​Nancy Brashear and Carolyn Angus  
As reviewers, we read extensively in all genres and subgenres of books for children and young adults and send each other “you-must-read-this” recommendations. By the end of the year, these lists are long so, as it always seems to be, it was challenging to agree on 20 books for Looking Back at 2024 Fiction.

​The Beginning (Orris and Timble #1). Kate DiCamillo. Illus. by Carmen Mok. (2024). Candlewick.
An unusual friendship begins when Orris, a rat who lives in solitude in a nest behind a hole in the wall of an abandoned barn, hears a cry for help and finds a young snow owl, Timble, with his foot caught in a mousetrap. While talking about “The Mouse and the Lion,” Orris pries open the trap. Timble takes flight only to return wanting to hear the end of the fable. (PreK Up) 

​Being Home. Traci Sorell. Illus. by Michaela Goade. (2024). Kokila.
After saying goodbye to the city, a young girl sets out with her mother on a long road trip across the country to the land of her ancestors that she chronicles with drawings in a journal. Goade’s stunning mixed-media illustrations take on a rosy hue as they are warmly greeted by what was once her “faraway family” and the community of their new home on a Cherokee Nation Reservation. (glossary) (PreK Up) 

​The Boy Lost in the Maze. Joseph Coelho. Illus. by Kate Milner. (2024). Candlewick.
Seventeen-year-old Theo, who wants to locate his unknown father, writes poetry about the Greek mythological hero Theseus for an English project. In chapters written in multiple poetic forms from the viewpoints of Theo, Theseus, and the Minotaur, Coelho recounts the journeys of Theo and Theseus to find their fathers as well as the Minotaur’s story of being misunderstood as a monster. (author’s note on various interpretations of the story of Theseus) (Gr 9-12) 

​Chronicles of a Lizard Nobody (Chronicles of a Lizard Nobody #1). Patrick Ness. Illus. by Tim Miller. (2024). Candlewick.
In this hilarious middle school story, after Principal Wombat appoints monitor lizards Zeke, Daniel, and Alicia to the unpopular position of Hall Monitor, Zeke comes into conflict with Pelicarnassus, the school bully. As this son of an international supervillain dons a giant robot pelican suit and, wielding lasers, diabolically sets out to destroy the animal-diverse middle school, Zeke must find his inner heroism to save it. (Gr 3 Up) 

​Ferris. Kate DiCamillo. (2024). Candlewick.
Love and humor abound in DiCamillo’s middle grade novel in which Emma Phineas (“Ferris”) Wilkey learns the meaning of Grandmother Charisse’s saying “Every good story is a love story” as she deals with troubling events in her unconventional family during the summer before fifth grade. Enlisted to help the ghost her grandmother sees nightly find peace and be reunited with her loved one, Ferris comes up with a plan that involves and reunites the entire Wilkey family. (Gr 3 Up) 

​The First State of Being. Erin Entrada Kelly. (2024). Greenwillow.
In August 1999, 12-year-old Michael Rosario’s biggest worry is increasing his stash of food for the possible worldwide Y2K malfunction of computers. But that is before he, Gibby, his sitter, and Mr. Mosley, the apartment custodian, meet strange teenager Ridge, whose EGG spatial teleporting device malfunctions so he cannot return to his own timeprint of 2199 until it is fixed. Their lives all intertwine in ways that must not change the future while they live in the present, “the first state of being.” (Gr 3 Up) 

​The Gale. Mo Yan. Adapted by Guan Xiaoxiao. Trans. by Ying-Hwa Hu. Illus. by Zhu Chengliang. (2024). Simon & Schuster. 
A seven-year-old boy accompanies his grandfather, Yeye, to the meadow to cut satintail grass for the first time. Soon the boy is chasing birds and crickets and taking a nap, but Yeye awakens him and they struggle to get the heavily-laden wheelbarrow home as a fierce gale overtakes them (beautifully portrayed with movement-filled acrylic images), scattering their harvested grass. Returning empty-handed, the boy learns the importance of perseverance. (translated from Chinese; excerpt from the original novella) (PreK Up) 

