Month: September 2021

As of August 2001, I’ve been writing Sonderbooks for 20 years!

To celebrate, I decided to write 20 posts, highlighting favorite books I reviewed each year of Sonderbooks. I didn’t intend for it to take so long, but here at last is my post celebrating some of the most wonderful books I read in 2020.

2020 of course was the year I did some working from home during the pandemic and learned how to get our library’s eaudiobooks on my phone. Some of these books I fondly remember listening to while doing a jigsaw puzzle.

For Grown-Ups

A Dance with Fate, by Juliet Marillier

Book Two in Juliet Marillier’s latest Celtic fantasy trilogy. I’m eagerly awaiting the publication of Book Three.

Where the Crawdads Sing, by Delia Owens

The story of a girl who’s been abandoned again and again, but who learns to understand the natural world with all its beauty and wonder — and a mystery and a dramatic courtroom scene as well.

The Little Paris Bookshop, by Nina George

A joyful book about a Paris bookseller who unhooks his book barge on the Seine and travels to the land of his lost love — picking up companions along the way.

Know My Name, by Chanel Miller

The true story of the young woman who was raped by a Stanford swimmer and left for dead. She writes about the entire ordeal and how much she went through during the whole long trial. An important, though painful story.

My Wife Said You May Want to Marry Me, by Jason B. Rosenthal

This is a follow up to the “Modern Love” column Amy Krouse Rosenthal wrote in 2017, “You May Want to Marry My Husband,” that was published a few days before her death from cancer. Jason Rosenthal tells the story of their marriage and joyful life together — and then has wise things to say about navigating loss without forgetting the joyful times. The author reads the audiobook himself, making it all the more personal.

Me and White Supremacy: Combat Racism, Change the World, and Become a Good Ancestor, by Layla F. Saad

This book, more than any other, helps you come to terms with racist attitudes, conscious and unconscious, in your personal history and in your heart. A powerful though uncomfortable book that asks you to do some ongoing work.

Keep Moving: Notes on Loss, Creativity, and Change, by Maggie Smith

I still read a couple pages from this book every morning. It’s full of inspirational pep talks about carrying on after loss and helping you go on to new things.

Jesus Undefeated: Condemning the False Doctrine of Eternal Torment, by Keith Giles, and Grace Saves All: The Necessity of Christian Universalism, by David Artman

Two more books explaining the teaching of Christian Universalism and how strongly the Bible supports this teaching. They also explain how this teaching honors a God of love and results in more loving Christians.

Shameless: A Case for Not Feeling Bad About Feeling Good (About Sex), by Nadia Bolz-Weber

A healing and redemptive way of looking at sex and spirituality, attempting to heal some things we may have heard from the church.

For Teens:

The Return of the Thief, by Megan Whalen Turner

The amazing conclusion to one of my all-time favorite series, as the Medes attack, and it will take all of Eugenides’ cleverness to save the smaller countries of Attolia, Eddis, and Sounis.

Igniting Darkness, by Robin LaFevers

Another series culmination — this time it’s technically finishing a duology, but that duology was a follow-up to a trilogy, all of them rich historical fiction about the duchy of Brittany and young women who are daughters of the god of Death, and trained in a convent to be courtly assassins supporting the duchess of Brittany. Now she’s been married to the king of France and needs support even more.

The Queen of Nothing, by Holly Black

And here’s a trilogy conclusion. This one is about a teen who’s grown up in the faerie court and manages to get power over the High King of faerie. But there are many twists and turns and as this volume begins, it seems her power is gone. And if she doesn’t act, he may not be High King much longer, anyway.

Red Hood, by Elana K. Arnold

Here’s a fairy tale retelling for the time of the Me Too movement. The Little Red Riding Hood figure in this novel is not prey for wolves — she hunts them down. Then the next day there will be a dead man in the woods….

Elatsoe, by Darcie Little Badger

A beautiful paranormal tale set in an alternate reality where different cultures use different magic. Our Native American main character has a ghost dog, and dreams about her uncle who died. He tells her he was murdered. Rather than try to do something on her own, Elatsoe’s whole family works together with her to bring justice. It’s not easy, as they’re working against discrimination and abusive use of power.

The Guinevere Deception, by Kirsten White

A tale from Arthurian legend — from the perspective of Guinevere, who is an imposter put in place by Merlin. And she is forgetting who she really is.

Cemetery Boys, by Aiden Thomas

I love the trans main character in this novel, who is at the age where he should be trained to do magic — but magic is very gendered in his family, and his family needs to see he is a brujo. So he sets out to do magic on his own, with some disturbing results.

