What Lives in the Woods

Currie, Lindsay. What Lives in the Woods

September 14th 2021 by Sourcebooks Young Readers

E ARC provided by Edelweiss

Ginny isn't thrilled that she has to give up her summer writing camp with her best friend to spend a month in Woodmoor Manor, but since her father's job is to help renovate it, she doesn't have a choice. Her older brother Leo is a little more on board, but will miss playing basketball. The manor is a museum that needs lots of work, although there were previous renovations to bring the utilities up to code, and Ginny's room has a creepy, featureless mannequin in it. Right away, she hears the creepy whispering of her name... although that ends up being Leo playing around with the communication tubes. Every time something occurs, her father blames the old house and its vagaries even though there are local legends about creatures called hitchhikers that inhabit the woods that surrounds the house. Ginny tries to channel her fears into writing a mystery book like her favorite author, Agatha Christie, but is still terrified of the Shadow People who seems to be after her. She has an ally in Will, a local boy who works in the book store in town. He and his brother, Chris, had a terrifying experience there in the ballroom, and the two caution Ginny to be careful. But when mannequins move, typewriters write by themselves, and creatures with bloody red glowing eyes seem to be everywhere, is there any way for Ginny to be safe?

Strengths: As with all of the best mysteries, I can't say a whole lot lest I give away some of the delicious twists and turns. The creep factor on this one is just right for middle grade-- lots of creepy threats, but not a lot of blood and gore. The historical mystery behind the mystery is solid, and Ginny has the help of Leo and Will to solve it. As creeptastically good as this one is, though, what I liked best were the relationships. Leo is a fantastic big brother who alternates between trying to scare Ginny and supporting her. Will is a good friend, but there's also a bit of a crush, and they share a love of reading. The parents are both around and supportive, and the mother's attempts at baking on a catering scale are interesting to see. Currie's Scritch Scratch is solidly set in Chicago, but this summer trip to Saugatauk, Michigan also gives good descriptions of place. 
Weaknesses: In my 25 years in a middle school library, I have never had an Agatha Christie fan, even though I love her work myself. (Although, really, Dorothy Sayers is a bit better!) This is not to say there aren't middle school fans of Christie's work, and maybe this will encourage readers to rescue Murder on the Orient Express from the middle of the Matt Christoper books. 
What I really think: Definitely purchasing, and am very glad that I live in a neighborhood with more fields than woods near me! I'm just going to stay out of the woods for a little while...

A Soft Place to Land, Paradise on Fire

Marks, Janae. A Soft Place to Land

September 14th 2021 by Katherine Tegen Books

ARC provided by Follett First Look

Joy's family is moving into an apartment because her father is out of work and they could no longer afford their house. It's a difficult adjustment, especially since it also means that some things that really make Joy happy, like piano lessons, are also out of the question. She is enthralled by movie scores and wants to write music for them, so it's important that she keep up her skills. Luckily, one of the first people she meets in the building is Nora, who has her own family issues (her mother died when Nora was young) and shares Joy's love of movies, although she wants to be a film maker. Nora thinks the two could work together, and introduces Joy to the apartment building's big secret-- a hidden storage area that the kids in the building have furnished with cast offs and call "the Hideout", and don't tell ANY of the adults about. It's a great place to get a break from her kid sister, Malia, and from her parents' constant arguing. It's also good for meeting other kids in the building, and Joy finds some graffiti on the wall that makes her think another kid is struggling as much as she is, and she tries to get to know the other kids in order to help. In order to make some money to put towards their film making preparation, Nora and Joy start a dog walking business and get four neighbors whose dogs they walk. When Joy falls asleep in the Hideout and her mom finds her and blows the secret, she and Malia have a bit of a falling out, which leads to problems with their business. At the same time, Joy's dad is spending more and more time at his brother's because he needs "space", and Joy is worried that her parents will divorce. Will Joy be able to make things right with her new friend, and settle into life in the apartment, no matter what it brings?
Strengths: There are not as many books about children living in apartment buildings as I imagine there are children living in apartments! There are also a lot of children who, like Joy, have family lives that aren't horrible, but have some difficulties. It was nice that Joy made friends right away, and that she got along with many of the children in the building, as well as the adults! Don't we all need neighbors who make us snickerdoodles? The dog walking business had a lot of very good, realistic details, and the Hideout was a great place that the children used responsibly, even if the powers that be had, again, realistic concerns about. The best part was that Joy was able to look outside herself and be concerned for the other person leaving messages about struggling. Another good book from the author of From the Desk of Zoe Washington.
Weaknesses: I've never lived or worked anywhere with secret or unused rooms, so I am always suspicious of ones in books. Young readers won't share my skepticism and will just want a Hideout of their own.
What I really think: I'm definitely purchasing, since this is an easy to get into story that has a lot of universal appeal to it. It would be great to see books like this with kids who live in suburban apartment buildings and are interested in science and math related fields. While it's great to see kids with passions and interests, I wish that these were in areas that might lead to jobs, rather than usually being in sports, entertainment, or cooking. 

Rhodes, Jewell Parker. Paradise on Fire

September 14th 2021 by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers 

ARC provided by Follett First Look

Addy lives in the Bronx with her grandmother, Bibi, who has moved from Nigeria to care for her after the devastating death of her parents in an apartment fire when she was four. She's still marked by the trauma of that event, and spends much of her time making maps, always knowing several possible ways out of every situation. Bibi has been understanding, but feels that Addy needs to live up to her full name, Adaugo, which means daughter of an eagle, and broaden her hoizons. Because of this, Addy finds herself flying to the Paradise region of California to take part in a program with other inner city students. She's leery of talking to others too much, but knows that the program requires her to work with the others; Jay, DeShon, Kelvin, and her cabin mate Nessa. Surprisingly, she finds herself enjoying the outdoor environment, and the owner of the camp, Leo, shows her how topographical maps work, helping her to understand her new environment so that she can be more comfortable with it. She still has moments where memories from the past haunt her, so she takes especial interest in how to properly put out camp fires, especially since California is experiencing a drought. She spends a lot of time hiking and exploring the area with Leo's dog, Ryder, and the others start to respect the feel that she has for the terrain. When a wildfire approaches an area where the students are camped with two counselors, they must try to figure out the best way to escape it, and they rely on Addy's skills to get them out, although not everyone makes it. 

Strengths: Paradise on Fire has several excellent and much needed themes. Topmost, certainly, is the environmental one. It's great to see Addy be introduced to the wilderness and to fall in love with it, and heart wrenching that she also has to see first hand how fragile this environment can be. Addressing the fact that many children, especially BIPOC ones from city environments, don't necessarily get out to parks or have swimming instruction, is something that I haven't seen done very much. Since I have a park and a pool directly in my back yard, this is easy for my to forget. Showing how Addy has dealt with the effects of trauma her whole life is in keeping with current trends; I had to be careful not to say she was trying to "move on". She is struggling just to move forward. Once again, Dr. Rhodes has done an excellent job of bringing together several different topics to make for a fascinating novel that would be good for high school and middle school readers. 

Weaknesses: I had trouble keeping the other participants straight, and they felt a bit flat to me. This might be because Addy herself kept herself at a distance and didn't connect with the others as much. It was easier for me to connect with Leo and even with the dog, Ryder.
What I really think: This is a great addition to books about wild fires, such as Davis' upcoming Partly Cloudy, Henry's recent Playing with Fire, Philbrick's Wildfire, Shotz' Firefighter, Garretson's 2010 Wildfire Run, and Cooney's 1995 Flash Fire, which shows that this environmental problem has been going on for far too long. 

Final Season

Green, Tim. Final Season

September 14th 2021 by HarperCollins

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

Ben Redd enjoys playing football with his 6th grade friends, especially Tuna, even though sometimes the way they act worries him. When the group has a sleepover and plan to go egging houses, his older brother Rich gives him an out-- Ben can text him and tell his friends that his brother needs him as an excuse for being out in their dad's car. Ben does, but his other brother, Raymond, is the one who picks him up. Ben's parents aren't home from an appointment with a specialist, and when they return, there is reason to worry. Ben's dad, John, played for the Atlanta Braves and is now a lawyer, and has just been diagnosed with ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), likely not helped by his years of playing football and enduring head trauma. He is having trouble walking, and his speech is often slurred, but he would still like to coach Ben's football team, with the help of Raymond and Rich. Ben's mother doesn't like the idea at all, and thinks that it's far too great of a risk, but John feels that 6th grade football is not as violent as the NFL, and wants to have one final season of football with his sons. There are other challenges as well. Thea, whose older brothers are accomplished college players, wants to join the team. She has the skills to do so, so John welcomes her, but her teammates are less thrilled. At one point, the boys hatch a plan to cut off one of Thea's braids, and Ben is trying to tell Woody not to do this when his phone is confiscated at dinner. Repercussions of the act are swift; the boys are to treat Thea as a complete teammate, and Woody's parents make him shave his head to show how sorry he is. After that, the team can focus on Thea's playing... except that Ben starts to want to hang out with Thea in a more romantic (for 6th graders) way. John doesn't want anyone to know about his condition, because he doesn't want them to feel sorry for him, but eventually agrees to an interview on 10 Minutes with Steve Kroft, where he talks about the fact that he still feels very blessed for the life that he has had. His condition deteriorates, and when he has trouble breathing and needs to be intubated, he loses his ability to speak. He still wants to coach, and is brought to the sidelines in a wheelchair, with a keyboard he can control with his eyes. Ben has a difficult game at the end of the season, but he knows that this is the last chance his father will get to coach him, and plays despite several injuries. 

Strengths: Like Makechnie's Ten Thousand Tries, we get to experience what life is like for a middle school age sports player who must deal with a parent with ALS. Unlike that book, we get to read about the experience from someone who is living through this condition. Green approaches the topic in a realistic but unflinching way. There is garbled speech, frequent small injuries, and a slow slide into more serious debilitations. What there is not is a sense of self pity. John and his family hope for the best, take comfort in their religion and in their family unit, and try to make the most of each moment while they can. There are times when it is difficult to do this, and moments where it is all too much, but they are brief. Ben's determination to do his best on the field in order to make his father proud is strong, but this doesn't make playing any easier. The inclusion of Thea is great, because it offers us a 2021 snapshot of the welcome that girls get in football, right along with Lupica's Triple Threat. I loved that Ben questions why his sisters didn't play football, and that John explains that lacrosse was their sport, or he would have been happy for them to play. If you've never read a "football book" because you don't like sports, or don't think that sports books are as lyrical or as much of a "heart print" book as others, pick this up. Everyone should pick this one up. You won't need tissues, because you will be able to wipe away your few stoic tears with your sleeve.
Weaknesses: No one should be playing football anymore. No one. 
What I really think: This is a powerful novel, and a fantastic testament to Mr. Green's perseverance, upbeat attitude, love for his family, and his contributions to both the sport and the literature of football. We all have to go out, and some of us have to go out in painful ways, but Mr. Green has shown, with tremendous grace, how to go out swinging. 
 

Stick Dog Comes to Town

Watson, Tom. Stick Dog Comes to Town (Stick Dog #12)

September 14th 2021 by HarperCollins

E ARC provided by the Publisher

It's cold and snowy, and the dogs are having trouble staying warm in their pipe, and also having trouble finding food. While Stick Dog now feels that he is able to get occasionall assistance from Lucy, the German shepherd at Mike's Magnificent Meats, he prefers that he and his friends manage to take care of themselves. Luckily, Karen comes back with a report of odd pine cones on a tree in town, and the group takes off to investigate. They find that the objects hanging from trees are minty (like plants near the pipe) as well as sweet (like the candy they got at Halloween), so start to eat a number of them while staying underneath the tree, where it is cozy. Unfortunately, humans start to gather around the tree, trapping the dogs, but they are able to gather helpful information. They have found candy canes, and also learn a bit about this weird guy named Santa Claus, who spies on people and can't make up his mind whether or not to stay in town. Karen starts to feel unwell after ingesting so much sugar, so the group heads to Mike's to get some other food for her. Lucy obliges by providing some beef jerky, and also gives them more information about Santa and odd human Christmas traditions. They dogs then decide to put up a tree and try to direct Santa to their home with tin foil, putting out boots instead of socks and going to sleep with dreams of  beefy goodness dancing in their heads. Will Santa be able to find them?

Stick Dog is a great character who understands humans a bit better than his friends Karen, Poo-Poo, Stripes, and Mutt, and uses his caring nature and intelligence to broaden their experiences and provide them with interesting food. I'm glad that the pack from the pipe is able to experience another holiday, since they had so much fun at Halloween, and their take on some of the more questionable traditions is perfectly reasonable. Lucy, who has a permanent human and more interaction with people, is helpful in shedding light on many features of the season. 

The enthusiasm with which the dogs great every challenge is admirable, even if it is misguided. Karen really comes into her own in this book, and isn't just getting hopped up on caffeine or contemplating the nature of rain puddles. She's determined to celebrate Christmas even though she doesn't really understand it. The other dogs help in predictable ways (decorating the tree with objects shaken out of their fur, or deciding to head butt everything), but Karen has many fairly good ideas in this installment, even though it is Stick Dog's ingenuity that makes things happen. The dogs at an Easter egg hunt could be hysterical, and I know there are supposed to be three more books. 

Stick Dog books makes most readers happy, unless their souls are dead, and are a particular favorite with stressed eighth graders and those who enjoy Pichon's Tom Gates books, Falatko's Two Dogs in a Trenchcoat, or Selfors' Wedgie and Gizmo. I would definitely be giving these as gifts if I had small or medium sized children in my life, and they lend themselves to great themed packages; this one begs to be given with some candy canes!

If you haven't read any of these, start now!

