Spring Hits Worth Watching
I was lucky to attend a pre-release screening of Ready Player One the other night. It was excellent, and totally exceeded my expectations! While I’m a big fan of science fiction books and movies, it’s harder for me to get behind fantasy, and because of that, I wasn’t initially drawn to it. That said, I left really loving it, am still thinking about it days later, and passing the word to see it on to my friends.
I fall in the middle of the road when it comes to Spielberg films, and I’m not ashamed to admit it. Indiana Jones, Jurassic Park, Hook, Jaws, E.T. --- these are all surefire hits, and without a doubt will go down in movie history. On the flip side, Catch Me If You Can, The Terminal and War of the Worlds felt forgettable. I know, I know. To each their own. Sometimes, I want a real action-packed, straightforward adventure story. Other times, I want something kind of artsy, kind of askew, kind of gritty, kind of think-about-it-for-days-after (on that note: go see Wes Anderson’s Isle of Dogs, I loved it!). To my very pleasant surprise, Ready Player One straddles the line of both.
The movie is fast-moving, and filled with so much action, danger and excitement that the two-and-a-half hours went by in a jiffy. On top of that, one of the main focuses is the ‘80s, and all the references (music, TV, movies, video games and more) had the late 20something and 30something crowd laughing to the end. The soundtrack is magnificent, and I didn't expect anything less from Spielberg in that department --- queue the unbelievably epic Jurassic Park theme song. This movie has all of it and a very interesting love story that ultimately reminds us that real, human connection greatly surpasses all forms of technological-based communication. You might even shed a tear like I did. Sigh.
The movie is based on the 2011 book of the same name by Ernest Cline, who helped write the screenplay. I'm always happy to hear that an author has a hand in a film upon which his or her work is based. The year is 2045. The setting is a dystopian Ohio. You tap into a virtual reality called the Oasis, where you create your own avatar, accrue strength and power, and play in an alternate world only your imagination can dream of. Just the plot alone has all the makings for a sci-fi/fantasy/thriller hit on screen, so make sure you hit the theaters this weekend when it opens nationwide. And even if it’s not totally your thing, give it a chance. I did, and it was worth it.
In other entertainment news, while it’s sad to see Matt Smith go as Prince Philip in Netflix’s “The Crown,” his replacement will be equally as entertaining --- actor Tobias Menzies. If you’re a dedicated “Outlander” fan, you know him as Frank Randall and Black Jack Randall. If you’re not a dedicated “Outlander” fan, I highly suggest you become one. Menzies has signed on for seasons three and four of the series alongside Olivia Colman (Queen Elizabeth II) and Helena Bonham Carter (Princess Margaret), which is all we know thus far, but is enough to get us super excited for early 2019 --- its current projected release date.
We won’t have to wait as long for season two of “The Handmaid’s Tale” because its premiere is right around the corner: Wednesday April 25th. The Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winning show based on the book of the same name by Margaret Atwood made a huge splash with its first season, and we have high hopes for the second. Another new trailer for the upcoming season was released yesterday, and it’s got us feeling some type of way. Check it out here, and be sure to tune into Hulu at the end of April.
Screen time aside, get yourself buried in a new book. Check out these latest releases:
Anna Quindlen’s ALTERNATE SIDE is the story of Nora Nolan and her husband, Charlie. Some days, she thinks they lead a charmed life --- except when there’s a crisis at work, a leak in the roof at home, or a problem with their twins at college. And why not? New York City was once Nora’s dream destination, and her clannish dead-end block has become a safe harbor, a tranquil village amid the urban craziness. The owners watch one another’s children grow up. They use the same handyman. They trade gossip and gripes, and they maneuver for the ultimate status symbol: a spot in the block’s small parking lot. Then one morning, Nora returns from her run to discover that a terrible incident has shaken the neighborhood, and the enviable dead-end block turns into a potent symbol of a divided city.
THE FLIGHT ATTENDANT by Chris Bohjalian is a psychological thriller that should not be missed. Cassandra Bowden, a flight attendant, is no stranger to hungover mornings. When she awakes in a Dubai hotel room, she tries to piece the previous night back together. She quietly slides out of bed and looks at the man she spent the night with. What she sees is blood, a slick, still wet pool on the crisp white sheets. Afraid to call the police, Cassie begins to lie. She lies as she joins the other flight attendants and pilots in the van. She lies on the way to Paris as she works the first class cabin. She lies to the FBI agents in New York who meet her at the gate. Soon it's too late to come clean --- or face the truth about what really happened back in Dubai. Could she have killed him? If not, who did?
