Tag Archive | growing up

IT’S A WHOLE SPIEL: Love, Latkes, and Other Jewish Stories, edited by Katherine Locke & Laura Silverman (YA book review)

May30
book cover of It's a Whole Spiel: Love, Latkes, and Other Jewish Stories, edited by Katherine Locke & Laura Silverman. Published by Alfred A. Knopf | recommended on BooksYALove.com

Feeling too Jewish or not Jewish enough at school, summer camp, at another family’s Seder dinner, on a Birthright trip to Israel in college…

In this short story collection, young adults embrace, question, and reexamine their Jewish faith as it connects (or doesn’t) to their childhood, their family, their sexual identity, their now, and their future.

Raysh hopes to overcome her fear of drowning (again) in “He Who Revives the Dead”, while Miri’s first meeting with her new boyfriend’s parents is interrupted by an earthquake and “Aftershocks.”

Short stories by Dahlia Adler, Adi Alsaid, David Levithan, Elie Lichtschein, Katherine Locke, Alex London, Goldy Moldavsky, Hannah Moskowitz, Matthue Roth, Lance Rubin, Dana Schwartz, Laura Silverman, Rachel Lynn Solomon, and Nova Ren Suma.

“Judaism is about seeing the world for what it is and being part of a community that is greater than the sum of its parts,” reminds actress Mayim Bialik in the foreword.

Each story in this anthology is one of those parts, a vivid and varied kaleidoscope of experiences, meeting new people, and watching old friends change.

Find the print version or ebook at a library near you with WorldCat.

What part of yourself do you share with a new friend?
**kmm

Book info: It’s a Whole Spiel: Love, Latkes, and Other Jewish Stories / edited by Katherine Locke & Laura Silverman. Alfred A. Knopf / Random House, 2019. [Katherine’s site] [Laura’s site] [publisher site] Personal copy; cover image courtesy of the publisher.

AudioSYNC brings us thieves’ tales – to read with your ears! (audiobook recommendations)

May25

Clever, devious – it’s time for some sneaky stories with this week’s AudioSYNC free audiobooks.

Remember to download either or both audiobooks into your Sora shelf by Wednesday 31 May 2023. All your AudioSYNC downloads are yours to read for 99 years, as long as you keep them on your Sora shelf.

You can sign up for a free Sora account and see the entire AudioSYNC season here.

Let’s see what these scofflaws are up to…

CD cover of Arsene Lupin versus Herlock Sholmes, by Maurice Leblanc | Read by David Timson. Published by Naxos Audiobooks

Arsene Lupin versus Herlock Sholmes (Arsene Lupin, book 2) (free Sora download 5/25-5/31/23)
by Maurice Leblanc | Read by David Timson
Published by Naxos Audiobooks

Gentleman thief Arsene Lupin is the prime suspect in the disappearance of a blue diamond, leading famous English detective Herlock Sholmes and his assistant Wilson to Paris. Can they catch this master of disguise and recover the jewels?

https://www.audiofilemagazine.com/reviews/read/187516/arsene-lupin-versus-herlock-sholmes-by-maurice-leblanc-read-by-david-timson/

swirling lines clipart from http://www.clipartpanda.com/clipart_images/mondays-throughout-the-day-17164159
CD cover of Mask of Shadows, by Linsey Miller | Read by Deryn Edwards. Published by Dreamscape

Mask of Shadows (free Sora download 5/15-5/31/2023)
by Linsey Miller | Read by Deryn Edwards
Published by Dreamscape

Of course, Sal steals that audition poster – they want to be right in the middle of the group auditioning to be one of the queen’s assassins. Not to become a member of the Left Hand – but for revenge!

https://www.audiofilemagazine.com/reviews/read/131498/mask-of-shadows-by-linsey-miller-read-by-deryn-edwards/

What’s your favorite good story about a person choosing to live on the wrong side of the law?
**kmm

divider clipart http://www.clipartpanda.com/clipart_images/mondays-throughout-the-day-17164159

Who’s fighting against ONYEKA & THE ACADEMY OF THE SUN? by Tọlá Okogwu (MG book review)

May24
book cover of Onyeka and the Academy of the Sun, by Tola Okogwu. Published by Margaret K. McElderry Books | recommended on BooksYALove.com

People in their British town look at her in 2025 and just see voluminous hair, not Onyeka the person…

When the middle-schooler saves her best friend from drowning at the swimming pool – with her hair – Mum finally admits that Onyeka is a Solari with psychokinetic superpowers inherited from her missing father, whose enemies chased Mum and Onyeka out of Nigeria.

