Middle Grade Monday and Audiobook Review: Daughter of the Deep by Rick Riordan

Image: Disney

Daughter of the Deep by Rick Riordan. Unabridged e-audiobook, ~11 hours. Read by Soneela Nankani. Disney Hyperion, October, 2021. 9781368078511. (Review of e-audiobook borrowed from the public library.)

Happy Monday! I hope you enjoyed your weekend. Son #3 came to visit for the weekend, so I got to cook and bake and feed him up, and also had leftovers to send him back to the city with. Unfortunately, the shower faucet decided to break while he showered and the water wouldn't turn off! I grabbed a screwdriver and tried to turn the little screw that holds the handle on, but that didn't work. I left a message on my plumber's machine and looked up how to turn the water off to the house. Found the spot and turned the water off. The good n news is, the shower isn't running. The bad news is, nothing is. I can't tell you how many times I went to turn water on! Yikes. The luxury of running water! Hopefully, the plumber will call me back this morning. 

In other news, the Youth Media Awards are being announced later today. My reading took a hit this year, so I have no real handle on many of the books receiving buzz. I also continue to have mixed feelings about the awards in general. And yet, I will tune in with my class at nine.

Middle Grade Monday features Daughter of the Deep by Rick Riordan. What if Jules Vernes' sci/fi classics, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and The Mysterious Island weren't works of fiction, but based on real events? That's the premise for Uncle Rick's latest adventure. It feels like a series starter, but there's talk online that it's a stand-alone. Regardless, it was optioned for a movie before it was even published!

Ana Dakar attends an elite five-year high school called the Harding-Pembroke Academy, where students are trained extensively in all things maritime and graduate to become marine biologists and naval officers. She and her classmates are on their way out to sea to take a test that will determine their course of studies, when their seaside school is attacked by submarines and destroyed. Presumably, everyone on campus, including Ana's adored older brother are dead. The students' chaperone informs them that the culprit is most likely their rival school, the Land Academy. They change course and head to a secret island which was the place where Ana's parents were killed on a secret mission some years earlier.

As with any Rick Riordan book, the cast of characters is huge and diverse; the world-building is unique and the action is fast. He just might inspire a new generation of children to dust off Jules Verne as well!

I went into this book only knowing that it was a new RR book. I didn't know about the Jules Verne connection, so that was a reveal as I listened. I also didn't realize that it was narrated by one of my least favorite narrators. I just find her voice annoying and whiney and her performances a bit too over-the-top, so I probably should've read this one with my eyes. I'm guessing it must be me, because her audiobooks are consistently praised. Decide for yourself. 

This audiobook also contained sound effects and mood music which also drove me bonkers. I don't need music to cue me into feeling suspense, thank you very much. I found them distracting and irritating. 

Teen Tuesday and Audiobook Review: Six Crimson Cranes by Elizabeth Lim

Image: Penguin Random House

Six Crimson Cranes by Elizabeth Lim. Unabridged e-audiobook, ~13 hours. Read by Emily Woo Zeller. Listening Library/ Penguin Random House Audio, July, 2021. 9780593398876. (Review of e-audio borrowed from public library.)

Happy Tuesday! I hope you dress for the weather today! It's COLD out there (in northern NJ)! Teen Tuesday features Six Crimson Cranes by Elizabeth Lim. I admit that I'm partial to fairy tale retellings and boy, have I been on a tear lately, each one better than the last. It wasn't hard to discern from the title, which fairy tale the author retold, The Wild Swans is one of my favorites. I learned from the publisher's page for the book that it also weaves in elements of Cinderella as well as two tales that are new to me-Tale of the Bamboo Cutter and the legend of Chang E.

Shiori-anma is the youngest of her father's seven children. She's the only girl and his favorite. She's a pampered princess in every way, always getting her own way, until her father decided whom she will wed when she turned seventeen. Shiori wants nothing to do with this barbarian prince from a northern province. She's also hiding a secret. She has magic and her father has forbidden magic in his kingdom. So far, she has been able to keep her talent hidden, despite the close call with the paper crane she brought to life. When she loses control on the day of her betrothal ceremony and runs into the lake, she catches the eye of a water dragon, who rescues her and changes into his human form to talk to her. Her icy step-mother, whom Shiori believes possesses magic, curses her six brothers-by day, they inhabit the bodies of crimson crane and change back into their human forms only by night. Shiori is banished, cursed to wear a bowl on her head and warned that if she speaks, one of her brothers will die for each word she utters. And so, penniless, voiceless and with only her secret paper crane as company, Shiori sets out in search of her brothers and a way to break the curse.

Weighing in at more than 450 pages and 13 hours on audio, this story is epic! It's also the beginning of a series and I cannot wait for book two! The writing is wonderfully rich, but man, the pace is fast! The setting is quite vivid and the characters are all well-developed and complex. I loved the stories within the story as well. 

Emily Woo Zeller is becoming a favorite narrator. She paces her performances well and has a wide repertoire of voices. 

