Author: booknutgirls

booknutgirls http://thebooknutdotcom.wordpress.com I read. I blog. I sell books. I chauffeur my kids. What more do you need to know?

Tidesong

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by Wendy Xu
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Content: There’s some bullying/strict parenting on the part of parents, which might be triggering. It’s in the Middle Grade Graphic novel section of the bookstore.

Sophie comes from a long magical line of women who have taken care of the island and communicated with the dragons in the sea. Sophie wants to make her mother and grandmother proud, and get into the magic academy. So she s shipped off to live with her Great Aunt and learn how to refine her madic for her aplication process. She’s not great at magic though and keeps messing up, which makes her Auntie Lan irritated. Sophie is attempting some magic, which goes wrong, and accidentally gets her magic entangled in with a young water dragon, Lir. He’s human, without memories of who he really is, and they can’t get their magic detangled.

I’m not making this sound anywhere near as good as it really is. It’s a little bit learning to make your own path in the world – Sophie learns that it’s not the wishes of her elders that she needs to follow but her own hear – and a little bit learning how to be a good friend – which means not remembering that other people’s wishes are valid as well your own. It’s a solid coming-of-age story, one where Sophie really learns to shine, but in her own, special way.

Xu is an excellent storyteller, and this is no exception.

The First Cat in Space Ate Pizza

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by Mac Barnett and Shawn Harris
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Content: It looks like a lot, so it may be intimidating to some kids. It’s in the Middle Grade Graphic Novel section of the bookstore.

Back in the early days of the pandemic, say April of 2022, Mac Barnett (bless him) decided to start a lunchtime stoytime where he would sit and read one of his books. (He was written a lot!) He live-streamed them on Instagram, which was its own brand of charming (with guest and regular tech issues). It grew to be a whole thing, including a Joke corner (with jokes submitted by kids) and sound effects (done by Mac’s wife) appearances from Henry the Dog, and once a week or so, an episode of The First Ct in Space. Mac would write the scripts, Shawn (Mac’s best friend and racquetball nemesis) would draw and film them, and they both would do the voices. It was dumb and silly and exactly what we ended during the first year of the pandemic.

All this to say: those episodes became this book. And it’s very much in the spirit of those: silly, kind of stupid, full of dumb jokes, and absolutely charming. I giggled my way through this (I completely jive with Mac’s sense of humor), and even though the plot is really dumb, it doesn’t matter. What matters is that you’re having a good time reading it, you’re checking out the Spotify playlist to hear the Ballad of Captain Babybeard, and you’re forgetting about the problems in the world for a bit.

Honestly, that is the best sort of book, really.

Two Graphic Novels about Belonging

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Huda F Are You?
by Huda Fahmy
Support your local independent bookstore: buy there!
Content: There are instances of racism and Islamaphobia. It’s in the Graphic Novel section of the bookstore.

In this loosely autobiographical graphic novel, Fahmy tells of the time in her childhood when her parents moved the family to Dearborn, Michigan just so they could be a part of a bigger Muslim community. Huda went from being the only Muslim to one of many hijab wearers. She talks about the struggle she had to figure out who she was, in relation to her friends, her family (and sisters), and her religion. There is an incident with a teacher who grades Muslims harsher after 9/11 and a slight bomb “scare” at the high school, that brought Huda’s conflicts within herself to a head. Can she stand up for herself, especially in the face of Islamaphobia?

I adored this one. I think everyone can identify with the feeling of being an outsider, but I can empathize with identifying with a religion where you are in a place where your religion (mostly) is in the minority, and then moving somewhere where it is the majority religion. It messes with your head and identity. I loved the humor of this book and the way it treats religion as something that can be a big part of a teenager’s life, without it seeming all-encompassing or something the teen needs to “grow out” of.

Smart, fun, and worth reading.

The Tryout
by Christina Soontornvat, illustrated by Joanna Cacao
Support Your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Content: there are some instances of racism and bullying. It’s in the Middle Grade Graphic Novel section of the bookstore.

Also loosely autobiographical, Soontornvat reflects upon 7th grade and the way trying out for the cheer team affected her. She grew up in a small town in Texas, and her parents – a mixed-race couple (her mom is white, her dad is Thai) – ran a Chinese restaurant in town. She reflects on how har it is to make and keep friends in middle school, and the ups and downs of friendship. But the central challenge is Christina’s desire to try out for the cheer team. It’s a challenge becasue her best friend Megan is trying out as well and Christina fears that it wil negatively affect their friendship. They encounter racism (Megan is Iranian) at their small-town school – none of the teachers can pronounce Christina’s last name, and some kids are blatantly racist to her and Megan. Christna works hard, though, and finds value in trying out for the team, and along the way, makes and strengthens friendships.

