Mel the Chosen by Rachele Aragno
Mel the Chosen is an odd little girl and in an odd little book that is a fun way of showing an adventure that is both familiar, and new to us. Rachele Aragno’s story gives us a little magic and the age old warning of “Be careful what you wish for, as you just might get it.” Much of the book is “know your reader” with the “spooky” elements (not too much for most people, but could be for some), the slightly abstract but realistic […]
Every Day V02 Another Day by David Levithan
Reading some of the reviews on a well-know website known for having reviews, I found that I was not the only one who thought Every Day V02 Another Day by David Levithan had several weak parts. This is not a true sequel to Every Day but the companion of how the several months the characters A (a person who leaps into a person’s body for the day) and Rhiannon (high schooler) meet when A was in the body of her boyfriend, Justin, and the aftermath, […]
Heartstopper volume 5: A Graphic Novel by Alice Oseman
Heartstopper volume 5: A Graphic Novel by Alice Oseman is more of the same with the characters Nick, Charlie, their family and their friends. While we focus on Nick and Charlie (as the other volumes have done) Oseman has added a few areas that are “outside” of the boy’s knowledge (such as there is a flashback with Charlie’s mom and one with a teacher), and there are a few areas that are just “Nick focused” or just “Charlie focused” as usual. There are some sexual […]
Worried Whippet: A Book of Bravery (For Adults and Kids Struggling with Anxiety) by Jess Bolton
Worried Whippet: A Book of Bravery (For Adults and Kids Struggling with Anxiety) by Jess Bolton is a cozy story about how a whippet learns to find the balance between afraid and not afraid, needing an indoor/sleeping like a cushion day and walking outside in the world with its “dangers”, and the fear of new experiences. Sweet illustrations show the adventures and misadventures (stolen chips anyone?) Written in the English of the UK (chips means French fries), though available, was read via an online reader […]
Pansy Boy by Paul Harfleet
The theme of Pansy Boy is familiar, but the presentation is new. The artwork is unusual and classical. The “ugly” and “beauty” (the ugly of the hateful things that are said, and the beauty of the young boy, the birds, and the flowers) are shown in fresh ways to move things along. Paul Harfleet made an experience book. The rhyming aspect could work for some people, but sometimes it took me out of the moment. The overall theme of things is bullying because the main […]
Lunar Boy by Jes and Cin Wibowo
I am starting my review of Lunar Boy with: I have questions. None are about the story itself, which is, a child from the Moon is adopted by a woman from New Earth. They live on a space station until the mother, in the process of helping her New Earth friend deal with the death of his wife, falls in love, marries, and moves to New Earth. Then, Indu (the child) must deal with not just the stress of a move to a new home, […]