Her uncontrolled powers are making her dreadfully sick, so back to the world’s tech capital of Lagos they go, so Onyeka can learn how to harness her Ike at the Academy of the Sun, and Mum can search for her father.

The Solari come to the Academy as children and secretly train to use their powers for the good of their country, so Onyeka is already behind her age-mates. Is that why her roommate Adanna is so grumpy at her?

Holographic rooms, AI teachers, physical training so each Solari can master their own type of Ike – Enhancer, Emitter, Transformer, or Psionic – and someday become Protectors. Hassan and Niyi become her friends as she tries to learn fast.

But Onyeka gets sicker every time she uses her Ike, Mum is suddenly out of contact, and Rogues with Ike powers attack the Academy!

Who’s this Dr. Naomi who worked with her father at their research lab?
Has the Academy director taught them honestly about how the Solari came to be?
Will Onyeka survive to her birthday next month?

Fast-paced, heart-stopping adventure in this debut novel, followed by book 2 in the series: Onyeka and the Rise of the Rebels (more info here) on 30 May 2023, same day as the paperback edition of book 1 in the USA.

What superpower would you choose?
**kmm

Book info: Onyeka and the Academy of the Sun (Onyeka, book 1) / Tọlá Okogwu. Margaret K. McElderry Books, hardcover 2022, paperback 2023. [author site] [publisher site] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.

Are they cursed by THE GHOST OF SPRUCE POINT? by Nancy Tandon (MG book review)

May23
book cover of The Ghost of Spruce Point, by Nancy Tendon. Published by Aladdin | recommended on BooksYALove.com

Keeping track of the moon in his journal – check.
Learning to moderate his anxious tendencies – sort of check.

June in their remote Maine coastal village means two things to 12-year-old Parker: best friend Frankie arrives from the city to spend her summer, and tourists come to his family’s inn for relaxation and Mom’s incredible cooking.

Frankie is finally here, but the tourists aren’t. Only grumpy neighbor Mrs. Gruvlig would be pleased to have fewer people on Spruce Point – has she reawakened the curse that brought the sailing ship Westward to wreck upon its rocks long ago?

The whole Kids Confidential Meeting – Parker, little sister Bailey, their cousins from across the bay, and Frankie – brainstorm ways to save the inn, like more advertising and Mom leading cooking classes.

Unceasing rain in usually bright June, dangerous-to-touch moths eating all the oak leaves, road to the inn flooding – it must be a curse!

What are those floating green blobs of light in the cove?
Who (or what) is leaving things in the kids’ treehouse?
Why is there a ghost in Mrs. Gruvlig’s yard?

Maybe the sailors who died in the wreck of the Westward are causing the troubles or maybe it’s closer to home!

What’s your favorite ghost story?
**kmm

Book info: The Ghost of Spruce Point / Nancy Tendon. Aladdin / Simon & Schuster, 2022. [author site] [publisher site] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.

At a new school, THE FIRST THING ABOUT YOU that I noticed… by Chaz Hayden (YA book review)

May10
book cover of The First Thing About You, by Chaz Hayden. Published by Candlewick Press | recommended on BooksYALove.com

Maybe the famous pizza in New Jersey will make up for moving from California for Dad’s work. Big brother Ollie just wants to play his last year of high school lacrosse and get to college.

Harris is determined to be known at his new school as more than “the guy in the powered wheelchair” so he needs a nurse-assistant right now! Having his mom accompany him everywhere (including the cafeteria and bathroom) won’t help the 15 year old blend in.

Enter the lovely Miranda, a nursing student in her final year, who graduated from his high school! She’s comfortable with administering breathing treatments, taking his notes in class, driving their giant van with the lift, and not taking any crap from Harris.

His new pal Zander is a little crazy (in a good way), but Harris still can’t get cute Nory in his honors classes to answer his getting-to-know-you question: what’s your favorite color? She’s quiet at school, but texts him photos of the wonderful Mexican meals that she cooks for her widowed father every evening.

Partnered with Harris for their big physics project, Nory decides they should study his theory of colors and personality = yes, that means time together after school!

Harris decides to sit with the football players at lunch, and his expert analysis of their first game blows them away = yes, more friends!

His first high school party with Nory and Zander = umm, not great. His first live concert with Nory (and Miranda) = really great!

Something terrible happened at school during Miranda’s senior year = she’s not over it yet, is she?