In SOMETIMES I LIE by Alice Feeney, Amber Reynolds wakes up in a hospital. She can’t move. She can’t speak. She can’t open her eyes. She can hear everyone around her, but they have no idea. Amber doesn’t remember what happened, but she has a suspicion her husband had something to do with it. Alternating between her paralyzed present, the week before her accident, and a series of childhood diaries from 20 years ago, Feeney's debut psychological thriller asks: Is something really a lie if you believe it's the truth?
Happy reading!
5 Things To Obsess About This Very Moment, in no particular order:
1. Reese Witherspoon and Kristen Wiig are teaming up for a 10-episode TV series based on Curtis Sittenfeld's upcoming YOU THINK IT, I'LL SAY IT
2. Witherspoon strikes again with an IN A DARK, DARK WOOD adaptation
3. This P. Harry + M. Markle coloring book
4. There's going to be TWO DUNE movies
5. The On Chesil Beach trailer, an upcoming movie based on the 2007 novella of the same name by Ian McEwan
--- Nicole Sherman
ALTERNATE SIDE by Anna Quindlen (Fiction)
Audiobook available, read by Ellen Archer
Some days, Nora Nolan thinks that she and her husband, Charlie, lead a charmed life --- except when there’s a crisis at work, a leak in the roof at home, or a problem with their twins at college. And why not? New York City was once Nora’s dream destination, and her clannish dead-end block has become a safe harbor, a tranquil village amid the urban craziness. The owners watch one another’s children grow up. They use the same handyman. They trade gossip and gripes, and they maneuver for the ultimate status symbol: a spot in the block’s small parking lot. Then one morning, Nora returns from her run to discover that a terrible incident has shaken the neighborhood, and the enviable dead-end block turns into a potent symbol of a divided city. Reviewed by Katherine B. Weissman.
THE BAD DAUGHTER by Joy Fielding (Mystery/Thriller)
Audiobook available, read by Brittany Pressley
A voice mail from her estranged sister, Melanie, sends Robin’s heart racing and her mind spiraling in a full-blown panic attack. Melanie’s message is dire: Their father, his second wife and his 12-year-old stepdaughter have been shot --- likely in a home invasion --- and lie in the hospital in critical condition. It’s been more than five years since Robin turned her back on her father when he married her best friend. Now she must return to the family she left behind. As she attempts to mend fences while her father clings to life, Robin begins to wonder if there is more to the tragedy than a botched burglary attempt. Reviewed by Bronwyn Miller.
BARBED WIRE HEART by Tess Sharpe (Thriller)
Audiobook available, read by Tess Sharpe
Duke McKenna has run more guns, cooked more meth and killed more men than anyone around. His daughter, Harley, has been working for him since she was 16 --- collecting debts, sweet-talking her way out of trouble, and dreading the day he'd deem her ready to rule the rural drug empire he's built. The Springfields, her family's biggest rivals, are moving in. Years ago, they were responsible for her mother's death, and now they're coming for her. Harley is forced to confront the truth: that her father's violent world will destroy her. If she wants to survive and protect the people she loves, she must take out Duke's operation and the Springfields. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.
THE BISHOP’S PAWN by Steve Berry (Thriller)
Audiobook available, read by Scott Brick
History notes that the ugly feud between J. Edgar Hoover and Martin Luther King, Jr., marked by years of illegal surveillance and the accumulation of secret files, ended on April 4, 1968 when King was assassinated by James Earl Ray. But that may not have been the case. Now, 50 years later, former Justice Department agent Cotton Malone must reckon with the truth of what really happened that fateful day in Memphis. Reviewed by Ray Palen.