Book two, The Dragon's Promise doesn't have any info or cover yet. It's due out in August. 

Teen Tuesday: Among the Beasts and Briars by Ashley Poston

Image: HarperCollins 

Among the Beasts and Briars by Ashley Poston. Unabridged e-audiobook, ~8 hours. Balzer + Bray/ HarperAudio, October, 2020. 9780063025899. (Review of e-audiobook borrowed from public library.)

Happy Tuesday! I hope you dress for the weather today because it's finally winter cold! It was a brisk 19 degrees at a little after 5 this morning when I took the hounds out for a walk. It was in the 50s over the weekend! Crazy.

Teen Tuesday features Among the Beasts and Briars by Ashley Poston. Cerys lives in the kingdom of Aloriya under the protection of a king who wears a golden crown that was gifted to his forefather hundreds of years earlier by the Lady of the Wilds. Her father is the royal gardener, a job she is content to inherit. Her talent for it is helped along by a bit of secret magic she possesses in her blood. If she adds her blood to plants, they grow and thrive instantly. Her best friend, Princess Anwen, is about to be coronated, but just as the magical crown is placed on her head, she is transformed into a vile creature as the woodcursed leave the dark forest to attack the kingdom. Cerys grabs the crown and dashes into the dark forest accompanied by a strange young man who may or may not have been the fox that she rescued from a trap. The two set out through the dark woods in search of the mythical city of Voryn hoping that they will help to break the curse.

This fantasy has the dark, grim feel of an old fairy tale. The forest is positively creepy and filled with danger. Cerys feels ill-equiped to be the hero and Fox is disgruntled in his clumsy, vulnerable human form and just wants to turn back into a fox. Luckily for them, the two team up with Bear, who has the strength and smarts to guide them.

The POV (point-of-view) shifts between Cerys and Fox. There's a good deal of humor to lighten the suspense and there's plenty of gore and evil creatures to create the gore. The story stands alone, but there's enough left unresolved for a sequel or companion novel.

Teens who love fantasy or fairy tales will eat this up and ask for more. 

2021 Audiobooks

January (6)

1.The Silver Arrow by Lev Grossman (1/2)

2. Instant Karma by Marissa Meyer (1/8)

3. The Only Black Girls in Town by Brandy Colbert (1/10)

4. Rage by Bob Woodward (1/21)*

5. Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo (1/25)*(Audio reread)

6. The Cousins by Karen McManus (1/30)

February (5)

7. Mosquitoland by David Arnold (2/6)

8. The Midnight Library by Matt Haig (2/11)

9. Concrete Rose by Angie Thomas (2/16)*

10. The Sword in the Stars by Amy Rose Capetta and Rori McCarthy (2/20)*

11. Black Girl, Unlimited by Echo Brown (2/26)

March (5)

12. Ground Zero by Alan Gratz (3/2)

13. Poisoned by Jennifer Donnelly (3/7)*

14. Punching the Air by Ibi Zoboi and Yusef Saalam (3/10)*

15. Darius the Great Deserves Better by Adib Khorram (3/12)*

16. Everything Sad is Untrue (A True Story) by Daniel Nayeri (3/15)

April (6)

17. The Awakening Malcolm X by Ilyasah Shabazz (4/6)

18. Chain of Iron by Cassandra Clare (4/15)

19. All Boys Aren't Blue by George M. Johnson (4/18)*

20. Tigers, Not Daughters by Samantha Mary (4/21)

21. Starfish by Lisa Fipps (4/28)*

22. Amari and the Night Brothers by B.B. Alston (4/30)

May (7)

23. Premeditated Myrtle by Elizabeth C. Bunce (5/3)*

24. A Promised Land by Barack Obama (5/6)*

25. The Desolations of Devil's Acre by Ransom Riggs (5/12)

26. The Sky Beyond the Storm by Sabaa Tahir (5/18)

27. Red, White and Whole by Rajani Larocca (5/19)

28. Inside Out and Back Again by Thannha Lai (5/23)

29. Madam Speaker: Nancy Pelosi by Susan Page (5/25)

June (5)

30. Yolk by Mary H.K. Choi (6/7)

31. Fat Chance, Charlie Vega by Crystal Maldonado (6/13)

32. Pumpkin by Julie Murphy (6/20)

33. Tyler Johnson was Here by Jay Coles (6/29)

34. Sasha Masha by Agnes Borinsky (6/30)

July (9)

35. Stay Gold by Tobly McSmith (7/3)

36. The Way Back by Gavriel Savit (7/7)

37. Luck of the Titanic by Stacey Lee (7/13)

38. Everything You Wanted to Know about Indians but were Afraid to Ask by Anton Treuer (7/15)

39. Unsettled by Reem Faruki (7/15)

40. President of the Whole Fifth Grade by Sherri Winston (7/16)

41. Root Magic by Eden Royce (7/21)*

42. Too Bright to See by Kyle Lukoff (7/23)

44. Home is Not a Country by Safia Elhillo (7/24) 

August (6)

