Review of Most Ardently, by Gabe Cole Novoa, read by Harrison Knights

Audiobooks, Austenalia, Historical, Starred Review, Teen Fiction Review 0

Most Ardently

A Pride and Prejudice Remix

by Gabe Cole Novoa
read by Harrison Knights

Macmillan Young Listeners, 2024. 7 hours, 30 minutes.
Review written March 1, 2025, from a library eaudiobook.
Starred Review
2025 Stonewall Honor Book, Young Adult Literature

I have long loved Pride and Prejudice variants and everything related to Jane Austen. I even have a webpage devoted to reviews of such books – my Austenalia page.

I found this version of Pride and Prejudice completely delightful. The big switch? The second child in the Bennet family is actually a transgender boy named Oliver.

The scenes in the novel play out as Oliver is beginning to live as himself and stop pretending to be a girl named Elizabeth. His father is understanding and affirming, but he shudders at the thought of letting his mother know. And Oliver encounters Mr. Bingley and Mr. Darcy both when dressed as himself and when pretending to be a woman. It turns out that Mr. Darcy fancies men, but when appearing as Elizabeth, Oliver can’t let on that he knows that.

There were a couple of odd changes – Longbourne and Netherfield were much closer to London, for starters, as was, apparently, Pemberley and Hunsford. That did help the story speed up – this version got in most of the major scenes, but it was much shorter than the original novel. We also had Oliver not being much taken with Wickham right from the start – there was much less misunderstanding and later reversal than in the original, but it was kind of fun to watch Wickham try to flirt with Oliver, and Oliver having none of it.

Now, I was a little skeptical of how well most who learned about Oliver handled the news and accepted him as himself in that day and age. The historical note at the end did help me believe it could have happened – and regardless, it did my heart good to read about a young transgender man getting love and support from his family and friends.

All in all, it’s a delightful addition to Austenalia – with a new twist I haven’t seen before. Let me ardently recommend this book.

gabecolenovoa.com

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Review of Infinity: Figuring Out Forever, by Sarah C. Campbell, photographs by Sarah C. Campbell and Richard P. Campbell

Children's Nonfiction Review, Mathematical, Starred Review 0

Infinity

Figuring Out Forever

by Sarah C. Campbell
photographs by Sarah C. Campbell and Richard P. Campbell

Astra Young Readers, 2022. 32 pages.
Review written December 22, 2022, from a library book
Starred Review

Kids are fascinated by infinity. Well, my kids were fascinated by infinity, anyway. But more kids can hear about the ideas behind infinity and become fascinated with the help of this simple picture book.

I like that the illustrations are photographs, helping kids grasp that the idea of infinity is all around us. There’s a picture of a kid sitting between two mirrors and looking into them. There are pictures of starry skies, flocks of birds, and leafy trees. On another page, they’ve written out a googol.

But the book also makes clear that infinity isn’t just big numbers. They also demonstrate an orange slice, with half taken away, then half of that taken away, and so on.

Thinking about infinity is tricky. You have already thought of a large number and added one, but that might lead you to make the mistake of thinking infinity is something really, really big. Remember, though, infinity is not something big. Infinity is endlessness.

They tie it up by saying that even though the stars in the sky are finite, your mind has no limits.

The back matter is fun because it includes the ideas of Hilbert’s Hotel as an infinite school with infinite school buses arriving. It’s kind of a shame it’s buried in the back matter — but if this intrigues your kid, they need to find a copy of The Cat in Numberland, by Ivar Ekeland, where the whole book explores those ideas, and why adding infinity to infinity can just be infinity.

Overall, the book is a straightforward introduction for kids. The photo illustrations make it extra inviting.

sarahccampbell.com
astrapublishinghouse.com

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Review of The Sand-Reckoner, by Gillian Bradshaw

Fiction Review, Historical, Old Favorites, Sonderbooks25, Stand-outs, Starred Review 0

The Sand-Reckoner

by Gillian Bradshaw

Forge (Tom Doherty Associates), 2000. 351 pages.
This review written March 13, 2025, from my own copy.
Original review written August 2001.
Starred Review
2001 Sonderbooks Stand-out: #1 Fiction

I’m revisiting this wonderful book – one of my all-time favorites – as part of #Sonderbooks25, my celebration of my 25th year of writing Sonderbooks. I’m rereading at least one book from each year’s Sonderbooks Stand-outs. And while I will probably not write a new review for all of them, the first five years of reviews were posted in a different format that isn’t phone-friendly, so I want to bring this book to the main site. Does this qualify as an “Old Favorite“? The first time I read it, the book was new! But I’m thinking that enough time has gone by, and it will always be one of my lifetime favorite books, so I’m going to add it to the Old Favorites page, too.

