New Book Releases for Kids and Teens: October 9, 2018

We started back to school yesterday after our relaxing week off for fall break. The hubs, the boys, the pup, and I spent the week at home in Shanghai, which is honestly the best, most relaxing vacation I can think of. We've been very busy this week in our library finalizing details for upcoming visits from authors Ying Compestine and Nick Arnold. They come only about three weeks apart at the end of October and in November, so it will be a bit of a whirlwind for us over the next month or so. We also have Storybook Character Day coming up soon, so I'll be dusting off my good ol' Babymouse costume. It's cute and easy and I already have all the materials, so that's a big fat win in my busy book right now!

Lots of new releases again this week, but most of them are YA. There just aren't very many new middle grade titles this week, which is a bit disappointing. Maybe next week?


YOUNG ADULT (GRADES 7+):

What If It's Us (Becky Albertalli, Adam Silvera) Told in two voices, when Arthur, a summer intern from Georgia, and Ben, a native New Yorker, meet it seems like fate, but after three attempts at dating fail they wonder if the universe is pushing them together or apart. Recommended for Grades 8+. Multiple starred reviews. Realistic fiction, romance, GLBT+.

Dear Evan Hansen (Val Emmich, Steven Levenson, Benj Pasek, Justin Paul) When a letter that was never meant to be seen by anyone draws high school senior Evan Hansen into a family's grief over the loss of their son, he is given the chance of a lifetime: to belong. He just has to stick to a lie he never meant to tell, that the notoriously troubled Connor Murphy was his secret best friend. Recommended for Grades 9-12. Realistic fiction, suicide.

Odd One Out (Nic Stone) One story. Three sides. No easy answers. Courtney "Coop" Cooper--Dumped. Again. And normally I wouldn't mind. But right now, my best friend and source of solace, Jupiter Sanchez, is ignoring me to text some girl. Rae Evelyn Chin--I assumed "new girl" would be synonymous with "pariah," but Jupiter and Courtney make me feel like I'm right where I belong. I also want to kiss him. And her. Which is...perplexing. Jupiter Charity-Sanchez--The only thing worse than losing the girl you love to a boy is losing her to your boy. That means losing him, too. I have to make a move... Recommended for Grades 9-12. Booklist starred. Realistic fiction, LGBT+.

Lost Soul, Be At Peace (Maggie Thrash) A year and a half after the summer that changed her life, Maggie Thrash wishes she could change it all back. She's trapped in a dark depression and flunking eleventh grade, befuddling her patrician mother while going unnoticed by her father, a workaholic federal judge. The only thing Maggie cares about is her cat, Tommi...who then disappears somewhere in the walls of her cavernous house. So her search begins -- but Maggie's not even really sure what she's lost, and she has no idea what she'll find. Recommended for Grades 8-12. SLJ and Kirkus starred. Graphic novel, memoir, mental health, depression.

Light Years (Kass Morgan) Light Years, book 1. A new series from the author of The 100. After centuries of exclusivity, the Quatra Fleet Academy finally accepts students from the settler planets, forcing four teenagers from different backgrounds, with different ambitions, motives, and missions, to work together to outmaneuver a mysterious alien enemy. Recommended for Grades 7+. Science fiction, space opera, romance.

All the Stars Denied (Guadalupe Garcia McCall) Companion to: Shame the Stars. When resentment surges during the Great Depression in a Texas border town, Estrella, fifteen, organizes a protest against the treatment of tejanos and soon finds herself witih her mother and baby brother in Mexico. Recommended for Grades 6-10. SLJ starred. Historical fiction, Mexico, discrimination, Great Depression, Dust Bowl.

Bridge of Clay (Marcus Zusak) The story of five brothers who bring each other up in a world run by their own rules. As the Dunbar boys love and fight and learn to reckon with the adult world, they discover the moving secret behind their father’s disappearance. At the center of the Dunbar family is Clay, a boy who will build a bridge--for his family, for his past, for greatness, for his sins, for a miracle. The question is, how far is Clay willing to go? And how much can he overcome? Recommended for Grades 9-12. Booklist and Publishers Weekly starred.

Beneath the Citadel (Destiny Soria) In the city of Eldra, people are ruled by ancient prophecies. For centuries, the high council has stayed in power by virtue of the prophecies of the elder seers. After the last infallible prophecy came to pass, growing unrest led to murders and an eventual rebellion that raged for more than a decade. In the present day, Cassa, the orphaned daughter of rebels, is determined to fight back against the high council, which governs Eldra from behind the walls of the citadel. Recommended for Grades 8-11. SLJ starred. Fantasy.

Hey, Kiddo (Jarrett Krosoczka) In kindergarten, Jarrett Krosoczka's teacher asks him to draw his family, with a mommy and a daddy. But Jarrett's family is much more complicated than that. His mom is an addict, in and out of rehab, and in and out of Jarrett's life. His father is a mystery -- Jarrett doesn't know where to find him, or even what his name is. Jarrett lives with his grandparents -- two very loud, very loving, very opinionated people who had thought they were through with raising children until Jarrett came along. Recommended for Grades 7-12. FIVE starred reviews! Graphic novel, realistic fiction, addiction.

