Michelle and Leslie's Book Picks

Description: Ever since Reyes Farrow escaped from a hell dimension in which Charley Davidson accidentally trapped him, the son of Satan has been brimstone-bent on destroying the world his heavenly Brother created. His volatile tendencies have put Charley in a bit of a pickle. But that's not the only briny vegetable on her plate. While trying to domesticate the feral being that used to be her husband, she also has to deal with her everyday life of annoying all manner of beings--some corporeal, some not so much--as she struggles to right the wrongs of society. Only this time she's not uncovering a murder. This time she's covering one up. Add to that her new occupation of keeping a startup PI venture--the indomitable mystery-solving team of Amber Kowalski and Quentin Rutherford--out of trouble and dealing with the Vatican's inquiries into her beloved daughter, and Charley is on the brink of throwing in the towel and becoming a professional shopper. Or possib...

Description: Zane has always enjoyed exploring the dormant volcano near his home in New Mexico, even though hiking it is challenging. He'd much rather hang out there with his dog, Rosie, than go to middle school, where kids call him Sir Limps a Lot, McGimpster, or Uno — for his one good leg. What Zane doesn't know is that the volcano is a gateway to another world and he is at the center of a powerful prophecy. A new girl at school, Brooks, informs him that he's destined to release an evil god from the ancient Maya relic he is imprisoned in — unless she can find and remove it first. Together they return to the volcano, where all kinds of crazy happens. Brooks turns into a hawk, a demon attacks them in a cave, and Rosie gives her all while trying to protect Zane. When Zane decides to save his dog no matter the cost, he is thrust into an adventure full of surprising discoveries, dangerous secrets, and an all-out war between the gods, one of whom happens to be hi...

Title: Starry Eyes  Author: Jenn Bennett Published April 3rd 2018 by Simon Pulse Add On Goodreads ____________________________________ I found this book browsing the nominees for the Goodreads Choice Awards. Normally, the awards tend to be just a popularity contest, but with this book I have no doubt that the majority of its readers actually voted for it because they loved it. Because I loved it too. So much . It embodies every single thing I used to love about Young Adult literature. Smart characters who grow into awesome people, fun new experiences, the drama of becoming their ownselves. I enjoyed every minute of this book and it filled me with hope that not everything is lost for Contemporary YA. The story is about a couple of best friends who go through bad circumstances (a failed Great Experiment) and end up becoming sort of "enemies". Zorie is a young girl obsessed with planets and stars, and Lennon is a reptile lover, punk rocker, Bear Grylls-extraordinaire. I love t...

Description: Stolen from her family as a child, Aspasia has clawed her way up the ranks of Cyrus's black market empire to captain her own trading vessel--and she risks it all every time she uses her powerful magic to free as many women, children, and Elementae from slavery as she can. But Cyrus is close to uncovering her secrets--not only that Aspasia is an air Elementa with the ability to sail her ship through the sky, but that she is also searching for her lost family. And if Aspasia can’t find her younger siblings before Cyrus does, she will never be able to break free. Armed with her loyal crew full of Elementae and a new recruit who controls an intriguing power, Aspasia finds herself in the center of a brewing war that spans every inch of the ocean, and her power alone may not be enough to save her friends, family, and freedom. Review: Imprison the Sky is another action packed, thought provoking addition to the complex fantasy series, The Elementae by A.C. Gaugh...

I have been looking forward to this morning and anxiously awaiting the announcement of several Children and Young Adult book awards. There were so many great books that were published last year and I don't envy the award committee to narrow their choices to just a few. The Young Media Awards are like the Oscars for me. It's one of my favorite times of the year. I usually discover new titles that I fall in love with and book talk to my students. The awards took place at the American Library Association (ALA) Midwinter Meeting at Seattle, Washington. Although there are many awards honored today, I was looking forward to finding out the winners for the  Caldecott ,  Newbery ,  Morris , and of course the  Michael L.   Printz  Award. You can find the other winners on the  Association for Library Services to Children website  and the  Young Adult Library Services website  (YALSA). The  Caldecott Medal  was named in hon...