The Bridge, by Bill Konigsberg

This book explores what might have been. Two teens come to a bridge at the same time. We find out what happens if the girl jumps, but not the boy. Then if the boy jumps, but not the girl. Then if they both jump. And finally what happens if neither one jumps. It’s surprisingly suspenseful and moving.

Even If We Break, by Marieke Nijkamp

A thriller set in an isolated cabin where people start dying, one by one. I enjoyed the well-drawn trans characters in this edge-of-my-seat book.

Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You, by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi, read by Jason Reynolds

Jason Reynolds remixed Dr. Kendi’s award-winning work on the history of racism, Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America, and made it accessible to teens and easily understandable — resulting in a book that’s more easily understandable for adults, too.

An Indigenous People’s History of the United States for Young People, by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz, adapted by Jean Mendoza and Debbie Reese

Another effective adaptation of an adult history book — this time looking at the history of the United States from the perspective of Indigenous people. It’s a shocking and sad story, but an important one.

For Children:

Fighting Words, by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

It’s hard to describe how good Kimberly Brubaker Bradley’s books are — about girls who’ve been abused, who manage to rise above and see that they’re special. My words don’t do them justice. Read this book!

Prairie Lotus, by Linda Sue Park

The setting of Little House on the Prairie with a half-Chinese girl as the main character. She gets some different responses than Laura Ingalls Wilder did, but the story is told as a tribute to the original books.

Wink, by Rob Harrell

A story about a kid dealing with cancer in his eye — told with lots of humor mixed into the poignancy.

When Stars Are Scattered, by Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed

A powerful and touching true story about a boy growing up in a refugee camp while taking care of his younger brother with special needs and always hoping to find his mother. This book is wonderful both in graphic novel form and audiobook form.

Create Your Own Secret Language: Invent Codes, Ciphers, Hidden Messages, and More, by David J. Peterson, illustrated by Ryan Goldsberry

This amazing book starts with codes and cyphers and goes on to teach kids how to create their own language complete with phonemes and writing systems and grammar. The author helped create languages for the Game of Thrones series.

Honeybee: The Busy Life of Apis Mellifera, by Candace Fleming and Eric Rohmann

This is a detailed and child-friendly look at the life of a honeybee, with gorgeous close-up paintings to illustrate everything.

The Boy Who Dreamed of Infinity: A Tale of the Genius Ramanujan, by Amy Alznauer, illustrated by Daniel Miyares

A picture book biography of the great mathematical genius Ramanujan, who came up with amazing mathematical insights before he was trained, insights that mathematicians are still working to understand and appreciate.

Evelyn Del Rey Is Moving Away, by Meg Medina, illustrated by Sonia Sánchez

A touching picture book about two best friends — as one moves away from the neighborhood.

Rita and Ralph’s Rotten Day, by Carmen Agra Deedy, illustrated by Pete Oswald

A wonderful picture book for storytime, as Rita and Ralph go “down the hill and up the hill and down the hill and up the hill.”

20 years ago, as of August 2021, I began writing Sonderbooks! To celebrate, I’m making 20 posts, highlighting some of the best books I reviewed each year I’ve been doing Sonderbooks. It’s taking longer than I anticipated, but I’m up to the 19th post, about my favorites from 2019.

for Grown Ups:

Becoming Mrs. Lewis, by Patti Callahan

A wonderfully detailed novel about Joy Gresham and her life before she fell in love with C. S. Lewis and eventually married him. This novel looks at many of her writings and shows how she may have profoundly influenced his writing Till We Have Faces.

Spinning Silver, by Naomi Novik

This magical novel is loosely based on the fairy tale “Rumpelstiltskin,” with a moneylender’s daughter who boasted that she could turn silver into gold and got the attention of the king of the Staryk people.

The Harp of Kings, by Juliet Marillier

The beginning of a new fantasy trilogy by Juliet Marillier! In fact, I’m eagerly awaiting the third volume, which I’ve preordered, coming soon.

Marilla of Green Gables, by Sarah McCoy

A prequel to L. M. Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables, showing us Marilla’s life was not as commonplace as we might have thought.

Educated, by Tara Westover

The amazing true story of the author’s growing-up years among radical Mormons in the mountains of Idaho and how she managed to get out and get herself educated.

Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption, by Bryan Stevenson

A story of a young lawyer working to bring justice out of a criminal justice system that doesn’t work as well for poor people. The movie is wonderful, but the book follows many more cases than the main one highlighted in the movie.

Becoming, by Michelle Obama

Michelle Obama’s story! Of course I loved it!

Joyful: The Surprising Power of Ordinary Things to Create Extraordinary Happiness, by Ingrid Fetell Lee

This book looks at design — and how certain choices in the things around you can bring joy.

