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The Melancholy of Summer

Louisa Onomé

After her parents go on the run, a teenage girl placed in the care of a cousin she barely knows learns to trust and open up in The Melancholy of Summer, a lyrical YA contemporary coming-of-age story by Louisa Onomé

Doesn’t she see? I can do this on my own.

Summer Uzoma is fine. Sure, her parents went on the run after they were accused of committing a crime, leaving her behind. Sure, she’s been alternating stays with her friends’ families. Sure, she sometimes still secretly visits her old home. And sure, she has trouble talking about any of this. But she’s fine. She has her skateboard and her bus pass. She just has to turn eighteen in a few weeks and then she’ll really and truly be free.

So it’s extra annoying when a nosy social worker gets involved. Summer doesn’t expect any relative to be able to take her in, so she’s very surprised to hear that she’ll now be living with her cousin Olu—someone she hasn’t seen in years, who’s a famous singer in Japan last she heard, and who’s not much older than Summer.

Life with Olu is awkward for many reasons—not least of all because Olu has her own drama to deal with. But with her cousin and friends’ efforts, maybe Summer can learn to trust people enough to let them in again?

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Of Light and Shadow

Tanaz Bhathena

Of Light and Shadow is a novel about magic, mayhem, love, and betrayal—the story of a bandit and a prince who change each other in unexpected ways.

When they don’t give us our birthright, we steal it.

Roshan Chaya is out for justice. Abandoned by her parents at birth and adopted by the kingdom of Jwala's most notorious bandit before his brutal murder, she is now leader of the Shadow Clan, a gang of farmers-turned-bandits impoverished by the provincial governor’s atrocities and corruption. Roshan’s goal: to avenge her adoptive father and earn back rights and dignity for her people.

Prince Navin has always felt like an outcast. Second in line for the throne, he has never been close to his grandmother, Queen Bhairavi of Jwala. When a night out drinking with friends leads to his capture by the infamous Shadow Clan, Navin schemes to befriend Roshan and use her as a means to escape. His ploy, however, brings Navin closer to the corruption and poverty at the heart of Roshan’s province, raising questions about its governor and Navin’s own family.

To further complicate things, the closer Roshan and Navin get, the harder it becomes to fight their growing attraction. But how can they trust each other when the world as they know it starts to fall apart?

Set in a magical world inspired by the badlands of 17th century India, this standalone epic fantasy novel by Tanaz Bhathena is packed with political tensions, dangerous schemes, and swoon-worthy romance that asks the age old question: can love conquer all?

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Forever Is Now

Mariama J. Lockington

A poignant and lyrical young adult novel-in-verse about a Black teen coming of age in an anxiety-inducing world, from the author of For Black Girls Like Me and In the Key of Us.

I'm safe here.

That's how Sadie feels, on a perfect summer day, wrapped in her girlfriend's arms. School is out, and even though she’s been struggling to manage her chronic anxiety, Sadie is hopeful better times are ahead. Or at least, she thought she was safe. When her girlfriend reveals some unexpected news and the two witness a violent incident of police brutality unfold before them, Sadie’s whole world is upended in an instant.

I'm not safe anywhere.

That's how Sadie feels every day after—vulnerable, uprooted. She retreats inside as the weeks slip by and relies on her phone to stay connected to the outside world. When Sadie’s therapist gives her a diagnosis for her debilitating panic—agoraphobia—she starts on a path of acceptance and healing. Meanwhile, Sadie's best friend, Evan, updates her on the protests taking place in their city. Sadie wants to be a part of it, to use her voice and affect change. But how do you show up for your community when you can’t even leave your house?

I can build a safe place inside myself.

That’s what Sadie learns over the course of one life-changing summer, with some help from her family, her best friend, an online platform for activists, and a magnetic crush she develops for the new boy next door.

From Stonewall Honor–winning author Mariama J. Lockington comes Forever is Now, a powerful young adult novel-in-verse about mental health, love, family, Black joy, and finding your voice and power in an unforgiving world.

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A Starlet's Secret to a Sensational Afterlife

Kendall Kulper

A budding starlet and her handsome-but-moody co-star go from bitter enemies to reluctant partners when they get tangled up in the disappearance of a beautiful young actress in 1930s Hollywood.

Eighteen-year-old Henrietta arrives in Los Angeles in 1934 with dreams of trading her boring life for stardom.


She’s determined to make it as an actress, despite her family’s doubts and rumors of would-be starlets gone missing. And by the skin of her teeth, she pulls it off! A serendipitous job offer arrives and Henrietta finds herself on a whirlwind publicity tour for a major film role—with a vexingly unpleasant actor tapped by the studio to be her fake boyfriend.


But fierce Henrietta has more in common with brooding Declan than she realizes. They both have gifts that they are hiding, for fear of being labeled strange: he is immune to injury and she can speak to ghosts. When the co-stars get tangled up in the disappearance of a beautiful young actress, they go from bitter enemies and pretend lovers to reluctant partners—and possibly even friends.

Together, they might be the only people in Hollywood who can do something about these poor missing girls. And in doing so . . . they might just fall in love for real.


This whip smart, seductive caper by the author of Murder for the Modern Girl has the perfect combination of romance, vengeance, and a hint of the supernatural, set in the Golden Age of Hollywood. Hand to fans of These Violent Delights and My Lady Jane.

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Venom & Vow

Anna-Marie McLemore

Two enemy kingdoms are forced to work together to break a curse in this lush YA fantasy, featuring a transgender prince and a bigender dama/assassin in the lead roles.

Keep your enemy closer.

Cade McKenna is a transgender prince who’s doubling for his brother.
Valencia Palafox is a young dama attending the future queen of Eliana.
Gael Palma is the infamous boy assassin Cade has vowed to protect.
Patrick McKenna is the reluctant heir to a kingdom, and the prince Gael has vowed to destroy.

Cade doesn’t know that Gael and Valencia are the same person.
Valencia doesn’t know that every time she thinks she’s fighting Patrick, she’s fighting Cade.
And when Cade and Valencia blame each other for a devastating enchantment that takes both their families, neither of them realizes that they have far more dangerous enemies.

Cowritten by married writing team Anna-Marie and Elliott McLemore, Venom & Vow is a lush and powerful YA novel about owning your power and becoming who you really are - no matter the cost.

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We'll Never Tell

Wendy Heard

An ambitious and juicy whodunit doused in Hollywood lore, perfect for readers of sexy summer thrillers like The Twin by Natasha Preston and The Agathas by Kathleen Glasgow and Liz Lawson.



No one at Hollywood High knows who's behind We'll Never Tell--a viral YouTube channel where the anonymous creators trespass behind the scenes of LA's most intriguing locales. The team includes CASEY, quiet researcher and trivia champ; JACOB, voice narrator and video editor, who is secretly dating EDDIE, aspiring filmmaker; and ZOE, coder and breaking-and-entering extraordinaire.



Now senior year is winding down, and with their lives heading in different directions, the YouTubers vow to go out with a bang. Their last episode will be filmed at the infamous Valentini "murder house," which has been left abandoned, bloodstained, and untouched since a shocking murder/suicide in 1972. When the teens break in, they capture epic footage. But someone trips an alarm, and it's a mad dash to get out before the police arrive--at which point they realize only three of them escaped instead of four. Jacob is still inside, slain and bleeding out. Is his attack connected to the historic murder, or is one of their crew responsible?



A week of suspicions and cover-ups unfolds as Casey and her remaining friends try to stay alive long enough to solve murder mysteries past and present. If they do, their friendship may not survive. If they don't, the house will claim more victims.

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The Black Flamingo

Dean Atta

Stonewall Book Award Winner * A Time Magazine Best YA Book Of All Time

A fierce coming-of-age verse novel about identity and the power of drag, from acclaimed poet and performer Dean Atta. Perfect for fans of Elizabeth Acevedo, Jason Reynolds, and Kacen Callender.

Michael is a mixed-race gay teen growing up in London. All his life, he's navigated what it means to be Greek-Cypriot and Jamaican--but never quite feeling Greek or Black enough.

As he gets older, Michael's coming out is only the start of learning who he is and where he fits in. When he discovers the Drag Society, he finally finds where he belongs--and the Black Flamingo is born.

Told with raw honesty, insight, and lyricism, this debut explores the layers of identity that make us who we are--and allow us to shine.

"In this uplifting coming-of-age novel told in accessible verse, Atta chronicles the growth and glory of Michael Angeli, a mixed-race kid from London, as he navigates his cultural identity as Cypriot and Jamaican as well as his emerging sexuality." (Publishers Weekly, "An Anti-Racist Children's and YA Reading List")

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Call Us What We Carry

Amanda Gorman

The instant #1 New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestseller


The breakout poetry collection by #1 New York Times bestselling author and presidential inaugural poet Amanda Gorman

Formerly titled The Hill We Climb and Other Poems, the luminous poetry collection by #1 New York Times bestselling author and presidential inaugural poet Amanda Gorman captures a shipwrecked moment in time and transforms it into a lyric of hope and healing. In Call Us What We Carry, Gorman explores history, language, identity, and erasure through an imaginative and intimate collage. Harnessing the collective grief of a global pandemic, this beautifully designed volume features poems in many inventive styles and structures and shines a light on a moment of reckoning. Call Us What We Carry reveals that Gorman has become our messenger from the past, our voice for the future.

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Me (Moth)

Amber McBride

FINALIST FOR THE 2021 NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FOR YOUNG PEOPLE'S LITERATURE

A debut YA novel-in-verse by Amber McBride, Me (Moth) is about a teen girl who is grieving the deaths of her family, and a teen boy who crosses her path.

Moth has lost her family in an accident. Though she lives with her aunt, she feels alone and uprooted.

Until she meets Sani, a boy who is also searching for his roots. If he knows more about where he comes from, maybe he’ll be able to understand his ongoing depression. And if Moth can help him feel grounded, then perhaps she too will discover the history she carries in her bones.

Moth and Sani take a road trip that has them chasing ghosts and searching for ancestors. The way each moves forward is surprising, powerful, and unforgettable.

Here is an exquisite and uplifting novel about identity, first love, and the ways that our memories and our roots steer us through the universe.

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Call Me Athena: Girl from Detroit

Colby Cedar Smith

This enchanting novel in verse captures one young woman's struggle for independence, equality, and identity as the daughter of Greek and French immigrants in tumultuous 1930s Detroit.

Call Me Athena: Girl from Detroit is a beautifully written novel in verse loosely based on author Colby Cedar Smith's paternal grandmother. The story follows Mary as the American-born daughter of Greek and French immigrants living in Detroit in the 1930s, creating a historically accurate portrayal of life as an immigrant during the Great Depression, hunger strikes, and violent riots.

Mary lives in a tiny apartment with her immigrant parents, her brothers, and her twin sister, and she questions why her parents ever came to America. She yearns for true love, to own her own business, and to be an independent, modern American woman--much to the chagrin of her parents, who want her to be a "good Greek girl."

Mary's story is peppered with flashbacks to her parents' childhoods in Greece and northern France; their stories connect with Mary as they address issues of arranged marriage, learning about independence, and yearning to grow beyond one's own culture. Though Call Me Athena is written from the perspective of three profoundly different narrators, it has a wide-reaching message: It takes courage to fight for tradition and heritage, as well as freedom, love, and equality.

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The Ghosts of Rose Hill

R. M. Romero

"A must-read for lost souls everywhere." —Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review

With spellbinding verse prose, R.M. Romero channels the spirit of myth into a brilliantly original tale, inspired by her experiences restoring Jewish cemeteries in Eastern Europe.


Magic will burn you up.

Sent to stay with her aunt in Prague and witness the humble life of an artist, Ilana Lopez—a biracial Jewish girl—finds herself torn between her dream of becoming a violinist and her immigrant parents’ desire for her to pursue a more stable career.
 
When she discovers a forgotten Jewish cemetery behind her aunt’s cottage, she meets the ghost of a kindhearted boy named Benjamin, who died over a century ago. As Ilana restores Benjamin’s grave, he introduces her to the enchanted side of Prague, where ghosts walk the streets and their kisses have warmth.
 
But Benjamin isn't the only one interested in Ilana. Rudolph Wassermann, a man with no shadow, has become fascinated with her and the music she plays. He offers to share his magic, so Ilana can be with Benjamin and pursue her passion for violin. But after Ilana discovers the truth about Wassermann and how Benjamin became bound to the city, she resolves to save the boy she loves, even if it means losing him—forever.

A love letter to Latin American and Jewish diasporas, based on the author's experiences working to maintain Jewish cemeteries in Eastern Europe. The Ghosts of Rose Hill is a tender and empowering read that you will devour in one sitting. Steeped in history and the experiences of immigrant families, especially Jewish families, each carefully-chosen word of this magical verse novel casts a spell.

A School Library Journal Best Book of the Year
An Indie Next Pick!

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Switch

A.S. King

A surreal and timely novel about the effects of isolation and what it means to be connected to the world from the Printz Award-winning author of Dig.

Time has stopped. It's been June 23, 2020 for nearly a year as far as anyone can tell. Frantic adults demand teenagers focus on finding practical solutions to the worldwide crisis. Not everyone is on board though. Javelin-throwing prodigy Truda Becker is pretty sure her "Solution Time" class won't solve the world's problems, but she does have a few ideas what might. Truda lives in a house with a switch that no one ever touches, a switch her father protects every day by nailing it into hundreds of progressively larger boxes. But Truda's got a crow bar, and one way or another, she's going to see what happens when she flips the switch.

