The illustrations, by Grant Snider, are one of my favorite things about this picture book. I love the torn paper and colored pencil drawings of the iceberg and airplanes and snow falling on the ocean.

The story is wonderful as well. Blue is an iceberg that breaks off from his parents and begins to float away from them. You can see the apprehension and nerves on his face as he unwillingly leaves them. But, soon he floats and meets friends and enjoys seeing the sights. He travels far from his home and the water becomes warmer. He is melting into the ocean – he becomes the ocean! His friends were a bit frightened when he disappeared, but then he transformed into a cloud and got to see new things from this new perspective.

This is a great story about the water cycle without throwing the water cycle in your face. I would way rather read this, than many others out there!

I highly recommend putting this book in your classroom library or school library! A must have for teaching the water cycle and there are some great art projects you could do alongside it.

While this book feels different than Jacqueline Woodson’s other picture books, I love the prose with which she writes. This story is about friendship, community and summer. Every kid can relate to the excitement of getting out of school for summer and all the plans they have. Set in Brooklyn, the vibrant illustrations, by Leo Espinosa, add to the energy of the words with smiles, movement and color.

Students run down the steps of their school building into the Brooklyn streets to begin their summer vacation. They play in fire hydrants, let their curls go natural, play street games like hopscotch and jump rope, told stories that had each person enthralled to the last moment, and joined together to lift each other up and bring everyone along for the ride…that is, until. the grownups call everyone home.

This is a relatable story for kids about the joy of summer – it would be a great addition to any library, but especially in urban schools where their experiences may be similar to those in the book.

This is a fantastic book about kids bringing lunch to school that are traditional to their home culture. Each kid who is highlighted is subjected to another student saying their lunch doesn’t look good or doesn’t smell good – and ultimately they decide to switch to a boring sandwich instead. After a few days of only sandwiches, the traditional home lunches start to come back, and smiles start to return on the faces of kids.

I love the illustrations, by Jing Li, of the food, the home kitchens, and the shopping markets. What a great window into some lives!

Words are powerful and this book is a great example of that. It uses real life experiences of four professional chefs who used to bring traditional home lunches to school and who were each in turn told it looked “ewww.”

A must have for any school library! My fourth graders give it a double thumbs up!

By Lauren Wolk

This story, My Own Lightning by Lauren Wolk, the sequel to a dashing book will pull you straight into the world it tells of and changes the way you perceive your own. Following the events of Wolf Hollow, My Own Lightning brings about summer to the story once more; with a tremendous storm to come with it. The story following the storm tells of growing up and finding ways to cope with change or to be the change. The figurative language and fantastical imagery leave your mind spinning with beautiful pictures created by the brilliant words in My Own Lightning A brilliant historical fiction gives you not only an intriguing image of the past but deep and wonderful characters to pull you into the words with them. If the intriguing image of the past is created by this historical fiction, the thorough figurative language will strike even the most reluctant readers as simply beautiful!

Reviewed by a WMS student

In this book written by Margriet Ruurs and illustrated by Wenjia Tang, you travel around the world to see how and where kids live. The book begins with a quick introduction to maps, going over a Compass Rose, Legend, and Scale Bar. After this, each page introduces a friend, their real neighborhood, describes their community, and gives you a word or two in their language.

This is a great book to introduce maps to your class. It has beautiful illustrations incorporating the maps with animals and the friends who live there.

I can see this book being used for social studies, introducing mapmaking, and when talking about community – it is a beautiful addition to your library.

Fly by Alison Hughes is a novel in verse that is sure to leave a mark. Felix Landon Yarrow or more commonly known as FLY sits in a wheelchair at the age of 14. Although this makes life harder FLY sets out to save his crush from a drug-dealing boy named Carter. When his original plan falls apart he realizes it’s time to rock the boat. The creative format of the verses generates an interesting, more inventive way of understanding the words on the page. This book would appeal to fiction and YA readers. The representation of FLY’s feelings as a teenager is both relatable and comforting. Even for readers who aren’t attracted to young adult fiction, the adventure in verse will pull them in. (Reviewed by a WMS student)

In Jordan Ifueko’s sequel to Raybearer, Tarisai will be tested physically and mentally as she begins her control of the throne as Empress. Tarisai is still a rock star of a heroine, staying one step ahead of most issues that arise but when spirits of the past add that additional layer of doubt, Tarsai takes a little of a Christ-like role in deciding if she can live with her people or if she must die to absolve them of past transgressions. This fantasy world continues its mythical tale as beautifully crafted as Tarisai’s characterization. Fans of Raybearer will enjoy Redemptor’s 2nd and final part of the story.

Minda Harts gives heartfelt advice on everything from finding your first job to reacting to squabbles between friends or break-ups of family, and from self-advocacy and positive self-reflection to being vulnerable in relationships. While race and gender positivity are obviously the reason for the book, this white reader could read it from the advocate’s lens as well as the learner’s lens. Discussion questions for chapters are at the end as well as reflective questions for a white audience and comments for a white caregiver. This is the “gift” book that counselors, teachers, guardians, and advocates can share with the beautiful brown girls in our lives. Harts writes in conversational, tell-it-like-it-is prose that creates the authentic cradle of care these girls need to be leaders in our society. You Are More Than Magic is highly recommended for school libraries.