​Here & There. Thea Lu. Trans. by Thea Lu. (2024). Eerdmans.
Dan is the owner of a café in a small coastal town that he never leaves. Aki lives on a boat sailing from place to place. Both feel lonely at times. This beautifully crafted picture book ends with their lives connecting, at least for a time, with a dramatic double gatefold picturing a special day in which the café is filled with Dan and Aki sharing a meal and stories with others. (translated from Chinese) (PreK Up) 

​The House Before Falling into the Sea. Ann Suk Wang. Illus. by Hanna Cha. (2024). Dial.
Kyung, a young Korean girl, comes to understand the importance of her family’s home in the southeastern town of Busan, “the house before falling into the sea,” as a safe haven for refugees fleeing more than 200 miles from the north. Cha’s emotive mixed media illustrations complement Wang’s narrative in this picture book set during the Korean War (1950-1953). (author’s and illustrator’s notes, questions to consider, glossary, meanings of names) (PreK Up) 

​Kareem Between. Shifa Saltagi Safadi. (2024). Putnam.
Safadi’s evocative verse novel tells the coming-of-age story of Syrian American Kareem, a seventh grader who, after making some poor decisions in an attempt to get a chance for a spot on the football team, struggles to fit in and make friends, to stand up against racist bullying at school, and to deal with family problems related to the “Muslim Travel Ban” executive order on travel from predominately Muslim countries signed by President Donald J. Trump in 2017. (author’s note) (Gr 6 Up)  

​Max in the House of Spies: A Tale of World War II (Operation Kinderspion #1). Adam Gidwitz. (2024). Dutton.
When Jewish 11-year-old Max leaves Berlin for England in 1939 on the Kindertransport, he finds himself traveling with two mischievous and snarky spirits only he can see and hear on his shoulders: Stein, a Jewish dybbuk, and Berg, a German kobold. Determined to return to Berlin, Max comes up with a clever plan to do so by becoming a spy for the British. (author’s note, bibliography) (Gr 3 Up)  

​Olivetti. Allie Millington. (2024). Feiwel and Friends.
In this imaginative mystery told in alternating chapters from the viewpoints of 12-year-old Ernest Brindle, a loner and a lover of words, and Olivetti, the family’s old manual typewriter that has been replaced by a laptop, Tapestries, memories composed by Beatrice (Mom), live on in Olivetti. When Beatrice disappears, Olivetti realizes that these memories are vital to finding her and breaks the typewriter code as a “protector of memories” to communicate with Ernest by typing out Beatrice’s stored words. (Gr 6-8) 

​The Spaceman. Randy Cecil. (2024). Candlewick.
As a tiny spaceman steps out of his tiny spaceship onto what he thinks is a rather “ordinary planet,” he expects to have another ordinary day at his job of collecting, labeling, and filing soil samples before moving on to the next planet. But then a winged creature comes along and flies away with his tiny ship. In giving chase, the little alien encounters various creatures, including a potential best friend, and considers staying on this “extraordinary planet”—Earth. (PreS Up) 

​Telephone of the Tree. Alison McGhee. (2024). Rocky Pond.
Through a first-person narrative of spare, lyrical passages, almost-11-year-old Ayla reveals how much she misses her best friend, Kiri, who is far away, and cannot wait for her to come home. After friends and strangers start talking to their loved ones on the old-fashioned dial telephone that appeared in her tree, Ayla begins to accept that Kiri is “gone forever” and can finally begin to heal from the loss of her dead friend with the help of a supportive family and community. (author’s note) (Gr 3 Up) 

​Ten Little Rabbits. Maurice Sendak. (2024). Harper.
With a wave of a wand, a young magician makes rabbits appear one by one from his top hat. Then overwhelmed by 10 little rabbits, he makes them vanish one by one until there are none. The magician takes a bow, dons his hat, and departs from the stage with a satisfied smile. “ALL DONE.” The illustrations, done in the pen-and-ink style of Sendak’s mini Nut Shell Library books, were photographed from a pamphlet originally published in 1970 for a museum fundraiser. (PreS Up) 