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Every Body Looking

Candice Iloh

A Finalist for the National Book Award

When Ada leaves home for her freshman year at a Historically Black College, it’s the first time she’s ever been so far from her family—and the first time that she’s been able to make her own choices and to seek her place in this new world. As she stumbles deeper into the world of dance and explores her sexuality, she also begins to wrestle with her past—her mother’s struggle with addiction, her Nigerian father’s attempts to make a home for her. Ultimately, Ada discovers she needs to brush off the destiny others have chosen for her and claim full ownership of her body and her future.

“Candice Iloh’s beautifully crafted narrative about family, belonging, sexuality, and telling our deepest truths in order to be whole is at once immensely readable and ultimately healing.”—Jacqueline Woodson, New York Times Bestselling Author of Brown Girl Dreaming

“An essential—and emotionally gripping and masterfully written and compulsively readable—addition to the coming-of-age canon.”—Nic Stone, New York Times Bestselling Author of Dear Martin

“This is a story about the sometimes toxic and heavy expectations set onthe backs of first-generation children, the pressures woven into the familydynamic, culturally and socially. About childhood secrets with sharp teeth. And ultimately, about a liberation that taunts every young person.” —Jason Reynolds, New York Times Bestselling Author of Long Way Down

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African Town

Charles Waters

Chronicling the story of the last Africans brought illegally to America in 1860, African Town is a powerful and stunning novel-in-verse.

Cover may vary.

In 1860, long after the United States outlawed the importation of enslaved laborers, 110 men, women and children from Benin and Nigeria were captured and brought to Mobile, Alabama aboard a ship called Clotilda. Their journey includes the savage Middle Passage and being hidden in the swamplands along the Alabama River before being secretly parceled out to various plantations, where they made desperate attempts to maintain both their culture and also fit into the place of captivity to which they'd been delivered. At the end of the Civil War, the survivors created a community for themselves they called African Town, which still exists to this day. Told in 14 distinct voices, including that of the ship that brought them to the American shores and the founder of African Town, this powerfully affecting historical novel-in-verse recreates a pivotal moment in US and world history, the impacts of which we still feel today.

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Muted

Tami Charles

A ripped-from-the-headlines novel of ambition, music, and innocence lost, perfect for fans of Elizabeth Acevedo and Jason Reynolds!

 

Be bold. Get seen. Be Heard.

For seventeen-year-old Denver, music is everything. Writing, performing, and her ultimate goal: escaping her very small, very white hometown.

So Denver is more than ready on the day she and her best friends Dali and Shak sing their way into the orbit of the biggest R&B star in the world, Sean "Mercury" Ellis. Merc gives them everything: parties, perks, wild nights -- plus hours and hours in the recording studio. Even the painful sacrifices and the lies the girls have to tell are all worth it.

Until they're not.

Denver begins to realize that she's trapped in Merc's world, struggling to hold on to her own voice. As the dream turns into a nightmare, she must make a choice: lose her big break, or get broken.

Inspired by true events, Muted is a fearless exploration of the dark side of the music industry, the business of exploitation, how a girl's dreams can be used against her -- and what it takes to fight back.

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Clap when You Land

Elizabeth Acevedo

In a novel-in-verse that brims with grief and love, National Book Award-winning and New York Times bestselling author Elizabeth Acevedo writes about the devastation of loss, the difficulty of forgiveness, and the bittersweet bonds that shape our lives.

Camino Rios lives for the summers when her father visits her in the Dominican Republic. But this time, on the day when his plane is supposed to land, Camino arrives at the airport to see crowds of crying people...

In New York City, Yahaira Rios is called to the principal's office, where her mother is waiting to tell her that her father, her hero, has died in a plane crash.

Separated by distance--and Papi's secrets--the two girls are forced to face a new reality in which their father is dead and their lives are forever altered.

And then, when it seems like they've lost everything of their father, they learn of each other.

Great for summer reading or anytime! Clap When You Land is a Today show pick for "25 children's books your kids and teens won't be able to put down this summer!

Plus don't miss Elizabeth Acevedo's The Poet X and With the Fire on High!

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A Million Quiet Revolutions

Robin Gow

Robin Gow's A Million Quiet Revolutions is a modern love story, told in verse, about two teenaged trans boys who name themselves after two Revolutionary War soldiers. A lyrical, aching young adult romance perfect for fans of The Poet X, Darius the Great is Not Okay, and Aristotle and Dante Discover the Universe.

For as long as they can remember, Aaron and Oliver have only ever had each other. In a small town with few queer teenagers, let alone young trans men, they’ve shared milestones like coming out as trans, buying the right binders—and falling for each other.

But just as their relationship has started to blossom, Aaron moves away. Feeling adrift, separated from the one person who understands them, they seek solace in digging deep into the annals of America’s past. When they discover the story of two Revolutionary War soldiers who they believe to have been trans man in love, they’re inspired to pay tribute to these soldiers by adopting their names—Aaron and Oliver. As they learn, they delve further into unwritten queer stories, and they discover the transformative power of reclaiming one’s place in history.

Further reading on trans history is included in backmatter.

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Your Heart, My Sky

Margarita Engle

Acclaimed author Margarita Engle tells a painful, poignant story of love in a time of hunger inspired by her own family’s struggles during a dark period in Cuba’s history.

The people of Cuba are living in el período especial en tiempos de paz—the special period in times of peace. That’s what the government insists that this era must be called, but the reality behind these words is starvation.

Liana is struggling to find enough to eat. Yet hunger has also made her brave: she finds the courage to skip a summer of so-called volunteer farm labor, even though she risks government retribution. Nearby, a quiet, handsome boy named Amado also refuses to comply, so he wanders alone, trying to discover rare sources of food.

A chance encounter with an enigmatic dog brings Liana and Amado together. United in hope and hunger, they soon discover that their feelings for each other run deep. Love can feed their souls and hearts—but is it enough to withstand el período especial?

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Kent State

Deborah Wiles

From two-time National Book Award finalist Deborah Wiles, a masterpiece exploration of one of the darkest moments in our history, when American troops killed four American students protesting the Vietnam War.

 

 

May 4, 1970.

 

 

 

Kent State University.

 

As protestors roil the campus, National Guardsmen are called in. In the chaos of what happens next, shots are fired and four students are killed. To this day, there is still argument of what happened and why.

 

Told in multiple voices from a number of vantage points -- protestor, Guardsman, townie, student -- Deborah Wiles's Kent State gives a moving, terrifying, galvanizing picture of what happened that weekend in Ohio . . . an event that, even 50 years later, still resonates deeply.

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When We Make It

Elisabet Velasquez

"The energy. The clarity. The beauty. Elisabet Velasquez brings it all. . . . Her voice is FIRE!"—NYT bestselling and award-winning author Jacqueline Woodson

An unforgettable, torrential, and hopeful debut young adult novel-in-verse that redefines what it means to "make it,” for readers of Nicholasa Mohr and Elizabeth Acevedo.


Sarai is a first-generation Puerto Rican question asker who can see with clarity the truth, pain, and beauty of the world both inside and outside her Bushwick apartment. Together with her older sister, Estrella, she navigates the strain of family traumas and the systemic pressures of toxic masculinity and housing insecurity in a rapidly gentrifying Brooklyn. Sarai questions the society around her, her Boricua identity, and the life she lives with determination and an open heart, learning to celebrate herself in a way that she has long been denied.

When We Make It is a love letter to anyone who was taught to believe that they would not make it. To those who feel their emotions before they can name them. To those who still may not have all the language but they have their story. Velasquez’ debut novel is sure to leave an indelible mark on all who read it.

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The Most Dazzling Girl in Berlin

Kip Wilson

A fascinating historical novel about Hilde, an orphan who experiences Berlin on the cusp of World War II as she discovers her own voice and sexuality, ultimately finding a family when she gets a job at a gay cabaret, by award-winning author Kip Wilson.

On her eighteenth birthday, Hilde leaves her orphanage in 1930s Berlin, and heads out into the world to discover her place in it. But finding a job is hard, at least until she stumbles into Café Lila, a vibrant cabaret full of expressive customers. Rosa, one of the club's waitresses and performers, immediately takes Hilde under her wing. As the café denizens slowly embrace Hilde, and she embraces them in turn, she discovers her voice and her own blossoming feelings for Rosa.

But Berlin is in turmoil. Between the elections, protests in the streets, worsening antisemitism and anti-homosexual sentiment, and the beginning seeds of unrest in Café Lila itself, Hilde will have to decide what's best for her future . . . and what it means to love a place on the cusp of war.

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We All Want Impossible Things

Catherine Newman

"Catherine Newman sees the heartbreak and comedy of life with wisdom and unflinching compassion. The way she finds the extraordinary in the everyday is nothing short of poetry. She's a writer's writer--and a human's human."--New York Times bestselling author Katherine Center

"A riotously funny and fiercely loyal love letter to female friendship. The story of Edi and Ash proves that a best friend is a gift from the gods. Newman turns her prodigious talents toward finding joy even in the friendship's final days. I laughed while crying, and was left revived. Newman is a comic masterhand and a dazzling philosopher of the day-to-day."--Amity Gaige, author of Sea Wife

"The funniest, most joyful book about dying--and living--that I have ever read."--KJ Dell'Antonia, author of the New York Times bestselling The Chicken Sisters

For lovers of Meg Wolitzer, Maria Semple, and Jenny Offill comes this raucous, poignant celebration of life, love, and friendship at its imperfect and radiant best.

Edith and Ashley have been best friends for over forty-two years. They've shared the mundane and the momentous together: trick or treating and binge drinking; Gilligan's Island reruns and REM concerts; hickeys and heartbreak; surprise Scottish wakes; marriages, infertility, and children. As Ash says, "Edi's memory is like the back-up hard drive for mine."

But now the unthinkable has happened. Edi is dying of ovarian cancer and spending her last days at a hospice near Ash, who stumbles into heartbreak surrounded by her daughters, ex(ish) husband, dear friends, a poorly chosen lover (or two), and a rotating cast of beautifully, fleetingly human hospice characters.

As The Fiddler on the Roof soundtrack blasts all day long from the room next door, Edi and Ash reminisce, hold on, and try to let go. Meanwhile, Ash struggles with being an imperfect friend, wife, and parent--with life, in other words, distilled to its heartbreaking, joyful, and comedic essence.

For anyone who's ever lost a friend or had one. Get ready to laugh through your tears.

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Julieta and the Romeos

Maria E. Andreu

You've Got Mail meets a YA Beach Read with a bookish mystery at its heart in the newest rom-com from Maria E. Andreu. The ideal next read for fans of Emily Henry, Kasie West, and Jennifer E. Smith.

Julieta isn't looking for her Romeo--but she is writing about love. When her summer writing teacher encourages the class to publish their work online, the last thing she's expecting is to get a notification that her rom-com has a mysterious new contributor, Happily Ever Drafter. Julieta knows that happily ever afters aren't real. (Case in point: her parents' imploding marriage.) But then again, could this be her very own meet-cute?

As things start to heat up in her fiction, Julieta can't help but notice three boys in her real life: her best friend's brother (aka her nemesis), the boy next door (well, to her abuela), and her oldest friend (who is suddenly looking . . . hot?). Could one of them be her mysterious collaborator? But even if Julieta finds her Romeo, she'll have to remember that life is full of plot twists. . . .

From the author of Love in English comes a fresh take on love and romance, and a reminder to always be the author of your own life story.

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Lose You to Find Me

Erik J. Brown

A romantic, heartfelt, and hilarious queer coming-of-age story from All That's Left in the World author Erik J. Brown, perfect for fans of What If It's Us and If This Gets Out.

Tommy Dees is in the weeds--restaurant speak for beyond overwhelmed. He's been working as a server at Sunset Estates retirement community to get the experience he needs to attend one of the best culinary schools in the world. And to make his application shine, he also needs a letter of recommendation from his sadistic manager. But in exchange for the letter, Tommy has to meet three conditions--including training the new hire.

What he doesn't expect is for the newbie to be an old crush: Gabe, with the dimples and kind heart, who Tommy fell for during summer camp at age ten and then never saw again. Unfortunately, Gabe doesn't remember Tommy at all. The training proves distracting as old feelings resurface, and the universe seems to be conspiring against them.

With the application deadline looming and Gabe on his mind, Tommy is determined to keep it all together--but what if life isn't meant to follow a recipe?

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Saint Juniper's Folly

Alex Crespo

Cemetery Boys meets The Haunting of Bly Manor in this spellbinding debut!

For Jaime, returning to the Vermont town of Saint Juniper means returning to a past he’s spent eight years trying to forget. After shuttling between foster homes, he hopes to make something out of this fresh start. But every gossip in town already knows his business, and with reminders of his past everywhere, he seeks out solitude into the nearby woods—Saint Juniper’s Folly—and does not return.

For Theo, Saint Juniper means being stuck. He knows there’s more out there, but he’s scared to go find it. His senior year is going to be like all the rest, dull and claustrophobic. That is until he wanders into the Folly and stumbles on a haunted house with an acerbic yet handsome boy trapped—as in physically trapped—inside.

For Taylor, Saint Juniper is a mystery. She tries to practice the magic her dad banned from the house after her mom, an accomplished witch, suddenly died. But without someone to guide her, she’s floundering. Then a wide-eyed teenager barges into her life, rambling about a haunted house and a trapped boy. He needs a witch.

The Folly and its ghosts will draw these three teenagers together. But can they each face their demons to forge a bond strong enough to escape the Folly's shadows?

