It is great to have an up-to-date easy-to-read publication about a young person making headlines about climate change. There is additional information about Stockholm and about the Greenhouse Effect included in the book. The hazards of biographies of the living, particularly of young people, are the text will be out-of-date as Greta continues on in her life/work and as politics and policies around climate change continue to shift. Published in 2020, the book ends with former president Trump still in office and the US out of the Paris Climate Agreement.  The book includes a table of contents, timelines of Greta’s life and world events during that period, and a bibliography.

The simple text reciting memories of farm life on the prairie is paired with detailed artwork that illuminates the setting. This book portrays an idyllic slice of white middle-America in what appears to be the 1930-40s, with cars but also horses pulling wagons. The illustrations are intricate collages layered with color and patterns. The artist uses a variety of materials and techniques including homemade stamps, acrylics, and layered tissue paper. The book is happy and calming.

As you may guess from the title, “Gloom Town” is a dark story. Rory’s single mom works hard to make ends meet. When they are yet-again short on rent money and threatened with eviction, 12-year-old Rory takes a job at the creepy Foxglove Manor. There he encounters hard work, isolation, and deprivation. Rory’s curiosity gets him into trouble and he barely escapes with his life. He teams up with his best friend Izzy attempting to solve the mysteries of the mansion, it’s inhabitants and it’s visitors. Violence, death, the supernatural, witchcraft and magic are central to the story. In the end a surprise character arrives, perhaps too conveniently, to fit together some of the missing pieces of the mystery.
The time period is unclear, but reflects the past with gas lights and sailing ships. I don’t believe Gloom Town’s location is on any map that exists today. The main characters are believable. Race is not specifically addressed, but Rory is described as dark skinned and his mother and friend Izzy are fair skinned. I can recommend the story, but feel the dark themes are not for younger readers. For example, a child’s heart discovered buried in a box in the garden was a bit much for me. I know, however, that there are students who would enjoy that level of horror.

Ren lived on the edge of a National Forest in Puerto Rico. “His days were filled with green and dirt and rocks and mud.” His days were also filled with rich imaginative play and his nightly dreams filled with endless possibilities. When Ren and his mother move to the city, Ren can no longer feel the magic or the wild. Even surrounded by people, Ren is lonely.

Ren’s upstairs neighbor Ava loves the city and shares with Ren all the things that bring her joy. But it is a bit overwhelming for Ren and he cannot feel the magic. When they next meet up, Ren explains what he misses about his wild. This helps Ava understand and she takes him to the basement and the roof to share with him a new different kind of wild.

A New Kind of Wild is a perfect read for youngsters experiencing a move to a new environment or loneliness due to change.

With persistence and dedication to her field, Emmy Noether was a pioneer in mathematics during a time in history when gender norms excluded women from such studies.

The book delves into a number of very intense topics including stereotypical woman’s behavior, discrimination, the Nazi rise in Europe and and anti-semitism. It also tries to explain extremely complex mathematical concepts in a way that elementary school students can understand. The scope of the book is so broad that none of significant ideas are addressed too deeply. The big takeaway is that Emmy Noether was a remarkable, yet unrecognized woman who overcame a lot of challenges. Her amazing mind and unique thinking in the area of mathematics forever impacted how our greatest minds think about cutting edge science and math concepts.

STEM biography collections that tend to be heterogeneous and this title about Emmy Noether will provide enrichment and diversity.

A Place at the Table is told from two voices in clearly marked alternating chapters. Sara and her family are Muslim Pakistani immigrants. Her chapters are written by Saadia Faruki who is a Pakistani immigrant herself and her children’s experiences are reflected in Sara. Elizabeth’s Jewish-American father is married to her British mother. Her chapters are written by Laura Shovan whose personal story is similar. The story is told with intersections of faith, family, food, and friendship. Issues touched on in the book include: not fitting in; judging and being judged on appearance; death of a family member; a parent’s depression; and family financial struggles. These personal struggles take place in the framework of the first year of middle school for both girls and the first year of public school for Sara.
The authors’ personal experiences add depth to their characters. The story provides an appropriate amount of tension and conflict. The ending is satisfying. The book includes a recipe and the authors’ websites provide a few more, Saadia Faruqi also has posted an “Educator’s Guide.” I highly recommend this pleasure-to-read book.

