(3) YA Blacktop series. Toni is one "tough-ass chick," who loves to play basketball but struggles to control her temper. Her volatile personality leads her to argue and lash out violently, a habit that threatens her whole team. Still, older reluctant readers for whom this series (Justin) is geared will warm to Toni's good intentions and her ability to make connections through basketball.

Reviewer: Kristy Pasquariello

(2) YA In 2013, on the 57 bus in Oakland, California, African American Richard, egged on by friends, set white, genderqueer Sasha's gauzy skirt on fire. Sasha survived but sustained third-degree burns; Richard was arrested for a hate crime. Using interviews, court documents, and news accounts, Slater has crafted a compelling true-crime story that goes beyond the headlines to tell the very human stories behind these individuals and their families.

Reviewer: Jonathan Hunt | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2018

(3) YA When the Monkey King from Chinese folklore--disguised as new kid Quentin--arrives in Genie Lo's life, it marks Genie's entry into a world of magic and fantasy layered on top of her everyday world. The two must join forces to defeat ancient Chinese demons. Fish-out-of-water Quentin and sassy Genie are familiar characters, but their dynamic makes for entertaining comic sequences between the action.

Reviewer: Antonio Trujillo

(3) YA Blacktop series. This gritty series-starter follows African American fifteen-year-old Justin through Oakland, where he and friends learn to scheme and swindle; the story culminates in a basketball showdown with a rival neighborhood. The book contains true-to-life flawed characters--including adults such as Justin's alcoholic father--who struggle to make good choices. Accessible prose (with profanity) and fast-paced action make this suited to older reluctant readers.

Reviewer: Lauren Causey

(2) 4-6 Oona's father has died, and now her cat Zook is sick. To comfort her little brother, Oona comes up with stories about Zook's previous lives. Rocklin intertwines her characters so smartly that the book's many coincidences and serendipitous events feel organic to the story. The ending--bittersweet, inevitable, and true--offers much-needed catharsis for the family and for anyone who has ever loved a pet.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2012

(1) 4-6 Eleven-year-old Delphine and her two younger sisters spend the summer of 1968 in Oakland visiting the mother who deserted them and getting an unexpected education in revolution from the Black Panthers. Williams-Garcia writes vividly about that turbulent summer through the intelligent, funny, blunt voice of Delphine, who observes outsiders and her own family with shrewdness and a keen perception.

Reviewer: Susan Dove Lempke | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2010