45. Realm Breaker by Victoria Aveyard (8/1)

46. A Good Kind of Trouble by (8/12)

47. Sunkissed by Kasie West (8/15)

48. Instructions for Dancing by Nicola Yoon (8/20)*

49. Lost in the Never Woods by Aiden Thomas(8/29)*

50. The Canyon's Edge by Dusti Bowling (8/30)

September (4)

51. Unplugged by Gordon Korman (9/6)

52. Come On In: 15 Stories about Immigration and Finding Home edited by Adi Alsaid (9/11)

53. Weird Kid by Greg Van Eekhout (9/13)

54. The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson (9/19)

October (6)

55. Peril by Bob Woodward and Jim Costa (10/3)

56. The Other Talk: Reckoning with White Privilege by Brendan Kiely (10/7)

57. From a Whisper to a Rallying Cry by Paula You (10/10)

58. The School for Good and Evil by Soman Chainani (10/17)

59. Kneel by Candace Buford (10/22)*

60. Darling by K. Ancrum (10/25)

November (6)

61. Maya and the Rising Dark by Rena Barron (11/4)

62. A Wish in the Dark by Christina Soontornvat (11/5)*

63.  Fast Pitch bt Nic Stone (11/6)

64. The Anthropocene Reviewed by John Green (11/13)*

65. Dead Wednesday by Jerry Spinelli (11/15)

66. Clues to the Universe by Christina Li (11/22)

67. Aristotle and Dante Dive into the Waters of the World by Benjamin Alire Sáenz (11/23)

December (7)

68. Daughter of the Deep by Rick Riordan (12/3)

69. Among the Beasts & Briars by Ashley Poston (12/5)*

70. Sea Witch by Sarah Henning (12/9)*

71. Black Boy Joy: 17 Stories Celebrating Black Boyhood edited by Kwame Mbalia (12/13)*

72. Six Crimson Cranes by Elizabeth Lim (12/22)*

73. Three Keys by Kelly Yang (12/27)

74. The Beatryce Prophecy by Kate DiCamillo (12/30)

Teen Tuesday and Audiobook Review: Sea Witch by Sarah Henning

Image: HarperCollins Publishers

Sea Witch by Sarah Henning. Unabridged e-audiobook, 550 minutes. Read by Billie Fulford-Brown. Katherine Tegan Books/ HarperAudio/ HarperCollins Publishers, July, 2018. 978

Teen Tuesday features Sea Witch by Sarah Henning. While I love a good fairy tale retelling, I especially love a good villain origin story. The very first one I remember is The Magic Circle by Donna Jo Napoli, which explores the origin of the witch in Hansel and Gretel. More recently, I was captivated by Heartless by Marissa Meyer, which tells the story of the Queen of Hearts from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. I cannot wait to read Gilded by Ms. Meyer as well.

Evie lives in Havnestad, a kingdom by the sea in Denmark with her fisherman father and elderly aunt. Magic and witchcraft are forbidden. Evie's aunt is a healer, rumored to be a witch, but left alone because she once saved the king's life. Evie is best friends with the king's son, Prince Nik and Anna. Evie has been an outcast ever since Anna's death by drowning three or four years earlier. Nik managed to save Evie but not Anna and Evie feels tremendous guilt over that. The townspeople whisper about the unseemly friendship between Nik and Evie, especially as Nik is about to come of age. Nik doesn't care and invites Evie to attend his birthday party on his father's new ship. Evie sees a face looking in a port hole that looks like Anna, but it's gone before Evie can take a closer look. A sudden storm blows in and Nik is swept overboard. Evie and Nik's cousin, Iker search frantically for Nik and Evie finds him washed ashore and alive, but not alone. It seems a girl has saved Evie's best friend, but then she disappears into the ocean.

The pace is quite leisurely in the beginning, which might deter readers who like action earlier. Evie is a conflicted narrator prone to dismissing herself as just a poor fisherman's daughter so much so that it became annoying. Still, the dynamics between Evie and the two princely cousins was cute and the mystery of Annamette was intriguing. Once all the pieces begin to click into place, the pace quickens to dizzying and the reader is left breathless at its conclusion.

The new-to-me narrator had a wide array of voices and was well-suited to the material. I'm interested in reading the companion, Rise of the Sea Witch soon. 

Middle Grade Monday and Audiobook Review: A Wish in the Dark by Christina Soontornvat

Image: Candlewick Press

A Wish in the Dark by Christina Soontornvat. Unabridged audiobook on one MP3 CD. ~10 hours, 40 minutes. Read by Greta Jung. Candlewick on Brilliance Audio, March, 2020. 9781799731316. (Review of purchased audiobook on MP3 CD.)

Happy Monday! I hope you had a lovely holiday weekend. My Christmas Eve plans were dashed by a Covid exposure, which was sad. My youngest son came from the Boston area with his fiancé and my third son came out two weekends ago when his place of work went back to fully remote. I had some company to help me through another "first."

