This title takes a unique approach to the grief, where a male lead is featured which is a nice change for the romance/realistic genre, and it also addresses other important topics like social classes, grief, poverty, family dynamics, and homophobia. A new catchy new cover will ensure this epistolary title flies off of high school library shelves.

Realistic Fiction

MG/YA – Kusunoki’s Flunking Her High School Glow-Up, Vol. 1

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Mii, Mitsuki. Kusunoki’s Flunking Her High School Glow-Up, Vol. 1. Kodansha Comics, 2024. 979-8-888-77271-3. 192 p. $13.99. Grades 7+.

Two high school students who unknowingly switched from their old school to a new school together, trying to escape their nerdy, ugly, and unpopular past with a fresh start. Keisuke Shizuki is trying to outrun his trauma of confessing to his middle school crush and being rejected and the resulting phobia of even talking to girls, but it is made all the harder when the prettiest girl at his new school Shizuka Kusunoki is also a former outcast from his middle school. But Shizuka’s transformation is not complete, her social skills are still lacking and she asks for Keisuke’s help. So he has to fight his fears to help someone in need.

THOUGHTS: A cute high school glow up story that stays fairly light in the first novel, just introducing us to the characters and showing us some surface level insecurities but hinting at deeper story lines. Two outcasts who know of each other from hiding away in the library but never spoke to each other, now are becoming a mentor of sorts for each other, helping to navigate social situations in fun awkward ways. The hints of a budding romance (if only they get over their ineptitudes!) for the two will keep readers anticipating what other social missteps they will make. Art is neat and straightforward for the genre, playing up the nerdiness angle of the middle school versions of themselves. Will be a hit for realistic romance manga readers.

Manga

YA – On the Bright Side

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Sortino, Anna. On the Bright Side. G.P. Putnum’s Sons, 2024. 978-0-593-69786-3. 320 p. $19.99. 7-10.

When her deaf boarding school abruptly closes, Ellie is forced back to a place that does not feel like home and is not supportive of her needs. Her parents and her new high school peers do not understand what it means to navigate the world with a disability. But then Jackson, a star soccer player dealing with his own new feelings of isolation, enters her world. When he is faced with a life altering diagnosis, he and Ellie have to reckon with what it means to be vulnerable and communicative, even when that’s difficult for both physical and emotional reasons.

THOUGHTS: This is a sweetly told romance that also just happens to illustrate the challenges and joys of life with a disability. A teeny tiny bit didactic, this will resonate more for younger YA readers. But overall this story about inclusivity and disability rights is very, very welcome.

Romance

Elem./MG – Jupiter Nettle and the Seven Schools of Magic

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Mandanna, Sangu. Jupiter Nettle and the Seven Schools of Magic. Illustrated by Pablo Ballesteros. Viking Juvenile, 2024. 978-0-593-46447-2. 174 p. $22.99. Grades 4-6.

After failing her entrance exams to the Seven Schools of Magic, twelve-year-old Jupiter is given a second chance to enroll by Professor Grim, the head of the School of Earth Magic. Unfortunately, this was the very last School that Jupiter wanted to be accepted into. As the sole member of the School of Earth Magic, she is expected to clean up after all the animals and keep up with the gardening all while really wanting to perform powerful spells and learn with magic wands. Being endlessly teased by other classmates certainly doesn’t help her situation. When Jupiter finally reaches her breaking point, she has to decide whether she wants to stay in the School of Earth Magic or leave the magical world altogether.

THOUGHTS: Sangu Mandanna is a master of the cozy fantasy genre, and I absolutely love that she created such a beautiful story. Paired with Pablo Ballesteros’ illustrations, this book is a must read for graphic novel fantasy fans! Perfect for fans of The Okay Witch, Garlic and the Vampire, and Nell of Gumbling. Give this to anyone who feels like they just don’t belong, and I promise you, Jupiter Nettle will speak to them.

Graphic Novel
Fantasy

MG/YA – How it All Ends

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Hunsinger, Emma. How it All Ends. Greenwillow Books, 2024. 978-0-063-15815-3. 295 p. $25.99. Grades 4-8.

