Peer Book Review - I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika Sánchez

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I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter

by Erika Sánchez

Reviewer says: 8th grade and up

Librarian says: 10th grade and up

Julia Reyes, a Mexican-American high school student, just lost her sister and it’s hitting her harder than she thought it would. Never really having a relationship with her older sister she tries to find something, anything that will tell her who her sister really was. As she embarks on this journey she navigates her way through life, trying to cope with her mental health, familial struggles, and the everyday challenges that come with being a teenage girl.

I like this book. I feel like many people will be able to resonate with it in some way. Especially the way she struggles with her self confidence, and trying to see eye to eye with her parents. Also, the fact that she never gives up on her dreams, no matter how tough life gets, can be very encouraging.

Reviewed by: V.W., 10th grader at St. Anthony's

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Throwback Review - Let Me Hear a Rhyme

  Throwback Book Review

Miss. Amanda still thinks you should read this!

📖Recommend for Grades 8 and up📖

Let Me Hear a Rhyme

by Tiffany Jackson

            Steph is gone. Killed before he could have the music career he dreamed of, that his two best friends and sister feel he should have had. But who says the world can’t hear Steph’s music? Using tracks Steph recorded before his death, Quadir and Jarrell hatch a plan to share and promote the songs under the alias The Architect. They enlist Steph’s sister Jasmine to help and before they know it Steph’s music is circling the neighborhood. As time goes on, the three realize that keeping their secret may not be so easy.

            Set in the ’90s not long after the death of Tupac and Biggie Smalls, this book is a love letter to Brooklyn and Rap Music. The story alternates between Quadir, Jarrell, and Jasmine’s narration as well as insights from Steph’s perspective prior to his death. Readers won’t know where the story is going and what will happen with the secret our main trio is keeping. This book is a must-read for many.

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Book Review - White Smoke

 📖Recommend for Grades 8 and up📖

White Smoke

by Tiffany D. Jackson

Marigold’s mom has accepted a new job with a Sterling Foundation that comes with a free house in the midwestern city of Cedarville. So now the family, including Mari’s younger brother Sammy, new stepfather, and new stepsister Piper, lives in a newly renovated house, surrounded by many abandoned boarded-up houses. Mari should be excited to run from her problems back home, but this home comes with new issues. The house appears to be haunted, as many bizarre things happen. The more time the family stays in the house, the more danger they find themselves.

This story may be Jackson’s first horror novel, but it still has the same Jackson vibe. Readers will be engaged in this wild ride and have no idea what will happen next. Mari is an unreliable narrator, and that really works in this story. If you are looking to get into horror, this is an excellent place to start.

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Book Review - Instructions for Dancing

  📖Recommend for Grades 8 and up📖

Instructions for Dancing
by Nicola Yoon
After her parent's divorce, Evie Thomas no longer believes in love. However, she feels justified in her belief after the strangest thing happens one day. After seeing couples kiss, she gets visions of their relationships, leading right up to how they end. It all started when Evie found a ballroom dancing book that led her to a studio where the opportunity to take lessons occurs. Her partner is the owner's grandson, called X, and while Evie doesn't plan to fall for him, that appears to be happening.
If you're not a fan of fantasy, you're in luck because this isn't fantasy. It is magical realism, as the only unbelievable part is Evie's visions. The characters are all likable and feel real (ignoring the vision part). Evie and X's budding romance is the core of the story. Still, Evie's family drama, and her relationship with her friends, are also significant to the story. Oh, and without spoiling too much, you might want to have tissues on hand once you hit the second part of this book.

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Book Review - Feed

 📖Recommend for Grades 8 and up📖

Feed

by M.T. Anderson

Reviewed by Scared Heart Academy 9th Grader Michelle V.

The feed is a computer chip put in your brain at a young age. Link meets a girl named Violet who soon becomes his girlfriend. She didn’t get the feed early, so it is messing with her body. As more problems unravel, she becomes less and less well.

It was good but very confusing. The feed ads kept on interfering with the actual book so I could barely tell what was real and what was an ad.

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Book Review - This is Not the Jess Show

  📖Recommend for Grades 8 and up📖

This is Not the Jess Show

by Anna Carey

It's 1998, and Jess Flynn is trying to get through junior year without drama, but it keeps finding her. Her parents are overprotective, her sister's health condition is getting worse, and she is developing a crush on her childhood friend. Add in the fact that her town of Swickley seems to get weirder by the day, and not just because half the town seems to have come down with the flu. Jess begins to question her town, especially after a strange rectangular device falls out of her friend's bag.

