Kingston and the Echoes of Magic, by Rucker Moses and Theo Gangi

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Since this book is the sequel to Kingston and the Magician’s Lost and Found , it took me a bit to figure out the plot at the beginning of the book. This is one that I think would be better read AFTER the first book in the series. Eventually, enough clues about what had happened to Kingston and his friends in the previous book allowed me to move forward with this one. The story is full of time portals, magical items, echo loops, and missing people. Kingston and his friends must save the world from another magician trying to reset it in an alternate reality. I enjoyed the dive into Egyptian mythology and the fast pace of the story though the twists in the plot may leave some readers puzzled. There were LOTS of twists and turns and characters met at different points in their lives which could be confusing if the reader isn’t really paying attention. If the reader loved the first in the series, I think this will help finish answering questions that must have been left unanswered. Skip this one if you don’t also have Book 1.

The Big Mix-Up! by Dana Regan

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With his moped and trailer, Mike delivers all over the town of Happy River. When Mike starts having trouble reading his blurry list, he makes mistakes with his deliveries. Finally Mike goes to see Doc Wells for an eye exam. With his new glasses he can now read his list and make the correct deliveries. An additional purchase for those looking for more books for emergent readers.

Currently there are two books in the Mike Delivers series.

Flamingo Bingo by Heidi Stemple

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It’s Flamingo Bingo night and all the birds gather to play. Rhyming text takes the reader through the initial part of the game. Suspense is implied as different birds hope to get a bingo. The bingo cage spills the bingo balls. In the chaos that follows, one bingo number is called and the Toucan calls bingo.

The story is choppy and hard to follow with an abrupt ending making it less than ideal for emergent readers.

Slow Down: 50 Mindful Moments in Nature by Rachel Williams

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Only by slowing down, you can truly appreciate the breathtaking complexity and precision of nature. Slow Down identifies fifty amazing natural processes and breaks down those processes into stages. Each of the 50 mindful moments starts with a statement connecting with the readers experiences followed by a brief summary. Over the next page and a half, the captions and illustrations walk the reader slowly through the highlighted moments.

Use as a tool to slow down and appreciate nature or as a model for sequencing or science writing.

Includes Table of Contents, Index, Further Reading (mindfulness and nature), and Selected Bibliography

Tomatoes for Neela by Padma Lakshimi

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Written by Padma Lakshmi, the host of Top Chef and Taste the Nation, Tomatoes for Neela is a reminder that food brings us together, transcending time and place. Young Neela enjoys working in the kitchen with her amma (mother) where they share the recipes and customs passed down from her grandmother in India.

The story of Neela’s tomato sauce reinforces the benefits of local sourcing, home cooking and preserving. The simple, when done right, nourishes the spirit and the connectedness of family and community. Enjoying the preserved fruits of the kitchen in winter brings back the sense of fulfillment and family mixed into each jar of sauce.

Endnotes include paati’s (grandmother’s) child friendly tomato sauce and tomato chutney recipes as well as Tomato Fun Facts, About Farmworkers, and Author’s Note.

My Rainy Day Rocket Ship by Markette Sheppard

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Stuck inside because of rainy weather, a young boy is bored with his same old inside toys. Making the most of it, he decides to “make something really tough – like a whole new world in a different place.”

To get to this new place, he needs a rocket ship. He uses a rocking chair, a box, and some socks for a ship and swimming trunks with goggles for a space suit. Mom and dad are supporting in the background as the boy zooms off to Planet XYZ and arrives at B-E-D in the Land of ZZZZZZs.

A celebration of imagination and imaginative play.

Best Day Ever by Marilyn Singer

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A joyful relationship between a young boy in a wheelchair and his energetic dog told from the point of view of the dog. All everyday activities that excite a dog; morning greeting, digging in the yard, chasing a cat, frisbee are the things that make “the best day ever”. The vigor the dog displays with every new experience and the evident connection to his person reinforces the sense of joy found in the relationship between a child and pet. Even when a table is knocked over and the child yells in anger, all is forgiven. An apology and a commitment to work together on training reinforces the growth mindset message and the determination to find joy in all the moments of life.

A positive and natural portrayal of a child with a disability illustrated by a woman who also uses a wheelchair.

Wildseed Witch, by Marti Dumas

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Set in New Orleans, Wildseed Witch is a charming story about Hasani’s journey to a magical charm school, her goals of becoming a well-known and popular YouTuber, and her quest to find herself and fix her family. A little bit of Harry Potter-esque magic set in the deep South, the story blooms with a riot of floral characters all trying to grow up with charm and controlled magic. Hasani learns she needs to find balance and lean on her friends – old and new – as she struggles to fix her parents’ broken marriage. I enjoyed the realistic aspects of the story about friendships and family challenges with the touches of magic woven through the story. While this book says it’s the first in a new series, the ending felt complete. Future books may follow Hasani as she grows older, but this book’s plot felt done. No huge hanging cliffhangers to frustrate a reader wanting completion on the final page. I also liked the bits of unvarnished history of sugar cane plantations that seep into the story as well. Overall, a nice diverse addition to an often white fantasy section of the library.

Disasters by the Numbers: a book of infographics, by Steve Jenkins

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Earthquakes, tornados, pandemics, and more are highlighted and explained in this bold, colorful book. Using infographics to share facts about each type of disaster, a reader will find many questions explained by easy to understand illustrations, charts and graphs. The book includes a glossary of terms and a bibliography to back up facts shared. I liked that the infographics help make concrete the often-abstract numbers and ideas. For example, we often hear about the Richter Scale when earthquakes are discussed. The clear images and explanations for each number on the scale is the first time I think I’ve ever had a clear understanding of how those numbers relate to damage seen on news footage. An easy book to browse & flip through or to dig in and read every page, this will be a popular non-fiction read, I’m sure.

Animals that Might Exist by Professor O’Logist, by Stéphane Nicolet and Jean-Baptiste Drouot

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An absurd collection of animal drawings that have only been seen by the now-missing Professor O’Logist. A tongue-in-cheek book of drawings and scientific descriptions of the craziest collections of animals you’ve never seen, but that doesn’t mean they might NOT exist! Professor O’Logist even created his own classification system for organizing the animals, including the soft animals, the disgusting animals, and the not-useful animals, to name a few. Many of the animals remind me of creatures you might encounter in a Roald Dahl book, the drawings are charming and the writing is both serious and silly. This is a book I think students will have fun giggling over as they flip through the bizarre taxonomy and then find inspiration to discover rare animals themselves. For a middle school library, I imagine this probably more of a display book, rather than one that gets checked out much unless it’s by budding artists.