LB School & Library Podcast

⭑ "Positive, powerful, and affirming." —Kirkus

⭑ "Truly delightful." —Booklist

From a New York Times bestselling author and Caldecott-honor winning artist comes an exuberant illustrated story about playing dress up, having fun, and feeling free.

The boy loves to be naked. He romps around his house naked and wild and free. Until he romps into his parents' closet and is inspired to get dressed. First he tries on his dad's clothes, but they don't fit well. Then he tries on his mom's clothes, and wow! The boy looks great. He looks through his mom's jewelry and makeup and tries that on, too. When he's discovered by his mother and father, the whole family (including the dog!) get in on the fun, and they all get dressed together.

This charming and humorous story was inspired by bestselling and award-winning author Peter Brown's own childhood, and highlights nontraditional gender roles and self-expression.

Learn more: https://bit.ly/3sXTE6y

"Compelling... This story will find an audience in teens with a sense of wanderlust and an itch for adventure." —SLJ

With natural disasters and nuclear war threatening their small town, two twin brothers find themselves enraptured by mysterious music that could change the course of their lives.

Everyone in Clade City knows their days are numbered. The Great Cascadia Earthquake will destroy their hometown and reshape the entire West Coast—if they survive long enough to see it. Nuclear war is increasingly likely. Wildfires. Or another pandemic. To Griff, the daily forecast feels partly cloudy with a chance of apocalyptic horsemen.

Griff’s brother, Leo, and the Lost Coast Preppers claim to be ready. They’ve got a radio station. Luminous underwater monitors. A sweet bunker, and an unsettling plan for “disaster-ready rodents.” But Griff’s more concerned about what he can do before the end times. He’d like to play in a band, for one. Hopefully with Charity Simms. Her singing could make the whole world stop.

When Griff, Leo, and Charity stumble upon a mysterious late-night broadcast, one song changes everything. It’s the best band they’ve ever heard—on a radio signal even the Preppers can’t trace. They vow to find the music, but aren’t prepared for where their search will take them. Or for what they’ll risk, when survival means finding the one thing you cannot live without.

Learn more: https://bit.ly/2Rk6A91

⭑ "Debut author Aleman was born in Mexico and his writing is stellar, clear and emotional, realistic and suspenseful. The story is complex and heart-wrenching, yet full of hope and familial love, making this an excellent choice even for younger YA readers." —Booklist

This timely, moving debut novel follows a teen's efforts to keep his family together as his parents face deportation.

Mateo Garcia and his younger sister, Sophie, have been taught to fear one word for as long as they can remember: deportation. Over the past few years, however, the fear that their undocumented immigrant parents could be sent back to Mexico has started to fade. Ma and Pa have been in the United States for so long, they have American-born children, and they're hard workers and good neighbors. When Mateo returns from school one day to find that his parents have been taken by ICE, he realizes that his family's worst nightmare has become a reality. With his parents' fate and his own future hanging in the balance, Mateo must figure out who he is and what he is capable of, even as he's forced to question what it means to be an American.

Daniel Aleman's Indivisible is a remarkable story—both powerful in its explorations of immigration in America and deeply intimate in its portrait of a teen boy driven by his fierce, protective love for his parents and his sister.

Learn more: https://bit.ly/3uyfJJh

A darkly rich tapestry of twisted magic, deadly consequences, and riveting stakes. —Dhonielle Clayton, New York Times bestselling author of the Belles series

Reeling from betrayal at the hands of the Whispers, Renata Convida is a girl on the run. With few options and fewer allies, she's reluctantly joined forces with none other than Prince Castian, her most infuriating and intriguing enemy. They're united by lofty goals: find the fabled Knife of Memory, kill the ruthless King Fernando, and bring peace to the nation. Together, Ren and Castian have a chance to save everything, if only they can set aside their complex and intense feelings for each other.

With the king's forces on their heels at every turn, their quest across Puerto Leones and beyond leaves little room for mistakes. But the greatest danger is within Ren. The Gray, her fortress of stolen memories, has begun to crumble, threatening her grip on reality. She'll have to control her magics—and her mind—to unlock her power and protect the Moria people once and for all.

For years, she was wielded as weapon. Now it's her time to fight back.

⭑ "Fans of Elizabeth Acevedo’s With the Fire on High (2019) will cherish Xander and Pen’s love story and Pen’s passion for food. This stellar debut offers a cathartic take on a relationship between a father and daughter. Authentic flavor inside and out." —Kirkus, starred review

I'm Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter meets Emergency Contact in this stunning story of first love, familial expectations, the power of food, and finding where you belong.

