Category Archives: Genre

Generational Trauma and Healing: Pilar Ramirez and the Escape from Zafa and A Comb of Wishes

Posted on May 11, 2022 by Katy K.

Here are two new middle grade fantasies that look at generational trauma through a fantasy lens, while being entertaining stories in their own right.  Continue reading →

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Master of Djinn by P. Djèlí Clark

Posted on May 6, 2022 by Katy K.

Who’s up for a steampunk mystery in 1912 Cairo, featuring a dapper young female agent? Continue reading →

Posted in Adult, Audiobook, Books, Fantasy | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

2+2 Cybils Graphic Novel Finalists

Posted on May 4, 2022 by Katy K.

Here are reviews of four more outstanding 2021 Cybils Graphic Novel finalists – Cranky Chicken by Katherine Battersby, The Legend of Auntie Po by Shing Yin Khor, Cheer Up!: Love and Pompoms by Crystal Fraiser, and Nubia: Real One by L.L. McKinney and Robyn Smyth. Continue reading →

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Unicorn Island: Secret Beneath the Sand by Donna Galanti

Posted on April 27, 2022 by Katy K.

Thanks so much to Donna Galanti for sending me the second book in this appealing not-quite-middle-grade series.  Unicorn Island: Secret Beneath the Sand by Donna Galanti. Illustrated by Bethany Stancliffe. Epic!, 2022. Review copy kindly sent by the author.  Unicorn … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Early Chapter Books, Fantasy, Middle Grade, Print, Reviews | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Remixed Classics: So Many Beginnings, Clash of Steel, and Travelers Along the Way

Posted on April 22, 2022 by Katy K.

These first three books from Feiwel & Friends’ Remixed Classics series take the classics, still in their original time periods, and retell them from the point of view of people of color.  The first three include retellings of Little Women, Treasure Island, and Robin Hood – all fabulous. Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Historical, Print, Reviews, Teen/Young Adult | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Good Neighbors by Stephanie Burgis

Posted on April 19, 2022 by Katy K.

Here’s a sweet, uplifting and funny fantasy romance … between a semi-magical inventor and the necromancer down the road,. Continue reading →

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3 More Cybils Middle Grade Fiction Finalists

Posted on April 6, 2022 by Katy K.

Onwards with my reading of this year’s Cybils middle grade fiction finalists with reviews of Thanks a Lot, Universe by Chad Lucas, A Place to Hang the Moon by Kate Albus and Linked by Gordon Korman! Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Historical, Middle Grade, Print, Realistic | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Ripped Away by Shirley Vernick

Posted on April 5, 2022 by Katy K.

Here’s a new middle grade book combination of true crime, time travel, and historical fiction is sure to keep you turning the pages! Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Fantasy, Middle Grade, Print | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

4 Cybils YA Spec Fic Finalists

Posted on March 25, 2022 by Katy K.

Here are my takes on four of the seven 2021 Cybils YA speculative fiction finalists, including high fantasy, magical realism, and twisty science fiction. Continue reading →

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Amah Faraway by Margaret Chiu Greanias. Illustrated by Tracy Subisak

Posted on March 16, 2022 by Katy K.

A heartwarming and beautifully painted picture book about a girl building a real relationship with her grandmother when she and her mother travel to Taiwan. Continue reading →

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