Black Star (The Door of No Return #2), by Kwame Alexander

  Black Star is the sequel to The Door of No Return (which I reviewed in Feb. 2023). If you only have a minute to read this entry, let me say this up front; if Kwame Alexander wrote it, everyone - you, me - everyone should read it! Like his many other wonderful books this one is written in verse, but I found myself wondering what it would be like to read his work in non-verse format. Perhaps one day I'll have the chance to find out...

    Black Star is being narrated by Charley, short for Charlene, who lives somewhere in Virginia sometime in the 1920s. She dreams of being the first woman professional baseball player, so baseball is a part of the story (but you don't need to have a lot of baseball knowledge to follow the book...but if you enjoy baseball, like I do, then it's a bonus!). She lives with her parents and grandfather, Kofi Nana (from the first book), who enjoys telling her stories to help her navigate the world. Living in the segregated South, she finds that what she doesn't know about Black history in America creates trouble for her and her family. Being twelve years old, her parents and family haven't shared the ugly parts of that era with her. But when she challenges some neighborhood bullies to a baseball game (who happen to be White), that reality becomes part of her life, too.

    Alexander weaves history with exceptional storytelling, and his word choices are so poetic and powerful...there is history here but also just the humanness that we all share, both good and bad. It's a shame that lately the forces of control are wanting to keep all of us from reading different perspectives about life in the United States, from the earliest times until now. Not knowing your history does not make it disappear - quite the opposite. Knowing your history, and the history of the place you live and perhaps were born in, is power. And necessary for all of us to continue to strive for a better world. Alexander informs, inspires, intrigues and entertains us with every book, and this is no exception, thankfully! 5 paws!

Simon Sort of Says, by Erin Bow

     A multi-award winning book by author Erin Bow. Not her first, although I don't think I've read anything by her yet. Simon Sort of Says was published in 2023, and it's been next to my reading kennel for a long time...I've really been looking forward to it, just waiting for the right time....books are like kibble - sometimes you've got to be in the right mood for a certain flavor!

    Simon lived in Omaha, Nebraska, but moves with his mom and dad to a very small town, a town without cell service or Internet, a town full of scientists who listen and watch day and night for signals from outer space. The "why" of that move isn't clear until about half way through the story, or so that is what was meant to happen. Unfortunately, the publishers describe the story on the back cover and totally and completely give the reason for the move away! I was shocked! A spoiler printed right on the back cover of the book? I have to say this really dampened the impact of the story for me...knowing before I started reading what I wasn't meant to know (according to Bow) until half way into the story! Paws across my heart, I've never had that happen before, and I read a lot of books!

    Overall, the book is really good - it is sad, happy, funny, exciting...Simon's mom works in a mortuary (so there's death, which is usually funny, somehow, in this book), and his dad is a Catholic deacon in the town church, which adds to the complexity of the characters and events. Simon's makes friends with Agate, who is a quirky super-smart neighbor who lives on an emu farm - there is a lot to this story to keep even a dog interested! But the reason behind the move to another town is key to the plot, and knowing why ahead of time was a let down. 

    Simon Sort of Says is a good read, award winner, and at times a page-turner. Knowing the plot twist was like having wet paws...not life changing but still kind of a bummer. Don't read the back cover when you decide to read this book, and I think you'll rate it higher than I can. It's not Simon's or Erin Bow's fault that the plot was divulged before I started reading, so I'll still give this one 4 paws. But it might have been 5...maybe when the book comes out in paperback and gets a new cover? 

Twenty-Four Seconds from Now, by Jason Reynolds

     If Jason Reynolds writes it, I am going to read it! So I was surprised when I started this book and looked at the title page (which is where I always start) to see this book is recommended for ages 14 and older. Hmm. Not really middle school age like most of his books are, although I know many 8th graders (and a few 7th graders) who want to read "up" from their age group and grade. My philosophy is that if the book is good to you, then it's good for you...mostly, so I decided to read it with an open mind to the age or grade level it would speak to.  In other words, I started this one a little hesitantly, knowing it may not fit into middle school library collection.

    Twenty-Four Seconds from Now is broken into sections, starting with the present. Section two occurs twenty-fours seconds ago. Section three is twenty-four hours ago. Then days, then weeks, then months. Basically, Reynolds is telling the story from back to front, letting you get to know the characters over time. This is a brilliant approach, in my opinion, because the more we know the main characters, the more we root for them in the book's overarching theme. He starts with a strong premise and builds the story from this moments, to moments leading up to this one, inviting you to keep getting to know Neon and Aria instead of passing judgement on them for what they want to do. If anyone can pull this off, Reynolds sure can...and he does! 

    This is the story of two teenagers, Neon and Aria - boyfriend and girlfriend - who have been dating for two years (twenty-four months), and are now ready to be intimate for the first time. So on the surface it's a book about two high school kids about to have sex. But the book is so, so much more than that! Reynolds tells such a good story, for Neon especially, but for Aria as well, and all of the people in their lives. Not all their relationships are good, and not all are bad, just like in the real world. Their decision to be intimate makes them both nervous and excited, but both know they are in love and they want to take their relationship to another level. 

    Reynolds handles this subject with kindness, realness, care, and love. As he notes at the end of the book, "Black boys deserve love stories, too." This is a wonderful love story for Neon, and for Aria, and for everyone who reads it. Because it's subject matter is mature (although Reynolds does not write the lovemaking scene or scenes into the story...he doesn't need to) you can bet it will be banned or challenged around the country. I hope that doesn't stop you from reading it, when you are ready. This Coretta Scott King Award winner really is a wonderful love story, and you will love Neon and Aria, and this book, long after you read the last page. 5 paws!

The Last Rabbit, by Shelley Moore Thomas

     Another "last", and another book with Irish roots...not on purpose, it just happened that way! Maybe a bit o'Irish luck? The Last Rabbit has this adorable drawing on the front cover of a young rabbit sitting on top of a grassy rock overlooking the ocean. By all accounts, the cover would have you believe that this is a whimsical fantasy tale - which it is, in part! It also suggests this book is for younger readers - which it also is, but perhaps not as young as you might think. Although author Thomas has created a cute fantasy story with rabbits as some of the main characters, there is also magic, and another of the main characters turns out to be a direct kin of Death. Yep, the Grim Reaper. So don't be completely fooled (or turned away) from this cutesy cover and title. This book will have some surprises for you, and is a fun story to boot!

    Albie was once a human girl, along with her three sisters. By accident, Albie turns all of them into rabbits. The crux of the book is Albie trying to get them all turned back to humans again. Thomas suggests some historical fiction in this story, although it seems way more "fiction" than "historical". It seems the island where much of this story takes place appeared once on maps just off the Irish coast, several hundred years ago. And then...it simply never appeared again. This is the history that Thomas has built her story around; where did the island go, why, and what happened to all life on the island when it was no longer above water?

    The Last Rabbit is a fun tale, with animals and people interacting throughout, and a fair amount of magic worked in as well. Even the ocean is it's own character, in a sense, and helps Albie solve her puzzle, along with an old magician, and, yes, Death. In that sense it made me think of Scythe, by Neil Shusterman, a brilliant mystery (not for younger readers) where Death is a main character. But other than that, The Last Rabbit is much more of a fairly tale with animal characters, such as Richard Adams' Watership Down or Kate DiCamillo's The Tale of Despereaux. Moore's book is good, and fun, but not quite at the level as these two classics. But if you'd like a new fantasy story with animals as characters, this book will entertain you! Maybe not a "classic", but still pretty fun to read! 3 paws and wag!