BLOOD OF THE FOUR by Christopher Golden and Tim Lebbon (Dark Fantasy/Adventure)
Audiobook available, read by Khristine Hvam
In the great kingdom of Quandis, everyone is a slave. A young woman of stunning ambition, Princess Phela refuses to allow a few obstacles to stand in the way of claiming ultimate power and glory for herself. Far below the royals are the Bajuman. Poor and oppressed, members of this wretched caste have but two paths out of servitude: the priesthood or death. Because magic has been kept at bay in Quandis, royals and Bajuman have lived together in an uneasy peace for centuries. But Princess Phela’s desire for power will disrupt the realm’s order, setting into motion a series of events that will end with her becoming a goddess in her own right…or ultimately destroying Quandis and all its inhabitants. Reviewed by Sarah Rachel Egelman.
CLOSE TO HOME by Cara Hunter (Psychological Thriller)
Audiobook available, read by Lee Ingleby and Emma Cunniffe
When eight-year-old Daisy Mason vanishes from her family’s Oxford home during a costume party, Detective Inspector Adam Fawley knows that nine times out of 10, the offender is someone close to home. And Daisy’s family is certainly strange --- her mother is obsessed with keeping up appearances, while her father is cold and defensive under questioning. And then there’s Daisy’s little brother, so withdrawn and uncommunicative. DI Fawley works against the clock to find any trace of the little girl, but it’s as if she disappeared into thin air --- no one saw anything; no one knows anything. But everyone has an opinion, and everyone, it seems, has a secret to conceal. Reviewed by Christine M. Irvin.
CLOSER THAN YOU KNOW by Brad Parks (Thriller)
Audiobook available, read by Emily Rankin
One Tuesday evening, Melanie Barrick goes to pick up her son, Alex, from childcare only to discover he's been removed by Social Services. Her nightmare mushrooms when she arrives home to learn her house has been raided by sheriff's deputies, who have found enough cocaine to send Melanie to prison for years. Meanwhile, assistant commonwealth's attorney Amy Kaye --- who has been assigned Melanie's case --- has her own troubles. She's been dogged by a cold case no one wants her to pursue: a serial rapist who has avoided detection by wearing a mask and whispering his commands. Over the years, he has victimized dozens of women. Including Melanie. Yet now her attacker might be the key to her salvation…or her undoing. Reviewed by Gabriella Mayer.
THE DAY SHE DISAPPEARED by Christobel Kent (Psychological Thriller)
When Beth disappears, everyone says she’s run off with another man. But Natalie, her best friend, doesn’t believe it. She’s sure something more sinister is going on. Meanwhile, Victor, one of Beth’s and Nat’s favorite bar patrons, has fallen and ended up in the hospital. When he hears that Beth is gone, he doesn’t buy it either. And slowly, a hazy memory comes back to him. As Nat tries to piece together the events --- and people --- in Beth’s life, it becomes more difficult to discern who can and can’t be trusted. The little town in the English countryside takes on an ominous air, with a threat behind every corner, outside every window. And someone is always watching. Reviewed by Norah Piehl.
DUEL TO THE DEATH: An Ali Reynolds Mystery by J.A. Jance (Mystery/Thriller)
Audiobook available, read by Karen Ziemba
After taking down the man responsible for his best friend’s death, Stuart Ramey thinks the case is finally closed. That is, until Stu finds himself left with a multimillion dollar fortune in Bitcoin in a desperate bid by Frigg, a rogue A.I. program created by the killer, to keep itself from being fully deactivated. To sort out his situation and take Frigg down for good, Stu enlists the help of Ali Reynolds and the rest of his cyber security colleagues at High Noon Enterprises. But they are not the only ones who know about Frigg’s existence. Graciella Miramar is the right-hand woman to El Pescado, the leader of a dangerous drug cartel, and she’ll do anything to get her hands on that program. Reviewed by Roz Shea.
EVERY NOTE PLAYED by Lisa Genova (Fiction)
Audiobook available, read by Dennis Boutsikaris and Dagmara Dominczyk
An accomplished concert pianist, Richard now has ALS, and his entire right arm is paralyzed. Three years ago, Karina removed their framed wedding picture from the living room wall and hung a mirror there instead. But she still hasn’t moved on. Karina is paralyzed by excuses and fear, stuck in an unfulfilling life as a piano teacher, afraid to pursue the path she abandoned as a young woman, blaming Richard and their failed marriage for all of it. When Richard becomes increasingly paralyzed and is no longer able to live on his own, Karina becomes his reluctant caretaker. As Richard’s muscles, voice and breath fade, both he and Karina try to reconcile their past before it’s too late. Reviewed by Rebecca Munro.
