Another wonderful book by Jan Brett. This one is about Ari and her person Theo go on a Christmas Eve walk through the forest only to get lost. Fortunately, the sweater that Ari is wearing gets caught on a tree and unravels. This is the way Theo gets back to town.
This book, like all others by this author has incredible illustrations that show another story on the sides of the main story images. I would recommend this book as a great way to refresh your Jan Brett collection. It is a sweet story about a boy and his dog and the adventure they take together.
This non-fiction book at the 2-4 grade level is well written with current and very detailed information about the planets in our solar system. This title well defines more advanced words so there is clear understanding for younger readers. It also “fun facts” that make the reading more appealing.
I would recommend this book for elementary libraries that are in need of books in this content area as it is clear, concise, and current.
This book is a part of a series of standalone books. The novel, Playing for Keeps, by Lee Heart, is an excellent read for students entering or attending middle school. The story follows Aaliyah, a girl in middle school, who develops unreciprocated feelings for her best friend. As she navigates the ups and downs of tween life, she discovers the importance of maintaining strong relationships and the journey of self discovery. Although the book is intended for a middle school audience, it is still an exceptional comfort read for those at a higher reading level. The novel is an excellent addition to the growing Spotlight Sprinkles series.
The Last Ember is the first book of a series, and begins when twelve year old Eva accidentally becomes the owner of the last aerimander egg, placing her at the center of a dangerous conflict. Alongside Dusty, a young thief tasked with stealing the egg, Eva must navigate corruption, betrayal, and long buried secrets while protecting the last aerimander. The novel explores friendship and trust, highlighted through Eva and Dusty working together despite their different backgrounds and personalities. Additionally, it unpacks fear and prejudice, as the kingdom’s treatment of aerimanders was driven mainly by fear rather than understanding.
The story is a thrilling tale of how loyalty, friendship, and trust can combat evil and betrayal. I thought the world building in this book was fantastic, but it left me wanting more depth from the plot. There were many chapters that felt askew from the overall narrative, but it did have a lot of action, which I appreciated. Also, this book felt written for an audience older than middle school because of its vocabulary and flow of the story. The villain in the story, Eoin, is portrayed as purely sadistic, and mentions of kidnappers and murderer’s guilds could make it slightly inappropriate for a younger audience.
Readers who enjoyed dragon books like Wings of Fire by Tui T. Sutherland or fantasy readers who enjoy books like Keeper of the Lost Cities by Shannon Messenger might like reading this book, although it is a bit more mature.
Chloe Gong’s newest novel delves into a dystopian and not-so-distant future where the physical planet has been decimated by global sea rise and deadly epidemics.I found the concept of a virtual world that is mainly occupied by the rich and a physical, gritty real world that is occupied by the poor, to be fascinating and ultimately believable (even though this is a fantasy read). The story involves two girls, one from each world, getting pulled into special ops for warring virtual nations in different planes of reality. Gong races back and forth between the storylines and planes of reality, and while it is full of riveting action and epic twists and turns, it can get confusing. I think this is a book to read on a rainy weekend, from start to finish. Otherwise, if you’re like me and reading in installments, you’ll likely have to go back several chapters to follow the frenetically-paced thread. I do think Coldwire has potential for an epic cinematic experience if it’s ever adapted for the big screen. I rate it a 4 out of 5 stars.
The autobiography tells the story of Ida B. Wells’s life as a fearless Black journalist, educator, and civil rights activist who fought against racism and lynching in the United States. She was born into slavery in Mississippi and became a teacher, she later became a newspaper writer who exposed racial violence and injustice. After the lynching of three Black businessmen in Memphis, she elevate a powerful anti-lynching campaign, risking her life to speak the truth. The book highlights her courage, investigative journalism, advocacy for women’s rights, and lifelong crusade for equality and justice. This was a very readable non-fiction – informative and flowed well. If you’re looking for a good, diverse biography, this is recommended.
