FINISHED:
Kondo, Robert & Tsutsumi, Dice. (2018). The Dam Keeper: Book Two: World Without Darkness. New York: First Second/Roaring Brook.


[.]

STARTED:
Kibuishi, Kazu. (2018). Supernova [Amulet #8]. New York: Graphix.Scholastic.

[.]

*

FINISHED:
Gemeinhart, Dan. (2018). Good Dog. New York: Scholastic.

[.]

STARTED:
Cuevas, Michelle. (2017). The Care and Feeding of a Pet Black Hole. New York: Dial/Penguin Random House.

[.]

*

FINISHED:
Schlitz, Laura Amy. (2017). Princess Cora and the Crocodile. Somerville, MA: Candlewick.

[.]

STARTED:
Eagar, Lindsay. (2017). Race to the Bottom of the Sea. Somerville, MA: Candlewick.

[.]

*

FINISHED:
Helget, Nicole. (2017). The End of the Wild. New York: Little, Brown and Company/Hachette Book Group.

[.]

STARTED:
Larson, Hope. (2016). Goldie Vance: Volume One. Los Angeles: Boom! Box.

[.]

*

FINISHED: 
Pullman, Philip. (2017). The Book of Dust: Volume One: La Belle Sauvage. New York: Knopf.

[.]

STARTED:
Meloy, Colin. (2017). The Whiz Mob and the Grenadine Kid. New York: Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins.

[.]

*

FINISHED:
Bartók, Mira. (2017). The Wonderling. Somerville, MA: Candlewick.

[.]

STARTED:
Eggers, Dave. (2017). Her Right Foot. San Francisco: Chronicle.

[.]

*

FINISHED:
Pullman, Philip. (1995). The Golden Compass [His Dark Materials: Book 1]. New York: Ballantine/Random House.

[.]

STARTED:
Tagame, Gengoroh. (2014). Endless Game. Berlin, Germany: Bruno Gmünder.

[.]

*

FINISHED:
Applegate, Katherine. (2017). Wishtree. New York: Feiwel and Friends/Macmillan.

[.]

STARTED:
Tagame, Gengoroh. (2017). My Brother's Husband. New York: Pantheon/Penguin Random House.

[.]

*

FINISHED:
Cole, Henry. (2017). Bayberry Island [Brambleheart #2]. New York: Katherine Tegen/HarperCollins.

[Chipmunk Twig and two friends travel on a boat liberated from a bottle to deliver a baby dragon to its home, wherever that may be.  Eventually becoming shipwrecked on an island where there are other baby dragons, the trio are soon joined on the island by the nefarious Professor Burdock who followed the friends so that he could take all of the dragon babies back home and put them to work in a foundry.  Plus, there may be a traitor in their midst.  The early chapter book reader-friendly design has at least one of Cole’s own soft, pencil-drawn spot art illustrations on the majority of spreads, and the visually descriptive text is ideal for those who want an adventure led by animals, but who might not yet be ready for Avi’s Poppy series (HarperCollins, 1999), or Brian Jacques’ Redwall tales (1987, Philomel).  While it’s not completely necessary to have read the previous book, the task of Twig and friends won’t carry as much weight, though, it should be noted that some details about Book 1 are recalled at the end of this second volume, retroactively cluing in those who may have missed the first book in the series.]

STARTED:
Pérez, Celia C. (2017). The First Rule of Punk. New York: Viking/Penguin Random House.

[.]

*

FINISHED:
Wenxuan, Cao. (2017). Bronze and Sunflower. Somerville, MA: Candlewick.

[.]

STARTED:
Mosier, Paul. (2017). Train I Ride. New York: HarperCollins.

[.]

*

FINISHED:
Wegelius, Jakob. (2017). The Murderer's Ape. New York: Delacorte/Random House.

[.]

STARTED:
Yoon, Nicola. (2016). The Sun is Also a Star. New York: Delacorte/Random House.

[.]

*

FINISHED:
Ogburn, Jacqueline K. (2017). The Unicorn in the Barn. New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

[Reviewing for ACL - it doesn't actually come out until July.  Review soon...]

STARTED:  
Whitehead, Colson. (2016). The Underground Railroad. New York: Doubleday/Penguin Random House.

[.]

*

FINISHED:
Medina, Juana. (2016). Juana & Lucas. Somerville, MA: Candlewick.

[.]

STARTED:
Mittlefehldt, Rafi. (2016). It Looks Like This. Somerville, MA: Candlewick.

[Reading for ACL to see if I deem it to be "distinguished".  When, while trying to entice someone to read it, they said it had to do with a boy in the Midwest who was dealing with coming out to his not-so-understanding family, I jumped up and said, "Sounds familiar.  I'll take it!"]

*

FINISHED:
McMann, Lisa. (2016). Going Wild. New York: HarperCollins.