Alex Crespo’s queer haunted house mystery is equal parts spine-tingling thrills, a celebration of found family, and must-read for paranormal romance fans.

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As Long As We're Together

Brianna Peppins

A heartstring-tugging, uplifting, modern spin on Party of Five -- a love letter to family, hope, and finding strength in unexpected places.

 

Even though she has six siblings, sixteen-year-old Novah still knows what it's like to feel lonely. Her friends never remember to invite her anywhere because they assume Novah will be too busy overseeing dinner, baths, and homework -- tasks that fall to her when her parents are at work. She wouldn't mind it so much if her "perfect" older sister, Ariana, wasn't always excused from helping out. She's the star of the volleyball team, and their parents don't want anything to jeopardize the scholarships she'll need to become the first member of their family to attend college.

Needless to say, Novah feels like she's been given a raw deal, especially when she's forced to cancel a maybe-date with her crush, Hailee.

Then one terrible night, their parents don't make it back home. A car accident takes their lives and leaves seven heartbroken kids on their own. The Wilkinson siblings have no grandparents, no aunts or uncles. Since Ariana has just turned eighteen, she manages to convince the judge to give her temporary custody. If she can keep her family running smoothly, they'll get to stay in their home. If not, they'll be placed into foster care.

Novah will do whatever it takes to keep her family together but finds herself in a constant power struggle when Ariana refuses to take her advice, even once it becomes clear that they are all in way over their heads. Will Novah find her voice and summon the strength to do the impossible? Or will she be forced to say the hardest goodbyes of all?

 

 

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I'm Not Supposed to Be in the Dark

Riss M. Neilson

"Family secrets, broken friendships, spirit possession, and natural magic. This book will haunt you until the very end and long after you finish." - Rachel Menard, award-winning author of Game of Strength and Storm & Clash of Fate and Fury

From the author of Deep in Providence comes a paranormal young adult romance that follows a teen convinced that her best friend–turned-enemy is possessed by a ghost, perfect for fans of White Smoke and Twilight.

Seventeen-year-old Aria Cayetano dreams of ghosts. She used to see them too, but thanks to a special tea brewed by her grandfather, Aria’s connection to the spirit world has been severed. Until a decades old rosebush suddenly dies across the street, convincing Aria that something supernatural is happening in her neighborhood.

She aches to investigate it, but the rosebush sits on her ex-best friend Derek Johnson’s front lawn, and she can't question him because he hates her now. Aria doesn't know what drove them apart years ago, but she does know Derek's been acting strange for weeks, sneaking out in the dead of night to who knows where.

Then, days after the rosebush dies, Derek begins speaking to her again. At least Aria thinks it’s him. Until she discovers there’s a ghost inside of Derek that will take his life if it doesn’t find what it’s searching for. As Aria and Derek race to uncover the mystery, another kind of magic takes them by surprise: love. But Aria has to decide how far she’s willing to go to save Derek, especially when helping the ghost means tapping into whatever the tea has buried inside of her.

Bone-chilling and spellbinding, I’m Not Supposed to Be in the Dark is an alluring ghost story that’s about exorcising the past to find a future to believe in.

"In Neilson's hands, a ghost story is never just a ghost story—teenage rebellion and friendship troubles are woven together with captivating imagery, compelling characters, and yes, ghosts. This book is a study in the lengths we will go to in order to protect those we love. A study in knowing when to let go and when to hold on—even if it means risking ourselves in the process." - Lillie Lainoff, author of One For All

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Never Trust a Gemini

Freja Nicole Woolf

Cat Phillips has her head in the stars, but her romantic fantasies may ruin her shot at real-life love in this sweet and funny lesbian story.

It’s Libra Season, and Cat Phillips is ready to run headfirst into love. The only problem is that her crush is on her best friend, Alison Bridgewater, who is more interested in chatting with boys. Maybe Cat should take this as a sign to get over Alison, even if that means dating the musically challenged Jamie Owusu. After all, a new boyfriend is the best cleanse, at least according to Cat’s friends. Unfortunately, having a boyfriend is a lot harder than Cat expected. And then Morgan Delaney swoops in with her green glasses, enigmatic smile, and talent for teasing Cat in ways that make her feel überlicious. But Morgan is a Gemini, and there’s no way that’s in Cat’s horoscope. Will Cat finally get the girl of her dreams? Or is there a chance there’s more to life than Alison Bridgewater? The stars align for the cast of this energetic romp full of comedic misunderstandings and sparkling language.

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The Weight of Everything

Marcia Argueta Mickelson

It's been six months since Sarah's mom died. Three months since her dad fell apart. Sarah has left her fine arts boarding school to take care of her dad and her little brother, and now she's trying to hold everything together at home while adjusting to the local public high school.

With her dad's drinking and spending getting out of control, Sarah struggles to make sure that the bills are paid, that her brother is fed and safe, that her dad's grief won't crush them all. She has no time for art, unless she's cranking out a piece to sell online for some grocery money. And she definitely doesn't have the time or the emotional energy to find out if her sweet, handsome classmate, David Garza, could be more than a friend.

But then a school project prompts Sarah to delve into her mom's Mexican and Guatemalan roots. As she learns more about this side of her heritage, Sarah starts to understand her mom better--and starts to face her own grief. When she stumbles upon a long-buried piece of history that mattered deeply to her mom, Sarah realizes she can't carry her pain silently anymore. She has to speak up, and she can't do it alone.

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Your Plantation Prom Is Not Okay

Kelly McWilliams

This sharp-witted, timely novel explores cancel culture, anger, and grief, and challenges the romanticization of America's racist past with humor and heart--for readers of Dear Martin by Nic Stone and Grown by Tiffany D. Jackson.

Harriet Douglass lives with her historian father on an old plantation in Louisiana, which they've transformed into one of the South's few enslaved people's museums. Together, while grieving the recent loss of Harriet's mother, they run tours that help keep the memory of the past alive.

Harriet's world is turned upside down by the arrival of mother and daughter Claudia and Layla Hartwell--who plan to turn the property next door into a wedding venue, and host the offensively antebellum-themed wedding of two Hollywood stars.

Harriet's fully prepared to hate Layla Hartwell, but it seems that Layla might not be so bad after all--unlike many people, this California influencer is actually interested in Harriet's point of view. Harriet's sure she can change the hearts of Layla and her mother, but she underestimates the scale of the challenge...and when her school announces that prom will be held on the plantation, Harriet's just about had it with this whole racist timeline! Overwhelmed by grief and anger, it's fair to say she snaps.

Can Harriet use the power of social media to cancel the celebrity wedding and the plantation prom? Will she accept that she's falling in love with her childhood best friend, who's unexpectedly returned after years away? Can she deal with the frustrating reality that Americans seem to live in two completely different countries? And through it all, can she and Layla build a bridge between them?

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The Unstoppable Bridget Bloom

Allison L. Bitz

 

 

A bright and fun fat-positive YA novel about learning how to express yourself when what has always defined you is no longer an option. Perfect for fans of Julie Murphy and Emma Lord.

 

 

Bridget Bloom's out-of-this-world voice is the perfect fit for center stage. When Bridget's admitted to Richard James Academy, a college prep boarding school with a prestigious music program--where heartthrob Duke Ericson attends--all her dreams are on track to come true: leave the hometown where she's never belonged, fall in love, and launch her Broadway career.

But upon arriving at the academy, she learns that due to her low music theory scores, she's not eligible to perform or earn the sponsorship she needs to afford the tuition. Worst of all, Dean of Students Octavia Lawless, the one person with the power to reverse the decision, challenges her to work on her humility . . . by not singing at all.

Without her voice, Bridget will have to get out of her comfort zone and find a new way to shine. Good thing she is unstoppable!

From debut author Allison L. Bitz comes a coming-of-age story of self-discovery, humility, friendship, and love. Includes sheet music for two original songs!

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Imogen, Obviously

Becky Albertalli

With humor and insight, #1 New York Times bestseller Becky Albertalli explores the nuances of sexuality, identity, and friendship in this timely new novel.

Imogen Scott may be hopelessly heterosexual, but she's got the World's Greatest Ally title locked down.

She's never missed a Pride Alliance meeting. She knows more about queer media discourse than her very queer little sister. She even has two queer best friends. There's Gretchen, a fellow high school senior, who helps keep Imogen's biases in check. And then there's Lili--newly out and newly thriving with a cool new squad of queer college friends.

Imogen's thrilled for Lili. Any ally would be. And now that she's finally visiting Lili on campus, she's bringing her ally A game. Any support Lili needs, Imogen's all in.

Even if that means bending the truth, just a little.

Like when Lili drops a tiny queer bombshell: she's told all her college friends that Imogen and Lili used to date. And none of them know that Imogen is a raging hetero--not even Lili's best friend, Tessa.

Of course, the more time Imogen spends with chaotic, freckle-faced Tessa, the more she starts to wonder if her truth was ever all that straight to begin with. . .

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Where You See Yourself

Claire Forrest

The stunning debut that Nina LaCour called beautiful and important. Where You See Yourself combines an unforgettable coming-of-age tale, a swoon-worthy romance, and much-needed disability representation in this story about Effie, a wheelchair user who's determined to follow her dreams.

 

By the time Effie Galanos starts her senior year, it feels like she's already been thinking about college applications for an eternity--after all, finding a college that will be the perfect fit and be accessible enough for Effie to navigate in her wheelchair presents a ton of considerations that her friends don't have to worry about.

What Effie hasn't told anyone is that she already knows exactly what school she has her heart set on: a college in NYC with a major in Mass Media & Society that will set her up perfectly for her dream job in digital media. She's never been to New York, but paging through the brochure, she can picture the person she'll be there, far from the Minneapolis neighborhood where she's lived her entire life. When she finds out that Wilder (her longtime crush) is applying there too, it seems like one more sign from the universe that it's the right place for her.

But it turns out that the universe is full of surprises. As Effie navigates her way through a year of admissions visits, senior class traditions, internal and external ableism, and a lot of firsts--and lasts--she starts to learn that sometimes growing up means being open to a world of possibilities you never even dreamed of. And maybe being more than just friends with Wilder is one of those dreams...

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An Improbable Season

Rosalyn Eves

For fans of Bridgerton, a Regency romance by Rosalyn Eves about three young women, their big dreams, and a London Season gone awry.

When Thalia, Kalliope, and Charis set off to Regency London for their first Season, they each have clear goals—few of which include matrimony. Thalia means to make her mark among the intelligentsia and publish her poetry, Charis hopes to earn her place among the scientific elite, and Kalliope aims to take the fashionable ton by storm. But this Season, it doesn't take long for things to fall apart. Kalli finds herself embroiled in scandal and reliant upon an arranged marriage to redeem her reputation, Thalia's dreams of publication are threatened by her attraction to a charming rake, and Charis finds herself an unexpected social hit—and the source of a family scandal that her heart might not survive. Can this roller-coaster Season find its happily ever after?

An Improbable Season is a voicy, swoony regency drama about falling in love—with another person, with new opportunities, and with yourself.

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The Lake House

Sarah Beth Durst

 

 

Yellowjackets meets One of Us Is Lying in this masterful survival thriller from award-winning author Sarah Beth Durst.

 

 

Claire's grown up triple-checking locks. Counting her steps. Second-guessing every decision. It's just how she's wired--her worst-case scenarios never actually come true.

Until she arrives at an off-the-grid summer camp to find a blackened, burned husk instead of a lodge--and no survivors, except her and two other late arrivals: Reyva and Mariana.

When the three girls find a dead body in the woods, they realize none of this is an accident. Someone, something, is hunting them. Something that hides in the shadows.

Something that refuses to let them leave.

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That Self-Same Metal (the Forge & Fracture Saga, Book 1)

Brittany N. Williams

A stunning YA fantasy debut, perfect for fans of Holly Black and Justina Ireland, about a Black girl (and sword expert) fighting a Fae uprising in Shakespearean London



Sixteen-year-old Joan Sands is a gifted craftswoman who creates and upkeeps the stage blades for William Shakespeare's acting company, The King's Men. Joan's skill with her blades comes from a magical ability to control metal--an ability gifted by her Head Orisha, Ogun. Because her whole family is Orisha-blessed, the Sands family have always kept tabs on the Fae presence in London. Usually that doesn't involve much except noting the faint glow around a Fae's body as they try to blend in with London society, but lately, there has been an uptick in brutal Fae attacks. After Joan wounds a powerful Fae and saves the son of a cruel Lord, she is drawn into political intrigue in the human and Fae worlds.



Swashbuckling, romantic, and full of the sights and sounds of Shakespeare's London, this series starter delivers an unforgettable story--and a heroine unlike any other.

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Hot Dutch Daydream

Kristy Boyce

 

 

Rom-com lovers and fans of Elise Bryant and Jenna Evans Welch will adore this next summer read from Hot British Boyfriend author Kristy Boyce.

 

 

No one has ever accused Sage Cunningham of being easily distracted. She has a plan, and she won't be swayed. She'll spend the summer interning in her mentor's lab in Amsterdam, and then she'll be ready for college. All she needs to do to pay for the summer abroad is agree to serve as the au pair for Dr. Reese's three-year-old.

Sage has it all down to a science, but she doesn't anticipate the surprise arrival of Dr. Reese's teenage son. Ryland is spontaneous, flirty, and impulsive--everything Sage isn't. He's a talented artist, but he's desperately in need of someone to keep him focused. And as nannying proves harder than Sage had expected, it turns out she might need help too.

