New Kid by Jerry Craft

E/A. Craft, Jerry. New Kid.  Harper, 2019. 249p. 978-0-06-269120-0. 21.99.

Middle Grade Graphic Novel

Jordan Banks loves to draw, and he wants nothing more than to start his 7th grade year at an art

school, but his mom has other plans. Instead, she wants him to attend a prestigious private

school—Riverdale Academy Day School.  His father is worried that there is not enough

diversity at this new school, and sure enough, Jordan is only one of the few diverse kids

at Riverdale. It’s difficult enough to be in middle school, but to be a new kid at a middle

school where the other kids are very privileged, who vacation in places like Aspen or

the Adirondacks, where the teacher confuses your name with other African American

boys, and even the librarian thinks that the only books that would appeal to you are the

gritty problem novels. Jordan can’t help but feel like an outsider, lost and alone, as he

tries to get through his classes, make new friends while staying clear of upperclassmen

and bullies, and generally trying to survive the school year until he can convince his mom

to send him to art school. This singular graphic novel is full of insight and humor, and

definitely answers the call for #weneeddiversebooks. For fans of Jeff Kinney and Raina

Telgemeier. Must-have for all general YA collections.

Camille Campos, LAPL, Benjamin Franklin Branch Library

Beck by Mal Peet and Meg Rosoff

YA Fiction

The leaves shiver and fall and a gentle wind circulates through the neighborhood. It’s autumn and the perfect season to nestle up under an oak and lose yourself in a good book. And I’ve got just the book to chase away those post-summer blues. Let’s delve right in and get all roused with reverie for leisurely literature again.

Beck by Mal Peet is wholesale heartrending and a host to many narrative highs and lows. A historical novel that follows Beck, a young orphan vagabond traveling across the continent during the Depression, as he struggles with the racial inequalities of the era and the hardships of life on the road. It’s a story propelled by well-wrought emotions, fully-realized characters, and a protagonist that embodies determination in the face of abject desolation.  

The plot will pitch your wellbeing through the emotional wringer. Beck undergoes tremendous trials and tribulations and, willingly or not, finds his resolve and character hardened by it. Hunger and discrimination are a constant companion with him throughout his travels but he manages to find solace by novel’s end. Circumstance and chance batters the boy incessantly but he learns to persevere. He ekes his way from one harrowing situation to the next. Survival becomes a knack despite some gut-wrenching close calls. Beck finds himself testing the very limits of luck with his constant freight-hopping, illicit hardscrabble careers, and irreverent denunciation of authority.

The writer is adept at conjuring vivid paragraphs of description. We’re transported from the gloomy docks of Liverpool to the frigid tundras of Canada to the desolate amber prairies of rural America. It’s a story that spans many lands and locales. Displacement and social decline a strong theme page after page. It’s a Dorothea Lange portrait writ large across the page. Bleak and howling gray. But embedded in the nigh nothingness of descriptive deprivation and famine, we catch sight of lyrical glimmers of poetry. Soothing and sorely sought sustenance for the soul. Scattered are easily-missed, microscopically-mentioned mementos that remind readers of the beauty in disconsolate environs. Though seemingly barren and unforgiving, we must make an earnest effort to dust off the dolorous to find the shoots of green hope dormant underfoot.  

It’s a challenging book. Dark and sublime in its devastating portrayal of chronic indigence. Not your usual Young Adult fare that strikes all the conventional plot points and culminates in a tidy saccharine ending. This tale expects more from readers. It prods and poses difficult questions regarding race, class, and an outsider’s waning place in the world. It’s a book that has the courage to not opt for the easy answers. And presses you to find comfort in a lack of resolution or sense of closure.  

The long and short of it: Beck is fine reading. Stark and powerful in its craft of storytelling. It’s a thick borsch of The Grapes of Wrath, Angela’s Ashes, and Great Expectations. A tale as steadfast, unsettling, and mosaic-like as America itself. So brandish that thumb and hitchhike a ride on this rich and harrowing literary odyssey.

It’s a ride that’s sure to be itinerant and eye-opening.   ​

Tommy Vinh Bui, Inglewood Public Library 

More Deadly Than War : The Hidden History of the Spanish Flu and the First World War

YA Nonfiction

VG/A. Davis, Kenneth C. More Deadly Than War: The Hidden History of the Spanish Flu and the First World War. Henry Holt and Company, 2018. 291p. 978-1-250-14512-3. 19.95.

“We live in a world in which we fear the deadly things we can see. Bombs, guns, and terrorism are the most visible threats to life and peace…But throughout human history, the things we cannot see have actually been the most lethal. Disease have been more deadly than war.” Davis’s fascinating and engrossing account comes on the 100^th anniversary of the Spanish flu, the most deadly pandemic in the modern era. It has recently been estimated that 100 million people died worldwide, of which 675,000 died in the US.  However, little attention has been paid to the Spanish flu that left victims, otherwise young and healthy, “blue as huckleberries and spitting blood”.  A “collective amnesia”, the censorship of newspapers, magazines and textbooks surrounding the Spanish flu and its effects on WWI, has allowed it to fall into “a black hole of history”.  The history of the Spanish flu is a cautionary tale, in which lessons of the past are still relevant today, especially in a world more interconnected than ever before, where outbreaks of Zika or Ebola or even the flu can lead to another deadly and terrifying pandemic. Includes black and white photographs, appendices, timeline, bibliography, source, notes, and index. Recommended for all general YA collections.

