Middle Grade Graphic Novel: Wires Crossed

 

Mia's happy when her camp friend moves to town. She can't wait to hang out with him. But Tariq becomes super popular and Mia is not. Her best friend is friends with the popular crowd and is trying to mold Mia into a clone. Mia doesn't care about boys. 

Mia is more interested in the science Olympics. She's gathered a team and they've decided to build a snake robot. Mia starts hanging out with the other girl on her team. The popular kids think she's weird, but she and Mia hit it off.  Why is middle school so hard?

My Thoughts: This was a cute graphic novel filled with all the friendship drama. There's so much going on in middle school: popularity, crushes, and figuring out who you want to be. I loved watching Mia navigate through this all. I loved the robot building moments. I loved her family - even though they were weird. They embraced it. I love how everything turned out. 

Cover Thoughts: Cute

Source: My library

Library Recommendation: Highly recommended for your school and public library 

Picture Book Review: The Day We Got Lost

A mom, two kids, a grandfather, and a dog go for a walk in the woods. But they don't always stick to the path.

I really loved this book. I love how it celebrates nature. I love that it shows the frantic part of being a parent. I love how everything turns out. The illustrations are charming. 

Fresh Fiction Reviews (21)

Just a few books I recently reviewed:

"Still a Delicious Series"

"Can Fashion be Saved?"

"Win at all Costs"

"Librarian Spies!"

"A Charming Rom-Com"

"Cozy Drama"

 

Mini Review: The Favorites

 

I love books about figure skating, so ice dancing isn't a huge leap.

I'm not a fan of Wuthering Heights and toxic relationships - however, this was a really hard book to put down. The short chapters interspersed with interviews from a documentary was like catnip. I had to know what happened. 

Usually, I read a book because I connect to the characters - but this was one of those books where you just didn't like anyone. But that didn't bother me. 

Graphic Novel Review: We Are Big Time

Aliya and her family moved from Florida to Wisconsin to be closer to family. There she and her siblings attend an all-Muslim school. She tries out for the school basketball team. Neither the girls' team or the boys' team is really any good. But Aliya and her new friends start working hard.

As they start winning games, a reporter writes a piece about the girls. The piece starts getting buzz. Soon more reporters want to interview the girls - asking about their religion and their uniform. How far will their talent and hard work take them?

My Thoughts: I've been waiting to read this book as I love books about basketball. I loved how Aliya started playing basketball for the school. I love how they didn't take the bait of the reporters - they focused on basketball. I enjoyed the hard work they put in. I loved the relationship the girls had with their coach. I love that she was not Muslin and that she tried to understand them too. I didn't want this book to end - I wouldn't mind seeing this book develop into a series for the next three years.

Cover Thoughts: Fantastic

Source: My Library

Library Recommendation: A must have book for your school and public library.

Picture Book Wednesday: Little Golden Biographies

Just a few Little Golden biographies

These might be small books, but I always learn something from them

To be honest, I didn't know much about Dick Van Dyke's life - but now I want to read more about it.

I love his singing and dancing. You can tell he's having fun.

She's such an amazing athlete. I love how she enjoyed other sports before committing to swimming.

I wish this had gone a little deeper into her feminism and struggles, but it's a great starting off point. 

I knew some about this woman's life, but I didn't know that she was the first Black female conductor when she was still a teenager. 

Willie Mays's skills are seriously impressive, even from a young age. He went pro directly after gradating high school. I loved the story about how Mays was playing with kids and forgot to show up to a game.

Top Ten Tuesday: Quotes

 This week's topic is all about quotes. I don't usually keep a list of quotes that I love. But I've started an instagram idea.

Have you read any of these books?