Hearts Unbroken (Cynthia Leitich Smith) When Louise Wolfe's first real boyfriend mocks and disrespects Native people in front of her, she breaks things off and dumps him over e-mail. It's her senior year, anyway, and she'd rather spend her time with her family and friends and working on the school newspaper. The editors pair her up with Joey Kairouz, the ambitious new photojournalist, and in no time the paper's staff find themselves with a major story to cover: the school musical director's inclusive approach to casting The Wizard of Oz has been provoking backlash in their mostly white, middle-class Kansas town. Recommended for Grades 9-12. SLJ starred. Realistic fiction, Native Americans.

Blanca and Roja (Anna-Marie McLemore) The del Cisne girls have never just been sisters; they're also rivals, Blanca as obedient and graceful as Roja is vicious and manipulative. They know that, because of a generations-old spell, their family is bound to a bevy of swans deep in the woods. They know that, one day, the swans will pull them into a dangerous game that will leave one of them a girl, and trap the other in the body of a swan. But when two local boys become drawn into the game, the swans' spell intertwines with the strange and unpredictable magic lacing the woods, and all four of their fates depend on facing truths that could either save or destroy them. Recommended for Grades 9-12. Multiple starred reviews. Retelling (Snow White and Rose Red), fantasy, LGBT+.

Blacklisted!: Hollywood, The Cold War, and the First Amendment (Larry Dane Brimner) In Post-WWII America, a committee is formed in the nation's capital to investigate Communist threats. Blacklisted! follows 19 men--all from the film industry--who are summoned to appear before the House of Representatives Committee on Un-American Activities. All 19 believe that the committee's investigations into their political views and personal associations are a violation of their First Amendment rights. When the first 10 of these men refuse to give the committee the simple answers it wants, they are cited for contempt of Congress and blacklisted. Recommended for Grades 9-12. Multiple starred reviews. Narrative nonfiction, civil rights.

Anything But Okay (Sarah Darer Littman) Life has suddenly turned chaotic for high school student Stella since her brother, Rob, got home from his second tour of duty in Afghanistan: her school is on edge with ethnic tensions and her brother seems to be suffering from post-traumatic stress but will not talk about it. But when Rob's anger finally spirals out of control, Stella realizes she has to find the courage to take a stand against the forces of hate in her hometown. Realistic fiction, PTSD, immigration.

Last Pick (Jason Walz) Last Pick, book 1. Three years ago, aliens invaded Earth and abducted everyone they deemed useful. The only ones spared were those too young, too old, or too "disabled" to be of value. Living on Earth under the aliens' harsh authoritarian rule, humanity's rejects do their best to survive. Their captors never considered them a threat--until now. Twins Sam and Wyatt are ready to chuck their labels and start a revolution. It's time for the kids last picked to step into the game. Recommended for Grades 7-12. Booklist and Kirkus starred. Graphic novel, aliens.

ALSO RELEASING THIS WEEK (YA):




THIS WEEK'S SEQUELS (YA):



MIDDLE GRADES (GRADES 4-7):

The Cat Who Ate Christmas (Lil Chase, Thomas Docherty) Is this the first Christmas book of the 2018 season? It's Christmas, and Jingles the kitten has knocked over the Christmas tree and unwrapped all of the presents! What a naughty kitty. When Jingles eats the entire Christmas turkey, it's the final straw! Jingles is in big trouble now. While his family is busy cleaning up the mess, a guilty Jingles disappears. Realizing what matters most, the family sets out to look for their naughty kitten--it won't be Christmas without him. Recommended for Grades 1-4, but Christmas books are always popular. Humor, Christmas, kittens.

ALSO RELEASING THIS WEEK (MIDDLE GRADES):


THIS WEEK'S SEQUELS (MIDDLE GRADES):



PICTURE BOOKS (ALL AGES):

Thirty Minutes Over Oregon: A Japanese Pilot's WWII Story (Marc Tyler Nobleman, Melissa Iwai) Based on a true story. The devastating attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, drew the United States into World War II in 1941. But few are aware that several months later, the Japanese pilot Nobuo Fujita dropped bombs in the woods outside a small town in coastal Oregon. This is the story of those bombings, and what came after, when Fujita returned to Oregon twenty years later, this time to apologize.

Dad's Camera (Ross Watkins, Liz Anelli) One day Dad comes home with one of those old cameras, the kind that uses film. But he doesn't take photos of the regular things people photograph. He takes pictures of his keys, his coffee cup, the objects scattered on his desk. He starts doing a lot of things that are hard to understand, like putting items that belong in the fridge in the cupboard and ones that belong in the cupboard in the fridge. Terminal illness, Alzheimer's Disease.

This list also appears on my New Releases--Weekly Board on Pinterest: