Reviews written by Connie Reid, Site Manager

I AM A LEADER! A Princess Truly book is excellent for kindergarten and first-grade readers starting to read independently or with assistance. The word choice, sentence structure, and short episodic chapters assist readers in using context clues, sight words, and early phonics to read the sentences. The illustrations are childlike...

10 Things I Love About Hanukkah enumerates fun reasons the family loves Hanukkah. Told from a young child’s perspective, vibrant illustrations invite the reader to keep turning the pages to see what else there is to love about the holiday. I appreciate the definitions in the back to ensure everyone...

Baron von Bubbles or Bub’s for short, learns to play basketball in Pug the Sports Star. This is the eleventh book in the series but it does a decent job of giving enough backstory that those new to the series can read it independently of the other books. Bub’s takes...

The Inside Scouts is perfect for fans of The Wild Kratts. Sanjay and Viv can talk with animals and have special shrinking suits that allow them into the bodies of animals to help them feel better. This graphic novel for early chapter book readers has sentence structures, word choices, and...

Forever Fairies is filled with sparkly lighthearted events and strong themes of friendship. This is the fourth book of the series and there are many references made to past events. The events are described enough I could follow along, but a young reader would enjoy it more reading from the...

Now that the group is engaging directly in stopping President Fuerte, they face the consequences of their actions. Birdie wakes up in the hospital all alone for the first time in her life and under arrest for the death of another super. She wrestles with anxiety as well as where...

Streamline is told from the perspective of Diana, who is autistic and lesbian and is used to everyone around her treating her like that is wrong. However, when she steps into the online gaming world of Garlandia, she is Lune, with an up-and-coming following and friends she can be herself...

They Call Me Teach is a historical fiction compiled from many real experiences of slaves and how they fought anti-literacy laws. This gorgeously illustrated story does a fantastic job of highlighting the efforts of enslaved people. This story effortlessly helps young people imagine this period in history and acknowledge the...

Esi the Brave shines a spotlight on the Kakamotobi Festival of Ghana. During the festival, the people wear scary masks and eat delicious food, and dance. However, Esi, is separated from her parents and at first is overwhelmed with the costuming and runs away from the monsters until she remembers...

This reprint of the classic Maurice Sendak is a wonderful example of the power of his illustrations. This book has counting 0-10 and back with very few words beyond the numbers making it great to practice this math concept with the youngest readers. The book is captivating not from the...

Pau: The Last Song of the Kaua’i ‘o’o is a breathtaking look at the history of Hawaii and how a bird became extinct. The inside cover sets the stage with a child approaching paintings and a headset to listen. The following pages are written like what that child would hear...

Steve and Maggie is based on a new youtube show for preschoolers. The illustrations were a bit wacky. Steve in real life has some facial hair but the illustrations have it as a ring of yellow around his mouth that was distracting. There is a lot going on per page...

Spice Road is the first in a new trilogy. It features a well-developed lush magical world perfect for fans of Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir and Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn Hamilton. Imani comes from the esteemed Beya clan. She is a talented shield...

Bane of Asgard returns, where readers are left off with characters from The Children of Ragnarok on the brink of war. Eiric is in prison with his mind being destroyed by Modir Tyra resulting in everyone thinking he is a crazy barbarian. Reginn with her unlikely plans succeeds in pulling...

So This Is Ever After has a quirky premise of exploring what happens after the troupe of found family with possible love interests saves the day and kills the big bad villain. This story starts in the middle of the action which is intentional as the title indicates. It...