​Tree. Table. Book. Lois Lowry. (2024). Clarion.
In this moving intergenerational story, 11-year-old Sophia (Sophie) Winslow’s best friend is 88-year-old Sophie Gershowitz. Learning that the elder Sophie’s son is coming to take her to see a doctor because she has been forgetting things, young Sophie worries about losing her best friend. As she attempts to protect Sophie Gershowitz by prepping her for upcoming cognitive testing, young Sophie discovers more about her friend and making memories through the stories she tells of her childhood in WWII Poland. (Gr 3 Up) 

​Thunder City (Mortal Engines). Philip Reeve. (2024). Scholastic.
In this action-packed stand-alone steampunk novel set in the world of Traction Cities where towns devour each other to survive, Tamzin Pook, renowned fighter of Revenants (non-human killing machines) in Mortmain’s Amusement Arcade, is enlisted by Miss Torpenhow, Max Angmering’s former history tutor, to help rescue him from a Paris prison cell guarded by a Revenant so that he can save the peaceful mobile town of Thorbury from destruction following the assassination of his father, the mayor. (Gr 6 Up)

​Twenty-four Seconds from Now . . .: A LOVE Story.  Jason Reynolds. (2024). Caitlyn Dlouhy.
In Reynold’s unique crafting of a YA romance story, high school seniors Neon Benton and Aria Wright, are planning to celebrate the two-year anniversary of their relationship by making love for the first time. Told from Neon’s point of view, complete with honest, heartfelt, and humorous advice from family and friends about sex, the book begins with “right now” while he is having a panic attack in Aria’s bathroom before the story backtracks in 24 “before” segments (seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, and months) to finally return to “now” and the next twenty-four seconds. (Gr 9-12) 

​Two Together. Brendan Wenzel. (2024). Chronicle.
“Two together headed home. / Cat and dog. / Bell and Bone. / For a moment. / For a day. // Two together on their way.” The style of Wenzel’s expressive multi-media artwork that complements his spare, rhythmic text with its repetitive refrain of “Two together. . .” changes to represent the different perspectives of Bell and Bone as they explore the various sights, smells, and sounds they experience on a day full of adventuring before returning home together. (PreK-Gr 2)  

​When We Flew Away: A Novel of Anne Frank Before the Diary. Alice Hoffman. (2024). Scholastic.
When We Flew Away begins with ten-year-old Anne Frank’s family living in the Netherlands and follows her to age 13 during the insidious transformation of that country from neutral to deadly as Hitler orders Jews to concentration camps. Anne pursues her identity as a writer, while negotiating relationships and losses amidst the Holocaust when the Frank family is forced into hiding. (Gr 3 Up)  

​Nancy Brashear and Carolyn Angus
 
As reviewers, we read extensively in all genres of children’s and young adult fiction during the year and have done a lot of rereading during the last few months to select 20 of our favorite books published in 2023. 

​Bear Is Never Alone. Marc Veerkamp. Trans. by Laura Watkinson. Illus. by Jeska Verstegen. (2023). Eerdmans.
The music of piano virtuoso Bear is so beautiful that all the forest animals, even the birds, are silent as he plays. When Bear stops, he hears “More, more, Piano Bear!” Seeking solitude, he runs away pursued by his audience and their cries for more songs. Finally, his “BIG ROOOOAAAAR” frightens them away. Bear is alone—until a lone zebra shows him that it is sometimes good to be alone together. Verstegen’s exquisite black-and-white illustrations include just a few touches of red. (PreK Up) 

​Big. Vashti Harrison. (2023). Little, Brown.
Big begins with a Black baby girl with “a big laugh and a big heart and very big dreams.” As she grows older, the word “big” takes on a different meaning as she hears unkind remarks about her size in the classroom, on the playground, and at her dance studio. Harrison’s spare text and expressive pink-hued digital artwork tell the story of how the girl begins advocating for herself, letting people know that their words are hurtful and surrounding herself with words of self-acceptance and self-love. (author’s note) (PreK-Gr 2) 

