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School

New Kid

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New Kid by Jerry Craft
Format: Graphic Novel
Who it’s for:  Kids, Teens, Adults

Jordan Banks is starting his 7th grade year in a new school.  A new PRIVATE school with lots of privilege and not a lot of diversity.  He really wishes to go to art school, but his parents think this new private school will be good for him.  It’s never easy for a new kid in any school, but this one isn’t in his neighborhood and none of his friends go there.  The first person he meets doesn’t even talk to him.  He quickly notices that he is one of the few black kids.  And yet, he makes friends and soon finds his way navigating the new school.  Now he’s worried he is going to lose his friends in his neighborhood.

Jerry Craft shows us what it is like to be the new kid.  And, he teaches us about micro-aggressions against marginalized groups.  We see the white teacher that can never get the black kids’ names right   And, we see the black kid getting the blame for what the bad white kid did.  Craft teaches us about racism and bias.  Jordan finds out that even he is biased when he has to sit with the weird girl and finds out more about her.

While there wasn’t a big story line other than what it is like to be a new kid in middle school, I think this is an important read for kids today.  You see Jordan’s perspective as a black kid, as a minority.  It’s funny and relatable and I think kids will like it.  I hope that Jerry Craft makes this a series so that we can learn more about Jordan and his friends.

Find it in the catalog.

From Twinkle, With Love

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Recommended Book
From Twinkle, With Love by  Sandhya Menon
Publication Date: May 22, 2018
Format: Book or ebook
Who it’s for: Teens

“In this delightful romantic comedy from the New York Times bestselling author of When Dimple Met Rishi, told through the letters Twinkle writes to her favorite female filmmakers, From Twinkle, with Love navigates big truths about friendship, family, and the unexpected places love can find you.

Aspiring filmmaker and wallflower Twinkle Mehra has stories she wants to tell and universes she wants to explore, if only the world would listen. So when fellow film geek Sahil Roy approaches her to direct a movie for the upcoming Summer Festival, Twinkle is all over it. The chance to publicly showcase her voice as a director? Dream come true. The fact that it gets her closer to her longtime crush, Neil Roy-a.k.a. Sahil’s twin brother? Dream come true x 2.

When mystery man N begins emailing her, Twinkle is sure it’s Neil, finally ready to begin their happily-ever-after. The only slightly inconvenient problem is that, in the course of movie-making, she’s fallen madly in love with the irresistibly adorkable Sahil.

Twinkle soon realizes that resistance is futile: The romance she’s got is not the one she’s scripted. But will it be enough?” – Publisher’s blurb

This took a bit for me to get into. It was soooooooo High School. The crush, the BFF drama, the awkwardness, the ‘Woe is me’ angst, etc. So very HS, so stereotypical; it made me cringe, laugh, and smh. I would have stopped reading it by like chapter two, if not for Books for the Beast (a YA reader’s advisory conference in Maryland) and the fact her first book got so much praise. I powered through.

It was very amusing with a couple of lil life lessons to boot. If this was a Disney Channel movie, I could have made it through without cringing so much or smh at the mistakes they made. I still would have lol at the awkward moments. Despite all those things it was a great read.

The Indian culture that was in the book was completely natural and did not feel forced. It was just a part of Twinkle’s life, her story. The gay friends felt forced, like an afterthought. I liked the text messages and emails. They made it feel epistolary. The supposed diary entries where Twinkle is writing to directors never really felt like letters. They did not really feel like a diary entries, either. Only at the beginning of the diary entry and when she closed the “letter” did it ever feel like she was writing a letter to somebody.  It felt more like just a first POV novel.

I was considering reading her debut novel but when I was talking about From Twinkle, With Love with a coworker, she said this plot sounds almost identical to When Dimple Met Rishi. Now if they made movies from her novels on Disney Channel, I would watch them all and enjoy. If I was in middle/high school and liked romance novels, I would read all her novels as well. Def geared for upper middle school and High School girls.

Read a High School Rom-Com starring a cute Indian Girl!

 

School’s First Day of School

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Submitted by Ms. Josie!