1. Stick Dog (2012)
2. Stick Dog Wants a Hot Dog (2013)
3. Stick Dog Chases a Pizza (2014)
4. Stick Dog Dreams of Ice Cream (2015)
5. Stick Dog Tries to Take the Donuts (2016)
6. Stick Dog Slurps Spaghetti (2016)
7. Stick Dog Craves Candy (2017)
8. Stick Dog Crashes a Party (2018)
9. Stick Dog Gets the Tacos (2019)

10. Stick Dog Meets His Match (2020)

11. Stick Dog Takes Out Sushi (2021)

 

MMGM- The Barefoot Dreams of Petra Luna and The Curse of the Mummy

It's

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday
 at 

Always in the Middle 

and #IMWAYR day 

at 

Teach Mentor Texts 

and 

Unleashing Readers

Dodds, Alma P. Barefoot Dreams of Petra Luna
September 14th 2021 by Sourcebooks

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

Things are difficult in Mexico in 1913, especially for Petra's family. Her mother died when her baby brother Luisito was born, and since her father was taken away by soliders during the revolution, her abuelita is taking care of her and her sister Amelia as well. When the Federales attack Petra's village, the family flees before their house is burned. Before her father left, Petra promised to keep her family safe, so she takes them across the countryside before seeking refuge at a church. There, she meets a girl named Adeline who is from the US, and who is trying to get back there with her mother. She asks Petra to go with them, but Petra is determined to get her whole family to the US. The journey is arduous, and tears up their feet, but they persevere. When Luisito becomes feverish, however, they stop to seek aid from soldiers. A woman named Marietta helps them, and they receive food and medical care. Marietta is a soldada, a woman soldier, with the revolutionaries working with Pancho Villa. Impressed  by Petra's determination, she asks Petra to become a soldier as well, but Petra again decides to stay with her family, even though her family could have become soldaderas, who cooked and kept the soldiers going. Since Petra also has a dream to become educated and break away from the social systems that kept her family in poverty, they press on until they come to a border town. There they find many people trying to get across a bridge into the US. The bridge closes, the cost to get across skyrockets, and it's all Petra can do to keep her family fed. Will she be able to find a way to get them across the border to a better life? 
Strengths: This is based on an event in the life of the author's great grandmother, and I love that she investigated a family story and was able to write a book about it after finding out that there was a particular event that she could pin down. This is an interesting story that readers who like adventure and survival tales will enjoy. I'm a big fan of any book that shows how difficult life was for children at other points in history or is for other children in the world; I read a lot of these when I was young, and think it gave me a lot of perspective that was very useful. Petra is a resourceful and determined girl who is willing to fight to overcome obstacles to get her family to safety, even though she could choose other ways forward for herself. In addition to her journey, there is plenty of history scattered throughout the book, and a nice timeline of events at the end of the book to help make sense of the overall picture. 
Weaknesses: For some reason, the phrase "baby diamond" (pertaining to the lump of coal Petra carries with her because her father gave it to her) was grating. I loved the thought behind it (that Petra could be like the coal, and would shine like a diamond after withstanding pressure), but the phrase seemed odd. 
What I really think: Like Sanchez's The Wind Called My Name, this covers Latinx history of which I was unaware. If you had asked me before reading this book, I would have said that Pancho Villa, like Lyndon Johnson, was not a particularly helpful historical figure. I'm always glad to see books that educate readers about historical events while also being interesting. Will definitely purchase.

My children's great-great-great grandfather shot and killed his wife because she was going to divorce him in the 1860s because he was an alcoholic, then killed himself, leaving their six children to be taken on an orphan train from Wisconsin to Iowa. I've always thought there was a book in THAT somewhere!

Fleming, Candace. The Curse of the Mummy: Uncovering Tutankhamun's Tomb

September 7th 2021 by Scholastic Focus

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

Disclaimer: Some of my best friends studied ancient archaeology. It is of note that none of them are practicing archaeologists, since there were no jobs.

Ah, the checkered past of archaeology. Look! Here are sacred objects buried for thousands of years! Let's dig them up, take them out of their native country, and use them as knick knacks in our parlor! Thankfully, by the time Lord Carnavon was determined to have a dig at the Valley of the Kings in Egypt, and got Howard Carter to lead it, things had changed a bit from the style of the 1800s excavations, and the dig, while not perfect, was well documented. Fleming gives us a brief overview of earlier practices and the push to find artifacts, information about Carnavon and Carter, a smattering of Egyptian politics, and even some discussion about the interest in the supernatural after World War I. 

That's all good stuff, and aligns with our 6th grade social studies unit on ancient cultures. Tutankhamun's career and burial are definitely something that are still studied, and this helpfully includes a timeline of pharoahs so that Tut's place within history is clear. But the brilliant part is that Fleming tells us all of the suspected incidents of "curses" that came out of the discoveries before swiftly and decisively debunking them. Even the cover has those great glowing eyes and smoke trail hinting that there's some greater power at work... but there isn't. There are even statistics about life expectancies of people who were present at the tomb as opposed to those not. The curse is a good story to lure readers in, but the actual history and the details about how a dig is properly run are what is truly fascinating. 

I was surprised at the number of really good pictures of the dig, and the numbering of objects that Carter did, although I shouldn't have been. It was fun to see some of the stuffy English workers in their long john tops and what looked like plimsoll shoes! Of course, the research is brilliant, and like other books by Fleming (most notably The Family Romanov), even if I don't quite feel like reading a long nonfiction book, the writing sucks me right in. 

This might be a stretch for some middle school readers, but I've had an increasing number of students who want quality, narrative nonfiction books, and since this aligns with the curriculum, I don't have to feel at all bad about buying it. 

If I need any more excuse, it would be to offer this as a precursor to reading David MacCauley's The Motel of the Mysteries (October 11, 1979), which I would have sworn I read in middle school, but I couldn't have, since it didn't come out until I was in high school. A lot of work for a few archaeology jokes (especially since you really need background information about Schliemann at Hisarlik), but totally worth it!

Not Here to be Liked and Danny Chung Sums it Up

Quach, Michelle. Not Here to be Liked

September 14th 2021 by Harper Children's

ARC provided by Young Adult Books Central

Eliza doesn't have a lot of patience with the superficiality of high school. She's determined to use her career on the school newspaper to get elected editor her senior year, and doesn't want to dilute her energies by worrying about what she's wearing or about boys. Her Chinese Vietnamese mother doesn't feel the same way; she doesn't understand why Eliza can't make more of an effort and wear something that an oversized, gray cardigan. When Eliza loses the editorial position to ex-jock Len, her mother thinks she is right. Eliza has other thoughts-- the school is notoriously biased against females in positions of power and authority, and she writes an editorial about this. Unfortunately, someone posts this on the school paper's web site. There's less fall out than you might suspect, although Eliza does have to meet with the principal, who just wants her and Len to work things out between themselves. Len, who had to quit baseball because of an injury, feels that he won the election on his own merits, although he concedes that Eliza certainly has more writing experience that he does. The two are assigned an interview with a new boba tea shop's owners, and are also working on a school project together. Despite herself, Eliza finds herself enjoying Len's company. When Eliza and her friends plan a school wide protest over the the inequity of representation in school groups, will this get her any closer to the editorial position... and any further away from Len?

This was an interesting look at a range of high school group dynamics, with a range of cultural backgrounds. This is set in Southern California, and Eliza tells us that the most popular kids are the ones of Korean descent, since they make up the majority of the student body. Eliza's parents are of Chinese descent, but come from Vietnam. Len has a Japanese mother and a white father. In addition to the newspaper, we also get a glimpse into the inner workings of student government, and see the drive to succeed that many of the students in the school have. 

