Humbling. Poignant. These are words that comes to mind for Watercress, a picture book that has received accolades. This autobiographical book with its soft colors and gentle illustrations of common t…
In spite of the fact that Kimberly Brubaker Bradley is the author of a couple of titles that Compass Book Ratings' reviewers have loved (The War That Saved My Life and The War I Finally Won), when the…
Author Erin Entrada Kelly is a darling of the literary critics. A former winner of the Newbery Medal for Hello, Universe, We Dream of Space is a Newbery honor book. There is no argument that her wri…
This was a book high on my to-read list for September, and though I wouldn’t say it was the best book I have read this year, I really enjoyed Cai Emmons writing style and will be on the lookout for mo…
When I read the synopsis for this book, I wasn’t quite sure where the story was going to go. Was this going to be a book of self-discovery? Was it going to be a political statement regardi…
From the beautiful cover to the last page, this novel in verse was an easy book to fly through and come back and read parts again to really understand what the protagonist is feeling and experiencing …
Author Chris Grabenstein is a favorite in my home for his Mr. Lemoncello and The Smartest Kid in the Universe Series so I was excited to check out this Mr. Lemoncello prequel, Mr. Lemocello’s Very Fir…
I don’t know about you, but my summer days as a teen were pretty low key and consisted of reading as many books as I could to log for the local library's summer reading program. Even if I did go on an…
It’s no secret that I love a good YA book; in fact, I often seek them out over other genres and age groups because of how great they are. Summer has always been my favorite season, and if you tell me …
Narrated by True North, this is a story of overcomers. When times get tough, True and her family discover what’s important.
This book mainly deals with kids who are struggling through a…
Helen Gayle said, “If you educate a girl, you educate a nation.” Ki and Sang Ly live in a tough place with very little hope for the future, until Sang Ly finds her golden ticket.
This isn’t j…
The Nature of Small Birds tugs at all of the heartstrings and even a few one might not know exist. Susie Finkbeiner has captured the art of writing books from different characters’ perspectives. …
