Cinder

 

Cinder
by Marissa Meyer
Feiwel & Friends, 2012, YA Fiction, 390 p.

Cinder is a teenage cyborg  and some say she is the best mechanic in New Beijing.  She lives with a guardian who basically owns her, and that woman's two daughters.  One of the daughters is Cinder's friend, but the other is as hardhearted as her mother.  One day Prince Kai comes to Cinder's stall at the bazaar and asks if she can fix his droid.  Soon Cinder is sucked into castle intrigue involving a devastating plague, an evil lunar queen, and the mystery of Cinder's own origins.

This is a fast-paced teen sci-fi retelling of the Cinderella story.  Meyer's world building in brilliant and her characters are endearing.  Situations can get intense at times, but Meyer balances out the gritty parts with Cinder's sweet crush on the prince.  This is not a good one to pick up on a day you should be studying for a test at school.  You might have a hard time putting it down.

Pass Go and Collect $200

Pass Go and Collect $200
By Tanya Lee Stone
Illustrated by Steven Salerno
Henry Holt and Company, 2018, Unpaginated, Youth Nonfiction

Have you ever played the board game Monopoly? Where did it all start?
Elizabeth Magie created the game to help people realize how unjust tenant-landlord relationships were in the late 1800's in America.However, the game went through many changes and many more hands before it became the game we know today.

This clever book reveals the confusing history surrounding this popular game. Readers will be fascinated by how the game was used, designed, reused, and redesigned over the years. Who knew that it was used in a college classroom? Or that for years, fans made up their own changes and even rules - and those changes still appear in the version people know today? Though full of facts, this book has beautiful illustrations done in crayon, ink, gouache, and pastel that have been Photoshoped and layered on top of each other. The result is a colorful and interesting book that would be great for anyone who wants to learn little more about Monopoly, board games, or American history.

Wizard for Hire

Wizard for Hire
by Obert Skye
Shadow Mountain, 2018, Intermediate Fiction, 400 p.

Ozzy's parents are both PhD scientists.  When Ozzy is seven they move abruptly from New York City to a secluded cabin in Oregon.  Then a few months later, men dressed in green come and take Ozzy's parents away.  Ozzy survives on his own for seven more years with the help of a AI raven left behind by his parents.  Finally a desire to find out what happened to his parents drives Ozzy back to civilization and to Rin, a self-proclaimed wizard.  Ozzy keeps expecting Rin to pull out a magic wand and solve all of his problems.  That doesn't happen, but step by step Ozzy and Rin uncover clues to what happened to Ozzy's family.

Here is another funny and exciting series by the author of Leven Thumps. Ozzy is an endearing character, and readers will wonder and debate along with him whether Rin is a real wizard or not.  There is something here for everyone; mystery, comedy, some awesome car chases, and even a little romance.  This is a great choice for fans of Harry Potter, and the Janitors series.

Geekarella

Geekarella 
by Ashley Poston
Quirk Books, 2017, Young Adult Fiction. 319 p.

Elle is a die hard fan of a science fiction TV series, Starfied. Not so her evil step mother and twin step sisters.  They spend their time spending Elle's inheritance and belittling her choice of entertainment.  Elle feels like a nobody until one day she receives a random text from another Starfield fan. Little does she know that her text friend is really the heartthrob actor who is playing the lead in the new Starfield movie; the same actor she is constantly slamming on her Starfield fan blog. 

Poston explores the geeky world of cos-play and sci-fi fandom in all its glory.  Readers will enjoy Poston's modern version of the classic Cinderella story, from the orange pumpkin food truck to the crystal shoe.  Of course, there are the angsty family relations ubiquitous in YA novels, but they do not overpower the fun elements. I think teens will enjoy this book, especially middle-school age girls who might be part of a fandom themselves.  Look for a sequel coming out this year.