Middle Grade Monday features A Wish in the Dark by Christina Soontornvat. Pong lives in a prison in Chattana, a city in Thailand where the governor rules with an iron fist. He brought the city into the light after a great fire destroyed it, but there is light for just a privileged few. Pong's mother had been imprisoned for stealing food. She died, but Pong will remain in prison until his thirteenth birthday. He and his best friend and fellow orphan, Somkit, try to protect each other from bullies and dream about life once they are released. When the opportunity to escape presents itself, Pong escapes alone. The prison warden loses his job due to Pong's escape and his "perfect" daughter, Nok vows to hunt him down. 

This paltry summary does not do justice to this layered, epic adventure filled with fascinating and complex characters. There's humor and tragedy (I cried) and a myriad of emotions in between. Chattana and its surroundings spring vividly to life as Pong attempts to make his way to freedom, but soon realizes that, thanks to his prison tattoo, his fate may be sealed. There are so many twists and turns and surprises along the way.

The audiobook performance by Greta Jung was well-paced and her voices were distinct and nicely varied. I especially appreciated learning the correct pronunciation of names and other Thai language words that I would've glossed over were I reading with my eyes. 

A Wish in the Dark won a Newbery Honor as well as a Jane Addams Book Award. If you love adventure and fantasy, you will love A Wish in the Dark. Highly recommended!

Middle Grade Monday: Fast Pitch by Nic Stone

Welcome back! Did ya miss me? I took a week off of blogging last week. When I post here, I also post to my Library Group in our school's learning platform as well as our town's public library FB page. I didn't think anyone would notice that I went AWOL, so I was touched when students would stop by the library to ask where the book talks were. They were very understanding when I said I needed to take a short break. So sweet. I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving break. Mine was quite hectic, but I managed to get some reading in. I hope you did too. 

Image: Penguin Random House

Fast Pitch by Nic Stone. Unabridged e-audiobook, ~3.5 hours. Read by the author. Listening Library/ Penguin Random House, August, 2021. 9780593413760.

Middle Grade Monday features Fast Pitch by Nic Stone. Shenice is captain of her fast-pitch softball team. The team is very good and so is she, but it is also the first all-black team in their Georgia League and not everyone is welcoming. The girls and their coach deal with microaggressions and blatant racism as they play their way to the championships.

Shenice's father played some serious baseball, as did her grandfather, but no one ever talks about him until she visits her great-uncle in a nursing home. Great-uncle Jack is elderly and somewhat forgetful, so it takes a while for Shenice to piece together the mystery, and once she does, she decides she's going to find the evidence to clear her grandfather's name.

This fast-paced story is a nice blend of sports and mystery. It depicts racism past and present and shows what little progress has been made. The history of the Negro Leagues and the slow integration of Major League Baseball was also well done. Shenice is an appealing character, thoughtful, bright and athletic. She takes her role as captain seriously and wants to be a good leader. 

Ms. Stone did a fine job narrating. She sounded authentically tween when depicting Shenice and she sounded appropriately adult while voicing the adult characters. The performance was engaging and well-paced.

If you enjoyed Ms. Stone's MG debut, Clean Getaway, which was featured here last year, or her YA novels, Dear Martin and Dear Justyce, you will enjoy Fast Pitch. 

Teen Tuesday and Audiobook Review: Darling by K. Ancrum

Image: Macmillan

Darling by K. Ancrum. Unabridged e-audiobook, ~7 hours. Read by Angel Pean. Tantor Audio/ Tantor Media, June, 2021. (Review of e-audio borrowed from the public library.)

Teen Tuesday features Darling by K. Ancrum. Darling is a contemporary retelling of J.M. Barrie's Peter Pan. It is a dark and twisty thriller that mature teen readers will find hard to put down.

First, you may be wondering why, during Native American/ Indigenous Heritage Month, I am featuring a retelling of the Peter Pan story. Both Barrie and Disney treated the Tiger Lily part of the storyline very stereotypically. In Darling, the Tiger Lily character is called Ominotago, and she is fierce, independent and determined. But I'm getting ahead of the plot.

Wendy Darling has moved from the suburbs to Chicago with her overprotective parents. She's stifling under their rules, but recognizes that they love her. Her window doesn't close properly, but her father postpones fixing it, telling her to put a book in the opening. That doesn't deter the person who later breaks into the Darling home thinking that it's empty. That person is Peter Pan, a beautiful, charismatic boy. Nana, the Darling dog, ripped the sleeve off Peter's favorite jacket and Wendy sews it back on for him. Peter invites Wendy to come to a party with him and Tinkerbell. Tink is furious, but Wendy is intrigued. What could be wrong with going out with the boy who broke into your house for a night in a brand new city where you know no one?

Readers soon meet the Lost Boys, but new characters are also introduced, including Ominotago's football teammates. The two crews need to duck into a nightclub called "The Mermaid's Lagoon" to hide from the police, headed by a detective known as Hook. The cast of characters is huge but each is fully fleshed out and quite diverse. The Chicago setting, complete with a ride on the L, is vivid.