The Sand-Reckoner was reviewed in my very first issue of Sonderbooks (back when it was an email newsletter posted in issues), and the first time I read it was while I was on vacation in Ireland. Despite not being in an idyllic location this time around, I still found the book utterly delightful.

It’s all about the character of Archimedes. He’s portrayed as a genius who gets so wrapped up in his work, he forgets about anything else – which totally fits the historical anecdotes about him. This book shows Archimedes as a young man, returning from the intellectual company of the Museum of Alexandria back to his home in Syracuse, because his father is very ill, and Syracuse is now at war with Rome.

Because of Archimedes’ geometrical genius, he’s better than anyone at building machines – including machines of war, and as he arrives, his first task is to convince the leaders of Syracuse that he can build bigger and better catapults for them. After that, the tyrant of Syracuse (He’s a good guy, but that’s what the leader was called.) must figure out how to entice Archimedes to stay, instead of going back to Alexandria, where more understood his philosophical discussions.

There’s a major subplot about Archimedes’ Roman slave and a romantic subplot as well, and the whole book immerses you in the world of ancient Syracuse with a lovable naive genius.

And, yes, this is one of my all-time favorite books. I’m a math person myself, though never as genius as Archimedes, nor so single-minded. But I do have a big soft spot for sweet nerdy engineers like him.

tor.com

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Review of Killer Underwear Invasion! by Elise Gravel

Children's Nonfiction Review, Current Issues, Graphic Novel, History, Humorous, Starred Review 0

Killer Underwear Invasion!

How to Spot Fake News, Disinformation & Conspiracy Theories

by Elise Gravel

Chronicle Books, 2022. 104 pages.
Review written December 22, 2022, from a library book.
Starred Review

Killer Underwear Invasion! is a just-about-perfect graphic novel explanation for kids about fake news, how to watch for it, and why it’s harmful. The examples are silly, which makes the book a lot of fun, but they’re also presented in a way that reminds the reader of real-life examples.

After an explanation of what fake news and disinformation are, we get lots of reasons why people would make them up: To make money, to get famous, to spread beliefs, to gain power, and to get other people to share information on social media (which is generally to make money). There are funny examples with silly characters for each one.

Then we’re told that fake news can be very dangerous.

Let’s say Galbinus wants to try to convince you to take a remedy that doesn’t work — or might even harm you.

“You can cure every disease by drinking shampoo!*”

[Click here to buy shampoo!]

*Please don’t try this at home.

Of course, doctors and scientists will say. . .

“No, no, no! DO NOT drink shampoo! It’s dangerous! It doesn’t cure anything!”

So Galbinus might start writing articles attacking doctors.

“ALL DOCTORS ARE EVIL LIARS!”

“THEY DON’T WANT YOU TO FEEL BETTER!”

You get the idea! The next example is a big factory that dumps toxic chemicals in the ocean. They get a fake expert to write an article saying that pollution doesn’t exist.

Then we’ve got a politician who claims his opponent is bad because he pinches puppies. For all of these examples, it shows many people believing the fake news.

And then the chapter on conspiracy theories pulls all of these silly stories together. It shows some fake news going viral and then people putting stories together and believing that doctors and the political candidate have sent robot-scorpions into the sewers to pinch your puppies.

All this silliness aside, the book brings things around by looking at why people believe fake news, and how we can guard against it, with ten practical steps.

This does include a nice shout-out to librarians:

Okay, so can I really trust anyone?

Well, it can be difficult to decide who to trust. If you’re not sure if you can trust a source, ask a librarian.

Librarians are trained to help you find reliable information.

It all adds up to an informative, fun, and entertaining book about an important and timely subject. It was fun for me to read, even already knowing a lot about the topic.

elisegravel.com
chroniclekids.com

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Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but the views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

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Review of The Girl Who Sang, by Estelle Nadel and Sammy Savos

Award Winners, Biography, Children's Nonfiction Review, Graphic Memoir, Starred Review 0

The Girl Who Sang

A Holocaust Memoir of Hope and Survival

by Estelle Nadel
with Sammy Savos and Bethany Strout
art by Sammy Savos

Roaring Brook Press, 2024. 264 pages.
Review written February 18, 2025, from a library book.
Starred Review
2025 Sidney Taylor Gold Medal, Middle Grades
2025 Sibert Honor Book
2025 Best Children’s Graphic Novels Top Ten

The Girl Who Sang is a memoir about the Holocaust in graphic novel form. And yes, rather amazingly, the author makes it a story of hope and survival.

Enia was the youngest of five kids living on a farm in a village in Poland. But then the Germans came, and they had to go into hiding. Enia ended up hiding in different attics from when she was five to when she was ten. And she lost all but two of her brothers during the war.

But she makes this book about the good people who helped save their lives along the way, and about the joy of being free after the war and building a new life in America.

