The day finally came! The time is here! The long-awaited second volume of the Kingkiller Chronicles, following The Name of the Wind, has arrived. I served on the Alex Awards committee in 2007, and still remember the thrill of reading The Name of the Wind for the first time. We knew that we had discovered (along with [...]
Gayle Tzemach Lemmon, a fellow with the Council on Foreign Relations, has written an engaging nonfiction look at the lives of women living under the Taliban. You might have received the March 14 issue of Newsweek in your mailbox late last week or today. The cover story on Hillary Clinton? Written by Lemmon. Both are [...]
Although this book is not aimed at teens, it is easy to imagine them using the recipes at home, with friends, or to impress their peers at the bake sales common to school hallways. They might also enjoy putting together a cookie exchange party during the holidays, or any time of year. You will want [...]
In our third debut novel of the week, this one a paperback original, Schoenewaldt offers a traditional 19th-century coming to America story. What captured my attention was the writing — never a false step — a first-person narration that gives the reader a portal into the past, a peek at the cities of America in [...]
In our second debut novel review of the week, Alison Espach captures an authentic teen voice coming of age. The Adults is receiving some nice attention, including a strong review in the February 23rd New York Times Sunday book review. Amazon features a review of the novel by Aryn Kyle, the Alex Award-winning author of The [...]
Elizabeth Alexander came to the attention of the larger public when she was asked to read an original poem at President Obama’s inauguration. Alexander is a professor of African American studies and English literature at Yale. After reading large sections of this book, I was not surprised. She often uses history, especially African American history, [...]
Much has been made of the fact that Téa Obreht was named as one of the National Book Foundation’s 5 under 35 and to the New Yorker’s Top 20 under 40. These are wonderful honors, and yes, Obreht is very young and talented. But what really matters is her writing. Her debut novel, The Tiger’s [...]
When the SLJ Adult Books for High School Students print column came to an end, there was an outcry from librarians lamenting (among other things) the loss of a review source for craft and cookbooks for teens. Today we continue the tradition with Sew! by Cath Kidston, widely recognized for her floral prints. Sew! is [...]
Today we review a terrific new novel from a fantasy writer that teens should be made aware of. Karyn’s review does a good job of encapsulating her work, so I will leave you in good hands. But first, do you know teens who love to write fantasy or science fiction? There are still spots available [...]
Michelle Moran has written a string of very successful historical fiction works based on the lives of famous women. Her books include Nefertiti (Crown, 2007); The Heretic Queen (Crown, 2008) about Nefertari, the niece of Nefertiti ; and Cleopatra’s Daughter (Crown, 2009), about the children of Marc Antony and Cleopatra. Her new novel centers on Madame Tussaud, [...]
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