STOLEN WORDS shows how words reconnect us with people, with culture, with our home language, and with our most precious childhood memories. This simple but stunning picture book was written by Melanie Florence, Illustrated by Gabrielle Grimard, and published by…
Category: Family
Power Squared: An Interview with J.L. and M.A. Powers on Broken Circle
Welcome to J.L. and M.A. Powers, the co-authors of Broken Circle, out last month from Akashic BooksI They’re here to talk about the themes of the novel, their experience of writing a book together, and why they chose to work…
HANNAH’S JOURNEY by Carmen Peone
Crazy about horses? How about horse-racing? More specifically, wild racing – cross-country, with few rules and any pushing, shoving or pulling someone off their galloping steed is fair game. HANNAH’S JOURNEY by Carmen Peone is a book any horsewoman of…
Anna Hibiscus and Amazing Africa!
I’ve always loved the Anna Hibiscus picture books by Nigerian-born Atinuke so when publisher Kane Miller sent me copies of the latest in the Anna Hibiscus chapter book series, I was super excited! My 6 year old and I have…
Understanding the Blues: A Review of Clayton Byrd Goes Underground
Ten-year-old Clayton Byrd looks forward to every summer weekend when he joins his grandfather, Cool Papa Byrd, to play the blues in Washington Square Park. Cool Papa Byrd is a venerated bluesman, a guitar player, and he has promised to…
PRINCESS SOPHIE AND THE SIX SWANS
PRINCESS SOPHIE AND THE SIX SWANS A fable from the Brothers Grimm, retold and illustrated by Kim Jacobs, is a tale about loyalty and perseverance, an old tale retold with simplicity and beauty. Illustrations are a gentle sweep of color…
Kid Fights City Hall in The Epic Fail of Arturo Zamora
At the beginning of the summer, 13-year-old Arturo Zamora is not looking forward to his “promotion” to the position of Junior Lunchtime Dishwasher at his family’s Cuban restaurant in a suburb of Miami, Florida. Not only will he miss his…
Esteban de Luna, Baby Rescuer! Written by Larissa M. Mercadó-Lopez and Illustrated by Alex Pardo DeLange
Esteban de Luna, Baby Rescuer! Written by Larissa M. Mercadó-Lopez Illustrated by Alex Pardo DeLange Young Esteban’s prized possession is his green cape. He wears it every day from the park to the doctor’s office and everywhere in between,…
The Warden’s Daughter
Guest post by Padma Venkatraman THE WARDEN’S DAUGHTER By Jerry Spinelli Cammie, the protagonist of Jerry Spinelli’s latest novel, lives in a flat adjoining the county prison. Her mother dies in the act of saving Cammie’s life when Cammie…
The Human Cost of the International Drug War: A Review of An Uninterrupted View of the Sky
Seventeen-year-old Francisco Quispe loves soccer, but even though he’s smart, he doesn’t expect much of a future in school because of his Aymara heritage and appearance. Along with his friend Reynaldo, he dreams of selling knockoff soccer shirts and equipment…