If only navigating relationships was as simple as using the joystick on his wheelchair…

Like Harris, the author was diagnosed with spinal muscular atrophy as a baby, spent way too much time in hospitals, and decided to motor his way through life with friendship and positivity. Read the first chapter here free, courtesy of the publisher.

What’s the first thing that you notice about a new friend?
**kmm

Book info: The First Thing About You / Chaz Hayden. Candlewick Press, 2022. [author site] [publisher site] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.

WITH GREAT POWER: THE MARVELOUS STAN LEE! by Annie Hunter Erickson & Lee Gatlin (Picturebook review)

May9
book cover of With Great Power: The Marvelous Stan Lee: An Unauthorized Biography, by Annie Hunter Erickson; illustrated by Lee Gatlin. Published by Page Street Kids | recommended on BooksYALove.com

Growing up poor in New York City, Stanley Lieber escaped by reading adventure stories and dreamed of writing his own.

He began working at age 16 as an errand boy for Timely Comics magazine and got to write a Captain America story. But he signed it as Stan Lee, saving his real name for the day he would be a “real” writer.

When veteran writers quit Timely, Stan moved up to full-time writer and editor – as a teenager!

For two decades, he wrote story after story of predictable, perfect heroes as the company grew and became Marvel Comics. So boring.

His wife suggested that he write the superhero story that he’d want to read. So Stan teamed up with artist Jack Kirby, and they created the flawed yet Fantastic Four – a huge hit with comics readers!

What next? Reflecting on his own childhood, Stan invented a lonely, geeky, science-loving hero – the Amazing Spider-Man, drawn by Steve Ditko – an even bigger hit with readers!

Finally, the Marvel Comics’ bosses decided that Stan should make a series of unconventional superheroes, and the Marvel Comics Universe was born.

Continuing with Stan’s move to Hollywood as his superheroes became movie stars, this lively picturebook includes great background information. You can find free activity sheets here, courtesy of the publisher.

Who’s your favorite Marvel superhero?
**kmm

Book info: With Great Power: The Marvelous Stan Lee: An Unauthorized Biography / Annie Hunter Erickson; illustrated by Lee Gatlin. Page Street Kids, 2021. [author interview] [artist site] [publisher site] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.

Z is for Zahra and THE LOVE MATCH: who to choose? by Priyanka Taslim (YA book review) #A2Z

Apr30
book cover of The Love Match, by Priyanka Taslim. Published by Salaam Reads | recommended on BooksYALove.com

Zahra, her widowed mother, grandmother, and little sister and brother are squeezed into a tiny city apartment, thankfully in the largest Bangladeshi community in the US.

Every Muslim deshi auntie in Paterson joins her mom in trying to set up Zahra with the right young man. Everyone knows that marrying into a rich family will solve every problem, as the popular Bengali natok dramas show through music and extravagant dances.

But the recent grad wants true love, like a Jane Austen novel – someone who adores her for herself, not for her auspicious social connections to Bangladeshi royalty or her mother’s amazing dressmaking skills.

Enough that Zahra has to work for a year to support her family while her besties head away to college. For now, she’ll keep drafting her novel, and someday she’ll finally study creative writing at Columbia University, someday…

Oh dear! Amma agrees with the wealthy Emon family that their son Harun and Zahra are a perfect match!! The 18 year olds decide quickly that they’re not suited for each other, but will go on several dates (with chaperones) to make their parents happy.

Meanwhile, every shift working together at the Pakistani chai shop brings Zahra and cute Nayim closer. He’s just arrived here in New Jersey, is staying with the imam, and loves music (more fun than Harun’s model-building and bearded dragon).

It is nice to be friends with Harun, even if there’s no spark between them. It’s lovely to be with Nayim at the deshi community picnic, even though he won’t discuss his family back home. It’s hard to watch her best friends excitedly prepare to move away for college, so hard.

Nayim or Harun?
Fairy tale or practicality?
Secrets?! More secrets?!

Trying to balance family expectations with her own dreams makes Zahra wonder if this summer will be a happy Dhallywood natok or a tragic one!

What’s your favorite literary love match?
**kmm

Book info: The Love Match / Priyanka Taslim. Salaam Reads/ Simon & Schuster, 2023. [author site] [author interview] [publisher site] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.

Y = Time loop? Time warp? SEE YOU YESTERDAY, by Rachel Lynn Solomon (YA book review) #A2Z

Apr29
book cover of See You Yesterday, by Rachel Lynn Solomon. Published by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers | recommended on BooksYALove.com

Just great – her high school nemesis is her new college roommate, and a guy in Physics volunteers her to answer a basic question that she doesn’t know.

