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The Kids Are All Right

Favorite Chapter Books of 2017

Hi Kid Lit friends,

I have a real love for chapter books. If you’re unfamiliar with the term, these are the transition books for when children begin to read more independently and develop the reading skills to read more complex and longer books (generally geared for kids ages five to nine). As their name implies, chapter books are broken into chapters. Compared to conventional middle grade books, the words in chapter books are generally printed larger and with more space in between the lines. Chapter books also contain illustrations. These are bridge books before kids move on to reading middle grade books.

SUPERFAIL by Max Brunner, illustrated by Dustin Mackay

Laser vision isn’t so hot when you’re cross-eyed. Just ask Marshall Preston, a twelve-year-old with superhuman abilities that are restricted by some very human setbacks. While other kids are recruited to superhero teams, Marshall’s stuck with a team of young Defectives: super speedy but can’t turn corners, radioactive Hulk allergies, and supersonic flight hindered by motion sickness. They aren’t exactly superhero material, but when Marshall uncovers a plot to destroy one of the greatest superhero teams of all time, he and his less-than-super friends set out to prove that just because you’re defective doesn’t mean you can’t save the day.

I adore chapter books because I see kids get so excited about reading more independently. There are so many new, wonderful chapter books out this year, so I thought I would gather up my favorites. (All descriptions from the publishers.)

Jasmine Toguchi: Mochi Queen by Debbi Michiko Florence, illustrated by Elizabet Vukovic
Eight-year-old Jasmine Toguchi is a flamingo fan, tree climber, and top-notch mess-maker! She’s also tired of her big sister, Sophie, always getting to do things first. For once, Jasmine wishes SHE could do something before Sophie―something special, something different. The New Year approaches, and as the Toguchi family gathers in Los Angeles to celebrate, Jasmine is jealous that her sister gets to help roll mochi balls by hand with the women. Her mom says that Jasmine is still too young to join in, so she hatches a plan to help the men pound the mochi rice instead. Surely her sister has never done THAT before. But pounding mochi is traditionally reserved for boys. And the mochi hammer is heavier than it looks. Can Jasmine build her case and her mochi-making muscles in time for New Year’s Day?
More books in the series:
Jasmine Toguchi, Super Sleuth
Jasmine Toguchi, Drummer Girl (April 3, 2018, Farrar, Straus and Giroux)
Jasmine Toguchi, Flamingo Keeper (July 3, 2018, Farrar, Straus and Giroux)

The Infamous Ratsos by Kara LaReau, illustrated by Matt Myers
Louie and Ralphie Ratso’s dad, Big Lou, always says that there are two kinds of people: those who are tough and those who are soft. Louie and Ralphie are tough, tough, tough, just like Big Lou, and they’re going to prove it. But every time they try to show just how tough they are, the Ratso brothers end up accidentally doing good deeds instead. What’ll Big Lou do when he finds out they’ve been acting like softies all over the Big City? Perfect for emerging and reluctant readers, this clever and surprisingly warmhearted chapter book shows that being tough all the time can be really tough.
More books in the series:
The Infamous Ratsos Are Not Afraid

Lola Levine Meets Jelly and Bean by Monica Brown, illustrated by Angela Dominguez
The Levines are finally getting a pet–a furry one that is. They are excited about adopting a kitty they name Jelly, but they don’t get very far in the process when Ben starts sneezing. Oh no, he’s allergic! Lola is devastated and sets out to find Jelly a good home. Luckily, Lola is rewarded with a very happy (and still furry) ending!
More books in the series:
Lola Levine is Not Mean!
Lola Levine, Drama Queen
Lola Levine and the Ballet Scheme
Lola Levine and the Vacation Dream
Lola Levine and the Halloween Scream

Jada Jones: Rock Star by Kelly Starling Lyons
When Jada Jones’s best friend moves away, school feels like the last place she wants to be. She’d much rather wander outside looking for cool rocks to add to her collection, since finding rocks is much easier than finding friends. So when Jada’s teacher announces a class project on rocks and minerals, Jada finally feels like she’s in her element. The only problem: one of her teammates doesn’t seem to like any of Jada’s ideas. She doesn’t seem to like Jada all that much, either. Can Jada figure out a way to make a winning science project and a new friend?
Other books in the series:
Jada Jones: Class Act

