 Frankly In Love by David Yoon (2019) - This novel is one of the best YA books I have read in a long time. I was surprised how this apparently simple (and honestly familiar) story of first love that does not meet with parental approval (hello Romeo and Juliet), as well as of navigating the final year of high school made me smile and tear-up a bit. Some plot points: Frank Li and Joy Song have been friends since childhood, attending regularly scheduled dinners with a larger group of Korean-American families in Los Angeles for as long as they have a memory of any event. As they navigate senior year, they are both in love with the wrong ("not-Korean") person. They decide to fake that they are dating each other to keep their parents happy, while still seeing their true loves. Their elaborate scheming provides the plot for this novel's terrific cast of characters. (I truly loved Frank's superb best friend.) And while Buzzfeed aptly stated, “Yoon's stellar debut expertly and authentically tackles racism, privilege, and characters who are trying to navigate their Korean-American identity”, I would argue you should read it for the fun. Give it to your favorite teen or your favorite adult in need of a smile or two (and distraction from the news). ~ Lisa Christie  Patron Saints of Nothing by Randy Ribay (2019) - I know little about Philippines politics or life there; but, this tale of a Filipino-American boy has me curious. Jason - Jay - is a senior in Michigan ready to finish high school and move on to college until news arrives that his beloved cousin Jun has died under mysterious and shady circumstances. And, no one will talk about it. Thus, Jay decides to use his spring break to travel to the Philippines and find out for himself what happened. Full of details about Filipino life and coming of age in America as a "hyphen", I can't recommend this book enough. ~ Lisa Christie  Here to Stay by Sara Farizhan (2018) - A great book about high school life today. The main character, Bijan Miajidi, is pulled from the obscurity of JV basketball to the varsity limelight, which he hopes will help make it easier to talk to his crush Elle. Instead, he is targeted by an internet photo doctored to make him appear as a terrorist. As he tells the story of what happens next, his narrator voice is joined by his internal narrators - ESPN commentators Reggie Miller and Kevin Harlan - providing color commentary and comic relief to the often difficult events of the novel. In short, Ms. Farizhan compassionately and effectively covers coming out stories, cyberbullying, pressure to get into the right colleges, sports, and racism, without preaching, in a true page-turner. ~ Lisa Christie  With the Fire On High by Elizabeth Acevedo (2019). The teen heroine of this book, Emoni’s life has been full of tough decisions as she tries to do her best for her daughter and her abuela (grandmother). Luckily, she has a place where she can temporarily forget her responsibilities - the kitchen. There, she somehow always manages to add magic to everything she cooks, creating food that is just amazingly good. This gift may also be her way to create something for herself. Ms. Acevedo's prose sings, and as the Indie Next List review stated, "The only word I can use to properly describe this book is ‘delicious.’" I could not agree more and I also recommend Ms. Acevedo's Poet X. ~ Lisa Christie  On the Come Up by Angie Thomas (2019) – Ms. Thomas’s second novel for Young Adults proves she is not a one hit wonder. Once again, she handles tough topics such as teens figuring out who they are, race, stereotypes, violence, and addiction with compassion and fearless honesty. In this outing, 16-year-old Bri wants to rap and be a rap star more than anything – including doing well on the ACT to ensure she enters an amazing college. But, any progress at all is hard when your dad is long dead from gang violence, your mom just lost her job and is working to remain eight years sober, there is no heat in your house or food in the fridge, and the only job your brother, the brilliant college grad, can get is delivering pizzas for money your family desperately needs. Due to an incident at school, and other conspiring events, Bri finds herself going viral and being unfairly viewed as a hoodlum. The question for her becomes – what if a being a hoodlum helps you make it? ENJOY! ~ Lisa Christie  American Like Me: Reflections on Life Between Two Cultures by America Ferrera (2018) – A great and timely selection of essays about being an American immigrant or child of immigrants. Most of the essays address aspects of being a teen in the USA, providing a great “in” for most teens to the stories of these immigrants. Plus, you will recognize a lot of the authors (e.g., Lin Manuel Miranda). ~ Lisa Christie  The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo (2018) – Probably the best YA book I read in 2018. Reminiscent of Kwame Alexander’s style of telling stories in poetry, Ms. Acevedo uses poems to tease out the subtleties of her main character’s life in Brooklyn. In doing so has created a character – the fierce, gifted with words Xiomara Batista – who we care about, and whom we empathise with even if we are not a young black woman, even if we don’t live in Brooklyn, and even if our high school days are long behind us. The themes Ms. Acevedo intwines throughout this novel