THE FAMILY NEXT DOOR by Sally Hepworth (Psychological Thriller/Mystery)
Audiobook available, read by Barrie Kreinik
From the outside, Essie’s life looks idyllic: a loving husband, a beautiful house in a good neighborhood, and a nearby mother who dotes on her grandchildren. But few of Essie’s friends know her secret shame: that in a moment of maternal despair, she once walked away from her newborn, asleep in her carriage in a park. When a new woman named Isabelle moves in next door to Essie, she is an immediate object of curiosity in the neighborhood. As the two women grow closer and Essie’s friends voice their disapproval, it starts to become clear that Isabelle’s choice of neighborhood was no accident. And that her presence threatens to bring shocking secrets to light. Reviewed by Leah DeCesare (www.leahdecesare.com).
THE FLIGHT ATTENDANT by Chris Bohjalian (Psychological Thriller)
Audiobook available; read by Erin Spencer and Grace Experience, with Mark Deakins
Cassandra Bowden, a flight attendant, is no stranger to hungover mornings. When she awakes in a Dubai hotel room, she tries to piece the previous night back together. She quietly slides out of bed and looks at the man she spent the night with. What she sees is blood, a slick, still wet pool on the crisp white sheets. Afraid to call the police, Cassie begins to lie. She lies as she joins the other flight attendants and pilots in the van. She lies on the way to Paris as she works the first class cabin. She lies to the FBI agents in New York who meet her at the gate. Soon it's too late to come clean --- or face the truth about what really happened back in Dubai. Could she have killed him? If not, who did? Reviewed by Kate Ayers.
GIRLS BURN BRIGHTER by Shobha Rao (Fiction)
Audiobook available, read by Soneela Nankani
Poornima and Savitha have three strikes against them: they are poor, they are ambitious, and they are girls. After her mother’s death, Poornima has very little kindness in her life. She is left to care for her siblings until her father can find her a suitable match. So when Savitha enters their household, Poornima is intrigued by the joyful, independent-minded girl. Suddenly their Indian village doesn't feel quite so claustrophobic, and Poornima begins to imagine a life beyond arranged marriage. But when a devastating act of cruelty drives Savitha away, Poornima leaves behind everything she has ever known to find her friend. Reviewed by Melanie Reynolds.
HIGH WHITE SUN by J. Todd Scott (Thriller)
Audiobook available, narrated by T. Ryder Smith
In the wake of Sheriff Stanford Ross' death, former deputy Chris Cherry --- now Sheriff Cherry --- struggles to escape the long, dark shadow of that infamous lawman. But it's only when a local Rio Grande guide is murdered, and new deputies America Reynosa and Ben Harper’s ongoing investigation is swept aside by a secretive federal agent, that the novice sheriff truly understands just how tenuous his hold on that badge really is. And as other new threats emerge, nothing can prepare Chris for the high cost of crossing dangerous men such as John Wesley Earl, a high-ranking member of the Aryan Brotherhood of Texas, or Thurman Flowers, a part-time pastor and full-time white supremacist. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.
I BRING SORROW: And Other Stories of Transgression by Patricia Abbott (Mystery/Short Stories)
I BRING SORROW is a collection of stories from Edgar and Anthony Award nominee Patricia Abbott that explores the dark side of human behavior. A daughter finds a way to save a mother who no longer knows her name. A father eases his grief through an act of kindness that few will judge kindly. A savvy realtor closes her deal in an unexpected way. A society of women fares little better than their forbearers. An uxorious husband finds the limits of his love. These and more stories will bring you into the deepest, darkest corridors of the heart. Reviewed by Sarah Rachel Egelman.
LET ME LIE by Clare Mackintosh (Psychological Thriller)
Audiobook available; read by Gemma Whelan, with a note read by the author
Last year, Tom and Caroline Johnson chose to end their lives, one seemingly unable to live without the other. Their daughter, Anna, is struggling to come to terms with her parents' deaths, unwilling to accept the verdict of suicide. Now with a baby herself, Anna feels her mother's absence keenly and is determined to find out what really happened to her parents. But as she digs up the past, someone is trying to stop her. Sometimes it's safer to let things lie. Reviewed by Ray Palen.
