Wind Catcher -- Multicultural Young Adult Book Review

Disclosure: Evolved Publishing & Novel Publicity sent me a copy of this book free of charge in return for an honest review. All opinions in my review are my own and I did not receive any other compensation. As always I am providing links to the book for your convenience.

I have a confession. I enjoy reading young adult books. Perhaps it is from teaching high school for so long and checking out the books my students were reading, or maybe now it is due to the fact that I have so little time to read for me and young adult books tend to be easy reads, but either way I tend to enjoy them. One of my friends got me hooked on the Twilight Saga and now I have the honor of sharing the first book in a series that I quite honestly say I enjoyed more than Twilight. The book is Wind Catcher by Jeff Altabef and Erynn Altabef. It is the first book in the Chosen Novel Series. The second book, Brink of Dawn, is coming out this fall, and I have to say I cannot wait to read it. 

Author Inspired Books

Disclosure: I was sent these books free of charge in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Are you trying to get your child to read this summer? We all know about the summer slide and how much learning they lose with the two plus months off. Most schools now assign summer reading and even summer work to help stop this. Do your kids do it? I find it is important for kids to find books they want to read. They need something that inspires them and you know what--I am the same. If I cannot get into a book I will not finish it. I have always been that way. I am a slow reader and if I am going to take the time and effort to read a book, it has to be a good book. Today I am going to share some books about what inspires authors and one that is a John Keats poem presented in a new way. I hope some of these might inspire your kids to read more!!

Cold -- Engaging Young Adult Mystery with LGBTQ+ Characters

 

Disclosure: I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

I am working my way through several young adult, middle grade and adult books. Today I get to share a riveting young adult mystery. It is perfect for the upcoming Pride Month (June) as it has many characters in the LGBTQ+ category. The book is Cold by Mariko Tamaki. It is recommended for ages 12+.

Red Death Tour -- Book Review & More!

Disclosure: Jeff Altabef & Novel Publicity sent me a copy of this book free of charge in return for an honest review. All opinions in my review are my own and I did not receive any other compensation. As always I am providing links to the book for your convenience.

I am very excited to bring you a review of Jeff Altabef's latest novel!! Now you may remember The Chosen Series ( Wind Catcher, Brink of Dawn & Second Chances and now Scorched Souls) that I have reviewed written by Jeff and his daughter Erynn Altabef. Red Death is the first installment of a new series Jeff is writing in the young adult/adult dystopia science fiction genre. And the blog tour started yesterday and includes a giveaway (scroll down for giveaway).

Festival of Shadows -- Mysterious Young Adult Graphic Novel

 

Disclosure: I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Do you like ghost stories? Do you believe in ghosts? Today we are sharing a young adult graphic novel that is a Japanese ghost story. It is called Festival of Shadows: A Japanese Ghost Story by Atelier Sento. It is recommended for grades 8 to 12.

Middle Grade & Young Adult Novel Reviews

 

Disclosure: I was sent copies of these books in exchange for honest reviews. All opinions are my own.

A week or so ago I shared a round-up of the picture books I have to review. I meant to do these books that same week but life got in the way. So I am continuing with some middle grade and young adult novels for gift ideas. I am focusing on the four gift idea and the fourth gift being something to read! Here are some ideas for something to read. The first two are middle grade books for ages 8 to 12 and the last two are young adult books usually 14+. 

Young Adult Books about Kids with Disabilities/Illness and Troubled Teens

Disclosure: I was sent these books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

So I have had some young adult books sitting on my shelf for awhile. I haven't been great about getting them read. I am going to share three with you today. Each of these books share a view into the lives of kids struggling with issues. I am going to start with the non-fiction book. It is If I Kiss You, Will I Get Diabetes? by Quinn Nystrom.