C. Campos, Benjamin Franklin Library, LAPL

The Prince and the Dressmaker

General YA Graphic Novel

VG/A. Wang, Jen. The Prince and the Dressmaker.  First Second, 2018. 312p. 978-1-62672-363-4. 16.99.

After having designed such a scandalous dress for Lady Sophia Rohan, Frances finds herself unexpectedly let go. Luckily, she soon finds herself as a personal seamstress for a private client -- the mysterious Lady Crystallia.  By night, the confident, bold, beautiful and alluring Lady Crystallia takes Paris by storm.  By day, Lady Crystallia is none other than the Crown Prince Sebastian of Belgium, a dutiful son for whom his parents are steadfastly searching for a bride.  Whenever Sebastian wears Frances’ beautiful creations, he feels absolutely transformed, that he can do just about anything.  Just as Lady Crystallia and Frances’ designs grow in popularity - all the girls want to dress like her - so, too, does the need for secrecy. Sebastian is worried about what his parents would think if they find out the truth.  He implores Frances to keep his secret, but Sebastian’s secret may tear their friendship apart.  Frances knows that in order to keep Sebastian’s secret she would have to keep her own talents a secret and miss out on following her dreams.  Sebastian is torn between following his parent’s wishes or being honest and remaining true to himself.  Jen Wang’s delightful and refreshing graphic novel is a wonderfully illustrated, unconventional fairy tale that will captivate many fans. C. Campos, LAPL, Benjamin Franklin

ALICE PAUL AND THE FIGHT FOR WOMEN'S RIGHTS

ADULT/YA NONFICTION

G/A  Kops, Deborah.  Alice Paul and the Fight for Women's Rights.  Calkins Creek, 2017.
978-1-62979-323-8.  17.95.  Paul's inspiration to become a political activist for the fair treatment and rights of women began during her 2 1/2 years in England.  While extending her "beyond graduate" education, she became a suffragette in London's -- Women's Social and Political Union.  This involvement prepared her for a leadership role in America's -- National Woman's Party.  She worked tirelessly for the women's right to vote, anti-sex discrimination, civil rights, and the Equal Rights Amendment.  Included in the book are:  a very detailed index; a mini -- who's who section of approximately 30 additional women; an extensive bibliography; and a thorough listing of sources for quotations.  There are also an ample number of good quality b/w photographs distributed throughout the book -- many of which are properties of the  Library of Congress.   E.M. Roublow (ret.)

EYES OF THE WORLD

ADULT/YA  NONFICTION
V/A  Aronson, Marc and Marina Budhos.  EYES OF THE WORLD.  Henry Holt, 2017.  9780805098358.  22.95.  During Spain's Civil War, two photojournalists discover their passion for image reporting.  Robert Capa and Gerda Taro ("adopted" names created to protect their ethnic identity) honed their skills in the midst of inclement weather, crowds of refugees and physical danger.  Their fierce determination was well supported by respect and love for one another.  Readers and browsers, alike, will appreciate this handsome presentation of history plus chapter notes, a timeline, appendices and a detailed index.  Interesting, also, is the authors' segment:  "How We Came To Write This Book."    E.M. Roublow (ret.)

Dear Martin

Dear Martin
By Nic Stone
Narrated by Dion Graham
Published by Listening Library
ISBN: 1101939494
October 17, 2017

This was a trenchant and incisive yarn that ran the gamut of emotional peaks and valleys. From rib-grabbingly funny to heartsomely somber, writer Nic Stone has managed to wring a rich and textured story that should keep young audiences captivated from word one. It’s a narrative that confounds expectation and tackles admirably some of the pressing issues that are but all too relevant today. It’s a dazzling work that is sensitive to a multitude of contemporary controversies and should spark a windfall of thoughtful discussion among teen readers.

The story follows Justyce McAllister, a bright and clear-eyed senior trying his best to navigate the slings and arrows of adolescence. It’s hard enough for a teen to wrestle with schoolwork, social life, and the other difficulties part and parcel with high school, he also must struggle with some pretty profound racial and societal questions. He becomes deeply disoriented when he himself is the victim of racial profiling and he begins to falter when it comes to understanding his own sense of identity and class affiliation. He finds solace and guidance in the teachings of his historical mentor, Martin Luther King Jr, desperately trying to make sense of the racial tensions and inequalities around him. Through a series of epistolary missives he writes to Dr. King, he undergoes a head-to-toe personal transformation and comes out the other side of the novel a changed person.

It’s certainly a page-turner. I was hanging on each word and found myself at the last page with alarming swiftness. It’s structurally sound and has ample narrative velocity. The characters are fully fleshed out and nothing is rushed or under-developed. The writer manages to capture a tone that is exceedingly listen-eable and strikes the ear true. There’s a je ne sais quoi musicality to the dialogue that is dulcet and alluring from beginning to end.

The themes are certainly age-appropriate and should provide a wealth of discussion points for any Current Events class worth their salt. Themes of racial inequality, affirmative action, and tacit discrimination are all subjects that are broached elegantly and kneaded into the narrative masterfully. These struggles and difficult questions really coax the best out of the primary and secondary characters and make them fully realized and multi-layered figures by the novel’s culmination. The character development is top-notch. We sympathize and identify with these characters. Very much so. We celebrate with them during the highs and grieve together during the lows. And all arrive at a better understanding of the issues chapter by chapter.


All said, a doozy of a YA novel. Inexplicably by-the-book and out-of-the-box somehow. A wholehearted recommend.

Tommy Bui, Inglewood Public Library