This marks the very last week of my library’s Summer Reading Program, and I’ve been so busy working on all of the details—making lists of kids who’ve earned various merit badges, making lists of books to buy to celebrate said merit badges, printing out and personalizing a billion bookplates, etc—that reading has been ENTIRELY off the table.
That doesn’t mean that I don’t have a bunch ready and waiting, though!
Nicky Drayden’s The Prey of Gods is at the very ...
Every so often, I pick up two books in a row that parallel and complement one another so very well that it’s both delightful and startling. This past weekend, it was two books that, on the surface, don’t have a ton in common: one is a middle grade novel about a zine-writing twelve-year-old who’s struggling with being the New Kid in School; the other is a young adult verse novel about the seventeen-year-old son of a troubled rock star who ...
I don’t know. There’s more to say, of course, much more. Two years is a long time in a short life, especially when you’re in high school. But that’s not the Rose anybody wants to read about, is it? Tragedy is infinitely more interesting than bliss. That’s the allure of self-destruction. Or so I’ve found.
—When I Am Through With You, by Stephanie Kuehn
Ben Gibson, high school senior, started dating Rose Augustine when they were both sophomores:
“Do ...
Holy cow, there are a TON of exciting new releases due out in August!
Here are the ones I’m most looking forward to:
When I Am Through With You, by Stephanie Kuehn
Little & Lion, by Brandy Colbert
In Other Lands, by Sarah Rees Brennan
First things first: My auto-buys. I will buy and read anything by these authors—and the fact that all three books got Kirkus stars doesn’t hurt, either! The Kuehn is about a high school camping trip ...
I know only too well what happens to the new ones who are brought here. Gradually they are convinced to change, molded to be who we tell them they are. But there’s another unanswered question: What happens to the ones who leave?
The Special Ones live on a secluded farmstead surrounded by high walls topped with barbed wire. They live without electricity, running water, and modern conveniences. By day, they do their ...
One of the funny things about living in a state nicknamed ‘Vacationland’—especially living near the coast—is that, for locals, a huge part of summertime is about avoiding the tourist-heavy spots. You know, like the beach.
So, rather than actually leaving our houses and enjoying these lovely, lovely days in public, a large percentage of us Year-Rounders do quite a lot of hiding during the summer. This year, I’m determined not to miss out—so I’m going to spend the rest of ...
While there’s no explicit rule against romantic relationships, our colonial ancestor jinxed them in her Last Word: “Beware ye aromateur; lay your traps of love, but do not yourself get caught.” Fall in love and, like Aunt Bryony, lose your supersniffer. It’s why Mother chose my father from a list of donors she got in the mail like a Christmas catalogue. And why she named me after the flower mimosa, better known as touch-me-nots because their leaflets fold inward ...
This is the time of year that feels like someone has their finger on the fast-forward button—it’s already time to comb through this month’s new releases!
These are some of the books that I’m planning to pick up:
Spirit Hunters, by Ellen Oh
I read an advanced copy of this one months ago, and I’m SO looking forward to reading it again in finished form. It’s a middle grade ghost story that is not only funny and smart, but also ...