told in poems include, but are not limited to Latina culture, Catholicism, coming (or not) out, budding sexuality, high school teachers and curriculum, first romance, generation gaps, immigration, first gen issues, city life, poverty, music, and the power of words. Read this and rediscover the power of poetry, of youth, and of love – both first romance kind and the often much more complicated familial type. I find it hard to believe this was a first published novel for Ms. Acevedo; and, I thank children’s librarian extraordinaire Ms. Beth for bringing it to my attention. ~ Lisa Christie  Monday’s Not Coming by Tiffany Jackson (2018) – This novel takes on the heartbreaking reality of missing children of color, and does so with compassion and urgency. Monday Charles is missing and only her friend Claudia is concerned enough to do anything about it. Even well-meaning and caring teachers take too much time to hear Claudia’s concerns, and kind neighbors ignore signs something is amiss. But, Claudia continues to be vocal that Monday is missing – even as she navigates high school placement tests and her shame that her learning disabilities are in the open. Cleverly paced and plotted, and written with concern and compassion, Ms. Jackson highlights the fates of too many children of color in this country with a book teens and adults alike will be glad they read. Two books into her career, I am now officially a fan of this author and look forward to her next novel. ~ Lisa Christie  Far From the Tree by Robin Benway (2017) – I loved this National Book Award Winner. The three bio siblings discover each other exists in their teens, when each is confronting a personal crisis in their adoptive and/or foster family. One is dealing with divorce and alcoholism, the other teen pregnancy, the third the foster system. They are all dealing with what it means to be family and how to become an adult. Perfect really. ~ Lisa Christie  A Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds (2017) – Mr. Reynolds tackles gun violence in an unique and powerful novel. The story unfolds in short bouts of powerful, insightful verse over the course of a 60 second elevator ride. During this ride, Will must decide whether or not to follow the RULES – No crying. No snitching. Revenge. – and kill the person he believes killed his brother Shawn. With this tale, Mr. Reynolds creates a place to understand the why behind the violence that permeates the lives of so many, and perhaps hopefully a place to think about how this pattern might end. ~ Lisa Christie  Dear Martin by Nic Stone (2017) – A superb YA novel about being profiled by police for being black, and how current events, BLM, and politics affect black youth today. In this excellent debut novel, a black student – Justyce McAllister, top of his class, captain of the debate team, and set for the Ivy League next year – is handcuffed by a police officer and released without physical harm. The psychological toll of being profiled is explored as this novel delves into his life at his mostly white prep school and in his mostly black neighborhood. To help cope, Justyce researches the writings of MLK and writes him letters asking for guidance about how to live today. While Martin obviously never answers, the letters provide a great premise for thinking about how MLK would have handled life as a black man today. The letters also provide grounding once the novel’s action turns extremely ugly. Read it and discuss. (It could be considered the boy’s perspective on the situations in The Hate U Give.) ~ Lisa Christie  The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas (2017) – Sometimes it takes a work of fiction to give life to current events. And sometimes it takes a book for children to give all of us a starting point for conversations about difficult issues. Ms. Thomas has done all of us a service by producing this fresh, enlightening, and spectacular book about the black lives lost at the hands of the police every year in the USA. Starr Carter, the teen she created to put faces on the statistics, straddles two worlds — that of her poor black neighborhood and that of her exclusive prep school on the other side of town. She believes she is doing a pretty good job managing the differing realities of her life until she witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood friend by a police officer. As a description of this book stated, The Hate U Give “addresses issues of racism and police violence with intelligence, heart, and unflinching honesty”. Just as importantly, it is a great story, with fully formed characters who will haunt you, told by a gifted author. Please read this one! ~ Lisa Cadow and Lisa Christie  Curveball: The Year I lost my Grip by Jordan Sonnenblick (2016) – How does an amazing pitcher deal with the fact he will never pitch again while simultaneously navigating his freshman year of high school? Mr. Sonnenblick offers a compelling answer in this tale of friendship, first love and change. ~ Lisa Christie  Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi (2018) – A TERRIFIC start to a new series of magic and danger, palace intrigue and adventure, and love and hatred. I won’t say more about the plot as I really want you to discover this one for yourself. Please pick it up and just enjoy! ~ Lisa Christie
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