Big Tree. Brian Selznick. (2023). Scholastic.
In his signature style of intertwining brief sections of text and expansive sections of exquisite graphite pencil artwork, Selznick creates an intriguing survival saga that begins late in the Cretaceous Period with the early release of two Sycamore seeds, Louise and Merwin, from their seedball during a forest fire, and they must use their wings to find a safe place to put down roots and grow. The final chapter, “Sixty-Six Million Years Later,” concludes with a seedling nurtured by a young child and father in a city. (afterword, selected bibliography, author’s note, index) (Gr 3 Up) 

The Blood Years. Elana K. Arnold. (2023). Balzer + Bray.
Based upon Arnold’s grandmother’s experiences during the Holocaust, The Blood Years is the compelling story of Jewish teen Frederieke (Reike) Teitler, whose life with her family (older sister Astra, mother, and grandfather Opa) changes drastically as their hometown Cernowitz, Romania, is occupied by the Soviets, then the Nazis, and then reoccupied by the Soviet between 1939 and 1945. Reike’s survival amid hatred, violence, and hunger is complicated by sexual abuse and life-threatening tuberculosis. (foreword, brief history of Cernowitz, author’s note, photographs, reading list) (Gr 9-12) 

The Demon Sword Asperides. Sara Jean Horwitz. (2023). Algonquin.
Thirteen-year-old Nack Furnival, a banished knight-in-training, seeks a quest but lacks a sword until he encounters Asperides, a powerful 2,000-year-old demon sword, in the burial cave of its former master, evil sorcerer Amyral Venir. After Amyral is resurrected, he recovers Asperides, planning to carve a doorway into the underworld to retrieve a missing piece of his soul and let demons loose on the world. Under the Missing Moon Prophecy, it becomes inevitable that the demon sword, the sorcerer, and the young teen will do battle upon the return of the missing third moon. (Gr 6-8) 

Elena Rides. Juana Medina. (2023). Candlewick.
Elena, a purple elephant, wants to ride her bicycle. “She readies, / she steadies… // she pushes, / she pedals! // She wobbles / and bobbles . . .  // KA-BANG!” After trying again and again with more spills and tears, Elena almost quits but with encouragement from her sidekick, a small red bird, she tries again. “Elena rides!” With its spare, rhythmic text and expressive cartoonlike illustrations, Elena Rides is both a good choice for beginning readers and a delightful read-aloud. Elena monta en bici was published simultaneously. (PreK-Gr 2) 

The Eyes and the Impossible. Dave Eggers. Illus. by Shawn Harris. (2023). Knopf.
Johannes, a free dog, is the Eyes of the park near the sea where he lives. With the aid of his Assistant Eyes (a gull, pelican, squirrel, and racoon), he surveys the park and makes daily reports to the three ancient Bison living in a fenced-in enclosure who need to know about anything that might upset the park’s Equilibrium. When Johannes gets leashed while staring at a display of paintings and needs to be rescued from human Trouble Travelers by his friends, “the glory of liberation” makes him determined to free the Bison. (Gr 3 Up) 

For Lamb. Lesa Cline-Ransome. (2023). Holiday House.
In 1940 Jackson, Mississippi, Lamb, a Black teenage girl, secretly develops a friendship with Marny, a White girl, over a shared love of books in spite of the dangers of such a relationship in the Jim Crow South. Short chapters from the points of view of Lamb, her mother, her brother, Marny, and others tell of the terrorism, violence, and lynching that ensue. Cline-Ransome’s author’s note provides background on writing a novel about a female lynching victim as well as the history of lynching in the U.S. (Gr 9-12) 