This stunning and poignant novel from debut author Laekan Zea Kemp explores identity, found families and the power of food, all nestled within a courageous and intensely loyal Chicanx community.

Learn more: https://bit.ly/2YJY0Rk

Kathleen Lane discusses her new book for middle graders, PITY PARTY.

⭑ " All the varied moods and textures of these pieces come together into an original, convincing, spot-on, and weirdly moving collage portrait of middle-school-age insecurities, anxieties, awkwardness, and interpersonal dynamics." —The Horn Book

⭑ "Lane has written a heartfelt and relatable book filled with moments of darkness and humor, plus a little magic. ...Perfect for anyone who has ever felt out of place in a social situation. Hand to fans of Jason Reynolds’s Look Both Ways. A first purchase for all ­libraries serving middle schoolers." —School Library Journal

A. J. Sass discusses his debut middle grade novel, ANA ON THE EDGE.

★ "Sass masterfully balances Ana's passion for competitive figure skating with her journey to coming out. ...Sensitive and realistic."—Booklist

For fans of George and Ivy Aberdeen’s Letter to the World, a heartfelt coming of age story about a nonbinary character navigating a binary world.

Twelve-year-old Ana-Marie Jin, the reigning US Juvenile figure skating champion, is not a frilly dress kind of kid. So, when Ana learns that next season’s program will be princess themed, doubt forms fast. Still, Ana tries to focus on training and putting together a stellar routine worthy of national success.

Once Ana meets Hayden, a transgender boy new to the rink, thoughts about the princess program and gender identity begin to take center stage. And when Hayden mistakes Ana for a boy, Ana doesn’t correct him and finds comfort in this boyish identity when he’s around. As their friendship develops, Ana realizes that it’s tricky juggling two different identities on one slippery sheet of ice. And with a major competition approaching, Ana must decide whether telling everyone the truth is worth risking years of hard work and sacrifice.

★ "Youngblood's debut is a celebration of intergenerational family bonds. Readers in co-parenting or blended families especially will relate to the conflicts between Georgie's loving but imperfect parents. An openhearted, endearing, and unforgettable debut about the challenges of friendship, growing up, and the boundless love of family." —Kirkus Reviews

Winter 2018 Kids' Indie Next List

SIBA 2018 Fall Okra Pick

Kirkus Reviews' Best Middle Grade Family Stories of 2018

Bookish: Brilliant Book Covers: The Best Covers of November 2018, selection

Atlanta Parent: Best Books of 2018, selection

PennGSE Newsroom: The Best Books of 2018 for Young Readers, selection

BNKids: Our Favorite Contemporary Middle Grade of 2018, selection

BookRiot: Black Kids on Book Covers: Middle Grade Edition, selection (2019)

Learn More: https://bit.ly/3bBiwt4

Christiane M. Andrews discusses the power and importance of art, building empathy, stargazy pies, and her debut middle grade novel, SPINDLEFISH AND STARS.

★ "An epic tale of abandonment, travel, secrets, family, and the meaning of art.... Exquisite in detail.... A tapestry, both humble and rich."

—Kirkus Reviews, starred review

★ "A lyrical debut exploring the nature of destiny and sacrifice.... The narrative voice...makes this enchanting story feel like an all-new myth built from classic material." —Publishers Weekly, starred review

★ "Offers a longer, measured view of the unavoidability of pain and the beauty of kindness as well as commentary on the persistence of powerful stories through art." —BCCB, starred review

Learn more here: https://bit.ly/3iRCPon

Set in a lushly drawn world inspired by Inquisition Spain, Zoraida Córdova’s hotly anticipated new fantasy is an epic tale of love and revenge perfect for fans of Sabaa Tahir and Sarah J. Maas.

As a memory thief, the rarest and most feared of the magical Moria, Renata was used by the crown to carry out the King’s Wrath, a siege that resulted in the deaths of thousands of her own people.

Now Renata is one of the Whispers, rebel spies working against the crown. The Whispers may have rescued Renata years ago, but she cannot escape their mistrust and hatred — or the overpowering memories of the hundreds of souls she drained during her time in the palace.

When Dez, the commander of her unit — and the boy she’s grown to love — is taken captive by the notorious Principe Dorado, Renata must return to Andalucia and complete Dez’s top secret mission herself. But as Renata grows more deeply embedded in the politics of the royal court, she uncovers a secret in her past that could change the fate of the entire kingdom — and end the war that has cost her everything.

Learn more about INCENDIARY here: https://bit.ly/3axt5N0