Taryn recommends "Bitsy & Boozle Tell a Story!"

 

Bitsy is a narrator-in-training who is finally ready to tell her story since she has found the perfect protagonist, the grumpy wizard Boozle. Bitsy and Boozle take the adventure of a lifetime as they journey up Story Mountain exploring all the parts of story structure along the way and discovering the magic of storytelling.

Bitsy & Boozle Tell a Story is an amazing way to help children learn about all of the different components of storytelling in an unique format, a graphic novel. In this book you learn the different points-of-view a story can have with a character that tells a story in each way; first person Prima, second person Midi, and finally third person Bitsy. Although this is a graphic novel that is teaching the reader how to tell a story, the authors do an amazing job of balancing the educational material with a fun story. Bitsy and Boozle have a fun relationship with Boozle just trying to find his happy ending, but Bitsy trying to get him to play the hero of the story. I absolutely love this book and think it’s an amazing way for a caregiver or teacher to help teach children about the parts of storytelling and how they can tell a story. At the end of the book here is a glossary of the different terms used and even a glossary to help with Boozle’s way of talking. The illustrations are beautifully done and I found myself laughing out loud. I would recommend this to caregivers and teachers trying to help children learn about storytelling, but also anyone who needs a refresher on the different parts of a story.

Meghan recommends "The Husbands"

Twenty-something Londoner Lauren returns home late, after her best friend's "hen do" to find her husband, who gives her water and painkillers and helps her get comfy. He's a very nice husband, but she's pretty sure she didn't have a husband when she left earlier that evening. There are photos of the husband on her phone. Her friends know the husband. When the husband goes into the attic to retrieve a blanket, he doesn't come back - a NEW husband comes down the ladder. That one goes up, again, a new husband comes down. It's all quite a lot to take in. 

Thus begins "The Husbands" by Holly Gramazio, a debut novel that was also a Read with Jenna /Today Show pick. It's an easy read, but clever. Readers discover along with Lauren that it’s not just the husbands that change, Lauren’s life changes too – when each husband comes down from the attic, he brings the life they share; the life in which Lauren chose this husband. I thought the book was fun, but also posed some interesting questions about how to create a life you love; with someone you love. Recommended for adults.

 

 

Kara recommends "We Are Definitely Human"

This is a funny and quirky story about an alien invasion that explores being human, while showing kindness and acceptance to all.  One of my favorite parts mentions how the newcomers "play sportsball" 😉

This book is best for children ages 3-5.

Rion recommends "The No-Girlfriend Rule"

Hollis is entering her senior year of high school, and after 6 years of being left out of her boyfriend’s Secrets and Sorcery role-playing game nights due to their “No-Girlfriend Rule”, she decides to join her own Secrets and Sorcery group to prove she’s worth having at her boyfriend’s game table. Her new group, which is an all-girl group, quickly becomes a refuge for Hollis to explore what makes her feel powerful and seen for who she is. As Hollis grows closer with the girls in the group, she’s forced to reckon with feelings for one of them while coming to terms with what has been holding her back from feeling confident in herself. 

This book was a pleasant coming-of-age read that accurately depicted what it’s like to live with severe anxiety. As Hollis establishes her new friend group, we get to see what it means for friends to truly look out for one another and accept each other for exactly who they are. Overall, this was a feel-good, light-hearted queer romance that I would recommend to any teen who enjoys nerding out over board games.

Age group: Teen

Ann recommends "Mother-Daughter Murder Night" by Nina Simon

Mother-Daughter Murder Night by Nina Simon  

Lana is a formidable woman who has built a highly successful business in the Real Estate Market of Southern California. Her whole life changes when she is diagnosed with cancer and has to move in with her daughter, Beth, and granddaughter, Jack, (short for Jacqueline).

After a falling out with her mother for getting pregnant at the age of 17.  Beth left home to forge her own way. She is now a nurse and has built a meager, but comfortable life for her and her daughter. Beth and her mother have been estranged for the past 15 years, but she takes her mother in when she finds out about her cancer diagnosis.

Jack is a mature and responsible 15 year old who works as a guide giving kayak tours through the local marshlands. Jack discovers a  dead body while giving one of her tours. The local police frighten Jack with accusations that she may have something to do with the person’s death. This angers Lana and she becomes determined to solve the murder and remove any suspicions from her granddaughter.

The three women get drawn into the mystery and start working together to solve it. This is a thoroughly enjoyable mystery enhanced by the complicated relationship dynamics between these 3 generations of strong women. 

Recommended for adult readers who enjoy a good mystery.

 

Nicole recommends "The Last Murder at the End of the World"

The whole world is gone. A fog spread across the entire planet, destroying all human life, stopping only at the edge of the very last island. This island is occupied by refugees, villagers, and scientists. It was the scientists who figured out how to hold back the fog, on one condition – the machine keeping humanity safe would switch off should one of the scientists be murdered. When the head scientist is killed, it’s up to one villager, Emory, to figure out what happened and bring the murderer to justice before the fog reaches the island. The only problem is, nobody could have wanted Niema dead. That is, unless they had discovered one of the many, many secrets Niema was keeping.

This book is fantastic! It starts off in an idyllic post-apocalyptic village, but piece by piece we begin to see that every part of the island is a piece of a machine, and what we are reading is actually advanced science fiction. Emory and the rest of the villagers are so likeable and kind that we desperately want them to be saved from the fog, even as we start to think that maybe humanity hasn’t done much to deserve to be saved. I had such a good time reading The Last Murder at the End of the World, and I recommend it to all of our adult readers.

Phil recommends "Lunar New Year Love Story"

 

This beautifully illustrated graphic novel by Gene Luen Yang and LeUyen Pham is a gentle rom-com about “fate, family, and falling in love.” Val is convinced that her family is cursed when it comes to love.  Generations before her have had bad luck with relationships so why should she even bother? When Val meets two cute lion dancers she decides to give love (and lion dancing) a try, not knowing whether she can succeed where her ancestors have failed. Will she overcome the curse? 

My wife and I both enjoyed this graphic novel. We also learned a few things about Chinese and Vietnamese lion dancing as it features heavily in the story. This book is aimed at a young adult audience and doesn’t, to my recollection, have any strong language or mature situations. There is some mildly spooky stuff.