Description: It's been eighteen months since the Raxter School for Girls was put under quarantine. Since the Tox hit and pulled Hetty's life out from under her. It started slow. First the teachers died one by one. Then it began to infect the students, turning their bodies strange and foreign. Now, cut off from the rest of the world and left to fend for themselves on their island home, the girls don't dare wander outside the school's fence, where the Tox has made the woods wild and dangerous. They wait for the cure they were promised as the Tox seeps into everything.
  But when Byatt goes missing, Hetty will do anything to find her, even if it means breaking quarantine and braving the horrors that lie beyond the fence. And when she does, Hetty learns that there's more to their story, to their life at Raxter, than she could have ever thought true.

Review: Wilder Girls is part survival thriller, part dystopian, and part horror. It manages to do justice to all of these genres, but it still felt unfinished to me. The book is often marketed as a feminist retelling of William Golding's classic Lord of the Flies and while it does share similar themes to that dystopian classic, Wilder Girls holds its own.
  It's been a year and a half since the Raxter School for Girls was ravaged by the Tox, a mysterious sickness that crept in slowly through the woods, distorting the properties and bodies of anything in its path. The teachers' and students' bodies have been changed in vicious ways, ranging from new body parts to skin changing into scales for those who survive and those who don't suffer an excruciating death as they wilt and their bodies blackened as the Tox eats away at them. Left with the promise of a cure, the quarantined girls watch out for one another. That's precisely what Hetty is doing when her friend Byatt disappears, and together with her friend Reese, she breaks quarantine to penetrate the wild beyond the fence to find her.
   Wilder Girls has a very creepy atmospheric quality to the story that hovers around our main characters rather than the traditional jump scares. For much of the story, the reader and the girls do not know much of what is happening but we are enraptured by this twisted tale by the little hints of a backstory dropped throughout the book and effective foreshadowing done by the author. The elements of body horror is quite striking throughout the novel with the graphic mentions of a stitched-up eye with something lurking underneath, a second protruding spine, animals growing three times their size. There is a connection between the Tox and the female physical development which I found to be fascinating and wanted to learn more about.
  The story is divided into mainly two narratives of Hetty and Byatt and it is Hetty's fierce loyalty which drives the story. Unlike Lord of the Flies, in which their isolation catalyzes their social hierarchy and eventually makes the characters turn on one another, Wilder Girls has the complete opposite result. The girls' solidarity and their relationships help foster their survival. While there are clear differences as to who holds power, the story does not focus on the girls tearing each other down, which I really appreciated. I also appreciated that our main characters all fall in the spectrum of LGBTQ+ and their sexual identities are not a big deal. There is a hint of romance or perhaps two are that are brewing in the background, but it is not the main part of the story. Overall I really loved the themes of the story and the representation of the characters, but I wished I had gotten a few solid details of the Tox and I did not care for the open ending. I would recommend this book to readers who are looking for a unique horror book that moves beyond the scares. I am looking forward to see what the author does next.


Rating: 3.5 stars

Words of Caution: There is some strong language, scenes of self harm, gory violence, and disturbing images. Recommended for Grades 9 and up.

If you like this book try: The Fever by Megan Abbott, Annihilation by Jeff Vandermeer, Quaratine series by Lex Thomas

Description: See the Bell family in a whole new light through Dawud Anyabwile's illustrations as the brothers' winning season unfolds, and the world as they know it begins to change.

Review: I had no idea a graphic novel adaptation of Kwame Alexander’s 2015 Newbery Medal winner was in the works, but I was delighted to revisit the story of the Bell family and their personal connection to basketball in a new format. The graphic novel is more like a hybrid of graphic illustrations and text rather than the traditional format of graphic novels that utilizes image panels, text bubbles, and gutters as part of the storytelling.
  The story revolves around the Bell family as the father Chuck “Da Man” Bell teaches his twin sons, Josh and Jordan, how to follow in his star-studded footsteps. Josh “Filthy McNasty” Bell is our main narrator as we get an in-depth look at his slice of life both on and off the court as he navigates adolescence, balancing brotherhood and becoming his own person.
  The graphic novel keeps Alexander's wide variety of poetic forms. The rhythmic verses is a nice throwback to the hip-hop’s origins. The illustrations done by Anyabwile are stunning and provide a wide range of emotional expressiveness to the characters and defy the one-story notions of black boys. There is a nice balance of humor and pop-cultural references to make the story feel up to date without trying too hard. I loved the grey, black, and orange color palette used throughout the graphic novel, which reinforced the basketball metaphor running throughout the graphic novel.
 While the story and the illustrations shine, I do not think this graphic novel is needed unless the print novel is not available in your classroom or libraries. I would suggest getting this source as a supplemental and for those who are die hard Crossover fans.