The two strike a deal. Sage will stop Ryland from going out with a different girl every day, and Ryland will pitch in with his little brother.

Spending the summer stuck together is the perfect way to keep distractions to a minimum. Right

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No Boy Summer

Amy Spalding

Lydia and her younger sister Penny make a pact to avoid boy drama for the summer--but Lydia can't help looking for a loophole when she falls for a cute girl

Lydia Jones and her younger sister Penny have had it with boy drama. Last year was marred by relationship disasters for both of them, threatening Lydia's standing with her school's theater tech club and Penny's perfect GPA. Penny has, naturally, diagnosed the problem and prescribed a drastic solution: a summer off from boys.

Lydia and Penny decide to stay with their Aunt Grace and her boyfriend Oscar in Los Angeles while their parents are off on a European cruise. Penny follows her future-business-school dreams with an internship at Oscar's office, and Lydia gets a part-time job at Grace's neighborhood coffeeshop, Grounds Control.

Even when they spent hours, days, weeks dissecting their various boy drama, Lydia's never felt this connected to her sister before, and it makes her wonder what else in her life could be different. She finds herself drawn to a group of friends she meets through her Grounds Control coworker, Margaret, as well as an intriguing customer, Fran, an aspiring filmmaker and--while not the first girl Lydia finds herself attracted to--the first girl who has mutual feelings for her. But she's not breaking her pledge to Penny, right? That was just about boys. Even though in her heart Lydia knows she's bending the rules, she hasn't had a connection with anyone as strong as her connection with Fran, so she thinks it can't be wrong. And Penny won't mind as long as she's happy . . . Right?

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Sway with Me

Syed Masood

She's All That goes desi in this hilarious, affecting, and sweetly romantic comedy by the author of More Than Just a Pretty Face.



Arsalan has learned everything he knows from Nana, his 100-year-old great-grandfather. This includes the fact that when Nana dies, Arsalan will be completely alone in the world, except for his estranged and abusive father. So he turns to Beenish, the step-daughter of a prominent matchmaker, to find him a future life partner. Beenish's request in return? That Arsalan help her ruin her older sister's wedding with a spectacular dance she's been forbidden to perform.



Despite knowing as little about dancing as he does about girls, Arsalan wades into Beenish's chaotic world to discover friends and family he never expected. And though Arsalan's old-school manners and Beenish's take-no-prisoners attitude clash every minute, they find themselves getting closer and closer--literally. All that's left to realize is that the thing they both really want is each other, if only they can get in step.



At turns laugh-out-loud funny, poignant, and sincerely heartfelt, Sway With Me is a coming-of-age story for anyone trying to find their place in the world.

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The Best Laid Plans

Cameron Lund

High school senior Keely Collins takes on firsts, lasts, and everything in between in this sweet, sex-positive rom-com for fans of Meg Cabot and Jenny Han.

It seemed like a good plan at first.

When the only other virgin in her group of friends loses it at Keely's own eighteenth birthday party, she's inspired to take things into her own hands. She wants to have that experience too (well, not exactly like that--but with someone she trusts and actually likes), so she's going to need to find the guy, and fast. Problem is, she's known all the boys in her small high school forever, and it's kinda hard to be into a guy when you watched him eat crayons in kindergarten.

So she can't believe her luck when she meets a ridiculously hot new guy named Dean. Not only does he look like he's fallen out of a classic movie poster, but he drives a motorcycle, flirts with ease, and might actually be into her.

But Dean's already in college, and Keely is convinced he'll drop her if he finds out how inexperienced she is. That's when she talks herself into a new plan: her lifelong best friend, Andrew, would never hurt or betray her, and he's clearly been with enough girls that he can show her the ropes before she goes all the way with Dean. Of course, the plan only works if Andrew and Keely stay friends--just friends--so things are about to get complicated.

Cameron Lund's delightful debut is a hilarious and heartfelt story of first loves, first friends, and first times--and how making them your own is all that really matters.

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How You Grow Wings

Rimma Onoseta

An emotionally riveting novel for fans of Ibi Zoboi and Erika L. Sánchez about two sisters in Nigeria on their journey to break free of an oppressive home. 
 
Sisters Cheta and Zam couldn’t be more different. Cheta, sharp-tongued and stubborn, never shies away from conflict—either at school or at home, where her mother fires abuse at her. Timid Zam escapes most of her mother’s anger, skating under the radar and avoiding her sister whenever possible. In a turn of good fortune, Zam is invited to live with her aunt’s family in the lap of luxury. Jealous, Cheta also leaves home, but to a harder existence that will drive her to terrible decisions. When the sisters are reunited, Zam alone will recognize just how far Cheta has fallen—and Cheta’s fate will rest in Zam’s hands.

Debut author Rimma Onoseta deftly explores classism, colorism, cycles of abuse, how loyalty doesn’t always come attached to love, and the messy truths that sometimes, family is not a source of comfort, and that morality is all shades of grey.

 

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A Disaster in Three Acts

Kelsey Rodkey

Fans of Elise Bryant and Rachel Lynn Solomon will swoon for Last Chance Books author Kelsey Rodkey's next romance, packed with snark, banter, and inconvenient crushes.

Saine Sinclair knows a little something about what makes a story worth telling.

Your childhood best friend refuses to kiss you during a pre-adolescent game of spin the bottle? Terrible, zero stars, would not replay that scene again. The same ex-friend becomes your new best friend's ex? Strangely compelling, unexpected twist, worth a hate-watch. That same guy--why is he always around?--turns out to be your last shot at getting into the documentary filmmaking program of your dreams?

Saine hates to admit it, but she'd watch that movie.

There's something about Holden that makes her feel like she's the one in front of the camera--like he can see every uncomfortable truth she's buried below the surface. Saine knows how her story's supposed to go. So why does every moment with Holden seem intent on changing the ending?

 

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Getting Over Max Cooper

Marcelle Karp

Letting go is a beach.

Jazz Jacobson has spent fourteen of her sixteen summers on Fire Island. It's just an hour from Manhattan but feels like a world away, where Jazz thrives in the absence of the social hierarchies and pressures of high school. Most of all, it's the place where she's reunited with her best friend, Macy Whelan.

This summer starts out strong when the cute new boy on the island seems to like Jazz (hello, first boyfriend?). But it's hard to focus on her own crush when Macy's still obsessing over her hookup from last summer, Max Cooper.

Jazz can't believe how cold and mean Max is to Macy. But when Macy starts to seriously act out, Jazz begins to see that she knows only one side of the story . . . and that she has to help her friend before something terrible happens.

Boundaries are crossed and the edge of sanity is tested in Marcelle Karp's debut novel, which celebrates the complicated dynamics of female friendship and the heartbreaking ache of first love.

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One Man Guy

Michael Barakiva

Summer school, a cute boy, and overbearing Armenian parents—what’s a guy to do?

Alek Khederian was looking forward to a relaxing summer. But when his parents announce that he’ll be attending summer school in order to bring up his grades, Alek is sure this experience will be just as hellish as his freshman year of high school. But he never could’ve predicted that he’d meet someone like Ethan.

Ethan is everything Alek wishes he were: confident, free-spirited, and irreverent. When Ethan gets Alek to cut school and go to a Rufus Wainwright concert in New York City’s Central Park, Alek embarks on his first adventure outside the confines of his suburban New Jersey existence. He can’t believe a guy this cool wants to be his friend. And before long, it seems like Ethan wants to be more than friends. Alek has never thought about having a boyfriend—he’s barely ever had a girlfriend—but maybe it’s time to think again.

Michael Barakiva's One Man Guy is a romantic, moving, laugh-out-loud-funny story about what happens when one person cracks open your world and helps you see everything—and, most of all, yourself—like you never have before.

“A romantic comedy with Armenian flair . . . Don’t miss it.” —E. Lockhart, author of We Were Liars

“A kind and generous book about the loneliness of a young boy trying to navigate between a chaotic Armenian family and a school of bullying cliques. Alek Khederian deals bravely and inspiringly with the perils of learning to love your family, to love someone else, and most of all, to love yourself.” —Eleanor Bergstein, novelist and screenwriter of the film Dirty Dancing

“Hand this one to those who’ve already gone through Levithan’s Boy Meets Boy and Kluger’s My Most Excellent Year.” —The Bulletin

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The Davenports

Krystal Marquis

The first in a breathless YA series set in 1910 Chicago, The Davenports offers a glimpse into a period of African American history often overlooked, while delivering a totally escapist, swoon-worthy read

The Davenports are one of the few Black families of immense wealth and status in a changing United States, their fortune made through the entrepreneurship of William Davenport, a formerly enslaved man who founded the Davenport Carriage Company years ago. Now the Davenports live surrounded by servants, crystal chandeliers, and endless parties, finding their way and finding love—even where they’re not supposed to.

There is Olivia, the beautiful elder Davenport daughter, ready to do her duty by getting married . . . until she meets the charismatic civil rights leader Washington DeWight and sparks fly. The younger daughter, Helen, is more interested in fixing cars than falling in love—unless it’s with her sister’s suitor. Amy-Rose, the childhood friend turned maid to the Davenport sisters, dreams of opening her own business—and marrying the one man she could never be with, Olivia and Helen’s brother, John. But Olivia’s best friend, Ruby, also has her sights set on John Davenport, though she can’t seem to keep his interest . . . until family pressure has her scheming to win his heart, just as someone else wins hers.

Inspired by the real-life story of C.R. Patterson and his family, The Davenports is the tale of four determined and passionate young Black women discovering the courage to steer their own path in life—and love.

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Sold

Patricia McCormick

Lakshmi is a thirteen-year-old girl who lives with her family in a small hut on a mountain in Nepal. Though she is desperately poor, her life is full of simple pleasures, like playing hopscotch with her best friend from school, and having her mother brush her hair by the light of an oil lamp. But when the harsh Himalayan monsoons wash away all that remains of the family’s crops, Lakshmi’s stepfather says she must leave home and take a job to support her family. 

He introduces her to a glamorous stranger who tells her she will find her a job as a maid in the city. Glad to be able to help, Lakshmi journeys to India and arrives at “Happiness House” full of hope.  But she soon learns the unthinkable truth:  she has been sold into prostitution.

An old woman named Mumtaz rules the brothel with cruelty and cunning.  She tells Lakshmi that she is trapped there until she can pay off her family’s debt—then cheats Lakshmi of her meager earnings so that she can never leave.

Lakshmi’s life becomes a nightmare from which she cannot escape.  Still, she lives by her mother’s words—Simply to endure is to triumph—and gradually, she forms friendships with the other girls that enable her to survive in this terrifying new world.  Then the day comes when she must make a decision—will she risk everything for a chance to reclaim her life? 

Written in spare and evocative vignettes, this powerful novel renders a world that is as unimaginable as it is real, and a girl who not only survives but triumphs.

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They Went Left

Monica Hesse

A tour de force historical mystery from Monica Hesse, the bestselling and award-winning author of Girl in the Blue Coat.
Germany, 1945. The soldiers who liberated the Gross-Rosen concentration camp said the war was over, but nothing feels over to eighteen-year-old Zofia Lederman. Her body has barely begun to heal; her mind feels broken. And her life is completely shattered: Three years ago, she and her younger brother, Abek, were the only members of their family to be sent to the right, away from the gas chambers of Auschwitz-Birkenau. Everyone else--her parents, her grandmother, radiant Aunt Maja--they went left.
Zofia's last words to her brother were a promise: Abek to Zofia, A to Z. When I find you again, we will fill our alphabet. Now her journey to fulfill that vow takes her through Poland and Germany, and into a displaced persons camp where everyone she meets is trying to piece together a future from a painful past: Miriam, desperately searching for the twin she was separated from after they survived medical experimentation. Breine, a former heiress, who now longs only for a simple wedding with her new fiancé. And Josef, who guards his past behind a wall of secrets, and is beautiful and strange and magnetic all at once.

But the deeper Zofia digs, the more impossible her search seems. How can she find one boy in a sea of the missing? In the rubble of a broken continent, Zofia must delve into a mystery whose answers could break her--or help her rebuild her world.
 

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Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (Revised Edition)

Jesse Andrews


The book that inspired the hit film!

Sundance U.S. Dramatic Audience Award
Sundance Grand Jury Prize

This is the funniest book you'll ever read about death.

It is a universally acknowledged truth that high school sucks. But on the first day of his senior year, Greg Gaines thinks he's figured it out. The answer to the basic existential question: How is it possible to exist in a place that sucks so bad? His strategy: remain at the periphery at all times. Keep an insanely low profile. Make mediocre films with the one person who is even sort of his friend, Earl.
This plan works for exactly eight hours. Then Greg's mom forces him to become friends with a girl who has cancer. This brings about the destruction of Greg's entire life.

Praise for Me and Earl and the Dying Girl
STARRED REVIEW
“One need only look at the chapter titles (“Let's Just Get This Embarrassing Chapter Out of the Way”) to know that this is one funny book.”
Booklist, starred review

STARRED REVIEW
“A frequently hysterical confessional...Debut novelist Andrews succeeds brilliantly in painting a portrait of a kid whose responses to emotional duress are entirely believable and sympathetic, however fiercely he professes his essential crappiness as a human being. Though this novel begs inevitable thematic comparisons to John Green's The Fault in Our Stars (2011), it stands on its own in inventiveness, humor and heart.”
Kirkus Reviews, starred review

“It is sure to be popular with many boys, including reluctant readers, and will not require much selling on the part of the librarian.”
VOYA

"Mr. Andrews' often hilarious teen dialogue is utterly convincing, and his characters are compelling. Greg's random sense of humor, terrible self-esteem and general lack of self-awareness all ring true. Like many YA authors, Mr. Andrews blends humor and pathos with true skill, but he steers clear of tricky resolutions and overt life lessons, favoring incremental understanding and growth."
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Awards:
Capitol Choices 2013 - Noteworthy Titles for Children and Teens
Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC) Choices 2013 list - Young Adult Fiction
YALSA 2013 Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers
YALSA 2013 Best Fiction for Young Adults
YALSA 2014 Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults

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I Don't Want to Be Crazy

Samantha Schutz

A harrowing, remarkable poetry memoir about one girl's struggle with anxiety disorder.