If you are a fan of thrillers, Darling is the book for you. I probably should've read this one with my eyes, in part because I can read faster, especially when the suspense is high, but mostly because I didn't love the narration. The narrator mispronounced quite a few words and that became a distraction. Also, her pacing was erratic and didn't match the mood. 

Middle Grade Monday and Audiobook Review: Race to the Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse

Image: Penguin Random House Audio

Race to the Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse. Unabridged e-audiobook, ~7 hours, 18 minutes. Read by Kinsale Hueston. Listening Library/ Penguin Random House Audio, January, 2020. (Review of e-audiobook borrowed from public library.)

Happy Monday! I hope you had a fantastic weekend. I had a total of zero trick-or-treaters on Sunday. I'm also ready for our short week! NJ public schools are closed Thursday and Friday for Teachers' Convention Weekend. November celebrates Native American Indian/ Alaska Native Heritage month, so many of the books recommended this month will feature books by or about Indigenous North Americans (even though I try to keep the Daily Book Talks diverse all through the year).

Middle Grade Monday features Race to the Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse. This entry in the Rick Riordan Presents Imprint doesn't disappoint. Twelve-year-old Nizhoni Begay has dreams of doing something heroic - on the basketball court, at school or onine. She's just a bit distractable and seems to always mess things up because she can see monsters hidden in human disguises and one happens to be at her basketball game where she has the opportunity to win the game for her team. She ends up on the gym floor with a bloody nose instead, and she returns home to fine the man/ monster in her driveway! He's her dad's new boss and the reason the family will be moving from New Mexico to Oklahoma.

Turns out, NIzhoni is a monster-slayer and her brother, Mac, has powers as well. They are both descendants of the Hero Twins of Navajo myth and legend and now they have to rescue their father and save the world.

The story is fast-paced and peppered with moments of humor and Navajo words, for which there is a glossary. I am glad to have read this one with my ears to hear the words and names correctly pronounced. Memorable characters include a talking horned toad, a guardian of a mountain made of crystal and Spider Woman.

Readers who love fantasy adventure like the Percy Jackson books will love this one. Happy reading!

Teen Tuesday and Audio Review: Kneel by Candace Buford

Image: HarperCollins Publishers

Kneel by Candace Buford. Unabridged e-audiobook. ~8.3 hours. Read by Preston Butler III. HarperAudio/ Inkyard/ HarperCollins Publishers, September, 2021. 9781488211805. (Review of e-audiobook borrowed from public library.)

Happy rainy Tuesday! There has been a flash flood warning in my area since last night and it has been raining steadily. Hopefully, the winds will stay calm and my hundred year old American Beech tree will remain standing.

Teen Tuesday features Kneel by Candace Buford. Rus Boudreaux and his best friend, Marion LaSalle are co-captains of their football team entering their senior year with high hopes for a winning season, another chance at the state championship and a football scholarship to a D-1 college. A scholarship is their only way out of their racially segregated parish in Louisiana. At the start of their second game of the season, against the team's rival, one of the white co-captains hurls a racial slur after the coin toss and the other sucker punches Marion. The refs turn a blind eye to the slur and don't defend Marion as he is hauled off the field in handcuffs and eventually beaten by police for "resisting arrest." Rus knows that Marion's chances for a scholarship are nonexistent if he can't play football, so he takes a knee during the national anthem at the next game, earning himself the ire of his coach, his teammates, his parents and the press as the media choose to portray him and Marion as thugs.

Rus' first-person narrative is compelling from the start as this thoughtful athlete tries to play by rules that seem to change at the whim of the privileged. Kneel is the author's debut and it's an impressive one peopled with complex characters dealing with real issues of poverty, racism and broken dreams.

New-to-me narrator Preston Butler III turned in a well-paced, emotionally resonant performance as Rus. 

Middle Grade Monday and Audio Review: Unplugged by Gordon Korman

Image: HarperCollins Publishers

Unplugged by Gordon Korman. Unabridged e-audiobook. ~6.5 hours. Read by a cast of six. HarperAudio/ HarperCollins Publishers, January, 2021. 9780063058095. (Review of e-audiobook borrowed from public library.)

Happy Monday! I hope your weekend was fantastic. Mine was quite nice. The week promises to be rainy, so I'm glad I had a lot of outdoors time. Middle Grade Monday features Unplugged by Gordon Korman. Jett Baranov is an unabashed bad boy. His dad is founder and CEO of a huge tech company and has the money to bail Jett out of whatever trouble he gets into, so Jett kept upping the ante until his dad put his foot down. The family's private jet dumps Jett and his bodyguard/ babysitter in rural Arkansas to spend the summer at a place called the Oasis. It's in the middle of nowhere, the menu is totally vegetarian, the activities include meditation and, worst of all, Jett has to turn over all electronics. Jett sets about doing what Jett does best.

Mr. Korman has lots of fans at my school and deservedly so. His books are often quite funny and fast-paced. This one's pretty outlandish, but tons of fun.

