Review: Furia by Yamile Saied Méndez

Furia by Yamile Saied Méndez

Furia
Yamile Saied Méndez
Algonquin Young Readers
Published September 15, 2020

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About Furia

An #ownvoices contemporary YA set in Argentina, about a rising soccer star who must put everything on the line—even her blooming love story—to follow her dreams.

In Rosario, Argentina, Camila Hassan lives a double life.

At home, she is a careful daughter, living within her mother’s narrow expectations, in her rising-soccer-star brother’s shadow, and under the abusive rule of her short-tempered father.

On the field, she is La Furia, a powerhouse of skill and talent. When her team qualifies for the South … Continue reading

Review: Venom & Vow by Anna-Marie McLemore and Elliot McLemore

Venom and Vow by Anna-Marie and Elliott McLemore

Venom & Vow
Anna-Marie McLemore and Elliot McLemore
Feiwel & Friends
Published May 16, 2023

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About Venom & Vow

Keep your enemy closer.

Cade McKenna is a transgender prince who’s doubling for his brother.
Valencia Palafox is a young dama attending the future queen of Eliana.
Gael Palma is the infamous boy assassin Cade has vowed to protect.
Patrick McKenna is the reluctant heir to a kingdom, and the prince Gael has vowed to destroy.

Cade doesn’t know that Gael and Valencia are the same person.
Valencia doesn’t know that every time she … Continue reading

Review: Salt and Sugar by Rebecca Carvalho

Salt and Sugar Rebecca Carvalho

Salt and Sugar
Rebecca Carvalho
Inkyard Press
November 1, 2022

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About Salt and Sugar

The grandchildren of two rival Brazilian bakeries fall in love despite their families’ feud.

Trust neither thin-bottomed frying pans nor Molinas.

Lari Ramires has always known this to be true. In Olinda, Brazil, her family’s bakery, Salt, has been at war with the Molinas’ bakery across the street, Sugar, for generations. But Lari’s world turns upside down when her beloved grandmother passes away. On top of that, a big supermarket chain has moved to town, forcing many of the small businesses to close.

Determined to protect her home, Lari does the unthinkable—she … Continue reading

Review: Fat Chance, Charlie Vega by Crystal Maldonado

Fat Chance Charlie Vega by Crystal Maldonado

Fat Chance, Charlie Vega
Crystal Maldonado
Holiday House
Published February 2, 2021

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About Fat Chance, Charlie Vega

Charlie Vega is a lot of things. Smart. Funny. Artistic. Ambitious. Fat.

People sometimes have a problem with that last one. Especially her mom. Charlie wants a good relationship with her body, but it’s hard, and her mom leaving a billion weight loss shakes on her dresser doesn’t help. The world and everyone in it have ideas about what she should look like: thinner, lighter, slimmer-faced, straighter-haired. Be smaller. Be whiter. And be quieter.

But there’s one person who’s always in Charlie’s corner: her best friend Amelia. Slim. … Continue reading

Review: The Other Side of the River by Alda P. Dobbs

The Other Side of the River by Alda P. Dobbs

The Other Side of the River
Alda P. Dobbs
Delacorte Press
Published September 6, 2022

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About The Other Side of the River

From the award-winning author of Barefoot Dreams of Petra Luna, Alda P. Dobbs, comes a compelling new novel about building a new life in America. Strong and determined, Petra Luna returns in a story about the immigrant experience that continues to be relevant today.

Petra Luna is in America, having escaped the Mexican Revolution and the terror of the Federales. Now that they are safe, Petra and her family can begin again, in this country that promises so much. … Continue reading

Review: The Ghosts of Rose Hill by R. M. Romero

The Ghosts of Rose Hill by R. M. Romero

The Ghosts of Rose Hill
R. M. Romero
Peachtree Teen
Published May 10, 2022

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About The Ghosts of Rose Hill

Magic will burn you up.

Sent to stay with her aunt in Prague and witness the humble life of an artist, Ilana Lopez—a biracial Jewish girl—finds herself torn between her dream of becoming a violinist and her immigrant parents’ desire for her to pursue a more stable career.

When she discovers a forgotten Jewish cemetery behind her aunt’s cottage, she meets the ghost of a kindhearted boy named Benjamin, who died over a century ago. As Ilana restores Benjamin’s grave, he introduces … Continue reading