Middle Grade Monday and Audiobook Review: Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky

Image: Disney/ Hyperion

Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky by Kwame Mbalia. Tristan Strong series #1. Unabridged e-audiobook, ~11 hours. Read by Amir Abdullah. Listening Library, October, 2019. 9780593149584. (Review of downloadable e-audiobook borrowed from public library. Own hardcover copy.)

Middle Grade Monday features Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky by Kwame Mbalia. This terrific debut is a mythology-based fantasy that centers around thirteen-year-old Tristan Strong, an up and coming boxer in Chicago. He has just lost his very first bout much to the disappointment of his father and grandfather who expect him to continue their legacy. He's also grieving the death of his best friend, Eddie and treasures the notebook where Eddie wrote down the stories his grandmother told. 

While visiting his grandparents in Alabama, that journal is stolen by a ten-inch, sap-covered, sassy doll named Gum Baby. When Tristan tries to catch her, he punches a tree in fury. Turns out it's a magical tree on the farm and he and Gum Baby end up in another world. Unfortunately, evil from our world follows them in as well. Some of the residents of Alke may be familiar to readers, John Henry, Brer Rabbit and Brer Fox. But the others are gods and goddesses of West African mythology, such as Anansi. 

New-to-me narrator Amir Abdullah paced his performance well and he mastered quite a few distinct voices. Looking forward to seeking out more audiobooks narrated by him as well as the next book in the Tristan Strong series.

If you enjoyed Rick Riordan's myth-based adventures, you will love Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky! It's the first book of a planned series, so get on board!

I'll Bite: 2020 Audiobook Challenge

So I came across this audiobook challenge and was intrigued. I have been an audiophile for some 30+ years. We would listen to audiobooks as a family whilst driving to ski trips. That quickly morphed into always having an audiobook going in the car. I came across this challenge and wondered. I didn't consistently count my audiobooks until 2015. Let's check out my lists. 

I blogged at LiveJournal from December of 2008 to December of 2012 then switched over to Blogspot. For some reason, I did not make a separate list of audiobooks on the blog until 2012, when I read 83. I have no idea why I didn't keep track of audios in 2013, my first year at Blogspot or 2014. I dropped to 74 in 2015 but read 107 books with my ears in 2016. The next three years were solidly between 93 and 95 audiobooks. 

2012: 83
2015: 74
2016:107
2017: 93
2018: 94
2019: 95

Okay, I will shoot for the 100+ club at Hot Listens. Unfortunately, my first two audios of 2020 are hefty! Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky clocked in at almost 12 hours and I am presently 72% through Tomi Adeyemi's Children of Virtue and Vengeance, which is nearly 13 hours long!

What's New? Stacking the Shelves

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews. Hop on over there to ogle what other bloggers got this week.

For Review:

Image: Albert Whitman & Company

Quack by Anna Humphrey. 234 p. Albert Whitman & Company, April1, 2020. 978080756067.

Publisher synopsis: Ten-year-old Shady Cook struggles with selective mutism caused by anxiety. His best friend, Pouya, gets it—despite being the class clown, he has his own hang-ups lurking just below the surface. Shady's parents, however, are eager to find a way to help their son start talking more, so when a live duck waddles into their lives and Shady starts to respond, they reluctantly decide to give Svenrietta the emotional support duck a chance. Before long, Shady, Pouya, and their diaper-wearing duck are working to help all of the underdogs (or is it underducks?) at their school—and there are many.

Purchased: Nothing! But I did get a bunch of AZ cards as holiday gifts!

If you leave a comment, leave the link to your stack. I will pop by and to check out your stack!

Fact Friday: Seeing Gender by Iris Gottlieb

Image: Chronicle Books

Seeing Gender: an illustrated guide to identity and expression by Iris Gottlieb. 208 p. Chronicle Books, October, 2019. 9781452176611. (Review of finished copy borrowed from public library. But definitely buying.)

Even though I consider myself an ally, I must admit that I consistently mess up gender pronouns. This cogent, informative, necessary text helps. A lot. 

Fact Friday features Seeing Gender: an illustrated guide to identity and expression by Iris Gottlieb. It is so easy to make assumptions about gender and to get it all wrong. This colorfully illustrated guide explains simply historical context as well as the science and sociology behind gender and gender identity.

The volume is slightly oversized. There's plenty of white space. A straightforward and simple narrative increases understanding and the exuberantly colorful illustrations are pleasing and fun.

Questioning youth will find a safe and sympathetic space to explore identity and would-be allies will learn to understand, respect and support diverse expressions of gender. Seeing Gender is an important read and belongs in all school and public libraries.

#tbt: Chicken Boy by Frances O'Roark Dowell

Image: Simon & Schuster

Chicken Boy by Frances O'Roark Dowell. 202 p. Atheneum Books for Young Readers/ Simon & Schuster, 2005. 9780689858167. (Own.)

#tbt features Chicken Boy by Frances O'Roark Dowell. Published in 2005, this first-person narrative by Tobin McCauley opens with one of the more memorable first lines in children's literature. "You might have heard about the time my granny got arrested on the first day of school." Tobin lives in a dysfunctional family. His father never really recovered from the death of his wife and his older siblings have a bad reputation in town as delinquents. Tobin flies mostly under the radar, preferring not to call attention to himself. At turns hilarious and heartbreaking, Chicken Boy is one of my favorites. While the cover I found on the publisher website is fine, I prefer the cover of my first edition book.

Waiting on Wednesday: Nightshade by Anthony Horowitz

Image: Penguin Random House

Nightshade by Anthony Horowitz. Alex Rider series #12. 368 p. Philomel Books/ Penguin Random House, April 7, 2020 9780593115312.

Publisher synopsis:Follow the world’s greatest teen spy as he sets off to Gibraltar after the death of Scorpia, and enters into a battle against a new criminal organization: Nightshade.

Following the shocking events of Never Say Die, Alex Rider’s world has changed–his biggest enemy, the evil organization Scorpia, has been destroyed. But a new and dangerous criminal organization–Nightshade–is rising, and Alex will stop at nothing to take them down.

This year, I had a seventh grader read all the Alex Rider books in a row. When he came it to trade book ten for book eleven, he asked about book twelve and got very upset to hear that he needed to wait until April for it! This series is quite popular in my school.

Teen Tuesday and Arc Review: Dancing at the Pity Party by Tyler Feder

Image: Penguin Random House

Dancing at the Pity Party: a dead mom graphic memoir by Tyler Feder. 208 p. Dial Books for Young Readers/ Penguin Random House, April 14, 2020. 9780525553021. (Review of arc courtesy of publisher.)

Teen Tuesday features Dancing at the Pity Party: a dead mom memoir by Tyler Feder. Graphic artist Tyler Feder remembers her mother in this achingly beautiful memoir about love and loss. Feder and her mom were close. She was a sophomore in college when her mom was diagnosed with cancer. Using a subdued pastel palette, Feder chronicles the myriad of feelings she and her family experienced over the year that followed - shock, terror, guilt, hope - through the process of grief when her mother succumbed.

I grabbed this on my way to the airport in November and read it while I waited for my flight. I wept copiously. But I also laughed. So much about this lovely, important graphic novel resonates. It truly belongs in every possible library collection. I wouldn't necessarily hand it to someone newly grieving the loss of a loved one, but certainly to anyone who wants to help.

Look for Dancing at the Pity Party in April.