Restart by Gordon Korman

Restart by Gordon Korman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

When Chase Ambrose falls off the roof of his house; he wakes up to find he does not remember anything about his life- total amnesia. And when he returns to school he gets many different looks- even from his step sister- a 4 year old! Since he can't play football; he joins the Video Club and really enjoys it except for the girl who threw yogurt on his head. What he does not remember & finds out all too soon is that he was a bully along with 2 other friends who drove yogurt girl's brother to another school & earned community service at a convalescent home. I could not stop turning the pages as I followed Chase on his journey and I liked the alternating chapter of friends & those he bullied. Middle grade students will really enjoy this book; a must read!

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I Give You Peace by Diane DiSerafino

I Give You Peace by Diane DiSerafino
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Many thanks to Donna Gola for giving this debut author book to read. I really enjoyed the plot and characters in I Give You Peace. There are many universes and Alex and Leonard are experimenting to bring world peace to New Philadelphia located in the Tertius universe. But things are not proceeding as planned for many reasons and as we meet a few of the subjects in this grand experiment the reader roots for "real peace" not enforced peace. I loved all the Philadelphia places, the cover is perfect, and technology must be watched. I look forward to other books by Diane DiSerafino!

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Lunch Lady and the Cyborg Substitute (Lunch Lady, #1) by Jarrett J. Krosoczka

Lunch Lady and the Cyborg Substitute by Jarrett J. Krosoczka
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I love & recommend the Lunch Lady graphic novel series! Funny, relatable, and superheroes all in one!


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Hidden Truths by Elly Swartz

Hidden Truths by Elly Swartz
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Loved this book of 2 middle grade friends who are really tested when a freak accident occurs on a camping trip. Dani and Eric have been friends since 2nd grade & really do everything together. But while on a camping trip, there is a fire one night in their camper & Danny blames himself for forgetting to turn off the stove...as he wrestles with telling Dani, she is burned & told she can't be on the baseball team she just got on! Also she runs into a cool girl while in the hospital & this further drives a wedge between the friends. What will happen to Dani & Eric? I could not stop turning the pages, loved the characters, plot, & different settings. Kids will love this book of friendship, loyalty, and identity! A must read.

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Good Gone Bad (The Fallen Men, #3) by Giana Darling

Good Gone Bad by Giana Darling
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I loved this 3rd book in The Fallen Men series & Harleigh Rose & Lionel Danner's history was riveting. I could not put this book down & my old fave characters (HR's family Zeus Garros, etc) were dealing with alot in this book! Lots of sizzling chemistry, mystery and violence between the motorcycle gang, the police, and family drama.

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The Many Daughters of Afong Moy by Jamie Ford

The Many Daughters of Afong Moy by Jamie Ford
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Many thanks to Cara McBrien for giving me this book to read! I really enjoyed all the daughters & Afong Moy as I read about their lives, romances, hardships and issues dealing with trauma, bias, and secrets. The theory of transgenerational epigenetic inheritance was so new to me and I will certainly be reading more- especially the book in the afterward that Jamie Ford has listed 1st in recommended reading. I have a copy of that book and I purchased it (The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma by Bessel Van Der Kolk, M.D.) based on Tara Smith's recommendation! This is a fierce read, this Chinese family and their daughters is explored as well as anti-Chinese bias in America, resulting in a must read!

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Four Eyes by Rex Vogle and illustrated by Dave Valeza

Four Eyes: A Graphic Novel by Rex Ogle
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I loved this 2nd graphic novel from Rex Ogle about his middle grade year of needing glasses & hating the whole experience!!! His mother is divorced & works at a minimum wage job waitressing while his stepdad stutters and also makes minimum wage. In school his best friend dumps him and helps the school bully pick on Rex. When he needs glasses, his family can't pay for the GREAT looking ones he wants & he is picked on because of the cheap glasses. Rex really has a tough time & becomes friendly with a kid at lunch and as 6th grade progresses, Rex experiences lots of highs and lows. I highly recommend this graphic novel!!!

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Play Like a Girl by Misty Wilson

Play Like a Girl by Misty Wilson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Misty's 7th grade, being the only girl on the football team was so good! She loses her best friend who has changed, is a hit on the football team except for one nasty guy, and has the full support of her stepdad in all things having to do with the football team. I was glad to see Misty was able to have other girls from the cheer squad be her friends. The peer pressure was tough for Misty but she knew who she was (even when she tried to impress her friend who ditches her for a mean girl). A great middle grade graphic novel!

