RSS

Category Archives: Authors

Six sensational books with dog companions

09 Jun

Dogs are the best. As mentioned in a previous post about books with animal companions, I promised I’d do a post specifically about dog companions because dogs are the best.

Pictured here is Baxter, our American Great Dane rescue who we’ve had for a little less than a year. Have I said it already? Dogs are the best.

Here are some favorites with dog companions.

  1. Spy X Family series by Tatsuya Endo: Bond was originally trained by a secret group as a weapon of mass destruction, now he’s the fourth family member with a special skill.
  2. Doomsday With My Dog series by Yu Ishihara: Haru keeps a girl company waxing philosophical about life at the end of time.
  3. Alone by Megan E. Freeman: George helps Maddie survive after being left behind.
  4. A Soft Place to Land by Janae Marks: Tank is Joy’s dog walking side hustle and neighborhood boop, bringing her comfort during hard times.
  5. And Then, Boom! by Lisa Fipps: Lucky, Lucky Dawg, and Lucky Duck beg the question– who rescued who as readers immerse themselves in Joe’s world. This book will gets its own blog post, but the dogs certainly fill a void after the death of Joe’s grandma.
  6. Something Like Home by Andrea Beatriz Arango: Sparrow is a dog learning to provide therapy which is exactly what Laura needs after her traumatic experience.
 
Leave a comment

Posted by on June 9, 2024 in Audiobooks, Authors, Fiction, Illustrators, Manga, Middle grade, Verse, Young Adult

 

Six sensational stories with unhealthy relationships

08 Jun

For the last few years, our high school library has had the opportunity to partner with a community outreach coordinator for our county who works with victims of sexual assault and domestic violence. During the month of February, we partner during Teen Dating Violence Awareness month and look to read a book with a group of interested students and do activities that discuss the book, general resources, and talk about healthy relationships. It got me thinking about the books we’ve chosen and some of the best books that feature the unhealthy relationships to use as talking points for discussion.

  1. Dark Song by Gail Giles: Giles is the GOAT of short, quick propulsive stories and this one left me breathless.
  2. Road Home by Rex Ogle: Ogle’s stories feature hopefulness amid chaos and in this new book, the realization that he’s in a very toxic relationship with an older man.
  3. Fatima Tate Takes the Cake by Khadijah Vanbrakle: If you want a teen to understand gaslighting, they need to read this book.
  4. Nothing Burns as Bright As You by Ashley Woodfolk: A powerful queer tale that is literal fire.
  5. The Obsession by Jesse Q. Sutanto: Readers can’t look away from the trap set in this book.
  6. Bad Romance by Heather Demetrios: Built off of her personal bad romance, Demetrios story rings true for so many teens.
 
Leave a comment

Posted by on June 8, 2024 in Authors, Fiction, Verse, Young Adult

 

Six sensational fashion-forward characters

04 Jun

I love a good dress. I definitely notice when characters in graphic novels have style or pay attention when the character is fashion-conscious or has designs (yup, I went there) on being in the fashion industry. Here are six favorites:

  1. Any Way You Look by Maleeha Siddiqui: A fashionista Muslim girl working at her mother’s custom shop has an eye for details.
  2. 100 Unforgettable Dresses by Hal Rubenstein: Recommended by a colleague who knows I love dresses, this one paints a portrait of 100 dresses from the past and present.
  3. Dressed in Dreams: A Black Girl’s Love Letter to the Power of Fashion by Tanisha C. Ford: A collection of items and styles that absolutely meets expectations.
  4. I Love You So Mochi by Sarah Kuhn: Kimi loves fashion and sees a future in it even when others might not. She perseveres during a trip to Japan and back to her roots.
  5. The Prince and the Dressmaker by Jen Wang: Enough said!
  6. The Okay Witch by Emma Steinkellner: If I’ve ever loved a character’s fashion sense, it’s Moth’s. Thank you to Steinkellner for creating her fabulous wardrobe.
 
Leave a comment

Posted by on June 4, 2024 in Authors, Fiction, Graphic novels, Illustrators, Middle grade, Nonfiction, Style, Young Adult

 

It’s Delicate(s)!

02 May

When Sheets, published by creator Brenna Thummler, dropped in 2018, I read it and enjoyed it. When its sequel, Delicates, dropped in 2021, I read it and was moved by it. Then the last of the trilogy, Lights, dropped in 2023 and not only did I read it, I read it from an advanced copy and completely melted. But maybe that’s not the right analogy with a series full of ghosts. I was levitating.

