Geo Librarian

  ABLAZE: The Story of America's First Female Smokejumper written by Jessica Lawson, illustrated by Sarah Gonzales Viking, 2025 ISBN: 978-0-593-46365-9 Source: publisher for review Ages 4-8 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover & summary provided by the publisher through Goodreads.com. ABOUT THE BOOK Deanne loved being outdoors. With her family, she spent summers sailing the Salton Sea and backpacking the Sierra Nevada Mountains. As she grew older, her love of nature only grew. So when the heat rose each fire season and the blazes burned near and far, she noticed. Deanne knew she had to do her part in fighting the fires. She spent years on woodland crews, clearing brush and branches that could make the fire spread, and on hotshot crews where she fought faster fires and took bigger risks, spending weeks in one-hundred-degree heat working twenty-four-hour shifts. But what Deanne really wanted was to be a smokejumper, to jump from planes and parachute into dangerous...

  THREAT OF THE SPIDER The Web of the Spider #2 written by Michael P. Spradlin McElderry Books, 2025 ISBN: 978-1-6659-4724-4 Source: publisher for review Ages 9-12 Middle grade historical fiction All opinions expressed are solely my own. Thanks to Simon & Schuster for arranging the interview and providing the book. ABOUT THE BOOK A twelve-year-old boy searches for his father and fights for free press amid the chilling rise of Hitler’s Germany in this second book in the action-packed middle grade series Web of the Spider for fans of I Survived and A Night Divided. Ansel has never been afraid to say what’s on his mind. He’s always the first among his friends to speak up when something doesn’t feel right. When the Hitler Youth first set up shop in Heroldsberg the year before, Ansel quickly made enemies of the chapter’s arrogant leader, Hans. Of course, Ansel is also twelve years old, so he spends much of his time reading his favorite Dirk Goodly, Boy Detective novels and trying to...

FOREVER FRIENDS Drag and Rex #1 written by Susan Lubner, illustrated by Blythe Russo Pixel & Ink, 2023 ISBN: 978-1-64595-115-5 Source: purchased Ages 6-10 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover provided by the publisher through Goodreads.com. REVIEW Drag (a dragon) and Rex (a T-rex) are roommates and best friends. As in many such early reader series, the book consists of three stories about the two friends and their adventures. Each story is divided into three short chapters. The two friends are, as one would expect, quite different but those differences make the stories feel fresh and the relationship more realistic. The delightful illustrations highlight the characters and the action and break up the text nicely. The first story follows Rex's efforts to make breakfast followed by making a cake for his friend Lilly Pop. Drag attempts to help but causes problems when he can't resist his appetite. The second story finds Drag and Rex playing in the snow. But mis...

ANJALI CAN! Always Anjali #3 written by Sheetal Sheth, illustrated by Lucia Soto Random House Children's Books, 2025 ISBN: 978-0-593-65122-3 Source: publisher for review (Thanks!) Ages 4-8 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Author interview arranged by Random House. Book cover & summary provided by the publisher through Goodreads.com. ABOUT THE BOOK Seven-year-old Anjali is back and ready to prove there’s nothing she can’t do, in this third book in the Always Anjali series! When a beloved community center is threatened with shutting down, Anjali must quickly find a way to save the space or risk losing it. The local community center is a second home to Anjali. It's where she met her best friends; it's her favorite spot for game and movie nights; and it's where she learned to play tabla. Anjali has so many happy memories there, but now the community center is closing! Unwilling to let the center shut down for good, Anjali is determined to keep the place open. S...

  THE TROUBLE WITH HEROES written by Kate Messner Bloomsbury Children's Books, 2025 ISBN: 978-1-5476-1639-8 Source: ARC from author/publisher Ages 9-12 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover & summary provided by the publisher through Goodreads.com. ABOUT THE BOOK One summer. 46 mountain peaks. A second chance to make things right. Finn Connelly is nothing like his dad, a star athlete and firefighter hero who always ran toward danger until he died two years ago. Finn's about to fail seventh grade and has never made headlines . . . until now. Caught on camera vandalizing a cemetery, he's in big trouble for kicking down some dead old lady's headstone. But it turns out that grave belongs to a legendary local mountain climber, and her daughter makes Finn an unusual offer...climb all forty-six Adirondack High Peaks with her dead mother's dog, and they can call it even. In a wild three months of misadventures, mountain mud, and unexpected mentors, Finn b...

