THE MANY ASSASSINATIONS OF SAMIR, THE SELLER OF DREAMS by Daniel Nayeri.  Reminiscent of classic Persian storytelling, a colorful tale of an orphan who becomes part of a caravan traveling The Silk Road under the leadership of Samir, a wily merchant with a heart of gold, a silver tongue...and many enemies.  A great family read-aloud for older children.   Gr 5+. 

YOU ARE HERE: CONNECTING FLIGHTS edited by Ellen Oh.  Shorts stories about interconnecting lives of stranded travelers at O’Hare Airport.  Written by an all-star list of Asian kid-lit authors, a common thread of encountering racism and learning to stand up for yourself makes this an empowering read.  Gr 3-7. 

FINALLY SEEN by Kelly Yang.  The author of Front Desk gives us yet another version of the Chinese immigrant experience in America, set in contemporary Los Angeles.  After 5 years of separation, Lina Gao is coming to the US to reunite with her parents and little sister.  However, it soon becomes apparent that the “American Dream” reported by her parents in letters has taken a downward turn.  Yang again incorporates elements and episodes of her own life into a funny, sad, and very personal story.  Gr 3-6. 

LEEVA  AT LAST by Sara Pennypacker.  Leeva’s parents see her as nothing more than a drudge to work for them while they pursue the only thing each one cares about: Fame and Money.  She secretly ventures beyond her prison/home determined to connect with fellow human beings and finds so much more than she hoped.  The story avoids becoming too dark by showing the parents as over the top in fiendishness and stupidity, caricatured perfectly in Matthew Cordell’s illustrations.  Another one for fans of Roald Dahl, Lemony Snicket, and the Willoughbys.  Gr 3-6. 

THE WORLDS WE LEAVE BEHIND by A.F. Harold/Levi Pinfold.  An eerie, disquieting tale of what ensues when the desire for retribution causes someone to disappear.  Elements of Grimm fairy tales (the evil witch who offers unwary souls a bad bargain) combine with a stark narrative voice and frightening monochromatic drawings.  Time travel, alternate worlds: equal parts sci fi and horror.  Gr 5+. 

THE GRACE OF WILD THINGS by Heather Fawcett.  Anne of Green Gables meets the Brothers Grimm.  Grace, an orphan, has discovered she is a witch and runs away from the orphanage TO the witch’s cottage.  Indomitable, dramatic and optimistic, she bargains with the witch to learn magic. Many nods to the Anne classic for knowledgeable fans.  Gr 3-7. 

LASAGNA MEANS I LOVE YOU by Kate O’Shaughnessy.  Many cultures claim that food = love.  Feed someone to show your love.  Mo learns the value of family, shared recipes, and the stories around them when she starts a “family” cookbook while being in the foster care system.  Short chapters written as letters to her deceased grandmother, along with lots of recipes!  Gr 4-7. 

BEING BAXTERS by Karen Kingsbury.  Best-selling inspirational fiction writer Kingsbury and her son combine to offer a children’s series detailing the childhood of the Baxter family, popular characters in one of Kingsbury’s series. These gentle adventures offer Christian-based lessons on basic qualities such as honesty, kindness, service, along with humor.   Gr 3-5. Or for Baxter Family fans of any age. 

BLOOD BROTHERS by Rob Sanders.  Three hemophiliac brothers contract HIV and are treated as pariahs during the mid 1980s, when the HIV/AIDS scare and lack of information were just as prevalent as the beginning of Covid in 2020.  Told as a novel in verse by one brother who loves writing poetry, the narrative expresses the anguish and confusion experienced by both victims and those around them.  Gr 5+. 

MOMO ARASHIMA STEALS THE SWORD OF THE WIND by Misa Sugiura.  Fans of mythology adventures such as the Percy Jackson series and Aru Shah will enjoy the newest half-human half-god heroine:  Momo Arashima, as she battles evil spirits of the Japanese Shinto religion. Gr 3-7. 

NO MATTER THE DISTANCE by Cindy Baldwin.  Wildlife lovers will connect with Penny, who discovers a dolphin in her creek, far from its saltwater home.  Gr 3-7. 

TOWN WITH NO MIRRORS by Christina Collins. Zailey lives in a utopian community where residents are forbidden from anything that might reveal their image, but when her grandmother discovers her secret collection of portraits, it triggers a chain of events that enables Zailey to view everything in a new way. Gr 4-7. 

THE SWIFTS: A DICTIONARY OF SCOUNDRALS by Beth Lincoln. A return to the classic whodunit style from this British author involving a country house, never-ending wordplay and twists galore. For the discerning reader! Gr 5+ 

GRAPHIC NOVELS 

OFFICER CLAWSOME: LOBSTER COP by Brian “Smitty” Smith.   Comic adventures zoom along at breakneck speed. For fans of the InvestiGators. Gr 2-5.