Henry, Like Always (Henry #1). Jenn Bailey. Illus. by Mika Song. (2023). Chronicle.
When the class schedule changes because there will be a parade on Friday, Henry, who needs routine and order, is upset. Although his teacher and classmates try to make him feel comfortable, it is Henry who comes up with a plan that helps both himself and another upset classmate participate in the parade. Song’s expressive illustrations complement this warm and gently humorous first book in this early chapter book series about a young child who appears to be on the autism spectrum. (PreK-Gr 2) 

Hornbeam All In (Hornbeam #1). Cynthia Rylant. Illus. by Arthur Howard. (2023). Beach Lane.
Rylant and Howard’s new early reader series introduces Hornbeam, a moose, in three humorous mini adventures. In “Eureka and the Picnic,” Hornbeam accepts goose Eureka’s invitation to a picnic that turns out to be a family reunion. In “Sleeping at Cuddy’s House,” Hornbeam’s snoring leaves Cuddy, a bull, ready for a cozy nap after a sleepless night. In “At the Pool with Adorable,” Hornbeam reluctantly takes swimming lessons from Adorabelle, a skunk, and earns his swimming certificate but still likes solid ground best. (PreK Up) 

​The Plot to Kill a Queen. Deborah Hopkinson. (2023). Scholastic.
Thirteen-year-old lutist and aspiring playwright Emilia Bassano overhears two men plotting to kill “the imposter” and reports this to her guardian, Sir Francis Walsingham, Queen Elizabeth’s spymaster. He dispatches her as a court musician to Sheffield Castle—where Mary, Queen of Scots, is imprisoned—on a secret mission to foil the plot to kill Queen Elizabeth. Asides about theatrical productions, photographs, maps, and diagrams are interspersed throughout this spy story presented as a three-act play. (historical notes, timeline, Emilia’s one-act play “The Princess Saves the Cakes”—with production permission) (Gr 6-8) 

The Puppets of Spelhorst (Norendy Tales #1). Kate DiCamillo. Illus. by Julie Morstad. (2023). Candlewick.
Retired sea captain Spelhorst buys five puppets—a girl (whose violet eyes remind him of Annalise, his long-lost love), king, wolf, boy, and owl—that must be purchased together. After Spelhorst’s death, his trunk with the puppets sold to the rag-and-bone man is purchased by a man for his young nieces, Emma and Martha, who involve the individual puppets in some perilous adventures before they are reunited in a play written by Emma and performed with the assistance of Martha and Jane Twiddum, the maid, that eerily mirrors the story of the Spelhorst and Annalise. (PreK Up) 

The Real Story. Sergio Ruzzier. (2023). Abrams Appleseed.
Seeing a broken cookie jar and no cookies, Cat confronts Mouse. “How did it happen? And where are the cookies?” Mouse tells a silly story about the cookies jumping around until the jar fell off the table and then running away. After three more outrageous stories in response to Cat’s insistence on the real story, Mouse’s “I stole and ate all the cookies, and then the jar fell and broke” is so boring that Cat requests another original cookie story, which Mouse agrees to tell—for a cookie. (PreK-Gr 2)

The Remarkable Rescue at Milkweed Meadow. Elaine Dimopoulos. Illus. by Doug Salati. (2023). Charlesbridge. 
Butternut is a young rabbit whose family uses storytelling to teach the truths that guide their lives: stories matter, rabbits have dignity, and stay alive. A rather anxious rabbit, she stays close to their burrow until she meets Piper, a fledgling robin who involves her in scary activities that have her breaking the family’s strict rules. As Butternut sneaks out at night, meeting and helping other Milkweed Meadow animals including an injured deer, she discovers that the world is not so terrifying. (Gr 3-5) 

​See the Ghost: Three Stories About Things You Cannot See (See the Cat #3).  David LaRochelle. Illus. by Mike Wohnoutka. (2023). Candlewick.
A simple text and cartoon illustrations with speech balloons offer a lesson on the concept of seeing versus not seeing something in three short stories: “See the Ghost,” “See the Wind,” and “See the Fairy.” Cat and dog from See the Cat (2020) and See the Dog (2021)—and the book itself—interact with invisible things in this clever primer that ends with “See the dog, / the cat, / the ghost, / the wind, / and the fairy / spend the afternoon / together.” (PreK-Gr 2)

