- Ashley S.
- Friday, February 24, 2023
Check out these January 2023 youth titles you may have missed!
Keeping up with new book releases is an extremely difficult task. Even as a voracious reader, I'm unable to keep up with every single youth title that releases each week. "Did You Miss It" is a new review based series that takes time to explore and highlight youth titles that may have gone unnoticed. Each month, I will showcase 2 to 3 titles from the previous month providing both a summary and my own personal thoughts. This month's post features two of my favorite reads from January! I hope you enjoy!
World Made of Glass by Amy Polonsky (Released January 17th)
Summary: Iris tries to act normal at school, going through the motions and joking around with her friends. But nothing is normal, and sometimes it feels like she’ll never laugh again. How can she, when her dad is dying of a virus that’s off-limits to talk about? When she knows that soon all she’ll have left of her kind, loving dad are memories, photos, and a binder full of the poems they used to exchange? In a sea of rage and grief, Iris resolves to speak out against the rampant fear, misinformation, and prejudice surrounding AIDS—and find the pieces of Dad that she never knew before. Along the way, Iris might just find new sides to herself.
My Thoughts: I've always been a fan of historical fiction particularly titles that are aimed at children and/or middle grade readers. Unfortunately, I've never read a youth title that not only takes place during the 1980s, but also captures conversations, disagreements, protests, and interpersonal relationships in connection to the AIDS epidemic. Through Iris's narrative, readers receive the opportunity to explore both the internal and external factors that shape not only her relationship with her father, but also her surrounding community. While she knows a lot due to her father's diagnosis, her interactions with other characters give her a broader sense of the various challenges that her father and so many others faced. It's a intricate and important aspect of the novel that illustrates the hurt, frustration, and anger that so many experienced in real life.
Sincerely Sicily by Tamika Burgess (Released January 3rd)
Summary: Sicily Jordan’s worst nightmare has come true! She’s been enrolled in a new school, with zero of her friends and stuck wearing a fashion catastrophe of a uniform. But however bad Sicily thought sixth grade was going to be, it only gets worse when she does her class presentation. While all her classmates breezed through theirs, Sicily is bombarded with questions on how she can be both Black and Panamanian. She wants people to understand, but it doesn’t feel like anyone is ready to listen—first at school and then at home. Because when her abuela starts talking mess about her braids, Sicily’s the only one whose heart is being crumpled for a second time. Staying quiet may no longer be an option, but that doesn’t mean Sicily has the words to show the world just what it means to be a proud Black Panamanian either. Even though she hasn’t written in her journal since her abuelo passed, it’s time to pick up her pen again—but will it be enough to prove to herself and everyone else exactly who she is
My Thoughts: This was an excellent novel that reiterates the need for diverse representation in youth literature. Sicily is facing identity based challenges not only at school, but also at home. As a parent to a little girl, my heart broke for Sicily who took so much pride and joy in her hair. It's one thing to hear the harmful messaging about "good hair" outside of the home, but to hear it from an adult that is both trusted and loved leaves a lasting impact. With the help of supportive parents, who not only addressed Sicily's behavior when she was wrong, but also attempted to listen to her perspective and acknowledge her feelings, Sicily and her grandmother are able to work towards healing their broken relationship. One of the more complex conversations that occurs in this book is centered around the difference between culture and race. Sicily's parents teach her what it means to be Afro-Latine and more specifically Black Panamanian. They refused to let any pieces or parts of her culture and heritage go unnoticed. Along the way readers will learn so much information about the history and culture of Panama and will rejoice in the pride that Sicily grows to have in herself and her family.