To be brief: the series follows lonely Marjorie, a motherless girl being raised by her dad running a laundromat where ghost friends including Wendell live. Making friends is a struggle and when Eliza and Marjorie pair up as oddball friends, there’s the sweetest sense that they’ve found someone special. But teenagers are fickle creatures and school is hard. The characters drive the story but equally evocative is the carefully selected color palette enhancing every scene. Feelings are felt among every panel and page because of the skilling coloring and illustrations.

Those feelings were no different when I figured out a way to drive nearly six hours from home for the last of only three staged musical readings of Delicates at Dramashop in Erie, PA. My only regret is that I didn’t bring my teenaged sons to see it with me. Not only would they have admired the talent of the cast (so, so much talent) but the skilled storytelling and the whimsical use of the small set and props. The experience of watching the pianist play right in front of the audience and the intimate setting of being so close to the stage with the lights the same colors as the colors in the graphic novels felt like a warm hug. Layered with raw emotions like Marjorie’s loneliness or Eliza being bullied while her helpless dad tries to help are turned upside down when the audience can’t help but laugh at the catty popular girls’ snarky comments and Marjorie’s little sibling. In two hours, everyone relived their youth. It was all laid bare through Thummler’s story.

Of course only one thing could top the night, but I made sure in advance that there would be a cherry on this sundae and that was the presence of the creator, Brenna Thummler herself. Wearing a fabulously fantastic pink jumpsuit with a vivid backpack, she had her pastel Sharpies ready to sign the books I brought only after she wiped away the tears of love and gratitude for the cast and crew to bring life to her stories on stage. She was being gifted items from fans and friends after giving us all the greatest gift to see it live.

 
Leave a comment

Posted by on May 2, 2024 in Authors, Cover Love, Events, Graphic novels, Illustrators, Young Adult

 

Life had other plans

14 Mar

I wish I was here to give you a gushing event recap of our author visit today, but instead, I’m going to share a reminder that there are things that are out of our control and we have to roll with them. Yesterday, life had other plans instead of an author visit.

With an unfortunate medical emergency, our author’s relative reached out that they were not able to be at our school and that when better, would reschedule. It was a hard hit after all as the last few details had been put in place including the event setup of chairs from our maintenance staff and school secretary making the 15-minute reminder announcements for students to head to the library.

It might be a dirty word in education, the word “pivot”, but that’s exactly what happened. We pivoted. We still had the students who were invited to the special-invitation lunch down to talk about their books and reading in general because the food had been pre-ordered. We reopened the library. Students still came to grab the books. Staff and students came to express their sadness and disappointment. We told them that the option to reschedule will be our next big announcement and we’ll welcome the author back since so many students had been reading the books or were excited about meeting an author even if their classes weren’t and they were reading them independently. It still stings just a little. Yet it was out of our control entirely.

I suppose at our fifteenth in-person author visit, maybe there’s a statistical probably that it would happen. Life happens. It gets in the way of carefully laid plans. We pivot.

Look for a new post in the next few months where we celebrate the coming of our author, we know we’ll be ready!

 
Leave a comment

Posted by on March 14, 2024 in Authors, Events, Miscellaneous, Reflections

 

On the eve

12 Mar

What does a school librarian whose love language is baking desserts do on the eve of an author visit?

Bake.

We’ll have an invite-only lunch with a small group of students nominated by their teachers to attend. While the fare is typical for teens– pizza and a salad– I wanted to add a homemade treat. But because I couldn’t decide on chocolate chip cookies, brownies, or Oreos, I found a recipe in which the cupcake includes all three. Win, win, win.

I’ll fangirl about our author, students, and activities tomorrow….

 
Leave a comment

Posted by on March 12, 2024 in Authors, Events, Miscellaneous

 

Last & first

01 Feb

I quickly finished a book that I wasn’t really feeling via audiobook early last night. But I didn’t want to end January with a book I wasn’t a fan of. I realized I had borrowed several last-minute titles via Hoopla before the end of the month a few days ago including a picture book award for Sydney Taylor at the Youth Media Awards called Two New Years by Richard Ho and illustrated by Lynn Scurfield.

And boy, that was a good choice to end January with. The book’s content was quietly celebratory and the illustrations perfectly complimentary to the text. What I loved most is the meditative short sentences that honor the Asian and Jewish heritage that readers find out is the shared heritage of the author, Richard Ho in the author’s note. In addition to the informative story, there’s additional explanation in the backmatter about specific foods, activities, and attire that compliment what was left out of the picture book but serve to add layers to a combined upbringing that, as he mentioned, have more similarities than anyone would think.

At the start of February, I’m only a few page in to The Fire, The Water, and Maudie McGinn by Sally J. Pla and I’m already hooked. It comes highly recommended both as a Schneider Family Book Award for middle grade at the Youth Media Awards but many librarians I know. I’m excited to report back when I’m finished.

