Paper Towns by John Green
I don’t like John
Green. I hate his use of the term ninja in this book. I don’t like his
depiction of the young girl in the book. I don’t like the token Black character
or the misogynist. But the thing is, I kept reading. I finished it, and I love
how he works in allusions, but this book confirmed what I thought after reading
Looking for Alaska. I don’t like John
Green.
Between Me and the World by Ta-Nehisi Coates
Loved this beautiful letter
to Coates’ son about what it is to grow up Black in America. It echoes back to James Baldwin's "Letter to my Nephew" in A Fire Next Time. The questions about the vulnerability of the body set up a wonderful premise to help put into context,
for Coates’ teen son and the rest of America, what it is like to be so separate
from the American dream. This is required reading.
Room
by Emma Donahough
What a devastating book.
Told from a five-year-old boy’s point of view, this was not an easy read, but
once the pair begin to plot their escape, I couldn’t leave them in their room.
The way this mother creates a "normal" world for her son within a nightmare
exposes both the triumph and tragedy of the human condition.
Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng
I have never read a book
that is similar to our family in its racial make-up and in its silence. This is
the story of a dead girl told from the shifting third person povs of her
parents and siblings. The sentences are lovely. The plot, compelling. But what
set this book apart was the mixed-race marriage and the children who tell about
their small town life. There aren’t many stories like this out there and
this one sings.
The Sky Is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson
A novel set in the sea of
grief that Lennie finds herself drowning in after her sister, Bailey, dies. An
absent mother, a present grandmother and uncle, a patient best friend, and two
handsome love interests help pull Lennie out of the water and back amongst the
living. This YA book by the author of I’ll
Give You the Sun is a study in grief and the lessons death can teach to
help us keep living.
Every Day
by David Levithan
The premise of this book
is that a mysterious soul wakes up every day in a different body. It’s weird
and makes for interesting challenges in terms of telling a story over time from
this POV.
Me, Earl, and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews
Told in part using screenplay
forms, I loved how engaging this narrator is. The friendship between Greg and Earl
is far more interesting than the one between Greg and Rachel. The book ending is so much
better than the movie, and I don’t even know why the movie did the book so
wrong.
Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Piccoult
This YA novel about a
school shooting kept me turning pages. I didn’t care too much for the writing
style, but the plot moved and although none of the characters were completely
likeable, they were compelling to read about.
Reservation Blues by Sherman Alexie
I love the magical
realism and setting of this novel. He writes male and female characters
with compassion and depth. His modern take on Indian life humanizes so many Native American stereotypes.
Language Lesson by Ashaki Jackson
Jackson’s poems of grief
stick heavy in your throat and force you to sit with discomfort of loss. Her
responses to her grandmother’s passing show there is no one way to grieve. We
are all counting our losses, some more quietly than others.
Wish You Were Me by Myriam Gurba
This poet had me rolling
when I heard her perform this past summer. She isn’t afraid to shock, or make you
laugh, or offend. I love her unapologetic style.
Booked
by Kwame Alexander
This novel in verse is by
the same author as The Crossover. The
protagonist is a young soccer player struggling with his parents’ separation,
and balancing school, competitive soccer, bullies, friends, and a potential
girlfriend. Although the ending left many questions unanswered, I loved the
vocabulary development and unique characterization.
The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins
This thriller explores a
missing woman from several different narrative voices. All are women and
the primary narrator’s reliability is called into question by everyone around
her (including herself). I liked this much better than Gone Girl, which it is often compared to, and look forward to
seeing the film version.
*Three-Year Swim Club by Julie Checkaway
*OK, I didn’t finish it.
I was enjoying it. It’s a nonfiction account of the coach of ditch-swimming
kids in Hawaii and their unlikely success.
I might go back and complete it. The topic intrigues me, but I was not
in the place or brain space to finish.
*Bright Dead Things by Ada Limón
I fell upon Ada Limón’s
poem, “Before” during April during National Poetry Month. My writing partner, Hazel, passed on
this collection where it appears and Limón's poems humble me. The language is simple,
as are the forms, but her poems shine with quiet brilliance and make me want to
try to write poems with such care. *Still haven’t finished reading this
collection.
The Education of Margot Sanchez by Lilliam Rivera
I really enjoy how this
author allows the protagonist to evolve over the course of this novel. Margot
straddles private school social elites, her family in the Bronx, old
friendships, and a new love interest with varying degrees of success until
things come together at a party in the Hamptons. Definitely kept me turning the
pages and wondering how Margot would navigate a complicated intersectional
world. You'll have to preorder this one though. It won't be released until February.
The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon
I may have found a new
favorite YA author. This novel takes place in the space of a day and all of the
multi-universes attached. The two primary narrators are Natasha and Daniel, but
the author also dips into peripheral characters, humanizing every
character. This is a book that will make you believe in love and science while
exploring multiracial/cultural experiences.
5 Favorite Children’s Books
Last Stop on Market Street by Matt de la Peña
This book had me in tears
as I read it to Kiara. The illustrations are lovely and it gets to the heart of
what we teach our kids with the decisions we make everyday.
The Snow Rabbit by Camille Garoche
This is such a beautiful
book, and the depiction of this little girl in a wheelchair makes it even
sweeter. The visuals and story are magical.
Thunder Boy Junior by Sherman Alexie and Yuyi Morales
This book beautifully
addresses struggles with naming and helps kids understand the unique names many
indigenous Americans possess.
Lucha Libre by Patty Rodriguez and Ariana Stein
This bilingual series is
so fun to read with titles like Zapata:
Colors/Colores, Counting with/Contando Con Frida, Un Elefante: Numbers/Numeros,
but Lucha Libre: Anatomy/Anatomia
is my favorite. We happened to meet the author’s at Children’s Book World so we
even have signed editions!
When the Beat Was Born by Laban Carrick Hill and Theodore Taylor
We gifted this book and I
keep wishing I’d held on to it. With beautiful depictions of urban New York, we
get one version of the story of how hip hop was born.
