Category Archives: Recommended Reading

Read This!: DREAMS TAKE FLIGHT by Brittany Richman and Alisha Monnin

Authors You Should Know, Read This, Recommended Reading, ,

Dreams Take Flight: The Story of Deaf Pilot Nellie Zabel Willhite (Own Voices, Own Stories)Dreams Take Flight: The Story of Deaf Pilot Nellie Zabel Willhite by Brittany Richman and Alisha Monnin
Summary: After losing her hearing at four and following a tumultuous education, Nellie Zabel was introduced to the world of flight while working at the Sioux Falls airport. The planes and pilots captured her imagination as she watched them sail alongside the birds. With some encouragement, she enrolled in pilot training–carefully tailoring the courses to accommodate her deafness. In 1928, she took off on her own, becoming the first female pilot in South Dakota–and the first deaf pilot in the nation.

This lovely nonfiction picture book tells the true story of Nellie Zabel Willhite, who became the first licensed deaf pilot in the US. The world was far from accommodating when she was growing up as a deaf child in the early 1900s, but with a combination of her own persistence and the support of caring adults, she got an education and found a job. But when she finally took the flying lessons she had been dreaming of, her life took off. This story features an inspiring woman at its center, but it is also a great discussion-starter about intersectional identities and the various barriers that marginalized people throughout history have faced.

DREAMS TAKE FLIGHT is out now.

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Read This!: OCTO, PI AND THE MYSTERIOUS VOICE by Sarah McDavis

Read This, Recommended Reading

Octo, PI and the Mysterious Voice (Zar&r Mysteries)Octo, PI and the Mysterious Voice by Sarah McDavis
Summary: All was quiet at the ZAR&R for Octo, PI and her team. Then came the mysterious voice that shut down the nocturnal comedy night! Octo likes facts that stick and she sets out to uncover who the voice belongs to. It isn’t a ghost because ghosts don’t exist. She hopes. Along the way, Octo has to conquer her own fear while helping a pirate with their lost treasure, keeping an eye on the Ghost Hunters’s show host, and solving the case before residents start to panic!

Octo, PI is back for another adventure, along with trusty sidekicks Tank the chameleon and junior investigator Lightning the hummingbird. This time, there’s a creepy voice (maybe a ghost?) scaring animals at night. Octo has to get to the bottom of it, or else animals might be too scared to come to the ZAR&R for the help they need. By following the clues, gathering evidence, and questioning witnesses, Octo gets to the bottom of not one but two mysteries, and makes friends with a feathered pirate to boot. With a delicious combination of silly antics and real-life animal info, McDavis brings the characters to life through accessible text and humorous illustrative touches. Chapter book readers will be clamoring for Octo, PI’s next adventure!

Read my review of the first book in the series.

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Read This!: THE GIRL IN THE WALLS by Meg Eden Kuyatt

Authors You Should Know, Read This, Recommended Reading

The Girl in the WallsThe Girl in the Walls by Meg Eden Kuyatt
Summary: Neurodivergent and sock-collecting Vee is stuck at her uptight and “perfect” Grandma Jojo’s house for the summer, who she has absolutely nothing in common with. To make matters worse, Vee thought her older cousin Cat would make summer fun again–until an incident happens in the middle of the night. And Cat hasn’t been seen since. 
Then Vee discovers a ghost living in Jojo’s walls. And this girl… this ghost… has been collecting Jojo’s secrets. At first, Vee finds the ghost to be an escape from her grandmother and her memories of the incident with Cat. But as the girl encourages Vee to get back at Jojo by playing pranks, Vee soon uncovers Jojo’s insecurities. And Vee starts to think twice about taking part in the girl’s schemes, until the girl suddenly becomes dangerous, trapping Vee in the walls and threatening to flood the house and everyone in it. Will Vee let grief and anger take control — or is there a way to use even the broken, confusing pieces of her feelings to save her messy family?

Meg Eden Kuyatt’s verse is easy to read, drawing the reader into Vee’s world with its perpetual forward rhythm, but don’t be fooled into thinking that means this book is simple. There’s nothing simple about this spooky story that centers around a ghost who is so much more than she seems. With potent imagery, the author uncovers the layers of fear, anger, and shame experienced by various members of V’s family, and the tangible harm they do when left to fester. Like the author’s previous verse novel, Good Different, The Girl in the Walls explores an autistic protagonist’s family relationships and the effects of generational trauma. But here she masterfully leverages the tools and techniques of speculative fiction to mine the emotions at the heart of Vee’s family history.

