Author: Marie Lu
Published: 2014 Adelina was four years old when the blood fever hit everywhere. She and her sister and mother got the fever. Fortunately, Adelina and her sister survived; no adult survived the blood fever. There was something weird about some of the children who had the blood fever. Many recovered and went back to normal, others became marked somehow. Those who were marked were viewed as outcasts, called malfettos and seen as bad luck. Adelina was marked; her sister was not. The even stranger thing was that most of the children who were marked were not really that different than they were before they got sick. A select few, however, got strange powers and were viewed as demons, too dark and dangerous for this world. They are referred to as the Young Elites. At the beginning of the book, Adelina is in jail about to be put to death for murdering someone. She is rescued by the Young Elites at the last minute and discovers that she also has powers within her that she never new existed. But there is also a lot of darkness within her. She spent her childhood being abused and ignored by her father for being marked. She has no idea how to use her powers or control them. The Young Elites let her in and begin her training, and she learns that they are planning to take down the king and put the rightful heir on the throne who will keep those who are marked safe. But when Adelina discovers that her sister is in danger, she must do something even if that means risking everything. The Young Elites is a really great dark fantasy story that will keep you hooked until the very end. I absolutely want to read the second one to see what happens next.
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Author: Patrick Ness
Published: 2020 Sarah and her father live in Washington in the 1950s. Her father is a farmer who is really struggling and as a last resort has to hire a dragon to come help him on the farm. Sarah's mother, who passed away years ago, was Black and Sarah's father is white. It is not easy being biracial in a small town during this time period. She and her father are already viewed as outcasts because of this, and now they hired a dragon that supposedly came from Russia, which doesn't help matters. During this time period, Russia and the United States did not have a good relationship. It was the Cold War, where both countries were worried the other would send nuclear bombs to destroy them. When Sarah gets into some trouble, the dragon named Kazimir is there to help and she soon discovers that there is a reason he decided to go to their farm at this exact time. There is a prophecy that Sarah is responsible for saving the world and Kazimir knows that there is someone after her who will do anything to make sure that she does not survive to fulfill that prophecy. Suddenly Sarah finds herself in a lot of danger. Burn is a really great mixture of historical fiction and fantasy that looks at what the world might be like if there were dragons among us. It has adventure and mystery and even romance. This was a very enjoyable read, and I definitely was not able to guess where the story was going at all! Author: Brittney Morris
Published: 2021 Ever since Alex and his brother Isaiah survived the accident that killed his parents, Alex has had this strange power. Whenever he touches something or someone with the palm of his hand, he is able to see the future of whatever he is touching. All of these visions cause Alex a lot of anxiety, especially because they happen constantly and it is very overwhelming. And no matter what he does, he cannot keep the vision from coming true. He really thinks of this as a curse instead of a power. Alex and his brother Isaiah have lived with their aunt ever since their parents passed away. Ever since the accident, Isaiah has kept to himself, hardly ever leaving his room unless he absolutely has to, keeping Alex at a distance. When Alex touches a photograph, he suddenly sees himself with that picture at Isaiah's funeral. And he knows it's going to happen in the near future. Alex knows he doesn't have much time. He knows the first step is to go into Isaiah's room and talk to him, to become like brothers again for as long as they have left together. But maybe that's not all. Maybe there's something else he can do. The Cost of Knowing is heartbreaking. It's about love and grief and anxiety, about what it means to be a Black boy in America. Fantastic story by the author of Slay. Author: David A. Robertson
Published: 2020 Morgan has been moved around from foster family to foster family. Right now she is currently living with a nice couple who just don't really understand what it means to be an Indigenous child. Her foster parents also took in another Indigenous boy younger than Morgan named Eli. One day, Morgan and Eli discover a secret room in the attic. While in this secret room, they hang up a drawing Eli did of a fisher (an animal similar to a weasel) in the snow. After they hang up the picture, they feel wind and suddenly snow comes pouring into the attic through the picture. The fisher is running toward them. Eli rips the paper off the wall and see that his drawing has changed. The fisher is much closer and it looks like he is running. Morgan and Eli don't understand what just happened, but when Morgan discovers later that Eli has gone into this mysterious snowy world, she knows that she has to enter the portal the picture opened in order to save him. They learn they have entered another world and found a community of animals who can stand upright and speak to one another. Morgan and Eli also discover that this community is starving, stuck in eternal winter. They set out with a couple of others to try to find food but have no idea what the journey will bring. The Barren Grounds is a fantastic adventure story that has strong Narnia and Frozen vibes. Absolutely beautiful story. Author: Traci Chee
Published: 2020 We Are Not Free follows the stories of fourteen different Japanese American teenagers after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. After Japan attacked Pearl Harbor during World War II, all Japanese Americans were viewed as the enemy and were rounded up and put into internment camps as if they were criminals. They were forced to leave behind their homes and their belongings and their freedom. Each chapter is from the point-of-view of a different character, and all the stories intertwine. In each chapter we hear about the horrible way Japanese Americans were treated. Some signed up to fight in the war, some are moved from camp to camp, some are arrested for nothing and are kept as prisoners in even worse conditions than the camps. While this book is historical fiction, the author Traci Chee's grandparents and their families were put into these incarceration camps. Chee interviewed her relatives and their stories inspired some of the elements in this book. We Are Not Free is a fantastic book that is so important. As Chee says in the author's note, "During my research, the more I have learned about our history, the more I have come to realize that we are part of an ongoing pattern of injustices that have affected and are still affecting millions of people of color on this continent...I cannot help but feel that history is repeating itself in new and sometimes more horrific ways." Read this book. |
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