Reviews written by Beth Rodgers, Staff Reviewer

“The Quiet Unraveling of Eve Ellaway” by Melanie Hooyenga follows main character, Eve, as she struggles to figure out her identity. There is another part of her, a part that has overtaken her in many ways, brought about by the kidnapping of her twin sister, Gen, when they were only...

“Take a Chance on Me” by Elizabeth Eulberg takes readers on a trip to London, where they find themselves learning about Evie and the troubles she encountered back home in Chicago, before she came to visit her father overseas. Trouble at school with her friends and ex-boyfriend has made her...

“One Day: A True Story of Survival in the Holocaust” by Michael Rosen, illustrated by Benjamin Phillips, tells the story of Eugene Handschuh, a Jew in Paris. During the time of the Nazi occupation there, he and his father were taken, in late 1942. When this happened, they knew they...

“Ruby Bridges: A Talk with My Teacher” by Ruby Bridges, illustrated by Trudy Tran, follows the original story of Ruby Bridges integrating her school, but picks up one year later, when she is looking forward to her first day of second grade. Even though she’s expecting to see Mrs. Henry,...

“Shabbat Shalom: Let’s Rest and Reset” by Suzy Ultman is the second book, after “I Like Your Chutzpah” in a series of sweet, engaging board books. The book has cute illustrations that showcase the importance of resting, relaxing, and connecting with Shabbat, the one day...

“The Traveling Taco: The Amazing and Surprising Journey of Many of Your Favorite Foods” by Mia Wenjen, illustrated by Kimberlie Clinthorne-Wong, uses both rhymes and short, to the point paragraphs to shed light on a variety of foods, including where they came from and how they have changed over time....

“Priceless Facts about Money: From the Beginning of Time to the Coins in Your Couch” by Mellody Hobson, illustrated by Caitlin Stevens, starts off with a short history of money and then delves into the first calculator (an abacus), nicknames for money (bacon, bread and dough, bucks, cheddar, moola), world...

“The Wonderful Wizard of Oz” by L. Frank Baum, adapted for young readers, with illustrations by Archina Laezza, is an easy classic to help young readers delve into Baum’s fantasy world. The first couple of pages have cute illustrations that identify the characters that will be found throughout the pages...

“The Presidents Decoded: A Guide to the Leaders Who Shaped Our Nation” by Katie Kennedy, provides a crash course into who the presidents are, what they look like, who they were before they became president, what they worked on while in office, what their legacy is as a result of...

“Snake Milker and Other Animal Jobs” by Stepanka Sekaninova, illustrated by Jakub Cenkl, details a variety of jobs. Some are better known and others are much lesser known, but they are all jobs that allow people to dedicate their professional lives to working with animals. ...

“How to Fool Your Parents: 25 Brain-Breaking Magic Tricks” by David Kwong is a fun book for kids (and adults, too!). It has twenty-five easy-to-learn tricks that each include instructions and illustrations to help clarify how to pull each one off best. The book...

“Evolution: A Celebration of Beautiful Animals” by William Spring catalogs fifty different animals, also incorporating introductory pages about “our beautiful world” as well as a glossary and notes about the artist in the back of the book. From the bat-eared fox to the North Sulawesi Babirusa to a Sunda Colugo,...

“All My Bests” by Britnee Meiser follows the friendship between Immie and Jack. When they meet in grade school, they are immediately drawn to each other and become fast friends. As the years go by and high school begins, they each discover that their feelings for each other extend beyond...

“Snarky Sharky” by Bethan Clarke, illustrated by Nikolas Ilic, tells a cute tale of a shark who likes to make biting remarks at others while using his wicked wit to make a point. The illustrations do a wonderful job showing off the many faces of Sharky,...

“A Dragon for Hanukkah” by Sarah Mlynowski, illustrated by Ariel Landy, is wonderfully imaginative, with an adorable use of back matter to explain the story of Hanukkah in conversational form with the dragon asking questions about the holiday, including how he got his name (“ner” in Hebrew means candle, lamp,...