Middle Grade Monday: Break by Kayla Miller

Image: HarperCollins Publishers.

Break by Kayla Miller. Click series #6. 224 p. Clarion Books/ HarperCollins Publishers, January, 2024. 9780358414229. Review of finished copy borrowed from public library.

Well, Readers, it has been another minute since I posted, and I am sorry. I have been in a bit of a reading slump. Reading slumps can stem from a variety of reasons. Sometimes, you just can't find the right book. Sometimes, you're just too busy doing other things. And sometimes, like me, it is health issues that affect your ability for focus. Whatever the case, it's important to be kind to yourself. You will find your next favorite book.

Middle Grade Monday features Break by Kayla Miller. This is the sixth book in the popular "Click" series. While Break can be read as a stand-alone, fans of the series have been following Olive's growth and will appreciate what she has accomplished here.

Olive is looking forward to spending her spring break doing all kinds of activities with her friends, from binging movies to marathon sleepovers. All of her plans are dashed when she learns that she and her brother, Goober will be spending break in the city with her dad, who recently moved back from New Zealand. Olive has not yet forgiven her dad for leaving the family and moving halfway across the world, so her feelings are complicated. Goober, of course, is all-in.

As in all of Ms. Miller's graphic novels, she creates relateable characters with relateable problems. The palette is muted yet colorful and there's an energy about the art that keeps readers engaged. Utterly charming.

Teen Tuesday and Audiobook Review: Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo

Image: HarperCollins Publishers

Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo. Unabridged e-audiobook, ~ 5 hours, 33 minutes. Read by the author and Melania Luisa Marte. Quill Tree Books, May, 2020. 9780063011816. (Review of e-audio downloaded from the public library.) 

Teen Tuesday may ring a bell to followers of The Daily Booktalk. I featured it last spring when I reviewed the arc. I recently learned that the author was one of the two narrators of the audiobook and decided to reread the book with my ears since I am such a fan of her narrations, not just of her poetry, but also of prose books, such as Pride by Ibi Zoboi.

This verse novel is a dual narrative. Yahaira lives in New York City with her papi and mami. Until the previous year, she was a chess champion. She stopped playing abruptly when she discovered Papi's secret. She's stubborn and fierce.

Camino lives in the Dominican Republic with her tia. Her mother died ten years ago and her father only visits from June to September. He pays for her private school, but she'd really like for him to bring her to the United States so that she can pursue her dreams of attending Columbia University as a pre-med. These are dashed forever when she learns that he has been killed in a plane crash while en route to the DR. 

Two girls, one father, one secret exposed. 

This intense read comes to brilliant life in the hands of the narrators who play their respective roles to a T. I already knew what was going to happen and still was completely enthralled. Read Clap When You Land with your eyes or with your ears. Just read it. 

The Odyssey Committee agrees. Clap When You Land garnered an Odyssey Honor yesterday morning. 

ARC Review: Rita & Ralph's Rotten Day by Carmen Agra Deedy

Image: Scholastic Inc.

Rita & Ralph's Rotten Day by Carmen Agra Deedy. Illustrated by Pete Oswald. unpgd. Scholastic Press/ Scholastic Inc., March, 2020. 9781338599275. (Review of arc courtesy of publisher, ALAMW)

Oh dear. This review is terribly late. I know. I'm sorry. I had the privilege of hearing the author read her book at a Scholastic luncheon at Midwinter. It was a witty and wonderful experience. Carmen Agra Deedy is a terrific storyteller. Rereading the arc afterward made me pine for my days as a K - 8 librarian. Nothing beats a class of kids leaning in on every word of a story. 

Rita and Ralph are best friends. They live in two little houses on two little hills and each day they meet in the middle, do their secret handshake and play. Until one day, the play gets out of hand when they think playing at throwing sticks is a fun idea. Ouch. When Ralph hurts Rita he's horrified but the apology doesn't come quick enough and Rita is hurt and mad. Each attempt at apology ends in more mad feelings. Until they sleep on it and wake up refreshed and determined to make amends. 

Friends make mistakes. Friends fight. Friends forgive. This book, with its unusual trim size and zippy illustrations, is sure to become a read aloud favorite. Teachers looking for books to support Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) will love this. Not only is the story absolutely relatable, but it is also participatory if you take the time to teach your students the hand movements (helpfully provided by the author at the end of the book). Then, you have the opportunity to also develop eye-hand coordination as well as a ton of giggly fun. 

Here's a fantastic video the author created to help parents during this pandemic. Do buy the book. You won't be sorry. 

Teen Tuesday and Arc Review: Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo

Image: HarperCollins Publishers

Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo.424 p. HarperTeen/ HarperCollins Publishers, May 5, 2020. 9780062882783. (Review of arc courtesy of publisher, ALAMW.) 

Elizabeth Acevedo returns to verse form for her third novel and it's intense! Camino Rios lives in the Dominican Republic and sees her beloved father only during the summers. Yahaira Rios lives in New York City and misses her father terribly when he leaves each summer to visit the DR. Camino arrives at the airport to greet her dad to find crying people at the airport. Her father's plane crashed. Yahaira is called out of class and told by her mother that her father died in a plane crash. Two girls, two countries, one father. A secret exposed.

This dual narrative switches between Camino and Yahaira as they grieve and eventually learn of the other's existence. While Camino's dad sends enough money to provide tuition to a private school and some comforts for her and her Tia, she still lives in a poor neighborhood where girls often become prey to sexual predators. Her father has been paying off El Cero to leave her alone. Now that he's gone, not only are her hopes to attend Columbia as a pre-med gone, but she's not sure she can escape El Cero's plans for her.

Yahaira's situation is more stable with two working parents. Her life in Morningside Heights is comfortable. She has a girlfriend and was a rising star in the chess community until she abruptly quit a year earlier after discovering part of her father's secret. 

Don't let the page count intimidate you. Both girls' voices grab from the beginning. This is an intense read with a lot of heartbreak along the way to healing and hope. If you have Acevedo fans among your students, this is an absolute must read. If you haven't yet read anything by her, certainly start here. 

Lost in the Sun by Lisa Graff

Lost in the Sun by Lisa Graff. 298 p. Philomel Books/ Penguin Young Readers Group (USA), May 26, 2015. 9780399164064. (Arc courtesy of the publisher)

I have occasionally wondered, usually in response to a news article, how one learns to live with oneself after accidentally killing another. I can't imagine it and I'm an adult, supposedly with a lifetime of coping skills. Lisa Graff revisits the tragedy from Umbrella Summer. In Lost in the Sun, we learn how Trent deals with the aftermath of being the one responsible for killing his friend. 

Understandably, the twelve-year-old is consumed with guilt, has withdrawn from family and friends, and suffers panic attacks when faced with trying to play any sport. Although he saw a counselor for a while in the beginning, he no longer does. He has continued to follow her advice to keep a journal but finds himself filled with rage that erupts in frightening ways. He's raging at his father, his new homeroom teacher and his gym teacher, who happens to be his ex-best friend's uncle and coach of the intra-mural baseball team. Luckily, he is close with his brothers and his mother, with whom he shares a passion for the Dodgers. But even they are at a loss as to help Travis. It seems he has also snagged the attention of Fallon, a girl who dresses a bit oddly and has a mysterious scar. She has every intention of making Travis her friend and he reluctantly goes along.

Trent's voice is immediately engaging. Trent's a likable kid who has walled himself off from the world and trying to find a way out. His guilt and rage are palpable. He's in pain and the people around him who love him can do nothing to ease it because there is no timetable with grief. Only he can forgive himself. So they wait. But now, as the rage boils over, he's in danger of hurting himself and others.

Graff tackles the unimaginable and makes the subject manageable. Students who read this unflinching portrayal of grief and forgiveness will walk away changed. I can't recommend this one enough.