Outstanding Books of the Month – April 2022
Each month we post an annotated bibliography of books that were rated ‘Outstanding’ at our previous meeting and nominated for our year-end Distinguished List. Members can see full reviews of these books and many more in the February edition of BayViews. Not a member? Join, come to our (currently virtual) monthly meetings, and hear about these Outstanding books “in person”!
Picture Books
Eyes That Speak to the Stars, by Joanna Ho, HarperCollins, 2022.
When his father picks him up from school, he asks what is bothering the boy, and is told about a picture a classmate drew showing the boy’s eyes as two lines instead of circles like the other kids. The father explains that the boy’s eyes, like the father’s, grandfather’s, and little brother’s “rise to the skies and speak to the stars.” This thoughtful story can help parents in beginning discussions when this type of aggression occurs, and a way for Asian children to develop pride in themselves.
Fiction
Anybody Here Seen Frenchie?, by Leslie Connor, HarperCollins, 2022.
Aurora talks a mile a minute and Frenchie never speaks, but the two neuro-diverse sixth graders are best friends. When Frenchie goes missing, the residents in their small well-depicted Maine town come together to find him, with Aurora taking the lead as she deals with her own guilt about his disappearance. The author effectively uses small details to bring two complex characters to life, pinpointing what makes them tick without relying on labels or stereotypes to define them.
When Winter Robeson Came, by Brenda Woods, Paulsen, 2022.
In free verse, twelve-year-old Eden describes the time her cousin Winter visited her family in Los Angeles in August 1965 to search for his missing father. His trip coincided with the nearby Watts riots, showing that L.A. was not that different from Mississippi, where Winter lived, when it comes to racial strife. Even younger readers unfamiliar with the Watts riots, Jim Crow laws, or the Civil Rights Movement will be able to follow this historical novel depicting a warm, loving African American family and their neighbors. The mystery element involving Winter’s missing father will draw in many readers and is believably explained and resolved.
Nonficton
Slade, Suzanne. Blast Off!: How Mary Sherman Morgan Fueled America Into Space Calkins Creek, 04/2022
Mary Sherman overcame tremendous odds to become the world’s first female rocket scientist. Spectacular, vibrant illustrations and exciting book design complement the compelling text, as Mary talks her way into a job and becomes the lead scientist developing rocket fuel for the launch of the first U.S. satellite, Explorer One. The author’s note gives details about the difficulty of finding reliable research and fills in some details about Mary’s personal life. An inspiring read aloud or a great bedtime story for a child with a scientific bent.
Packing for Mars for Kids, Mary Roach, Norton, 2022.
What is the greatest challenge for a rocket scientist? It turns out it is the human body. In seven chapters, crackling with curiosity and packed with surprising information, Roach opens our eyes to the many startling, impressive, and odiferous challenges space travel poses to astronauts and the engineers tasked with getting them off the earth. Packed with facts and unforgettable anecdotes, the slim volume is also beautifully organized and tightly written: moving from gravity, through what it’s like to fly, eliminations of all kinds, eating, hygiene and the kind of roommate issues that result from very small rooms.
The Great Stink: How Joseph Bazalgette Solved London’s Poop Pollution Problem, by Colleen Paeff, illustrated by Nancy Carpenter, McElderry, 2021.
London in the 1800s smelled terrible and people were dying of cholera, but the connection between the dread disease and contaminated water had yet to be made. This engaging nonfiction account introduces readers to Joseph Bazalgette, the man who designed London’s sewage system, an engineering marvel completed in 1865 that saved lives by carrying human waste away from the city center. The text informs but never overwhelms, with whimsical drawings providing illuminating, often humorous details.
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