The Magnificent Mya Tibbs: Spirit Week Showdown by Crystal Allen, illustrated by Eda Kaban
Nine-year-old cowgirl Mya Tibbs is boot-scootin’ excited for the best week of the whole school year—SPIRIT WEEK! She and her megapopular best friend Naomi Jackson even made a pinky promise to be Spirit Week partners so they can win the big prize: special VIP tickets to the Fall Festival. But when the partner-picking goes horribly wrong, Mya gets paired with Mean Connie Tate—the biggest bully in school. And she can’t get out of it. Good gravy!

Cilla Lee-Jenkins: Future Author Extraordinaire by Susan Tan, illustrated by Dana Wulfekotte
Priscilla “Cilla” Lee-Jenkins is on a tight deadline. Her baby sister is about to be born, and Cilla needs to become a bestselling author before her family forgets all about her. So she writes about what she knows best―herself! Stories from her bestselling memoir, Cilla Lee-Jenkins: Future Author Extraordinaire,include:
– How she dealt with being bald until she was five
– How she overcame her struggles with reading
– How family traditions with her Grandma and Grandpa Jenkins and her Chinese grandparents, Nai Nai and Ye Ye, are so different
Other books in the series:
Cilla Lee-Jenkins: This Book is a Classic! (March 27, 2018, Roaring Brook Press)

Who Gives a Hoot? Calupurnia Tate, Girl Vet by Jacqueline Kelly
Out in their boat exploring the San Marcos River, Callie and Granddaddy see all kinds of nature―fish, mockingbirds, ammonites, and more. But when Callie spots an owl in the water, she knows it’s in trouble. With quick thinking and quick action, she and Granddaddy bring the bird aboard―but will they be able to save its life?
More books in the series:
Skunked! Calpurnia Tate, Girl Vet
Counting Sheep: Calupurnia Tate, Girl Vet
A Prickly Problem: Calpurnia Tate, Girl Vet (April 10, 2018, Henry Holt and Co.)

Cody and the Rules of Life by Tricia Springstubb, illustrated by Eliza Wheeler
In Cody’s life, many things are hard to predict. Like why her older brother, Wyatt, is obsessed with his new bicycle called the Cobra, or why her best friend Pearl suddenly wants to trade favorite toys. Pearl says she will trust Cody with Arctic Fox because Cody is a trusty person. But Cody doesn’t want to give up her beloved Gremlin, and she regrets it as soon as she hands him over. When the Cobra goes missing, Cody has to decide for herself who is trusty and who is not. If only she had Gremlin to talk to! Surely Pearl wouldn’t mind if she secretly traded back . . . it’s not stealing if it belonged to you in the first place, right?
Other books in the series:
Cody and the Fountain of Happiness
Cody and the Mysteries of the Universe

A Boy Called Bat by Elana K. Arnold
For Bixby Alexander Tam (nicknamed Bat), life tends to be full of surprises—some of them good, some not so good. Today, though, is a good-surprise day. Bat’s mom, a veterinarian, has brought home a baby skunk, which she needs to take care of until she can hand him over to a wild-animal shelter. But the minute Bat meets the kit, he knows they belong together. And he’s got one month to show his mom that a baby skunk might just make a pretty terrific pet.
Other book in the series:
Bat and the Waiting Game (March 27, 2018, Walden Pond Press)

Dory Fantasmagory: Dory Dory Black Sheep by Abby Hanlon
Ever since Dory met Rosabelle, a real true friend whose imagination and high spirits match her own, school has been pretty good. But now the class is learning to read, and it’s proving to be a challenge for Dory. While Rosabelle can read chapter books in her head, Dory is stuck with baby books about a happy little farm. Dory wishes for a potion to turn her into a reader but things don’t go as planned. Suddenly, a naughty little girl who looks an awful lot like Dory’s imaginary nemesis, Mrs. Gobble Gracker, shows up. And a black sheep leaves the pages of the farm book to follow Dory to school. It really needs her help–this seems like a job for a superhero! And it would help if she knew how to read.
Other books in the series:
Dory Fantasmagory
Dory Fantasmagory: The Real True Friend
Dory Fantasmagory: Head in the Clouds

Freddie Ramos Rules New York by Jacqueline Jules
Freddie and his mom are visiting Uncle Jorge in New York City! Just before they leave, Mr. Vaslov gives Freddie a new pair of zapatos to replace the ones that were getting too small. But Freddie worries if his new zapatos will work as well as his old ones. Will Freddie be able to save the day when Uncle Jorge misplaces an engagement ring in the middle of a New York City traffic jam?