Eliza is a very practical young woman, and doesn't have any interest in "being pretty" like her sister Kim. It interferes with her work on the newspaper, and since she is motivated to make the Wall of Editors so she will go down in posterity, she's rather spend her time on her investigative journalism. It's great to see this kind of passion in a high school student, even if I have to tell her that in 20 years, no one will even notice her picture in the Wall of Editors. (Says someone who was once very proud of being included on the Senior Service Award plaque in high school orchestra. I'm sure that after 40 years, the plaque is long gone!)

Even though Len is a bit annoying, and Eliza has more pressing matters to concern her, there is some romance. This makes sense. It's high school. She and Len have a lot in common, and do get along in a lot of ways. I appreciated that it wasn't one of these love/hate relationships that are so common in teen literature. Sure, she's annoyed by him, but he's cute and interesting. And interested in her. This is a pretty solid basis for a high school relationship. 

There are lots of middle grade books about school newspapers, which seems odd to me, but it makes perfect sense to center a book around the much more prevalent high school newspaper scene. Hand this to readers who enjoyed Smith's Hearts Unbroken, Lehrman's The Last Best Story, or Doktorski's Famous Last Words. This also put me a little in mind of Goo's The Way You Make Me Feel, but with the newspaper instead of a food truck, mainly because I think Clara and Eliza would get along well. 

Chan, Maisie. Danny Chung Sums it Up 

September 7th 2021 by Amulet Books

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

Danny lives with his parents in an apartment in Birmingham, England. His parents, immigrants from China, have a takeaway downstairs, and work long hours. Danny struggles to meet their high expectations of him; he would rather draw comics with his best friend, Ravi, than study math so he can get a better job when he grows up, although he understands how hard his parents' lives are. When they say they have a surprise for him, and even get a set of bunk beds for his room from a family friend, he is hopeful, but the surprise does not turn out to be a pleasant one. His father's mother, Nai Nai, is going to live with them, and she even takes the top bunk in his room. Not only that, but Danny is expected to show her around town and take her to social events like lawn bowling. Instead, on a recommendation from takeaway customer Mrs. Cruikshanks, he takes her to Bingo instead. Nai Nai enjoys Bingo a lot, although there are some other players who are not happy to see her and are racially prejudiced. Danny is having trouble with a math project for a big competition, but since Nai Nai is very good with numbers, he gets some help from her. Will Danny, with Nai Nai's help, find a way to balance the things that he loves with the things his parents think are important?
Strengths: Kids following their passions, dealing with real life struggles, and going about their days with good humor. This describes about 80% of the books that circulate in my library, but only about 20% of the books that are published. (These are not very scientific statistics, but just ball park.) I love that we are no longer see characters that are like Henry Huggins, but are seeing better representation across cultures, identities, and abilities. Danny isn't thrilled to have his grandmother there, but warms to her. I particularly liked Nellie Cruikshanks for some reason, and teared up at the ending! There are a lot of books about children interested in the arts, but at least Danny realizes that math isn't as bad as he has always thought. This is also my favorite sort of book to read, and when I was young, I was enthralled with the "exotic" details, like living in an apartment, or in somewhere like Birmingham!
Weaknesses: This was very similar to Shang's The Great Wall of Lucy Wu, but with drawing instead of basketball, and set in England. 
What I really think: I'm debating, since this seems a tiny bit young. Since it is an interesting, up beat story, I might buy a copy knowing that it will take some hand selling. My readers who also like to draw will find it especially interesting.

September 11th

Faruqi, Saadia. Yusuf Azeem is Not a Hero.

September 7th 2021 by Quill Tree Books

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

Yusuf and his family live in the small Texas town of Frey where his father runs the A to Z Dollar Store and his mother does freelance writing from her new office in the garage. Yusuf and his best friend Danial are ready to ROCK 2021. Middle school has not only lockers and Chrome Books, but a robotics club that the boys have been looking forward to for years. However, Yusuf finds a progression of nasty notes in his locker that make him worry about how others perceive him. There's a lot of talk about the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 Twin Towers attacks, and anti-Muslim feelings in the town are running high. This causes problems for the Muslim community when Mr. Grant challenges the permits for the mosque that they are building just outside town, and his son, Ethan, continually makes inappropriate remarks in school. Yusuf's father once stood up to an armed man who tried to rob his store, but Yusuf doesn't think that he is brave enough to stand up to anyone. It helps a little that his Uncle Rahman has given Yusuf the journals that he kept as a high schooler in 2001, and Yusuf is able to see a first hand account of the events occurring after 9/11, but it's still a complicated matter, and Yusuf is saddened to see how little has changed in the intervening 20 years. He and Danial are on the robotic team, but have to negotiate with their parents to allow them to go, since their Sunday school is being held on the same day as robotics practice. Yusuf has befriended Mr. Grant's nephew, Jared, who seems nice but is swayed by his family's opinions. Jared's grandmother is a frequent customer at the A to Z store, and a believer that "You can only make enemies with strangers". When the racial tensions mount and there is a town meeting about the permits, Yusuf finds out that while most of the town supports the building of another house of worship, a hate group, the Patriot Sons, is determined to keep Frey free of "outsiders". When one of Yusuf's computer projects gets him unwanted attention at school, will he ever feel at home in Frey again?
Strengths: I love that Yusuf and Danial are excited for middle school and looking forward to things like robotics club. The low attendance and general "failure to thrive" of the club is realistically portrayed, and I was glad to see that they could turn it around. Having the uncle's journal is both realistic and informative; we may see more books based on actual journals, such as Bermudez's Big Apple Diaries. The father's store was fascinating, and I'd love to see other middle grade books incorporate this type of parental job, since it is no doubt one that consumes a lot of family time. The depiction of the small town relationships was interesting, and there's a good civics lesson in the town meeting. There is a good combination of a lot of interesting things going on in the book, and it's fascinating to see Yusuf's ordinary life but also how it is impacted by the legacy of 9/11.
Weaknesses: I have trouble spelling the name "Daniel" as it is, so reading it with this alternative spelling was hard! The negative notes were so important at the beginning of the book that I was a little surprised at how they were handled in the end. I was just expecting something different. 
What I really think: Definitely purchasing, and think that reading this along with Cerra's Just a Drop of Water (set in 2001) would be interesting. 

Bermudez, Alyssa. Big Apple Diaries 

August 17th 2021 by Roaring Brook Press

E ARC provided by Netgalley

In this graphic novel memoir, artist Bermudez draws from her middle school diaries to highlight her 7th grade and 8th grade years in New York City, which included 9/11. Young Alyssa goes back and forth between her father's  apartment in Manhattan and her mother's in Queens. She likes her school and has friends there, and has a crush on a boy named Alejandro. Her life is fairly normal, and she has typical struggles over being allowed out on her own, completing school work in a timely fashion, and getting along with friends. Things were not that different in 2001, although there are some illustrations of early computer chat rooms or DM platforms: at the time, I didn't have graphic interface on my internet, so I'm not quite sure. What sets this apart from a typical tween story is, of course, the fact that she was very close to the events of 9/11. Her father worked in one of the World Trade Center buildings but was meeting with clients in New Jersey, and her mother was working in an office that had a view of the attacks. Both survived, but had a difficult time getting home, so Alyssa was the last one left at her school, tremendously worried about their fate. Her father bought roller blades and skated 12 miles to get back. Her immediate world didn't suffer many losses, but living in NYC made her acutely aware of what had gone on. 