This is a true story of growing up, breaking down, and coming to grips with a psychological disorder. When Samantha Schutz first left home for college, she was excited by the possibilities -- freedom from parents, freedom from a boyfriend who was reckless with her affections, freedom from the person she was supposed to be. At first, she reveled in the independence . . . but as pressures increased, she began to suffer anxiety attacks that would leave her mentally shaken and physically incapacitated. Thus began a hard road of discovery and coping, powerfully rendered in this poetry memoir.

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American Born Chinese

Gene Luen Yang

A tour-de-force by rising indy comics star Gene Yang, American Born Chinese tells the story of three apparently unrelated characters: Jin Wang, who moves to a new neighborhood with his family only to discover that he’s the only Chinese-American student at his new school; the powerful Monkey King, subject of one of the oldest and greatest Chinese fables; and Chin-Kee, a personification of the ultimate negative Chinese stereotype, who is ruining his cousin Danny’s life with his yearly visits. Their lives and stories come together with an unexpected twist in this action-packed modern fable. American Born Chinese is an amazing ride, all the way up to the astonishing climax.  American Born Chinese is a 2006 National Book Award Finalist for Young People's Literature, the winner of the 2007 Eisner Award for Best Graphic Album: New, an Eisner Award nominee for Best Coloring and a 2007 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year.

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The Haters

Jesse Andrews

From Jesse Andrews, author of the New York Times bestselling Me and Earl and the Dying Girl and screenwriter of the Sundance award-winning motion picture of the same name, comes a groundbreaking young adult novel about music, love, friendship, and freedom as three young musicians follow a quest to escape the law long enough to play the amazing show they hope (but also doubt) they have in them.

Inspired by the years he spent playing bass in a band himself, The Haters is Jesse Andrews's road trip adventure about a trio of jazz-camp escapees who, against every realistic expectation, become a band.

For Wes and his best friend, Corey, jazz camp turns out to be lame. It's pretty much all dudes talking in Jazz Voice. But then they jam with Ash, a charismatic girl with an unusual sound, and the three just click. It's three and a half hours of pure musical magic, and Ash makes a decision: They need to hit the road. Because the road, not summer camp, is where bands get good. Before Wes and Corey know it, they're in Ash's SUV heading south, and The Haters Summer of Hate Tour has begun.

In his second novel, Andrews again brings his brilliant and distinctive voice to YA, in the perfect book for music lovers, fans of The Commitments (author Rody Doyle raves "The Haters is terrific. It is shocking and funny, unsettling and charming." ), and High Fidelity, or anyone who has ever loved--and hated--a song or a band. This witty, funny coming-of-age novel is contemporary fiction at its best.

A New York Times bestseller

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The Program

Suzanne Young

In this “gripping tale for lovers of dystopian romance” (Kirkus Reviews), true feelings are forbidden, teen suicide is an epidemic, and the only solution is The Program.

Sloane knows better than to cry in front of anyone. With suicide now an international epidemic, one outburst could land her in The Program, the only proven course of treatment. Sloane’s parents have already lost one child; Sloane knows they’ll do anything to keep her alive. She also knows that everyone who’s been through The Program returns as a blank slate. Because their depression is gone—but so are their memories.

Under constant surveillance at home and at school, Sloane puts on a brave face and keeps her feelings buried as deep as she can. The only person Sloane can be herself with is James. He’s promised to keep them both safe and out of treatment, and Sloane knows their love is strong enough to withstand anything. But despite the promises they made to each other, it’s getting harder to hide the truth. They are both growing weaker. Depression is setting in.

And The Program is coming for them.

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Pretty Little Liars

Sara Shepard

The four naughty girls at the heart of Pretty Little Liars think their secrets are safe with Alison, but now they're receiving creepy messages from someone named A. A primetime WB show based on this series is in development for fall 2006.

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The Best Strangers in the World: Stories from a Life Spent Listening

Ari Shapiro

The Best Strangers in the World is a witty, poignant book that captures Ari Shapiro’s love for the unusual, his pursuit of the unexpected, and his delight at connection against the odds.”—Ronan Farrow, Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist and New York Times-bestselling author of Catch and Kill and War on Peace

From the beloved host of NPR's All Things Considered, a stirring memoir-in-essays that is also a lover letter to journalism.

In his first book, broadcaster Ari Shapiro takes us around the globe to reveal the stories behind narratives that are sometimes heartwarming, sometimes heartbreaking, but always poignant. He details his time traveling on Air Force One with President Obama, or following the path of Syrian refugees fleeing war, or learning from those fighting for social justice both at home and abroad.

As the self-reinforcing bubbles we live in become more impenetrable, Ari Shapiro keeps seeking ways to help people listen to one another; to find connection and commonality with those who may seem different; to remind us that, before religion, or nationality, or politics, we are all human. The Best Strangers in the World is a testament to one journalist’s passion for Considering All Things—and sharing what he finds with the rest of us.

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Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers

Jesse Q. Sutanto

A lonely shopkeeper takes it upon herself to solve a murder in the most peculiar way in this captivating mystery by Jesse Q. Sutanto, bestselling author of Dial A for Aunties.

Vera Wong is a lonely little old lady—ah, lady of a certain age—who lives above her forgotten tea shop in the middle of San Francisco’s Chinatown. Despite living alone, Vera is not needy, oh no. She likes nothing more than sipping on a good cup of Wulong and doing some healthy detective work on the Internet about what her Gen-Z son is up to.

Then one morning, Vera trudges downstairs to find a curious thing—a dead man in the middle of her tea shop. In his outstretched hand, a flash drive. Vera doesn’t know what comes over her, but after calling the cops like any good citizen would, she sort of . . . swipes the flash drive from the body and tucks it safely into the pocket of her apron. Why? Because Vera is sure she would do a better job than the police possibly could, because nobody sniffs out a wrongdoing quite like a suspicious Chinese mother with time on her hands. Vera knows the killer will be back for the flash drive; all she has to do is watch the increasing number of customers at her shop and figure out which one among them is the killer.

What Vera does not expect is to form friendships with her customers and start to care for each and every one of them. As a protective mother hen, will she end up having to give one of her newfound chicks to the police?

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Hello Beautiful

Ann Napolitano

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • OPRAH’S BOOK CLUB PICK • From the New York Times bestselling author of Dear Edward comes a “powerfully affecting” (People) family story that asks: Can love make a broken person whole?

“Another tender tearjerker . . . Napolitano chronicles life’s highs and lows with aching precision.”—The Washington Post

William Waters grew up in a house silenced by tragedy, where his parents could hardly bear to look at him, much less love him—so when he meets the spirited and ambitious Julia Padavano in his freshman year of college, it’s as if the world has lit up around him. With Julia comes her family, as she and her three sisters are inseparable: Sylvie, the family’s dreamer, is happiest with her nose in a book; Cecelia is a free-spirited artist; and Emeline patiently takes care of them all. With the Padavanos, William experiences a newfound contentment; every moment in their house is filled with loving chaos.

But then darkness from William’s past surfaces, jeopardizing not only Julia’s carefully orchestrated plans for their future, but the sisters’ unshakeable devotion to one another. The result is a catastrophic family rift that changes their lives for generations. Will the loyalty that once rooted them be strong enough to draw them back together when it matters most?

An exquisite homage to Louisa May Alcott’s timeless classic, Little Women, Hello Beautiful is a profoundly moving portrait of what is possible when we choose to love someone not in spite of who they are, but because of it.

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Paris: The Memoir

Paris Hilton

A MILLION MEANINGS IN A SINGLE NAME...

Heiress. Party girl. Problem child. Selfie taker. Model. Cover girl. Reality star.

These are labels that have been attached to Paris Hilton by others.

Founder. Entrepreneur. Pop Culture Maker. Innovator. Survivor. Activist. Daughter. Sister. Wife. Mom.

These are roles Paris Hilton embraces now as a fully realized woman.

Paris rose to prominence as an heiress to the Hilton Hotels empire, but cultivated her fame and fortune as the It Girl of the aughts, a time marked by the burgeoning twenty-four-hour entertainment news cycle and the advent of the celebrity blog. Using her celebrity brand, Paris set in motion her innovative business ventures, while being the constant target of tabloid culture that dismissively wrote her off as "famous for being famous." With tenacity, sharp business acumen, and grit, she built a global empire and, in the process, became a truly modern icon beloved around the world.

Now, with courage, honesty, and humor, Paris Hilton is ready to take stock, place it all in context, and share her story with the world. Separating the creation from the creator, the brand from the ambassador, Paris: The Memoir strips away all we thought we knew about a celebrity icon, taking us back to a privileged childhood lived through the lens of undiagnosed ADHD and teenage rebellion that triggered a panicked--and perilous--decision by her parents. Led to believe they were saving their child's life, Paris's mother and father had her kidnapped and sent to a series of "emotional growth boarding schools," where she survived almost two years of verbal, physical, and sexual abuse. In the midst of a hell we now call the "troubled teen industry," Paris created a beautiful inner world where the ugliness couldn't touch her. She came out, resolving to trust no one but herself as she transformed that fantasy world into a multibillion-dollar reality.

Recounting her perilous journey through pre-#MeToo sexual politics with grace, dignity, and just the right amount of sass, Paris: The Memoir tracks the evolution of celebrity culture through the story of the figure at its leading edge, full of defining moments and marquee names. Most important, Paris shows us her path to peace while she challenges us to question our role in her story and in our own. Welcome to Paris.

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The Teachers: A Year Inside America's Most Vulnerable, Important Profession

Alexandra Robbins

A riveting, must-read, year-in-the-life account of three teachers, combined with reporting that reveals what’s really going on behind school doors, by New York Times bestselling author and education expert Alexandra Robbins.
 
Alexandra Robbins goes behind the scenes to tell the true, sometimes shocking, always inspirational stories of three teachers as they navigate a year in the classroom. She follows Penny, a southern middle school math teacher who grappled with a toxic staff clique at the big school in a small town; Miguel, a special ed teacher in the western United States who fought for his students both as an educator and as an activist; and Rebecca, an East Coast elementary school teacher who struggled to schedule and define a life outside of school. Robbins also interviewed hundreds of other teachers nationwide who share their secrets, dramas, and joys.
 
Interspersed among the teachers’ stories—a seeming scandal, a fourth-grade whodunit, and teacher confessions—are hard-hitting essays featuring cutting-edge reporting on the biggest issues facing teachers today, such as school violence; outrageous parent behavior; inadequate support, staffing, and resources coupled with unrealistic mounting demands; the “myth” of teacher burnout; the COVID-19 pandemic; and ways all of us can help the professionals who are central both to the lives of our children and the heart of our communities.

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No Boy Summer

Amy Spalding

Lydia and her younger sister Penny make a pact to avoid boy drama for the summer--but Lydia can't help looking for a loophole when she falls for a cute girl



Lydia Jones and her younger sister Penny have had it with boy drama. Last year was marred by relationship disasters for both of them, threatening Lydia's standing with her school's theater tech club and Penny's perfect GPA. Penny has, naturally, diagnosed the problem and prescribed a drastic solution: a summer off from boys.



Lydia and Penny decide to stay with their Aunt Grace and her boyfriend Oscar in Los Angeles while their parents are off on a European cruise. Penny follows her future-business-school dreams with an internship at Oscar's office, and Lydia gets a part-time job at Grace's neighborhood coffeeshop, Grounds Control.



Even when they spent hours, days, weeks dissecting their various boy drama, Lydia's never felt this connected to her sister before, and it makes her wonder what else in her life could be different. She finds herself drawn to a group of friends she meets through her Grounds Control coworker, Margaret, as well as an intriguing customer, Fran, an aspiring filmmaker and--while not the first girl Lydia finds herself attracted to--the first girl who has mutual feelings for her. But she's not breaking her pledge to Penny, right? That was just about boys. Even though in her heart Lydia knows she's bending the rules, she hasn't had a connection with anyone as strong as her connection with Fran, so she thinks it can't be wrong. And Penny won't mind as long as she's happy . . . Right?

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The Cherished

Patricia Ward

For fans of White Smoke, The Hazel Wood, and Wilder Girls comes an original, hypnotizing horror thriller in the vein of Midsommar, as one girl inherits a mysterious house from her estranged grandmother--and a letter with sinister instructions.

Jo never expected to be placed in her absent grandmother's will--let alone be left her house, her land, and a letter with mysterious demands.

Upon arriving at the inherited property, things are even more strange.

The tenants mentioned in the letter are odd, just slightly...off. Jo feels something dark and decrepit in the old shack behind the house. And the things that her father used to talk about, his delusions... Why is Jo starting to believe they might be real?

But what Jo fears most is the letter from her grandmother. Because if it's true, then Jo belongs here, in this strange place. And she has no choice but to stay.

