Category Archives: Read This

Read This!: THE READER by Traci Chee

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The Reader (Sea of Ink and Gold, #1)The Reader by Traci Chee

Summary: Sefia knows what it means to survive. After her father is brutally murdered, she flees into the wilderness with her aunt Nin, who teaches her to hunt, track, and steal. But when Nin is kidnapped, leaving Sefia completely alone, none of her survival skills can help her discover where Nin’s been taken, or if she’s even alive. The only clue to both her aunt’s disappearance and her father’s murder is the odd rectangular object her father left behind, an object she comes to realize is a book—a marvelous item unheard of in her otherwise illiterate society. With the help of this book, and the aid of a mysterious stranger with dark secrets of his own, Sefia sets out to rescue her aunt and find out what really happened the day her father was killed—and punish the people responsible.

We all know that books are magic, but in Sefia’s world, it’s literally so. No wonder literacy is such a forbidden commodity, so coveted that there are those who would die – or kill – for the words on the page. With its twisty narrative and surprising turns, THE READER will keep readers turning the pages till the end, and turning over the big ideas presented long after the story is over.

THE READER is out now.

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Read This!: INTO WHITE by Randi Pink

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Into WhiteInto White by Randi Pink

Summary:  LaToya Williams lives in Montgomery, Alabama, and attends a mostly white high school. It seems as if her only friend is her older brother, Alex. Toya doesn’t know where she fits in, but after a run-in with another student, she wonders if life would be different if she were . . . different. And then a higher power answers her prayer: to be “anything but black.”

Toya is suddenly white, blond, and popular. Now what?

Randi Pink’s debut is heartfelt, honest, and sure to be controversial. The characters ring painfully true, from Toya, who must choose whose reality she will honor, to her sweet, smart brother Alex, who tries to dull his own genius to avoid standing out, to the clueless , racial-slur-spewing twins Amera and Amelia, who turn out to be powerless once called on their nonsense. Compelling and compulsively readable, this book is also a brutal, incisive commentary on the role of the media in denigrating black bodies and the mental and emotional damage that systemic racism does to the individual.

INTO WHITE is out now.

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Read This!: FRANNIE AND TRU by Karen Hattrup

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Frannie and TruFrannie and Tru by Karen Hattrup

Summary: When Frannie Little eavesdrops on her parents fighting she discovers that her cousin Truman is gay, and his parents are so upset they are sending him to live with her family for the summer. At least, that’s what she thinks the story is. . . When he arrives, shy Frannie befriends this older boy, who is everything that she’s not–rich, confident, cynical, sophisticated. Together, they embark on a magical summer marked by slowly unraveling secrets

A beautiful, literary coming-of-age story about a young girl opening her eyes to the wider world around her. Fifteen-year-old Frannie Little is prepared for the summer after her freshman year of high school to be a total disaster – she’s going to a new school in the fall, drifting away from her old friends, and her father’s work situation means her family is running out of money. But then her troubled, charming, two-years-older cousin Truman comes to stay for the summer, a refugee from his Connecticut prep school life. Frannie connects with Tru more than she has ever connected her own older brothers, and tagging along with him becomes a lesson in opening up to new experiences. The story is steeped in its Baltimore City setting, and Hattrup uses city landmarks to play against the themes of the story. Questions of race and class bubble up throughout, seen through the lens of Frannie awakening to the realities of how her experiences differ from those of her African American friends. Frannie is a quiet, thoughtful protagonist, blossoming slowly into a confident, self-aware young woman. More than anything, the push and pull of Frannie and Tru’s relationship – troubled and close and caring and contentious all at once – is a pitch-perfect portrayal of those seminal friendships that only seem possible in the throes of adolescence.

FRANNIE AND TRU is out now.
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Read This!: HOWARD WALLACE, P.I. by Casey Lyall

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Howard Wallace, P.I.Howard Wallace, P.I. by Casey Lyall

Summary: Twelve-year-old Howard Wallace lives by his list of rules of private investigation. He knows more than anyone how to work with what he’s got: a bathrobe for a trench coat, a makeshift office behind the school equipment shed, and not much else—least of all, friends. So when a hot case of blackmail lands on his desk, he’s ready to take it on himself . . . until the new kid, Ivy Mason, convinces him to take her on as a junior partner. As they banter through stakeouts and narrow down their list of suspects, Howard starts to wonder if having Ivy as a sidekick—and a friend—is such a bad thing after all.

This book was delight from start to finish! Lyall perfectly balances a compelling mystery, fantastic characters, and a spot-on narrative voice in the form of Howard’s hard-boiled twelve-year-old detective. I knew from the reviews that this book would be funny and that I would fall in love with the characters; what I didn’t expect was how heartfelt it would also be, as it confronts head-on the issue of friendships changing – sometimes painfully – in middle school, and the drastic measures some people will take to hold on to the past. I can’t wait to start putting this book into the hands of every kid I meet!

HOWARD WALLACE, P.I. is out now.

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Read This!: BEEN HERE ALL ALONG by Sandy Hall

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Been Here All AlongBeen Here All Along by Sandy Hall

Summary: Gideon always has a plan. His plans include running for class president, becoming head of the yearbook committee, and having his choice of colleges. They do NOT include falling head over heels for his best friend and next door neighbor, Kyle. It’s a distraction. It’s pointless, as Kyle is already dating the gorgeous and popular head cheerleader, Ruby. And Gideon doesn’t know what to do.

Kyle finally feels like he has a handle on life. He has a wonderful girlfriend, a best friend willing to debate the finer points of Lord of the Rings, and social acceptance as captain of the basketball team. Then, both Ruby and Gideon start acting really weird, just as his spot on the team is threatened, and Kyle can’t quite figure out what he did wrong…
Reading this book is like being snuggled by a kitten. An adorable kitten. It’s the kind of book that you want to hug to your chest and feel the feels and then reread your favorite parts that make you a little teary but also make you sign with happiness.

What made me interested in this book initially was the story of how the author came to the premise: her editor challenged her to write something based on an amazing fan-made video of Taylor Swift’s “You Belong With Me” featuring two teenage boys. If you can watch that video and not want to read a story based on it, then you might not have a heart, FYI.

And man, does Sandy Hall deliver on the premise. Gideon and Kyle have been best friends since they were little. Kyle is bi, and dating a girl. Gideon has never thought about his sexuality. Until he realizes that he is gay. And in love with Kyle. Hall weaves the story from both boy’s points of view, along with that of Kyle’s girlfriend Ruby and Gideon’s brother Ezra. While the realities of homophobia and bullying play a part, this is decidedly not an “issues” book. For most of the people in Gideon and Kyle’s world, their sexuality is a no big deal. The challenges they face in their relationship are just like those of other couples – their own insecurities and pride get in the way, and they have to relearn how to trust each other. This is a sweet, wonderful romance story full of characters you will want to hang out with, perfect for fans of Stephanie Perkins and Natalie Blitt.

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