Strengths: As someone who kept journals for almost 40 years, I very much appreciated that the material was drawn directly from Bermudez's own journals. This makes all of the interactions deliciously cringey and realistic, although I hope that modern girls don't care quite as much about boys! It's a great hook to have most of this book be about pedestrian tween concerns, because it brings the devastation of 9/11 closer to home. There is some investigation of her half Puerto Rican identity, struggles with the idea of her father dating, and a very realistic portrayal of tween romance-- sure, she's "going out" with Alejandro, but what really do they have in common? The illustrations are done in black, white, and a sort of purpley-blue that seems appropriately somber. This author has done primarily books for younger readers, but definitely has a deft hand with the middle school voice. 
Weaknesses: A little more of the history and politics of the time wouldn't have hurt, but that's easy enough to get from other books. 
What I really think: This is a great purchase for historical value; there are probably a few parents of middle school students who are this age, but there will be a lot more in years to come, and this was a great view of the events from someone who was herself in middle school. I was volunteering at the school where I now teach on this day, and I was surprised that Alyssa's school was able to shield the students from the news. Shortly after the first tower was hit, I think all of the teachers at my school had the news up on their computers, and everyone knew something was going on. 

Tarshis, Lauren and Egbert, Corey (illus.) I Survived: The Attacks of September 11th.

September 7th 2021 by Graphix

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

This graphic novel version follows the 2012 text version closely, but the pictures are helpful in understanding what happened. Twenty years after this terrible event, this is ancient history to young readers, who know only what they have read about the event or studied in school. I did really enjoy the illustration style of Egbert, which would lend itself beautifully to a middle grade graphic novel all about football! (Lucas' story starts with a football game.) With all of the information about concussions that has come out in the years since the original publication, this is even more timely today!

From my review of the original:

Lucas loves spending time with his firefighter dad, but after his father is injured in the line of duty, he starts to spend a lot of time with a coworker of his father who helps out, Uncle Benny. Uncle Benny gets Lucas interested in football, but too many concussions make football something that Lucas can no longer be permitted to do. Angry at this diagnosis, Lucas goes into New York City to visit Benny-- just in time to see the World Trade Center bombed. Uncle Benny responds to the call for help, and Lucas's father also arrives, pulling Lucas to safety inside a building when one of the towers collapses. While things, obviously, did not turn out well for many people that day, the ending is not as sad as it could be for Lucas and his family. 

This is a very short book told from a point of view that middle school students can understand. I liked that included additional information about football and concussions!

Brown, Don. In the Shadow of the Fallen Towers: The Seconds, Minutes, Hours, Days, Weeks, Months, and Years after the 9/11 Attacks

August 10th 2021 by Etch/HMH Books for Young Readers

E ARC provided by Netgalley

In his America is Under Attack (2011), Brown covered the attacks of 9/11. This addresses some of that day, following the stories of people who escaped the towers or who were involved as first responders. There is also a lot of information about the clean up that I haven't read about since it was covered in the newspapers. The information is presented in a fast paced way that covers a lot of different viewpoints, using Brown's inimitable art style. I know that my teachers like to use America is Under Attack with students who might be more sensitive, since the illustrations offer a layer of distance that photographs do not. There is an informative list of statistics about the people who died at the end. 

This is certainly a good book to use for addressing this topic with students on this twentieth anniversary of the event.

Guy Friday- Obie is Man Enough

Bailar, Schuyler. Obie is Man Enough
September 7th 2021 by Crown Books for Young Readers

E ARC provided by Netgalley

Obie's swim coach is a horrible man who refuses to let him stay on the team unless he can finish first in all of his races, just because he is a trans boy. Obie's supportive family help him find a team that is accepting of him, because he is an excellent swimmer. He also has some good friends, like Mikey and Pooch, who frequently defends him against like Clyde, who is constantly sniping at Obie and saying terrible things to him. Most people accept Obie for who he is, including his Korean grandparents and his teachers. There is also another trans swimmer, Tommy, who is older and whom he will occasionally text with questions or concerns. He also starts to date a girl new to his school, Charlie, and when he tells her about his identity, she is unbothered by it. His former best friend, Lucy, struggles with the change, however, and is not nice to Obie. When his language arts teacher asks Obie to write an essay for a NCTE competition, he puts together a moving account of his varied cultural and personal identities. 

Strengths: While I understand why so many middle grade books about sexual identity are coming out stories, it's good to have one that is not. Obie has already made the transition, and is getting to the point where most people don't ask questions and just accept him for who he is, with those who don't understand, like Clyde and the coach, causing occasional problems. The romance with Charlie is sweet and a bit reminiscent of Stu Truly. There are plenty of swimming details for fans of Binns' Courage or Morrison's Up For Air, and it's hard to find books with swimming as a competitive sport. 
Weaknesses: This is why middle schoolers aren't usually allowed to name themselves. Obadiah seems like a very strange choice! Also, from a coaching perspective, I would have liked to know more about rules that were in place for Obie competing, but that would have slowed down the story. 
What I really think: A good title to have along with Gino's Melissa's Story (formerly George), Polonsky's Gracefully Grayson, and Bunker's Zenobia July.
 

Alexander, Damian. Other Boys

September 7th 2021 by First Second

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

In this autobiographical graphic novel, we see how difficult young Damian's life is. His mother is killed when he is a baby, so he is being raised by his grandparents, who are not well off. School is difficult, and changing schools often leads Damian to decide to not talk at all in school in the 8th grade. He is a sensitive boy, who is often told that the choices he makes are "girl" choices, and he thinks it best to fly under everyone's radar. This doesn't always work, but it does get him recommended for therapy with a school counselor, although he doesn't think he will benefit from talking to her, either. There are some students who are nice to him, like Mark, and his grandmother and brother David are supportive, although his grandfather dies of cancer. His best friend is a girl named Sylvia, and he is comfortable hanging out with her friends until they get further into middle school and decide that they can't be friends with boys. There are some better moments, like hanging out with gamers who accept him, and even meeting a nonbinary person named Taylor. At one point, he draws the line between all of the slurs of "gay" that are hurled at him, and his feelings about finding boys attractive, but he doesn't get much support in processing this. Having a pet cat helps with his anxiety somewhat. In general, though, Damian's life is filled with trauma that he finds hard to deal with, although he eventually gets some support from the school counselor.

Strengths: I can't think of another book dealing with selective mutism from the point of view of the person experiencing it, and this certainly has lots of details about how being uncomfortable with aspects of one's identity can have a devastating impact on one's life. There is a lot of discussion about gender stereotypes that have changed a bit, but exposing toxic masculinity and its effects goes a long way to preventing its survival. Readers who are having difficulty in their own lives might take comfort from this, and readers who aren't might learn some empathy. 
Weaknesses: I wish that specific dates had been mentioned. From the geometric graphics on the cover and some internal clues like Cabbage Patch dolls and an ALF stuffed animal, I'm guessing that this is set in the mid 1980s. This is important, because the experience of a student coming out in middle school might be somewhat different in the 2020s. 
What I really think: This is a somewhat less traumatic version of the family dynamics examined in Krosoczka's Hey, Kiddo with the addition of the problems embracing sexual identity, and is in line with other graphic novel style memoirs like Hale's Best Friends and Telgemeier's Smile. 