City of Orphans

City of Orphans
By Avi
New York:Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2011, Youth Historical Fiction, 350 p.
Maks' parents came from Denmark when he was only a baby, but New York is his home and he works as a newsboy selling papers. Now Bruno and his Plug Ugly Gang are trying to beat Maks up and take his money - and they almost succeed. Then Willa, a homeless girl who lives in a narrow ally, beats off the Plug Uglies with a stick and saves Maks. The least he can do is invite her home to eat. But, when Maks gets home he finds that his older sister Emma, who works at the new Waldorf Hotel, got arrested for stealing! Only she didn't steal anything. How is Maks going to prove her innocent without spending any of the family's small earning on an expensive lawyer? Plus there's still Bruno and the Plug Ugly Gang to worry about; and their not happy about what Willa did...

This novel will capture both teens and adults and whisk them off through the rough streets of New York's lower East End in 1893. It's a clean read with mild street violence, but nothing graphic. One of the most interesting things about this novel is that the text is written so that the entire story is narrated in a thick New Yorker accent. This helps the reader to more fully immerse themselves in the story as they picture themselves sitting around listening to a tough, working class type spinning this story long into the night.

Flunked

Flunked
By Jen Calonita
Sourcebooks Jabberwocky, 2015, Youth Fiction, 263 p.
"Our Mission: To turn wicked delinquents and former villains into future heroes."(p.33) Is it truly possible that villains can be taught to be good? That wicked stepmothers can be kind? That a big bad wolf can, well, not eat people? At Fairy Tale Reform School they believe just that. Gillian Cobbler, on the other hand, doesn't want to go there. And she wouldn't have to steal in the first place if Princess Ella's Fairy Godmother hadn't stolen Gillian's father's glass slipper idea, and thus took all the business away from the Cobbler's. If that hadn't happened then Gillian would have no reason to try to find ways to help feed her five younger siblings. But now she's been caught and shipped off to reform school. In a school full of ex-thieves, trouble-makers, con-artists, and their formerly villainous teachers ( like the Evil Queen and Wicked Stepmother) trouble is bound to happen. The question is who has really been reformed - and who is really wicked?

This fantasy novel is a refreshing twist on the fairy tale spin-off genre. Those familiar with Grimm's Fairy Tales will find familiar characters with new roles. Exciting, heartfelt, and action packed this book will put readers under a spell. It also discusses friendship, loyalty, and the value of what's inside of a person. This book is the first in a series that is great for kids, teens, and even adults.

Eleanor Roosevelt: A Life of Discovery

Eleanor Roosevelt: A Life of Discovery
By Russell Freedman
Clarion Books, 1993. 198 p. Youth Biography
Eleanor Roosevelt is one of my heroes.  She was born into privilege but suffered from awkwardness and shyness.  When her parents died she was sent to live with relatives until she finished school.  She met her dashing future husband at a party, and was surprised when he continued his attentions when he could have had any of the eligible girls in their social circle.  Lucky him.  With her support Franklin Roosevelt rose to become one of our country's greatest presidents, and Eleanor became one of the most beloved of all first ladies.

I am a huge fan of Russell Freedman. His writing is so masterful that it transports the reader into the mind and heart of his subjects.  He writes for a young audience, and handles difficult topics discretely and in a way that is age appropriate.  Eleanor's life and accomplishments are so inspiring that this is a great choice for kids who need to read a longer biography for school. It is no wonder that it won a Newbery Honor in 1994.

The Only Child

The Only Child
by Goujing
Schwartz & Wade Books, 2015, Picture Book, unpaginated
It is not uncommon for a child to feel lonely at times, even when they have a loving and caring family. Here a child tries to relieve their loneliness, and ends up lost in magical world. The child experiences fear, comfort, loss, and hope on their journey to back home.
Goujing grew up in China as an only child and used those memories to craft this book. All the pictures are done in a monochromatic gray scale that evokes both the loneliness the child feels in the real world and the wonder they find in the imaginary. This book is entirely without words, relying entirely on visual interpretation of the reader. Children will enjoy the pictures and the fantastical world found in the book, while adults may enjoy the reflection on loneliness, love , home ,and friendship.