The Book Search

 OOOOOO, it feels SO good to have some time to read!  I found some really great science fiction this week in my Netgalley pile!  And guess what?  These two are on the SSYRA 3-5 list for 2022-2023! This one is called "The Lion of Mars" by Jennifer Holm.  I'm a big fan of Jennifer Holm-I love Turtle in Paradise and Babymouse and the Fourteenth Goldfish and Sunny.  The list is long and I'm so happy to see there's a new addition to the list!  The Lion of Mars is set on Mars.  The American government has sent a group of people to set up a colony there.  There are adults and children who grow their own food (with occasional resupplies from Earth) and make do with what they have.  There are strict rules about living in the colony and one is that there is no contact with the other colonies.  (Wait, what?  I hear you asking!) Yep, there is a French colony, a Finnish colony, a Chinese colony, and a Russian colony.  The Americans don't have contact with the other colonie

Sometimes it feels like realistic fiction is just a little too real for me, especially, given the world in the last few months.  Luckily, there are some wildly talented writers how are giving us a lovely opportunity to walk in someone else's shoes just for a little while and see that might feel like. The first one is called On a Good Horse by Darby Karchut.  It's about Alex, who is going to New Mexico to live with his dad.  His dad has been largely absent from his life when his parents divorced when Alex was about three.  His mom had died suddenly and unexpectedly and Alex had been living with his aunt and uncle but they were going to NY to pursue a business prospect and were not allowed to take him with them.  So he goes to spend the summer with his dad, grudgingly, and unwillingly.   His dad is a farrier and is hoping that Alex will come with him and learn about his job.  Dad is also hoping that Alex will love horses as much as he does.  So he buys a horse for Alex for the su

 I love historical fiction.  Of all the genres, that's probably my favorite and these two new ones might show you why. The first one is called Ming's Christmas Wishes by Susan Gong.  It's about Ming, who has three Christmas wishes.  She wants to sing in the Christmas Choir, she wants to have a Christmas tree, and she wants to feel like she belongs.  But as the child of Chinese immigrants in 1930's California, discrimination was common and traditional Chinese families didn't really have Christmas trees.  Ming's dad takes her to into the mountains to visit an old friend and helps Ming accept who she is and who her family is.  The art work in this one is warm and luminous and really helps the connect the holiday feeling around the cold hard facts of discrimination and racism that many families feel.  This a good story to talk about our own family traditions and how we might be more accepting of others.   The second one is called Just Like That by Gary D. Schmidt.  

 Wow, so I guess it's been a busy fall.  There was this little projec t  that kept me busy for awhile. Oh and school ... in the middle of a pandemic... and being available for a relentless amount of tech support to teachers trying to teach a hybrid model of both in person and online classes to 3, 4, and 5 year olds.  BUT this week, I actually had time to read some books!  YAY!!!  Here were two terrific ghost stories with great cultural connections.   The first one is called The Ghost in Apartment 2R by Denis Markell.  Danny is the storyteller.  He lives with his parents and his older brother in an apartment in Brooklyn.  It's a small apartment and his bedroom has always been in a closet.  That was all supposed to change when Danny's older brother, Jake, went to college.  Except that now, his parents decided, in an effort to make some extra money to help pay for Jake's college expenses, they are going to rent out the bedroom on one of those rental websites.  Danny is und