 

New Releases! These all come out this Tuesday!

The Boy and the Whale by Mordicai Gerstein
A boy and his father discover a whale tangled in their only fishing net. Is the whale dead? While the man worries about losing their net, the boy worries about the whale. He remembers the fear he felt when, caught in a net himself in childhood, he almost drowned before being rescued by his father. When the whale blinks an enormous eye, the boy knows that he has to try to save the creature, no matter how dangerous doing so may be.

Dream Big Dreams by Pete Souza
Pete Souza served as Chief Official White House Photographer for President Obama’s full two terms. He was with the President during more crucial moments than anyone else – and he photographed them all, capturing scenes both classified and candid. Throughout his historic presidency, Obama engaged with young people as often as he could, encouraging them to be their best and do their best and to always “dream big dreams.” In this timeless and timbnely keepsake volume that features over seventy-five full-color photographs, Souza shows the qualities of President Obama that make him both a great leader and an extraordinary man. With behind-the-scenes anecdotes of some iconic photos alongside photos with his family, colleagues, and other world leaders, Souza tells the story of a president who made history and still made time to engage with even the youngest citizens of the country he served.

Brotherband: the Caldera by John Flanagan
In Hallasholm, Stig is contesting the annual Maktig competition to decide Skandia’s greatest warrior. But a late-night knock on the door brings someone Stig never expected to see again, along with a request the Herons are hard-pressed to refuse: a rescue mission of epic proportions. Across the ocean, the southern city-state of Byzantos is plagued by a crew of pirates who’ve kidnapped the son of Empress Justina. Slipping out of Hallasholm under the cover of darkness, the brotherband sets sail to recover the boy from his kidnappers, heading south to the island of Santorillos where a near-impenetrable fortress stands atop a cliff, surrounded by a lagoon—a caldera—formed by the crater of a volcano.

 

So many awesome books are showing up at my doorstep! I’m very excited for Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History by Vashti Harrison (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 12/5/17) to come out in a couple of weeks. The debut title in Rick Riordan’s new imprint with Disney is Aru Shah and the End of Time by Roshani Chokshi (Rick Riordan Presents, 3/27/18). I can already tell readers are going to love this Hindu-inspired fantasy story. And finally, Still Stuck by Shinsuke Yoshitake is a sweet and funny kid who gets stuck in his shirt. We’ve all been there!

Did you see the winner of the National Book Award for Young People’s Literature? The one middle grade book finalist, Clayton Byrd Goes Underground by Rita Williams-Garcia, didn’t win, but the Young Adult book (written for teenagers and older) Far From the Tree by Robin Benway did.

Have you entered to win the $500 independent bookstore gift certificate giveaway yet? Enter to win using this link (contest open until November 26th)!

That is it for me this week! I’d love to know what you are reading this week! Find me on Twitter at @KarinaYanGlaser, on Instagram at @KarinaIsReadingAndWriting, or email me at karina@bookriot.com.

Until next week,
Karina

Izzy wishes you a lovely week of reading!

*If this e-mail was forwarded to you, follow this link to subscribe to “The Kids Are All Right” newsletter and other fabulous Book Riot newsletters for your own customized e-mail delivery. Thank you!*

 

Categories
The Goods

Free Shipping on All US Orders

Don’t be a turkey! Start your holiday shopping early, and get free shipping all US orders this weekend.


And don’t forget! There are just 2 days left to order our limited-edition Season’s Readings sweatshirt.

Categories
Today In Books

FANTASTIC BEASTS Sequel Cast Photo Reveal: Today in Books

Fantastic Beasts Sequel Cast Photo Reveal

We got a photo reveal! Warner Bros. also revealed the sequel’s official title–Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald. The first cast photo gives us a look at Jude Law as young Dumbledore and Johnny Depp as Gellert Grindelwald. See the full cast, a close-up of Law and Depp, and even a moving picture because why not? Unless you’d rather be surprised, you can find newly released plot details after the photos in the Entertainment Weekly piece.

