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!

Middle Grade Monday: Sal & Gabi Break the Universe by Carlos Hernandez

Image: Disney Books

Sal & Gabi Break the Universe by Carlos Hernandez. 400 p. Rick Riordan Presents/ Disney Books, March, 2019. 

Happy Monday! I'm sorry my students' Monday is a rainy one. They have off so that we teachers can have a professional day. Hopefully, they have some great books to curl up with. 

Middle Grade Monday features Sal & Gabi Break the Universe by Carlos Hernandez. This sci-fi adventure was Mr. Hernandez's debut and published in 2019. It won the 2020 Pura Belpré Award as well.

Thirteen-year-old Sal Vidón has diabetes and is an aspiring magician who also has the ability to reach into the space-time continuum and bring back objects and people, most notably, his dead mother, who is not dead in other universes. He also likes to play pranks, which is not endearing him to the teachers at his new school, nor Gabi Réal, student council president and reporter for the school newspaper. She aims to prove it was Sal who put the bloody chicken in her friend's locker.

This fast-paced adventure is laugh-out-loud funny, but there are moments of touching poignancy that deepen the connection to these two characters.

Sal & Gabi Break the Universe is book one of a planned series. Sal & Gabi Fix the Universe was published in 2020. 

Waiting on Wednesday: Tristan Strong Keeps Punching by Kwame Mbalia

Image: Rick Riordan Presents

Tristan Strong Keeps Punching by Kwame Mbalia. Tristan Strong series #3. 320 p. Rick Riordan Presents/ Disney Press, October 5, 2021. 9781368054874.

Waiting on Wednesday features Tristan Strong Keeps Punching by Kwame Mbalia. I am so excited for book three of this thrilling series based on West African mythology and African American folklore. Click here for my review of Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky and click here for Tristan Strong Destroys the World. The website, Rick Riordan Presents had a cover reveal last month. 

Here's the publisher synopsis: Best-selling author Rick Riordan presents the finale of Kwame Mbalia’s trilogy, in which Tristan Strong faces off with his archenemy, King Cotton, once and for all. After reuniting with Ayanna, who is now in his world, Tristan travels up the Mississippi in pursuit of his archenemy, King Cotton. Along the way they encounter new haints who are dead set on preventing their progress north to Tristan’s hometown of Chicago. It’s going to take many Alkean friends, including the gods themselves, the black flames of the afokena gloves, and all of Tristan’s inner strength to deliver justice once and for all. Shocking twists, glorious triumphs, and a cast of unforgettable characters make this series conclusion as satisfying as it is entertaining.

Waiting on Wednesday and e-Arc Review: City of the Plague God by Sarwat Chadda

Image: Disney

City of the Plague God by Sarwat Chadda. 400 p. Rick Riordan Presents/ Disney, January 12, 2021. 9781368051507. (Review of e-arc courtesy of publisher.)

Waiting on Wednesday features City of the Plague God by Sarwat Chadda. I had this on the schedule for a "Waiting" post for awhile. I am a huge fan of the author's Ash Mistry trilogy as well the author's Shadow Magic trilogy (I can't believe I didn't blog about them!) written under the name, Joshua Khan, so when I saw the cover reveal for City of the Plague God some months back, I scheduled the post. Then, I won an e-arc from Disney! This means I got to read it electronically instead of receiving a physical arc, which I could then give away to a student. #pandemic.

Thirteen-year-old Sikander Aziz is cleaning up the family's Manhattan deli after a busy day. He's wishing his "cousin" Daoud would help more and missing his brother, Mo, who was killed in an accident in Iran while doing relief work. Sik hears a noise in the alley behind the store and when he goes to investigate, comes face to face with two of the vilest creatures he has ever encountered and a huge one-eyed cat. It seems "Ratty" and "Toady" are the god, Nergal's minions. Nergal wants something that Mo sent home. They tear the deli apart looking for whatever that was. He's saved from being torn limb from limb by a scimatar-wielding girl dressed in black who dispatches the invaders but not before they inform Sik that they aren't finished with him and his family. Soon, his parents are in comas and quarantined with a mysterious disease and Manhattan is being overrun with pests of epic proportions.

Wow! Fasten your seatbelts and grab a barf bag! This adventure, based on Mespotamian mythology is fast-paced and gloriously gross! Our narrator, Sik, is appealing and snarky but also earnest and devoted to his family. While the emphasis is on the adventure, Sik does deal with micro-aggressions and Islamophobia on a regular basis. The bond Sik shares with his deceased brother Mo is complicated and surprisingly touching. While this had the feel of a series beginner, the adventure had a conclusion and is a stand-alone. That said, I absolutely would not mind visiting Sik and his family and friends again. Maybe with a little less pus and pestilence;-)

City of the Plague God will release in January of 2021. Mark your calendars! I hope there's an audio because I would love to reread this with my ears! Last thing, isn't that a fantastic cover?

Waiting on Wednesday: Aru Shah and the City of Gold by Roshani Choksi

Image: RickRiordan

Waiting on Wednesday features Aru Shah and the City of Gold by Roshani Choksi. This fourth book in the Pandava Quintet does not release until April of 2021; but that gives you all plenty of time to read the first three books! If you loved Rick Riordan's mythology-based adventures, you will love Aru Shah. She's more than just a middle school student from Parsippany, NJ, she's a Pandava sister and princess. 

There's not much out there in the way of a synopsis. Rick Riordan just revealed the cover on his website last week. While you're waiting, you can browse all the other great titles published under his imprint at Disney, Rick Riordan Presents, quite a few of which have been highlighted here.

Waiting on Wednesday: City of the Plague God by Sarwat Chadda

Image: Rick Riordan Presents/ Disney

City of the Plague God by Sarwat Chadda. Rick Riordan Presents/ Disney, January, 2021!

I am a huge fan of Sarwat Chadda's Ash Mistry trilogy. I also loved his Shadow Magic Trilogy, written under the name, Joshua Khan. When I spied an announcement by the author on social media awhile back, I threw the title on my spreadsheet and waited for more information. Since we are home for at least two weeks doing virtual schooling, I figured now was a good time to highlight this title, even though we have to wait awhile for it!

Publisher synopsis: Inspired by Mesopotamian mythology, the story follows Sikander Aziz, a Muslim boy born and raised in New York City, as he teams up with legendary hero Gilgamesh to defeat the ancient god of plagues before the entire population of Manhattan is wiped out.

While you're waiting for what promises to be a rip-roaring adventure, why don't you check out The Savage Fortress or Shadow Magic.