This is another good one about finding where you belong. Middle school is rough, and I think Sontornat recognizes that. THis one reminde me a lot of Real Friends, centering navigating female friendship in the heart of the book. But I also like how it debunked some of the cheer stereotypes and reminded me (again) that cherlieading isn’t just a fluff thing that popular girls do. I really appreciated the author’s note at the end.

Really soild.

Bloodmarked

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by Tracy Deonn
First sentence: “My veins burn with the spirits of my ancestors.”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Others in the series: Legendborn
Content: There is swearing, including multiple f-bombs, and a lot of violence. It’s in the Teen section (grades 9+) of the bookstore.

We pick up where Legendborn left off, so spoilers for that, obviously.

Bri has been chosen as the Scion of Arther, Pendragon, who has woken up after 250 years. The problem is, though, that she’s an outsider (read: black) and the (white, racist) Order doesn’t accept her as what she is: their King. Instead, they gaslight her, drug her, and kidnap her, institutionalizing he. But, her friends are awesome, and they break her free and they all set about doing what needs to be done: training Bri how to better use her powers. This involves meeting new people, facing new dangers, and unraveling a bit more of the corruption behind the Order. Also (and I think we knew this was coming) – there’s a nice love triangle between Nick, Bri, and Sel (the Kingsmage), which is very fitting for an Arthurian tale.

Oh, I love this series. I love the way it plays with race, expectations, and magic. I love the characters (I would do anything for Alice!), and I love the way Deonn has woven different elements – from Bloodwalking, to being marked by demons, to rootcraft, to the aether of the Order – together so effortlessly. The only thing I don’t like is that I have to wait at least a year for the final book in the series.

So much great here.

Witch Hat Atelier, vol 1-9

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by Kamome Shirahama
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Content: there is violence, some mention of sexual abuse, and other traumatic events, as well as some mild swearing. It’s in the Graphic Novel section of the bookstore.

Back in August, my kids sat me down and said, “You would really like Witch hat Atelier”. They then pulled it up on their manga site, and I started reading it. And I’ve been slowly reading it over the past couple of months, a chapter a day. The basic plot is that Coco, who was born a non-magical person, accidentally gets ahold of some magic and turns her mother into stone. A magician, Qifry, who happens to be there takes her under his wing – because magic in the wrong hands is dangerous – and teaches her how to be a witch. of course, this is a long process – there are nine volumes after all – and she has adventures along the way.

There are other young witches in the school – the atelier – whom Coco gets to know, and we all learn their stories. We learn more about the magic world, and Qifrey and his best friend Orugio who run the atelier. You learn about the magic world – which is problematic and complicated – and how magic work – which is fascinating, if a bit complicated.

My kids were right: I am enjoying it a LOT. The art is absolutely gorgeous; some of the spreads are just breathtaking. And while I have an issue sometimes with the rambling episodic nature of the manga, I’m really enjoing the charactesr and plots. So, the lesson learend here: when it comes to manga/anime, my kids know what I’ll like.

Audiobook: Thank You for Listening

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by Julia Whelan
Read by the author (who happens to be a very excellent audiobook narrator)
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Or listen at Libro.fm!
Content: There is swearing including multiple f-bombs and some pretty steamy on-screen sex. it’s in the Romance section of the bookstore.

Sewanee Chester was an aspiring actress untl a tragic accident took that off the table. She turned to audiobooks, doing romance unders a pseudonm for a while, but has let that go too, doing more mainstreem books these days. That is until an offer she couldn’t refuse – a dual record with unknown but super steamy narrator Brock McKnight – came along. While she’s heating up the emails and texts with Brock, she still has her mind on Nick, the one-night stand she had in Vegas after a book convention.

Of course there are ups and downs, of course there are high stakes (and low stakes), and of course there is a Happily ever after. But what I thorougly enjoyed about this one is that it was the thing – a romance book – whiile poking fun at all the romance tropes and romance authors and audiobook narrators out there. I love it when the thing is the thing while poking fun at the thing. And this is definitely lots of fun.

