Young Adult Titles

To Shape a Dragon’s Breath – book review

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To Shape a Dragon’s Breath by Moniquill Blackgoose Fantasy * * * * Stars (Great!) Anequs, a fifteen-year-old indigenous girl, discovers a dragon’s egg on her people’s island, and brings it back to her village – as tradition dictates – where everyone gathers to dance and sing and tell stories to welcome the dragon within. When the egg hatches, the hatchling, Kasaqua, chooses Anequs to be her Nampeshiweisit (her person). Anequs’ brother who has lived … Read more

Lonely Castle in the Mirror – book review

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Lonely Castle in the Mirror (manga series) by Mizuki Tsujimura & Tomo Taketomi Fantasy Manga Mystery * * * Stars (Pretty good) Kokoro and 6 other teens are chosen to visit a magical castle which they reach by traveling through mirrors. Ookami-sama (a girl in a wolf mask) greets them and explains that they have 1 year to find a key that will grant one of them their dearest wish. In the meantime, they can … Read more

Bliss Adair and the First Rule of Knitting – book review

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Bliss Adair and the First Rule of Knitting by Jean Mills Realistic Fiction Romance * * * * Stars (Great!) Bliss Adair is an accomplished knitter as well as a math wiz. She spends a lot of time helping out at her folks’ yarn store, which puts her in the unfortunate position of hearing something she shouldn’t and now wishes she didn’t know. When she connects that piece of information with an acquaintance at school, … Read more

Meet Me on Mercer Street – book review

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Meet Me on Mercer Street by Booki Vivat Graphic Novel Realistic Fiction * * * Stars (Pretty good) Kacie goes away for the summer and when she comes home to Mercer Street she discovers her best friend Nisha has moved away and Nisha’s dad’s convenience store has been turned into a fancy modern Smart shop. Kacie is an artist and is constantly drawing what she sees, so she documents a lot of what’s going on … Read more

Focused – book review

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Focused by Alyson Gerber Realistic Fiction * * * Stars (Pretty good) Clea is finding it hard to focus and she’s falling behind in school and having problems at home, too. Her folks take her to see a specialist who diagnoses her with ADHD. While Clea isn’t thrilled with the assessment, she also starts seeing the benefits of getting treatment/help. She starts taking medication to help her concentrate, learns strategies to help her cope, and … Read more

Tell Me What Really Happened – book review

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Tell Me What Really Happened by Chelsea Sedoti Mystery Suspense Thriller * * * Stars (Pretty good) Maylee Hayes goes missing on a camping trip, and the police are trying to determine what happened to her by interviewing her friends who were there – Petra, Nolan, Abigail, and John. Each chapter is voiced by a different character in response to the questions they’ve been asked. Petra is Maylee’s BFF and she’s convinced that Maylee is … Read more

Star Splitter – book review

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Star Splitter by Matthew J. Kirby Science Fiction * * * Stars (Pretty good) Jessica Mathers has been summoned by her parents after they basically abandoned her for their careers when she was eleven. They want her to be a part of their research expedition to Carver 1061c, which will whisk her away from her life on Earth. Jess is ANGRY and doesn’t want to go, but has been given no choice in the matter. … Read more

Princess and the Grilled Cheese Sandwich – book review

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The Princess and the Grilled Cheese Sandwich by Deya Muniz Graphic Novel LGBTQ+ Romance * * * Stars (Pretty good) Lady Camembert has never cared for men, and she tells her father, the Count, in no uncertain terms, that she will NOT marry. He in turn reveals that he is not long for this world, so in order to pass along his estate and her inheritance (because their laws are stupid and don’t allow women … Read more

Sunny Makes Her Case – book review

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Sunny Makes Her Case by Jennifer & Matthew Holm Graphic Novel Realistic Fiction * * * * Stars (Great!) Sunny is now in high school and is discovering her interests. She and a friend try out for cheerleading (not really what Sunny wants to do, but she wants to be with/support her friend). She doesn’t make the squad. When another friend, Arun, starts complaining about how their school is too focused on sports and sports … Read more

Door in the Dark – book review

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A Door in the Dark by Scott Reintgen Fantasy * * * * Stars (Great!) Ren is a promising student of magic at Balmerick University, but she fails to attract the attention of any wealthy magical houses. On the way home for the holidays, Ren and 5 other students attempt to travel using the public waxway portal when somehow the magic goes wrong, wraps them all up, and casts them far away from their intended … Read more