THE GIRL IN THE WALLS is out now.

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Read This!: CINCINNATI LEE, CURSE BREAKER by Heidi Heilig

Authors You Should Know, Read This, Recommended Reading

Cincinnati Lee, Curse BreakerCincinnati Lee, Curse Breaker by Heidi Heilig
Summary: Cincinnati Lee’s great great (great?) grandfather is famous. His adventures discovering ancient artifacts have been made into movies, and his work is widely respected by museums across the world. The thing is, in that line of work, you’re bound to get cursed. And that leaves your great great (great?) granddaughter to break the curse by returning the artifacts you “preserved.” Cincinnati’s own adventure begins in the Cosmopolitan Museum in New York City, where her single mom works and Cincinnati has grown up. Soon she learns about the ancient Spear of Destiny—and its potential to right all the wrongs in her family’s past. Or bring about the end of the world. It all depends on whose hands it falls into. Cincinnati must beat two relic hunters to the spear, and her quest will take her to surprising locations throughout the city and even across the Atlantic Ocean. Along the way, she’ll make a new friend (which is not the easiest thing to do), make some enemies (surprisingly easy to do), and ultimately learn what makes the world worth saving. Acclaimed author Heidi Heilig makes a dazzling middle grade debut with an irrepressible hero, a compelling cast of friends and enemies, nonstop action, and a thoughtful approach to viewing our responsibilities to each other and the world around us.

An intrepid heroine, a race across the world to break a curse, and a thoughtful story—who could ask for more? In Cincinnati Lee, author Heidi Heilig has created a middle grade character who feels immediately classic and yet refreshingly contemporary. At the heart of the story are Cincinnati’s relationships – with her mother, her best friend, the new friend who challenges her understanding of herself, and the great great (great?) grandfather whose actions kicked off the curse. Cincinnati may not always follow the rules, but her heart’s in the right place as she grapples with big questions about responsibility and relationships. Brimming with action and lively characters, this story also offers lots for readers to think about as they enjoy the fun.

CINCINNATI LEE, CURSE BREAKER is out now.

Bonus: See my reviews of Heidi Heilig’s previous books here.

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Read This!: WE ARE THE SCRAPPY ONES by Rebekah Taussig and Kirbi Fagan

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We Are the Scrappy OnesWe Are the Scrappy Ones by Rebekah Taussig and Kirbi Fagan
Summary:  We are the scrappy ones. / We live, we adapt, we defy. / Made of stardust and grit, we are spectacular. 
Children with disabilities experience the world in all kinds of ways. Yet one thing they share is navigating a world that doesn’t always make space for them as they are. Existing on the edges can feel unfair—and downright exhausting. And at the exact same time, it can also foster creativity, resourcefulness, and adaptability. In a word, scrappiness.

In lyrical prose overflowing with gorgeous imagery, author and disability advocate Rebekah Taussig celebrates the unique and authentic experiences of children with disabilities: “We might move slowly or in zigzags, but we thrum our own tempos to beautiful songs.” Taussig’s text flows with Kirbi Fagan’s evocative pastel, colored pencil, and collage illustrations, which showcase the diversity of the disability experience. Yes, medical devices, wheelchairs, hearing aids, and guide dogs appear, but always the focus is on the agency of the children interacting with their world. This book is a glorious ode to the spirit of disabled children, acknowledging that “[the] burden we carry is the weight of a world that wasn’t built with us in mind.” Especially powerful is the section highlighting “revolutionaries thinking of you before you were born, fighting to get this world ready for you.” (Those revolutionaries, all members of the disability community, are featured in more detail in the back matter and each one is someone all kids and adults should learn about!) The core message is as simple as it is necessary: you are not alone. A beautiful, moving, and necessary picture book for all collections.

WE ARE THE SCRAPPY ONES is out now.

Bonus recommendation: Check out my review of Rebekah Taussig’s excellent memoir, Sitting Pretty.

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