Category Archives: Blogger’s Favorites

Review: A Comb of Wishes by Lisa Stringfellow

February 11, 2022Blogger's Favorites, Book Review and Content, Fantasy, Middle Grade 8-12A Comb of Wishes, grief, HarperCollins, Lisa Stringfellow, mermaid, mom, Quill Tree Books, WishesKasey

A Comb of Wishes
Lisa Stringfellow
Quill Tree Books/HarperCollins
Published February 8, 2022

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About A Comb of Wishes

Ever since her mother’s death, Kela feels every bit as broken as the shards of glass, known as “mermaid’s tears,” that sparkle on the beaches of St. Rita. But when she discovers a different kind of treasure, she accidentally summons an actual mermaid—the wrathful Ophidia.

Ophidia makes Kela a bargain: her ancient comb, in exchange for a wish. And though Kela knows that what she wants most is her mother back, a wish that big will exact a dangerous price…

My Review

The writing in this book hooked me right away. The chapters from Ophidia’s point-of-view are mysterious and otherworldly. Kela’s chapters felt packed with emotion and anchored in the island setting of the town where she lives. I loved the way the author celebrates oral storytelling through A COMB OF WISHES. The chapters from Ophidia’s POV begin and end with a traditional story cue: “Crick. Crack.” The author explains more about this in her guest post at Teen Librarian Toolbox.

The story is as sweet as it is heartbreaking. Kela’s grief over her mom’s death feels raw and real. Her desperation to use her wish to get her mom back makes perfect sense. I felt myself grasping for hope right along with her at every turn. I love the way Kela remains an active character within the story, even though she’s surrounded by adults who have a lot more power and options. She is the one who makes the moves that drive the story forward, and they feel like reasonable things that she could do.

I also loved the way that Lisa Stringfellow integrated magic and fantasy into this contemporary story. I thought that was really well done.

Readers who enjoy lush middle grade fantasy about family connections, like THE GIRL WHO DRANK THE MOON by Kelly Barnhill or THE OTHER SIDE OF LUCK by Ginger Johnson, will love this one.

Content Notes for A Comb of Wishes

Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.

Representation
Main characters are Black.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
Kela finds a magical comb that belongs to a mermaid. The mermaid offers her a wish for returning the comb to her.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. Kela discovers that her dad’s shop has been broken into and ransacked. A man kidnaps two people. Three people are trapped on a sinking boat.

Drug Content
References to a man who drank too much rum and was cruel.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog. I received a free copy of A COMB OF WISHES in exchange for my honest review.

Review: You Truly Assumed by Laila Sabreen

February 9, 2022Blogger's Favorites, Book Review and Content, Contemporary, Young Adult/Teen 12-18blogging, faith positive, friendship, Islamophobia, Laila Sabreen, Muslim, netgalley, racism, Terrorist Attack, You Truly AssumedKasey

You Truly Assumed
Laila Sabreen
Inkyard Press
Published February 8, 2022

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About You Truly Assumed

Sabriya has her whole summer planned out in color-coded glory, but those plans go out the window after a terrorist attack near her home. When the terrorist is assumed to be Muslim and Islamophobia grows, Sabriya turns to her online journal for comfort. You Truly Assumed was never meant to be anything more than an outlet, but the blog goes viral as fellow Muslim teens around the country flock to it and find solace and a sense of community.

Soon two more teens, Zakat and Farah, join Bri to run You Truly Assumed and the three quickly form a strong friendship. But as the blog’s popularity grows, so do the pushback and hateful comments. When one of them is threatened, the search to find out who is behind it all begins, and their friendship is put to the test when all three must decide whether to shut down the blog and lose what they’ve worked for…or take a stand and risk everything to make their voices heard.

In this compelling and thought-provoking debut novel, after a terrorist attack rocks the country and anti-Islamic sentiment stirs, three Black Muslim girls create a space where they can shatter assumptions and share truths.

My Review

There are so many great things about this book. I loved that Sabriya, Farah, and Zakat form close bonds over blogging. I’ve had a couple blogging friends over the years, and those are always really cool relationships, so I loved getting to read about them. I also loved that they were so different from one another. Sabriya is a dancer, and I loved getting to see her in class and working on performances. It was cool seeing her world through the eyes of a Black dancer and all that meant to her. She’s also the blog founder and main writer.

Farah is super gifted at coding, so she brought some specific talent to the blog, too. I think from an emotional perspective, her story resonated with me the most. She reluctantly reconnects with her estranged father and meets his family for the first time. She also meets other Black Muslim girls in Boston, where he lives, and works with them on a vigil for a girl who was murdered.