[.]

STARTED:
Reynolds, Jason. (2016). Ghost. New York: Atheneum/Simon & Schuster.

[.]

*

FINISHED:
Gemeinhart, Dan. (2016). Some Kind of Courage. New York: Scholastic.

[SOOOO good, this one.  Will be reading it again, as I decided to review it for ACL.  Full review at that time...

In Washington State in 1890, twelve-year-old Joseph Johnson – no stranger to loss after his mother and sister die by disease, and his father is involved in a fatal accident – finds out that his beloved horse, Sarah, has been sold without his consent.  So begins Joseph’s epic and unceasing quest across the wild west to get her back, enduring a bear attack, being swept down roaring river rapids, and many more harrowing situations.  The first-person narrative in this dynamic, survival story allows Joseph to prove himself to be an endearing and complex character, unafraid to show sensitivity, and never fully discouraged despite continually getting so close to his goal, yet having it stripped from him again and again.  Joseph is accompanied on the bulk of his journey by Ah-Kee, a Chinese boy who doesn’t speak any English, with their relationship being such that even though they can’t fully understand one another, they poignantly have each other’s back at all times.  The character of Ah-Kee is handled with aplomb, touching upon the rampant racism of the time, and having Ah-Kee be the one who unflinchingly helps to deliver a baby to a woman in cabin out in the middle of nowhere.  Chapter-ending cliffhangers will keep readers swept up in the action, and Joseph’s heart and unyielding good nature will have readers rooting, and feeling, for him through to the very last page.]

STARTED:
Thorne, Jack. (2016). Harry Potter and the Cursed Child: Parts One and Two. New York: Arthur A. Levine/Scholastic.

[$30?!??  Seems a bit greedy.]

*

FINISHED: 
Cole, Henry. (2016). The Somewhat True Adventures of Sammy Shine. Atlanta: Peachtree.

[.]

STARTED:
Coates, Ta-Nehisi. (2015). Between the World and Me. New York: Spiegel & Grau.

[Recommended by Matt de la Peña and Allie Jane Bruce.  I mean, with endorsements by these two, it must be a slam-dunk winner.]

*

FINISHED:
Appelt, Kathi, and Alison McGhee. (2016). Maybe a Fox. New York: Atheneum/Simon & Schuster.

[Pretty moving, with a solid mood.  Vaguely reminiscent of one of my personal favorites from last year, MOONPENNY ISLAND.  Imagine that this year's Newbery committee will be talking about this one...]

STARTED:
Hardinge, Frances. (2016). The Lie Tree. New York: Amulet/Abrams.

[Starred Reviews from pretty much EVERYBODY.]

*

FINISHED: 
Brown, Peter. (2016). The Wild Robot. New York: Little, Brown.

[.]

STARTED:
Albertalli, Becky. (2015). Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda. New York: Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins.

[.]

*

FINISHED:
Cossanteli, Veronica. (2016). The Extincts. New York: Henry Holt/MacMillan.

[Hoping to help his single mother out financially, George answers an ad for help at a local farm, only finding out when he gets there that its owner is taking care of a menagerie of extinct and mythological creatures.  With the help of a girl named Prudence, George is on a mission to find a basilisk from the farm who is on the loose and turning the town’s animals (and a few humans) to stone, hoping to catch it before it can fall into the hands of Prudence’s taxidermist stepmother.  Dry humor abounds, and George learns that “real men aren’t afraid of pink” and that it’s ok to be friends with a girl, though Prudence’s evil, taxidermist stepmother and her henchmen come across as villainous caricatures.  Originally published in the UK, there are a few “British-isms” that may confound some (Mum, redundancy money, rugby tackle, cherry stone, fancy-dress party), but shrewd readers should be able to discern their meaning through context clues.  Digitally-created, spot illustrations that read somewhat flat are scattered throughout, while a glossary at the end provides a bit of information about some of the creatures featured in the story.  Readers eager for a more sophisticated story about a sanctuary for fanciful creatures are best to try out Brandon Mull’s far superior Fablehaven series (Shadow Mountain, 2006-).  Review based on ARC.]

STARTED:
Joyce, William. (2016). Ollie's Odyssey. New York: Atheneum/Simon & Schuster.

[New William Joyce!  New William Joyce!  And it's an illustrated novel!]

*

 

FINISHED:
Park, Linda Sue. (2016). Wing & Claw: Forest of Wonders. New York: HarperCollins.

[.]

STARTED:
Clarke, Susanna. (2004). Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell. New York: Bloomsbury.

[I'm going to give it go!  The paperback - at just over 1000 pages - is daunting, but I'm intrigued by the BBC series and really want to read the source material first.  I gave it a shot years ago...  Don't remember why I couldn't finish it...]

*