Google Doodle Honors Chinua Achebe

Google honored Chinua Achebe with a Google Doodle today, on what would have been the author’s 87th birthday. Achebe passed away in 2013, leaving behind an enduring literary legacy. Published in 50 languages, his 1958 novel Things Fall Apart follows a Nigerian village chief negatively impacted by British colonialism and Christian missionaries. Achebe won the 2007 Man Booker International Prize for fiction.

George Clooney Will Star In And Direct Catch-22 TV Series

George Clooney will star in and direct a six-episode series based on Joseph Heller’s Catch-22. The 1961 novel is set during World War II, and follows the life of Captain John Yossarian, a bombardier. Clooney will play Colonel Cathcart, Yossarian’s commander and enemy. The series will tentatively start shooting early 2018.

Thank you to The Nothing by Hanif Kureishi for sponsoring today’s newsletter.

From the author of The Buddha of Suburbia comes his new book, a novella of passion, revenge, and deception. Waldo, a fêted filmmaker, is confined by old age and ill health to his London apartment. Frail and frustrated, he is cared for by his lovely younger wife, Zee. But when he suspects that Zee is beginning an affair with Eddie, “more than an acquaintance and less than a friend for over thirty years,” Waldo is pressed to action: determined to expose the couple, he sets himself first to prove his suspicions correct – and then to enact his revenge.

Categories
True Story

8 Great True Stories by Women Out in November

On Wednesday, Masha Gessen’s The Future Is History: How Totalitarianism Reclaimed Russia won the National Book Award for Nonfiction, taking the top prize in a category full of political heavy-hitters.

In the spirit of that win, I decided to focus this month’s new books list specifically on true stories written by women that have been published or will be out soon.

We’re giving away $500 to spend at the bookstore of your choice! Click here, or on the image below to enter:

Spineless by Juli Berwald – I love nonfiction about strange science, so of course a book about jellyfish and climate change was going to make my list. I’ve read a few chapters of this one already and it’s a lot of fun. Berwald’s approach reminds me a bit of Mary Roach, which I like.

The Wine Lover’s Daughter by Anne Fadiman – In this memoir, Fadiman explores her relationship with her father, Clifton, “a renowned literary critic, editor, and radio host whose greatest love was wine.” Fadiman is one of my favorite writers, and I love wine, so I think this book will be right up my alley.

Buzz: The Stimulating History of the Sex Toy by Hallie Lieberman – This is another book that reminds me a bit of Mary Roach. In Buzz, Lieberman offers a history of sex toys and explores how they went from taboo to socially acceptable. Plus, that cover is just A++

Queen Victoria’s Matchmaking by Deborah Cadbury – One of the things that intrigues me about Queen Victoria is the way she struggled to find what we’d now call work-life balance. As she aged, Victoria’s attention turned to marrying off her more than 30 grandchildren to guarantee matches with other powerful European royalty. But of course her grandchildren had plans of their own, pitting Victoria’s feelings as a grandmother with her obligations as a queen.

The Last Girl by Nadia Murad – In this memoir, Murad recounts the ISIS attack that massacred her village, her period as a slave to Islamic State fighters, and her eventual escape with the help of a family in Mosul. Her story is “a call to action, a testament to the human will to survive, and a love letter to a lost country, a fragile community, and a family torn apart by war.”

The Extra Woman by Joanna Scutts – Attitudes about single women are still pretty backwards, but for a period in the 1930s singledom was considered pretty glamorous. Scutts revisits that period to tell the story of Marjorie Hillis and the single women in the city that she inspired.

Mean by Myriam Gurba – Part true crime, part memoir, and part ghost story, this book is the story of Gurba’s “coming of age as a queer, mixed-race Chicana.”

The Newcomers by Helen Thorp – The subtitle of this one – “finding refuge, friendship, and hope in an American classroom” – is what really sold me. Thorp explores how teenage refugees learn English and become Americans at a public high school in Denver with a specific class designed to help them adapt.