Yanka is looking for the story of where she came from. Who were her true parents? Why did they leave her out in the wild forest? Yanka loves the woman, her Mamochka, who found her and raised her as her own, but still there are questions.

The story is set in and around a village on the edge of a frozen forest. Yanka enjoys when Anatoly – the woodsman ventures out of the forest, stops by Mamochka’s house, and tells her tales that are true and partly true. Mamochka puts no store in these fairy tales, but Yanka does. Yanka, ” ‘ I feel the pull of the forest, stronger than ever before. Somewhere, deep in the dark between the trees, hides the truth of my past.’ ” (11) The morning after the Winter Festival, Yanka wakes with the legs of a bear! “Something about me has changed, beyond just my legs. Something deep inside. The thought is both exciting and nerve-racking, because although understanding animals could be wonderful, and all this change might help me discover the story of my past, I don’t know what it means for my future.” ( 60-61)

Yanka sets her mind to discover the answers to all of her questions by going into the forest. There the real fairy tale begins. Her bear senses make Yanka extremely alert to her surroundings. Wolves talk to her and she understands them. Yanka reveals to a wolf she possess one of its claws from long ago. How can that be? But, it was a part of one of Anatoly’s tales. Soon, other parts of Anatoly’s tales are revealed as true.

Yanka finds the story of her family. Yanka, also, finds that family is all about who you care for and the people you love.

Sophie Anderson has sprinkled eleven of Anatoly’s short tales throughout the book. They include a curse, a castle, a father who turns into a bear, a Yaga (witch) with a house that walks on giant chicken legs, and a dragon. Fairy tales within a fairy tale.

Super thief turned “good guy” Carmen Sandiego is out to stop VILE make a fortune by stealing extremely rare or endangered species to a private collector. What makes this book extra fun for the reader is being given choices to make as to how the story turns out in the end. I tried over 28 scenario combinations as to whether or not I would be helping Carmen Sandiego save the animals or whether I would be helping VILE sell the animals to the private collector. Each scenario kept my attention and wanted me to keep trying other possilibities.

This book just proves there is more than one way to end a story.

Dance is something that has been in Ada’s bones since her birth. She could saunter across the floor of her home much easier as a little girl than when she matures because Ada’s life becomes one of inner turmoil, which reaches a breaking point while in the fall of her freshman year at college. Flipping between a narrative of her college life and flashbacks of various influential times in her childhood, readers are introduced to different aspects of Ada. She has been obedient to her deeply religious father. She has tried vehemently to show her self-centered, unequipped mother that she will always love her. She has dealt with her own inner body image demons as well as teen awkwardness and school hazing. She has witnessed the love in her Nigerian culture and its clashes with contemporary America. When given the opportunity to attend a Historically Black College, Ada leaves her father behind, but she won’t be able to leave her past. And it’s her past that will shape her future — to choose to dance or not to dance. Candice Iloh writes with tension that matches Ada’s strife. Because the novel is in verse, the plotline clips along despite its jolts between settings. Some readers will devour this in one sitting while others will slowly enjoy its introspection. Highly recommended for high school and public libraries.

 Mike by Andrew Norriss is a fictional story about a tennis prodigy named Floyd going through a journey of self-discovery with a mysterious boy named Mike, someone that only Floyd seems to be able to see. It is a book that every reader can connect to in some way or another, and is a genuine and heartwarming story. The plot was compelling and introspective, allowing the reader to see deeply into Floyd’s consciousness and connect it to their own. While the development of Floyd’s character was above-average there could have been more in aspects of his character’s story, including but not limited to his time with his grandma, his relationship with his parents, and his time studying marine biology. The story leaves the reader wanting more, but also with a new sense of understanding of themselves despite the concise nature of the book. The sweet and honest character of Floyd and the ending of the book will leave readers with their hearts warm and content at seeing his internal conflict resolved, and readers will find themselves devoted to the outcome of Floyd’s story. Mike is a book that is great for all readers, but especially for readers in high school or later who find or have found themselves facing big life decisions and are looking for a quick and lighthearted read. — Reviewed by Sam, CHS Student and voracious reader.