(2) YA Jorie wakes up in the Star Wars–branded bedroom of a random guy ("Craig? / Christopher? / Cormorant?") and, in free verse, contemplates how she got there. There was a party, at which she got drunk and kissed a stranger in front of her ex-boyfriend; but before that, her dad cheated on her mom, and Jorie is still hurting. The poems are full of metaphors connected to the natural world (Jorie's dad is the director of a natural history museum); she refers to the woman Dad cheated with, for example, as the "Invasive Species." But our protagonist is particularly passionate about mushrooms; by the time she escapes Conor's room (that's his name, she eventually remembers), readers may share her mycophilia. We learn new vocabulary (mycorrhizal, mycophobe), including the names of different varieties of mushroom ("Amber jelly roll / Birch polypore / Comb tooth") and what prize morels resemble ("like stretched-out shrunken brains, / like shriveled troll caps"). Heppermann's spare, short verses, with precise attention to line length and spacing, smoothly weave together art and biology; Jorie's spore-print poems ("Safe"; "Foraging While Female"), written in small handwriting extending out along gill lines (as she explains), provide an additional, striking visual element. The protagonist's unique perspective enhances this story about pain, connection, and forgiveness.

Reviewer: Rachel L. Smith | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2020

(3) 1-3 Backyard Witch series. Illustrated by Deborah Marcero. When Maya loses the school spelling bee--to Sadie, one of her best friends, of all people!--her confidence is shaken. With the help of quirky neighborhood birdwatcher/witch Ms. M (who happens to be substituting as the school's librarian), Maya overcomes her jealousy, regains confidence, and learns important lessons about friendship. Spot art appears throughout this third amiable installment.

Reviewer: Kari Allen

(1) YA Catholic-school sophomore Addie loves running cross-country, writing poetry, and having sex with her boyfriend. Then Addie gets pregnant. Her choice to have an abortion, although significant, is just one of many in her larger coming-of-age story. Addie muses on morality, religion, and sexuality; her observations are thought-provoking, wry, and bitingly smart. Addie easily outshines the "issues" in this remarkable verse novel.

Reviewer: Jessica Tackett MacDonald | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2016

(3) 1-3 Backyard Witch series. Illustrated by Deborah Marcero. In this second book, Ms. M, a diminutive, kindly witch with unexpected talents, makes her return as Jess's babysitter and serves as the catalyst for a reconciliation between Jess and her cuisine-obsessed chef mother. Culinary disasters, food jokes, and cookery-related back matter (including a grilled tofu recipe) round out the fun in this illustrated chapter book. Reading list, websites.

Reviewer: Sarah Ellis

(2) 1-3 Backyard Witch series. Illustrated by Deborah Marcero. Nine-year-old Sadie is in a sour mood after her friends vacation without her. Then a small witch moves into Sadie's playhouse. Ms. M. is a birdwatcher witch, or ornithomancer; bitten by the birding bug, Sadie is lured out of her snit by a fresh awareness of nature. Sprightly prose will pull in readers, and spot illustrations keep the pages lively. Birding tips are appended.

Reviewer: Sarah Ellis | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2015

(1) YA This collection comprises fifty poems on the devastating conjunction of girls' vulnerability, the rapacious beauty industry, and fairy tales. Caustic, witty, sad, and angry, Heppermann articulates the false promises, seductions, and deathly morass of popular culture's imagery of girls' bodies. What makes Heppermann's poetry exceptional, however, is not the messages it carries but the intense, expressive drive that fuels it.

Reviewer: Deirdre F. Baker | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2014

(3) YA Landmark Supreme Court Cases series. These books chronicle events leading to and results stemming from selected Supreme Court decisions. Basic information includes key individuals as well as specifics related to the cases, the court challenges, and the final decisions. Photographs, archival images, and maps are included. Numerous sidebars extend and clarify the readable texts. Reading list, timeline. Bib. glos., ind. Review covers these Landmark Supreme Court Cases titles: Miranda v. Arizona, Dred Scott v. Sandford, Korematsu v. The United States, and Bush v. Gore.

Reviewer: Luther B. Clegg

(4) YA Lives Cut Short series. These standard-issue biographies, accompanied by numerous stock photos, introduce readers to celebrities who died young, relating their superstardom, troubled last years, and continuing legacies without adoration or sensationalism. Serious issues such as substance abuse, public-image struggles, and marriage problems are covered directly and honestly. Plentiful sidebars break up the text but sometimes distract from the main narrative. Reading list, timeline. Bib., glos., ind. Review covers these Lives Cut Short titles: Whitney Houston, Kurt Cobain, Diana, and Marilyn Monroe.

Reviewer: Rachel L. Smith

(3) 4-6 An endearing account of a home-based shelter for chickens in Minneapolis. Clear first-hand accounts of the shelter's origins, why and how various chickens were rescued, and rescue-chicken caretaking will keep readers enthralled. Numerous captioned photographs of the shelter and its owners, charismatic rescued chickens, and some special chicken adopters underscore the love and dedication of this unique operation.

Reviewer: Sethany Rancier Alongi