The book includes a book written by Ida B. Wells in 1892, Southern Horrors Lynch Laws in all its phases. This was included after the book written about her by Erica Armstrong Dunbar & Candace Buford and adds to the page count, but more importantly, to the authenticity of getting to hear from Miss Wells herself.
Reviewed by parent volunteer, Esperanza B.-D. for Komachin Middle School Library
A combo book with a graphic novel spread throughout showing one school year and 6 middle school students. Three become very addicted to their phones and all the features that become time sucks. The other 3 either have old flip phones or phones without apps. You see a contrasting year where the ones NOT addicted to their phones actually get better at friendships, activities and life. The 3 addicted become more & more lonely and isolated until they make some changes by the following summer. The sections of the fictional story are separated by lots of non-fiction graphic information about the dangers of becoming addicted to technology and the benefits of finding balance. I was blown away by the chart on page 71 about how much of your life you ”lose” based on how many hours a day you get sucked into screentime. Just 4 hours a day of “time-suck” on a screen is as much as 2 whole months of your life. Yikes! The book is for teens, but it sure made me reflective of my own use. The book is filled with suggestions of how to make choices that enhance one’s life, instead of wasting it in a false sense of reality. I liked the bio. blurbs of older teens who reflected on their younger selves use of technology and how they use it now. It helps readers understand what real friendship, real freedom, and real fun looks like vs. the imitation that is often used in a manipulative way online. I read this wondering if it would feel too “preachy” or super anti-tech, but it didn’t really feel that way. It was empowering to the “rebels” who were able to make different choices with their tech so they could still be authentic in their day-to-day interactions.This felt like an important book for middle school students to pick up and read. I think the graphic-novel feel to it will help pull students in. Hopefully the message will resonate with them and empower them to make choices to better themselves. The book includes 4 specific steps a reader can take to become a rebel, notes and sources, a Learn more section, and an index at the end of the book.
Eugenia Wang, who loves art, decides to draw a comic, although her mom doesn’t want her to. However, whenever Eugenia sleeps, or even looks at the comic, she has a mysterious dream about a fire in her house. Her best friend, Keisha, decides to help her understand her dream. Eugenia’s birthday, which is on April 4, is an unlucky number. Will she be able to figure out what her dream is telling her? This book is perfect for someone who loves comedy and mystery. The art style adds so much to it, as well as the smaller details of the plot, which adds a more relatable scenario. The comedy details made me smile, and the mystery parts made me think. The use of comedy adds so much to the characters and plot. People will feel that they can relate more to the characters with the moments of comedy because it uses things that most people do in everyday life. I liked the book a lot, since I like mystery and comedy. Some of my friends, who also like similar genres would like it since they have a good sense of humor and like to figure things out, either in books or even real life. Overall, this book is very entertaining. I’d give it a 4 out of 5 stars. (I dropped a star just because it wasn’t my usual type, not because I didn’t like it.)
Reviewed by Lily I., 8th grader at Komachin Middle School
When Fanny Goldstein was six years hold her family immigrated to America from Russia seeking a safe place to practice their Jewish religion. Fanny started attending the North End Settlement House to learn about American customs. What Fanny loved best their was the library. Eventually Fanny started working as a librarian’s assistant and eventually became the first Jewish director of a Boston branch library. Noticing that Jewish families rarely checked out books about their heritage and stories, she decided to host a celebration of Jewish books and culture. This celebration has been going on for over 100 years.
An introductory biography with more information about Fanny and Jewish Book Week at the end. The author also includes a biography that he used for his research to write this book. The illustrations are welcoming for children without being cartoonish. An excellent choice for the biography section.
This is book 3 in a series about a friendship between young girl named Coco and a Bear. The first book is Share Some Kindness, Bring the Light and the secondis Find Your Brave.
Bear and Coco are walking in the snowy wood when Bear suggests building a castle. Coco says building a fort is a great idea. Coco gets carried away with her ideas and isn’t listening to Bear until Bear yells at her. An excellent story about communication and really listening to someone.
The watercolor and digital ink illustrations are beautiful and create a softness about the story even when Bear and Coco are having their first argument.
