On the Shelf

Header Right Social

FacebookInstagramYoutubeMeetupOn the Shelf Blog

Header Right Search

Tough Stuff

Tradition

by Leave a Comment

Tradition by Brendan Kiely
Format: Book & Audiobook
Who it’s for: Teens & Adults

Jules Devereux is starting her senior year at Fullbrook Academy, an elite boarding school in New England, and is already counting the days to graduation so she can leave behind her ex-boyfriend, her ex-best friends, and everything she thinks is wrong with Fullbrook.
Always an outspoken advocate, Jules finds herself strangely silenced when she becomes the victim of sexual assault at the annual fall drinking party. Finding an administration unwilling to act, she and her new found friends launch a plan to get everyone’s attention and challenge what is accepted just because it’s always been that way.

I heard the author, Brendan Kiely, speak at a conference and his genuine concern for responsible and respectful behavior made me want to read this book.  It’s thought provoking and made me see how we often let things stay the same for no better reason than that’s how it’s always been. Brendan Kiely also co-authored the 2016 One Maryland One Book: All American Boys.
Find it in the catalog

The Bucket List

by Leave a Comment

The Bucket List by Georgia Clark
Format: Book
Who it’s for: Adults

For the most part, Lacey Whitman’s life is going the way she wants it. She has a job she mostly likes and friends she can sometimes count on. However, everything she knows comes crashing down around her when she learns that she has inherited the breast cancer gene. Now she must make the life-altering decision of whether or not to have a double mastectomy at the young age of twenty-five. Lacey knows this is not a decision to be made lightly and, like any good Type-A millennial, enlists the help of her friends in making a pro-con list. Their verdict? Make a “boob bucket list” and give herself one year to complete everything she wants to do with and for her breasts before her possible surgery. Thus begins a journey of self-discovery and self-acceptance you won’t want to miss.

Find it in our catalog

Still a Family

by Leave a Comment

Submitted by Mr. Eric!

Sometimes it is easy to forget to be thankful for all the little things in life. The fact that we can find food whenever we want, or that we have a roof over our heads is something that many people, including myself, often forget to be thankful for. It is easy to get caught up in the concerns of the day and stopping to be grateful for something that may seem simple, like the fact I can see my daughter whenever I want, may not occur to me all the time. Still a Family written by Brenda Reeves Sturgis, and illustrated by Jo-Shin Lee, is a story of a young girl who lives in a homeless shelter with her mom. Since their shelter doesn’t allow men, her dad has to stay in a different shelter. Even though they don’t get to spend every day together they are still a family. Even though her dad isn’t there to tuck her in at night, he is, and will always be her dad. Even when they have to make a lean-to and sleep on the streets together, they are still a family. I double-dog dare you to not shed a tear while reading this sweet story.  Even though it is sad, it helps to remind us how fortunate we all are and to take a moment to reflect on that fact. See this book listed in our catalog

The Goodbye Book

by Leave a Comment

Submitted by Mr. Eric!

Sometimes it’s very hard to say goodbye to person you care deeply for. You still remember all of the good times, but those memories that used to make you feel good now make you feel very sad. You may feel angry at those around you, or that you don’t even want to talk about it with loved ones. The Goodbye Book written and illustrated by Todd Parr explores the topic of losing a loved one in a way that will make sense for children. In it, a little fish has lost his friend, and over the course of the book goes through all the stages of grief until he finds acceptance. In a style that is typical for Parr, the story as well as the illustrations are simple but still serve to tell a touching story. On the final page, he writes “Of all my books, this was the hardest to write – because it’s never easy to say goodbye.” See this book listed in our catalog

A Piece of Home

by Leave a Comment

Submitted by Ms. Sue!

A Piece of Home by Jeri Watts, illustrated by Hyewon Yum. In Korea Hee Jun was ordinary. Hee Jun and his family have just moved from Korea to West Virginia. In Korea, his grandmother was a wonderful teacher and could find the extraordinary out of the ordinary especially in her garden. At school he was just like everyone else. His father accepted a position in a West Virginia school and the family has moved. Grandmother seems different too and her eyes don’t gleam anymore. Here, he is different. As time goes by, he am surprised. He learns new words like bathroom and please. He makes friends. Grandmother and little sister Se Ra are learning too. Se Ra’s teacher gets advice from Grandmother. One day when my friend Steve invites him over, they discover a plant in Steve’s mom’s garden, a “Rose of Sharon.” It’s the same as a plant Grandmother had in Korea called Mugunghwa. Steve’s mom sends a blossom and a shoot home for Grandmother. “A piece of Heaven,” Grandmother says. “A piece of home.” She plants the shoot and at summers end, she sews a blossom onto her new teacher friend’s wedding dress, like the family did in Korea. See this book listed in our catalog 

Lenny and Lucy

by Leave a Comment

Submitted by Ms. Karen!

Lenny and Lucy by Philip Stead, illustrated by Erin Stead, is a sweet imaginative tale about a boy and his dog in need of friends. After a long drive through the woods Peter, his trusty canine sidekick Harold, and his dad arrive at their new house. Peter thinks it is a terrible idea to move here and wants to go back, but no one hears. Convinced that terrible things lurk in the dark woods beyond the little bridge by his new house, Peter and Harold build Lenny, a pillow-stuffed, blanket-wrapped Guardian of the Bridge Into the Woods. The faithful Lenny keeps the woods at bay through the night, but as Peter and Harold watch out the window they worry that he might be too lonely out there by himself. Next morning Peter builds leaf-stuffed Lucy to watch with him. The four friends eat soup, play marbles, and watch together, until a new friend comes to play. When you have good friends, maybe moving to new house at the edge of the woods isn’t so bad after all! See this book listed in our catalog