Whamond, David. Muddle School 

September 7th 2021 by Kids Can Press

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

Dave starts middle school wearing his father's vintage powder blue leisure suit and is surprised when things don't go well. Everything that can go wrong does, from bullies to embarrassing himself in front of his crush. When he and a friend work on a time machine, can he go back and replay his life in his new school, getting everything right this time?
Strengths: I am always a fan of time travel, and I would certainly like to go back to the first day of my own middle school career and live a completely different life, so young readers will appreciate that. This had a vibe similar to those old Seventeen Magazine "Was My Face Red" columns or the Mel Brooks' quote “Tragedy is when I cut my finger. Comedy is when you fall into an open sewer and die.” 
Weaknesses: It would have helped to know during which time period this was set. I was quite thrown by the appearance of the leisure suit. 
What I really think: I didn't find this funny. It was sort of like Patterson's I, Funny, where it was actually incredibly sad, but played for laughs. 

Your Life Has Been Delayed

Mason, Michelle I. Your Life Has Been Delayed

September 7th 2021 by Bloomsbury YA

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

High school junior Jenny Waters is visiting her grandparents in New York City in 1995. She hopes to convince her parents to let her go to journalism school there to get out of her Missouri suburb. When the plane is due to land, however, there are problems. The control tower has no information about the flight. When they are finally allowed to land, everyone on board discovers that it is now 2020, and their plane disappeared without a trace 25 years previously. Jenny's parents are missionaries and are out of the country, but her younger brother, Bradley, comes to pick her up... but he's now 43 years old, married, and has two children! He has thought for the whole time that she, like everyone else on the plane, was dead. Clearly, there are a lot of changes that have occurred during the missing time, and these are hard for Jenny to swallow. Her grandparents in New York are dead, and her grandmother is in a nursing facility. Her parents are retired. Worst of all, her best friend, Angie, has two children of her own, and her husband is quite a surprise! Not only that, but to deal with her grief, she wrote a book about Jenny after she graduated from college. This is just one of the many things that Jenny's family tries to keep from her. Despite being thrown 25 years into the future, Jenny wants to get back to her regularly scheduled life, and starts back to school to finish her senior year. She was going to be editor of the newspaper, and the newspaper advisor is still the same teacher Jenny had, so she makes her co-editor with Ashling, who is not happy about it and bristles at Jenny's notoriety. The only one who treats Jenny like a normal high school kid is Dylan, Angie's son, who calmly explains things like cell phones and social media to her. His twin sister, JoJo (named after Jenny), won't even talk to Jenny. With her parents trying to shield her from everything, and kids at school treating her differently, Jenny is glad when the passengers and crew put together a support group. There's a lot to talk about, from scientists trying to test their blood, to an organization called PATROL that is trying to claim that the reemergence of the flight is a hoax. The people in the group, from Art, a talkative college student to the 80 year old Mr. and Mrs. Spring, don't really care WHY they are not in 1995. They just all need to figure out how their lives will go forward, and don't have much patience with the media that is trying to destroy them. When PATROL claims to know a way for the group to return to 1995, will Jenny and the others think about returning, or will they embrace their new reality?

Strengths: The most brilliant part of this was the general air of the 1990s that pervaded this book. It's like Ms. Mason read a chapter of The Face on the Milk Carton every morning before writing! The overprotective parents, the predominately white, middle class cast, the overwrought but sweet romance with Dylan, and the fact that Jenny is a junior in high school and won't drink at parties all would be right at home in a young adult novel from this era. The comments about the mall being "an institution", is the reason school is starting so early in August because "Did they move Labor Day?", and not wanting to "waste hours on the computer" when she could actually call her friends are also brilliant. It's okay that we never get a good explanation for what happened, and all I could think about after reading this was what if someone had flown in 1965 and returned in 1990? At least Jenny used computers to lay out the newspaper. What would it be like for a character to go from typewriters to primitive cell phones?

Weaknesses: While I understand the subplot with PATROL, and the government intervention on a creepy level is completely in line with books from the 1990s, it somehow didn't grab my interest. 
What I really think: I love time travel books, and most of those travel back in time. This was a really fantastic trip into the "future", with a lot of interesting homages to the 1990s. And yes, I could have been one of the teachers that Jenny had in both time periods. Ouch! This will be hugely popular with some of my readers who love YA romances, even though it is speculative fiction.

Klymkiw, Sarah and Haninson, Kim. 

Fashion Conscious: Change the World with a Change of Clothes

August 20th 2020 by Red Shed

Copy provided by the author

Here's something that many people have forgotten during the pandemic: "Clothes are one of the first things we see when we meet someone new, and they influence our first impressions of them." (page 10) Even though many of my students spent a year and a half wearing their pajamas, you'd think they would know that continuing to wear pajamas to school makes them look less than serious!

I love that the book started with this, because people who buy the most clothes do so to bolster their personal identity and style. Letting them know that they can make a personal or artistic statement with their clothes while reducing the impact of their consumption on the environment is crucial to nudging them to make important changes. 

There is so much information in this brightly colored, well illustrated book. We get to see the life cycle of a t shirt, and find out how to reduce our dependence on new fashion items by wearing what we already have, purchase from second hand sources, and make over and mend items to lengthen their lives and keep them out of landfills. There is also a good deal of information about reducing the impact of new purchases by looking at the sources and materials in them. There are side bars with additional information, such as a look at the historical Trianlge Shirtwaist Factory fire, and interviews with designers of sustainable fashion. 

The illustrations help move the book along, with flow charts, bulleted lists, and pictorial examples of mending and sewing techniques that are discussed. Because of my sewing background, I know all of the repair techniques, but they are well described. The next time I have a white t shirt that has gone too gray, I'm definitely going to use the book's instructions for shibori dying. If I use laundry bluing, it will make the perfect shirt to wear with my upcycled denim projects! 

The Day Glo coral wouldn't have been my choice for the primary color in the illustrations, but that's just a personal preference. To me, the color of the 2020s is Pantone's First Timer Green, which would have been a little easier on the eyes. I'm willing to overlook that, however, since this book says that the current trend for distressed jeans is very bad not only for the environment but also for the people who make them. Such a hideous and wasteful trend!

I'm looking forward to sharing this one with my fashionable students; I clearly enjoy my clothes for work a little too much, but always tell students that I get my outfits from the thrift store. It not only sends a good envrionmental message, but lets students know that there's no shame in not spending big money on the newest fashions! I recently checked out Expressionista (2013) to a student and was glad to see that it had held up despite being eight years old.