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The Raven Thief

Gigi Pandian

Multiple award-winning author Gigi Pandian is one of the best locked room mystery writers working today. Her newest heroine, Tempest Raj, returns in The Raven Thief, where sliding bookcases, trick tables, and hidden reading nooks hide something much more sinister than the Secret Staircase Construction crew ever imagined.

One murder. Four impossibilities. A fake séance hides a very real crime.

Secret Staircase Construction just finished their first project with Tempest Raj officially a part of the team—a classic mystery novel-themed home interior. Their client is now ready to celebrate her new life without her cheating ex-husband, famous mystery author Corbin Colt. First up, a party, and Tempest and Grandpa Ash are invited to the exclusive mock séance to remove any trace of Corbin from the property—for good. It's all lighthearted fun until Corbin's dead body crashes the party.

The only possible suspects are the eight people around the séance table—a circle of clasped hands that wasn't broken. Suspicion quickly falls on Grandpa Ash, the only one with actual blood on him. To prove her beloved grandfather’s innocence, Tempest must figure out what really happened—and how—or Ash will be cooking his delectable Indian and Scottish creations nevermore.

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Heart Like a Broken Arrow

Maija Barnett

Seventeen-year-old Fern Blakely struggles to overcome her younger brother's death, for which she feels responsible. Fern drinks to forget. After a night of partying, she crashes her truck on an icy Vermont road, and her life is changed forever. A former runner, Fern is now paralyzed from the waist down. Her depressed mother has neither the funds nor the ability to care for her, so Fern is sent to live with Helen, her estranged father's aunt. It is with Helen that Fern overcomes her own depression and develops a love for archery. This passion sets Fern on a new path, but will she ever be able to outrun her past?

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How I'll Kill You

Ren DeStefano

Your next stay-up-all-night thriller, about identical triplets who have a nasty habit of killing their boyfriends, and what happens when the youngest commits their worst crime yet: falling in love with her mark.

Make him want you.
Make him love you.
Make him dead.

Sissy has an...interesting family. Always the careful one, always the cautious one, she has handled the cleanup while her serial killer sisters have carved a path of carnage across the U.S. Now, as they arrive in the Arizona heat, Sissy must step up and embrace the family pastime of making a man fall in love and then murdering him. Her first target? A young widower named Edison—and their mutual attraction is instant. While their relationship progresses, and most couples would be thinking about picking out china patterns and moving in together, Sissy’s family is reminding her to think about picking out burial sites and moving on. 

But then something happens that Sissy never anticipated: She begins to feel protective of Edison, and then, before she can help it, she’s fallen in love. But the clock is ticking, and her sisters are growing restless. It becomes clear that the gravesite she chooses will hide a body no matter what happens; but if she betrays her family, will it be hers?

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Big Bad Me

Aislinn O'Loughlin

Canadian teenager Evie Wilder just found out she's a werewolf. Now her mom's gone missing, she and her sister Kate have to go into hiding, and there's not a single helpful vampire slayer to be found.

With the help of Kevin, the dorky-hot manager of the guesthouse where she and Kate lie low, Evie starts to harness her wolfish side. But Kevin seems to know a suspicious amount about vampires...

Meanwhile, animal attacks are increasing, local teens are going missing, and Evie is about to find herself at the centre of a supernatural showdown.

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The Angel Makers: Arsenic, a Midwife, and Modern History's Most Astonishing Murder Ring

Patti McCracken

The Angel Makers is a true-crime story like no other--a 1920s midwife who may have been the century's most prolific killer leading a murder ring of women responsible for the deaths of at least 160 men.



The horror occurred in a rustic farming enclave in modern-day Hungary. To look at the unlikely lineup of murderesses--village wives, mothers, and daughters--was to come to the shocking realization that this could have happened anywhere, and to anyone. At the center of it all was a sharp-minded village midwife, a "smiling Buddha" known as Auntie Suzy, who distilled arsenic from flypaper and distributed it to the women of Nagyrév. "Why are you bothering with him?" Auntie Suzy would ask, as she produced an arsenic-filled vial from her apron pocket. In the beginning, a great many used the deadly solution to finally be free of cruel and abusive spouses.

But as the number of dead bodies grew without consequence, the killers grew bolder. With each vial of poison emptied, a new reason surfaced to drain yet another. Some women disposed of sickly relatives. Some used arsenic as "inheritance powder" to secure land and houses. For more than fifteen years, the unlikely murderers aided death unfettered and tended to it as if it were simply another chore--spooning doses of arsenic into soup and wine, stirring it into coffee and brandy. By the time their crimes were discovered, hundreds were feared dead.

Anonymous notes brought the crimes to light in 1929. As a skillful prosecutor hungry for justice ran the investigation, newsmen from around the world--including the New York Times--poured in to cover the dramatic events as they unfolded.

The Angel Makers captures in expertly researched detail the entirety of this harrowing story, from the early murders to the final hanging--the story of one of the most sensational and astonishing murder rings in all of modern history.

 

 

 

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The Art of the Straight Line: My Tai Chi

Lou Reed

The Art of the Straight Line captures the energy of Lou Reed's worlds of Tai Chi, music, and meditation. It was edited by his wife, the artist Laurie Anderson, with Stephan Berwick, Bob Currie, and Scott Richman

Lou Reed was a musician, singer, songwriter, poet, and founding member of the legendary rock band the Velvet Underground. He collaborated with many artists, from Andy Warhol and John Cale to Robert Wilson and Metallica. Reed had a groundbreaking solo career that spanned five decades until his death in 2013.

Reed was also an accomplished martial artist whose practice began in the 1980s. He studied with Chen Tai Chi pioneer Master Ren GuangYi. This book is a comprehensive collection of Reed's writings on Tai Chi. It includes conversations with Reed's fellow musicians, artists, friends, and Tai Chi practitioners, including Julian Schnabel, A. M. Homes, Hal Willner, Mingyur Rinpoche, Eddie Stern, Tony Visconti, and Iggy Pop.

The Art of the Straight Line features Reed's unpublished writings on the technique, practice, and purpose of martial arts, as well as essays, observations, and riffs on meditation and life.

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The Making of Yolanda La Bruja

Lorraine Avila

Elizabeth Acevedo has said that reading Lorraine Avila feels like an "UPPERCUT to the senses." You've never encountered an author with prose of this sensitivity and fire.



Yolanda Alvarez is having a good year. She's starting to feel at home Julia De Burgos High, her school in the Bronx. She has her best friend Victory, and maybe something with José, a senior boy she's getting to know. She's confident her initiation into her family's bruja tradition will happen soon.



But then a white boy, the son of a politician, appears at Julia De Burgos High, and his vibes are off. And Yolanda's initiation begins with a series of troubling visions of the violence this boy threatens. How can Yolanda protect her community, in a world that doesn't listen? Only with the wisdom and love of her family, friends, and community - and the Brujas Diosas, her ancestors and guides.



The Making of Yolanda La Bruja is the book this country, struggling with the plague of gun violence, so desperately needs, but which few could write. Here Lorraine Avila brings a story born from the intersection of race, justice, education, and spirituality that will capture readers everywhere.





The Making of Yolanda La Bruja is the book this country, struggling with the plague of gun violence, so desperately needs, but which few could write. Here Lorraine Avila brings a story born from the intersection of race, justice, education, and spirituality that will capture readers everywhere.

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Beyond That, the Sea

Laura Spence-Ash

“Spence-Ash has written the novel in eight points of view, but each character is utterly three-dimensional and distinct. This debut novel captivated me from start to finish."
—Julia Quinn, author of the Bridgerton Series

A sweeping, tenderhearted love story, Beyond That, the Sea by Laura Spence-Ash tells the story of two families living through World War II on opposite sides of the Atlantic Ocean, and the shy, irresistible young woman who will call them both her own.

As German bombs fall over London in 1940, working-class parents Millie and Reginald Thompson make an impossible choice: they decide to send their eleven-year-old daughter, Beatrix, to America. There, she’ll live with another family for the duration of the war, where they hope she’ll stay safe.

Scared and angry, feeling lonely and displaced, Bea arrives in Boston to meet the Gregorys. Mr. and Mrs. G, and their sons William and Gerald, fold Bea seamlessly into their world. She becomes part of this lively family, learning their ways and their stories, adjusting to their affluent lifestyle. Bea grows close to both boys, one older and one younger, and fills in the gap between them. Before long, before she even realizes it, life with the Gregorys feels more natural to her than the quiet, spare life with her own parents back in England.

As Bea comes into herself and relaxes into her new life—summers on the coast in Maine, new friends clamoring to hear about life across the sea—the girl she had been begins to fade away, until, abruptly, she is called home to London when the war ends.

Desperate as she is not to leave this life behind, Bea dutifully retraces her trip across the Atlantic back to her new, old world. As she returns to post-war London, the memory of her American family stays with her, never fully letting her go, and always pulling on her heart as she tries to move on and pursue love and a life of her own.

As we follow Bea over time, navigating between her two worlds, Beyond That, the Sea emerges as a beautifully written, absorbing novel, full of grace and heartache, forgiveness and understanding, loss and love.

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Harvest House

Cynthia Leitich Smith

NSK Neustadt Laureate and New York Times best-selling author Cynthia Leitich Smith delivers a thrilling cross-genre follow-up to the acclaimed Hearts Unbroken.

Deftly leading readers to the literary crossroads of contemporary realism and haunting mystery, Cynthia Leitich Smith revisits the world of her American Indian Youth Literature Award winner Hearts Unbroken. Halloween is near, and Hughie Wolfe is volunteering at a new rural attraction: Harvest House. He’s excited to take part in the fun, spooky show—until he learns that an actor playing the vengeful spirit of an “Indian maiden,” a ghost inspired by local legend, will headline. Folklore aside, unusual things have been happening at night at the crossroads near Harvest House. A creepy man is stalking teenage girls and young women, particularly Indigenous women; dogs are fretful and on edge; and wild animals are behaving strangely. While Hughie weighs how and when to speak up about the bigoted legend, he and his friends begin to investigate the crossroads and whether it might be haunted after all. As Moon rises on All Hallow’s Eve, will they be able to protect themselves and their community? Gripping and evocative, Harvest House showcases a versatile storyteller at her spooky, unsettling best.

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The White Lady

Jacqueline Winspear

The White Lady introduces yet another extraordinary heroine from Jacqueline Winspear, creator of the best-selling Maisie Dobbs series. This heart-stopping novel, set in Post WWII Britain in 1947, follows the coming of age and maturity of former wartime operative Elinor White--veteran of two wars, trained killer, protective of her anonymity--when she is drawn back into the world of menace she has been desperate to leave behind.

A reluctant ex-spy with demons of her own, Elinor finds herself facing down one of the most dangerous organized crime gangs in London, ultimately exposing corruption from Scotland Yard to the highest levels of government.

The private, quiet "Miss White" as Elinor is known, lives in a village in rural Kent, England, and to her fellow villagers seems something of an enigma. Well she might, as Elinor occupies a "grace and favor" property, a rare privilege offered to faithful servants of the Crown for services to the nation. But the residents of Shacklehurst have no way of knowing how dangerous Elinor's war work had been, or that their mysterious neighbor is haunted by her past.

It will take Susie, the child of a young farmworker, Jim Mackie and his wife, Rose, to break through Miss White's icy demeanor--but Jim has something in common with Elinor. He, too, is desperate to escape his past. When the powerful Mackie crime family demands a return of their prodigal son for an important job, Elinor assumes the task of protecting her neighbors, especially the bright-eyed Susie. Yet in her quest to uncover the truth behind the family's pursuit of Jim, Elinor unwittingly sets out on a treacherous path--yet it is one that leads to her freedom.

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Throwback

Maurene Goo

"A deft, delightful, and emotionally complex examination of intergenerational relationships." --Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review

A Junior Library Guild Selection

Moms.
More complicated than an origin story . . .

Samantha Kang has always butted heads with her mom. Priscilla is first-generation Korean American, a former high school cheerleader who expects Sam to want the same all- American nightmare. Meanwhile, Sam is a girl of the times who has no energy for clichéd high school aspirations. After a huge blowup, Sam is desperate to get away from Priscilla, but instead, finds herself thrown back. Way back.

To her shock, Sam lands in the '90s . . . alongside a 17-year-old Priscilla. Now, Sam has to deal with outdated tech, regressive '90s attitudes, and a time-crossed romance with the right guy in the wrong era.

With the clock ticking, Sam must figure out how to fix things with Priscilla or risk being trapped in an analog world forever. Sam's blast to the past has her questioning everything she thought she knew about her mom . . . and herself. One thing's for sure: Time is a mother.

Brimming with humor and heart, Maurene Goo's time-travel romance asks big questions about what exactly one inherits and loses in the immigrant experience.

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Infamous

Lex Croucher

Named A Most Anticipated Romance of 2023 by Goodreads and Bookpage

"Croucher infuses this energetic Regency era friends-to-lovers sapphic romance with zany wit, joie de vivre, and a distinctive literary bent... Bookish readers who wish that Alcott’s Little Women were a bit more explicitly queer will lap this up." ––Publishers Weekly

Twenty-two-year-old aspiring writer Edith (“Eddie”) Miller and her best friend Rose have always done everything together—from climbing trees and sneaking bottles of wine, to extensive kissing practice. But Rose has started talking about marriage, and Eddie is horrified. Why can’t they continue as they always have?

