YA – Last Chance Dance

Wilson, Lakita. Last Chance Dance. Viking, 2023. 978-0-593-52561-6. 326 p. $18.99. Grades 9-12.

Leila Bean is cruising to the end of her senior year. That is until Dev, her boyfriend since Freshman year, breaks up with her three weeks before graduation. Suddenly, everything Leila thought about how life was going to be is shattered. Lucky for Leila, her best friend, Bree, is the chair of the Last Chance Dance committee and is ready to help repair Leila’s broken heart. With a little coaxing, Leila agrees to fill out the questionnaire to see who has crushed on her during high school, if only to make Dev jealous. Throughout Leila’s dates with her three crushes and one wildcard, she finds that taking care of herself is okay and she even finds a true friend in her nemesis Tre’. You’ll have to read it for yourself if you want to know if Leila finds love before graduation day.

THOUGHTS: Although this is a cute story, Leila is hard to get behind and cheer on. I found myself wanting to tell her that there is more to life than high school romances. A lot of the drama that was supposed to make the story tug at your heartstrings just annoyed me. I guess the bottom line is that this is a book for high school romance lovers, not a middle-aged married woman.

Romance   

YA – Promise Boys

Brooks, Nick. Promise Boys. Henry Holt and Company, 2023. 978-1-250-86697-4. 294 p. $19.99. Grades 9-12.

J.B., Ramón, and Trey are students at the Urban Promise Prep School in Washington, DC. They do their best to follow the ultra-strict rules established by their principal as part of his “Moore Method.” But when Principal Moore is murdered, each of the three boys (who were all in detention and adjacent to the crime scene that day) become suspects. Although they do not trust each other at first, they soon realize that their best chance at clearing their names is to work together to expose the real killer. Debut author Nick Brooks does a great job of developing each character’s unique voice and personality, which is pivotal because the story is told from numerous points of view. Each teen has his own struggles, triumphs, and secrets that play into how they approach the world and each other. In addition to being a propulsive murder mystery, Promise Boys poses some serious questions about the prep school’s toxic culture of excellence. 

THOUGHTS: Readers who enjoy books by Jason Reynolds, Angie Thomas, and Karen M. McManus will gravitate to this novel, which is both entertaining and rich with opportunities for deep discussion.

Mystery          

J.B.Williamson, Trey Jackson, and Ramon Zambrano all attend Promise Academy, an all-male charter school in Washington D.C. intended to groom young men of color with its high standards and academic rigor. Its principal and founder, Kenneth Moore, is both slick and tough. The reader meets him as he is unraveling. He rules the school with an iron fist, yielding his power with impossible demands and punitive measures–a far cry from the environment of the school at its inception. The students keep silent in the building; follow straight, blue lines through the hall; and angst over demerits for petty infractions that threaten detention or expulsion. On the afternoon of an important basketball game, the three protagonists find themselves in detention when Principal Moore is mortally shot. All three are suspects for the murder. What follows is an examination from each character’s point of view of the events that brought them to that moment and their efforts to exonerate themselves and uncover the real murderer. Though the three are not friends, their common trouble unites them, and they join forces with their friends’ support to trace the downfall of a formerly idealistic leader and find his killer. Told in different voices and scenes, Promise Boys depicts cameos of boys of color striving to be their best selves but thwarted by an academic system that degrades and punishes them. Author Nick Brooks tells a compelling story featuring loving families and friends juxtaposed against the pressure of living in a world that deems one guilty before innocent. An important novel for any high school library.

THOUGHTS: This layered story provokes discussion around student voice and justice which keeps readers turning the pages. Both a mystery and a commentary on black young men in American society, the nature of school and punishment, and greed and corruption, Promise Boys reveals people are not all they seem. It forces the reader to see that each person has complicated workings and what they deal with may not be evident–even to those closest to them. Some curse words, some illegal activity (breaking into the school building), police shown in a negative light,  and an intimation of sex (JB has his first girlfriend, and it is implied they had intercourse.), notwithstanding, this book relates a truthful tale relatable to many eighth grade students as well as upper high school. Weaving in text messages and multiple perspectives of various characters, Brooks’s unusual plot engages even reluctant readers. Compare this significant novel with Jason Reynolds’s and Brendan Kiely’s All American Boys or Kekla Magoon’s How It Went Down.

