Author: Jason Reynolds Published: 2017 Will's older brother Shawn has been murdered. He was shot, and Will is positive that he know did it. In his neighborhood, violence is a common occurrence, and he has to follow the rules:
This is a fantastic and intense book written in verse that I absolutely loved.
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Author: Liz Braswell
Published: 2016 This is a retelling of the story of Beauty and the Beast. In this book, Belle's mother was the enchantress who cursed the beast and his castle. The chapters in this book flip back and forth between Belle in the present and her parents in the past. In the movie, we don't know anything about Belle's mom, but this book changes that. Her mom is named Rosalind, and she is a magical being. In this time, all magical beings are seen as evil creatures by many. They are being chased out of the town, so it is a very dangerous time to be magical. In the present day chapters, we meet Belle who remembers nothing of her mom who disappeared when Belle was young. Strangely, Belle's dad also can't remember much about that time. Belle's story follows the movie at first--she becomes imprisoned by the beast and must live in the castle. Then the story opens up, and we get to learn what happened to Belle's mother and how she came to put a curse on the beast. This is such a great story for those who love fractured fairy tales. I loved the depth Braswell added to this story. Author: Ronald L. Smith
Published: 2018 T'Challa is the son of Black Panther, who is the leader of Wakanda, a nation in Africa with extremely advanced technology. When invaders come to Wakanda, T'Challa's father's priority is to keep T'Challa safe. He sends T'Challa and his best friend M'Baku to live in Chicago and go to school as normal teenagers. This is a huge change for T'Challa who was treated as royalty on Wakanda. Now he has to blend in. Right away he and M'Baku are the targets of bullying by a group of boys led by Gemini Jones. T'Challa is happy being friends with the less cool people in school. M'Baku, however, makes friends with Gemini and his crew and stops hanging out with T'Challa. Soon strange things start happening--weird nests start appearing at school. When T'Challa researches them he finds they are supposed to help summon spirits. Abandoned by M'Baku, it is up to T'Challa to figure out what is going on, and he soon discovers they are all in more danger than he could have ever imagined. This is a GREAT book that readers who love Marvel will devour! Author: Sheila O'Connor
Published: 2018 It is the year 1968. Reenie Kelly is eleven-years-old, and she and her brothers Dare and Billy are living with their grandma ever since their mom passed away. Reenie is excited to get a job as a paperboy in the small town. One of the people on her route is Mr. Marsworth, an old man who is an outsider in the town. Reenie leaves him a letter introducing herself as his new paperboy, and she is pleasantly surprised when he writes her back. The two begin a pen pal relationship. Reenie keeps asking to meet him, but he thinks their relationship should stay as it is. During this time period, the Vietnam War is going on, and boys are being pressured to sign up for the war. Billy, Reenie's older brother, is the right age to go to Vietnam. He doesn't want to fight; instead he wants to go to college, but the family can't afford it. If you went to college, you would not be drafted to go to the war. Reenie is saving up all her money to keep her brother safe. Those who protested against the draft were hated in the country. Reenie finds out that Mr. Marsworth is against war and that's why he is an outsider in the town. Mr. Marsworth and Reenie keep writing each other, and they try to come up with a plan to save Billy. As they write, Reenie discovers secrets about her family that change everything. Author: Kwame Alexander
Published: 2018 This is a prequel to The Crossover, about Josh and JB Bell, two teenage boys who love basketball. In Rebound, we meet JB and Josh's father, Charlie, as a teenager. This book takes place in the summer of 1988 after Charlie's father passed away unexpectedly. Charlie is having a very hard time dealing with the loss. His mom doesn't know how to help him through this tough time. After getting in trouble for doing something stupid, his mom decides to send him to live with grandparents for the rest of the summer. Charlie is not looking forward to spending the summer being forced to do free labor for his grandfather. He would rather stay inside by himself and read his comics. Luckily he has his cousin Roxie who gets him playing basketball. Charlie doesn't understand his grandfather, who didn't even come to his own son's funeral. Soon Charlie sees just how hard it was for his grandparents to lose a child. This is a great book about loss. Fans of The Crossover will love this story about Chuck Bell, JB and Josh's dad. Author: Ashley Herring Blake