The Landscapes of Anne of Green Gables, by Catherine Reid

I got to go to Prince Edward Island in 2019! And this book was a perfect memento of the island I will never forget.

The Universal Christ: How a Forgotten Reality Can Change Everything We See, Hope For, and Believe, by Richard Rohr

Strongly based in Scripture, Jesuit priest Richard Rohr makes the case that the Christ principle is eternal and universal, while Jesus was the human embodiment of that principle. He goes deeper than I can explain in a few sentences, but this is a beautiful and revolutionary book which I’m saving to read over repeatedly. It also started me on daily emails from Richard Rohr’s Center for Action and Contemplation.

Raising Hell: Christianity’s Most Controversial Doctrine Put Under Fire, by Julie Ferwerda

Notably, this is the first book on Universalism I’ve read that was written by a woman. And it’s a good one, with the Scriptural evidence and argument explained well, along with her process of study and how she came to the conclusion – from the Bible – that God will save everyone.

That All Shall Be Saved: Heaven, Hell & Universal Salvation, by David Bentley Hart

Another book on Universalism, but this one is more academic, written by a theologian and a philosopher, making a brilliant and hard-to-refute case.

Creation and the Cross, by Elizabeth A. Johnson

I especially appreciated that this book takes on the Satisfaction Theory of the Atonement proposed by Anselm in medieval times and refutes it — helping me dispose of any uneasiness I had not believing what I was taught from childhood — as well as presenting some beautiful and affirming theology that includes all of creation.

For Teens

Damsel, by Elana K. Arnold

A convention-breaking fantasy tale about a damsel who is told she was saved from a dragon — and ends up deciding to save herself. I also found a new favorite female audiobook narrator, Elizabeth Knowelden.

Stepsister, by Jennifer Donnelly

A story from the perspective of one of Cinderella’s stepsisters — as she learns she does not have to cut off pieces of herself to make her way in the world.

They Called Us Enemy, by George Takei, Justin Eisinger, and Steven Scott, art by Harmony Becker

A moving and all-too-timely graphic novel memoir about when George Takei’s family was imprisoned in the internment camps during World War II, even though they were U. S. citizens.

Shout: The True Story of a Survivor Who Refused to Be Silenced, by Laurie Halse Anderson

A memoir in verse about the author’s own experiences with sexual abuse as a teen, and how she learned to make her voice be heard.

Ordinary Hazards: A Memoir, by Nikki Grimes

Another memoir in verse about a difficult childhood. This one is also about rising above and finding joy and light.

For Children

We’re Not From Here, by Geoff Rodkey

A wonderful tale of a family of refugees from earth’s Mars colony who must take refuge on an alien planet that doesn’t want them. Lan’s family is representing all earthlings, and if they don’t win over the hostile aliens of Choom, all their shipmates will die. Believe it or not, this story is told with lots of humor.

Pie in the Sky, by Remy Lai

A heart-warming immigrant tale — this time to Australia — has the older brother trying to adjust to missing his dad — by baking through his dad’s cookbook of fancy cakes. Doing this while keeping an eye on his little brother and keeping his mother in the dark is challenging.

Free Lunch, by Rex Ogle

A true story of being poor in middle school and all the ways that grinds you down — but told with humor and grace.

Best Friends, by Shannon Hale, artwork by LeUyen Pham

A graphic novel memoir about the challenges of finding friends in sixth grade.

Nine Months: Before a Baby Is Born, by Miranda Paul, illustrated by Jason Chin

A wonderful nonfiction picture book showing how a baby grows in the womb, with just enough detail for a slightly older sibling to read and appreciate.

How Many? A Different Kind of Counting Book, by Christopher Danielson

Such a delightful open-ended book about real world math for preschoolers. It shows kids photos of things to count — but lets the reader decide what should be counted.

Can You Hear the Trees Talking? Discovering the Hidden Life of the Forest, by Peter Wohlleben

This book convinced me to finally read the author’s book for adults, The Hidden Life of Trees. But honestly, the children’s book communicated the main chunks of information in a fascinating and memorable way, with photographs.

Truman, by Jean Reidy, illustrated by Lucy Ruth Cummins

A sweet picture book about a loving and persistent turtle.

Maybe Tomorrow, by Charlotte Agell, illustrated by Ana Ramírez González

A lovely picture book that shows how friends can make your burdens lighter.

And there are more on the 2019 Sonderbooks Stand-outs page! Since this was so recent, it was hard to narrow them down, but if you missed any of these, now’s your chance!

