Completely Full Bookshelf

I hope you all are doing well! If you're interested, I took some time last week as part of my new Thursday Thoughts series determining whether the phrase "Don't judge a book by its cover" is useful advice...or not! Check it out here! But enough about me. For #IMWAYR today, I am recommending one of the most incredible books I have ever read in my life: Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe  by Benjamin Alire Sáenz. (I'm marking this as an "All-Time Favorite" on my blog—I may change that in the future, but I have a sense this book will be sticking with me for a long time.)  ( Update [June 14, 2021]: This no longer applies, as I now label my favorite books in a different way— click here for details .) Please note: this is a YA (young adult) book, not an MG (middle grade) book, and it contains mature content. 359 pages          I'll be talking about this a bit more in an upcoming Thursday Thoughts post, because I think it bears noting...

(Update [6/22/2021]: I moved the section at the beginning of the post to the end of the post so the book cover, not my random photos, would show up in my blog archive. Thanks!) This is such a beautiful—and horribly depressing, once you look at it—cover. The illustration is by Stephanie Singleton.           About a year ago, I read, utterly loved, and reviewed what is likely Jacqueline Woodson's best-known book, an MG memoir in verse and Newbery Honor recipient called Brown Girl Dreaming . Despite realizing from this book alone that Woodson clearly has an incredible talent at writing MG books, I did not read anything else by her until now. Back in September, the wonderful bloggers Shaye Miller at The Miller Memo and Lisa Maucione at Literacy On The Mind  recommended this book, which just debuted that month, and following further reminders by Cheriee Weichel at Library Matters , I finally got around to reading it and getting it reviewed!     ...

For MMGM and #IMWAYR, I am recommending (and GIVING AWAY 3 copies of!!!) one of the most stunning books I've ever read in my entire life, a graphic novel called  The Magic Fish  by Trung Le Nguyen. I realize this review breaks my alternation between MG and YA reviews, but I loved this book so much  that I couldn't wait to talk about it! Although the Amazon page for this book says it is YA, I would say it is substantially closer to MG that YA readers will enjoy than YA that MG readers will enjoy. There's nothing inappropriate except for a few slightly violent illustrations, which really aren't that bad. Review:           Before I get into the nitty-gritty of this book, I want you all to know that I discovered this book (along with Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up with Me , as a matter of fact) at  a virtual panel at San Diego Comic-Con @ Home over the summer (remember when I was recommending all those panels ?) about LGBTQIA+ representation in co...

Before we get started, I want to mention that the winner of my giveaway of  Faith: Taking Flight  by Julie Murphy is... Sam! Congratulations! Thanks to everyone who entered! Now, for MMGM and #IMWAYR, I am recommending Zenobia July  by Lisa Bunker.           WOOOOOOOOOOOOO! Oh, sorry, I couldn't contain my enthusiasm for this book. Several years ago, MMGM showrunner Greg Pattridge recommended Lisa Bunker's debut novel, Felix Yz , and I must thank him for that recommendation, because I read and loved  that book! (His review is here , and my review is here .) I bought a copy of Bunker's second book, Zenobia July , a while back, but I forgot to read it until now, and it is so good!!!           Zenobia July's life has just changed dramatically at the beginning of this book. Zenobia (or Zen for short) has moved across the U.S. to live with her married aunts instead of her father. A transgender girl, Zen uses this move...

Just after its new movie adaptation has been released, I am recommending A Wrinkle in Time  by Madeleine L'Engle for MMGM (and including a bonus movie review below!). A Wrinkle in Time  revolves around a young girl named Meg Murry, whose father, a scientist, vanished several years before the book's events. When her younger brother, Charles Wallace, befriends three strange women (who turn out to be magic), both of the kids, along with a kind classmate from Meg's school named Calvin, end up going on a quest across the universe to find their father. I loved this book when I read it as a young kid (I was only about 5 or 6), and I still love it now! One of the best parts of the novel is how it is not like other fantasy or sci-fi books. Instead of filling the book with tons of background information about the universe and its workings, L'Engle instead gives just enough information to understand how the characters are traveling across the universe (or "tesseri...