If you think this is historical fiction, you're wrong. It's actually a thriller/suspense novel. There are several twists and turns, most of which you won't see coming. When it comes to the characters, they are a mix of likable and not. A fun and enjoyable read.

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Book Review - A Taste for Love

  📖Recommend for Grades 8 and up📖

A Taste for Love

by Jennifer Yen

Liza Yang is used to her mother’s match-making schemes, but this one is like no other. Like her mother, Liza has a passion for baking and hopes to enter the baking contest she holds every summer. Afraid of bias, Liza’s mother allows her to be a judge instead. When Liza arrives on the first day, she discovers that all of the contestants aren’t all talented bakers like they were in the past. This year, all contestants are Asian-boys who Mrs. Wong thinks are suitable matches for her daughter.

Sorry to say this is yet another book that will have you craving yummy treats. Besides that, this is a fantastic read with a fun character. While primarily a romantic comedy, this book does tackle family and parental expectations. There is also a bit of mystery thrown in as it appears somebody is trying to sabotage the contest. This book truly is a great story filled with a fantastic cast of characters that won’t disappoint.

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Book Review - 10 Truths and a Dare

 📖Recommend for Grades 8 and up📖

10 Truths and a Dare

by Ashley Elston
Senior week is the magical time between school being over and graduation still on the horizon. Olivia has been looking forward to this week, but then she discovers a problem with her off-campus P.E. class. Instead of enjoying all the insane parties, she has to spend the week helping out at a golf tournament to earn the credit. If she doesn't do it, she can't graduate. Olivia is determined to keep this a secret from her large and meddling family. The only exceptions are Sophie, Charlie, and Wes, who she recruited to help her out by trading phones with her since her mom is tracking hers.
If the names Olivia, Sophie, Charlie, and Wes sound familiar together, that's because this is the companion to 10 Blind Dates, which was Sophie's story. While this isn't as crazy and fun as the first book, there is still plenty of fun and craziness. The story is told primarily from Olivia's perspective, but as Sophie, Charlie, and Wes all take turns with her phone, we do get to follow them at those points. Though not mentioned above, some romance occurs in the book. Still, the central aspect of the story is Olivia trying to focus on what she needs to do and still trying to enjoy Senior Week.

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Book Review - The Inheritance Games

📖Recommend for Grades 8 and up📖

The Inheritance Games

by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
When billionaire Tobias Hawthorne dies, he leaves virtually everything to Avery Grambs. The thing is, she has never met the man and doesn’t know why he would leave her anything at all. For her to receive her inheritance, there are some catches. One of them involves moving into Hawthorne’s mansion with his family, which is filled with hidden passages, secrets, and puzzles. Avery soon discovers the biggest catch is surviving the year first.
Though a bit slow at the start, this book will soon hook you in. Hawthorne has left several puzzles and riddles to solve, and readers will have fun trying to figure them out themselves. The book is filled with several characters that will have readers questioning if they can trust them or not. While the ending is conclusive, readers will still find themselves itching for the sequel.

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Peer Boo Review - Acception

📖Recommend for Grades 8 and up📖

Acception

by Colourbee

Reviewed by Asiyyah M. 9th Grader at Baldwin HS

It is about a boy named arcus who moves to a school in the Netherlands and becomes friends with a girl named Maud and iris and gale. He gets bullied because of the way he dresses and acts sometimes and he wants to become a fashion designer one day. The book is filled with drama too.

: I like the character development in some of the characters. For example, Iris who was popular in school and hung out with fake and mean girls and realized it wasn't a good thing and found nice and real friends. Another example is Gale who used to drink and smoke at 16 and learned to become responsible to take care of his sister and mom and eventually quit smoking. The comedy is good too and there isn't anything I dislike about the book. 

Please note this is not a book but a Webcomic and it can be found here 

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Peer Book Review - Hood

📖Recommend for Grades 8 and up📖

Hood

by Jenny Elder Moke

Reviewed by Asiyyah M. 9th Grader at Baldwin HS

It was about a girl named Isabelle who was arrested and in prison and her mom helps her escape and tells her she has to run away or else they will find her. She goes to another town and meets a lot of people like Thomas whom she's related to. She is very experienced with her bow and arrow and believes she is brave enough to go on an adventure to find her father Robin Hood.

I didn't like how it was worded so much like I feel the story was a bit dry with vocabulary. What I like about the book was the suspense and the character development in Helena. The plot was good too. 

