Red Glass is a young adult realistic fiction novel by Laura Resau. Sophie lives in Arizona near the Mexican border, and her family often provides short-term shelter for refugees. One night, a young boy comes to live with Sophie and her diverse little family after becoming an orphan trying to cross the border into the United States. When the boy’s family finally makes contact a year later, Sophie and her family will leave the United States to find the boy’s home.
Tomi Nakaji is a young Japanese-American boy growing up on the streets of Hawai’i. All his life knows is school, fishing, his baseball team, and his friends.
So when the Japanese Empire bombs Pearl Harbor, throwing America headfirst into World War Two, the American people are looking for someone to blame. Soon, his grandfather and father are detained solely for their Japanese heritage, even though they are loyal Americans. His mother is fired from her housekeeping job because it “does not look good” to give a Japanese-American woman work.
Adam Stillwater is a boy who’s attached to what’s left of his father and is willing to defend it with his life. He is determined to keep his old time-y pinball arcade even if gaming cafés are all the rage right now. It doesn’t help that the daughter of the founder of said café is his childhood best friend that he became enemies with. But one day a snowstorm hits. The two of them find that when they don’t care as much about the business and just see each other for who they are, there’s something there. But what about when the snowstorm is over?
Fighting Words is an inspiring and eye-opening realistic fiction novel by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley. This book is about a 10-year-old girl named Della, and her sister Suki. Della and Suki’s mom had been sent to prison for blowing up a motel bathroom while cooking meth. Della and Suki go into foster care, where they meet Francine. Suki hurts herself, Della fights for what’s right, and both siblings decide to testify against their childhood abuser.
Persepolis 2 is a continuation of the story of Marjane Satrapi’s life during the Iran-Iraq war. Marjane has left Iran for her new life in Vienna; she’s miles from the war, but now she must fight to find a sense of belonging. She is safe outside of Iran, but Marjane misses her life at home. When she finally returns to Iran, she must confront the changes to her home. She’s happy to be reunited with her loved ones, but she must decide if she can have a future in Iran, where repression now governs.
We Dream of Space is an inspiring and relaxing realistic fiction novel by Erin Entrada Kelly. This book is about three siblings, Bird, Fitch, and Cash, and how they change and realize what a family is like. I love the way the author presents the change the characters go through but I thought the plot of this book was weak and needed more help. I recommend this book to people who want a relaxing pass-time book.
Girl, Serpent, Thorn is a thrilling and adventurous fictional novel by Melissa Bashardoust. This book is about a girl named Soraya, she is cursed with poison in her veins which deprive her of touch. Soraya meets a soldier named Azad, he gains her trust and feeds her lies about her family. Soon these lies get to her and she betrays her family. Soraya gets captured by Azad, and comes up with a plan to overthrow Azad from her family’s throne.
Jules Ember is a 19 year old girl who lives in a place called Crofton, Sempera with her father in poverty. She’s only ever wanted a peaceful life with her father, without any worries. However, they have too many debts and day by day her father is dying trying to pay up all of them at the same time. Jules feels really bad, so she decides to work at Everless, the house of the wealthiest family in Sempera, who she and her dad hate very much for an incident that happened years ago.
Catrina and her sister Maya mood to Northern California because of Mayas sickness. Maya was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis. The cool air of California will help her breathing. their time there they reached the time of Cinco de Mayo. They encounter many spirits that Maya wanted to see. Will Catrina put her fears aside for her sickly sister? This book is the definition of family. Telgemeier made me feel like I was about of Catrina’s family. This heartfelt story is definitely a lesson to people. This teaches people that family is #1 and nothing can come before it.
Elle Zoellner is a foster kid who, on her 16th birthday, finds out her father owns a hotel in Japan. Her father wants her to come live with him. When she arrives to Japan, she excited for her new life but finds out it doesn't live up to what it's supposed to. Her grandmother doesn’t accept her. Will Elle's life become better? This book was a 10 out of 10 in my opinion. I got to learn about Japanese culture through this novel. The author definitely put detail and thought throughout the whole book. I would recommend this novel to people who love the Japanese culture.