Born Behind Bars and Defending Champ

Venkatraman, Padma. Born Behind Bars 

September 7th 2021 by Nancy Paulsen Books

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

Kabir Khan has never known life outside out prison. His mother, who is Hindu, secretly married a Muslim man who worked at the same house she did, and was jailed after being accused of stealing. Once in jail in Chennai, she realized that she was pregnant, and her husband wrote to her for a while, but then the letters stopped. Kabir is too old to be with his mother, but small for his age, so the warden has let him stay. He does to school, and gets along with most of the other inmates. When a new warden makes him leave, he's not sure what he will do without Amma. An uncle is found, and arrangements are made for him to pick up Kabir. Unfortunately, he is not a relative, but just a man who has the same last name, and he has arranged to sell Kabir! Kabir escapes, but life on the streets is not easy. Luckily, he meets Rani and her parrot, and she helps him earn money from his singing, learn where to purchase food, and find a place to sleep at night. Rani is Kurava, and used to the Roma way of life, but had to leave her family when her uncle was going to marry her off when she turned 14. The two get along, and it's less lonely to be with someone. Kabir would love to travel to his father's town and look for his grandparents, since the last place his father seems to have been was Dubai. When he helps a woman who loses an earring, he is given train tickets, and is able to travel to his grandparents in Bengaluru. Both children are from lower castes, so experience a lot of discrimination, such as a train ticket salesman who doesn't want to sell "to their kind". He and Rani wait outside the mosque where the family worships, and follow a man who looks like Kabir home. They follow him to his shop and find that his name is not Khan, but when crowds angry over a water dispute threaten to attack, Rani manages to save the business by getting onto the roof. The man posts the children's picture on social media, and Kabir's grandparents find him. They don't have a lot, but are glad to see him even though he is half Hindu. Rani is welcomed into a school that is willing to make adjustments for her Kurava life style without judging her. The woman who runs the school has contacts with lawyers, and Kabir hopes that he will be able to get his mother out of jail so that she can join him. 

Strengths: Like this author's The Bridge Home, this has an appealing blend of a setting in another country, children surviving on their own, and a happy ending. Kabir has a positive outlook despite his past, and is motivated to try to make things better for himself and Rani. There are some kind people who help the children out along the way. This Boxcar Children vibe is always popular with middle school students, who like to think that they would be able to survive under similar circumstances. There's just enough information about the cultural make up in regards to caste, religion, and poverty, and some notes at the end. Another great title from Ms. Venkatraman.
Weaknesses: The paragraphs in this were very short; often just one of two sentences. As the book progressed, it didn't bother me, but it struck me as odd at the beginning. This format does make the book move very quickly, and I don't think students will notice. 
What I really think: I enjoyed reading this very much, but I would still like to see books about children in other countries who don't face quite so many challenges, so that my students don't think that everyone in India is poor or homeless. 

Lupica, Mike. Defending Champ (Triple Threat #2)

September 7th 2021 by Viking Books for Young Readers

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

Alex's dad is curious to see what she will do after her successful football season in Triple Threat, and is surprised that she wants to go back to her soccer team for the spring season. Sure, Lindsay is still angry and not helpful, but she is comfortable asking Annie if it would be okay if she returned. Because there are limited spots on the team, she must try out, which isn't really a problem. She makes the team, along with Rashida and Roisin, but the town council decides there is not enough money to fund all the sports, since there are some infrastructure improvements that need to be made, and GIRLS' soccer is cut. (There is a formula for which team goes, based on new sign ups, but it still seems wrong and arbitrary!) Alex isn't happy, but isn't willing to go down without a fight. The team's Coach Cross agrees. Lindsay wants parents and community members to donate the $25,000 that it will take to fund all of the necessities for the the season, but Alex has a better plan that feels more equitable-- the girls' team will earn the money themselves, by sponsoring a game with the boys' team. The boys' team is rather reluctant, but after they win a scrimmage, they are on board, just as Alex predicted they would be. Chase is still being difficult, and tries to use an injury to get out of playing. Alex's friend Gabe also sustains a strained ACL, and Alex feels responsible, especially since it might keep him out of his baseball season. Alex's mother is in town to lecture at a nearby college, but must go back to California to watch Alex's step brother play in his first ball game, and will miss the big match, but Alexis very understanding about this. Who will win the match, and will the team be able to earn enough money for their season? 
Strengths: Alex is such a great character. Her struggles with Lindsay are very realistic, and I like that she has good friends in Sophie and Gabe. Her parents' situation, with her father as primary caregiver (and frequent home cook!) and her mother living across the country with her new family, is also important to have represented. While the football career has receded a bit, I think we might see one more book about Alex's 8th grade year. Chase has a good moment at the end of the book, but also throws down a challenge. 
Weaknesses: The town council controls school teams? Perhaps in Pennsylvania? I know that this kind of underdog story is popular, but it rubbed me the wrong way. It's like bake sales for library funding. Fix the problem. If there's not enough money for two soccer leagues, combine them and limit membership by tryouts. It just seemed unlikely. 
What I really think: This had a lot of good moments, and I have a LOT of girls who play soccer and want to read about it, so I will definitely purchase, even though I don't quite believe all of it. Love the cover. 
 

Checked out almost 400 books yesterday; always a good reason to be tired! All of the 7th grade today, so it will be hopping again. 

Judging from the shoulder pads on this dress, it's from the 90s. Or, if you believe Etsy, the 1980s. Since I had a number of sailor dresses when I first started teaching in 1989, that's probably true. 

Oh, look! I'm cottage core. Yeah, don't even know what to do now that half my wardrobe is listed for sale on Etsy as "vintage". Star pin from my friend Linda, who cleared out some of her work jewelry, since she's been retired for over a decade!

Pahua and the Soul Stealer

Lee, Lori M. Pahua and the Soul Stealer

September 7th 2021 by Rick Riordan Presents

ARC provided by the publisher

Pahua, her mother, and her younger brother Matt struggle to get by. Her father left years ago, and Pahua has never gotten a good explanation. Her mother has to work a lot, and much of Matt's care fall's to Pahua. She loves her younger brother, and doesn't mind taking care of him. She would almost rather do that than go to summer school, where she has to deal with mean girls like Hailey and Jocelyn. She has a run in with them, along with their friend June, who is new to their small Wisconsin town. June is nice, pronouncing Pahua's name correctly and calling out the other girls when they same unkind things, so Pahua agrees to go along when the group heads to a "haunted" bridge in the woods. The only problem? Pahua has long been able to see spirits, such as her best friend, a cat spirit she calls Miv (Mee). She has been keeping this from her mother, since her aunt, with whom her mother is at odds, is a shaman who will help people in their Hmong community who need help. Her mother also performs a few tasks as well, but doesn't believe Pahua when she mentions anything about the spirit world. When Pahua accidentally unleashes the spirit of a young girl on the bridge, she comes and takes Matt's soul back with her. Matt becomes ill, and while her mother tries to get him medical help, Pahua doesn't tell her about the spirit encounter. Luckily, Pahua meets Zhong, who becomes aware of the spirit activity and takes on the quest in order to pass her classes at the School for Shamanic Arts. Zhong is surprised at how well developed Pahua's talents are, and when the two must travel into the Echo, the spirit realm that mirrors the human world, the two find out why this is. In order to retrieve Matt's spirit, the two girls (accompanied by Miv) must seek help from a shaman in the Bamboo Nursery, consult the keeper of the Tree of Souls, and find the Lightning Axe that can be used on the bridge spirit. Along the way, they must fight demons, get to ride spirit horses, and find out the reasons behind Pahua's shamanic abilities. 