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Book Review - Rent a Boyfriend

  📖Recommend for Grades 8 and up📖

Rent a Boyfriend

by Gloria Chao

Hoping to get out of accepting a proposal from the wealthy (and slimy) Hongbo, a young bachelor in their tight-knit Asian American community, Chloe Wang hires a fake boyfriend. Rent for Your' Rents, specializes in matching female members of the Asian community with boyfriends their parents would approve. The relationships are pretend and often just temporary. Chloe hires Drew, or Andrew, when working, to come home with her for Thanksgiving. Things go well, and the pair end up talking after the gig is over, and Chloe hires him for other holidays. As the two get to know each other, they begin to fall for each other. Unfortunately, Drew doesn't know if Chloe is falling for Drew or Andrew.

Told through both Chloe and Drew's perspectives, this is a fun romantic comedy for those who enjoy the genre. Chloe and Drew's dynamic is enjoyable. The dynamic between Chloe and her parents is realistic and relatable. The book is based on a premise that actually occurs in Asia but is a fictionalized version taking place in the United States.

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Book Review - Raybearer

  📖Recommend for Grades 8 and up📖

Raybearer

by Jordan Ifueko

Half-human and half-ehru, Tarisai has always longed for a family. Her mother, known as The Lady, is often absent from her life and shelters Tarisai in an estate with only tutors and servants. One day, The Lady shows up and tells Tarisai she will be going to the capital to try her shot at becoming one of the eleven on the prince's council. Except she doesn't exactly tell her like that; instead, she tells her when the boy in the portrait selects her to be by his side, she must kill him. Due to a wish made before Tarisai's birth, she is compelled to do what her mother ordered. Upon arriving at the palace and learning the truth, Tarasi finds herself in a world of complication.

This is an intriguing and incredible high fantasy story in the first of a planned series or duology. While there isn't a ton of action, the story isn't dull, and the world created is one readers will enjoy. There are numerous characters in the book, and the minor ones will be hard to keep track of, but the important ones shouldn't be too complicated to remember. The book's back contains a guide to help readers with the pronunciation of all the character names. Though there will be at least one other book following this one, the ending is relatively conclusive enough to leave readers satisfied if they don't wish to continue.

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Book Review - Today Tonight Tomorrow

 📖Recommend for Grades 8 and up📖

Today Tonight Tomorrow

by Rachel Lynn Solomon

For all of high school Neil McNair has been Rowan Roth's arch-nemesis, the pair competitors in everything they do. Now, with school over and graduation days away, Rowan has one last chance to beat Neil. Every year the seniors play Howl, a game that is part scavenger hunt and part assassins. Rowan hopes to win, but then she learns a group of classmates, tired of her or Neil also coming on top, are teaming up to take them. Now she realizes her former nemesis may be her biggest alley in this game. As the pair spend Howl together, Rowan learns things about Neil she didn't know and that maybe he isn't bad after all.

This book may occur at the end of the school year, but it is a fun read anytime. Rowan and Neil are both delightful characters, and the dynamic between them was amusing. Some things seem a little unrealistic, but it doesn't take away from the story's fun and enjoyment. This book will make you wish you could go on a community-wide scavenger hunt against your friends and peers. 

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Book Review - We Are Not Free

   📖Recommend for Grades 8 and up📖

We Are Not Free

by Traci Chee

After Japan attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, things changed for Japanese ancestry people living in the United States. That following February, American residents of Japanese descent living on the west coast were forced to leave their homes and move to internment camps. This book is the fictional story of fourteen teens and young adults who have grown up together in Japantown, San Francisco. Now they are among those who were relocated to Japanese Internment Camps. Throughout the years, they face many ups and downs, and they and their families are forced to make tough decisions.

Intriguing and eye-opening, this is a wonderfully written book and portrayal of Japanese-American experience during World War II. The author pulled from the stories of family members who went through this experience. The story is told from fourteen different perspectives that follow each other in chronological order.  Except for one character, each view occurs just once in the book. We Are Not Free is not an easy story to read as the character’s experience and witness many emotional and difficult situations. Readers who feel they can handle the topic, especially if they are Historical Fiction fans, should give this book a read.

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Book Review - A Song Below Water

  📖Recommend for Grades 8 and up📖

A Song Below Water

by Bethany C. Morrow

Tavia and Effie are like sisters, and each has secrets and challenges they must face. Tavia is a siren, but she has to keep her powers a secret as most people do not like sirens. Effie faces demons from her past and isn't sure what she is, just that she might not be merely human. When a siren is murdered, and the trial rocks the nation, their world begins to unravel.