​The Story of Gumluck the Wizard (Gumluck the Wizard #1). Adam Rex. (2023). Chronicle.
In this humorous illustrated chapter book, narrator Helvetica (“Old Lady Crow” to Gumluck) tells how the “Little Wizard Who Lives in the Big Hill” tries to grant everyone’s wishes and yearns to be voted Harvest Hero at the Harvest Dance. Even after the Truth Fairy reveals that the ungrateful townsfolk mock him as the “Shrinking Wizard Who Lives Next to a Big Hole” whose spells usually go awry, Gumluck, with everyone believing in him, saves them all when the greedy King’s gold-laden castle topples from its mountain top. (PreK Up) 

​The Swifts: A Dictionary of Scoundrels. Beth Lincoln. Illus. by Claire Powell. (2023). Dutton.
Thirteen-year-old Shenanigan Swift is excited to be attending the Swift Family Reunion, a gathering of relatives every ten years during which everyone hunts for Grand-Uncle Vile’s lost treasure hidden somewhere in Swift House. Her focus shifts from discovering the treasure to solving a mystery when the family matriarch Arch-Aunt Schadenfreude is shoved down the stairs. Shenanigan is determined to track down the killer—and prove herself more than the troublemaker that her name picked from the family dictionary suggests. (Gr 3 Up) 

Unraveller. Frances Hardinge. (2023). Amulet.
In this dark fantasy set in the country of Raddith where cursers abound, 15-year-olds Nettle (newly released from a curse as a heron) and Kellen (an unraveller of curses) are hired to hunt Jendy Pin, a curser who disappeared from a Chancery prison. As their quest takes them from Mizzleport to the Wilds to the Moonlit Market, they uncover the secret plot of Salvationists to overtake Chancery, the government of master merchants who rule Raddith. When a curse on Kellen intensifies his unraveling power, making him a danger to himself and everyone around him, he and Nettle must find a way to remove the curse if they are to save Raddith. (Gr 9-12) ​

​Worm and Caterpillar Are Friends (Ready-to-Read Graphics). Kaz Windness. (2023). Simon Spotlight.
Worm believes he and Caterpillar are best friends because they are the same, but Caterpillar points out various ways in which they are different. Caterpillar also knows a change is coming and worries about what will happen to their friendship when he is no longer a caterpillar. In this Level 1 Ready-to-Read Graphics book, Windness’s expressive cartoon illustrations accompany the dialogue between Worm and Caterpillar to create an engaging story of a friendship that endures despite differences and change. (PreK-Gr 2) 

​Tracey S. Hodges
Reading across genres can be a meaningful experience for teens that allows them to learn about different life experiences while finding the types of stories that specifically draw them in. Identifying the types of stories they enjoy, whether that be fantasy, contemporary realistic fiction, historical fiction, or nonfiction, can cultivate a lifelong love of reading and motivation to find new books of interest. The nine diverse books reviewed in this column are sure to engage teen readers.

Chaos Theory. Nic Stone. (2023). Crown.
While trying to text his ex-girlfriend during a fateful night of heavy drinking at a party, 18-year-old Andy Criddle accidentally contacts 16-year-old Shelbi Augustine, and without knowing who each other is, they continue to text. Aware that he has had too much to drink, she makes him promise not to drive. Andy gets behind the wheel anyway and crashes his car. He again texts Shelbi and confesses what he did, though he still does not know who she is. Once they meet in person, they begin texting regularly and confide their personal struggles (Andy’s alcohol addiction and Shelbi’s bipolar disorder and social anxiety). As they begin spending time together, Shelbi presents Andy with a list of rules about how to interact with her if they are to be friends. The most important rule is that he cannot fall in love with her. However, they do fall in love with each other. But as they are still battling their own mental health problems, high family expectations, and social pressures, author Nic Stone (who in a note tells readers that this is the book she wanted as a teen dealing with her own mental health issues) gives Chaos Theory a hopeful but realistic ending. This beautifully crafted story shows how everyone deserves to be loved, understood, and supported—an important message with the rise in teen mental health concerns. (Gr 9-12) Contemporary Realistic Fiction - Romance