And through all of it, she has always loved to sing.

This book did tear my heart into pieces, and I sure didn’t think the little girl would survive in spots. But this tells the story from a child’s viewpoint, and can be a way to tell children about that dark time in history.

sammysavos.com
mackids.com

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Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but the views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

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Review of Frank and the Bad Surprise, by Martha Brockenbrough, illustrated by Jon Lau

Beginning Chapter Books, Children's Fiction Review, Starred Review 0

Frank and the Bad Surprise

by Martha Brockenbrough
illustrated by Jon Lau

Levine Querido, 2022. 64 pages.
Review written December 13, 2022, from a library book
Starred Review

This is a very beginning chapter book with seven short chapters and pictures on every page. It’s told from the perspective of Frank, a cat who’s happy with his life — until his owners bring home a bad surprise — a big box with a puppy inside.

Frank types them a letter:

To my dear humans:

We do not need the puppy. We were happy with life the way it was before. It is time to take the puppy back.

Sincerely,

Frank

But even though Frank puts the letter in an envelope and the envelope into the mailbox, his owners don’t get rid of the puppy.

When the puppy proves he doesn’t know the rules of naps (Do not disturb Frank!), Frank knows it’s time to find a new home.

But that does not go as planned.

Here’s Frank contemplating what he must do:

The humans would miss Frank. They would miss his plush fur.

They would miss his purrs.

They would miss the tricks he did with feathers on sticks and balls with bells.

But there was nothing to be done.

Yes the story is predictable — all the better for beginning readers — and it’s lots of fun.

A note on the cover says “Book One,” so I’m looking forward to more books about Frank and the puppy.

marthabrockenbrough.com
levinequerido.com

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Review of Big Jim and the White Boy, by David F. Walker and Marcus Kwame Anderson

Award Winners, Fiction Review, Graphic Novel, Historical, Starred Review 0

Big Jim and the White Boy

An American Classic Reimagined

by David F. Walker
and Marcus Kwame Anderson
Color by Isabell Struble

Ten Speed Graphic, 2024. 282 pages.
Review written February 18, 2025, from a library book.
Starred Review
2025 Alex Award Winner

The Alex Awards are given each year to ten books published for adults that will be of interest to teens. I couldn’t resist the title of this graphic novel – a reimagining of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.

It’s been a very long time since I read The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, so I’m not sure how many incidents from this book came from that one (I don’t think a whole lot), but it begins by illustrating a passage from that book – which is then interrupted by a 101-year-old Jim himself in 1932 Nicodemus, Kansas, telling stories to Black children alongside an old Huckleberry Finn. Jim says about the words Samuel Clemens put in his mouth, “Who talks that kind of gibberish?” And then he tells stories of what really happened.

Another part of the frame is a professor at Howard University in 2022 talking about the historical people and events behind Mark Twain’s stories – and how he whitewashed it to make slavery in Missouri not seem so bad. She’s believes that Jim was based on her own great-great-great-grandfather.

So with these two frames giving commentary – Old Jim and Old Huck bantering with each other and the professor giving historical notes – we hear about the adventures Jim and Huck had. Jim was looking for his wife and children, sold down the river by Huck’s father – and he told his story everywhere he went, so that word would get to them that he was looking. Meanwhile, he rescued enslaved people and fought their enslavers.

Big Jim made a name for himself (and got his face on big, scary posters) helping with the Underground Railroad, in the border wars when there was a question if Kansas would be a slave state or a free state, and during the Civil War, fighting for the Union.

And through all the adventures, Jim and Huck save each other’s lives, though, honestly, Huck is more of a sidekick in this tale. This book reveals more about their relationship, and I love that they end up together, with friendly bickering and storytelling.

As a graphic novel, this is a much quicker read than the original, and as a bonus you don’t have to wade through all that dialect. An epic historical tale.

davidfwalker.com
tenspeed.com

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Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but the views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

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Review of A Is For Bee, by Ellen Heck

Contemporary, Picture Book Review, Starred Review 0

A Is for Bee

An Alphabet Book in Translation

by Ellen Heck

Levine Querido, 2022. 36 pages.
Review written December 13, 2022, from a library book
Starred Review

This book is creative and fascinating — though you’ll want to show it to older kids, who already know their English alphabet well, so they don’t get confused.

The introduction is simple:

We speak to each other in many languages, and in some of them…

Then it goes right into an Alphabet book. The order is A to Z, and many of the animals you’re used to see in alphabet books appear, but now they show up in different places.

On the first page, we’ve got:

A is for BEE

Anu in Igbo
Arl in Turkish
Aamoo in Ojibwe
Abelha in Portuguese

There’s extended back matter, explaining the difficulties of translation and the Romanization of different alphabets. 69 languages are represented in this book, which they note is a small fraction of the more than 6,500 spoken across the world.