As of August 2021, I’ve been writing Sonderbooks for 20 years! It began as an email newsletter, quickly became a website, and eventually added a blog. To celebrate, I’m doing 20 posts looking back at the past years of Sonderbooks and the wonderful books I read for the first time.

Now I’m looking at 2018 Sonderbooks Stand-outs. 2018 was the amazing year I read more books than any other in my life, because I was on the 2019 John Newbery Medal Selection Committee! So not only did I get to read amazing books, I got to reread the best of them more than once, and so many have a special place in my heart. I will try to restrain myself from going on too long, and only mention the ones I really hope my friends get a chance to read.

For Children

I have to start with our Newbery books!

Newbery Medal Winner:

Merci Suárez Changes Gears, by Meg Medina

Sixth-grader Merci is navigating middle school on scholarship at a private school while also facing pressures from her big family taking her for granted and treating her like a kid, while her beloved grandfather is beginning to act strange.

Newbery Honor Winners:

The Book of Boy, by Catherine Gilbert Murdock

This one-of-a-kind book set in medieval times tells of a kid named Boy who has a hunchback and is shunned by others, but gets pulled into a quest with a pilgrim who wants to collect relics of St. Peter. The trip involves surprising revelations and liberating redemption.

The Night Diary, by Veera Hiranandani

Set in Pakistan during the Partition, Nisha and her family must move to India to live with other Hindus, even though her mother had been Muslim. She writes to her dead mother in her diary during the journey, exploring questions of conflict between religions and the peaceful teachings of Gandhi – and the good and the bad they encounter in their travels.

Other Favorites

The Flight of Swans, by Sarah McGuire

A wonderful retelling of the fairy tale where a princess must save her six brothers, turned into swans by the witch who enchanted their father. To save them, she must not speak for six years and must knit them shirts out of nettles.

The Truth As Told By Mason Buttle, by Leslie Connor

Mason Buttle is the biggest kid in seventh grade, and he’s got dyslexia and a disorder that makes him sweat profusely, so he’s not very popular, but he’s got a big heart. In this book, he begins a friendship with one of the smallest kids in seventh grade, and as they explore together, we learn about what happened to Mason’s previous best friend and why so many in town won’t speak to Mason any more. Mason is one of my favorite characters ever in children’s literature.

Snow Lane, by Josie Angelini

A book about a family almost as big as the one I grew up in! I knew the author had to be from a big family herself, because she gets the dynamics exactly right. But mostly, you’ll root for Annie Bianchi, the youngest of nine, and a good listener, a good sister, and a good friend.

Nowhere Boy, by Katherine Marsh

The parallel story of an American kid living temporarily in Belgium and the refugee boy who hides in the American family’s basement.

Sweep: The Story of a Girl and Her Monster, by Jonathan Auxier

A chimney sweep girl in Victorian London is on her own — until danger activates the gift of a golem, who grows into a size to protect her.

The Assassination of Brangwain Spurge, by M. T. Anderson and Eugene Yelchin

A story told from multiple perspectives, with words and pictures, of an ambassador from the elves to the goblins who thinks he’s making peace but doesn’t know he’s carrying a bomb. His goblin host wants to be hospitable, but misunderstandings and missteps abound.

The Mad Wolf’s Daughter, by Diane Magras

Set in medieval times, the youngest in the family sets out to save her father and brothers, in the company of someone left behind by the lord’s soldiers.

The Eleventh Trade, by Alyssa Hollingsworth

A heart-warming story about a kid who’s come to America from Afghanistan with his grandfather. After his grandfather’s rebab is stolen from him, he tries to figure out how to get it back, by making progressively better trades. What I love about this trading-up story is that each person making a trade gets a good deal, and the effort helps Sami makes friends along the way.

The Parker Inheritance, by Varian Johnson

Two modern-day kids work on a treasure-hunt puzzle that leads to clues about the history of the town during the Civil Rights era. That story is revealed in alternating chapters.

Front Desk, by Kelly Yang

A kid handles the front desk at the motel her immigrant parents manage. She hears stories from the long-term residents of the motel and decides to use her pen to fight injustice.

Children’s Nonfiction

The Girl Who Drew Butterflies: How Maria Merian’s Art Changed Science, by Joyce Sidman

This is the story of a 17th century woman who changed how the world looked at insects. Maria Merian was both a scientist and an artist, and many of the pictures in this gorgeous book are from Maria Merian’s own art.

The Faithful Spy: Dietrich Bonhoeffer and the Plot to Kill Hitler, by John Hendrix

This book is almost a graphic novel, but not quite. We’ve got the story of Dietrich Bonhoeffer and the resistance against Hitler told with charts and pictures making everything memorable and clear.