Tara is not looking forward to her first day of high school. As a 13-year-old who skipped 8th grade, she is afraid she will look and act like a baby. After all, as her best friend and older sister Isla told her, “Elementary and middle school are like getting babysat…but in high school, if you’re a baby, you get sat on.” She immediately feels overwhelmed by the older kids and the pressure to mature. In the midst of her personal crisis, she lets her imagination run away with her, like envisioning that everyone notices her eating pizza for lunch every day or getting lost in a never-ending hallway. Her older sister isn’t much help; she is caught up with a new boyfriend; Tara even finds them making out in a port-a-potty one day! Tara eventually makes a new friend named Libby. They bond quickly, especially when they discover they love the same singer. After spending more time with Libby on a school project, Tara realizes she has romantic feelings for her. But Tara doesn’t know if she is mature enough for Libby. After all, she is supposed to be in middle school! Tara has to find out if Libby feels the same way while also navigating the challenge of being a middle schooler in high school.

THOUGHTS: Funny, honest, and relatable, the book delves into self-discovery, first crushes, and the awkwardness of adolescence​. Vibrant illustrations seamlessly blend Tara’s real-world experiences with the scenes from her imagination, using color to differentiate between the two: teals depict her everyday life and deep reds represent her anxious thoughts. This would be a great purchase for upper middle grade students as they move toward the overwhelming journey of transitioning to high school.

Graphic Novel
Realistic Fiction

Elem. – Mamie Tape Fights to Go To School: Based on a True Story

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Huahn, Traci. Mamie Tape Fights to Go To School: Based on a True Story. Crown Books for Young Readers, 2024. 978-0-593-64402-7. Unpaged. $19.99. Grades 2-3.

This picture book is a slightly fictionalized story of the life of Mamie Tape, one of the first Chinese-American students to attend public school in San Francisco. Born in 1876 to middle class Chinese immigrants, Mamie was eager to go to school with her neighborhood Caucasian friends.  Unfortunately, Chinese children were not allowed to attend school with white children, and the segregated Chinese school had been closed for many years. The young girl’s parents, supported by the community, decided to fight the school board. They hired lawyers who took their case to court. In 1885, the judge ruled that Chinese people had the same rights as others to attend school. The School Board contested this decision, taking the case, Tape vs. Hurley, to California’s highest court. That court ruled that children of all races are required to receive an education. Despite this decision, the administration set up roadblocks to Mamie’s enrollment, by demanding that she be vaccinated by a non-Chinese doctor and by claiming that the schools were overcrowded. The school district eventually opened a Chinese school later that year and the Tape children were among the first to attend. The author’s note provides more details of the events and includes four photographs of Mamie Tape, including one with her family. In her source list, it is clear that Huahn did extensive research for this book and cites newspaper articles from that time. The illustrator has included a drawing of a lead article from January 1885. The mostly full bleed images by Chan were done using Adobe Photoshop. 

THOUGHTS: This picture book is a must have for elementary collections.  It works well as a read aloud and will promote discussion about segregation in schools. Readers may be surprised to learn that California did not abolish segregated schools until 1947.

Picture Book
Historical Fiction

Elem./MG – Timid

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Todd, Jonathan. Timid. Graphix, 2024. 978-1-338-30570-8. $12.99. 272 p. Grades 3-8.

Cecil and his family just made a big move from Florida to Massachusetts. As with any big move, this comes with big feelings for Cecil. He has feelings about fitting in, finding friends, and change. His sister suggests making friends with the other Black kids at school, but when he gets to his new school, he isn’t quite sure that he fits in with them. Cecil tries to make friends while showcasing his artistic talents, but when a caricature that he made gets used in an inappropriate way, Cecil is forced to learn how to stand up for himself.

THOUGHTS: I really enjoyed this graphic novel. It is great for upper elementary and middle level readers and I immediately added my copy to my library! This novel was written and illustrated in a relatable and authentic way and the way that racism was depicted was done in a thoughtful manner. Overall, highly recommended for any student grades 3 and up!

Graphic Novel
Realistic Fiction