 In Tavia and Effie's alternate narratives, this story takes on real-world discrimination but as fantastical elements in an interesting way. There are different mythical creatures in this book. Some are basically celebrated, some tolerated, and others discriminated against, such as sirens, which are exclusively Black females. Warning, though, these groups may be a little hard to keep track of while reading. Readers will enjoy figuring out what happened too Effie in the past and what her story is. As for Tavia, readers will be intrigued by her story as well.

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Book Review - Punching the Air

  📖Recommend for Grades 8 and up📖

Punching the Air

by Ibi Zoboi and Yusef Salaam

Sixteen-year-old Amal is an artist and poet. One day, he is found guilty of a crime he didn’t commit because of a biased system. Now he’s another Black teen in prison, and he’s angry. Thankfully he has his words and art to turn to for help.

Written in-verse by the talented Ibi Zoboi and Exonerated Five member Yusef Salaam this book is an absolute must-read. This book is timely, controversial, power, and will make you think and feel. It is not Yusef’s story, but the character of Amal is inspired by him. Yusef is also an artist and poet, and some of the poetry he wrote while incarcerated can be found in this book. 

Oh, and fun fact, the narrator of the audiobook is Ethan Herisse. He is also the actor who played Yusef Salaam in the movie When They See Us, which tells the story of The Central Park Five—now known as the Exonerated Five.

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Book Review - The Voting Booth

📖Recommend for Grades 8 and up📖

The Voting Booth

by Brandy Colbert

Having always been driven to change the world, Marva Sheridan is thrilled to vote in her first election. Duke Crenshaw knows that voting is essential, but he just wants to get it over with in order to get ready for his band’s gig that night. When Duke discovers he actually isn’t registered to vote as he thought, and Marva overhears, she makes it her mission to get his vote counted. After all, she didn’t spend months getting people registered only to watch somebody get turned away. The two now find themselves on a road-block-filled adventure for Duke to exercise his right to vote. And while they may start off as strangers, they also may have found something more.

Readers may not be old enough to vote themselves, but they can still enjoy and benefit from this story. While Duke’s being not registered was an accident, their journey to get his vote includes experiencing and hearing about types of voter suppression that do exist in our country. There is also talk about while it is important to vote and how it is especially important for Black people like Marva and Duke too. This book also demonstrates how those who can’t yet vote can maybe help others who can. While this is also a love story that takes place in less than 24 hours, don’t let that stop you.

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Book Review - 10 Things I Hate About Pinky

📖Recommend for Grades 8 and up📖

10 Things I Hate About Pinky

by Sandhya Menon

Pinky Kumar and Samir Jha, who readers met in There’s Something About Sweetie, are back in their own story in the When Dimple Met Rishi universe.

When it comes to social causes, Pink is a crusader. She also enjoys pushing the buttons of her conservative parents. Samir is somebody Pinky’s parents would love with his carefully scheduled day and dreams of becoming a lawyer. When Samir’s summer internship falls through, he doesn’t know what to do. Then he gets a text from Pinky inviting him to her summer home where she needs him to be her fake boyfriend, as she suddenly finds herself needing to prove something to her parents. Having not always gotten along in the past, and conflicting personalities, they are both in for one exciting summer.

Told in the alternating viewpoints of Pinky and Samir, this is a fun read with amusing characters. This book tackles several topics but not in a messy jumbled way. These topics are Pinky and Samir’s fake relationship, Pinky’s parental issues, a social justice project they find themselves involved in, and the growth of the main characters throughout the story. Fans of the previous books in this series and/or fake dating troupes should not miss this book. If you haven’t read the previous books, it’s okay, as this story stands on its own.

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Book Review - I'll Be The One

📖Recommend for Grades 8 and up📖

I’ll Be The One

by Lyla Lee

For most of her life, Skye Shin has been told she couldn't do certain things because she was fat, with her mother being her harshest critic. Skye's dream is to be a K-Pop star, and she secretly auditions for You're My Shining Star for both singing and dancing. Turns out, auditioning was the easy part. Sky has to deal not just with the other contestants, but a fat-shaming judge, negative media attention, and the fact that her dance partner is famous Henry Cho. Skye isn't about to let anybody get in her way.

An inspiring read for all readers who have ever been told they can't do something. This book may be a romantic comedy to some, but it's got tons of drama too. While the story is about Skye's journey to become a K-Pop star, you don't have to know or like K-Pop to enjoy this. Skye truly is a fantastic character and readers won't be able to help falling in love with her or her journey.

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