Calling All Minds: How to Think and Create Like an Inventor, by Temple Grandin with Betsy Lerner

Temple Grandin tells kids how she became an inventor and explains how patents work, while also providing multiple projects kids can create themselves, with clear warnings as to which ones require sharp objects or power tools.

Pass Go and Collect $200: The Real Story of How Monopoly Was Invented, by Tanya Lee Stone, illustrated by Steven Salerno

This picture book tells about Lizzie Magie, the person who actually invented the game of Monopoly.

Hey, Kiddo! How I Lost My Mother, Found my Father, and Dealt with Family Addiction, by Jarrett Krosoczka

A graphic novel memoir about a kid growing up in a family with challenges, but a lot of love.

Picture Books

Dreamers, by Yuyi Morales

The author tells of her arrival in America, not understanding the language, feeling lost — and how she discovered picture books in the public library and began to feel at home.

The Stuff of Stars, by Marian Dane Bauer, illustrated by Ekua Holmes

This book is a gorgeous work of art, all about how things came into existence, beginning with the Big Bang and progressing to particular details like caterpillars and lions and You. The paintings are glorious and the text sings.

We Don’t Eat Our Classmates, by Ryan T. Higgins

A delightfully silly book about a young T-rex who needs to learn to behave properly when she starts Kindergarten.

Thank You, Omu!, by Oge Mora

A contemporary story with a folk tale feel about a grandmotherly lady who makes a big fat pot of thick red stew and shares with all who are enticed by the smell. Her reward at the end shows everyone’s appreciation.

We Are Brothers, by Yves Nadon, illustrated by Jean Claverie

A little brother wants to be like his big brother and dive off the big rock this year. The pictures perfectly capture the range of emotions.

Julián Is a Mermaid, by Jessica Love

After seeing three tall, beautiful ladies dressed as mermaids, Julián wants to dress that way himself — with happy results.

For Teens

West, by Edith Pattou

This is a sequel to the author’s wonderful book East, a retelling of “East of the Sun, West of the Moon.” In this book, the Troll Queen wants revenge on the happy couple — and the human race.

Blood Water Paint, by Joy McCullough

This is a verse novel about the distinguished artist Artemisia Gentileschi when she was seventeen years old in 1611 in Rome. It’s also a novel about rape and a woman standing up to those in power. And she paints the stories of other strong women.

What the Night Sings, by Vesper Stamper

This is a powerful illustrated novel about learning to live again after a multitude of losses during World War II.

Darius the Great Is Not Okay, by Adib Khoram

A wonderfully honest book about an American teen visiting family in Iran and dealing with feeling like an outsider, making friends, feeling like he’s disappointing his father, and having depression.

Pride, by Ibi Zoboi

Pride and Prejudice set among Black families in Brooklyn. Lots of fun!

Truly Devious, by Maureen Johnson

The start of a mystery trilogy with a decades-old kidnapping combined with modern-day dead bodies in a private school in the mountains.

For Grown-Ups

The Woman in Cabin 10 and The Death of Mrs. Westaway, by Ruth Ware

Thrillers! I listened to these on my commute as a nice contrast to the children’s books I was spending so much of my time with.

Tattoos on the Heart: The Power of Boundless Compassion and Barking to the Choir: The Power of Radical Kinship, by Gregory Boyle

Gregory Boyle is a Jesuit priest who has a thriving ministry with gang members in Los Angeles. Lives are transformed, because he sees them as wonderful people who have much to teach him. His love and compassion shines through in these books.

Sinners in the Hands of a Loving God: The Scandalous Truth of the Very Good News, by Brian Zahnd

Another book helping to transform my ideas of what Jesus’ death meant for the world — and giving wonderful, loving, joyful ideas.

Heaven’s Doors: Wider Than You Ever Believed!, by George W. Sarris

This book clearly explains the biblical support for universalism and how it fits with what we know about our loving God.

The Face of Water: A Translator on Beauty and Meaning in the Bible, by Sarah Ruden

A linguist shows us some beautiful things about the text of the Bible that have been lost in translation.

Transforming: The Bible & the Lives of Transgender Christians, by Austen Hartke

Biblical support for welcoming and affirming transgender Christians.

And I have to finish with this one because I still talk about it:

Experimenting with Babies: 50 Amazing Science Projects You Can Perform on Your Kid, by Shaun Gallagher

The author gives a list of 150 serious psychological studies that have been done on babies to learn about their cognitive development — and how you can repeat them at home and learn about your own baby. I would have loved this as a big sister!

So — those are some highlights from my most amazing reading year ever! Be sure to check the rest of the list of my 2018 Sonderbooks Stand-outs!