(3) K-3 Illustrated by Ana Ramírez González. Hippo-like animal Elba is weighted down by a big black block that she drags behind her everywhere. When she meets effervescent reptile Norris, he helps her to talk about the loss of a friend, and the block gets smaller and lighter. Ramírez González's bright mixed-media illustrations bring hope to this useful parable about the burden of sadness and the importance of sharing feelings with supportive friends.

Reviewer: Maeve Visser Knoth

(4) 4-6 Fourth grader India, adopted from China, lives in Maine with her artist mother and their dog Tofu; her dad recently moved out to live with another man. Now India's friend Colby might like her enemy, Amanda. It's a lot for one story to bear, but the tale is cheerful and breezy, as relationships get sorted out and some mysteries are solved.

Reviewer: Cyrisse Jaffee

(3) YA In a rigidly regulated future United Christian States of America, only Believers have rights. Fifteen-year-old Adrian and his motley companions set off on a journey through the radioactive Deadlands of Massachusetts to Maine. There, Adrian joins the Resistance and foils an apocalyptic HomeState Regime plot. A tense dystopian adventure only slightly diluted by philosophical musings.

Reviewer: Dorrie Karlin

(4) 4-6 Thirteen-year-old diarist Aggie and her older brother are left in Maine with their eccentric ninety-one-year-old grandfather while their romance-novelist mother researches her next book. What follows is a tale of family revelations and personal discovery for the narrator. Although overly sentimental at times, Agell's debut novel is a complex picture of family life, told with the warmth of a Maine summer.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz

(3) PS This sweet story, told through cheery watercolor, ink, and pastel illustrations with just enough text to hold them together, follows four animal friends as they venture out for a hike on a rainy day. The going gets a little rough at times--"We can always go back home again!"--but the friends persevere and are eventually rewarded with sunshine, wild blackberries, and a spectacular view before they return to the comfort of home.

Reviewer: Christine M. Heppermann

(4) PS Simple, rhymed phrases describe the excitement of four animals as they sail off to spend the day on an island. Ink line with watercolor wash and oil pastel shading combine in active pictures dominated by sea blues. Sketchy lines and the loose use of watercolors work well in depicting the environment, but the animals lose clarity at times.

Reviewer: Suzy Schmidt