Published: 2018 Ivy's whole world is turned upside down when a tornado hits her community. Her house is completely destroyed. Luckily she managed to save her notebook filled with her drawings. Ivy has an older sister and twin brothers who are only a few months old, and they all have to live in the same room until they can find a new place to live. Soon Ivy discovers that her notebook has gone missing, and she is horrified because it contained drawings that include one of her biggest secrets, something she hasn't even told her friends or her family. When Ivy goes back to school, the drawings from her notebook start appearing in her locker with anonymous notes. Ivy is worried that her secret will get out. She is also feeling like she is being ignored in her family because all the attention is on her younger brothers. When everything gets to be too much, Ivy doesn't know who to turn to. This is a beautiful book about a young girl who is trying to figure out her identity. I would recommend this book to everyone. Author: Randy Ribay
Published: 2018 Bunny has left his old public school for a scholarship at a very fancy private school so he can play on their championship basketball team. He is a star basketball player and one of the only black students at his new school. He feels like his only way for a chance at college is to get noticed by colleges by being on a great basketball team. He misses his old friends and feels out of place at his new school. Nasir, Bunny's ex-best friend, is furious with Bunny for abandoning his old school and his teammates. He is also dealing with his cousin Wallace, a troublemaker, who is being evicted from his home and is about to become homeless. Wallace decides to start betting on basketball games to try to win money. When he gets too far in, Bunny and Nasir have tough decisions to make that will affect the rest of their lives. This is a great book about tough decisions that is perfect for sports fans. Author: John Feinstein
Published: 2015 Alex is back, this time for basketball season. After football season is over, Alex is excited to start playing basketball, especially with his talented friend Jonas. The basketball team is not good, and many seniors are upset to lose their starting places to a couple of freshman. This causes problems on the team. Then a new kid, Max, moves to town and joins the team. He is even more talented than Alex. It looks like the team may just have a chance at winning. But then Max comes out as gay, causing even more problems on the team. Then protesters start coming to games and causing problems. The basketball season is not at all what the players had imagined. Will the team be able to come together and win? This is the 2nd book in the Triple Threat series about Alex Myers. This book could be read first and it would still make sense. A great book about real issues in sports today. Author: Ginger Zee
Published: 2018 Helicity truly loves the weather. She especially loves tornadoes and wants to be a storm chaser when she gets older. One day Helicity takes her horse out for a ride. Suddenly the weather turns, and she sees a powerful tornado. Shocked, she tries to find safety. Once the storm passes, Helicity runs home to find out if her family is okay. She discovers absolute destruction of her town, plus her brother is missing. After the storm, Helicity gets a chance to meet a real-life storm chaser, but will her parents let her chase her dream? This is a great book for anyone interested in natural disasters and adventure. Author: Knockout
Published: 2018 Levi was very sick as a baby. He had to breathe through a trach, a plastic tube in his neck. He got sick all the time, and he struggled with breathing. Now Levi is in seventh grade, and he has beaten all odds. He is a lot healthier than he was as a baby; however, his mom and his brother Timothy still treat him like the sick little baby he used to be. When Levi's dad, who was never around when Levi was younger because he couldn't handle his sickness, suggests Levi play a sport, Levi knows his mom would never let him. Then Levi's dad suggests they keep it a secret. The sport Levi chooses is boxing, and he discovers that he is actually really good at it. Now if he could just keep it from his family and ignore how his breathing is starting to get bad again... This is a sequel to the book House Arrest by K.A. Holt, that focused on Timothy when Levi was a baby dealing with his sickness. Both are written in verse. |
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