Zakat has a totally different experience from the other girls as she grows up attending a Muslim school and surrounded by a lot of support for her faith. She’s an artist, and the descriptions of her work were really cool. I found myself wishing that the book included drawings or graphic panels representing her pieces, especially alongside the blog posts. I think that would have been really cool.

All three girls experience Islamophobic behavior in the wake of the attack in Washington DC. At first I thought it was an odd choice that we’re following three different girls from three different states, but as the events unfolded after the DC attack, choosing characters from different places made a lot of sense, because it showed how far-reaching the effects of the rising Islamophobia were and how it affected so many different communities.

I really liked the story and enjoyed all three main characters. I’m not even sure I could pick a favorite. They were all compelling stories. The only thing that tripped me up at all was the dialogue. I felt like a lot of characters sounded the same. It seemed like a lot of times the dialogue was written in long sentences or long paragraphs that didn’t feel very natural to me. That could just be me– I have definitely gotten spoiled for stories with a lot of blank space on the page around choppy, fast-paced dialogue. So that’s probably not a flaw, just a preference.

On the whole, though, I really enjoyed reading this book. I think readers who enjoyed MISFIT IN LOVE by S. K. Ali will enjoy this one.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Representation
All three main characters are Black Muslim girls.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Extreme profanity used infrequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kiss between boy and girl.

Spiritual Content
References to Ramadan and Eid. Shows characters attending services, prayer, and receiving counsel from spiritual leaders.

Violent Content – Trigger warning for Islamophobia
Most of the physical violence happens off-scene. There are references to more than one violent attack which left people injured and killed. Other instances of vandalism occur. An alt-right site lists the girls’ blog on their website and people begin flooding the blog comments with Islamophobic and racist statements. Some of those are included in the text. The girls also experience Islamophobic comments in their daily lives, too.

Drug Content
None.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog. I received a free copy of YOU TRULY ASSUMED in exchange for my honest review.

Review: You’d Be Home Now by Kathleen Glasgow

February 4, 2022Blogger's Favorites, Book Review and Content, Contemporary, Young Adult/Teen 12-18backlist, family, friendship, grief, opioid addiction, opioid epidemic, Our Town, oxycontin, Romance, siblingsKasey

You’d Be Home Now
Kathleen Glasgow
Delacorte Press
Published September 28, 2021

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About You’d Be Home Now

For all of Emory’s life she’s been told who she is. In town she’s the rich one–the great-great-granddaughter of the mill’s founder. At school she’s hot Maddie Ward’s younger sister. And at home, she’s the good one, her stoner older brother Joey’s babysitter. Everything was turned on its head, though, when she and Joey were in the car accident that killed Candy MontClaire. The car accident that revealed just how bad Joey’s drug habit was.

Four months later, Emmy’s junior year is starting, Joey is home from rehab, and the entire town of Mill Haven is still reeling from the accident. Everyone’s telling Emmy who she is, but so much has changed, how can she be the same person? Or was she ever that person at all?

Mill Haven wants everyone to live one story, but Emmy’s beginning to see that people are more than they appear. Her brother, who might not be cured, the popular guy who lives next door, and most of all, many ghostie addicts who haunt the edges of the town. People spend so much time telling her who she is–it might be time to decide for herself.

Inspired by the American classic Our Town, You’d Be Home Now is Kathleen Glasgow’s glorious modern story of a town and the secret lives people live there. And the story of a girl, figuring out life in all its pain and beauty and struggle and joy.

My Review

This book broke my heart. It’s so raw, so full of emotion. It’s desperate and tender. I love the relationship between Emory and her brother, Joey. Watching her family navigate this incredibly difficult moment made me feel like I couldn’t look away. I needed to know what would happen all the way until the last page.

It definitely captured some of the feel of OUR TOWN. The opioid use gave the story a completely different spin, though. And, oh my gosh. Emory’s mother. I had to pause my reading a couple of times because her control issues were so off the chart. I felt like I could feel Emory’s anxiety and Joey’s frustration and apathy myself when their mother was in the room sometimes. Yikes.

As a reader, I loved this book so much. It challenged me as a writer, too. Like, it’s definitely one of those books that I finish reading and then struggle not to quietly go and delete every project I’ve been working on because I can’t see how I’ll ever write something as compelling as this. (No manuscripts were harmed in the making of this book review.)

