Gretchen's Middle Reader & Young Adult Picks
Big-hearted, queer, and basically everything you've wanted out of a middle grade book about a diverse group of kids finding the magic to help them find space to be--and become--themselves despite social pressures to fit themselves into a white heteronormative school.
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Possibly my favorite book of 2019, this is a clear-eyed, unsentimental, justice-oriented book about a girl who must make choices about uncovering the darkness underpinning the seemingly enlightened and perfect community. Jam is a relatable, thoughtful, passionate young woman of privilege whose orderly world is turned upside-down when an avenging creature of art and gold and static and horror emerges from her mother's painting. The creature, called Pet, is bent on hunting a monster--one which it claims is in the house of Jam's best friend, Redemption. As Jam investigates, she frequently makes mistakes and struggles with balancing the single-minded justice of Pet with her own fear of tearing apart the community of people she loves and grew up with. Emezi seamlessly integrates diverse perspectives--Jam is a trans girl, and her reluctance to speak aloud has led herr family and many community members to adapt to using sign language a great deal of the time. These facts are present in the story but don't feel like diversity for the sake of diversity. This story of the growth and vigilance and protective compassion Jam must learn will resonate for anyone who can recognize that a just society must never sit back and forget. I loved this powerful little book.
A smart savvy take on drugs, gentrification, second chances and blended families, this reads as a spooky teen Get Out.
A perfect Fall read! A mysterious, witchy boarding school... a young woman grieving the girlfriend who died under suspicious and traumatic circumstances... fall sweaters and dark mysteries abound.
Do you crave a book full of feminist rage and ambition and mecha fights? Think Pacific Rim meets Fury Road with an all-Asian cast and an unconventional love triangle.
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A much-needed update of Arthurian legend, this book tackles so much (especially racism, classism, the generational legacies of slavery, and carrying personal grief) with such a winning main character.
I listened to the incomparable audiobook of this delightful novel via libro.fm, and can't recommend it enough, especially for families who like to enjoy listening to books with their kids! This middle grade novel is funny, sharp, and wise, with incidental diversity of so many kinds without feeling like you're checking diversity points off a list. Anthony Rey Perez's recording is A perfect, his snarky inflection, effortless voicing of a variety of characters, and ability to slide easily between English and Spanish with native ease make him a perfect choice for this heavily Latinx and Cubano book. Sweet and funny interactions between middle schoolers whose intelligence more often than not gets them into more trouble than it's worth, a hefty dose of magic, and a very heart-wrenching grapple with grief and loss, both potential and real, make this a truly special book.
I read this book in one night and I loved it so so much. Darius is one of the most well-drawn, real teens I can remember seeing in contemporary YA. The way this book approaches mental health is especially important for young adult audiences, particularly because it acknowledges how difficult it can be but ultimately possible to manage clinical depression and have it be openly discussed and cared for in a family setting. Darius's not-ready-to-talk-about-it gay feelings are similarly well-handled. The warmth of Darius's family, the difficult concerns of globally disparate family and cultures meeting, in Darius's case for the first time, is treated with such remarkable humor and sensitivity. His relationship with the neighbor boy, his difficult yet loving relationship with his father, the fraught feelings he has about meeting his dying grandfather for the first time, the sweet affection he has for his little sister and for his mother, the Star Trek references, the gorgeous explorations of Iranian place and culture and food, everything about this book is just beautiful.
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This is a rare gift of a YA story—protagonists who love their families and community, who trust that the way things are done is the way they ought to be done, then upon finding out the lie behind the seven year sacrifice, they take their power, enlist their community, and fight through grief and anger to risk everything on a new option. The prose is stylistically spot-on, giving the depth of magic in the forest and the lived-in humdrum existence of the townsfolk equal weight, with some incredibly visceral imagery to bring the story further to life. The romantic threads between the three protagonists are so lovely and unusual to see, and the way the romance is important but doesn’t supersede the main plot works beautifully. The plotting and pacing are great, and the heightened story of a small town caught up in an historic cycle of life and death between the forest, the devil, the witches, and the people was perfectly spun. I loved this book and I know I will be thinking about it for a long while.