Tag Archives: novel in verse

Review: The Trouble with Heroes by Kate Messner

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The Trouble with Heroes by Kate Messner

The Trouble with Heroes
Kate Messner
Bloomsbury USA Children’s
Published April 29, 2025

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About The Trouble with Heroes

Bestselling and award-winning author Kate Messner takes readers on a heart-filling journey as a boy finds his path to healing.

One summer.
46 mountain peaks.
A second chance to make things right.

Finn Connelly is nothing like his dad, a star athlete and firefighter hero who always ran toward danger until he died two years ago. Finn’s about to fail seventh grade and has never made headlines . . . until now.

Caught on camera vandalizing a … Continue reading →

Review: Away by Megan E. Freeman

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Away by Megan E. Freeman

Away
Megan E. Freeman
Simon & Schuster
Published February 11, 2025

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About Away

A group of children investigate the threat that prompted large-scale evacuations in this powerful and dramatic companion novel to the New York Times bestselling Alone told in multiple POVs.

After an imminent yet unnamed danger forces people across Colorado to leave their homes, a group of kids, including an aspiring filmmaker and a budding journalist, find themselves in the same evacuation camp. As they cope with the aftermath of having their world upended, they grow curious about the mysterious threat.

And as they begin to investigate, they … Continue reading →

Review: All the Blues in the Sky by Renée Watson

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All the Blues in the Sky by Renée Watson

All the Blues in the Sky
Renée Watson
Bloomsbury USA Children’s
Published February 4, 2025

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About All the Blues in the Sky

# 1 New York Times bestselling and Newbery Honor author Renée Watson explores friendship, loss, and life with grief in this poignant new novel in verse and vignettes.

Sage’s thirteenth birthday was supposed to be about movies and treats, staying up late with her best friend and watching the sunrise together. Instead, it was the day her best friend died. Without the person she had to hold her secrets and dream with, Sage … Continue reading →

Banned Books Review: Tricks by Ellen Hopkins

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Tricks by Ellen Hopkins

Tricks
Ellen Hopkins
Margaret K. McElderry Books
Published August 25, 2009

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About Tricks

Five teenagers from different parts of the country. Three girls. Two guys. Four straight. One gay. Some rich. Some poor. Some from great families. Some with no one at all. All living their lives as best they can, but all searching … for freedom, safety, community, family, love. What they don’t expect, though, is all that can happen when those powerful little words “I love you” are said for all the wrong reasons.

Five moving stories remain separate at first, then interweave to tell a … Continue reading →

Review: Lion of the Sky by Ritu Hemnani

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Lion of the Sky by Ritu Hemnani

Lion of the Sky
Ritu Hemnani
Balzer + Bray
Published May 7, 2024

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About Lion of the Sky

A historical novel in verse about a boy and his family who are forced to flee their home and become refugees after the British Partition of India.

Twelve-year-old Raj is happiest flying kites with his best friend, Iqbal. As their kites soar, Raj feels free, like his beloved India soon will be, and he can’t wait to celebrate their independence.

But when a British lawyer draws a line across a map, splitting India in two, Raj is thrust into a fractured … Continue reading →

Fall 2024 Backlist Reading Check-In

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Fall 2024 Backlist Reading Check-in

Fall 2024 Backlist Reading Check-In

Normally, I start a post like this at the beginning of the season and add to it as I finish reading each book. That gives me a diary-like record of my experience with each book, which I enjoy looking back at later.

This time, I forgot to start the post and only remembered about it in mid-November when I began making my calendar of list posts for next year. At any rate, I did manage to get my Fall 2024 backlist reading list together, and I’m excited to talk about some of these books.

I somehow managed to get to a lot more backlist titles than I thought I did. My … Continue reading →