Just so well done

Rain is Not My Indian Name is a book I can highly, highly recommend for so many reasons.  It made me wonder why I have not read more from Cynthia Leitich Smith. One of places I always check when I read about with Native American characters is this site.  I was so pleased to see that this book is

Paranormal Historical Fiction of a Horror

The Rattled Bones was excellent.  I wonder if everyone who reads it knows that it is based on a true, horrorific tragedy, an example of human's inhumanity to other humans.  I first read about it another excellent book.  Excellent.  Who says you can't learn from fiction! Now if only we will REALLY learn from it. 

Another Good One

Saving Montgomery Soul was good.  What I really loved about it was it is another example (and I am SO excited to see that there are more and more of these out there) where we hear from Christians who know that Jesus doesn't care WHO we love, He just wants us to LOVE. 
Yes, there are people who call themselves Christians like the Rev. White who chose to not follow Jesus on this issue.  And for them, we pray and pray and pray and pray.  Thank you, Mariko Tamaki, whatever your faith may or may not be, for not taking the easy, cheesy and unformed way out and making all "Christians" right-wing bigots who choose to follow someone other than Jesus Christ on this very important issue. 

The Shame of a Nation

Hitler's American Model:  The United States and the Making of Nazi Race Law was an eye-opening, but sadly, unsurprising book.  That's not a criticism of the book, it is a criticism of our country.  I used to be such a patriot.  I used to get upset with people who bough foreign cars.  I quoted Schurz constantly, "“My country, right or wrong; if right, to be kept right; and if wrong, to be set right.”   I sang this song at karaoke and to myself as well.  And then I grew up.  After reading The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian, I started to question everything.  And then the election of 2016 happened and everything changed.  And I am ashamed.  And I am sad. 

15

I remember what I was doing at age 15 and after reading Turning 15 on the Road to Freedom:  My Story of the Selma Voting Rights March, I am even more in awe of Lynda Blackmon Lowery.  And even more ashamed of our country.  But yet Ms. Lowery has written a book of hope and love as she tells what she saw and heard and went through when she was on the road to Montgomery.  In face of Bloody Sunday, I am just blown away that she can write with such grace and kindness.  What a beautiful woman she must be.  We are reading this for my nonfiction book group with adults and will talk about it on Tuesday.  The other women in the group all lived through this time and I am anxious to hear what they remember. 

Newbery

Jewell Parker Rhodes should have won the Newbery for Towers Falling.  She should win it next year for Ghost Boys.  This book is incredible.  JPR is one of the most talented writers to which I have ever been exposed.  Incredible.  Moving, honest, sadly "ripped from the headlines."  Creative, sad, hopeful.  Real. 

The F Word

I really, really resonated with Bad Feminist in a lot of ways.   The book isn't just about feminism though.  It deals with a lot of issues.  One of the things that kept running through my mind was that this was written in the Pre-Trump days.  Things were bad then, but they are even worse now for women.  No, for humans!  Dr. Gay is brilliant.  Witty, too. 

Wow

Speak No Evil was another "wow" book.  What a book.  Wow.  I learned a bit about Nigerian culture and Nigerian immigrants in the US and it was a reminder again that while the US has much more ground to cover regarding the rights of people who happen to love people with similar body parts.  It was also a cruel reminder that there are many people who say that they are following Christ, but are not really into what He said.  Very sad.

Powerful and Haunting

Men We Reaped is a must-read.  Not just for those who have read Ward’s fiction (but it is for sure because it gives great insight into it, I think) but for everyone.  Yes it’s hard and convicting but I think that it’s necessary.  It makes me admire her even more, which I didn’t think was possible.  She is truly an amazing writer and woman. 
My heart is ripped apart and I think of Rachel weeping for her children.  And I wonder when white society will ever stand up and take responsibility and work to make reparations and amends.

Such a great book

The 57 Bus:  A True Story of Two Teenagers and the Crime that Changed Their Lives is SO well done.  Wow.  Just such a fantastic book about this case.  It is a real-life example of living in the grey.  I can't recommend this book enough. 
It is VERY hard for me to believe that this book was the winner of the YALSA Non-fiction Award and The 57 Bus was a finalist.  1954 all over again.  For sure. 

Generations

You Bring the Distant Near was a "fall into this book" kind of book.  Mitali Perkins just writes so well and it just sucked me in and brought me into a world very different from my own.  Not just because my family isn't from India but also because our family tradition is one:  We have no traditions.  So I have no sense of family in that way.  Beautiful and engrossing. 

Sadly, This is America

An American Marriage is one of the best books I have ever read.  It is sad that we who work in libraries don't let people know about the databases we have.  In our county we have two eAudio sites, Hoopla Digital and Overdrive.  We have another one, but it is terrible.  Anyway...with Overdrive, there are a set number of copies and only one patron can listen or read a book at one time.  So there are waiting lists.  Right now on Overdrive there are about 100 holds for An American Marriage on audio download.  But with Hoopla, I can listen, you can listen, we all can listen at the same time.  No waiting.  So I was SO fortunate to check both resources and listen to this incredible book.  And then I got to hear Tayari Jones on this podcast and this one!  Simply excellent.  Must-read.  And it is Oprah's Book Club pick, currently! 