The multiple narrators set a brisk pace and each was well-suited to their character. 

Teen Tuesday Audiobook Review: The School for Good and Evil by Soman Chainani

Image: HarperCollins Publishers

Happy Tuesday! Well, the Hunter's Moon sure put on a show last night as it waxes toward full tomorrow. I hope the weather cooperates and we can continue to bask in its light. And, I could see Orion nearly halfway up at 5 AM. I've been watching him make his way across the pre-sunrise sky since September. I will never forgot the morning I looked out from my deck at the beach at 3AM one August. I saw Orion appear to rise from the ocean.

Well, TMS Readers, I did it. An eighth grader has been telling me that I needed to read The School for Good and Evil by Soman Chainani for years! She might be a little obsessed with this series and its author. The hype is real!

Teen Tuesday features The School for Good and Evil by Soman Chainani. This fantasy fairy tale series starter was published in 2013 and was the author's debut. Its 14+ hours fly by as listeners are transported into Agatha and Sophie's adventures. Every four years in their village, two children, age 12 or older are kidnapped, never to be seen again, presumably transported to the School for Good and Evil. While most of the villager dread this arrival, Sophie believes herself to be a princess and hopes for it. She goes about her day doing good, especially seeking out homely Agatha, who lives in a cemetery. Agatha just wants to be left alone. A surprise happens on the day of the kidnapping and both girls end up in unexpected circumstances.
The world-building is quite vivid and the many characters add charm, humor or menace as Sophie and Agatha try to find where they truly belong. Not surprisingly, this cinematic epic has been adapted for film and is be released on Netflix soon.

Thanks to my student for the recommendation! I'm hooked.

Teen Tuesday: Lost in the Never Woods by Aiden Thomas

Image: Macmillan Publishers

Lost In the Never Woods by Aiden Thomas. Unabridged e-audiobook, ~12 hours and 13 minutes. Read by Avi Roque. Macmillan Audio, March, 2021. 9781250779557. (Review of e-audiobook borrowed from public library.)

Happy Tuesday and L'Shana Tovah to all who are celebrating the Jewish New Year. May you have a sweet start to, 5782, the new year.

Teen Tuesday features Lost In the Never Woods by Aiden Thomas. Eighteen-year-old Wendy Darling is driving home from her volunteer job at the local hospital one night, when a shadowy figure lands on the hood of her truck. She pulls over to the side of the road to investigate and discovers a boy lying on there. He appears to be unconscious, but he opens the bluest eyes Wendy has ever seen and he calls her by her name! She has no idea who this boy is, but she has been obsessively drawing him and a picture of a gnarled tree for the past five years-ever since she and her brothers disappeared into the woods. 

Wendy was the only to return after a six month absence, clutching an acorn and with no memory of who took her or what happened to her brothers. Wendy's memory loss has been frustrating for her, her parents, the police and the town, all of whom want closure, especially since two children went missing recently. The boy is named Peter and his shadow has something to do with the disappearance of the children. Peter begs for Wendy's help finding his shadow before any more children disappear. Wendy agrees and as they investigate, more children disappear, most having some connection to Wendy Darling.

This modern-day Peter Pan story just thrums with suspense and atmosphere. While there are subtle references to the J.M. Barrie classic, this twisty, menacing tale is wholly original, scary, occasionally humorous and delightful.

Lost in the Never Woods is perfect for fans of fairy tale updates/ retellings or any reader who enjoys a twisty mystery. I wasn't a huge fan of the audiobook, though. The narrator chose to pause at odd times fairly consistently through the book, frequently taking me out of the story. They also lacked nuance between different voices, often leading to confusion about who was speaking.

Middle Grade Monday: The Canyon's Edge by Dusti Bowling

Image: Little, Brown and Company

The Canyon's Edge by Dusti Bowling. Unabridged e-audiobook, ~3 hours, 5 minutes. Read by Casey Holloway. Hachette Audio, September, 2020. 9781549134456. (Review of e-audio borrowed from public library.)

Happy Labor Day! I hope you've been enjoying your holiday weekend! Middle Grade Monday features The Canyon's Edge by Dusti Bowling. A number of my students are fans of the author's debut, Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus and its sequel, Momentous Events in the Life of a Cactus. The Canyon's Edge is very different. It's written in verse with sections of prose. The mostly present tense stream of consciousness and use of flashbacks are very effective in setting the mood and instilling tension.

Nora and her father head out to the Sonoran Desert to celebrate her birthday with a hike and climb into a slot canyon. Nora's father chose this celebration to be far away from civilization and danger, because a year earlier, the family were celebrating at a restaurant when a man dressed in cammo entered and began shooting, killing Nora's mother and wounding her father. Both are grieving, suffering from PTSD and have withdrawn from the world. Nora has been homeschooled, but is ready to return.

