reading – By Word of Beth

Beth’s Faves — Top Middle Grade and YA Books I’ve Read This Year

2 Comments / Ad-Lib Mondays, Book Recommendations, Empowerment, Starred Books / By Beth

As promised last week, my fave Middle Grade and Young Adult reads of the past year. (There won’t be as many MG and YA as there were picture books.) As I said last week, please note that not all these books were published this year. I chose from what appealed to me, as well as what I hadn’t yet read, and so those choices spanned many years. I rely solely on the public library system as my source of books, so although many books are available to me, not all are. If your book, or your fave did not make this list, that’s not a reflection on the book or on you! It’s a reflection of the reality of what’s available in terms of both books and reading time. I’d be delighted if you would tell me about your faves in the comments! This list is not in order of preference – it’s in the order I read the books over the course of the year. I won’t share all the titles I read this year, or we’d be here all day, but I do want to give a shout-out to these wonderful books. As with last week’s post, every title is a hyperlink that will lead to more information. I certainly don’t expect you to click on every one and read what you find there (although if you want to, go for it!), but if you’re intrigued by a title and want to learn more, the information awaits you. Some of the links are to the author’s website, some are to reviews, and some are even interviews with the author. Enjoy! The MG List: THE KEY TO EXTRAORDINARY by Natalie Lloyd, 2016 CONNECT THE STARS by Marisa de los Santos and David Teague, 2015 STARS BENEATH OUR FEET by David Barclay Moore, 2017 QUICKSAND POND by Janet Taylor Lisle, 2017 FOX MAGIC by Beverley Brenna, 2017 RIDING CHANCE by Christine Kendall, 2016 THE THING ABOUT JELLYFISH by Ali Benjamin, 2015 ONE FOR THE MURPHYS by Lynda Mullaly Hunt, 2013 THE BEST MAN by Richard Peck, 2016 THE GIRL IN THE WELL IS ME by Karen Rivers, 2016 MARY ANNING’S CURIOSITY by Monica Kulling, 2017 BUBBLE by Stewart Foster, 2017 AMINA’S VOICE by Hena Kahn, 2017 HARBOR ME by Jacqueline Woodson, 2018 PROPERTY OF THE REBEL LIBRARIAN by Allison Varnes, 2018 RULES by Cynthia Lord, 2006 JOPLIN, WISHING by Diane Stanley, 2017 THIS WOULD MAKE A GOOD STORY SOMEDAY by Dana Alison Levy, 2017 NATE EXPECTATIONS by Tim Federle, 2018 The YA List: (I don’t read much YA, but what I’ve read this year has been STELLAR!) SAINTS AND MISFITS by S.K. Ali, 2017 HEARTS UNBROKEN by Cynthia Leitich Smith, 2018 Now – what should I read next? Please give me your recommendations in the comments!

Beth’s Faves — Top Picture Books I’ve Read This Year

9 Comments / Ad-Lib Mondays, Book Recommendations, Just Want to Say, Starred Books / By Beth

At the beginning of 2018, I had the intention of reading one picture book every morning throughout the year. I did well for the first half of the year, then not so well the second half – but I’ve still read a LOT more picture books than I would have otherwise, and many of them have been stellar. In this post, I want to share some of my faves, since I couldn’t possibly do full blog posts about all of them. Next week, I’ll share some of my fave MG and YA books from this year’s reading. Please note that not all these books were published this year. I chose from what appealed to me, as well as what I hadn’t yet read, and so those choices spanned many years. I rely solely on the public library system as my source of books, so although many books are available to me, not all are. If your book, or your fave did not make this list, that’s not a reflection on the book or on you! It’s a reflection of the reality of what’s available in terms of both books and reading time. I’d be delighted if you would tell me about your faves in the comments! This list is not in order of preference – it’s in the order I read the books over the course of the year. I won’t share all the titles I read this year, or we’d be here all day, but I do want to give a shout-out to these wonderful books. Note that every title is a hyperlink that will lead to more information. I certainly don’t expect you to click on every one and read what you find there (although if you want to, go for it!), but if you’re intrigued by a title and want to learn more, the information awaits you. Some of the links are to the author’s website, some are to reviews, and some are even interviews with the author. Enjoy! THE LIST: BLUE SKY, WHITE STARS by Sarvinder Naberhaus, illustrated by Kadir Nelson, 2017 STOLEN WORDS by Melanie Florence, illustrated by Gabrielle Grimard, 2017 THAT IS MY DREAM based on the poem by Langston Hughes, with illustrations (and a few edits) by Daniel Miyares, 2017 THE ROOSTER WHO WOULD NOT BE QUIET by Carmen Agra Deedy, illustrated by Eugene Yelchin, 2017 VINCENT CAN’T SLEEP: VAN GOGH PAINTS THE NIGHT SKY by Barb Rosenstock, illustrated by Mary Grandpre, 2017 MY BEAUTIFUL BIRDS by Suzanne Del Rizzo, 2017 HERE WE ARE: NOTES FOR LIVING ON PLANET EARTH by Oliver Jeffers, 2017 SCHOMBURG: THE MAN WHO BUILT A LIBRARY by Carole Boston Weatherford, illustrator Eric Velasquez, 2017 VOICE OF FREEDOM: FANNIE LOU HAMER: SPIRIT OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT by Carole Boston Weatherford, illustrated by Ekua Holmes, 2015 BEFORE SHE WAS HARRIET: THE STORY OF HARRIET TUBMAN by Lesa Cline-Ransome, illustrated by James E. Ransome, 2017 BOB, NOT BOB! by Liz Garton Scanlon and Audrey Vernick, illustrated by Matthew Cordell, 2017 THE RIGHT WORD: ROGET AND HIS THESAURUS by Jen Bryant, illustrated by Melissa Sweet, 2014 SAM & EVA by Debbie Ridpath Ohi, 2017 TWINDERELLA: A FRACTIONED FAIRY TALE by Corey Rosen Schwartz, ill. by Deborah Marcero, 2017 AFTER THE FALL: HOW HUMPTY DUMPTY GOT BACK UP AGAIN by Dan Santat, 2017 A COOKED-UP FAIRY TALE by Penny Parker Klostermann, illustrated by Ben Mantle, 2017 THE FIVE FORMS by Barbara McClintock, 2017 FREEDOM OVER ME: ELEVEN SLAVES, THEIR LIVES AND DREAMS BROUGHT TO LIFE by Ashley Bryan, 2016 XO OX: A LOVE STORY by Adam Rex and Scott Campbell, 2017 OUT by angela may george, illustrated by owen swan, 2016 BIG CAT, little cat by Elisha Cooper, 2017 IDA, ALWAYS by Caron Levis and Charles Santoso, 2016 BUNNYBEAR by Andrea J. Loney, pictures by Carmen Saldana, 2017 LOVE, MAMA by Jeanette Bradley, 2018 BUB by Elizabeth Rose Stanton, 2018 MY NAME IS BLESSING by Eric Walters, illustrated by Eugenie Fernandes, 2013 KENTA AND THE BIG WAVE by Ruth Ohi, 2013 BATS AT THE LIBRARY by Brian Lies, 2008 THE DAY THE CRAYONS QUIT by Drew Daywalt, illustrated by Oliver Jeffers, 2013 FOUND by Salina Yoon, 2014 ON DUCK POND by Jane Yolen, ill by Bob Marstall, 2017 THIS IS NOT A VALENTINE by Carter Higgins, ill by Lucy Ruth Cummins, 2017 THE SNATCHABOOK by Helen Docherty and Thomas Docherty, 2013 PRIDE: THE STORY OF HARVEY MILK AND THE RAINBOW FLAG by Rob Sanders, ill by Steven Salerno, 2018 BOTTLED SUNSHINE by Andrea Spalding, illustrated by Ruth Ohi, 2005 STEPPING STONES: A REFUGEE FAMILY’S JOURNEY by Margriet Ruurs, art by Nizar Ali Badr, 2016 GIANT SQUID by Candace Fleming, art by Eric Rohmann, 2016 MOMMY’S KHIMAR by Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow, ill by Ebony Glenn, 2018 JULIÁN IS A MERMAID by Jessica Love, 2018 EVERYTHING YOU NEED FOR A TREEHOUSE by Carter Higgins, illustrated by Emily Hughes, 2018 ALMA AND HOW SHE GOT HER NAME by Juana Martinez-Neal, 2018 ADA BYRON LOVELACE AND THE THINKING MACHINE by Laurie Wallmark, illustrated by April Chu, 2015 THE REMEMBER BALLOONS by Jessie Oliveros, illustrated by Dana Wulfekotte, 2018 FLYING DEEP: CLIMB INSIDE DEEP-SEA SUBMERSIBLE ALVIN by Michelle Cusolito, illustrated by Nicole Wong, 2018 THEY SAY BLUE by Jillian Tamaki, 2018 WE ARE GRATEFUL : OTSALIHELIGA by Traci Sorell, illustrated by Frané Lessac, 2018 KEEP YOUR EAR ON THE BALL by Genevieve Petrillo, illustrated by Lea Lyon, 2007 LITTLE WHALE by Jo Weaver, 2017 PENGUINAUT! by Marcie Colleen, illustrated by Emma Yarlett, 2018 THE STUFF OF STARS by Marion Dane Bauer, illustrated by Ekua Holmes, 2018 Now – what shall I read next? Recommendations in the comments, please!