A Castle in the Clouds -- Young Adult Novel

Disclosure: I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

The Multicultural Kid Blogs' Read Around the World Summer Series started this week and today we are sharing a young adult novel that is written by a German author and takes place in Switzerland. Be sure to follow the entire series all summer. I will be sharing the book recommendations on my Facebook page. In general Mondays will be books for younger kids, Wednesdays will be middle grade books and Fridays will be young adult but some may get switched around. The book we are sharing is A Castle in the Clouds by Kerstin Gier and translated by Romy Fursland. 

Northwind -- a Middle School/YA novel taking a look at life in the Northern Ocean

 

Disclosure: I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Today I am going to share a new middle school/young adult novel that takes a look at a different life than I am used to. It has been sitting on my shelf for awhile. When my life changed in April, I got behind reading my middle grades and young adult (as well as adult) books. This book is perfect for an Earth Day theme as well as just an adventure lover or explorer. It is Northwind by Gary Paulsen. It is recommended for ages 10 to 14.

YA Books for Summer Reading

Disclosure: I was sent these books free of charge in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own. 

Last week I joined Penguin Kids with their Meet the Chapter Books July Summer Reading Series. It involved sharing books for kids who are just beginning with chapter books (grades 1-3). I however continued all week sharing chapter books for different age groups: grades 2-5 and grades 3-7, which brings us to today's post--young adults or grade 7+. Today's books cover such a large range of topics so I hope you find one your young adult might enjoy or perhaps you will enjoy!

In Real Life -- Young Adult Book Review -- Multicultural Monday & Math

I am hosting a giveaway to win ABC Monsters & Houdini DVDs ! Have you entered yet?

 Disclosure: Tuttle Publishing gave me a copy of this book free of charge for this review. All opinions in my review are my own and I did not receive any other compensation. They also sent me a copy to giveaway! As in all my reviews I am providing links for your ease, but receive no compensation. 

Today I am sharing a young adult book. It is about a high school boy, Seth, who is very good at math as well as video games. He wants to compete against the top Starfare players in the world and those are the professionals in Korea. What interested me was the idea of a multicultural math story. The book is In Real Life by Lawrence Tabak.

Powerful Latinx Novels for Hispanic Heritage Month

 Disclosure: I was sent copies of these books in exchange for honest reviews. All opinions are my own.

Hispanic Heritage Month ends Friday and I wanted to share two new Latinx books with you to help celebrate. One is a graphic memoir. The author was in middle school living in New York City when 9/11 occurred. The other is a young adult novel that deals with ethnicity as well as rape and more. We will start with Big Apple Diaries by Alyssa Bermudez. It is recommended for ages 8 to 12. 

Prophecy -- Young Adult Book Review

Disclosure: Novel Publicity sent me a copy of this book free of charge in return for an honest review. All opinions in my review are my own and I did not receive any other compensation. As always I am providing links to the book for your convenience.

A few weeks ago I shared a review of Legacy by Ellery A. Kane which is the first book in this amazing series. In the second book of the Legacy Series, Prophecy by Ellery A. Kane, time has moved on and the government has disbanded the Guardian Force and reopened San Francisco. They have even reopened Standford University (the only college allowed open). 

Prophecy gives more of the background of details that lead up to the evacuation of San Francisco and the start up of the Guardian Force. It also tells us what life is like for Lex and Quin and their friends and family after the need to fight the Guardian Force is over. Quin's father has been released from prison. However he is then arrested for the murder of his new wife. With his past murder behind him, it is hard for Lex to be positive of his innocence. This brings a wedge between Lex and Quin. Will their relationship last? Then their nemesis, Augustus Porter is back and doing his conning and double crossing again. This time however he is out for blood--Lex's.  The characters are well developed and there are new ones as well as many of the old ones from Legacy.

Like the first book, I was not able to put this book down. In fact I had trouble falling asleep some nights after reading before bed because my mind was whirling with what was happening in the story. It is an intense and action filled story. There are surprises around every page and it even ends with a bit of a cliffhanger. Personally I cannot wait to read the third and final book in the series, but alas I have to wait until it is available. 

