YA book gift ideas

A school librarian friend was looking for book recommendations for middle-school kids, so I thought I might share some of the YA titles that I liked this year here, too. For the most part, my tastes run to mystery and fantasy/horror, so these might skew a little on the dark/strange/older side. Give them a looksee…Continue reading YA book gift ideas

My favorite books of 2022

For the past seven years, I’ve kept track of every book I read on Goodreads, a handy tool to keep track of authors and series that I’ve enjoyed so I can remember to grab the next installment. (It’s also where I park my enormous To Be Read list.) And of course there’s the stats: the…Continue reading My favorite books of 2022

Three new books I’m excited about

This month, three authors that I admire and respect (and have the good fortune to know personally) have new books out. All three are also moms (happy belated mother’s day!) and write for kids of varying ages, so I’m looking forward to sharing their latest works with my own kids. I’ve read–and loved–just about everything…Continue reading Three new books I’m excited about

Book review: Reverie

One of my favorite books of 2020, Ryan La Sala’s Reverie is an effervescent YA fantasy that explores identity, responsibility, and friendship with humor and supernatural butt-kicking. Main character Kane can’t remember anything from before his car accident a few months ago, but his family, his therapist, and the police have questions: Why did he…Continue reading Book review: Reverie

Book review: The Story That Cannot Be Told

In The Story That Cannot Be Told by J. Kasper Kramer, clever folklore retellings woven with historical fiction result in a delightful story that resonates long after the last page. This middle-grade novel is set in Romania in 1989, the year of the Romanian Revolution. Young Ileana describes life under oppressive Communist rule: people crammed…Continue reading Book review: The Story That Cannot Be Told