Then Eddie meets charming, renowned poet Nash Nicholson––a rival of Lord Byron, if he does say so himself––and he welcomes her into his world of eccentric artists and boundary-breaking visionaries. When Eddie receives an invitation to Nash's crumbling Gothic estate in the countryside, promising inspiration (and time to finish her novel, a long-held dream), she eagerly agrees. But the pure hedonism and debauchery that ensues isn’t exactly what she had in mind, and Eddie soon finds herself torn between her complicated feelings for Rose and her equally complicated dynamic with Nash, whose increasingly bad behavior doesn’t match up to her vision for her literary hero.

Will Eddie be forced to choose between her friendship with Rose and her literary dreams––or will she be able to write her own happily ever after?

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Bianca Torre Is Afraid of Everything

Justine Pucella Winans

Murder most fowl? In this sardonic and campy YA thriller, an anxious, introverted nonbinary teen birder somehow finds themself investigating a murder with their neighbor/fellow anime lover, all while falling for a cute girl from their birding group...and trying not to get killed next.

Sixteen-year-old Bianca Torre is an avid birder undergoing a gender identity crisis and grappling with an ever-growing list of fears. Some, like Fear #6: Initiating Conversation, keep them constrained, forcing them to watch birds from the telescope in their bedroom. And, occasionally, their neighbors. When their gaze wanders to one particular window across the street, Bianca witnesses a creepy plague-masked murderer take their neighbor's life. Worse, the death is ruled a suicide, forcing Bianca to make a choice--succumb to their long list of fears (including #3 Murder and #55 Breaking into a Dead Guy's Apartment), or investigate what happened.

Bianca enlists the help of their friend Anderson Coleman, but the two have more knowledge of anime than true crime. As Bianca and Anderson dig deeper into the murder with a little help from Bianca's crush and fellow birding aficionado, Elaine Yee (#13 Beautiful People, #11 Parents Discovering They're a Raging Lesbian), the trio uncover a conspiracy much larger--and weirder--than imagined. And when the killer catches wind of the investigation, suddenly Bianca's #1 fear of public speaking doesn't sound so bad compared to the threat of being silenced for good.

In this absurdist, darkly comical YA thriller that is a deceptively deep exploration of anxiety and identity, perhaps the real murder investigation is the friends we make along the way.

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Saved: A War Reporter's Mission to Make It Home

Benjamin Hall

Dispatches from the Edge meets In an Instant in this dramatic memoir of war, family, resilience, and recovery from Benjamin Hall, the Fox News journalist who was gravely injured by a Russian attack in the early days of the invasion of Ukraine.

When veteran war reporter Benjamin Hall woke up in Kyiv on the morning of March 14, 2022, he had no idea that, within hours, Russian bombs would nearly end his life. As a journalist for Fox News, Hall had worked in dangerous war zones like Syria and Afghanistan, but with three young daughters at home, life on the edge was supposed to be a thing of the past. Yet when Russia viciously attacked Ukraine in February 2022, Hall quickly volunteered to go; despite the risks, he knew that Americans needed to understand this world-altering conflict. A few weeks later, while on assignment, Hall and his crew were blown up in a Russian strike. With Hall himself gravely injured and stuck in Kyiv, it was unclear if he would make it out alive.

This is the story of how he survived--a story that continues to this day. For the first time, Hall shares his experience in full--from his ground-level view of the war to his dramatic rescue to his arduous, and ongoing, recovery. Going inside the events that have permanently transformed him, Hall recalls his time at the front lines of our world's conflicts, exploring how his struggle to step away from war reporting led him back one perilous last time, and explaining how his years of experience kept him safe, right up until they failed him. Featuring nail-biting accounts from the many people across multiple countries who banded together to get him to safety, Hall offers a stunning look at complex teamwork and heartfelt perseverance that turned his life into a mission. He'd been telling war stories for years, and now, suddenly, he was one.

Through it all, Hall's spirit has remained undaunted, buoyed by that remarkable corps of people from around the world whose collective determination ensured his survival--the former and current military personnel who rescued him, the medical staff who saved him, his coworkers who fought for his safe return, and his family who supported him at every turn. Ultimately, this trauma, the greatest of his life, serves as a pivotal reminder to us all of the fundamental goodness in the world, illuminating how the horrors of war can bring about the best in humanity. Evocative, harrowing, and deeply moving, Saved is a powerful memoir of family and friends, of life and healing, and of how to respond when you are tested in ways you never thought possible.

Benjamin Hall's memoir includes a 16-page color photo insert.

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An Appetite for Miracles

Laekan Zea Kemp

Award-winning author Laekan Zea Kemp's heart-wrenching novel-in-verse follows two teens who must come together to heal the pain from their pasts, perfect for fans of Elizabeth Acevedo and Nicola Yoon.



Danna Mendoza Villarreal's grandfather is slowly losing himself as his memories fade, and Danna's not sure her plan to help him remember through the foods he once reviewed will be enough to bring him back. Especially when her own love of food makes her complicated relationship with her mother even more difficult.



Raúl Santos has been lost ever since his mother was wrongly incarcerated two years ago. Playing guitar for the elderly has been his only escape, to help them remember and him forget. But when his mom unexpectedly comes back into his life, what is he supposed to do when she isn't the same person who left?



When Danna and Raúl meet, sparks fly immediately and they embark on a mission to heal her grandfather...and themselves. Because healing is something best done together--even if it doesn't always look the way we want it to.
 

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Blood Debts

Terry J. Benton-Walker

GODS MEDDLE AND MAGIC WILL BETRAY YOU, BUT THIS TIME JUSTICE WILL REIGN.

Terry J. Benton-Walker's contemporary fantasy debut, Blood Debts, is "an extravaganza from start to finish" (Chloe Gong) with powerful magical families, intergenerational curses, and deadly drama in New Orleans.


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“A conjuring of magnificence.” —Nic Stone • “A force.” —Roseanne A. Brown • “An extravaganza.” —Chloe Gong • “Powerful.” —Ayana Gray • “Sings with hope and rage.” —TJ Klune • “An unforgettable thrill ride.” —J. Elle • “Steeped in magic.” —Alexis Henderson • “Crackles with mystery and ferocity.” —Mark Oshiro

Thirty years ago, a young woman was murdered, a family was lynched, and New Orleans saw the greatest magical massacre in its history. In the days that followed, a throne was stolen from a queen.

On the anniversary of these brutal events, Clement and Cristina Trudeau—the sixteen-year-old twin heirs to the powerful, magical, dethroned family—are mourning their father and caring for their sick mother. Until, by chance, they discover their mother isn’t sick—she’s cursed. Cursed by someone on the very magic council their family used to rule. Someone who will come for them next.

Cristina, once a talented and dedicated practitioner of Generational magic, has given up magic for good. An ancient spell is what killed their father and she was the one who cast it. For Clement, magic is his lifeline. A distraction from his anger and pain. Even better than the random guys he hooks up with.

Cristina and Clement used to be each other’s most trusted confidant and friend, now they barely speak. But if they have any hope of discovering who is coming after their family, they’ll have to find a way to trust each other and their family's magic, all while solving the decades-old murder that sparked the still-rising tensions between the city’s magical and non-magical communities. And if they don't succeed, New Orleans may see another massacre. Or worse.

★ “Riveting and relevant.” —Kirkus Reviews, starred review

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Never Vacation with Your Ex

Emily Wibberley

The Summer I Turned Pretty meets People We Meet on Vacation in a YA second chance romance from fan-favorite author couple #Wibbroka!

Seventeen-year-old volleyball star Kaylee Jordan lives a life of player rankings, constant training, and a carefully curated social media full of followers watching to see if she'll go pro out of high school like her famous mom. Her one refuge, and the thing she looks forward to every summer? The vacation her family spends in Malibu with the Freeman-Yus. This year, there’s only one problem: Kaylee and their son, Dean, dated for the past three months, and Kaylee just unceremoniously dumped him. Hoping to spare them the worst summer ever, Kaylee comes to Dean with her unconventional solution: she’s going to walk him through her rules for getting over an ex. When Dean grudgingly cooperates, Kaylee’s got her work cut out for her. But helping Dean follow her own rules starts becoming difficult when the pressures of Kaylee’s family legacy and perfect life start to feel less like a plan and more like a prison…and amid warm California nights and stolen laughs, Kaylee feels herself falling for Dean for the same reasons and some new ones. With their trip coming to an end, Kaylee has to make the complicated choice between doing what’s expected and taking a (second) chance on love.

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Greymist Fair

Francesca Zappia

The villagers of Greymist Fair know that the woods are a dangerous and magical place, and that they should never set foot off the road. But when a young tailor discovers a body, her search for the culprit reveals even more strange and dark happenings around her town.

From acclaimed author Francesca Zappia, Greymist Fair is a suspenseful and inventive murder-mystery infused with magic and inspired by the lesser-known fairytales of the Brothers Grimm.

Two roads lead into a dark forest. They meet at Greymist Fair, the village hidden in the trees, a place kept alive by the families that never leave. The people of Greymist Fair know the woods are a dangerous and magical place, and to set foot off the road is to invite trouble.

When Heike, the village's young tailor, discovers a body on the road, she goes looking for who is responsible. But her quest only leads to more strange happenings around Greymist Fair.

Inspired by the original, bloody, lesser-known fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm, acclaimed author Francesca Zappia crafts an enthralling murder-mystery that will keep readers turning the pages. Told from multiple points of view, with each narrative building on the crime discovered by Heike, Greymist Fair examines the themes of childhood fears, growing into adult responsibilities, and finding a place to call home amid the trials of life and death.

Features chapter decorations by the author throughout, as well as a map.

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Lucha of the Night Forest

Tehlor Kay Mejia

An edge-of-your-seat fantasy about a girl who will do anything to protect her sister—even if it means striking a dangerous bargain. Dark forces, forgotten magic, and a heart-stopping queer romance make this young adult novel a must-read.

A scorned god.
A mysterious acolyte.
A forgetting drug.
A dangerous forest.
One girl caught between the freedom she always wanted and a sister she can't bear to leave behind.
Under the cover of the Night Forest, will Lucha be able to step into her own power...or will she be consumed by it?

This gorgeous and fast-paced fantasy novel from acclaimed author Tehlor Kay Mejia is brimming with adventure, peril, romance, and family bonds—and asks what it means for a teen girl to become fully herself.

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Brighter Than the Sun

Daniel Aleman

This timely and thought-provoking story about a teen girl shouldering impossibly large responsibilities and ultimately learning that she doesn't have to do it alone is the perfect follow-up to Daniel Aleman's award-winning debut novel, Indivisible.



Every morning, sixteen-year-old Sol wakes up at the break of dawn in her hometown of Tijuana, Mexico and makes the trip across the border to go to school in the United States. Though the commute is exhausting, this is the best way to achieve her dream: becoming the first person in her family to go to college.



When her family's restaurant starts struggling, Sol must find a part-time job in San Diego to help her dad put food on the table and pay the bills. But her complicated school and work schedules on the US side of the border mean moving in with her best friend and leaving her family behind.

With her life divided by an international border, Sol must come to terms with the loneliness she hides, the pressure she feels to succeed for her family, and the fact that the future she once dreamt of is starting to seem unattainable. Mostly, she'll have to grapple with a secret she's kept even from herself: that maybe she's relieved to have escaped her difficult home life, and a part of her may never want to return.
 

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Always June (Hungry, Book 2)

Kate Karyus Quinn

June's secret eating disorder has been exposed to her whole school, and she knows there's no going back to the way things were. Plus, her mom has started dating again--and it's serious. What's worse, her big sister Mae leaves for college early after a big fight. While taking refuge at the local bowling alley, June gets roped into joining the girls' bowling team. As she improves her bowling game, June finds a newfound appreciation of all her body can do, a surprising group of outcast friends, and even a new love interest. But June must find a way to deal with her eating disorder--or risk losing everything else.

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Happily Ever Afters

Elise Bryant

Jane the Virgin meets To All the Boys I've Loved Before in this charming debut romantic comedy filled with Black Girl Magic. Perfect for fans of Mary H. K. Choi and Nicola Yoon, with crossover appeal for readers of Jasmine Guillory and Talia Hibbert romances.

Sixteen-year-old Tessa Johnson has never felt like the protagonist in her own life. She's rarely seen herself reflected in the pages of the romance novels she loves. The only place she's a true leading lady is in her own writing--in the swoony love stories she shares only with Caroline, her best friend and #1 devoted reader.

When Tessa is accepted into the creative writing program of a prestigious art school, she's excited to finally let her stories shine. But when she goes to her first workshop, the words are just...gone. Fortunately, Caroline has a solution: Tessa just needs to find some inspiration in a real-life love story of her own. And she's ready with a list of romance novel-inspired steps to a happily ever after. Nico, the brooding artist who looks like he walked out of one of Tessa's stories, is cast as the perfect Prince Charming.

But as Tessa checks each item off Caroline's list, she gets further and further away from herself. She risks losing everything she cares about--including the surprising bond she develops with sweet Sam, who lives across the street. She's well on her way to having her own real-life love story, but is it the one she wants, after all?

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Great Expectations

Charles Dickens

Now an original series on FX and Hulu starring Olivia Coleman

A newly repackaged edition of Dickens’s classic coming-of-age tale, with an introduction, contextual essays, a map, and suggestions for further exploration by Victorian scholar Tanya Agathocleous.


A terrifying encounter with an escaped convict in a graveyard on the wild Kent marshes; a summons to meet the bitter, decaying Miss Havisham and her beautiful, cold-hearted ward Estella; the sudden generosity of a mysterious benefactor-these form a series of events that change the orphan Pip's life forever, as he eagerly abandons his humble origins to begin a new life as a gentleman. Dickens's haunting novel depicts Pip's education and development through adversity as he discovers the true nature of his great expectations. Published nine years before Dickens's death, it remains one of his most celebrated works.

