Dig by A.S. King
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
there was just so much going on in this book, maybe too much or maybe I just wasn’t ready for it all to come at me at once.
And maybe that’s a problem with how I view teen literature and maybe even actual teens themselves. It’s never just one thing going on in their lives, it’s intertwined stories, the stories of their lives, their family’s history, their friends, connections…they wish it was only one thing at a time but it’s not and that is reality.
Like so many of King’s books, it sticks with you long after the last pages, the characters and their personal “what ifs” still lingering…
Exit Strategy by Martha Wells
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I’m so glad that a Murderbot novel was announced before I finished this boom because I need to know more! A great wrap up to the first series arc, but there is so much more for Murderbot to see and do, so many more episodes of Sanctuary Moon!
We’re Not from Here by Geoff Rodkey
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This book was a lot smarter than I thought it was going to be. With the cover image featuring two large aliens that look like giant insects, I assumed it would just be goofy fun but it was so much more. Refugees who thought they were welcome find themselves suddenly vilified by the current government?! Forced to prove they are good creatures even though the news says they are clearly bad based on footage seen 20 years ago.
Definitely taking this with me for booktalks to upper elementary and middle school.
Be Prepared by Vera Brosgol
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Great book to hand to fans of ‘Smile’ or other stories about a kid just trying to survive being a kid!
Poor Vera just wants to be like her American friends. She’s embarrassed by her Russian mother and doesn’t know how to quite fit in. She listens to them talk about their American Girl dolls, their family trips and the most exciting thing – summer camps! But Vera knows her Mom can’t afford these fancy camps away from home. Until she discovers the ORRA, a camp for Russian kids right outside of Albany! She begs her mother to sign up and her little brother up! So is so excited for this first trip away from home, making new friends!
Of course, things do not go as planned. This camp is very…well…Russian. Everyone is expected to speak Russian. They are not allowed to have any kind of candy in the camp. They compete with the boy in a “capture the flag” style game, and whoever wins the flag gets to choose the others punishment. But Vera knows that her mother worked hard for them to attend this camp, and it’s only two weeks, right?
The Underwater Welder by Jeff Lemire
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Everyone in Jeff Lemire’s books look tired. Even the kids, with their long faces and outlines of bags under their eyes. But it works because before you even read a page, you can tell these people have lived.
Jack’s wife is about to give birth to their first child and the pressure is on. As an underwater welder, he is no stranger to pressure, but this is nothing like he has ever experienced before. Becoming a father for the first time is making Jack more nervous than he realizes and when he almost dies during a routine dive, he begins to examine his own childhood.
Very quick read, but as always, beautiful artwork on each page that you have to slow down and appreciate.
Side Note: I think I just need to read ‘Essex County’ and I will be caught upon all of Lemire’s original works.
Apocalypse Taco by Nathan Hale
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This is a ‘Stranger Things’ fan read-alike if I ever saw one! I expected this book to be fun, I did not expect it to revolve around a science experiment and ethics that would actually make this a great book discussion title for a middle school book club.
What were your stand out reads for May?
orangerful 