 
Leave a comment

Posted by on February 1, 2024 in Authors, Childrens, Fiction, Illustrators, Middle grade

 

Cheers near & far

24 Jan

Monday was the Youth Media Awards presentation in Baltimore, Maryland at the American Library Association’s LibLearnX (midwinter) conference. It is the yearly celebration of literature for children and teens. Committees work for a year or more to choose award winners in categories from the Sibert to Giesel to Odyssey to Alex. Don’t know what each of them is about? You can learn more on the website including watching the award ceremony or reading the press release for all of the honorees and winners.

I had the honor of being on the Alex Award through YALSA this year which meant we were reading loads of adult titles to find the best titles that have teen appeal. We create a top ten and will have a long list of an additional twenty titles. The long list will be published shortly. This meant that the ALA conference was extra special in being able to bond in person with most of the committee members (including sharing a meal while we made author calls followed by a champagne toast). Yet it’s also about learning. Over three days of programming, I learned a tremendous amount from librarians across the country whether it was in conversations, presentations, or in line. And there were the unique and inspiring speeches of the recipients of the I Love My Librarian award that kickstarted the event on Friday night amid a Baltimore surprise– snow!

While the librarian awards began the conference, the book awards ended the conference with the best bookends anyone could ask for. Sitting in the seats reserved for the committee, you’re surrounded by the other committees with their fun accessories (looking at you Odyssey with your matching white headphones) and cool slogans (read: “For the weird ones” on the back of the Printz tshirts) but I thought our Alex shirts, designed by a committee member and executed by another, were a cut above. Switching out the laurel for hot peppers, the tag line was “is this too spicy?” *chef’s kiss*

Whether watchers or listeners were in the room or across the country watching online, you could feels the vibrations of cheers near and far. It’s a special moment for the creators of these amazing stories. Without them, there would be no celebration. There’s a cacophony of excitement from their publishers and editors, their family, and anyone who read and loved their work.

It’s a magical, magical event. If you have the chance to be there live, do it. Or, you can be like one of my favorite colleagues and rally your elementary school in the gymnasium with their socks, and shirts, and posters rooting on their favorites several states away. Either way, cheers were heard near and far.

 
1 Comment

Posted by on January 24, 2024 in Adult, Audiobooks, Authors, Childrens, Events, Fiction, Graphic novels, Illustrators, Middle grade, Nonfiction, Short Story, Style, Verse, Young Adult

 

Reading buddies

08 Jan

A trend I’ve noticed in my high school library over the last few months is buddy reading. Generally two girls, they come in looking for a book they can both read together. They might meander around the shelves picking up books and putting them down or asking for recommendations, but either way, they want the opportunity to connect with one another through literature.

This is easy to accomplish in our library. As a large high school, one of our collection development goals is to purchase multiple copies of many popular, well-written, and influential stories that could be used in the classroom, recommended during booktalks, and for times like these where friends are reading together. There’s nothing more frustrating during readers advisory to be talking up a book as we walk to the bookshelves, only to find it checked out. There are titles that always hit right with teens.

Book clubs are used for socialization more than deep literary conversation, so I have been excitedly encouraged by this newfound trend in our library. What better way to get to know your friend than reading and discussing literature?

Below are some of the favorites I recommend or have spotted friends reading together.

 
Leave a comment

Posted by on January 8, 2024 in Authors, Miscellaneous, Poetry, Reflections, Verse, Young Adult

 

This week

30 Dec

I love the week between Christmas and New Year not only because I have it off since I work in education, but because I get to read because it’s vacation. Plenty of audiobook listening when cleaning and organizing plus plenty of tea sipping print book time. So when I saw a blogger @epiblogue’s Instagram post:

I felt seen. It’s a fun series of ladies lounging and reading their books. This one was my favorite and yes, this is exactly what “that week between Christmas & NYE” looks like for me minus the extra thick frock and fan, however I do have a chaise and a book. Endless books. This week has included Duel by the Bagleys, Tremors in the Blood: Murder, Obsession, and the Birth of the Lie Detector by Katwala, Ruptured by Rossmassler Fritz, Mascot by Waters and Sorrel, Crazy Food Truck by Ogaki, All the Fighting Parts by Sawyerr, Home Made: A Story of Grief, Groceries, Showing Up- and What We Make When We Make Dinner by Hauck, New Year’s Kiss by Matthews, The Shadow Prince by Durham, and 100 Unforgettable Dresses by Rubenstein.

 
Leave a comment

Posted by on December 30, 2023 in Adult, Audiobooks, Authors, Fiction, Manga, Middle grade, Nonfiction, Verse, Young Adult

 
← Older posts
Newer posts →