Investigative reporting that turned Barrett’s whole high school against her isn’t good enough for the campus newspaper – full stop on her career plans.

Don’t even ask why she’s tagged in every photo of a frat house fire… worst Wednesday ever!

The next morning she wakes up to… Lucie moving in again? The first day of Physics and rude Asian guy and humiliating interview again? What is going on?!?

Somehow, she and Miles (the Japanese guy) are both stuck in a time loop – and he’s been repeating this same day for two months!

As they try over and over again to escape this not-great day, the teens discover commonalities (their Jewish heritage, wanting to tell stories that matter, love of classic movies) and differences (his parents are professors, her mom and soon-to-be stepmom run a stationery shop, she’s fat and he’s not).

Doing good deeds, skipping class, asking a retired professor about theoretical time travel – what’s going to break this cycle?

Or do they want to stay in this one September day forever, together?

Another love story set in Seattle by the author of Today Tonight Tomorrow (I recommended here) and We Can’t Keep Meeting Like This (see more here).

What day in your life would you want to experience on repeat?
**kmm

Book info: See You Yesterday / Rachel Lynn Solomon. Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2022. [author site] [publisher site] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.

X is for EXACTLY WHERE YOU NEED TO BE, a road trip to remember! by Amelia Diane Coombs (YA book review) #A2Z

Apr28
book cover of Exactly Where You Need to Be, by Amelia Diane Coombs. Published by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers | recommended on BooksYALove.com

A few weeks of summer left,
then her BFF leaves for college –
better make the most of it!

The only good thing about junior year was becoming friends with Kasey, who loves true crime as much as Florie does. But after too many anxiety attacks at school, Mom insisted on Florie homeschooling online.

So senior year is over – no prom, no ceremony, no amazing memories, just continuing work with an OCD counselor in their small town north of Seattle.

Kasey is heading to college in Portland soon, so it’ll be just Florie here “on a gap year” as her guidance counselor recommends – doing what? Sigh.

Spending a week together at the beach cottage with Kasey’s family is a highlight of the friends’ summer, but maybe it’s time for something new – a road trip!?

Their favorite true-crime podcasters are appearing live in San Francisco, and the teens have won VIP backstage passes to meet them!

Now all they have to do is find a way to get there during beach week – without Florie’s too-controlling Mom discovering their plans.

Hey, Sam… Kasey’s big brother is home from college and willing to drive them 800 miles to the show. But Kasey doesn’t know about Florie’s longtime crush on Sam and how Sam kissed her at the winter party, then never contacted her all spring…

Anti-anxiety medicine packed? Check.
Kasey & Florie’s Wild and Super-Cool BFF Road Trip Bucket List? Ready!
Many, many hours in the same car as Sam? Florie is not ready…

An epic, silly, very long road trip to see fascinating people that Florie and Kasey adore – what could be better? What could go wrong? Uh-oh…

By the author of Between You and Me and the Honeybees, recommended here.

When have you ventured to try something that others thought you couldn’t do?
**kmm

Book info: Exactly Where You Need to Be / Amelia Diane Coombs. Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2022. [author site] [publisher site] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.

T is THE TRYOUT for middle school cheerleader – yikes! by Christina Soontornvat and Joanna Cacao (MG Graphic Novel review) #A2Z

Apr24
book cover of The Tryout, by Christina Soontornvat; art by Joanna Cacao. Published by Graphix / Scholastic | recommended on BooksYALove.com

Last name mispronounced by every teacher? Check.
Being called every Asian nationality except Thai? Check.
Getting teased for not knowing the right clothes to wear. Check.

In elementary school, Christina wasn’t happy about moving from Dallas to a smaller Texas town so her Thai dad and white mom could open a Thai-Chinese restaurant.

The only Asian kid in town, she was delighted to become best friends with Megan, whose father had emigrated from Iran.

Then they get to middle school, where popular kids get by with everything, including racist remarks.

Most popular of all are the cheerleaders, so Christina and Megan decide to try out!

Oh, Megan isn’t her partner?
Oh, the finalists will be voted on by the entire 7th grade?!
Oh, this is scarier than roller coasters!!

Based on the author’s real-life experiences as a Thai American kid in a small Texas town, this great graphic novel shows us that your best efforts are more important than winning every contest.

What middle school memory stands out most for you?
**kmm

Book info: The Tryout / Christina Soontornvat; art by Joanna Cacao. Graphix / Scholastic, 2022. [author site] [illustrator site] [publisher site] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.