Rating: 4 stars

Words of Caution: None. Recommended for Grades 4 and up.

If you like this book try: Rebound by Kwame Alexander

Description: Shane has been doing college all wrong. Pre-med, stellar grades, and happy parents...sounds ideal -- but Shane's made zero friends, goes home every weekend, and romance...what's that? Her life has been dorm, dining hall, class, repeat. Time's a ticking, and she needs a change -- there's nothing like moving to a new country to really mix things up. Shane signs up for a semester abroad in London. She's going to right all her college mistakes: make friends, pursue boys, and find adventure! Easier said than done. She is soon faced with the complicated realities of living outside her bubble, and when self-doubt sneaks in, her new life starts to fall apart. Shane comes to find that, with the right amount of courage and determination, one can conquer anything. Throw in some fate and a touch of magic - the possibilities are endless.

Review: I do not pick up books written by Youtubers because they do not interest me. I did pick up Again, but Better because I am a fan of Christine Riccio's booktube channel. I love her energy, enthusiasm, and candidness in expressing her joy and frustration with books and life.
  Shane Primaveri is a shy, introverted, and socially awkward college student who feels she has done college wrong. When a chance to study abroad catches her eye, she immediately signs up and vows to become more confident, outgoing, and possibly get a chance at love. The roommate-assigning fates gift Shane with instant friends, she meets a flirtatious boy named Pilot, and she excels in her classes. Every thing is going swimmingly well until Shane admits she’s lying to her parents about continuing her pre-med track when she’s really studying writing. At a surprise visit and a horrendous dinner, Shane's scary, controlling parents discover her deception, and Shane returns to America dejected. Fast forward six years later, Shane has walked the path of her parents yet she still feels hollow and regretful. She looks up Pilot and they accidentally stumble back in time at the exact moment they both study abroad for a second chance.
   Again, but Better is a charming story that made me smile, laugh, and cringe at the awkward moments. Shane is utterly relatable. She keeps to herself, is haunted by self doubt, awkward, and distant until she warms up. I love that she lectures herself in interior monologues to be more confident and to take chances. Her personality is very much like Christine's Youtube persona. Pilot is an endearing love interest though I did find him to be frustrating at times from withholding information and towing the lines of flirtation and disinterest. Though the characters are in their twenties, teens can easily see themselves in the characters. I liked watching Shane's character arc go from socially awkward "new adult" to a confident woman who knows exactly want she wants. I also enjoyed the scenic views of London, Rome, and Scotland that are in the book and appreciated the diversity nod in the secondary characters.
  I did have a few quibbles about the book. I found the extensive use of "um" and "likes" to be annoying and distracting in the dialogues. I also wanted to know a bit more of future Shane before we are bumped back in time and more about the secondary characters, especially about their future selves.  

 Rating: 3 stars

Words of Caution: There is some strong language and a fade to black sex scene. Recommended for Grades 9 and up.

If you like this book try: Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

Description: It begins with a mystery. Sylvie, the beautiful, brilliant, successful older daughter of the Lee family, flies to the Netherlands for one final visit with her dying grandmother--and then vanishes.
Amy, the sheltered baby of the Lee family, is too young to remember a time when her parents were newly immigrated and too poor to keep Sylvie. Seven years older, Sylvie was raised by a distant relative in a faraway, foreign place, and didn't rejoin her family in America until age nine. Timid and shy, Amy has always looked up to her sister, the fierce and fearless protector who showered her with unconditional love.
But what happened to Sylvie? Amy and her parents are distraught and desperate for answers. Sylvie has always looked out for them. Now, it's Amy's turn to help. Terrified yet determined, Amy retraces her sister's movements, flying to the last place Sylvie was seen. But instead of simple answers, she discovers something much more valuable: the truth. Sylvie, the golden girl, kept painful secrets . . . secrets that will reveal more about Amy's complicated family--and herself--than she ever could have imagined.

Review: Amy Lee is living in her parents’ cramped Queens apartment when she gets a frantic call from Lukas Tan, the Dutch second cousin she’s never met. Her successful older sister, Sylvie, who had flown to the Netherlands to see their ailing grandmother, is missing. Amy, the sheltered and favored sister, must put aside her own short comings as she looks into Sylvie’s disappearance. As Amy digs deeper she uncovers Sylvie's secrets such as separation from her husband and her unemployment at a prestigious law firm. And when Amy finally musters up the courage to travel to the Netherlands for the first time, why do her relatives—the Tan family, including Lukas and his parents, Helena and Willem—act so strangely whenever Sylvie is brought up?
  Amy’s search is interlaced with chapters from Sylvie’s point of view from a month earlier as she returns to the Netherlands, where she had been sent as a baby by parents who couldn't afford to keep her, to be raised by the Tans. There are also chapters written from Amy's and Sylvie's Mother's point of view which adds a layer of suspense to the story. As Amy navigates fraught police visits and her own rising fears, she gradually uncovers the family’s deepest secrets, some of them decades old.
  Unfortunately, I did not find this story very compelling as a whole. I can see what the author was trying to do in pitting two sisters who grew up in two different environments to show how race, family, and culture played in their lives. I, however, skimmed most of Amy's point of view because she was not an interesting character to me. The book really shines with Sylvie's chapters are we got to see how immigrants, particularly the Chinese, were treated in Netherlands, which unfortunately is no different than their treatment in the U.S. Sylvie's character is much more three dimensional and I would have loved this book more if it was solely written from her point of view. The Ma, Amy's and Sylvie's mother, chapters did not add much besides more soap opera melodrama. The mystery was a bit underwhelming since I figured it out before Amy. I had hoped for more introspection and less melodrama in this story.

Rating: 3 stars

Words of Caution: There is some language and allusions to statutory rape and domestic violence. Recommended for older teens and adults.

If you like this book try: Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng

Description: This nonfiction picture book explores art, desperation, and one man's incredible idea for saving ships from German torpedoes in World War I. Dazzle camouflage transformed ordinary British and American ships into eye-popping masterpieces.

Review: I know very little about World War I, but I learned a lot from Dazzle Ships: World War I and the Art of Confusion. This short picture book is packed with information and uses art, history, and the military in a very clever way. During World War I, the British were in danger of starving because so many German U-boats were sinking American and British supply ships. Norman Wilkinson, a Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve lieutenant-commander, had the idea to paint boats in such a manner as to confuse the German submarine captains, and the concept of "dazzle ships" was born.
 In accessible text and Ngai's stunning and vibrant illustrations, Barton chronicles the creation and implementation of the strategy, including the team of women artists who designed the patterns and the laborers who painted the ships. Readers learn that the wild, striped designs fooled the U-boat captains into thinking the Allies' ships were headed in opposite directions, thus leading to confusion and failed offenses for the Germans. I would have loved to have seen some texts from the German's perspective to see how successful this technique turned out to be and their thoughts on it. There is a lot of back matter at the end of the book that explains the detail process of the dazzling process.

Curriculum Connection: Art, Social Studies

Rating: 4 stars

Words of Caution: None. Recommended for Grades 3 and up.

If you like this book try: The Secret Project by Jonah Winter



Description: Meet Beauty, the bald eagle that made world news when she was injured, rescued and received a 3D-printed prosthetic beak. Follow Beauty's brave and inspiring story as she grows up in the wild, is rescued after being illegally shot, and receives a new beak specially engineered by a human team including a raptor biologist, engineer and dentist. Learn more about how bald eagles as a species came back from near extinction, and about nationwide efforts to conserve this American symbol.

Review: Beauty, a bald eagle, was shot in the face by a poacher and lost most of her upper beak. She was unable to eat, drink, or preen (keeping her feathers in top shape for protection and warmth), and would have died had she not been rescued. Since her beak did not regenerate, Beauty eventually made her way to a raptor center in Idaho, where she received and still receives continuous care. Coauthor Veltkamp, a raptor biologist (someone who studies birds of prey) and rehabilitator, worked with engineers, a dentist, and other animal experts to create an artificial beak by using a 3-D printer for Beauty. After arduous testing, an appropriate beak was created and attached. Beauty could now drink and eat on her own.
 I learned a lot of fun facts about bald eagles while reading this book. I had no idea that the bald eagle is the only bird of prey who has the ability to see in color, which is how they are able to track down their food. I also learned that the bald eagle has seven extra bones in their neck which allows them to rotate their necks all the way around. How cool is that?! Beauty and the Beak has outstanding full-page photographs of bald eagles and Beauty that accompany this uplifting account. It is amazing how far we have come with technology and how we reversed the near extinction of bald eagles in the U.S. The book's back matter includes resources for further study and additional information on the life cycle of eagles, and their habitats. 

Curriculum Connection: STEM
 
Rating:

Words of Caution: None. Recommended for Grades 3 and up.


If you like this book try: Winter's Tale: How One Little Dolphin Learned to Swim Again by Juliana Hatkoff