IN THE DESERT written by David Elliott, illustrated by Gordy Wright Candlewick Press, 2025 ISBN: 978-1-5362-2338-5 Source: publisher for review Ages 6-10 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover & summary provided by the publisher through Goodreads.com. ABOUT THE BOOK With wonder and wit, David Elliott’s poems look beyond the Sahara’s blinding surface to the rich flora and fauna of the world’s largest hot desert, depicted in Gordy Wright’s vibrant illustrations. The Sahara, covering more than three million square miles, is a harsh and uninviting landscape, inhospitable to most forms of life. But under every rock, in every crevice, and hidden in the growth of the landscape, life persists. From the dangerous deathstalker scorpion and the Nile crocodile to the familiar Saharan cheetah and Nubian vulture, the animals of the Sahara not only survive but thrive. In his iconic and admiring poetry, David Elliott reveals the secrets of barren desert landscapes, featuring animals ...

IF I COULD CHOOSE A BEST DAY: Poems of Possibility selected by Irene Latham & Charles Waters, illustrated by Olivia Sua Candlewick Press, 2025 ISBN: 978-1-5362-1979-1 Source: publisher for review Ages 8-12 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover & summary provided by the publisher through Goodreads.com. ABOUT THE BOOK An ode to imagination and the power of “if,” this exhilarating poetry collection features the voices of thirty-one diverse poets. If I could choose a best day it would be sunny it would be summer and I would be with you. Imagine what you could do with if. Build a tree house, ride your bike back in time, catch a firefly like a tiny star in the palm of your hands and let it go to make a wish—anything, when it starts with if. Because if is where your imagination begins, where the impossible becomes possible, if only you imagine. And if you do, just think of how much better our world could be. Thirty-one poets, selected by “poetic forever friends” and fre...

  QUEEN OF THE SEA Cruise Life #1 written by Reese Eschmann Scholastic Inc., 2025 978-1-339-01815-7 Source: purchased Ages 8-11 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book covers & summaries provided by the publisher through Goodreads.com. ABOUT THE BOOK Caitlin and her big brother, Dylan, are still getting used to shuttling between Mom’s new little house and Dad’s fancy new condo after their divorce. But summer means a solid six weeks with her dad. Finally, one toothbrush in one place and all her outfits together! So when her dad announces that he’s gotten a new job on the fanciest, most fun, family-friendly cruise line -- and he’s bringing his kids along -- Caitlin has mixed feelings. For about a minute! Then off she goes on the adventure of a lifetime on the biggest ship she’s ever seen, the Wandering Princess, which is tricked out to perfection. But soon the pressures of being a crew kid get to Caitlin. She's already had to adjust to two new homes . . . will she be able ...

  THE MONARCH written by Kirsten Hall, illustrated by Isabelle Arsenault Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2025 ISBN: 978-1-6659-4342-0 Source: publisher for review (Thanks!) Ages 4-8 Picture book nonfiction All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover & summary provided by the publisher on Goodreads.com. ABOUT THE BOOK A gorgeous, lively picture book companion to Kirsten Hall and Isabelle Arsenault’s beloved and acclaimed The Honeybee that celebrates the inspiring journey of the monarch butterfly. What’s that? In the air! Over here? Over there! It’s the start of a brand-new story… With sweetly fluttering verse and lush, gorgeous illustrations, this brightly beautiful picture book celebrates the wonders of monarch butterflies—a treasured species in need of care and preservation! REVIEW In this book, readers follow a butterfly's journey from caterpillar to butterfly. The adorable butterfly zips and zooms through the book, visiting a barn to find a mate while sipping from...