This series is a fun-filled adventure for any young adult or adult reader. I highly recommend it!!

Fairty Tales in Different Cultures: Cinderella for Older Children and Adults

We have spent so many Mondays talking about Cinderella tales. Just about every country and/or culture seems to have some version (at least one) of the tale. Did you know there are Cinderella tale books for older children as well as for adults. Here are some that I have found and I have read a few of them.

Firekeeper's Daughter -- Powerful YA Novel with Native American Ties

 

Disclosure: I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

It is hard to find a contemporary story with strong Native American people in it. It is even harder to find a good one written by a Native American. Today I am sharing a powerful young adult novel that is just that. This book is definitely for young adults and older. There is sex, rape, drugs, violence, and swearing in it. However I found the story to be fascinating and learned some things about Native American life today that I did not know. The book is Firekeeper's Daughter by Angeline Boulley. 

Women's History Month Middle Grades & Young Adult Book Round-Up

 March is Women's History Month. Over the years I have shared many books about women throughout each year. This year I decided to do round-ups of the books that are still in print so you can find resources to share with kids and new women to check out. Last week I shared a round-up of picture books. Today I am sharing our middle grades and a few young adult books that feature women's history. I hope these round-ups help you find resources to help teach kids about women that have changed the world! The books shared are ones I received for the reviews and the links will take you to my review which has a link to purchase the book. These books range from 8 and up.

She Takes a Stand Book Review

Disclosure: Chicago Review Press gave me a copy of this book free of charge for this review. All opinions in my review are my own and I did not receive any other compensation.  As in all my reviews I am providing links for your ease, but receive no compensation.

Now it may be the way my mother brought me up, but I love reading stories about strong women. I also love teaching Hazel about strong women. When I first saw the book, She Takes a Stand: 16 Fearless Activists Who Have Changed the World by Michael Elsohn Ross, I thought I might be able to read about each woman to Hazel. We tried this, but several of them were beyond her true understanding and she was always asking questions about what it meant. We decided we would have to save it for when she was older, but I got to enjoy reading it. 

Award Winning New Picture Books Perfect for Black History Month

 

On January 24, 2022, the American Library Association announced the 2022 Youth Media Awards! You can see all the winners here. I was happy to see Firekeeper's Daughter won the William C. Morris Award and the Printz Award. Ace of Spades was a finalist for the Printz Award. I really enjoyed both of these young adult books and Ace of Spades is another book great for Black History Month. I went through the list of awards and began requesting books from the library. I found five picture books from the list that are perfect for Black History Month and thought I would share them with you. One will be reshared as I did review it in 2021. We will start with Unspeakable: The Tulsa Race Massacre by Carole Boston Weatherford and Floyd Cooper. It is recommended for ages 8 to 12 or grades 3 to 6.

Religious Books for Different Ages

Disclosure: I was sent these books to review free of charge in exchange for an honest review. All opinions in this post are my own. I did not receive any other compensation for this review.

Today we are going to share with you some wonderful religious themed books for different ages. This post will also include three Hazel's Corners! The first is Princess Prayers by Jeanna Young, Jacqueline Kinney Johnson, and Omar Aranda. This a sparkly book filled with prayers for various times of day and different events for your little princess.

Creating Frankenstein -- Learn about Mary Shelley #WomensHistoryMonth

Disclosure: Macmillan Publishers sent me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. 

It is the beginning of March so that means it is Women's History Month!! This is another of my favorite months because I love teaching Hazel about strong women. To kick off the month I am sharing a young adult book with you about Mary Shelley and her creation of Frankenstein. What do you know about Mary Shelley? Do you know how she came up with the immortal monster, Frankenstein? You can learn all about her and her life and writing in Mary's Monster: Love, Madness, and How Mary Shelley Created Frankenstein by Lita Judge.