And that’s all I’ve got for this week. Don’t forget, we’re giving away $500 to spend at the bookstore of your choice! Entries are open worldwide and will be accepted until 11:45 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 26. Click here to enter.

Happy reading!

– Kim Ukura, @kimthedork and kim@riotnewmedia.com

Categories
Giveaways

Win a Copy of WEREGIRL by C.D. Bell!

 

We have 10 copies each of Weregirl by C. D. Bell and Chimera by C. D. Bell to give away to 10 Riot readers!

Here’s what they are all about:

The forest is full of secrets, and Nessa Kurland is one of them. Nessa’s ferocious training to win a college cross-country scholarship is cut short when a wolf encounter on a nighttime training run leads to a mysterious transformation that she must keep secret from everyone except her closest friend Bree. But Nessa isn’t the only extraordinary being in this wild place: the woods are crawling with corporate contamination and its dangerous cover-up, as well as family secrets that make Nessa question whether the wolves chose her for a mission much larger than her newly-improved and record-breaking race times.

Go here to enter for a chance to win, or just click the cover image below. Good luck!

Categories
Riot Rundown

111617-FantasticBeasts-Riot-Rundown

Today’s Riot Rundown is sponsored by Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by J.K. Rowling, now in a fully illustrated edition.

An essential companion to the Harry Potter novels, now fully illustrated!

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Newt Scamander’s classic compendium of magical creatures, has delighted generations of wizarding readers. With this beautiful, large-scale new edition illustrated in full color, Muggles too will have the chance to discover where the Runespoor lives, what the Puffskein eats, and why shiny objects should always be kept away from the Niffler.

Proceeds from the sale of this book will go to Comic Relief and J.K. Rowling’s international charity, Lumos, which will do magic beyond the powers of any wizard.

Categories
The Stack

111617-Legacy-The-Stack

Today’s The Stack is sponsored by Dark Horse Comics.

An amoral investment banker named Vincent receives an inheritance promising immortality. It also attracts a flame-retardant stripper, a ruthless stalker, and a horde of other aspiring immortals dead set and bloodthirsty in their desire to separate Vincent from his destiny. This biting riches-to-rags novella, which only the author of Fight Club and Beautiful You could deliver, is presented as a deluxe hardcover coloring book, beautifully illustrated by Mike Norton (Battlepug, B.P.R.D. Hell on Earth), and Steve Morris (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) who worked with Palahniuk on his 2016 release Bait: Off-Color Stories for You to Color.

Categories
Today In Books

The National Book Awards Winners Are: Today in Books

And The National Book Awards Go To…

The National Book Foundation announced the National Book Award winners tonight. Without further ado, the winners are…

Fiction: Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward

Nonfiction: The Future Is History: How Totalitarianism Reclaimed Russia by Masha Gessen

Poetry: Half-light: Collected Poems 1965-2016 by Frank Bidart

Young People’s Literature: Far from the Tree by Robin Benway

The Foundation also honored Richard Robinson, Chairman, President & CEO of Scholastic, who was introduced onstage by President Bill Clinton, and Annie Proulx, introduced by Anne Hathaway.

J.R.R. Tolkien’s Son Resigns As Director Of Tolkien Estate

On the cusp of Amazon and Warner Bros.’ Lord of the Rings series adaptation news, we learned that J.R.R. Tolkien’s son resigned as director of the author’s estate. Christopher Tolkien, the 93-year-old scholar of his father’s work, kept a firm grip on the estate’s property rights and reportedly hated Warner Bros.’ Lord of the Rings and Hobbit films. Tolkien Estate recently settled a dispute over the use of Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings movie characters in slot machines and video games, but now that Christopher Tolkien is out of the picture we may be seeing more of those characters and Tolkien adaptation news.

Authors Write Letters Of Solidarity To Imprisoned Colleagues

Neil Gaiman, Ai Weiwei, Kamila Shamsie, Madeleine Thien, and a whole host of international artists and writers have written letters of solidarity and hope to imprisoned writers around the world. The event marks PEN International’s Day of the Imprisoned Writer, which calls on governments around the world to stop silencing writers. On this day, PEN highlights the cases of five persecuted writers. You can read about the cases, and more about Day of the Imprisoned Writer here.

