(2) YA The last descendant of an infamous witch on a Pacific Northwest island, high-school dropout Nor can hear the thoughts of plants and animals. Nor witnesses a mass exodus of animals, and plants begin to act strangely; her impulse to self-harm becomes harder to control; and she regularly awakes from horrific nightmares--harbingers of her wicked mother's return. Walton's horror tale features a vivid setting, lyrical prose, and engaging characters.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2018

(4) YA Avery is navigating grief following his grandfather's death. His mother's alcoholism (which landed Avery with a patella injury following her drunk-driving crash) and potentially new sexual territory with his best friend, Luca, add complications, but Avery finds solace in songs and poetry, especially that of queer poets. Avery's intensely introspective, sometimes difficult-to-parse narrative incorporates many poetic forms in a prose/verse hybrid that will reward patient, reflective readers.

Reviewer: Norah Piehl

(3) YA Through journal entries to his therapist, Adam chronicles his harrowing battle with schizophrenia, which makes his fantasies indistinguishable from reality. A "miracle drug" is life-changing...at first. With a new girlfriend, Adam is desperate to hide his secret, but his illness is more powerful than he is. Highlighting the stigma surrounding mental illness, Adam's poignant (and often humorous) story is powerful and important.

Reviewer: Rebecca Kirshenbaum

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Dougal MacPherson. A teddy bear previously gendered a boy by human Erroll nervously announces that she's not Thomas but instead a girl teddy named Tilly. Luckily, Erroll provides unconditional support, and they can quickly go back to their tea parties and playground adventures. Soft ink and colored-pencil illustrations match the gentle tone of this simply stated and warmhearted gender-identity narrative.

Reviewer: Kazia Berkley-Cramer

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Joe Berger. As best friends Girl and Gorilla head to the park, excitable Gorilla is bursting with impossible schemes for getting there quickly--by wishing, for example, or by elephant. Girl is much more down-to-earth, as their amusing conversation reveals. Like the text, the illustrations play up the contrast between the friends, showing small, slender Girl next to big, broad Gorilla.

Reviewer: Martha Sibert

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Christine Davenier. Self-identifying fairy princess Gerry is giddy about the school Halloween parade. A sheet over her dress produces--voilà--an angel costume. After ketchup ruins her friend's dentist costume, Gerry's quick thinking saves the day. The from-angel-to-tooth-fairy drama works, but it takes up relatively few pages; the story feels padded. Davenier's art captures the swirl of costumed children in high celebration.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(4) YA In a religious small town, Tretch comes to terms with being gay. He knows his best friend Matt, raised by gay dads, will understand, but Tretch is equally certain Matt won't reciprocate his love. There's plenty of standard teen drama to hook readers--cruel bullying, awkward matchmaking, sibling solidarity--but the story is sometimes undercut by meandering introspection and half-resolved plot lines.

Reviewer: Claire E. Gross

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Christine Davenier. The end of the school year is approaching, and Gerry is already anxious about what the fall will hold (translation: will her new teacher put up with her "I'm a fairy princess" malarkey?). As with every Gerry outing, her narration is too cute by half, but the story delivers. Reliably, Davenier's art is as ebullient as Gerry (usually) feels.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Nathan Hale. Frankenstein: A Monstrous Parody spoofed Madeline; here the same team adds Clement Moore's classic into the mix. Eleven of the first book's twelve little monsters are "out of control"...and headless. But Frankenstein has an in with Santa's Head Elf (get it? Head Elf?), and Santa delivers just what everyone needs. Hale's green-tinted illustrations with red accents gleefully extend the irreverent rhyming text.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2014