They’ve got a QR code you can scan to get to this page: levinequerido.com/AIsforBee and hear the words spoken aloud. I had a lot of fun exploring there.

This isn’t really a book for learning other languages, but it’s a beautiful book for delighting in the variety of human expression and for children to get an idea of the many amazing ways people speak.

The book goes from A is for Bee to Z is for Elephant, with delightful variety in between.

levinequerido.com/AIsforBee

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Review of Towed By Toad, by Jashar Awan

Animal Characters, Picture Book Review, Starred Review 0

Towed By Toad

by Jashar Awan

Tundra, 2024. 48 pages.
Review written March 6, 2025, from a library book.
Starred Review
2025 Geisel Honor Book

The Geisel Awards are given to the most distinguished books for beginning readers, and they usually go to books in the beginning reader format. I’m so happy that this picture book won the award, because it only took one reading for it to become a favorite for me. And this picture book is both a good read-aloud and a good book for supporting new readers – the kind of book that will get read frequently and next thing you know, the child can read it themselves.

This was one of those picture books I had to show to my colleagues – except I found that I didn’t want to just show it to them – no, I was compelled to read it to them. Just a delightful book.

The look of the book is big, bright cartoon-type pictures on a white background, with about one to three short sentences per spread. And the action begins before the title page. We’re inside a house and see a toad calling from a doorway: “Breakfast!”

On the next spread, we see a smaller toad running out the door saying:

No time, Pop!
Can’t stop!

And then the title page shows the smaller toad driving out of a garage in an orange tow truck.

The beginning reminds me a little of Richard Scarry (though not nearly so busy):

Big cars. Little cars.
Old cars. New cars.
Everyone has places to be!

We then see various creatures headed various places.

No matter who you are
or where you are going. . .
. . . everyone needs help sometimes.

That’s where Toad comes in.

We see Toad towing and helping his first customer. Then these happen:

Catie Cat has a flat.
Davey Dog hit a log.

Mayor Hop forgot to stop.
Stanley Snout’s engine fell out.

And yes, the pictures that go with these are as fun as you might imagine.

And Toad helps them all.

But then, after a good day’s work, Toad’s own truck begins to make strange noises and breaks down. Toad doesn’t want to ask for help.

But when he finally does, we learn what that other big truck in the home garage is for.

And we’re left with a wonderful message:

Everyone needs help sometimes.

Even the helpers.

This book has it all – simple, bright pictures, easy-to-understand language, lots of cars and trucks, plenty of kid-sized drama, and a wonderful message to top it off.

One of those books that make me wish I were still doing story times.

jasharawan.com
penguinrandomhouse.ca

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Review of A Far Wilder Magic, by Allison Saft

Fantasy, Paranormal, Starred Review, Teen Fiction Review 0

A Far Wilder Magic

by Allison Saft
read by Jesse Vilinsky

Macmillan Young Listeners, 2022. 14 hours, 36 minutes.
Review written December 10, 2022, from a library eaudiobook
Starred Review

A Far Wilder Magic is an atmospheric and amazing young adult fantasy novel about a world slightly removed from ours, but not all that different. It’s not a medieval world, but a country from about a hundred years ago, where alchemy is the road to political accomplishments in the country of New Albion.

Margaret lives alone, cutting wood, doing chores, keeping their manor going while her mother is off on a quest for alchemical supplies. She’s been gone months longer than usual, and Margaret’s not sure if she’s coming back. Then at night she sees the magical white fox, the hala, and knows the Hunt will be coming to her small town.

But first, a young man comes to her isolated manor. He’s looking for an alchemical apprenticeship with her mother, and he won’t take No for an answer. This is Wes’s last chance to get a sponsor and make something of himself. He’s not good at studying, but he does have a talent for alchemy, if someone will give him a chance. He’s a hard person to turn away, however much Margaret doesn’t like him.

And then Margaret realizes that Wes might be her only chance to enter the hunt, kill the hala, and win back her mother’s attention. She is a crack shot, but she needs an alchemist. And Wes needs a chance with her mother, too. So they start an uneasy alliance.

But both Wes and Margaret are outsiders, not welcomed into this New Albion tradition. They first must compete to win their place in the top tier, and even that is fraught with danger.

And yes, we’ve got an enemies-to-lovers plot going on. But it’s skillfully done, as we see deeply into the characters of both Wes and Margaret — both their insecurities and their kind hearts. By the time they come together, we’re completely on their sides. The spell is woven gently and believably, and it all builds to danger and difficult decisions at the time of the Hunt.

Fair warning is there are a couple of fairly intense sex scenes. The skillful building of the romance makes the intensity seem right for this book.

A marvelously woven novel about two teens figuring out what they want out of life and how to get there.

allisonsaft.com
wednesdaybooks.com

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