Way Beyond My Expectations. Great!

Ugly was one of those books for which I had LOW expectations.  SUPER LOW.  I was sure it was a rip off, written because of the success of Wonder. 
But no way.  First of all, this is a memoir.  And Robert Hoge has quite the story to tell and a very compelling way of telling it.  He has to be one of the most forgiving and understanding human beings in the world.  I was so upset listening to his mother's response to the physical deformities with which Robert was born.  But then I read this and it helped.   This is just a really well-written book.  Great book. 

More about Malcolm

After reading Betty Before X, I was excited to read X by Ilyasah Shabazz, this one written with Kekla Magoon.  This one is written for more tween and teen than children's, I think, just because of some of the things that Malcolm X experienced in his teen life.  Excellent.  Excellent.  Such a great account of the coming-of-age of Malcolm X and it left me wanting to know even more and to read more from Shabazz.  Highly recommended.

Even Better

Jeffery Self's A Very Very Bad Thing was a Very Very Great Book.  I liked Drag Teen a lot.  But this was even better.  It was probably because of the church part of it.  I admit that at first I didn't want to read it because I feared it would be a lot of Christian bashing- which I completely understand, as I have said before, the "Christian" church hasn't always been kind to the BLT community.  And some "Christian" churches, those that choose to follow humans instead of Christ, still aren't.  Still, I wasn't really up for it, you know?  But no.  This was just real and honest and had a broader POV and just was so really, really well done!  This was a heartbreaking but really, really excellent book. 

Learning!

Some people don't like to read fiction because they feel like they want to "learn something" from a book so they just read nonfiction.  Okay.  Maybe it's just my aunt who feels this way.  But when she says it, I want to tell her about all of the things that I have learned from reading fiction books!  I mean, I love reading nonfiction, too!  But I do learn from fiction as well.

Which was one of things I didn't like about Why We Broke Up with it's completely fictional movie star.  I mean, what was the point.  When one could have learned something from it!

I learned about Ireland's Wishing Trees from Wishtree.  I did like Wishtree a lot!  I just didn't find it to be 5 star, but maybe 4.75 star.  I think because it was too short (I know, so weird for me, but I really did like the characters and wanted to know more!)  But I think it was realistic, the way that it ended, even though there is much up in the air.  I loved the ending, I did.  The "STAY" part.  Which isn't a spoiler, I don't, think, the way that I am writing about it and won't say anymore. 
By the way, I LOVED Tree's jokes!  LOVED THEM!  I don't know if this is good enough to be THE Newbery, but I wouldn't be mad if it is THE Newbery, but it seems more like an honor book, which is awesome enough and for sure deserved! 

Shakey

I have no idea why but for a long time I have called Shakespeare "Shakey Shakespeare."  I can't say I am a huge Shakespeare fan.  Or even a tiny Shakespeare fan.  Or even much of a fan.  But I did enjoy Macbeth and Hamlet and Othello.  I blame others of course.  I blame the fact that we had to read The Merchant of Venice in seventh grade.  Are most seventh graders ready for The Merchant of Venice?  I was ready for Macbeth in tenth and Hamlet in eleventh or twelfth, I can't remember, but not TMOV in seventh.  But maybe that was just me.
In any case, this series, Hogarth Shakespeare seems fantastic!  I loved New Boy and I am listing to Vinegar Girl right now, which is based on The Taming of the Shrew, which I don't know at all and it is SO good!   These books are written by really established authors.  Tracy Chevalier wrote this one.  And VG is written by Anne Tyler.  Both of these authors have written for adult audiences.  But on her website, Chevalier says that she thinks young adults will find this appealing as well, maybe.  And I agree. 

Really, Really Excellent

Alan Gratz was a speaker at PSLA a couple of years ago, and he was talking about his then new book, Prisoner B-3087.  I had not heard of the book or the author prior to that, for which I was embarrassed and so very thankful that I learned of him and read the book.  It was incredible.  After reading Refuge, I am even more glad because it was even more incredible, if that is possible. This is my pick for the Newbery so far, for sure.

I don't know...

The Pants Project was okay.  I am glad to have more books about transgendered young people.  I think that is really important.  And not being trans myself, I can't speak to how "real" this feels, but I hope it is.  Liv seems to have found wonderful, supportive friends and have a beautifully supportive family.  So that makes me very happy and I pray that is the experience for all people.  I would have given it 3.5 stars if I could.  It just didn't grab me as much as George did.  It's probably not fair to hold TPP up to this standard, but it is the same subject and I just think that Alex Gino wrote a really, really incredible book.

God Does Not Care Whom We Love, Only That We Love

Loving vs. Virginia:  a Documentary Novel of the Landmark Civil Rights Case is the story of a case that I embarrassing admit, I was unaware until the movie Loving came out last year.  Loving v. Virginia (1967) is a case that should never have had to come to trial, like Brown v. The Board of Education of Topeka (1954).
The movie was good.  This book is excellent.  It is especially important for anyone and everyone to read.  It is so very, very well done in poetry and incredible illustrations.  This is a must-read.
It's a novel, so I guess it is technically historical fiction?