A PERFECT UNIVERSE: Ten Stories by Scott O'Connor (Fiction/Short Stories)
Audiobook available, read by Bronson Pinchot and Thérèse Plummer
Welcome to the often-overlooked corners of sun-bleached Los Angeles, where a teenaged bicycle thief searches for a kidnapped boy, a young musician emerges as the lone survivor of a building collapse, and an aging actor faces the erasure of his past. There, far from the Hollywood spotlight, we also meet two sisters locked in a destructive cycle of memory and illness, coffee-shop regulars whose lives are torn apart by a stunning moment of violence, and the desperate, fraudulent writer whose fictions connect these characters in subtle and surprising ways. Reviewed by Stephen Febick.
THE RECIPE BOX by Viola Shipman (Fiction)
Audiobook available, read by Susan Bennett
Samantha “Sam” Mullins felt trapped on her family’s orchard and pie shop, so she left with dreams of making her own mark in the world. But life as an overworked, undervalued sous chef at a reality star’s New York bakery is not what Sam dreamed. When the chef embarrasses Sam, she quits and returns home. Unemployed, single and defeated, she spends a summer working on her family’s orchard cooking and baking alongside the women in her life --- including her mother, Deana, and grandmother, Willo. One beloved, flour-flecked, ink-smeared recipe at a time, Sam begins to learn about and understand the women in her life, her family’s history, and her passion for food through their treasured recipe box. Reviewed by Norah Piehl.
SOMETIMES I LIE by Alice Feeney (Psychological Thriller)
Audiobook available, read by Stephanie Racine
Amber Reynolds wakes up in a hospital. She can’t move. She can’t speak. She can’t open her eyes. She can hear everyone around her, but they have no idea. Amber doesn’t remember what happened, but she has a suspicion her husband had something to do with it. Alternating between her paralyzed present, the week before her accident, and a series of childhood diaries from 20 years ago, Alice Feeney's debut psychological thriller asks: Is something really a lie if you believe it's the truth? Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.
SPEAK NO EVIL by Uzodinma Iweala (Fiction)
Audiobook available, read by Prentice Onayemi and Julia Whelan
Raised by two attentive parents, Niru is a top student and a track star at his prestigious private high school. Bound for Harvard in the fall, his prospects are bright. But Niru has a painful secret: he is queer --- an abominable sin to his conservative Nigerian parents. No one knows except Meredith, his best friend and the one person who seems not to judge him. When his father accidentally discovers Niru is gay, the fallout is brutal and swift. As Niru and Meredith struggle to reconcile their desires against the expectations and institutions that seek to define them, they find themselves speeding toward a future more violent and senseless than they can imagine. Reviewed by Maya Gittelman.
THE STAKES by Ben Sanders (Thriller)
Rip-offs are a dangerous game, but heist man Miles Keller thinks he has found a good strategy: rob rich New York criminals and then retire early, before word is out about his true identity. The NYPD is investigating him for the shooting of a hitman named Jack Deen, who was targeting Lucy Gates, a former police informant and Miles’ ex-lover. He’s ready to go to ground, but then Nina Stone reappears in his life. Nina is a fellow heist professional and the estranged wife of LA crime boss Charles Stone. Her husband wants her back, and he’s dispatched his go-to gun thug to play repo man. Complicating matters is the fact that the gun thug in question is Bobby Deen, cousin of the dead Jack Deen --- and Bobby wants vengeance. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.
THE TEMPTATION OF FORGIVENESS: A Commissario Guido Brunetti Mystery by Donna Leon (Mystery)
Audiobook available, narrated by David Colacci
Surprised, if not dismayed, to discover from his superior, Vice-Questore Patta, that leaks are emanating from the Questura, Commissario Guido Brunetti is surprised more consequentially by the appearance of a friend of his wife’s, fearful that her son is using drugs and hopeful Brunetti can somehow intervene. When Tullio Gasparini, the woman’s husband, is found unconscious and with a serious brain injury at the foot of a bridge in Venice after midnight, Brunetti is drawn to pursue a possible connection to the boy’s behavior. But the truth, as Brunetti has experienced so often, is not straightforward. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.