The Davenports (The Davenports #1). Krystal Marquis. (2023). Dial.
The Davenports are a wealthy, elite Black family living in 1910 Chicago. The family’s patriarch, William Davenport, is a former slave turned businessman who amassed a fortune as a manufacturer of carriages. This narrative, based on the fortunes of one of a small group of prosperous Black families in the decades after the Civil War, follows four teens connected to the Davenport family as they navigate societal expectations and romance. Olivia, the older Davenport daughter, is ready to fulfill her duty by marrying well, and Helen, the younger Davenport sister, is interested in working as a mechanic on cars not in marriage. The narrative also follows Ruby, Olivia’s best friend whose family wants her to marry into the Davenport family, and Amy-Rose, a maid in the Davenport home, who is determined to own her own business (and dreams of the impossible, marrying John, the heir to the Davenport fortune). Krystal Marquis’s romance novel includes multiple love triangles to complicate relationships further as it examines issues related to class, race, and gender during this period of American history. (Gr 9-12) Historical Fiction - Romance

​In Limbo. Deb JJ Lee. (2023). First Second.
In this graphic memoir, artist Deborah (Jung-Jin) Lee explores issues of immigration, family dynamics, identity, and mental health with expressive illustrations and minimal text. The result is a powerful coming-of-age story of a Korean American who emigrated at the age of three from South Korea and grew up in New Jersey. For Deb, everything feels overly challenging. Teachers cannot pronounce her Korean name, she is bullied for her looks, and her mother is verbally and physically abusive. In high school, her grades are not good enough for her family, and she struggles to maintain friendships. As tension builds, her mental health deteriorates, culminating in a suicide attempt. She describes this period of her life as being “in limbo.” Lee’s engaging storytelling addresses questions of family, heritage, and belonging that are realistic and relatable for teens. (Gr 9-12)  Memoir in Graphic Novel Format

My Flawless Life. Yvonne Woon. (2023). Katherine Tegen.
Hana Yang Lerner is a problem-solver and fixer. Using her charm from a life in politics as daughter of a senator and her ability to camouflage into any persona, she is hired by wealthy classmates at her prep school in Washington, DC, to do everything from standing in for a student at a college meet-and-greet event to having drug-related citations removed from school records. How did she get into this business? Her father’s involvement and subsequent conviction in a hit-and-run accident shook her family to its core, destroyed their reputation, and ruined them financially. Now, Hana has nothing to lose. When she is contacted by Three, a mysterious client with a problem, Hana is not sure she wants to commit to fixing it, but she cannot refuse the promised fee—and her life gets even more complicated. This twisty and layered thriller holds readers in suspense as they are propelled to read on wanting to know the truth about Hana’s father and the identity of Three. (Gr 9-12) Contemporary Realistic Fiction – Thriller

Play the Game. Charlene Allen. (2023). Katherine Tegen.
Video games, murder, and clashes with police collide in Charlene Allen’s fast-paced mystery that is sure to give teens a lot to talk about. A young Black student named Ed, a video game creator with sights on winning a competition, is killed by Singer, a police officer, and four months later, Singer is murdered in the same location. To honor his friend, VZ, the protagonist of this story, plays Ed’s game and enters it in the contest. The video game illuminates parallels with the current real word murder investigations. At the same time, VZ’s friend, Jack, is identified as a prime suspect in the murder of the police officer. The teens find support and comfort in each other and their community, which provides them with safe spaces to break away from the trauma of the murders and investigation. Today’s teens will find the dialogue of this novel that weaves the solving of a murder mystery with current societal issues rich and authentic. (Gr 9-12) Contemporary Realistic Fiction – Mystery

