(2) 4-6 Illustrated by Dawud Anyabwile. This graphic-novel adaption of Alexander's Newbery Medal–winning verse novel, about African American twins and middle-school b-ballers Josh and JB Bell, retains all the on-court drama, swaggering narrative voice, and poignant emotional pitches of the original. The basketball action comes alive in the angular, motion-filled art, in shades of black, white, and (aptly) orange; the art also captures the story's more tender social interactions, moments of familial intimacy, and later scenes of heartbreak surrounding the boys' father's death.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2014; November, 2019

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Aimée Sicuro. Brown's debut picture-book biography of Abstract Expressionist Helen Frankenthaler (1928–2011) limns her creative childhood, dutiful art study, and early career in mid-twentieth-century NYC. Once Frankenthaler develops her trademark "soak-stain" technique, the rhythmic text mirrors that kinetic process: "Helen grabbed a bucket of crimson and...POURED...setting her colors FREE." Sicuro's watercolor, ink, and charcoal-pencil illustrations reinforce the ideas of movement and color saturation. An appended art project helps everything seep in. Timeline. Bib.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2019

(2) K-3 Throughout this picture-book biography of Asawa (1926–2013), a Japanese American creator of nature-inspired wire sculptures, there's an emphasis on the handmade--from a childhood on a farm to her college studies to learning basket-weaving from a craftsperson in Mexico. The illustrations evoke the handmade; charcoal and colored-pencil drawings are combined with hand-painted and monoprinted paper in distinctive, naive-style collages. More about Asawa's life and a "Make Your Own Paper Dragonfly" activity are appended. Bib.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2019

(2) YA A change of summer plans finds seventeen-year-old narrator Emma--whose mother died of an overdose years back and whose father has just remarried--staying with her mom's large, boisterous extended family for a few weeks at the motel they run. Privileged, anxiety-prone Emma quickly acclimates to the working-class environs and bonds with her relatives, soon embracing a new, more laidback identity. Dessen's latest novel is largely about the ups and downs of family.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2019

(1) K-3 Illustrated by Hadley Hooper. After struggling for years, Swiss-born twentieth-century sculptor Alberto Giacometti found fame for his tall, spindly figures (e.g., Walking Man series), while Diego (who later become known for his furniture designs) worked tirelessly to support his brother's art. The book touches on life events in snapshot-like sections that nevertheless provide strong impressions. Hooper's art, in paint and ink and finished digitally, is strikingly dynamic. Timeline. Bib.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2019

(2) YA Gurley uses the star-crossed-lovers theme to good effect in his YA debut set in a (fictional) blue-collar California oil town. The romance between alternating narrators Vanessa (an aspiring astronomer) and Zach (an artist) is tentative and chaste but emotionally intimate as they unpack their respective family baggage. This love story is also a timely, moving statement about income inequity and a reminder that everyone struggles.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2019

(2) YA Henstra uses the epistolary format with great success in this novel about the burgeoning romance between sophomore Jonathan Hopkirk ("Jo"), an openly gay poetry and music lover, and senior football star Adam Kurlansky ("Kurl"). Perhaps there's melodrama in this couple's beautiful love, and in how spectacularly it's challenged by devastating conflicts, but this is what makes the book such an epic, sweeping romance--and gay teens deserve more of those.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2019

(2) YA In a relatable voice, cheerleader Jenna describes how things got "weird" with best friend Raejean junior year; her pain erupts in revenge during a team trip. Readers in it for mean girls and competitive cheerleading may be surprised when the plot incorporates queer romance (with transgender boy James) and Live-Action Role Playing. But MacCarthy pulls off this combination of topics with aplomb in an affirming story about having multiple conflicting selves.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2019

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Julie Morstad. Japanese American artist Fujikawa (1908–1998) helped break the color barrier in picture books with her 1963 now-classic Babies. Maclear lucidly outlines a remarkable life of art and creativity, of struggle and perseverance. Growing up in California, Fujikawa "sometimes...felt invisible among her mostly white classmates." This feeling continued into adulthood and an art career in New York City, especially when her West Coast–based family was incarcerated in WWII internment camps. Morstad's illustrations effectively vary in style and coloring to match events. Timeline. Bib.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2019

(2) PS Illustrated by Bethanne Andersen. In this vaguely allegorical Christmas story, "a new star" appears, and a solitary bear searches for a majestic tree "that would be the center of all to come." He finds it, then calls forth animals as well as people from all over for a special celebration. "It was time... / for peace." Andersen's oil paintings match the story's calm tone, with friendly creatures and people of many skin tones reveling together on snowy, star-lit landscapes.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2019

