Geo Librarian

EXTRAORDINARY BIRDS by Sandy Stark-McGinnis Bloomsbury, 2019 ISBN: 978-1-5476-0102-8 (e-book) Source: Utah's Online Library Ages 9-12 All opinions expressed are solely my own. ABOUT THE BOOK Eleven-year-old December knows everything about birds, and everything about getting kicked out of foster homes. All she has of her mom is the bird guide she left behind, and a message: "In flight is where you'll find me." December believes she's truly a bird, just waiting for the day she transforms. The scar on her back is where her wings will sprout; she only needs to find the right tree and practice flying. When she's placed with foster mom Eleanor, who runs a taxidermy business and volunteers at a wildlife rescue, December begins to see what home means in a new light. But the story she’s told herself about her past is what's kept her going this long. Can she learn to let go? REVIEW Extraordinary Birds is a beautifully-written story ab...

GENESIS BEGINS AGAIN by Alicia D. Williams S&S/Atheneum, 2019 ISBN: 978-1481465809 Middle grade contemporary/issue Source: publisher for review Ages 9-14 All opinions expressed are solely my own.  ABOUT THE BOOK This deeply sensitive and powerful debut novel tells the story of a thirteen-year-old who is filled with self-loathing and must overcome internalized racism and a verbally abusive family to finally learn to love herself. There are ninety-six things Genesis hates about herself. She knows the exact number because she keeps a list. Like #95: Because her skin is so dark, people call her charcoal and eggplant—even her own family. And #61: Because her family is always being put out of their house, belongings laid out on the sidewalk for the world to see. When your dad is a gambling addict and loses the rent money every month, eviction is a regular occurrence. What’s not so regular is that this time they all don’t have a place to crash, so Genesi...

I REMEMBER MOMMY'S SMILE by Dina Wolfman Baker, illustrated by Rachel Nagelberg Baker's Dozen Press, 2011 ISBN: 978-0-615-44752-0 Picture Book Grades 1-5 Review copy provided by author in return for honest review. All opinions expressed are solely my own. ABOUT THE BOOK Sometimes it can be difficult to know how to talk with a child about the illness or death of a parent. I Remember Mommy’s Smile offers parents and other caregivers an opportunity to open the door to dialogue. It also shows children that they are not alone or strange; others have gone through this type of sadness and loss, and they have ended up okay. As author Dina Wolfman Baker understands from her own experience, knowing you’re not alone can mean a great deal. These are her memoirs…written from her child self to other children, with the sensitivity, honesty and directness that can only come from having been there. REVIEW Death is a very personal, sensitive subject, especially for childre...