January/February 2017
— A foster child traveling to a new placement bonds with her driver when their car breaks down, discovering he and his adoptive parents will be her new family.
— A young reader searches library shelves until discovering a forgotten red book with gold lettering that promises adventure despite its brevity.
— A girl loses her childhood best friend when their families take opposite sides during the American Revolution's Stamp Act crisis, their final parting at a harbor as he sails away.
— The Pet War, by Allan Woodrow; Scholastic Press: New York, 2015; $4.99 When I read books I always set my expectations low, and also, I reluctantly admit I literally sometimes...
— A girl named Yellow Rose navigates grief, loneliness, and her father's new girlfriend until a chance encounter with a neighbor opens a door to friendship.
— A midnight journey from bed to kitchen for milk captures the disorienting sensory details of being awake at 3:30 A.M.
— A deaf girl discovers she can feel music through vibrations when her teacher shows her how to play piano barefoot, finding her voice through the instrument.
— We Will Not Be Silent, by Russell Freedman; Clarion Books: New York, 2016; $17.99 “They could have chosen to throw bombs.” Not often in history are peaceful attempts to disrupt...
— A girl with amnesia wakes on a beach, joins a group of free children, and learns to fly by believing in herself—until she wakes from the dream.
— A young writer expresses the desire to dissolve boundaries between self and nature, imagining feet sinking into dirt, floating as water, swaying in trees.