(3) 4-6 Illustrated by Sarah Tanat-Jones. "We've worked really hard to turn things people hate about us into things we love about ourselves--even the word queer!" Sicardi proudly writes in an inspiring introduction. The LGBTQ heroes presented range from teen gun activist Emma González to trans moviemakers Lana and Lilly Wachowski to Oscar Wilde. Sans organization but with lively portraits and design embellishments, the scrapbook-like volume is best for browsing. Glos.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen

(2) PS "While other trees / grew poised and tall, / I lagged behind. / Looking different. / Feeling small." A crooked little pine tree watches as its peers are brought home for Christmas. "'I-I-I-is anyone there?' / I stuttered into the night." Forest animals are and dress the tree with berries, feathers, and more until the "clearing rang with Christmas cheer." The narrator's eventual self-acceptance underscores the Christmas message about companionship. Zommer's illustrations imbue the scraggly arboreal underdog with heart and personality.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2019

(3) 4-6 Published with the Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Looking at a work of art can produce a range of emotions and reactions," writes editor Hopkins in the introduction to this book of commissioned poems, each reacting to a work of art from the Met. A laudable diversity of poets and artists (bios appended)--as well as a range of poetic and artistic styles--are represented in this handsome volume for middle graders and up. Ind.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Sonia Sánchez. When his parents fight, Quinn escapes to the imaginary (blanket-fort) Quiet Ship. When their yelling ("sounds that hurt my ears") gets so loud "it breaks the Quiet Ship," Quinn confronts the situation, leading to a teary-eyed family meeting in his room. A heart-wrenching child's-eye portrayal of parental fighting, with naive, scribbly illustrations that also display the chaos the way a child's hand might.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen

(3) K-3 Fly Guy series. With help from his pet, Fly Guy, Buzz makes a movie about a space-alien attack unleashed on the "Secret Hero Fort." In easy-to-read text, the silly movie-within-the-story meanders in an authentically childlike way, and Arnold's cartoony illustrations cleverly zoom in on the action and back out to show a smartphone filming homemade paper dolls and other toys on Buzz's desk. Lots of fun (or, as Fly Guy says, "FUNZZIE") for new readers.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Karl Newsome Edwards. Berlin parodies the preschool-standard "Itsy-Bitsy Spider" for slightly older picture-book crowds. The Hugely-Wugely Spider struggles to jam himself into the waterspout, but his rotund figure proves useful when he rescues his itsy-bitsy brethren from a deluge. With lots of exclamations ("HUGELY-WUGELY to the rescue! Time to plug this spout!"), equally energetic art, and a final irreverent update to the source rhyme, this is storytime gold.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen

(2) YA Interspersed with Luke's letters--from death row--to best friend Toby, a third-person narrative flashes back to a significant week in their senior year, slowly revealing the severity of Toby's dad abusing him and the depth of Luke's loyalty (and stifled rage). In this tense and tragic story there is profundity at every turn; readers up for heartbreak will come away understanding more about loyalty, empathy, and redemption.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2018

(3) K-3 Translated by Mara Lethem. Illustrated by Oriol Malet. Max and his pals love superheroes, but Max's favorite is female Megapower (who cares if Martin says, "there is no way a woman superhero can be that strong"?). This Spanish import celebrating superheroes transforms into a celebration of parents through a sweet twist: "the best thing about Megapower" is "when she puts on her Mommy costume." Light watercolors of domestic scenes contrast effectively with the classic-comics-inspired segments.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen

(3) 4-6 Captured Science History series. This installment in the Captured History spinoff series examines the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear spill in Ukraine and the photographic documentation of it. The chilling photos by Igor Kostin, Volodymyr Repik, and others shook the world when they were released. An engaging and thought-provoking discussion of the disaster's scientific and historical impact is profusely illustrated with these archival images. Reading list, timeline. Bib., glos., ind.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen

(4) YA Illustrated by Maria Llovet. YouTube vlogger "Chusita Fashion Fever" writes candidly, approachably, and specifically (she emphasizes "calling things by their name") in this teens' guide to sexuality. Sections cover discovering one's own body, sexual identity, dating, masturbation, and sexual intercourse. A flashy book design includes (semi-blinding) neon-orange backgrounds and accents as well as comics-style panel illustrations. An unabashedly sex-positive resource for teenagers "ready for it." Glos.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen