The Field Guide to the North American Teenager by Ben Philippe

This book came recommended to me by a friend on Facebook when I wrote that I was looking to read books with more diversity.  

The Field Guide to the North American Teenager is the story of  Norris Kaplan- a Black French Canadian who has just moved from Montreal to Texas.  Norris is determined to not like Texas, he is convinced he won't fit in, he is missing his best friend from home and playing hockey.  But slowly, Norris begins to find his place in his high school and starts to learn what makes Texas such a great place.  He has a love interest, a new friend, a job and is even coaching a hockey team.  However, Norris is still not convinced that Texas is where he belongs, and still feels awkward in a new country with new friends.  

I loved this story- I laughed out loud in places.  Norris's observations about the people around him are quite funny to read (although not so funny when they are about you) Norris is a great character, not perfect- but interesting to read about.  

This book might be a little mature for grade 7 & 8's, but I can see boys quite enjoying reading this one.  

New Kid by Jerry Craft

I am not a graphic novel reader- I never really know how to follow the story and I like making the pictures in my mind.  However- this book- blew me away and has convinced me I need to read more of not only Jerry Craft's books, but graphic novels in general. 

New Kid is the story of Jordan, a young black boy in 7th grade who is leaving his home school and traveling across town to attend a rather expensive private school.  At Riverdale Academy Day School, Jordan finds himself one of the few students of colour and he finds the difference between being at school and traveling home to be quite different.  Jordan isn't really sure who he should be, or how he should be acting.  His parents also have different opinions on the benefits of being at Riverdale.  Throughout the story, Jordan needs to learn how to stay true to himself and his family, but also learn to navigate different perspectives and opinions of the people (both students and adults) at school. 

One of the things I liked about this story was that Jordan is an artist and there are times throughout the story that Jordan sketches his feelings about events taking place.  Many of his drawings made me laugh out loud.  I also really liked the way micro-aggressions were brought up in the story- I think this book would make a great read aloud for grade 7 & 8 (and younger).  Right now this book is one I would like to see my whole school read aloud in the fall- I just have to figure out how to do that with a graphic novel...any thoughts on that? 

Piecing Me Together by Renee Watson

I picked this one up after lunch today and read it in one sitting- it was THAT good!  This is the first book I've read y Renee Watson, but I will be ordering more of her books today!

Piecing Me Together is the story of Jade, a young girl who is trying to find her voice as she learns to navigate the world.  Jade lives with her mom and her uncle in a poor neighbourhood in Portland, but she goes to private school a few neighbourhoods away.  She attends this school on a scholarship which sets her apart from the other students at the school.  When Jade is there, she often hears stories of opportunities her peers have that she doesn't.  But, when she is asked to participate in a new mentorship program called Woman to Woman, she isn't convinced she wants to join.  Jade is tired of being made to feel like something is wrong with her, that she needs help and needs to be fixed.  However, girls in this program also have the opportunity for a scholarship to college, which is impossible to pass up on. 

As Jade navigates the different worlds she lives in, she feels different pressures from her mom, her uncle, her best friend from her previous school, her new friend and her mentor.  Jade is learning to speak up and speak out in order to share her thoughts, ideas and feelings. 

The women in this story are real women- they are not perfect, but along the way, they speak to Jade and help her figure out how she wants to operate in her world and how she needs to fight for the opportunities she is looking for.  One of my favourite characters in this story is Jade's mentor Maxine.  Jade thinks Maxine as her mentor should have all of the answers, but what Jade comes to learn is that everyone is trying to figure out how to make their voices heard- no matter what age they are. 

I think the girls at school are going to love reading Jade's story, she will stay with me for a while I think. 

Ghost Boys by Jewell Parker Rhodes

Ghost Boys is another book I ordered last week in an effort to bring in more BIPOC books into my library.  I am also searching for a book we can use for our school to read next year to tackle the topic of racism and tolerance.  

Ghost Boys is the story of Jerome, a 12 year old victim of another police shooting in Chicago. We learn his story as his ghost watches his family and community deal with his loss as well as through a series of flashbacks showing what led up to his murder.   As Jerome is coming to terms with his death, his family is dealing with being thrust into the spotlight, he also meets a few other young people. He meets Sarah, who is the daughter of the police man who killed him.  Sarah is also trying to understand how someone she loves could have made such a tragic mistake.  Jerome also meets another ghost- Emmett Till- who was a young black boy murdered in the South in 1955 who is credited for kicking off the Civil Rights Movement.  

This story was tough to read at times.  The story is told in very short, choppy sentences, which leaves the reader feeling a bit unsettled - which is appropriate given the topic.  It is hard reading about all the young people in this story- it is hard to make sense of these killings that seem to occur more often.

I'm not sure if this is a story I would want to read aloud, you would certainly need to open up the discussion so that students would be able to talk through the issues that are brought forward.  I feel like this is a book that is going to stay with me for a long while.  I'm going to lend it to a few other teachers to get their take on it, before deciding how I might use it in the fall.  Regardless, it is going to be in my library come September.

When You Were Everything by Ashley Woodfolk

The summer of 2020 has begun, which means more time for me to read YA books!  This summer, my plan is to read more diverse books, books with characters of different races, cultures and religions.  I've been doing lots of searches and looking for recommendations.  This book arrived earlier this week and it was the first one I grabbed yesterday.

When You Were Everything is the story of two best friends who are no longer best friends.  Cleo and Layla have been best friends for years, they have navigated middle school together and the beginnings of high school.  When Layla looks to branch out from their tight knit duo by joining the school chorus, Cleo isn't sure how to deal with it.  Layla begins to spend more time with the girls from the choir and things at home start to fall apart for Cleo.   The only way for Cleo to deal with the loss of this friendship is to wipe out all the good memories she had with Layla with the help of a new friends and a budding romance.

I loved this story- I actually couldn't put it down and had to stay up quite late to finish the story.  As a female, I connected with the loss of a close friend.  As a teacher, I've witnessed the pain girls who were once friends inflict on one another.  When you tell someone your deepest secrets it gives them the power to hurt you when that trust is gone. I've seen one person 'steal' another person away and the pain that causes.    Layla and Cleo deal with all of these issues in a real way and I can see this story being very popular with many of the grade 7 & 8's at my school.

There was a little bit of swearing in this story, but nothing inappropriate and nothing that would stop me from having this in an Intermediate classroom.   Ashley Woodfolk  is a new author for me, but I've got her first novel in my shopping cart already- she writes books that are relatable, realistic and a must have for classrooms!

Cracked Up to Be by Courtney Summers

I'm a huge fan of Courtney Summers books- I've reviewed a few of her books on this blog.   I like the stories she tells, although they tend to be a little more mature than the audience I usually write for.  Some of her books I would be hesitant to give to Intermediate students because of the topics she writes about.   

Cracked Up to Be is one of those books that is mature, deals with topics that tend to be more suited to high school students, but I would give it to a more mature grade 8 student. 

Parker is the main character, she is a deeply flawed young lady who is trying to cope with an event that happened at a party last year.  Before that party, Parker was the perfect student, daughter and girlfriend.  But something happened there that changed everything.  Now, Parker is trying to hold it together in order to graduate and escape her town so that the secret she knows never has to be told. 

Parker was a great character- sassy, smart and damaged.  She was someone who I wanted to survive in order to move forward and be successful.  I would suggest reading this book before giving it to any younger student since there are some mature topics. 

All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

Last summer, I read the book Holding Up the Universe  and I when I looked to see what else Jennifer Niven has written, I found All the Bright Places.  I must have ordered it right away, but didn't get around to reading it until this week. 

All the Bright Places is the story of Fitch and Violet who meet high up on the ledge of a tower close to their school contemplating life.  This chance meeting changes both of them in very significant ways.  Fitch has a fascination with death.  He often researches ways people have died and this helps him when he gets into his 'dark' moods and struggles to get out of bed and engage with the world around him.  Violet is dealing with the tragic death of her sister less than a year ago in a car accident. Violet is counting down the days until the end of high school when she can finally leave her town, her home and memories of her sister. 

Fitch and Violet are very different people whose paths do not cross much at their high school.  Violet is popular and hangs out with all the right people.  Fitch is considered a freak by his fellow classmates.  Yet somehow these two different people are thrown together and become friends.  Along the way, they help each other deal with everything life has thrown at them. 

I really enjoyed this book and the story.  There were times I was crying, and other times I was laughing.  It is a serious book, but with such beautiful moments.  Fitch is a unique character who looks at the world differently than most people.  Watching Violet deal with the grief of her losing her sister is heartbreaking. 

This book, while appropriate in many ways for Intermediate students does deal with mature topics.  Suicide is a prevalent theme in this story so I would caution anyone who wants to give this book to a student to read it first and ensure the student could handle the topic.