Title: 9 Days and 9 nights  Author: Katie Cotugno  Published May 1st 2018 by Balzer + Bray Add On Goodreads ________________________________ Despite all its complicated, messy, morally corrupt ways; I loved 99 Days . Maybe because of all of that. I’ve spent five years and as many times re-reading the book that I can assure you, it doesn’t get more real and human than that. I liked that it challenged me to rethink my convictions and see the other side of things.  9 Days and 9 Nights comes five years after I first read 99 Days, and I am far from the twenty-year-old that read it back then. Much like Molly Barlow, I’ve also learned that our screw-ups are an important part of who we are, even if they are in our past. While there was definitely less drama involved this time, I was blessedly compensated by so much growth. Like, I was so proud of every single character, Molly, Gabe (who has honestly become my favorite Donelly by a long shot), Imogen, Diana Barlow, Ian, even ...

Description: Part-time PI and full-time grim reaper, Charley Davidson has asked a lot of questions throughout her life: Why can I see dead people? Who is the hot supernatural entity following me? How do I get gum out of my sister's hair before she wakes up? But, "How do I trap not one god, but three?" was never among them. Until now. And since those gods are on earth to kill her daughter, she has little choice but to track them down, trap them, and cast them from this dimension. But one of them stole her heart a very long time ago. Can a god of absolute death and destruction change his omniscient spots, or will his allegiance lie with his brothers? Those are just some of the questions Charley must answer, and quick. Add to that a homeless girl on the run for her life, a man who's been framed for murdering a woman who is still very much alive, and a pendant made from god glass that has the entire supernatural world in an uproar, Charley has her hands full...

Description: Life is quiet and ordinary in Amal's Pakistani village, but she had no complaints, and besides, she's busy pursuing her dream of becoming a teacher one day. Her dreams are temporarily dashed when—as the eldest daughter—she must stay home from school to take care of her siblings. Amal is upset, but she doesn't lose hope and finds ways to continue learning. Then the unimaginable happens—after an accidental run-in with the son of her village's corrupt landlord, Amal must work as his family's servant to pay off her own family's debt.   Life at the opulent Khan estate is full of heartbreak and struggle for Amal—especially when she inadvertently makes an enemy of a girl named Nabila. Most troubling, though, is Amal's growing awareness of the Khans' nefarious dealings. When it becomes clear just how far they will go to protect their interests, Amal realizes she will have to find a way to work with others if they are ever to exact cha...

Description: In this powerful collection, YA authors answer real letters from teens all over the world about the dark side of love: dating violence, break-ups, cheating, betrayals, and loneliness. This book contains a no-holds-barred, raw outpouring of the wisdom these authors have culled from mining their own hearts for the fiction they write. Their responses are autobiographical, unflinching, and filled with love and hope for the anonymous teen letter writers. Review: When I picked up Dear Heartbreak I was expecting that the YA authors had written essays on love and relationships in this anthology, but I am pleasantly surprised by the format. Each chapter begins with letters from real teens addressing their insecurities, fears, and vulnerabilities surrounding love and relationships followed by the author's or in one particular case author and her husband. The teenage writers of the letters share their stories—some in great detail, some in only a few words—and the respons...

Description: Now that high school is over, Ari is dying to move to the big city with his ultra-hip band―if he can just persuade his dad to let him quit his job at their struggling family bakery. Though he loved working there as a kid, Ari cannot fathom a life wasting away over rising dough and hot ovens. But while interviewing candidates for his replacement, Ari meets Hector, an easygoing guy who loves baking as much as Ari wants to escape it. As they become closer over batches of bread, love is ready to bloom . . . that is, if Ari doesn’t ruin everything. Review: Recently graduated from high school Ari dreams of moving to the city with his bad and leaving his work at his family's bakery behind. He knows his dad will need help, though, so he tries to at least find a replacement before he leaves forever. Enter Hector, the adorable cooking-school dropout who’s in town cleaning out his late grandma’s house and is absolutely perfect for the job. Over baking, deliveries, ...