THE THIRD VICTIM by Phillip Margolin (Legal Thriller)
Audiobook available, read by Therese Plummer
A battered and bound woman stumbles onto a dark road in rural Oregon, and tells a horrific story about being kidnapped, then tortured, until she finally managed to escape. She identifies the house where she was held captive, and the owner, Alex Mason --- a prominent local attorney --- is arrested. Although he loudly insists upon his innocence, his wife’s statements about his sexual sadism and the physical evidence found at the scene are damning. Regina Barrister, a legendary criminal defense attorney, has a secret, one that threatens her skill, her reputation and, most of all, her clients. And she’s agreed to take on the seemingly impossible task of defending Alex Mason. Reviewed by Barbara Lipkien Gershenbaum.
THE VOICE INSIDE by Brian Freeman (Psychological Thriller)
Audiobook available, read by Joe Barrett
Four years after serial killer Rudy Cutter was sent away for life, San Francisco homicide inspector Frost Easton uncovers a terrible lie: his closest friend planted false evidence to put Cutter behind bars. When he’s forced to reveal the truth, his sister’s killer is back on the streets. Desperate to take Cutter down again, the detective finds a new ally in Eden Shay, who wrote a book about Cutter and knows more about him than anyone. For four years, Cutter has been nursing revenge day after stolen day. Staying ahead of the game of a killer who’s determined to strike again is not going to be easy. Not when Frost is battling his own demons. Not when the game is becoming so personal. And not when the killer’s next move is unlike anything Frost expected. Reviewed by Ray Palen.
ALL WE CAN DO IS WAIT by Richard Lawson (Contemporary Fiction)
Audiobook available, narrated by Holly Linneman
In the hours after a bridge collapse rocks their city, a group of Boston teenagers meet in the waiting room of Massachusetts General Hospital. Siblings Jason and Alexa have already experienced enough grief for a lifetime. Scott is waiting to hear about his girlfriend, Aimee, who was on a bus with her theater group when the bridge went down. And then there's Skyler, whose sister Kate --- the sister who is more like a mother, the sister who is basically Skyler's everything --- was crossing the bridge when it collapsed. Reviewed by Olivia W., Teen Board Member.
THE ASTONISHING COLOR OF AFTER by Emily X.R. Pan (Contemporary Fiction/Magical Realism)
Audiobook available, narrated by Stephanie Hsu
Leigh is absolutely certain about one thing: When her mother died by suicide, she turned into a bird. Leigh, who is half Asian and half white, travels to Taiwan to meet her grandparents for the first time. There, she is determined to find her mother, the bird. In her search, she winds up chasing after ghosts, uncovering family secrets and forging a new relationship with her grandparents. And as she grieves, she must try to reconcile the fact that on the same day she kissed her best friend and longtime crush, Axel, her mother was taking her own life. Reviewed by Daniella R., Teen Board Member.
BLOOD WATER PAINT by Joy McCullough (Historical Fiction/Novel in Verse)
Her mother died when she was 12, and suddenly Artemisia Gentileschi had a stark choice: a life as a nun in a convent or a life grinding pigment for her father's paint. She chose paint. By the time she was 17, Artemisia did more than grind pigment. She was one of Rome's most talented painters, even if no one knew her name. But Rome in 1610 was a city where men took what they wanted from women, and in the aftermath of rape Artemisia faced another terrible choice: a life of silence or a life of truth, no matter the cost. Reviewed by Jessi H., Teen Board Member.
BRAZEN: Rebel Ladies Who Rocked the World by Pénélope Bagieu (Graphic Novel)
Throughout history and across the globe, one characteristic connects the daring women of BRAZEN: their indomitable spirit. With her characteristic wit and dazzling drawings, celebrated graphic novelist Pénélope Bagieu profiles the lives of these feisty female role models, some world famous, some little known. From Nellie Bly to Mae Jemison or Josephine Baker to Naziq al-Abid, the stories in this comic biography are sure to inspire the next generation of rebel ladies. Reviewed by Brianna Robinson.
THE CURSE OF THE BOYFRIEND SWEATER: Essays on Crafting by Alanna Okun (Memoir)
Audiobook available, narrated by Alanna Okun
Alanna Okun knows that crafting keeps her anxiety at bay. She knows that no one will ever be as good a knitting teacher as her beloved grandmother. And she knows that even when we can’t control anything else, we can at least control the sticks, string and fabric right in front of us. In this memoir, Okun lays herself bare and takes readers into the parts of themselves they often keep hidden. Yet at the same time she finds humor in the daily indignities all crafters must face. Okun has written a book that will speak to anyone who has said to themselves, or to everyone within earshot, “I made that.” Reviewed by Flor H., Teen Board Member.