Unfortunately, the desert also contains danger. They are hiking in the slot canyon when a flash flood roars through. Nora's father pushes her up to safety, but is swept away by the strong current. Nora is left alone with no supplies and many decisions to make. Does she attempt to climb out of the slot and find their car? If so, what then? They were parked in the middle of the desert. Does she climb back down into the slot and follow the trail hoping to find her father? Luckily for Nora, she's an experienced hiker/ climber. Even without equipment, she knows to look out for danger, such as snakes and scorpions and, worst of all, another flash flood.

The audiobook was effectively performed, but I think I should've read this one with my eyes to appreciate the various breaks and poetry forms. 

The Sonoran Desert setting is vivid and tension runs high throughout this intense, edge-of-your-seat survival adventure that you won't want to miss.

Middle Grade Monday: President of the Whole Fifth Grade by Sherri Winston

Image: Hachette Book Group

President of the Whole Fifth Grade by Sherri Winston. Unabridged e-audiobook, ~5 hours, 18 minutes. Read by Joniece Abbott-Pratt. Tantor Media, September, 2020. 9781705251638. (Review of e-audio borrowed from public library.)

Middle Grade Monday features President of the Whole Fifth Grade by Sherri Winston. Brianna Justice has life goals. She intends on building a cupcake empire and becoming rich, but first, she needs to become president of her fifth grade class. Why? Her idol, baking celebrity, Miss Delicious credits becoming president of her own fifth grade as the secret to her success. Since Miss Delicious attended the very same school as Brianna, well, it's just meant to be! With the help of her two best friends, Brianna just knows the path to her presidency will be easy. Her plans are foiled when new girl, Jasmine Moon decides to run and seems to have some underhanded tricks up her sleeve.

I found this older title while browsing for a new audiobook in the Libby app. The story is humorous and the fifth grade drama is fairly realistic. Brianna lets her ambition get in the way of her friendship and not only makes some questionable choices, but becomes downright unlikable. Readers who enjoy school and friendship stories will enjoy this book.

Teen Tuesday: Instructions for Dancing by Nicola Yoon

Image: Penguin Random House

Instructions for Dancing by Nicola Yoon. Unabridged e-audiobook, ~7 hours, 48 minutes. Read by Bahni Turpin. Listening Library/ Penguin Random House, June, 2021. 9781984833129. (Review of e-audiobook borrowed from public library.)

Happy Tuesday! I'm a bit late today posting because I was working on a big house project since early this morning! Teen Tuesday features Instructions for Dancing by Nicola Yoon. Ms. Yoon's last book, The Sun is Also a Star is a TMS fan favorite. Both that book and her debut, Everything, Everything were adapted for film, both of which my students adore. Instructions for Dancing is quite cinematic as well!

Evie Thomas swore off romance ever since her parents' divorce. The fact that she caught her dad cheating has also put a serious strain on their previously close relationship. She even went so far as to purge all her favorite romance novels from her home library. While donating the books to a little free library, Evie encounters a strange, old woman who insists she take a book called, Instructions for Dancing, and also seems to put a spell on her. Evie finds that whenever she spots a couple kissing, she has visions of the beginning, middle and end of their relationship. These visions seem to confirm her new cynical views on romance and Evie wants them to stop, so she tries to track down the old woman. The only clue inside the book is an address for La Brea Dance Studio.

There, she meets X, short for Xavier, a handsome musician who is staying with his grandparents while he and his band try to make it in L.A. His grandparents own the studio. Evie doesn't find answers at the dance studio, but she does allow herself to be talked into a free dance lesson by Fifi, the fierce and opinionated dance instructor and, eventually into an amateur ballroom dance competition with X as her partner.

Will X's "say yes to everything" attitude rub off on Evie? Her sister and mother seems to have moved on after the breakup. Can Evie? This smart romance asks some deep questions and features many likable characters, witty dialogue and swoony dancing. Fans of Ms. Yoon's work will not be disappointed.

Middle Grade Monday: Too Bright to See by Kyle Lukoff

Image: Penguin Random House

Too Bright to See by Kyle Lukoff. Unabridged e-audiobook, ~ 4.5 hours. Narrated by Jax Jackson. Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group, April, 2021. 9780593346310. (Review of e-audio borrowed from public library.)

Happy Monday! How did everyone in the northeast fare with all that rain from Henri? It was the perfect day to read yesterday and it looks like today will be more of the same. I finished a fantastic YA debut fantasy yesterday and plan on finishing a debut contemporary YA today.

Middle Grade Monday features Too Bright to See by Kyle Lukoff. Mr. Lukoff's middle grade debut is difficult to classify. This first-person narrative is part ghost story and part coming-of-age story. It's pace is leisurely, thoughtful and very relatable. First off, Bug lives in a haunted house and the family is fine with that-well, Uncle Roderick is, but Bug's mother? She's skeptical. Bug totally buys in. Now, Bug thinks Uncle Roderick's ghost might be lingering after he died of cancer. Why? What's he trying to say?

Middle school is looming and Bug's bff, Moira, wants to try make-up and make-overs to make a fresh start. Bug avoids mirrors like the plague and isn't interested in make-up or boys. Obviously, this causes friendship friction. Moira has a lot of other friends, but Bug, not so much. What is it about Bug that makes it so hard to fit in?