​The Severed Thread (The Bone Spindle #2). Leslie Vedder. (2023). Razorbill.
In The Bone Spindle (2022), a reimagining of the “Sleeping Beauty” fairy tale, Fi and her sidekick, Shane, are tasked with finding Prince Briar Rose and breaking his sleeping curse with a kiss. Once the prince is awakened by Fi’s kiss, however, the Spindle Witch immediately curses the entire land of Andar. In this sequel, Fi, Shane, and Briar must travel across the land to find a mysterious book filled with the code that can break the spell. The stakes ramp up as the three battle witches and witch hunters to try to save Andar. The trio also has to decide if they can trust Red, Shane’s love who turned on her but who may hold information that can lead them to the book. In a world of curses, Fi also learns more about her own Butterfly Curse that could destroy Prince Briar Rose and Andar. Woven throughout this second story are ties to literature, queer romances, and the discovery of true identity that will leave readers eager for the final book in Leslie Vedder’s complex trilogy. (Gr 9-12) Fantasy

Sun Keep Rising. Kristen R. Lee. (2023). Crown.
Seventeen-year-old B’onca is dealing with the reality of being a single parent with a child to raise without having enough money. She is trying to complete her high school credits, working to pay rent, and considering post-high school plans. B’onca is both working and attending summer school when her ex-boyfriend and father of her daughter, Mia, is killed, and his family begins threatening to seek custody of the baby. B’onca knows that even working several jobs, she cannot afford either raising her daughter or the legal fees. B’onca is approached to help with an illegal scheme to earn money. She thinks it will be a one-time thing, but when the money is good and gives her hope, she may take the risky behavior too far. Author Kristen R. Lee offers teens a story of single motherhood, poverty, and the desperate measures people will take to support those they love the most, topics that are often not explored in young adult literature but are realities facing many young people. (Gr 9-12) Contemporary Realistic Fiction

There Goes the Neighborhood. Jade Adia. (2023). Hyperion.
What would you do to preserve your neighborhood? Best friends Rhea (Black), Malachi (Black), and Zeke (Latino) are faced with this question when Zeke’s family receives an eviction notice after a 60% rent increase. It is clear that gentrification is coming to their South LA neighborhood. Wanting to preserve their community, Rhea devises a bold plan to start a fake gang, SOSI, to deter developers. Her plan starts out innocuously with tagging and internet posting but soon goes awry as the nonexistent gang is accused of being involved in drug deals, murder, and extortion in the neighborhood. The teens are not at fault, but someone is committing crimes and blaming them. The trio of friends shift their focus to “Who is behind all of this?” Trying to answer this question may cost them their friendship, their neighborhood, and even their lives. At the same time, Rhea and Malachi are trying to figure out if they want to take their friendship to a romantic relationship, and they worry about how it will impact their friendship with Zeke. This compelling mystery intertwined with romance and plenty of BIPOC representation will keep teens engaged and motivated to read. (Gr 9-12) Contemporary Realistic Fiction - Mystery

We Don’t Swim Here. Vincent Tirado. (2023). Sourcebooks Fire.
Black teenager Bronwyn Sawyer’s dad relocates the family to his childhood home in rural Hillwoods, Arkansas, to care for her dying grandmother. He hopes Bronwyn will reconnect with her cousin, Anais, and extended family who still live in Hillwoods. Almost immediately after moving, Bronwyn, a competitive swimmer, discovers that not only is there no swim team, the school and town’s swimming pools are drained and the lake is off limits. Bronwyn begins seeing shadows and having scary visions related to the lake. Why can’t she go swimming? Why does she remember her cousin telling her that being in the lake would burn? Even more strange, the kids at Hillwood’s high school seem to follow secret rituals but will not tell her what they are doing or why, and there is a rumor of the revengeful the spirit of a girl murdered by drowning who seeks to possess one of the students. This engrossing novel, told from the alternating perspectives of Bronwyn and Anais, tackles issues of racism and the dangers of overlooking the past. (Gr 9-12) Contemporary Realistic Fiction – Horror

​Tracey S. Hodges is the Owner of The Empowering Advocate LLC, an educational research and coaching business ( https://empoweringadvocate.com )