THE FINAL SIX by Alexandra Monir (Science Fiction)
Audiobook available, narrated by Alexandra Monir and James Fouhey
When Leo and Naomi are drafted, along with 22 of the world’s brightest teenagers, into the International Space Training Camp, their lives are forever changed. Overnight, they become global celebrities in contention for one of the six slots to travel to Europa --- Jupiter’s moon --- and establish a new colony, leaving their planet forever. In this cutthroat atmosphere, surrounded by strangers from around the world, Naomi finds an unexpected friend in Leo. As the training tests their limits, Naomi and Leo’s relationship deepens with each life-altering experience they encounter. Reviewed by Caitlyn K., Teen Board Member.
I HAVE LOST MY WAY by Gayle Forman (Contemporary Romance/LGBTQIA)
Audiobook available, narrated by Nicole Lewis, Michael Crouch and Sunil Malhotra
Around the time that Freya loses her voice while recording her debut album, Harun is making plans to run away from everyone he has ever loved and Nathaniel is arriving in New York City with a backpack, a desperate plan and nothing left to lose. When a fateful accident draws these three strangers together, their secrets start to unravel as they begin to understand that the way out of their own loss might just lie in helping the others out of theirs. Reviewed by Erin Siu.
A PSALM FOR LOST GIRLS by Katie Bayerl (Thriller)
Audiobook available, narrated by Saskia Maarleveld, Kyla Garcia and Julia Whelan
Tess da Costa is a saint --- a hand-to-god, miracle-producing saint. At least that’s what the people in her hometown believe. When Tess suddenly and tragically passes away, her city begins petitioning the Pope to make Tess’s sainthood official. Tess’s mother is ecstatic over the fervor, while her sister Callie, the one who knew Tess best, is disgusted --- overcome with the feeling that her sister is being stolen from her all over again. With the help of Tess’s boyfriend, Callie’s determined to prove that Tess was far more than a saint; she was her sister, her best friend and a girl in love with a boy. Reviewed by Jena Brown.
TYLER JOHNSON WAS HERE by Jay Coles (Contemporary Fiction)
Audiobook available, narrated by JaQwan J. Kelly
When Marvin Johnson's twin, Tyler, goes to a party, Marvin decides to tag along to keep an eye on his brother. But what starts as harmless fun turns into a shooting, followed by a police raid. The next day, Tyler has gone missing, and it's up to Marvin to find him. But when Tyler is found dead, a video leaked online tells an even more chilling story: Tyler has been shot and killed by a police officer. Terrified as his mother unravels and mourning a brother who is now a hashtag, Marvin must learn what justice and freedom really mean. Reviewed by Marco M., Teen Board Member.
VOICES FROM THE SECOND WORLD WAR: Stories of War as Told to Children of Today by Candlewick Press (History)
The Second World War was the most devastating war in history. Up to 80 million people died, and the map of the world was redrawn. More than 70 years after peace was declared, children interviewed family and community members to learn about the war from people who were there, to record their memories before they were lost forever. Now, in a unique collection, RAF pilots, evacuees, resistance fighters, Land Girls, U.S. Navy sailors and survivors of the Holocaust and the Hiroshima bombing all tell their stories, passing on the lessons learned to a new generation. Featuring many vintage photographs, this moving volume also offers an index of contributors and a glossary. Reviewed by Christine M. Irvin.
WHAT THE NIGHT SINGS by Vesper Stamper (Historical Fiction)
Audiobook available, narrated by Deborah Grausman
After losing her family and everything she knew in the Nazi concentration camps, Gerta is finally liberated, only to find herself completely alone. Without her Papa, her music, or even her true identity, she must move past the task of surviving and onto living her life. In the displaced persons camp where she is staying, Gerta meets Lev, a fellow teen survivor who she just might be falling for, despite her feelings for someone else. With a newfound Jewish identity she never knew she had, and a return to the life of music she thought she lost forever, Gerta must choose how to build a new future. Reviewed by Ashley D., Teen Board Member.
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