For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

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Bravo, Little Bird!

Annie Silvestro

Perfect for fans of Ocean Meets Sky and Drawn Together, this lyrical, “heartwarming” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review) picture book about a special friendship between an old man and a little bird celebrates the power of music, family, and the legacies our loved ones leave behind.

The old man played joyful, jolly music.
Sad, soulful music.
Beautiful, bountiful, breathtaking music.
Little Bird listened…until she couldn’t stay quiet any longer.
Then, she sang.
“Bravo, Little Bird!” cheered the old man.

From this moment on, Little Bird and the old man are inseparable. Together, they make music and share their gifts with their families. But over time, the old man starts to grow tired…until the day comes when his piano playing stops altogether. As Little Bird looks for a special way to honor the old man’s memory, she soon discovers that her friend isn’t truly gone after all—he lives on in their music.

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Never Forget Eleanor

Jason June

 

 

This poignant story from New York Times bestselling author Jason June and #1 New York Times bestselling illustrator Loren Long reminds us of the life-changing power of words and the ways we remember the ones we love who've been affected by Alzheimer's or dementia. Perfect for fans of Drawn Together and The Rough Patch.

 

 

Elijah loves spending time with his grandma Eleanor. She knows all the best words to answer tricky crossword puzzles and to tell the most beautiful stories to her family and friends.

Everyone calls her "Never Forget Eleanor" because she remembers every word she reads and person she meets. Lately though, Elijah has started to notice Grandma Eleanor forgetting little things.

So when Grandma Eleanor doesn't show up for her Saturday story session, Elijah will need to find a way to use her favorite words and become the storyteller himself to bring her home.

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All Your Tomorrows

Harriet Evans

This lyrical, heartfelt celebration of growing up presents a parent’s wishes for a new baby and all of the promise that lies ahead in the child’s life.

This tender, lyrical picture book celebrates a parent’s wish for a new baby. There is so much opportunity and promise that lies ahead for the little one, from the places they’ll go, to the smiles they’ll share, to the songs that their heart will sing, and so much more. Beauty and adventure in the world are waiting for the child; and no matter how small he or she may be, the possibilities that lie ahead are endless. Perfect for sharing with a special little one at story time, and an ideal gift for any new parent.

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I Love You: A Touch-and-Feel Playbook

Ladybird

Say "I Love You" to different animals and objects in this sweet installment of the Baby Touch series.

Touch and feel all kinds of loving animals and objects in this adorable addition to the Baby Touch series. From soft lions to shiny mermaids, this immersive board book is filled with heart-shaped holes to look through, bold illustrations, and interactive moments that celebrate family and friendship.

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The Gentle Genius of Trees

Philip Bunting

Let trees teach you everything from how to branch out to how to stay rooted in this delightful blend of nonfiction and inspirational humor by author-illustrator Philip Bunting!

What could we clever humans ever learn from trees? Find out when you take a stroll through the woods and learn a few life lessons from our foliaged friends in this truly special book filled with graphic illustrations.

With humor and heart, readers will encounter a small forest of facts. They'll explore the brilliance of trees in creating one interconnected wood-wide web that enables their community to collaborate with each other, share resources, warn of threats, and survive and thrive together.

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Alice's Wonderland Bakery: The Gingerbread Palace

Disney Books

The Gingerbread Palace takes readers on a magical trip down the rabbit hole to a place where sugar and spice make everything nice: Alice's Wonderland Bakery. Based on the holiday special of the Disney Junior series, this gorgeously illustrated picture book follows Alice, the 8-year-old great-granddaughter of the original Alice, after she inherits her great-grandmother's enchanted bakery in the wacky, wonderful world of Wonderland.

With a sprinkle of creativity, a dash of curiosity, and a can-do attitude, Alice is ready to confront any kitchen challenge, from catering a mad tea party to baking a gingerbread house big enough for the entire Wonderland community to celebrate Christmas together.

Complete your Disney collection with these fan favorites:

  • Mira, the Royal Detective: The New Royal Detective
  • Fancy Nancy: My Fanciest Things
  • Disney Princess: Once Upon a Flower Girl
  • 101 Dalmatians: Spot the Difference
  • Mulan's Lunar New Year
  • Disney My First Stories: Alice Wants to Grow
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Edible Crafts Kids' Cookbook Ages 4-8

Charity Mathews

Deliciously fun edible art projects for kids ages 4 to 8

What’s cooler than making a masterpiece you can eat? The Edible Crafts Kids’ Cookbook for ages 4-8 will get little Picassos swishing, swirling, mixing, and molding in the kitchen as they create super fun art projects they’ll delight in and devour when they're done.

This must-have cookbook for kids will let them have their art and eat it too using:

 

  • Flavor-filled fun and learning—Kids will craft 25 sweet and savory delights from real food, everything from constellation cookies to monster-faced veggie cups. As they knead, frost, and measure their way through each recipe they’ll learn cooking and science skills.
  • Simple instructions—Keep fidgety fingers busy and on task using simple steps and plenty of pictures that make it easy to see what you’re creating together.
  • Edible art for all—Each recipe is rated by difficulty and includes labels for dairy free, gluten free, nut free, and vegetarian options. This way it’s easy to pick the perfect project and ensure everyone in the family can indulge in each tasty creation.

 


Spark their creativity, teach them invaluable kitchen skills, and inspire a lifelong love of food with the Edible Crafts Kids’ Cookbook for ages 4-8.

 

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Police Dogs

Cynthia Argentine

In this book, readers explore how dogs help investigate and solve crimes, as well as the skills and training this work requires. Short paragraphs of easy-to-read text are paired with plenty of colorful photos to make reading engaging and accessible. The book also includes a table of contents, fun facts, sidebars, comprehension questions, a glossary, an index, and a list of resources for further reading. Apex books have low reading levels (grades 2-3) but are designed for older students, with interest levels of grades 3-7.

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Linus

Stuart Hausmann

In the spirit of All Are Welcome, this gentle picture book about being yourself and inspiring change in others follows sweet, plucky Linus who doesn’t fit into the rigid confines of his straitlaced world—and learns that that’s okay.

Linus is trying his very best to stay in line, but everyone in Linneopolis is bent out of shape because he isn’t square enough for them. When he’s sent to an overnight camp to straighten out and build some character, Linus decides he’s had enough. He’s going to run away and find shapes that aren’t so set in their ways.

But what happens when he starts to miss home? Can he convince the population of Linneopolis to open up instead of shutting down? Or are they too boxed in to hear him out?

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I Am Not an Octopus

Eoin McLaughlin

Can a scaredy octopus in denial embrace his true identity? A goofy octopod finally dares to take the plunge—and dip his tentacles into the water he fears.

Terry is definitely not an octopus. He’s just a regular guy who happens to have a few extra limbs and a love of canned tuna. But again, he is NOT an octopus. If he were an octopus, he’d be living in the ocean, right? Not to mention going to Super Octopus Fantasea Adventure World. He definitely wouldn't be on land, unless he was afraid of the water. Which he absolutely isn’t! OK, maybe, just maybe, it’s time he learned how to swim? Kids will smile at this very silly story about being brave, facing your fears, and accepting who you really are.

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The Rainbow Snail

Karin Åkesson

A strikingly-designed early learning picture book introducing colors and a fabulous new character--the Rainbow Snail! Karin Åkesson's beautiful artwork and easy-to-read text combine to create a wonderfully interactive book to teach toddlers colors and a charming read-aloud children's book for ages 0-2 and up. Stick with the snail as it journeys through colorful surroundings, from black to the boldest colors of the rainbow!



Blue like the raindrops. Green like the soft grass. Yellow like the warm sun. This is the story of how the rainbow snail came to be. It takes sun and rain to make a rainbow, and what better combination of colors could there be?



The Rainbow Snail's educational appeal, as young readers follow a brave little creature's exciting adventure while learning the colors of the rainbow, will make this a popular picture book with educators, librarians, and parents. It makes a lovely newborn gift to help build a collection of baby books for the expecting parents' nursery library. As with all of Boxer Books' titles, this baby book has an inventive but classic theme that children and adults can enjoy together.
 

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Sisters in Science

Linda Elovitz Marshall

Discover the fascinating true story of Nobel Prize winner Marie Curie and her sister Bronia, two trailblazing women who worked together and made a legendary impact on chemistry and health care as we know it.

Marie Curie has long been a well-known name around the world. Though Marie made extraordinary scientific advances discovering new elements with her husband, Pierre, many students do not know about the powerful bond that propelled her into science: her sisterhood with Bronia! A force in academia and health care herself, Bronia made significant contributions to the scientific world, along with her loving support of sister Marie.

Sisters in Science is a compelling biography of two sisters who created their own paths while keeping the atomic bonds of sisterhood strong.

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Gertie, the Darling Duck of WWII

Shari Swanson

In 1945, the attention of the United States, along with the rest of the world, was focused on World War II. After more than five years of fighting, downcast, war-weary people were looking for signs of hope of a better future. One April morning, a duck searching for a nesting spot lands on a tall post sticking out of the Milwaukee River. Situated near a busy drawbridge and the noisy city of Milwaukee, this was an unlikely, precarious spot for a soon-to-be-mama duck to build her nest. But that is exactly where Gertie (named by a local reporter) decides to make her home and lay her eggs. Once local newspapers report the story, crowds begin visiting the bridge to watch Gertie and speculate how she will safely hatch her babies. Soon, news outlets around the world are carrying the hopeful tale of the plucky duck, raising spirits, and giving readers a shared sense of community.

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Bite, Sting, Kill

Julie Beer


Explore the animal kingdom like never before in this thrilling roundup of animals that bite, sting ... and kill.

A venomous lizard the size of a car. A snake that can take down an elephant. A stealthy scorpion ready to strike. Sound like the makings of the ultimate thriller movie? It's real life. And that's just the beginning.

Discover how the bites and stings of black mambas, Komodo dragons, king cobras, black widow spiders, Gila monsters, pit vipers, rattlesnakes, scorpions, and more spell certain doom for their prey. Dig deeper into topics such as how fangs work, how antivenoms are developed, what snake milkers do, and the surprising ways venom can actually help humans.

Unbelievable photography and lively text bring readers up close and personal to the spine-tingling action. You'll never look at animals the same way again.

Discover more amazing animals with these other National Geographic Kids Books:

Ick! Delightfully Disgusting Animal Dinners, Dwellings, and Defenses by Melissa Stewart

Beastly Bionics: Rad Robots, Brilliant Biomimicry, and Incredible Inventions Inspired by Nature by Jennifer Swanson

Animal Zombies: And Other Bloodsucking Beasts, Creepy Creatures, and Real-Life Monsters by Chana Stiefel

Chomp! Fierce Facts About the BITE FORCE, CRUSHING JAWS, and MIGHTY TEETH of Earth's Champion Chewers by Brady Barr

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Emperor of the Ice

Nicola Davies

Enter the dark Antarctic winter, where a pair of emperor penguins share the task of keeping their young one alive—and discover how fighting climate change is key to their survival.


As harsh winter descends and other birds move toward warmth, lines of emperor penguins appear in search of the perfect ice for breeding and raising their chicks. One wise old empress finds her mate, and after laying a single, huge egg, heads to the stormy ocean to hunt for fish. For weeks, her mate must warm the egg in his pouch, huddling against blizzards and bitter cold. When his mate returns, the two take turns fishing and minding their newly hatched chick until it’s big enough to stay warm on its own. Luminously illustrated by Catherine Rayner, Nicola Davies’s engrossing narrative expands the focus from one emperor family to the plight of the breed as it faces displacement due to climate change. An afterword details the loss of many emperor chicks at Halley Bay after a storm broke up the ice under one of the largest penguin colonies—and encourages readers to help protect the environment so these extraordinary survivors will continue to be found in the Antarctic for generations to come.

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Hades and the Helm of Darkness Graphic Novel

Joan Holub

Hades is the center of the (under)world in the third book of the graphic novel adaptation of the popular Heroes in Training series!

The Underworld usually isn’t anyone’s idea of a fun place—except for Hades. He loves the dark and even the stinky smell of sulfur! But there is one thing that Hades is not a fan of…dogs. And when Zeus and his fellow Olympians encounter Cerberus—a mean, snarling, three-headed dog—Hades must conquer his fears and tame the dog in order for everyone to continue on to the Underworld and drop off their Titan prisoner, Oceanus, back where he belongs!

With magical water that makes one forget, hot beds of lava, and another epic battle with two more Titans standing in their way, can Zeus and his heroes make it out of the Underworld with everyone intact?

New readers and old fans alike will enjoy these full-color graphic novel adaptations of the long-running Heroes in Training series.

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History Comics: Rosa Parks & Claudette Colvin

Tracey Baptiste

Turn back the clock with History Comics! In this volume, learn about two brave women who stood up against segregation, setting in motion the Montgomery Bus Boycott!

A Black woman who refused to give up her seat on a segregated bus sparked a bus boycott and became part of one of the most iconic moments in American history. Yet, few know that Rosa Parks had actively worked toward social justice her whole life. And even fewer know that the seeds of the statewide bus boycott were first planted by a teenager named Claudette Colvin, who was arrested on similar charges months earlier. Rosa Parks and Claudette Colvin inspired a nation, showing how positive change can start with a single defiant act. Their actions have become the stuff of legend, but there is so much more to their lives, their stories, and the movement they began.

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