Jenny Andrus

Chu, Katherine. Composting Fun. Pull Ahead Readers Nonfiction: In the Garden. Lerner, 01/2025. 16pp. Reader. PLB $27.99. 979-8765647745. Paper $8.99. 979-8765661963. GRADES Preschool–1. ADDITIONAL.    SERIES REVIEW: Please see Bees Help Gardens Grow by Katherine Chu for series review. Joshua Rees—Daly City Public Library

Chu, Katherine. Bees Help Gardens Grow. Pull Ahead Readers Nonfiction: In the Garden.  Lerner, 01/2025. 16pp. Reader. PLB $27.99. 979-8765647738. Paper $8.99. 979-8765661956. GRADES Preschool–1. ADDITIONAL. SERIES REVIEW: The Pull Ahead Readers series consists of sets of paired titles. Half of the titles are designated as [continue reading]

Chernick, Miriam. Zuzu Secret, The. Charlesbridge, 05/2025. 266pp. Fiction. Trade $17.99. 978-1-62354-573-4. GRADES 4–8. ADDITIONAL. Twelve-year-old Josie is looking forward to volunteering with a veterinarian this summer, but there are complications. The family is new to town, her older brother Abe can’t be alone [continue reading]

Van Wagenen, Maya. Chronically Dolores. Penguin/Dutton, 03/2024. 320pp. Fiction. Trade $18.99. 978-0-525-42682-0. GRADES 7–12. OUTSTANDING. Dolores has interstitial cystitis, a chronic bladder condition that is a source of pain, frustration, and embarrassment. After a mortifying incident at school, the fourteen-year-old Mexican American girl spirals [continue reading]

Salazar, Aida. Ultraviolet. Scholastic, 04/2024. 304pp. Fiction. Trade $18.99. 978-1-3387-7565-5. GRADES 5–10. OUTSTANDING. Thirteen-year-old Elio Solis has fallen hard for the girl of his sueños, dreamy Camelia. In this highly accessible and true-to-life story of a Mexican boy living his life with his parents and [continue reading]

Fang, X. We Are Definitely Human. X. Fang, Illus. Tundra, 08/2024. [48]pp. Picture Book. Trade $18.99. 978-1-7748-8202-3. GRADES Preschool–2. OUTSTANDING. When three big-eyed, blue-skinned “strangers” crash land outside Mr. and Mrs. Li’s house, the local people pull together in kindness, helping the “visitors” fix their broken vehicle. [continue reading]

Engle, Margarita. Wild Dreamers. Simon & Schuster/Atheneum, 04/2024. 224pp. Fiction. Trade $18.99. 978-1-6659-3975-1. GRADES 8–12. HIGH ADDITIONAL. Leandro, a Cuban refugee experiencing PTSD, largely relies upon his therapy dog Cielo as his sole companion; Ana, a Cuban American experiencing homelessness, worries about the wild pumas [continue reading]

Chytilova, Lenka. Planning Grandma’s Party: Measurements, Fractions & Fun. Xiana Teimoy, Illus. Addl. Creator Helena Harastova. Translated from the Czech by Mark Worthington. Everyday STEM. Albatros, 10/2024. 32pp. Nonfiction. Trade $16.95. 978-80-00-07286-9. GRADES 2–4. ADDITIONAL. SERIES REVIEW. Please see: Our Camping Trip: Physics, Chemistry & Fun by Lenka Chytilova for [continue reading]