Thank you to The City of Brass by S.A. Chakraborty for sponsoring today’s newsletter.

As a con woman in the streets of 18th-century Cairo, Nahri does not believe in magic. She relies on her wits and her healing talents to survive. But when she accidentally summons a sly, darkly mysterious djinn warrior during one of her cons, she’s forced to question everything she believes. He tells her that across the hot, windswept sands of the Middle East lies Daevabad, the legendary city of brass – home of six djinn tribes, and simmering with old resentments threatening Nahri’s ancestral home. There’s a reason they say to be careful what you wish for…

Categories
Audiobooks

Family Drama Audiobooks for Your Thanksgiving Feelings

Happy Thursday, Audiobook fans!

You know what a week from today is in the United States? Thanksgiving. You know what the next month is a lot of places? Time to see your family. Maybe that’s a good thing, maybe that’s a bad thing–-most likely, it’s a bit of both. So, I’ve pulled together a list of books about, among other things, family. Family struggle, family conflict, family grief and, of course, family love.

(I realized after I made the list, there’s a lot of death on here. I’m sorry, that wasn’t my intention. Apparently I just gravitate towards depressing books).

Penguin Random House Audio

Penguin Random House Audio has audiobooks that are a perfect way to bring your friends and family together this busy holiday season.

Family Feuds and Fury (publisher description in quotes):

Fire Shut Up in My Bones by Charles M. Blow

In this universally acclaimed memoir from the New York Times columnist, Blow describes growing up in segregated Louisiana in the 1970s. “Charles’s attachment to his mother – a fiercely driven women with five sons, brass knuckles in her glove box, a job plucking poultry at a nearby factory, a soon-to-be-ex husband, and a love of newspapers and learning – cannot protect him from secret abuse at the hands of an older cousin. It’s damage that triggers years of anger and searing self-questioning.” When Blow leaves to attend college, he finds himself in the unfamiliar role of being called on to perpetuate abuse as opposed to being on the receiving end of it.

May We Be Forgiven by A.M. Homes

“Harold Silver, [is] a historian who’s always been jealous of his successful brother, George. When the hot-tempered George is institutionalized for committing a violent act, Harold finds himself comforting his brother’s wife and children. What follows is a scathing examination of a family so fractured it may never be whole again.”

 

Commonwealth by Ann Patchett

“Spanning five decades, Commonwealth explores how a chance encounter reverberates through the lives of the four parents and six children involved. Spending summers together in Virginia, the Keating and Cousins children forge a lasting bond that is based on a shared disillusionment with their parents and the strange and genuine affection that grows up between them.”

I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika L. Sánchez

Touted as The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian meets Jane the Virgin,” I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter follows Julia in the wake of her sister Olga’s death. Olga was the perfect Mexican daughter. Or was she? Even as her mother lambasts her for not being Olga, Julia begins to realize some things about her supposedly perfect sister aren’t adding up. Will she figure out who her sister really was? And will she, Julia, the sister who’s still alive, ever be enough?

Where’d You Go Bernadette by Marie Semple

15 year-old Bee is not your average teenager. As a reward for getting straight As on her report card, for example, she asks to go on a family vacation to Antarctica. But then Bee’s mother, Bernadette, disappears. An even more eccentric character than her daughter (by a lot), Bernadette is smart, funny, sarcastic, and terribly discontent. “To find her mother, Bee compiles email messages, official documents, secret correspondence – creating a compulsively readable and touching novel about misplaced genius and a mother and daughter’s role in an absurd world.”

This is Where I Leave You by Jonathan Tropper

When the patriarch of the Foxman family dies, the whole clan gets together for the first time in years. They sit shiva and “spend seven days and nights under the same roof. The week quickly spins out of control as longstanding grudges resurface, secrets are revealed and old passions are reawakened.” Baby mama drama ensues.

Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward

I haven’t listened to this one yet, but it’s next on my list. Everyone I know has been raving about it and it’s no secret that Ward is a stunningly gorgeous writer. “For Pop and Mam; their daughter, Leonie; and her kids, Jojo and Kayla, life is hard. Mam has cancer, Pop is preoccupied by working their small parcel of land, Leonie has a meth problem, and Jojo and Kayla seek love from their grandparents rather than their absent mother.” When Leonie gets word that the white father of her children is getting released from prison, she embarks on a journey with the children to meet him.