I'm being purposefully vague here in an effort to preserve the surprises in this satisfying tale. I'm eager to hear what my students think when I add it to our collection. 

Teen Tuesday and Audiobook Review: Sunkissed by Kasie West

Image: Penguin Random House

Sunkissed by Kasie West. Unabridged e-audiobook, ~ 529 minutes. Read by Phoebe Strohl. Listening Library, May, 2021.9780593399552. (Review of e-audiobook borrowed from public library.)

Teen Tuesday features Sunkissed by Kasie West. Ms. West is a favorite author among romance fans at TMS and this is a perfect summer romance to read - frothy, fluffy and fun.

Avery wasn't terribly happy about her parents' planned summer getaway to a remote family camp that had no wi-fi, until she caught her best friend kissing her ex. Now, she can't wait to get away from the drama and apology texts. Once at camp, she gets off on the wrong foot with Brooks, a swoony musician who fronts the dinner band, but has higher musical aspirations. It shouldn't matter, as employees are forbidden from fraternizing with the guests, but Avery and Brooks seem to constantly cross paths. Eventually, Avery helps Brooks with lyrics to a song he's writing and a friendship develops. 

I wondered if summer family camps like this even existed any more. It's such a Catskills throwback. Hence the Dirty Dancing comparison. And, for such a strict rule, punishable by firing, the employees seemed to have lots of down time to flaunt the edict. This will likely not bother the target audience at all. 

Phoebe Strohl's performance was well-paced and she sounded appropriately youthful. Fans of Ms. West's books will not be disappointed. I'm definitely adding this to my school library's collection.

Middle Grade Monday and Audiobook Review: Root Magic by Eden Royce

Image: HarperCollins Publishers

Root Magic by Eden Royce. Unabridged downloadable audiobook. ~594 minutes. Read by Imani Parks. Walden Pond Press/ HarperCollins Publishers, January, 2021. 9780063064416. (Review of e-audiobook borrowed from public library.) 

Middle Grade Monday features Root Magic by Eden Royce. Jezabel Turner lives with her twin brother, Jay, their mother and extended family in South Carolina in 1963. They are burying Jez's beloved grandmother at the opening of this leisurely, lyrical debut novel. Gran was a respected root worker, one whom many members of the community came to for help, but who also garnered suspicion and fear. Jez's uncle, Doc carried the Gullah Geechee tradition of root work and wants to teach it to the twins. Their mother is hesitant, but changes her mind after a racist deputy unlawfully searches their property and threatens violence.

The real dangers of the Jim Crow south and the potential danger of a malevolent presence in the marsh quietly ratchet up the tension as Jez and Jay learn the ways of root. Jez is a thoughtful and charming narrator. Other characters, such as Jay, Doc and her mother brim with energy and life.

Imani Parks' performance matched the measured pace of the narrative well. I enjoyed reading this with my ears. Readers who enjoy intricately crafted suspense will love Root Magic.

Teen Tuesday and Audiobook Review: Realm Breaker by Victoria Aveyard

Image: HarperCollins Publishers

Realm Breaker by Victoria Aveyard. Unabridged e-audiobook. 16.5 hours. Read by Natalie Naudus. HarperAudio/ HarperTeen/ HarperCollins Publishers, May, 2021. 9780063087668.

Teen Tuesday features Realm Breaker by Victoria Aveyard. This is the beginning of a wholly new fantasy series by the author of The Red Queen series.

The realm of Allward is protected from evil and "He who waits" by spindles, which are in turn, protected by humans descended from the Cor bloodline. They are the only ones who can wield a spindleblade. Taristan, bitter at being denied his heritage, has been opening spindles with the help of a wizard. Twelve Companions of the Realm, including Cortael, Taristan's twin meet in a bloody battle in the opening pages of this sweeping fantasy. When Taristan viciously murders his twin, Andry, a squire manages to spirit Cortael's spindleblade away from the battlefield and escapes the massacre. 

Meanwhile, Corayne an-Amarat, daughter of a fierce and feared pirate, wishes for adventures on the sea of her own. She's bitterly disappointed when her mother leaves her behind. It seems that she is the last of the Cor bloodline and learns who her father was from an immortal elder named Dom, who is determined to recover Cortael's spindleblade and train Corayne to closed the spindles her uncle is opening. 

Dom's band of realm defenders is small and ragtag, comprised of a dangerous assassin, Landry, the haunted squire, Corayne, and eventually a sorceress, a forger with a price on his head and a bounty hunter with a grudge.

The world building was a bit vague and multiple points of view occasionally cause confusion. The plot was frequently interrupted by flashbacks that sometimes distracted. Still, the cast of characters were intriguing as were the political machinations. There's banter and occasional humor amidst the suspense of the action with close calls and impossible escapes. 

Sign me up for book two! New-to-me narrator, Natalie Naudus turned in a well-paced performance with voices that were unique.