Description:  Loveday Cardew prefers books to people. If you look carefully, you might glimpse the first lines of the novels she loves most tattooed on her skin. But there are some things Loveday will never, ever show you. Into her hiding place - the bookstore where she works - come a poet, a lover, and three suspicious deliveries. Someone has found out about her mysterious past. Will Loveday survive her own heartbreaking secrets? Review: The Lost for Words Bookshop is truly a book for bibliophiles. Loveday Cardew is an anti-social, awkward tattooed 25-year-old bibliophile who works at Lost for Words, a secondhand bookstore in York. Despite her name, Loveday doesn’t much care for people except her boss Archie and her current love interest Nathan who is a slam poet and magician or anything except for books. She’s reserved and painfully sarcastic, and the surrounding characters either exacerbate or find her charming. Switching between the past and present, the chapters are orga...

Description:  Miles is an anxious boy who loves his family's bowling center even if though he could be killed by a bolt of lightning or a wild animal that escaped from the Philadelphia Zoo on the way there. Amy is the new girl at school who wishes she didn't have to live above her uncle's funeral home and tries to write her way to her own happily-ever-after. Then Miles and Amy meet in the most unexpected way and that's when it all begins. Review: Gephart returns with another sensitive portrayal of friendship and grief in In Your Shoes , her latest novel. The story is told in two alternating chapters. Amy Silverman's mother has died from cancer, so she and her father move to Pennsylvania, more specifically into her uncle's funeral home, where her dad will work once he finishes his classes in funeral arts. Amy is lonely and grieving. Meanwhile, Miles Spagoski, whose family owns Buckington Bowl, the local bowling alley, is also feeling sorrow, as well as anxi...

Description:   Hey, Kiddo is the graphic memoir of author-illustrator Jarrett J. Krosoczka. Raised by his colorful grandparents, who adopted him because his mother was an incarcerated heroin addict, Krosoczka didn't know his father's name until he saw his birth certificate when registering for a school ski trip. Hey, Kiddo traces Krosoczka's search for his father, his difficult interactions with his mother, his day-to-day life with his grandparents, and his path to becoming an artist. Review: I was first introduced to Krosoczka's work while I attended my first library conference in Chicago a few years ago. I read and reviewed his hilarious Lunch Lady series which is an elementary/middle grade graphic novel series in which the Lunch Lady of the school is an undercover vigilante who saves the day. So when I read the press release for Hey, Kiddo his latest graphic memoir I was taken aback on the subject and maturity of the style and themes, which is not necessarily a b...

  Every year there are several young adult debut novels that are published. I have picked the top 19 titles that have caught my eye and wanted to share them with you. It was very hard to narrow down my list and I am sure that I will keep adding to this list as the year goes on. Please note that I received the information regarding release dates from Goodreads. I am thrilled that we continue to see diversity in representation and tops in a wide variety of stories and genres. Fingers crossed that these debuts do not disappoint us! I have organized the list according to list dates and will have a link to each title if you would like to add them to your Goodreads shelves. Enjoy! Aurelia Isendare is a princess of a small kingdom in the North, raised in privilege but shielded from politics as her brother prepares to step up to the throne. Halfway around the world, Athan Dakar, the youngest son of a ruthless general, is a fighter pilot longing for a life away from the front lines. When At...

Title: How To Break a Boy  Author: Laurie Devore Published January 31st 2017 by Imprint Goodreads _____________________________________ My last thoughts after reading How To Break A Boy are somewhat troubled. I can't decide if I loved it or hated it, but one thing is for sure, it was all around a very interesting, very eye-opening experience. I knew this book was going to be about some mean girls, and I thought I was prepared for it: I wasn't . This book was a whole 'nother level of nastiness. It makes Regina George seem amateour. You know how there is a common thought that when there is a car crash or an accident people can't look away from the magnetic pull of the wreckage? Well it's never been like that for me, I can't look. That's why it was so, so hard for me to watch pretty much ALL characters on such an obvious path of self-destruction. I wanted to shake everybody. But then again, it all comes down to perspective, and who knows what I would have done ...