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Mad Honey by Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan

Mad Honey by Jodi Picoult
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Many thanks to Cara McBrien for lending me this gut wrenching, awesome read about teens falling in love, reality and the truth come crashing in and someone is dead! Lily and Olivia are the main characters telling the story from their viewpoint, before and after. It is a look at Olivia's son's Asher's romance with Lily, and Olivia's abusive marital relationship until she ran with Asher to a normal life of beekeeping, until it wasn't. I loved the courtroom scenes with Olivia's brother as a brilliant lawyer working with his wife as investigator to prove Asher innocent. There was so much to take in, but I have read many LGBTQ books also transgender books as a YA librarian and I just keep reading them because they are a must read and each book is more enlightening, engrossing, and relatable. There was so much suspense I could not put this book down!

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Play Dead (Andy Carpenter, #6) by David Rosenfelt

Play Dead by David Rosenfelt
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I LOVE the Andy Carpenter series---especially the dogs! being involved in the mystery as Andy rescues a dog, Reggie, who was supposed to have died 5 years ago and then plunges into representing the dogs' owner who is in jail for murdering his girlfriend and throwing Reggie overboard during a storm at sea. Laurie, the love of his life comes for a visit since she is in law enforcement elsewhere, and his many friends, Willie & Sondra, Pete Stanton, his computer wiz friend, scary but awesome, Marcus, his newspaper friend and his friend in the FBI all jump in to help Andy who is a great lawyer but a wimp when it comes to danger kept me turning the pages. Good old Tara, Andy's golden retriever, gets along great with Reggie. Moving right along to the next book in the series, New Tricks!

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The Winners (Beartown, #3) by Fredrick Backman

The Winners by Fredrik Backman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A great 3rd book in the series of Beartown hockey. There were more great characters introduced, the rivalry still between the teams in Hed & Beartown, and there are things afoot, deaths, violence, bullying and family relationships explored and friendships celebrated.

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Angel of Greenwood by Randi Pink

Angel of Greenwood by Randi Pink
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Thank you to @teachingfactor for recommending this audiobook!!! The awesome narration by Miah Ellis renders this historical fiction romance as can't put down. As the Tulsa Massacre is due to unfold, Randi Pink's novel of 2 teens falling in love during this horrific time in the days leading up to the 1921 race riot was compelling, honest, and sheds a light on the families during that time. Isaiah Wilson was such an interesting character and the changes in him as he falls for Angel, breaks free from a toxic friendship, and redeems himself was so uplifting. Angel was the perfect heroine; honest, helping others, and caring for her dying father. This is a MUST listen to audiobook and MUST read!

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The Okay Witch and the Hungry Shadow (The Okay Witch, #2) by Emma Steinkellner

The Okay Witch and the Hungry Shadow by Emma Steinkellner
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I loved this 2nd middle grade graphic novel in the Okay Witch series and Steinkellner ensures the reader will laugh and hold their breath as Moth uses a cursed charm to try to battle the bullies in her school. I particularly liked her mom and teacher dating (hysterical) and the strong grandmother witch who preaches witch history and being strong---but Moth can't really listen and understand her words. I loved her friend Charlie and the talking cat, a great 2nd book, I want more!

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Ben Y and the Ghost in the Machine (The Kids Under the Stairs, #2) by K. A. Holt

Ben Y and the Ghost in the Machine by K.A. Holt
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I loved the kids under the stairs and this 2nd in the series brings back Ben Y, Ben B, Jordan and Javier as the divergent learners and friends who is led by the greatest teacher in the world, Ms J and the new after school club, Newspaper Typing Room which accomplishes 2 things- playing in the Sandbox and now because of the heinous principal---they have to write newspaper articles. While all of this is going on, Ben Y (Benita) misses her dead brother, Benicio, desperately--they were very close and used Sandbox (Benicio's invention) to talk, fight, argue, and remember. The bullying still continues and there is a new weird kid, Ace that Ben Y has mixed feelings about. This book is as strong as the first, using text messages and emojis, and her awesome novel in verse! A must read!

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A Good Neighborhood by Therese Anne Fowler

A Good Neighborhood by Therese Anne Fowler
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Using a Greek Chorus to ask and raise questions, this was a story of what a good neighborhood and what it became when a new family moved in. Valerie has raised her biracial son in Oak Knoll, she knows everyone, is a professor, hold book clubs and has set opinions about ecology. When the Whitman's an upwardly mobile family moves in next door, trouble begins when Brad Whitman assumes Xavier is hired help, both parents keep a tight lock on their daughter, Juniper with a purity pledge and many restrictions. It really gets problematic when Xavier and Juniper become romantically involved and Valerie sues Brad Whitman over his destruction of an old oak tree. Delving into many themes and issues such as class, race, environmental concerns, love, lies, secrecy, consequences, family dysfunction and lawsuits this character driven book is heartbreakingly real. A must read!