Looking for a book to read on the first day of school? Look no further! School’s First Day of School by Adam Rex is perfect for helping young readers understand those “first-day jitters”and the new experiences that come with starting school for the first time. All summer long, School and Janitor spend many afternoons together and become very good friends. But tomorrow is the first day of school and School is… nervous! What if something goes wrong? What if the children don’t like him? What if School isn’t ready to be a school? Janitor kindly reminds School that everything will be fine. And so, School’s first day of school begins. Many children begin arrive… many more than School thought! The children seem to be everywhere – running, playing, laughing. But a few students are not quite so happy to start school. They are bored, disgruntled, and generally displeased with School. This makes School sad because really, he is trying his best. Then, to make matters worse, School’s fire alarm accidentally goes off… how embarrassing! School’s first day is not going well at all. As the day goes on however, the mood lightens. The children begin to make friends, tell jokes, and sit nicely while listening to their teachers. School even learns and thing or two! The initial nervousness of the day seems to dissipate and School starts warming up to the children. With wise insight from Janitor, School begins to see just how lucky he is to be a school. In fact, he can’t wait for his second day of school. Heartfelt and imaginative, this book promotes empathy as it reminds readers that sometimes, everyone feels nervous and that is completely okay. See this book listed in our catalog

The Summer Nick Taught His Cats to Read

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Submitted by Ms. Josie!

The Summer Nick Taught His Cats to Read by Curtis Manley and Kate Berube. One summer day, Nick decides to teach his two best buddies, Stevenson and Verne, how to read. There’s just one problem–Stevenson and Verne are cats! They don’t know how to read! Nick, who loves doing everything with his cats, persists with his idea anyway. If he could learn to read, so could his furry friends! Nick plans out a thorough lesson plan starting with the basics of spelling. He first tries to teach his cats words that might appeal to them like “ball,” “food,” and “nap.” The cats continually ignore him. But Nick doesn’t give up! After a few trials, his cat Verne becomes interested in books about fish and is soon reading all by himself. Stevenson, on the other hand, becomes more and more agitated by the idea of reading (*gasp*) and hides from Nick and Verne. Stevenson’s reluctance to read worries Nick. Will he ever be able to share his love of reading with Stevenson? One afternoon, Nick and Verne discover a pile of colorful drawings under the bed–Stevenson has illustrated an entire story about pirates! So Stevenson was interested in reading after all! But instead of using words, he preferred to use pictures to tell a story. Nick and Verne decide to add to Stevenson’s story by writing in words. For the first time, Stevenson seems intrigued by words. The very next day, Stevenson is found with his whiskers in another book about pirates. Through understanding and encouragement, Nick is able to assist both of his cats as they build their individual reading skills. During this process, the cats even discover subjects that enhance their love of reading. This story kindly reminds us that each reader is unique and that building reading skills comes more easily to some than to others. With a bit of patience and persistence, young readers can attain a strong foundation for early literacy skills as well as a lifelong love of reading. See this book listed in our catalog 

Little Red Writing

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Submitted by special guest blogger Ms. Andrea!

Little Red Writing written by Joan Holub puts a comical spin on the classic tale of Little Red Riding Hood. This story follows the adventures of Little Red as she writes a story in school. Her presence is requested at Principal Granny’s house, but it isn’t Granny who is waiting for her. It is the Wolf 3000 pencil sharpener who wants nothing more than to sharpen Little Red to smithereens. Little Red escapes just in time to present her story in class. This book is a great tool for teaching kids about the different parts of a story. It has great descriptive language, and fun, engaging illustrations. Children will enjoy the story as it is written, and adults will enjoy the twist on an old favorite. See this book listed in our catalog

One Day, The End

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Submitted by Ms. Karen!

All good stories have a beginning and an end, of course, but oh, the middle! The middle is where the story really happens, and the young storyteller in One Day, The End by Rebecca Kai Dotlich, illustrated by Fred Koehler, shares her stories with us to that effect. Each page has a large text beginning and end, but the pictures actually carry the middle where her story is found. In “I Went to School. I Came Home. The End” we are offered small glimpses of the triumphs and failures she experiences during one day at school. In “One Day I Made Something. I Gave It to My Mom. The End” we watch as the storyteller’s creativity splashes (literally) across the kitchen in pursuit of the perfect gift for her mother, with the last story summing up all of her tales! A beautiful cross between word-book and wordless-book, this story is great for lap time reading with pre and early readers, and for helping teach your young writers learn about story structure. See this book listed in our catalog