“Confronting the realities of life in the rural South, Ward gives us an epochal story, a road novel through Mississippi’s past and present that explores the bonds of family as tested by racism and poverty.”

New Release of the Week

The Mother of Black Hollywood by Jenifer Lewis

Jenifer Lewis talks about the road to becoming one of the stars of the hugely popular show, Black-ish. “From her first taste of applause at five years old to landing on Broadway within 11 days of graduation and ultimately achieving success in movies, television, and global concert halls, Jenifer describes a road to fame made treacherous by dysfunction and undiagnosed mental illness, including a sex addiction. Lewis tells her outrageous life story with lots of humor, a few regrets, and, most importantly, unbridled joy.”

Don’t forget to enter to win 500 buckaroos to your favorite bookstore with our giveaway. Enter to win here.

Links for Your Ears:

Uncle Joe is joining the ranks of Obama-era Democrats penning a memoir about their political career. There are about 7,339,634 reasons we’ll all cry listening to this one but you should probably do it anyway. Exclusive: Hear Joe Biden Read From New Book, Promise Me, Dad: A Year of Hope, Hardship and Purpose

Sean Penn has a cool pen name: Sean Penn in process of writing novel under pseudonym ‘Pappy Pariah’

Are you excited about this Philip Pullman novel because I am: Michael Sheen’s Solo Narration of Philip Pullman’s New Novel Is Better Than an Army of Voice Actors

You had me at Helena Bonham Carter: Bonham Carter and Beale read MCB poetry collection

As always, you can hit me up on twitter at msmacb or say hey at katie@riotnewmedia.com.

Until next week,

~Katie

Categories
What's Up in YA

6 Late-Year YA Books To Add To Your TBR

Hey YA Readers! Time to bulk up your TBR for the upcoming holiday season.

“What’s Up in YA?” is sponsored by Whichwood by Tahereh Mafi from Penguin.

Our story begins on a frosty night . . .

Laylee can barely remember the happier times before her beloved mother died. Before her father, driven by grief, lost his wits (and his way) and she was left as the sole remaining mordeshoor in the village of Whichwood, destined to spend her days scrubbing the skins and souls of the dead in preparation for the afterlife.

But soon, a pair of familiar strangers appear, and Laylee’s world is turned upside down as she rediscovers color, magic, and the healing power of friendship.

Lush and enchanting, critically-acclaimed author Tahereh Mafi weaves together an all-new magical adventure in this dark, Persian fantasy, a companion to the New York Times bestselling Furthermore.

As this newsletter hits inboxes, many will be frantically preparing for big Thanksgiving meals and many more will be hoping to hide away with a good book to survive those meals. And for non-US readers, well, of course there’s no wrong time to keep bulking up the TBR.

Every year it seems that the books which release in November and December get short shrift when it comes to hitting people’s radars. The “Best Of” lists release around this time, and people are busy making their lists of titles to look forward to in the new year.

But let’s take this week to highlight six books hitting shelves these last two months of 2017 which you may not have heard about but should (I didn’t include books like The Speaker or Renegades or Rosemarked or Retribution Rails below, but…I guess I just included them here!).

Descriptions come from Goodreads. I’ve included pub dates next to the titles not quite available yet.

 

The Closest I’ve Come by Fred Aceves

Marcos Rivas wants to find love.

He’s sure as hell not getting it at home, where his mom’s racist boyfriend beats him up. Or from his boys, who aren’t exactly the “hug it out” type. Marcos yearns for love, a working cell phone, and maybe a pair of sneakers that aren’t falling apart. But more than anything, Marcos wants to get out of Maesta, his hood—which seems impossible.

When Marcos is placed in a new after-school program for troubled teens with potential, he meets Zach, a theater geek whose life seems great on the surface, and Amy, a punk girl who doesn’t care what anyone thinks of her. These new friendships inspire Marcos to open up to his Maesta crew, too, and along the way, Marcos starts to think more about his future and what he has to fight for. Marcos ultimately learns that bravery isn’t about acting tough and being macho; it’s about being true to yourself.

