New release - Hall of Smoke

Hall of Smoke

by H.M. Long

What they say: An epic fantasy featuring warrior priestesses and fickle gods at war

Hessa is an Eangi: a warrior priestess of the Goddess of War, with the power to turn an enemy's bones to dust with a scream. Banished for disobeying her goddess's command to murder a traveller, she prays for forgiveness alone on a mountainside.

While she is gone, raiders raze her village and obliterate the Eangi priesthood. Grieving and alone, Hessa - the last Eangi - must find the traveller, atone for her weakness and secure her place with her loved ones in the High Halls. As clans from the north and legionaries from the south tear through her homeland, slaughtering everyone in their path, Hessa strives to win back her goddess' favour. 

Beset by zealot soldiers, deceitful gods, and newly-awakened demons at every turn, Hessa burns her path towards redemption and revenge. But her journey reveals a harrowing truth: the gods are dying and the High Halls of the afterlife are fading. Soon Hessa's trust in her goddess weakens with every unheeded prayer.

Thrust into a battle between the gods of the Old World and the New, Hessa realizes there is far more on the line than securing a life beyond her own death. Bigger, older powers slumber beneath the surface of her world. And they're about to wake up.

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Spotlight - Many Point of Me

Many Points of Me

by Caroline Gertler

What they say: When Georgia finds a secret sketch her late father—a famed artist—left behind, the discovery leads her down a path that may reshape everything holding her family and friends together. Caroline Gertler’s poignant debut is a character-driven story about friendship, family, grief, and creativity. Both literary and pitch-perfect for tweens, Many Points of Me is Rebecca Stead meets From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler.

Georgia Rosenbloom’s father was a famous artist. His most-well-known paintings were a series of asterisms—patterns of stars—that he created. One represented a bird; one, himself; and one, Georgia’s mother. There was supposed to be a fourth, but Georgia’s father died before he could paint it. Georgia’s mother and her best friend, Theo, are certain that the last asterism would’ve been of Georgia, but Georgia isn’t so sure. She isn’t sure about anything anymore—including whether Theo is still her best friend.

Then Georgia finds a sketch her father made of her. One with pencil points marked on the back—just like those in the asterism paintings. Could this finally be the proof that the last painting would have been of her? Georgia’s quest to prove her theory takes her around her Upper West Side neighborhood in New York City and to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, which was almost a second home to Georgia, since she had visited favorite artists and paintings there constantly with her father. But the sketch leads right back to where she’s always belonged—with the people who love her, no matter what.

Caroline Gertler’s debut novel explores friendships, grief, and self-identity with deep heart and a deft, delicate hand. Georgia’s world is filled with fully drawn characters that readers will easily identify with. This page-turning and thought-provoking read is for art lovers and mystery readers, as well as for fans of The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise and Finding Orion.

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Am Reading - Pax

Such a beautiful book.

Pax

by Sara Pennypacker

Illustrated by Jon Klassen

What they say: Pax was only a kit when his family was killed, and “his boy” Peter rescued him from abandonment and certain death. Now the war front approaches, and when Peter’s father enlists, Peter has to move in with his grandpa. Far worse than being forced to leave home is the fact that Pax can’t go. 

Peter listens to his stern father—as he usually does—and throws Pax’s favorite toy soldier into the woods. When the fox runs to retrieve it, Peter and his dad get back in the car and leave him there—alone. But before Peter makes it through even one night under his grandfather’s roof, regret and duty spur him to action; he packs for a trek to get his best friend back and sneaks into the night. 

This is the story of Peter, Pax, and their independent struggles to return to one another against all odds. Told from the alternating viewpoints of Peter and Pax.

More info over at GR!

Whatcha Reading Wednesday - Little Kids First Big Book Collector's Set: Animals, Dinosaurs, Why?

National Geographic Little Kids First Big Book Collector's Set: Animals, Dinosaurs, Why?

by National Geographic Kids

What they say: This Collector's Set includes three volumes -- Animals; Dinosaurs; and Why? -- providing fascinating, level-appropriate facts alongside bright and colorful photographs and illustrations. 

Inspired by the award-winning National Geographic Little Kids magazine, the Little Kids First Big Book Collector's Set is a visually compelling and approachable set of first reference books for 4- to 8-year-olds. 

Each book encourages interactivity, satisfies curiosity, and launches kids into a lifetime of exploration! 

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Spotlight - Concrete Rose

Concrete Rose - The Hate U Give

by Angie Thomas

What they say: International phenomenon Angie Thomas revisits Garden Heights seventeen years before the events of The Hate U Givein this searing and poignant exploration of Black boyhood and manhood.

If there’s one thing seventeen-year-old Maverick Carter knows, it’s that a real man takes care of his family. As the son of a former gang legend, Mav does that the only way he knows how: dealing for the King Lords. With this money he can help his mom, who works two jobs while his dad’s in prison.

Life’s not perfect, but with a fly girlfriend and a cousin who always has his back, Mav’s got everything under control.

Until, that is, Maverick finds out he’s a father.

Suddenly he has a baby, Seven, who depends on him for everything. But it’s not so easy to sling dope, finish school, and raise a child. So when he’s offered the chance to go straight, he takes it. In a world where he’s expected to amount to nothing, maybe Mav can prove he’s different.

When King Lord blood runs through your veins, though, you can't just walk away. Loyalty, revenge, and responsibility threaten to tear Mav apart, especially after the brutal murder of a loved one. He’ll have to figure out for himself what it really means to be a man. 

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New Release - The World Between Blinks

The World Between Blinks

by Amie Kaufman & Ryan Graudin 

What they say: Discover a magical world where lost things are found.

Whenever cousins Jake and Marisol get together, adventure follows. They have their late Nana to thank for that. Her epic trips and treasure hunts were the stuff of family legend.

This summer, with the whole family reuniting for one last vacation at Nana’s home, the cousins are in for a legendary trip of their own.

Following a map Nana left behind, Jake and Marisol sneak out to a nearby lighthouse—then accidentally slip into another world! The World Between Blinks is a magical place where all kinds of lost things (and people!) end up. Everywhere they turn, the cousins find real mysteries from history—plus a few they thought were only myths.

But the man who holds the key to Jake and Marisol’s return journey doesn’t want to be found . . . and if the cousins don’t catch him fast, they could end up lost in this world for good.

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