Book Reviews

by Aiden Thomas, 344 pages, Grades 7 and up.

Yadriel is growing up in a traditional Latine family; that is, his family is traditionally gifted with magical abilities of the Brujx who are “bestowed with powers by the ancient gods.” In this culture, when a Brujx turns 15 they are given a “portaje” object that holds their magical powers. Yadriel’s portaje is a dagger made by his cousin, Maritza and he is learning how to use it to release souls lingering on earth so they can enjoy the afterlife. Yadriel’s family is not supportive of his decision to practice this type of magic for complicated reasons and so he has to practice without any formal training. This mucking about with magic without supervision and training might seem dangerous, right? In fact, one of the first little problems Yadriel has is rather than sending a spirit to the afterlife, he accidentally summons the ghost of a troubled teen who had been one of his classmates before he died. In addition to his personal struggles there have been some horrible murders in their community as well. While they are in the midst of learning about being Brujx, Yadriel and Martiza find themselves in a very dangerous situation. Can they survive to become full blown Brujx and will their family accept them if they do?

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If you enjoy books about magic or the afterlife you might also like: Sabriel, by Garth Nix, Akata Wtich, by Nnedi Okorafor, The Infinity Courts, by Akemi Dawn Bowman, or Days of the Dead, by Kersten Hamilton.

TAGS: “Day of the Dead,” Latine, Latinx, Latin Americans, LGBTQ+, Family Problems, Adventure, Witches, Spirits, gender roles

Efren Divided

by Ernesto Cisneros, 263 pages, Grades 6 and up.

Efrén in some ways is like every middle school kid trying to navigate growing up and becoming a young adult. But, Efrén is also more than just any adolescent; his life is a balancing act. He is the tightrope walker holding a long stick and there are important and precious things on each end of that stick that he has to keep balanced. Efrén needs to be a good student who works hard and gets all of his work in on time, but he also needs to be a good son and take care of his little siblings. Efrén needs to be the best friend to David, but he also needs to prove kids like him can be super - which means he might have to challenge David in the election. These things are important, of course, but the most painful thing that divides him is the fact that he is American but his parents are not yet citizens; this weighs on him and he finds himself trying to balance the love and admiration for his parents with the worry and fear about their immigration status.

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If you enjoy books about families in America you might also like Waiting for Normal, by Leslie Connor, Ahmed Aziz’s Epic Year, by Nina Hamza, A Good Kind of Trouble, by Lisa Moore Ramée, or The Boy in the Black Suit, by Jason Reynolds

TAGS: immigration, undocumented immigrant, deportation, families, discrimination, prejudice, siblings, middle school, student elections

The Night Diary

by Veera Hiranandani, 258 pages, Grades 6 and up

Twelve year old Nisha is keeping a diary, but she is writing as though each entry is a letter to her mother who died giving birth to her younger brother. In India in 1947 the British, who had colonized India, relinquished their control. In this transition India divided into two separate nations (India and Pakistan) forcing all Muslims into Pakistan and Hindus living on the land that would become Pakistan into the part that would remain India. For Nisha it means leaving the family home and crossing a new border to a new town far from what she knows, which would be difficult enough for any young person. The very sad history of this time, though, makes this journey even more fraught with terror. Some groups of people, angry about what was happening in the country, committed horrible acts of violence against their fellow countrymen. Hindus killing Muslims, Muslims killing Sikhs, and so on. A lot of this violence happened on the trains people were using to try to get to their new homes by the deadline; Nisha’s family is on one of these and she is traveling with her father, little brother and her grandmother.

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If you enjoy reading historical fiction about times and places far from here, you might also like: I Must Betray You, by Ruta Sepetys, A Night Divided, by Jennifer Nielsen, I Lived on Butterfly Hill, by Marjorie Agosín, or Homegoing, by Yaa Gyasi.

TAGS: historical fiction, India, partition, Pakistan, colonialism, Muslims, Hindus, religion, prejudice, violence, war, epistolary stories, refugees, families, death, forced migration, emigration

Stone River Crossing

by TimTingle, 322 pages, Grades 6 and up.

Martha Tom is a member of the Choctaw Nation; her family lives near a river right across from a plantation. The men who manage the plantation are cruel and dangerous. All the Chocktaw know not to venture across the river, but one day Martha Tom decides to be adventurous and crosses in search of blackberries. There she meets Lil Mo who is an enslaved African American kid on the plantation. She learns that Lil Mo’s mom is about to be sold and sent away, Martha Tom’s heart breaks for Lil Mo and she convinces his family to cross the river and hide among the Chocktaw and be free. Lil Mo and his family are hopeful this will be their salvation, but the enslavers are not going to let what they consider “their property” just walk away without a fight.

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The author, Tim Tingle, is a Chocktaw himself and has written a number of books for middle school kids. If you enjoyed this book, you might also like: How I Became a Ghost, House of Purple Cedar, and No Name are a few.

Tags: friendship, historical fiction, Choctaw Nation, slavery, enslaved people, Native Americans, adventure, magic

In the Key of Us

by Mariama J. Lockington, 368 pages, Grades 6 and up.

Andi and Zora meet at Harmony Music Camp one summer. They are the only two Black campers and keep getting thrown together which is very annoying to both kids. Each of them have a very different backstory that brings them to camp: Andi has recently lost her mother, and when she died Andi’s connection and passion for music seemed to fade as well; Zora’s passion is really dancing but her family is determined to press her toward excelling at the flute. Even though they are different kids coming from different family circumstances and feel like they have nothing in common, it is true that they are both dealing with overt racism and microaggressions in this mostly white setting. Maybe they actually do have more in common than they think, or, at the very least, it might be nice to have an ally at camp who might really understand how they are feeling in a way their other friends cannot.

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If you like stories that take place at summer camp, you might also enjoy: To Night Owl, from Dogfish, by Holly Goldberg Sloan, Give Me a Sign, by Anna Sortino, or One Crazy Summer, by Rita Williams-Garcia (which isn’t exactly camp, but has that feel, in a way)

Tags: racism, microaggressions, summer camp, LGBTQ+, realistic fiction, friendship, death, grief, romance

The Kaya Girl

by Mamle Wolo, pages, Grades 6 and up.

Originally published in Ghana in 2012. Faiza has grown up in Northern Ghana with very few possessions and even fewer prospects for her future. She is a hard worker, clever and friendly, but is working as a “kaya girl,” delivery person, which is one of the lowest types of work. One day she meets Abena and sees there is a completely different type of existence out there in her world. Is there something she can do to change her stars? Will her determination and persistence be enough for her to achieve her dreams despite the many circumstances working against her?