Realistic Fiction

MG – Iconic America (Series NF)

Iconic America. ABDO Publishing, 2020. $23.00 ea. $138.00 set of 6. 48 p. Grades 5-8.

Burling, Alexis. Hollywood. 978-1-532-19090-2.
Kallio, Jamie. The National Mall. 978-1-532-19091-9.
Decker, Michael. New Orleans. 978-1-532-19092-6.
Ventura, Marne. New York City. 978-1-532-19093-3.
Decker, Michael. US Route 66. 978-1-532-19094-0.
Ventura, Marne. Walt Disney World. 978-1-532-19095-7.

Walt Disney World is the history behind not only Disneyworld and Disneyland but also the history and story of Walt Disney himself.  This book follows Walt Disney from growing up until he came up with the idea for the amusement parks, as well as how the parks have grown and changed over the years from the time it was created until today. The book features photos with clearly labeled captions, as well as further evidence sections where students can go to a website to find more information. The further evidence sections also ask the students questions related to what the chapter was about, which can be helpful to assist the students in continuing their research. The book features a timeline, a stop and think section, glossary, as well as online resources and an index.

THOUGHTS: Overall this is a great book for students to use for research. The information is clearly laid out and easy to follow along with additional information found throughout. Highly recommended for students.

791.06 amusement parks    Mary Hyson, Lehigh Valley Regional Charter Academy

MG – Saving Savannah

Bolden, Tonya. Saving Savannah. Bloomsbury, 2020. 978-1-681-19804-0. $17.99. Grades 6-8.

A prolific writer of nonfiction, Tonya Bolden (Maritcha, Cause: Reconstruction America 1863-1877, Take-Off: American All-Girl Bands During World War II to name a few) integrates her skill for facts into an interesting, less explored, narrative in Saving Savannah. Set in post-World War I Washington, D.C., the book focuses on Savannah Riddle, a fourteen-year-old Black girl whose family is part of the elite Black society. The story opens frivolously at a gala opulent with fashion and food and gradually builds to important period events and issues. This eye-opening ascent mirrors Savannah’s maturation from a popular, pampered schoolgirl to a woke young woman of substance. At a pivotal time, Savannah is searching for a more meaningful life connected to the world outside her social strata. She learns about Nannie Helen Burroughs’s School for Girls, a training school; and while volunteering there meets Lloyd, a young Black immigrant with socialist leanings. Lloyd introduces Savannah to the poverty and inequality suffered by some in her own city. She eventually gains the support and respect of her parents after the revelation of a family secret. Throughout Bolden’s book, her intense research is evident. Many of the locales and persons Savannah encounters are real or have a counterpart in reality. Saving Savannah shows the Black perspective during a tumultuous time that underscores discrimination in politics and society and culminates in the brutal riots of the Red Summer of 1919. Besides being a valuable history lesson about a period that resonates with the present, the main character’s transformation from a position of comfort to one of an invested citizen of the world and member of her race is a desire many of us hold today.

THOUGHTS: Like Harlem, Walter Dean Myers’s period piece, Saving Savannah allows students to experience the sights and people of a different time through the eyes of a likeable character. In a sizable appendix, the author supplies background with some photos on the significant movements and personages of the early 20th century Washington, D. C. Bolden touches on multiple issues: Woodrow Wilson’s color lines; the returning Black World War I veterans; the New Negro Movement spearheaded by Dr. Carter Woodson, Hubert Henry Harrison, and Marcus Garvey; the controversy around the Anthony Bill and women’s suffrage; colorism; and even cosmetics. Ideal companion piece for grade 8 American History classes. Teachers may want to use this book to approach discussions on racism and compare the historical perspective with current incidents.

Historical Fiction          Bernadette Cooke, SD of Philadelphia