I think it was especially fun because Whelan is an excellent narrator, and she did All The Voices, which just made it that much more enjoyable. (In fact, sometimes I wondered if she made certaincharaters the way there wer just so dhe could do that particular voice for them.) I may not have loved it as much if I had just read it, but it was absolutely delightful and hilarious in audio.

I had a hilariously fun time listening to this one. Definitely recommended.

Monthly Round-Up: September 2022

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I now, second verse, same as the first: I’m just not reading. That’s going to have to change: I’m on the round one panel for Graphinc Novels in this year’s Cybils. So, while I’ still having problems really sinking my teeth into a book, graphic novels seem up my alley, and I’ve not done round one there before. Should be fun!

I did read some charming books this month, though. My favorite:

Dinners With Ruth

Insightful, engaging, and just so good.

As for the rest:

Graphic novels:

Garlic and the Vampire
Garlic and the Witch

YA:

I Shall Wear Midnight (old review)
Asar on Fire (audiobook)
Heat Wave

Adult Fiction:

The Thursday Murder Club

What was your favorite this month?

Garlic & the Vampire and Garlic & the Witch

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by Bree Paulsen
Support your local independent bookstore: by them there!
Content: There really isn’t anything, unless you don’t like vampires or witches. They are in the Middle Grade Graphic Noel section of the bookstore.

This is an absolutely adorable pair of graphic novels. They center around Grlic, the “child” of Wicth Agnes, who along with other veggies and fruits, help the witch in her garden. In the first book the veggies notice smoke coming from a nearby, old, abanodned castle, and Garlic is nominated to go see if a vampire lives there. One does, but he turns out to be “retired”, ad joins the veggies in their gardening.

In the second, GArlic needs to go on an adventure to fetch an ingredient for Count(he’s the vampire) blood substitute, which is very scary but also very exciting. Additionally ti seems Garlic and the other frit/veggie people are turning human, which is pretty stressful.

In both, Garlic is an anxious bean (well, she’s a root? I don’t know: what is garlic?), who is afraid of change but is determined to not let that get in her way. They are adorable books, cute and homey and safe, and absolutely good for any kid who deals with anxiety. Also for people who like cute, cozy stories

I like Paulen’s stories and her art, so I’m cureious to see what she does next!

Heat Wave

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by TJ Klune
First sentence: “Near dusk, shadows stretch like reaching darkness, the heat from the summer day like molten claws to the chest, digging into the beating heart of a city under siege.”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Others in the series: The Extraordinaries, Flash Fire
Content: There is an extended discussion of gay porn, how to have anal sex, and a very awkward sex scene. It’s in the YA section (grades 6-8) of the bookstore, but really needs to be moved.

We pick up with our illustrious heroes soon after the events of Flash Fire. Except Nick’s mom isn’t dead. Right? It’s all weird. Owen is back as a villain, and Simon Burke is the Big Bad – not only is he running for myor of Nova City, he wants to do away with Extraordinaries.

Underneath all of that Nick is trying to enjoy his relationship with Seth, and figure out how to be an Extraordinary. Plus apply for college. It’s a lot for a kid.

Honestly, while this was fun, and an okay ending to a series, it wasn’t my favorite. I don’t know if it’s because I wanted and lost the momentum I had between the other two, but even though I adored Nick, Seth, Gibby, and Jazz and their very healthy relationships with their parents, I didn’t really like the book. Maybe because I felt like it took too long to get going. Maybe it was because I ahdn’t read the others in ages Maybe I just wasn’t in the mood.

Not Klune’s best book, but I am still glad for the LGBT representation. Not a bad book, just not for me.

Audiobook: Dinners with Ruth

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by Nina Totenbrg
Read by the author
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Or listen at Libro.fm
Content: There is some mild swearing including one f-bomb. It’s in the Biography section of the bookstore.

The book’s subtitle is “A Memoir on the Power of Friendships, ” which really sums up the book. Nina (I can call her Nina from having listened to her on NPR for decades, yes?) reflects not only on the close friendship she had with Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg but on the friendships that have gotten her through her life. She spends a lot of time not just reflecting on having friends, and how it’s possible to be friends with people you disagree with (which is something we’re losing I think, as a society), but also on how those friendships have enriched her life. It ranges from supreme court justices to her colleagues at NPR to her family and the friends that introduced her to both of her husbands.

I really recommend getting this one on audio. Totenberg is a radio journalist, which means she knows how to tell a story. And she is delightful here. From her small chuckles when she reads something funny to the emotion in her voice when she talks about RBG’s death. It’s truly delightful to listen to.

Very highly recommended.