Strengths: As an older sister, I'm more than happy to read about younger brothers getting spirited off by demons, and this reminded me a bit of Ellen Oh's Spirit Hunters in that respect. Pahua, however, actually likes her brother, and so is willing to enter a world with which she is unfamiliar in order to rescue him. I liked the fact that Zhong had a much better background in the spirit world, but Pahua had better skills, and that the two took a while to warm to each other. Miv was a great character, although after all the warnings about not trusting spirits, I was expecting him to somehow turn on Pahua in a devastating way. The details about the Hmong community, as well as Pahua's experiences in the small Wisconsin town, added an interesting layer to the story, and it was good to see that June reacted in the way tweens should act when they see someone being prejudiced and acting unkindly. There is plenty of action and adventure to keep fantasy fans turning the pages and learning about Hmong culture, religion, and folk lore. 
Weaknesses: I was glad that the forward recommended reading the end notes first, since being able to consult the glossary of terms and names was very helpful, and will let my readers know to do that as well.  Also, young readers should know that if a younger sibling gets abducted by evil spirits, LET AN ADULT KNOW! Of course, if the aunt had stepped in, the story wouldn't be nearly as interesting. 
What I really think: This is another great quest fantasy with many of the same elements of the Rick Riordan titles, but with interesting cultural connections to Hmong communities in the US as well as the folklore. The notes about the fluid nature of the stories, given their oral transmission, were helpful. Hand this to readers who enjoyed action packed, folk lore oriented books like City of the Plague God, Healer of the Water Monster, Mejia's Paola Santiago and the River of Tears, or DasGupta's The Serpent's Secret. 

 We've been in school a month, and it's been... tiring. It's great to have classes back in the library, and circulation has been through the roof, but I've made the decision NOT to have student helpers. It doesn't seem right to put children in somewhat close contact with all of the other children. The students are good about wearing masks for the most part. I didn't realize how much I rely on student helpers. Not only did they handle check out while I was doing classes, but because the circulation desk is on the other side of a wall of windows looking into the cafeteria, I would sometimes take lunch in the faculty lounge, when there were no classes and the study halls knew to send only one student at a time. It's a CHOICE, certainly, but it's tiring. I should be able to do my job all by myself, right? At least I am getting dressed every day! 

MMGM- Beaver and Otter Get Along... Sort of and Partly Cloudy

It's

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday
 at 

Always in the Middle 

and #IMWAYR day 

at 

Teach Mentor Texts 

and 

Unleashing Readers

Collard, Sneed B. III and Sodano, Meg (illus.)

Beaver and Otter Get Along... Sort of

September 7th 2021 by Sourcebooks Kids

Copy provided by the publisher

In this beautifully illustrated picture book, the complicated relationship between beavers and their ecosystem is explored, with special emphasis on how they interact with otters. Beaver first finds a stream, then sets out to painstakingly cut down trees, dam up the stream, and create his lodge. A female beaver arrives and the work continues. The newly created pond attracts a variety of wildlife, including birds and beetles who live on the trees that the pond causes to die. When Otter arrives, its a sign that the area is healthy, but the otters often damage the dam in order to get to other bodies of water, and are loud and rambunctious. The otters eat different foods from the beavers, so the two are able to coexist. In addition to the story, with its watercolor illustrations rich in the blues and greens of the aquatic setting, there is information at the back of the book about beavers, otters, and the building of dams. 

Strengths: Collard does a great job at finding topics that are of interest to children and educators alike, and also balances stories and information nicely. I can't say that I knew a lot about beavers and their effect on the environment, so I learned a lot from this. It would be a great book to hand to a reader who has picked up Terry Lynn Johnson's Rescue at Lake Wild. 
Weaknesses: I wouldn't have minded a little more information about how beavers change their environments by building dams, but it's not really necessary for this book. 
What I really think: This is a great choice for readers who are a little too young for the amount of information included in books like this author's Hopping Ahead of Climate Change or Firebirds: Valuing Natural Wildfires and Burned Forests and would make a great read aloud for classes studying ecology, animals, or getting along with others!

Davis, Tanita S. Partly Cloudy

September 7th 2021 by Katherine Tegen Books

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

Times are tough for Madalyn family in the Gold Hill neighborhood in the Bay Area of California. Her father has been out of work, so even though her mother is busier than ever in her job as a social worker helping residents of retirement homes, the family has to move to a less expensive rental. Madalyn's school was problematic, and she doesn't want to return. Her mother won't home school her, and private school is too expensive, but her parents come up with a clever idea-- Madalyn will go live with her elderly great uncle, Papa Lobo, to help him out and to be able to attend the school near his home. When her father gets a job in Cambridge, Massachusetts and her mother remains busy, this seems like a good idea for everyone. Madalyn doesn't like the idea of being away from her mother, even though she likes Papa Lobo, but hopes that the new school will work out. The first day is rough, since she skins her knee and realizes there are very few Black students in the school, but there are also kind staff members and fellow students. Still wary, Madalyn doesn't want Papa Lobo's neighbor, Jean, to watch out for her at school, even though he is very nice, but she's still angry when new classmate Natalie, seems to be scared of "boys like that" when she sees Madalyn with Jean. Natalie had been bullied the previous year, and is being raised by her sister Annica, who has warned Natalie about boys, but Madalyn realizes that she is specifically scared of Black boys, which is just not right. Madalyn manages to settle in to her new neighborhood and school. She likes having the library on the way, and even gets along with a neighbor who doesn't seem to like Papa Lobo (and his Sunday morning poker games!). When nearby wild fires occur, Madalyn must come to terms with many difficult problems in her life, especially her relationship with Natalie. 

Strengths: So many middle school books kill off one or both parents so tweens can have opportunities on their own, so double bonus points to Ms. Davis for finding a new and innovative way to get the pesky parents out of the way while letting them live! So many children live with grandparents or other relatives, and it was really interesting to see how Madalyn settled in to her new environment. Papa Lobo's neighborhood was fascinating, and his ingrained habits and relationships with his neighbors were interesting. Madalyn's experience in her new school gets off to a rough start but slowly improves, which is also good to see, and watching her navigate the difficult racial problems will be instructive to young readers who may have similar issues in their own lives. The details about experiencing a wild fire were so timely and interesting, that I wouldn't have minded seeing that happen earlier in the book. 
Weaknesses: While I really enjoyed reading about Madalyn's new life with Paper Lobo, the most frequent complaint I get from students is that "nothing happens". Once the wild fires started, that propelled the book forward quite a bit, but I wondered where the book was going at first. I was enthralled with Madalyn's new life, so hopefully my readers will be as well. 
What I really think: This reminded me a bit of Cleary's The Luckiest Girl (1958), since there aren't that many books about children going to live with other families and going to school. This lacks the romance of that, but includes interesting perspectives on race, friendship, and being a good neighbor that are timely and interesting. I was a little sad about Papa Lobo's tree print wall paper being torn down, and sort of want to see the rooster collection! Definitely purchasing, and love the cover!