Staff Picks Youth
September 2024
The Secret Library
by Kekla Magoon
Dally is being raised to take over the family business even though she hates numbers and would rather use words and her imagination. Her grandfather understood the importance of having fun, but her mom, who is running the company, has her make an appointment to discuss joining a club. After her grandfather dies, Dally realizes that a map he left for her leads to a special treasure… a library where the books are portals that take her back in time to experience family events and meet ancestors. This story covers issues of race, class, and gender in a fantasy adventure. Readers will enjoy time-traveling with Dally, learning her family secrets, and discovering her role in life.
This book is available in the library and on OverDrive/Libby as an ebook and e audiobook.
Recommended by: Joan Stoiber, Youth Services Reference Librarian
Posted in: Youth Fiction
Faker
by Gordon Korman
Trey and his sister have grown up with the life provided by their grifter father. Their mother left years back after deciding that the cons the father is always running are not for her. As the kids have grown they become involved in setting up the families to fleece and then flee with the money before getting caught. Then Trey starts at a school where he meets a girl, finds a best friend, and takes an ethics class that makes him start to question his lifestyle in terms of right and wrong, responsibility and consequences of actions.
Recommended by: Joan Stoiber, Youth Services Reference Librarian
Posted in: Youth Fiction
Not Nothing
by Gayle Forman
Twelve year old Alex has to work as a volunteer at a facility for older people as a result of acting out in anger and doing “a terrible thing”. He is not happy with the situation until he meets 107 year-old Holocaust survivor, Josey. As Josey shares his experiences meeting a girl named Olka and surviving WW II, Alex begins to learn not to judge people by their age or infirmaries but to learn from their memories and stories. Both storylines share misunderstandings, awfulness, hate, and biases, but also love and bravery. There is heartbreak as well as hope. Perhaps one may not be judged by one’s worst deed but be allowed to rise above it.
This book is available in the library and on OverDrive/Libby as an e audiobook.
Recommended by: Joan Stoiber, Youth Services Reference Librarian
Posted in: Youth Fiction
Maya Plays the Part
by Calyssa Erb
Maya loves musical theater and her parents are finally letting her participate in the local theater’s summer camp. She has big plans to wow her favorite director and star in this year’s production, but it turns out she has a lot to learn about teamwork, friendship, and herself. Although Maya’s autism has previously made her feel as though she needs to always play the part of “Maya in Public,” she learns she can succeed by just being herself. Middle grade readers will gain perspective through Maya’s thought processes and walk away with admiration for her genuine personality and perseverance. Maya Plays the Part by Calyssa Erb will leave readers cheering for all the characters and looking up tickets to see a musical!
Recommended by: Erin Cady, Youth Services Reference Librarian
Posted in: Youth Fiction
A Walk in the Words
by Hudson Talbott
Posted in: Youth Fiction
August 2024
Boardwalk Babies
by Marissa Moss
This vibrant nonfiction picture book tells the story of premature babies! In the late 19th century, babies that were born too early didn’t have too much hope of living. Dr. Martin Couney used his knowledge of incubators with baby chicks to convey that baby humans could grow underneath light too. He set up shop on Coney Island in New York and saved over 6,000 babies with his scientific discovery. This is a wonderful story of science and magic that brought a change to the way we see premature babies—there is hope for everyone. This book is nominated for the 2025 Bluestem Children’s Choice Book Award.
Recommended by: Abigail Hooks, Youth Services Assistant
Posted in: Youth Nonfiction
Seen and Unseen
by Elizabeth Partridge
This powerful nonfiction novel tells the story of Japanese and Japanese Americans during World War II who were ordered to American incarceration camps. Through the eyes of three photographers during the war, this novel conveys what they saw through their lenses and tells the true story of what happened at these camps and the emotions that it brought to the people. This story has a very powerful message of learning from our past and working towards a better future of fighting social injustice. I recommend this book for anyone interested in history and photography and who believes in the power of preserving history for the better of our society. This book is nominated for the 2025 Rebecca Caudill Young Readers’ Book Award.
This book is available in the library and on OverDrive/Libby as an ebook.
Recommended by: Abigail Hooks, Youth Services Assistant
Posted in: Youth Nonfiction
Alias Anna
by Susan Hood
Written in verse, this lyrical non-fiction novel is an amazing story of two Jewish sisters, Zhanna and Frina, trying to survive World War II. At a world-renowned conservatory, these Ukrainian sisters explore their incredible musical skills, but with the Nazis invading Ukraine, their whole world is turned upside down when they are forced to leave their home. Leaving their families behind, all the girls have with them is their musical talents. How will the sisters survive the war and outwit the Nazis? I recommend this novel to anyone interested in history and music who enjoys a story about perseverance and strength even in the hardest of days. This book is nominated for the 2025 Rebecca Caudill Young Readers’ Book Award.
This book is available in the library and on OverDrive/Libby as an ebook and e audiobook.
Recommended by: Abigail Hooks, Youth Services Assistant
Posted in: Youth Fiction
The Yellow Bus
by Loren Long
Posted in: Youth Fiction
Eb & Flow
by Kelly J. Baptist
Black seventh graders Ebony “Eb” Wilson and De’Kari “Flow” Flood have both been suspended for a fight between them. In this novel in verse, Eb and Flow alternate comments on what happened. Hearing the two different points of view lets the reader inside Eb and Flow’s lives and gives perspective to both their thought processes.
Recommended by: Becky McCormack, Youth Services Assistant Manager
Posted in: Youth Fiction