Category Archives: Reviewer’s Library Type

By Any Other Name

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By Any Other Name by Erin Cotter | Goodreads

By Any Other Name by Erin Cotter is queer historical fiction set in Shakespearian, Elizabethan England starring Will, a down on his luck actor. He’s hiding his identity on stage, playing the traditionally male played female roles, and off stage, keeping his sexually hidden from his father. This bounces between campy, enemies to lovers romance and murder mystery, and doesn’t really seem to nail either vibe as a result. The length also tempered my enjoyment a bit; I feel like it should have been tightened at least fifty pages to keep pace with the energy of the premise. But, I was rooting for Will and intrigued by the setting and commentary, especially as an English teacher / recovering theater nerd. This read is definitely for fans of Shakespeare, theater, murder mystery, and LGBTQ+ storylines.

By Emma-Kate Schaake @hiketothelibrary

A British Girl’s Guide to Hurricanes and Heartbreak

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A British Girl's Guide to Hurricanes and Heartbreak (Cuban Girl's Guide): 9781665915335: Namey, Laura Taylor: Books - Amazon.com

I am always down for a travel novel, especially for young adults as the premise opens up readers to the world! This is the companion novel to The Cuban Girl’s Guide to Tea and Tomorrow, centered around Flora, Orion’s sister, as she deals with the grief from losing her mother. Flora’s indecisiveness is at times frustrating (as is the love triangle, which seemed unnecessary) but it is also understandable given how she is navigating through grief by avoidance. Her floundering as she attempts to forge her new future is relatable and realistic. While I enjoyed both this book and the first, I also didn’t feel superbly impacted by them, which is what I look for in a YA novel, even a sweet one and they both felt a little forgettable. But, overall, I would recommend these to student readers dealing with loss, interested in photography, curious about culture in Miami, or figuring out life after high school.

Emma-Kate Schaake @hiketothelibrary

Under This Forgetful Sky

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Although the initial description and the cover lead you to believe that romance is the intended genre, I have to disagree. The story of Rumi and Paz is so much more than what ultimately ties them to each other. In this (more fitting) science fiction dystopian-feeling novel, Rumi struggles to understand the life he’s always known living in the Upper City of St. Iago. His world is rocked when he must venture (illegally) out of the city in hopes of finding a cure to his father’s fatal virus and discovers the lies he and the others living in the Upper City have been told their entire lives. Paz is ready to join rebellion forces and stand for the people beyond the walls. When her path crosses with Rumi and the cure for the virus is the goal, their lives will change forever and allegiances tested. The Chilean culture and history is creatively woven into the author’s storytelling and it is beautifully crafted. I would recommend this novel for ages 14+ and may be more suited for the high school crowd but also could fit in with upper middle school as well.

Bitsy Bat, School Star

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When Bitsy Bat is facing her first night at a new school, she is sent off by a loving family full of encouragement. But in a classroom full of assorted other nocturnal creatures, she’s the only one used to hanging upside down, and at the painting table she’s the only one who tries to paint with her toes. Lunch and recess provide more pitfalls leading her to feel she’ll never fit in, which results in a five-star meltdown. Reluctant to return the next day, her family and teacher help her enact a plan to help everyone in class celebrate that which makes them unique, that which makes them shine. Written by an autistic author illustrator, it’s got an author’s note in the back explaining a bit about autism, including some definitions of relative terms. Autism doesn’t overtly come through within the story itself, except in Bitsy’s aversion to too-bright light and too-loud noises.

What Does Brown Mean to You?

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Given that the narrator and his family have brown skin, this book serves as a celebration of his skin color, with rhyming text going through his day listing so many good things that are brown. But that message is subtle and is not directly stated. On another level, it could simply be read as color study, leading to conversations of other colors and where we see them in daily life.

Retazos

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This is the Spanish Language version of Patchwork. It is one of those picture books I think has a place in the libraries serving adolescents as well, as it will be read differently by people at different places in their lives. It’s a poem celebrating the way we all grow, and reminding us all that the talents and interests we exhibit as children may evolve into all sorts of different possibilities as we grow. As the poem tells us, we each have a symphony within us — we are not a single note played again and again. It’s a rather philosophical book that I think would speak well to the youth who struggle to define themselves and decide on futures to pursue.

Patchwork

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This is one of those picture books I think has a place in the libraries serving adolescents as well, as it will be read differently by people at different places in their lives. It’s a poem celebrating the way we all grow, and reminding us all that the talents and interests we exhibit as children may evolve into all sorts of different possibilities as we grow. As the poem tells us, we each have a symphony within us — we are not a single note played again and again. It’s a rather philosophical book that I think would speak well to the youth who struggle to define themselves and decide on futures to pursue.

Time to Fly

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Rhyming text imagines the dialogue between mother bird and the last chick, reluctant to leave the next. The illustrations are soft and have a certain vintage look to them. They capture a variety of perspectives as the young bird ponders the vastness of the sky and the distance to the ground in comparison to the coziness of the nest. It takes a bit of coaxing and convincing and bribing on the part of mother bird, while baby bird stalls and voices his fears, but in the end he does indeed say goodbye to the nest and hello to the sky as he’s on his way to everywhere. The story offers young readers an analogy to which they can relate whatever fears they’ve faced or overcome, and the tone of encouragement is easily transferable to human growth.

Tomie DePaola’s Book of Christmas Carols

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by Tomie DePaola

This is a refresh of his 1987 book and it is filled with 32 songs with music and lyrics. Accompanying illustrations are the wonderful artworks that we expect from this great author/illustrator. This book will be a treasure to anyone that chooses to add it to their Christmas collection. Highly recommended, of course!