If you love stories featuring family drama, or books that explore first love and addiction, or complicated grief, those are all great reasons to pick up YOU’D BE HOME NOW.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Representation
Emory is the daughter of a wealthy white family in a small town. Her brother is recovering from opioid addiction.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Extreme profanity used somewhat frequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between boy and girl. References to touching and masturbation. A girl allows a boy to take photos of her while she’s naked.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
Emory’s brother comes home with a black eye and says another boy at school hit him.

Drug Content
Emory drinks alcohol at a party. Other kids smoke pot. Emory’s brother uses heroin and oxycontin (happens off-scene).

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog.

16 Amazing YA Books Coming Winter 2022

February 1, 2022Blogger's Favorites, Lists, News and Fun, Young Adult/Teen 12-18Best Books, Best Books 2022, Upcoming Releases, YA, Young Adult Books 2022Kasey

16 Amazing YA Books Coming Winter 2022

I imagined posting this list the first or second week of January, but here we are on February first, and I’m finally getting it posted. But here it is! These are some of the books I’m most excited about reading this winter.

At the end of the year last year, someone asked if there are just not any good YA books coming out anymore, which sparked some debate on Book Twitter. While I think everyone is allowed their opinion on the books they love (or don’t), I gotta say, I’m still seeing some incredible books hitting shelves these days in the YA market. If you missed it, I recently posted a Best YA of 2021 list which includes more than 20 of my favorites from last year.

This year already looks like it’s going to be a great year for YA books, and this list is just for January to March. I’m already struggling not to overcommit (WHY are there so many great books coming out on March 8???) because I keep getting new requests or stumbling across news about even more great titles. So far, these are the books I am desperate to read and want to drop everything right now so I can curl up in a warm chair with some tea or a latte and dive right into.

Spoiler (kind of?): Because I’m SO LATE posting this list, I’ve already read a few of these books, so I already know I LOVED them. As the year progresses I’ll try to go back and add a link to my reviews for everything on the list in case anyone revisits this list later for updates.

Another note: Publication dates have been getting changed around a bit. I’ve tried to double-check all of these dates to be sure they’re still on track. My apologies for any inaccuracies.

Also: This list contains affiliate links which do not cost you anything to use but which generate a small amount of financial support for this blog.

16 Awesome YA Books Coming Winter 2022

Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves by Meg Long

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

What you need to know: An icy planet. A race run with sleds and wolves. A girl whose only chance for survival depends on the race. I couldn’t put it down. Fantastic characters. Intense, action-packed story.

Published January 11, 2022 | My Review

The Bone Spindle by Leslie Vedder

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

What you need to know: A gender-flipped retelling of sleeping beauty where the prince waits for a kiss to wake him, and two fierce, determined treasure hunters will stop at nothing to break his curse. Features a M/F romance and a F/F romance. This might be my new favorite series???

Published January 11, 2022 | My Review

Dance of Twilight and Tears by Zara Mills

Amazon | Goodreads

What you need to know: A Swan Lake retelling that centers around Odette and Odile at an elite dance academy. Ballet plus a fairytale (read: actual ballet) retelling?? YES, PLEASE!

Release Date: January 20, 2022 | My review

At the End of Everything by Marieke Nijkamp

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

What you need to know: A deadly pandemic. A recovery center full of teenagers who’ve been abandoned and now must work together and trust one another in order to survive. Haunting, inspiring, and full of spirit.

Release Date: January 25, 2022 | My Review

I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

What you need to know: A young Romanian writer forced to betray everything he believes in by informing on those he loves joins the revolution to fight for freedom. It’s Ruta Sepetys, y’all. I wasn’t able to get a review copy, but I’m definitely gonna have to fit this one into my reading life.

Release Date: February 1, 2022

These Deadly Games by Diana Urban

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

What you need to know: Urban’s debut, ALL YOUR TWISTED SECRETS is high on my TBR list. This one looks like a suspenseful, fast-paced story full of secrets and a girl desperate to rescue her little sister.

Release Date: February 1, 2022 | My Review

You Truly Assumed by Laila Sabreen

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

What you need to know: Three Black Muslim girls create their own space to shatter assumptions and share truth in the wake of a terrorist attack and rising anti-Muslim sentiment. This one looks really good!

Release Date: February 8, 2022 | My Review

Full Flight by Ashley Schumacher

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

What you need to know: Romance between a saxophone player and mellophone player in the midst of a marching competition. Tragic story about “finding first love and what happens when it’s over too soon.” From the author of AMELIA UNABRIDGED, which was another favorite.

Release Date: February 22, 2022 | My Review

Edgewood by Kristen Ciccarelli

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

What you need to know: A girl teams up with her enemy turned reluctant ally to save her grandfather from an ancient curse in a magical forest. I have heart eyes.