Prepared by
Revised
April 27, 2023
Fiction
Iveliz Explains It All
2022
Twelve-year-old Iveliz is trying to manage her mental health and advocate for the help and understanding she deserves, but in the meantime, her new friend calls her crazy and her abuela dismisses the therapy and medicine Iveliz needs to feel like herself.
Lexile level
940
Morgan H loved this! Find out why »
They Call Her Fregona
2022
Balancing band practice during the summer with his new girlfriend, soon-to-be eighth grader Güero must reconsider what it means to show up for someone you love when tragedy strikes.
Adrift
2022
The resilience of two cousins is tested when one of them is lost at sea and washes up on a deserted island while the other remains at home, holding on to the belief that her beloved cousin is still alive.
Lexile level
690
The Secret Letters
2022
Colin and Nevaeh both find mysterious letters dating back to the 1970s, one of which reads like a confession to a crime and threatens their new friendship by pitting their families against each other.
Those Kids from Fawn Creek
2022
When Orchid Mason moves to their small factory town where everyone knows everything about everyone, the students of Fawn Creek Middle School don't know what to think of this newcomer who could change everything.
Heather W loved this! Find out why »
In the Beautiful Country
2022
Arriving in America, the so-called beautiful country, Anna, a young Taiwanese girl, finds it anything but beautiful as she and her family struggle to make a place for themselves and learn the true meaning of home.
Hands
2023
Taking boxing lessons to handle his abusive stepdad, talented artist Trev, who needs his hands to help him build a better future, must decide whether to use them to build or to knock down.
Lexile level
430
Freewater
2022
After escaping Southerland Plantation with his little sister, 12-year-old Homer becomes part of a secret community called Freewater, where he finally finds a place to call home and the courage to go back and free his mother from enslavement.
The Unforgettable Logan Foster
2022
Logan, an undersized, 12-year-old orphan with a photographic memory and no filter, discovers his foster parents are superheroes in grave danger and only Logan’s highly logical mind can save them.
The Clackity
2022
To rescue her aunt from the ghost of a serial killer, 12-year-old Evie Von Rathe embarks on a journey into a strange world filled with hungry witches, ghosts and a story thief, all while trying to fulfill her deal with the Clackity.
Becca B loved this! Find out why »
Skandar and the Unicorn Thief
2022
When a mysterious figure tells him he must save an island where bloodthirsty unicorns roam free, Skandar Smith answers the call and, along with newfound friends and a community of riders, engages in an epic battle that will tear his world apart.
Lexile level
830
Graphic novels
Squished
2023
Tired of feeling squished by her six siblings, 11-year-old aspiring artist Avery Lee hatches a plan to finally get her own room until everything around her gets complicated, especially when she finds out her family might move across the country.
Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky: The Graphic Novel
2022
Seventh grader Tristan Strong accidentally opens a portal to another world while staying on his grandparents' farm and must convince the god Anansi, the Weaver, to seal the hole in the sky, which comes at a high price.
Frizzy
2022
Tired of going to the salon to have her curls straightened every weekend, Marlene slowly learns to embrace her natural curly hair with the help of her best friend and favorite aunt.
Lexile level
430
Dierric R loved this! Find out why »
Nonfiction
A Different Kind of Normal
2022
J 618.9289 BAL
When Abigail was growing up, she was missing Very Important Information about herself. The information? That she is autistic! In fact, Abigail didn't know she was autistic until she was (kind of) an adult. This is her story about what it was like growing up autistic in a confusing "normal" world.
Lexile level
980
American Murderer
2022
T 616.9654 JAR
What made workers in the American South so tired and feeble during the 19th and early 20th centuries? This exciting medical mystery uncovers the secrets of the parasite hookworm, commonly known as the American Murderer.
Lexile level
1080
Braiding Sweetgrass for Young Adults
2022
T 305.897 KIM
Kimmerer's book has been adapted by Gray Smith, bringing Indigenous wisdom, scientific knowledge and the lessons of plant life to a new generation.
Lexile level
980
Victory. Stand! Raising My Fist for Justice
2022
T 796.42 SMI
During a medal ceremony at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics, two of the winners, Tommie Smith and John Carlos, stood on the podium and raised their fists to protest racial injustice inflicted upon African Americans.
Susan A loved this! Find out why »
Chaz C
I am a youth services librarian and it is a hazardous profession. Too many books, too little time! Don't make me, but if I HAD to choose my favorite book recipe, it would be a romance novel with a healthy dash of horror, topped with the latest picture book. Add some outside time, epic soundtracks and I'm feeling groovy.
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