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Just Like That by Gary D. Schmidt

Just Like That by Gary D. Schmidt
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Oh did I love this Gary D. Schmidt book so so much! The writing, the characters, and the 1968 setting were optimal for an authentic middle grade read! Meryl Lee Kowalski's life has been turned upside down with the death of her best friend and her parents decide to start her fresh at a prep school, away from the grief and possibly problems at home. But it is at St. Elene's Preparatory Academy for Girls where Meryl Lee tries to find out who she is by participating in sports (a hoot!), writing, and artwork. As lonely and despondent as she is, she runs into a kindred soul in Matt Coffin (who acts like her dead best friend) who has a horrid past he is running from. And each time he runs, those he has come to care for are in danger. I could not put this book down!!! The beauty in Schmidt's writing was present in nature with both Meryl Lee and Matt reveling in the sea, the shore and skipping stones. Many of the teachers were authentic and sympathetic with changes abounding as time goes by. I loved the characters of Dr. MacKnockater and the sea captain, the servants Betty and Althea and the Vietnam War was woven seamlessly throughout this wonderful novel that burns with warmth and humanity. Highly recommended and I loved seeing the characters from his other novel, Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy in this book too!

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In the Wild Light by Jeff Zentner

In the Wild Light by Jeff Zentner
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This was such an achingly beautiful, sorrowful book with two protagonists, who are each other’s best friends and support group and their first year at a prep school. Jeff Zentner’s writing is always so full of soul, deep yearning, and powerful messages. Through Cash, the beauty of Sawyer, Tennessee is found in the water, the land, Papaw and Mamaw. With parents addicted to drugs, Delaney and Cash met each other at a meeting and a forever friendship begins and is cemented over the years. Cash despairs as his beloved Papaw is struggling with emphysema, and he must decide if he will attend Middleton Academy with Delaney. Cash is such a good, good person and his love for his grandparents, Delaney, and his Middleton friends is deep, devoted, and courageous. Readers will love Cash’s sincerity, fear of failure, despair, grief, and his whole persona as he looks back on his life with a drug addicted mother, his deep insecurities, his profound love of Mamaw and Papaw, and struggles daily in his new life at Middleton Prep with his crush, his friendship with Alex Pak, taking up crew and writing poetry, and always worrying about Delaney. This is a must read and the mentions that harken back to each of Zentner’s other books made my heart pound with so much love. Highly recommended!

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In Her Tracks (Tracy Crosswhite, #8) by Robert Dugoni

In Her Tracks by Robert Dugoni
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I loved this 8th book in the Tracy Crosswhite series; Tracy is returning to work but finds her nemesis boss has taken her beloved job in Violent Crimes and given it to someone else. Instead she must take the Cold Case job since the one investigator is retiring. Moving at a fast pace; Dugoni does it again with psychological suspense as Tracy works 3 cold cases and one violent crime case. I could not stop turning the pages as Tracy tries to find a small child who disappeared in a Halloween patch 5 years ago and 2 prostitutes who mysteriously disappeared without a trace. Kins, her 0ld partner, pulls her into the missing person, Stephanie Cole, a jogger who disappears on a running trail. I have read and continue to love every single Dugoni book; this one was exciting, sad, and rip roaring fast; a must read!

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Nubia Real One by L.L. McKinney ill by Robyn Smith

Nubia: Real One by L.L. McKinney
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Nubia's life has certainly been different and most certainly challenging when her mothers keep telling her to keep her head down so she doesn't call attention to herself and stay safe. Nubia has been different since she was a child and what the author and illustrator do is give the reader a kick ass story about family, friendship, helping others, racism, and finding out who you are. I loved Nubia, her friends, and family!

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Starfish by Lisa Fipps

Starfish by Lisa Fipps
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This middle grade novel in verse is a must read for all- students, parents, teachers, guidance counselors. Ellie has been bullied in thoughts, words, and actions since she was five and what makes it worse is that her family is complicit. Having a large best friend in Viv has been her savior but Viv is moving away. As Ellie's mom rachets up her agenda for gastric bypass surgery, her psychiatrist father takes her to see a therapist. Lisa Fipps really knows how to show the reader Ellie's beautiful tortured soul and fragile self. Together with her therapist and new next door neighbor, Catalina and her whole family---Ellie's journey to confronting her bullies, her family, and herself is so important. A gripping novel in verse sprinkled with hope, honesty, and strength will pack a punch all readers need! Highly recommended!

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