Books: Top picks this month
Books: Top picks this month
Title: It’s Not Little Red Riding Hood
Author: Josh Funk
Illustrator: Edwardian Taylor
Publisher: Two Lions
Once again, the beleaguered storyteller tries to tell a traditional fairy tale, with little success. Red has some questions about her delivery to Grandma’s house, the wolf calls in sick, and more chaos ensues.
Title: Natalie Portman’s Fables
Author: Natalie Portman
Illustrator: Janna Mattia
Publisher: Feiwel Friends
Academy Award-winning actress, director, producer, and activist Natalie Portman retells three classic fables and imbues them with wit and wisdom. From realizing that there is no “right” way to live to respecting our planet and learning what really makes someone a winner, the messages at the heart of Natalie Portman’s Fables are modern takes on timeless life lessons. Told with a playful, kid-friendly voice and perfectly paired with Mattia’s charming artwork, Portman’s insightful retellings of The Tortoise and the Hare, The Three Little Pigs, and Country Mouse and City Mouse are ideal for reading aloud and are sure to become beloved additions to family libraries.
Title: Tristan Strong Destroys The World
Author: Kwame Mbalia
Publisher: Rick Riordan Presents
Bestselling author Rick Riordan presents the second book in the New York Times best-selling Tristan Strong trilogy by Kwame Mbalia. Tristan Strong, just back from a victorious but exhausting adventure in Alke, the land of African American folk heroes and African gods, is suffering from PTSD. But there’s no rest for the weary when his grandmother is abducted by a mysterious villain out for revenge. Tristan must return to Alke–and reunite with his loud-mouthed sidekick, Gum Baby–in order to rescue Nana and stop the culprit from creating further devastation. Anansi, now a “web developer” in Tristan’s phone, is close at hand to offer advice, and several new folk heroes will aid Tristan in his quest, but he will only succeed if he can figure out a way to sew broken souls back together.
Title: The Boys in the Back Row
Author: Mike Jung
Publisher: Levine Querido
Best friends Matt and Eric are hatching a plan for one big final adventure together before Eric moves away. During the marching band competition at a Giant Amusement Park, they will sneak away to a nearby comics convention and meet their idol – a famous comic creator. Without cell phones. Or transportation. Or permission. Of course, their final adventure together is more than just that – really, it’s a way for the boys to celebrate their friendship, and their honest love and support for one another.
Title: When Life Gives You Mangos
Author: Kereen Getten
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Twelve-year-old Clara lives on an island that visitors call exotic. But there’s nothing exotic about it to Clara. She loves eating ripe mangoes off the ground, running outside in the rain with her Papa during the rainy season, and going to her secret hideout with Gaynah–even though lately she’s not acting like a best friend. The only thing out of the ordinary for Clara is that something happened to her memory that made her forget everything that happened last summer after a hurricane hit. But this summer is going to be different for Clara. Everyone is buzzing with excitement over a new girl in the village who is not like other visitors. She is about to make big waves on the island–and give Clara a summer she won’t forget.
