Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo

Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Once again, Elizabeth Acevedo has written a beautiful, timely story in her signature novel in verse style. Camino and Yahaira do not know each other but they share a father and a last name, Rios. When their father dies in a plane crash on his way to visit Camino (as he does every summer) in the Dominican Republic, their lives are shattered. In prose, that is haunting, authentic, and charged, two girls discover through grief that they have each other. Highly recommended!

View all my reviews

Not Hungry by Kate Kaeryus Quinn

Not Hungry by Kate Karyus Quinn
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Teen readers will find this novel in verse compelling; June's voice is raw, realistic, and vulnerable as she struggles with weight issues in her family, angered and upset with her beautiful sister's abusive boyfriend, and unsure about her neighbor, Tony. As secrets threaten to destroy June, she stops eating (this is her way to diet), sometimes purging, but mostly not eating. Fraught with daily problems, will June figure out who she really is? Highly recommended!

View all my reviews

Root Beer Candy and Other Miracles by Shari Green.

Root Beer Candy and Other Miracles by Shari Green
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I read this book for the #MGBookChat this Monday 3/23/20 at 9PM EST to discuss novels in verse for middle grades, come join us! This is Shari Green's (@sharigreen) 2nd novel in verse I have read (and loved) and the whole beauty of the sea, seashore, the townspeople , new friends, new family kept me turning the pages! Bailey and her brother are plopped with their grandmother (who they never see) on the West Coast seashore town of Felicity Bay. Her parents have been fighting for a long time and are attending a couples camp to try and rescue their family and marriage. But the longer Bailey and her brother remain in Felicity Bay, the more they love their grandmother and have hopes their parents will reconcile. I loved Bailey's friendship with Daniel, who had cystic fibrosis and her belief in the mermaid who is made of driftwood, as the symbol of making miracles happen, because Bailey is hoping for many miracles this summer. A must read, there is beauty and heartache but Bailey never gives up hope.

View all my reviews

Missing Mike by Shari Green

Missing Mike by Shari Green
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I read this book for the #MGBookChat this Monday 3/23/20 at 9PM EST to discuss novels in verse for middle grades, come join us! This is my first Shari Green (@sharigreen) novel and I just loved it! I will be reading and reviewing her other two before the twitter chat, I can't wait! Missing Mike had all the elements I love in a book; a pet, Mike the dog, and what a personality, loved by his human, Cara, who has a larger than life personality, is devoted to Mike, and facing loss with a wildfire that has consumed her family's home and in the process of evacuating, losing Mike. There are so many wonderful quotes I gleaned from this drama- how Cara, family and friends pull together to help each other, all while dealing with overwhelming feelings of loss. A must read for all!

View all my reviews

For Every One by Jason Reynolds

For Every One by Jason Reynolds
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book is for EVERYONE! I literally want to buy a copy and pass it to all my friends; this book is honest, speaks to the heart, and encourages kids (I also think adults will find hope and passion in Jason Reynolds words, poem) to dream, to reach, to never stop wondering. Such a hopeful, realistic, book----a must read!

View all my reviews

Knockout by K. A. Holt

Knockout by K.A. Holt
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Just as I loved House Arrest so did I love Knockout which continues the family drama of Timothy and Levi. Holt is a master at novels in verse. I did not want to stop reading; I laughed with Levi but I also cried for Timothy's lost life. The characters, plot and action will thrill middle school readers and this novel in verse nails it with each word. My heart loved the interaction between the brothers writing back and forth (using Timothy's journal) was so real with words they could not say. Levi's friendship drama with his lifelong friend had many different kinds of moments, all so fraught with their tight bond being tested. I really liked the mom this time around, she annoyed me in House Arrest, but she listened to Timothy's counsel and that was progress for all involved. These 2 books are books I want to read again and again---love the family dynamics, the lifelong medical condition of Levi's (he wants to be normal in so many ways) and the progression to a satisfying end!!! Highly recommended!

View all my reviews

Saving Red by Sonya Sones

Saving Red by Sonya Sones
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Sonya Sones has done it again; she is the master of novels in verse! Back in the 80s or 90s she came to Abington Senior High for the day and the students LOVED her and raved about her writing session. Saving Red illustrates Sones' command of each and every word; the longing, loss, and guilt Molly carries around since a year ago when her world turned upside down. Her dog, Pixel knows Molly and how to calm her down perfectly. Molly is a teen you root for; she had a very caring family and friends but her reality now consists of dysfunctional parents, a secret she can't bear to reveal and a homeless girl she befriends and tries to save. An even better part of the book is her accidental meeting of a guy, Cristo, on a bus and their hopeful developing relationship. LOVED LOVED LOVED this book; a must read for teens on homelessness, mental illness, and family problems & if you love dogs too!

View all my reviews