Diana Abu-Jaber’s latest novel is a family drama centered on a teen runaway. Abu-Jaber is known for exceptional writing and strong settings — in this case, Miami. Teen readers will be drawn in by the mystery surrounding the reasons behind Felice’s decision to run away. A review in the September issues of Elle emphasizes the teen [...]
What is it with kids wanting to solve mysteries? Maybe a warning should be added to the list of tried and true parental instructions: 1. Don’t talk to strangers. 2. Don’t investigate disappearances, burglaries or murders without adult supervision… Of course, this has been a popular device for ages. But this summer alone we have Pigeon [...]
Today’s review is an unfortunately rare example of historical fiction that specifically focuses on the early years of a most famous figure. Concentrating on Marie Antoinette’s adolescence, Juliet Grey strives to disperse the misconceptions that are associated with her. Becoming Marie Antoinette is the first in a projected trilogy. The second, Days of Splendor, Days of [...]
Rachel Lloyd’s book is effective as both a memoir and as a way to build awareness for her cause. Lloyd is the founder of GEMS, Girls Educational & Mentoring Services, “the only organization in New York State specifically designed to serve girls and young women who have experienced commercial sexual exploitation and domestic trafficking.” It is [...]
Today’s science fiction blockbuster combines elements of noir mystery and touches of horror. “An Unapologetic Embrace of Sentiment”, a Publishers Weekly interview with the authors of Leviathan Wakes (James S. Corey is a pseudonym for Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck) addresses their method of working together. This is the second book by Daniel Abraham reviewed on [...]
Julie Otsuka’s new novel is the story of picture brides traveling from Japan to San Francisco in the early 20th century. Perhaps most striking is the collective voice with which it is told. Otsuka spoke during the Library Journal Day of Dialog that preceded BookExpo in late May, and called being a picture bride the [...]
Vanessa Diffenbaugh’s gorgeous debut novel is about an 18-year-old girl who ages out of the foster care system. She begins the book homeless on the streets of San Francisco. The thing that keeps her grounded, indeed the way she is comfortable communicating with the world, is the Victorian language of flowers. Appropriately, her name is [...]
Lucinda grows up at the very end of the Cold War, the daughter of a military family who has never lived in the United States. They have moved from one base to another her whole life. This book is about how she copes during her teen years, particularly with a volatile mother, an oblivious father, [...]
Originally published in ebook format by AmazonCrossing in 2010, an imprint that offers foreign-language books in translation, The Hangman’s Daughter was released in print this month by Mariner Books, a division of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. This historical mystery is the first in a series that is very popular in Germany. (Two more titles in the [...]
Welcome to this week’s big fiction debut, and it could not be more suited to young adult readers. For the gamers and science fiction fans (but not only the gamers and science fiction fans) in your library, this is likely to be the book of the year. With a place on several best of the [...]
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