There are lots of books about hiking the Appalachian Trail, but none highlight the sense of community as well as Lugo’s. From fellow-hikers, whose trail names will make you laugh-out-loud, to trail angels who help thru-hikers with food and support, Lugo paints a picture of community that will have you trying out those hiking boots in your closet. With humor, perseverance and a blossoming appreciation of the wilderness he hikes, Lugo’s tapestry of his five plus months on the trail reminds us that the lessons Nature holds for us are worth every difficulty. I just want to know that Magic is okay.
This is a call to pride, not the kind of pride that hides the difficulties, struggles, and pain, but the kind of pride that speaks them freely, openly, and in so doing removes their power. Prisca Dorcas Mojica Rodriguez (say it all and say it correctly!) pours out her love and confidence in Brown girls and through the often painful stories of her own struggles in places she was not welcome, places where she was asked to be other than who she is, she lights a path for those embarking on their own journeys. It is truly a love letter, the kind that shows that the sender sees you in all your glory and difficulty and loves you fully. A gift of incredible beauty and empowerment!
In any but the masterful, compassionate hands of Ozeki, this young boy’s quest to understand questions of love, loss, freewill, our relationships with things, and the place of story would be daunting, but this book guides like the smoothest of dancers in the most difficult dances: hold lightly, follow the lead, and enjoy. Benny Oh and his mother, Annabelle, are trying to deal with the death of Benny’s father, but there is no place for grief in the chaos of bills, technology, and the excess of things. The library gives Benny some relief; there are people there who understand the pull and danger of the chaos and the books that try to give it meaning and order, but Benny and Annabelle each must navigate their stories in order to find their path. A brilliant book of wisdom to help us navigate the complex trials we face with a reminder to believe in the power of story.
Who knew Sleeping Beauty could be so damn good? Tell girls fairy tales like these, stories of women fighting FOR each other, finding ways to help even in worlds that celebrate women’s subjugation, stories that celebrate the most subtle and out-loud kinds of sister love, and watch the world change. Zinnia Gray is 21 and soon to die, not the go-to-sleep-for-a-hundred-years kind of death, but the permanent one. Having lived with this all her life, she’s a bit snarky and incredibly feisty. When the prick of her finger onto an old spindle lands her in the world of her favorite fairy tale, Sleeping Beauty, she discovers that the story is not what it’s always appeared to be, and maybe, if she can’t save herself, at least she can make a difference in the real Sleeping Beauty’s world. You are going to love the women in Harrow’s worlds!
A propulsive revenge murder mystery that deftly explores the intricacies of the first- generation immigrant experience. Victor Li is just a SoCal kid navigating his way through his basketball aspirations, friends and a love life that is always just a bit of confidence away, but his dad’s murder propels him into a world in which the past divulges secrets that tear apart the comfortable world he thought he understood. Richly layered and beautifully written, this is a coming-of-age mystery that sheds light on the generational trauma immigrant parents try so hard to shield their kids from.