(3) YA Narrator Ava describes her life being born (in 1944) with wings. She begins with her great-grandmother's story: Maman's emigration from Le Havre, France, to "Manhatine," her husband's disappearance, and the tragedy of two of her children's deaths. A third child, Emilienne, is Ava's grandmother, who bore her own share of troubles. Lyrical language permeates this languidly told magical realism tale full of mystery and melancholy.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Christine Davenier. In this go-around, Gerry the self-described fairy princess (the illustrations attest otherwise) throws herself into creating homemade valentines for her classmates but realizes at school that she forgot to bring them. Although the authors produce a satisfying solution, they borrow too heavily from Fancy Nancy, right down to Gerry's effervescent voice. The pages swarm with hearts, emotion, and WORDS IN CAPITAL LETTERS.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Christine Davenier. In fairy-princess wannabe Gerry's latest outing, she's a chorus member hell-bent on a solo in the school's winter concert. When the adult soloist recruited by the music teacher is waylaid, Gerry gets her moment of glory. This well-paced story offers a dubious message: apparently Gerry spells "teamwork" with an I. As always, Davenier's ink and colored-pencil art dances before our eyes.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(4) K-3 Illustrated by R. Gregory Christie. In 1859 Philip Reid, slave of a master craftsman, played a pivotal role in ensuring the Statue of Freedom, designed for the top of the U.S. Capitol dome, could be cast in bronze. This historical footnote highlights the accomplishments and contribution of African Americans, though the story itself lacks real drama. Often somber illustrations portray Reid with dignity. Archival documents are appended.

Reviewer: Amy Lois Cohn

(3) YA Overweight, socially ostracized teen Dell is already reeling from the erosion of all her support systems (broken family, distant friends, etc.) when she's raped by her former crush; she moves from food to pills to dull the pain. Compassionate and wrenching, this hard-hitting problem novel contains few surprises but evokes Dell's rage, grief, and ultimate suicidal despair with breathtaking intensity.

Reviewer: Claire E. Gross

(4) K-3 Let's Find Out series. Beginning with a birthday cake baked at Grandma's (recipe appended), this book explores the origin and processing of the ingredients: sugar, butter, eggs, wheat, and chocolate. Walton generally makes sound choices about coverage for these broad topics, along with occasional advocacy for organic, fair-traded products. Collage-style illustrations and captioned photos help clarify the wide-ranging and haphazardly organized subjects. Glos., ind.

Reviewer: Frieda F. Bostian

(4) K-3 Let's Find Out series. This wide-ranging overview covers different alphabets, the history of writing, how books are made, how paper is made, among other topics. Illustrations that resemble cut-paper and photo collage are accompanied by captioned photos and sidebars. The organization is haphazard, but the presentation is inviting. A book-making activity is appended. Glos., ind.

Reviewer: Frieda F. Bostian

(4) K-3 Let's Find Out series. Beginning with a drink of water, Walton covers her subject in some depth, making generally sound judgments about what to include. Different states of water, sea creatures, salinity, the hydrologic cycle, water purification, house plumbing--these are a few of the topics presented. Collage-style illustrations and captioned photos help clarify the wide-ranging and haphazardly organized text. An activity is appended. Glos., ind.

Reviewer: Frieda F. Bostian

(4) K-3 Let's Find Out series. Asking "What do you put on first?" this book answers the question in some depth, beginning with cotton for underpants and moving through zippers, buttons, wool, shoes, leather, synthetics, and other subtopics. Illustrations that resemble cut-paper and photo collage are accompanied by captioned photos and sidebars. The organization is random, but the presentation is inviting. An activity is appended. Glos., ind.

Reviewer: Frieda F. Bostian

(4) K-3 Let's Find Out series. This wide-ranging overview uses common playground equipment (swings, slide, merry-go-round) to explore principles such as gravity and centrifugal force. Illustrations that resemble cut-paper and photo collage are accompanied by captioned photos and sidebars, which extend the generally judicious though randomly presented coverage (including the now almost-extinct teeter-totter). A "Design a Playground!" activity is appended. Glos., ind.

Reviewer: Frieda F. Bostian

(4) K-3 Let's Find Out series. This wide-ranging overview covers uses for bikes, cycling in the past and present, components and their origins, physics of cycling, safety gear, and a detour for "How to Use a Map." Illustrations that resemble cut-paper and photo collage are accompanied by captioned photos and sidebars. The organization is haphazard, but the presentation is inviting. A "Design a Bike!" activity is appended. Glos., ind.

Reviewer: Frieda F. Bostian