Devil in Ohio by Daria Polatin

When fifteen-year-old Jules Mathis comes home from school to find a strange girl, her mother explains that Mae is one of her patients at the hospital and will be staying with their family for a few days. But shortly after, Mae is wearing Jules’ clothes, sleeping in her bedroom, edging her out of her position on the school paper, and kissing Jules’s crush. Then things get weird.

Jules walks in on a half-dressed Mae, she’s startled to see a pentagram carved into her back. Soon white roses start turning up on the front porch, a rabid dog bites one of Jules’ sisters, and Jules’ parents, who never fight, start arguing behind closed doors.

Jules pieces clues together and discovers that Mae may be a survivor of the strange cult that has taken over a nearby town. And they will stop at nothing to get Mae back.

 

Here, There, Everywhere by Julia Durango and Tyler Terrones (December 19)

Zeus would rather be anywhere than here—Buffalo Falls—the tiny town his family moved to at the end of the school year. Having left all his friends back in Chicago and with nothing to look forward to except helping out at his mother’s café and biking around town with his weird little brother, Zeus is pretty sure this is destined to be the worst summer of his life.

But then he meets Rose—funny, beautiful, smart, and an incredible musician.

Zeus can hardly believe that someone like her exists, let alone seems interested in being with him. However, while Zeus is counting down the minutes until he can see her next, Rose is counting down the days until she finds out whether she will be able to leave their small town to pursue her dreams. As the afternoons spent going on local adventures pass into nights discussing their deepest hopes, Zeus knows that he doesn’t have long to convince Rose that what they have is more than a summer fling…if only he’s brave enough to seize the chance.

Shadow Girl by Liana Liu (December 19)

The house on Arrow Island is full of mystery.

Yet when Mei arrives, she can’t help feeling relieved. She’s happy to spend the summer in an actual mansion tutoring a rich man’s daughter if it means a break from her normal life—her needy mother, her delinquent brother, their tiny apartment in the city. And Ella Morison seems like an easy charge, sweet and well behaved.

What Mei doesn’t know is that something is very wrong in the Morison household.

Though she tries to focus on her duties, Mei becomes increasingly distracted by the family’s problems and her own complicated feelings for Ella’s brother, Henry. But most disturbing of all are the unexplained noises she hears at night—the howling and thumping and cries.

Mei is a sensible girl. She isn’t superstitious; she doesn’t believe in ghosts. Yet she can’t shake her fear that there is danger lurking in the shadows of this beautiful house, a darkness that could destroy the family inside and out… and Mei along with them.

Three Sides of a Heart: Stories About Love Triangles edited by Natalie C. Parker (December 19)

In this collection, edited by Natalie C. Parker, some of your favorite YA authors tackle the much-debated trope of the love triangle, and the result is sixteen fresh, diverse, and romantic stories you don’t want to miss.

A teen girl who offers kissing lessons. Zombies in the Civil War South. The girl next door, the boy who loves her, and the girl who loves them both. Vampires at a boarding school. Three teens fighting monsters in an abandoned video rental store. Literally the last three people on the planet.

What do all these stories have in common?

The love triangle.

You may think you know the love triangle, but you’ve never seen love triangles like these.

Victoria: Portrait of a Queen by Catherine Reef

Victoria woke one morning at the age of eighteen to discover that her uncle had died and she was now queen. She went on to rule for sixty-three years, with an influence so far-reaching that the decades of her reign now bear her name—the Victorian period. Victoria is filled with the exciting comings and goings of royal life: intrigue and innuendo, scheming advisors, and assassination attempts, not to mention plenty of passion and discord. Includes bibliography, notes, British royal family tree, index.

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Splurge on Cheap YA Reads…

Tamora Pierce’s Trickster’s Choice is a mere $2.

Ever The Hunted by Erin Summerill — which has a sequel out in early December — is $2.

Haven’t yet read Terry Pratchett’s standalone YA title Nation? $2 will solve that.

 

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Thanks for hanging out again. We’ll see you next week with a big, delicious link round-up of all the recent YA talk.

— Kelly Jensen, @veronikellymars

 

PS! Don’t forget to enter for your chance to win $500 at the bookstore of your choice. This is the last week to enter, and you don’t want to be sad you didn’t try.