I took a deep breath after I finished the last sentence of this novel… because I was on the edge of my seat! A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder is packed with many turns, twists, and traps that I, as a reader, was drawn and manipulated into. I’ll be honest, when I read the first 20 pages of this book, I felt as though I would be underwhelmed by this murder mystery. However, I was hooked when I got to the halfway point.
In The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, a young girl named Liesel gets adopted and lives in Nazi Germany during World War II. Her life changes one day when she finds a book covered in snow, and she decides to steal it. Liesel knows that this is dangerous as all books were supposed to be turned in for book burnings, but she takes it anyway. She continues stealing books, thrilled by the new knowledge she gains access to. Soon after, her family hides a Jewish man in their home which elevates the risk for her entire family.
Summary: Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool is a historical fiction novel set in the Great Depression era. The story revolves around twelve-year-old Abilene Tucker, who is sent by her father to spend the summer in Manifest, Kansas, a town he once lived in. Abilene discovers a hidden cigar box filled with mementos and letters that belonged to a mysterious bootlegger named Jinx, from World War I.
Shirin is a teenage Muslim girl who wants to live a normal high school life. But ever since 9/11, things have been different for her, especially at school. She’s tired of the stereotypes, the rude questions and having to shut herself off from everyone. Then she meets Ocean, a guy that wants to get to know her despite her social exclusion.
After the Flood is the third and final book of a 3-book graphic novel miniseries called Skyclan and the Stranger by Erin Hunter, overall part of the Warriors books. At the end of the second book, a devastating flood washed over the gorge, destroying everything Skyclan had built, and killing one of their elders, Lichenfur. In this book, they are focused on rebuilding. However, some cats express feelings about leaving Skyclan, and Billystorm wants to bring the kits to his human home.
Beyond the Code is the second book of a 3-book graphic novel miniseries called Skyclan and the Stranger by Erin Hunter, overall part of the Warriors books. At the end of the first book, a pet named Sol decides to join Skyclan. He has a different hunting strategy to get food, which horrifies Leafstar, who orders him to stop immediately. Sol also tells Leafstar where he actually comes from, which makes her think more kindly about him.
Cinderella is Dead by Kalynn Bayron is a twisted sapphic fairy tale. Sophie lives in a land where Prince Charming and Cinderellas’ story is true, but Cinderella and Prince Charming are dead and she lives in a controlling society where women must find husbands and be quiet. Sophie doesn’t want a husband, she’s in love with her best friend but they know they can’t be together. On the night of a ball for women to find husbands Sophie runs and defies the current king.
Land of Stories, The Enchantress Returns is a thrilling novel that I would recommend to middle schoolers. My favorite part of this book was the character development. Example, Princess Red goes from being shallow and vain to caring and thoughtful towards others. All in all, if you like books that involve friendship, fantasy, and adventure, I think this book would be great for you!
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas, is a story about an African-American 16-year-old girl named Starr Carter. Starr is stuck balancing living in a poor run-down neighborhood and attending an upper-class prep school in the suburbs. But everything goes even more downhill when she witnesses her best friend Khalil getting murdered by a police officer. Khalil was unarmed and hadn’t done anything that would cause him to get killed.