December 3, 2019
THE TAKING | Fantasy
by Celeste Castro (Bella Books)
Peachy is on a mission: steal a priceless family heirloom. All is going according to plan until she finds herself teetering on the edge of death. She wakes up in a bizarre world and under the care of a strange woman who can communicate without spoken words. Little does Peachy know that by taking the amulet, she’s enacted a powerful chain of events and roused a deranged being who will stop at nothing to find her and retrieve the amulet.
Noomi is Fae―a Seer and Shifter―who shares a unique bond with her sister, a two-hundred-pound mountain cat. Their days revolve around creating art, making maps, and enjoying pipeweed. Until the day that Peachy enters their world and plunges it into chaos.
The Taking is a tale of a powerful amulet―a gateway from one world to another. With Noomi’s help, Peachy must combat the forces working against them…forces that will stop at nothing to kill them both.
December 10, 2019
FREEDOM SOUP | Picture Book
by Tami Charles; Illus. Jacqueline Alcántara (Candlewick)
Every year, Haitians all over the world ring in the new year by eating a special soup, a tradition dating back to the Haitian Revolution. This year, Ti Gran is teaching Belle how to make the soup — Freedom Soup — just like she was taught when she was a little girl. Together, they dance and clap as they prepare the holiday feast, and Ti Gran tells Belle about the history of the soup, the history of Belle’s family, and the history of Haiti, where Belle’s family is from. In this celebration of cultural traditions passed from one generation to the next, Jacqueline Alcántara’s lush illustrations bring to life both Belle’s story and the story of the Haitian Revolution. Tami Charles’s lyrical text, as accessible as it is sensory, makes for a tale that readers will enjoy to the last drop.
December 26, 2019
RANDOM ACTS OF KITTENS | Middle Grade
by Yamile Saied Méndez (Scholastic)
When Natalia Flores finds a lost cat with a litter of newborn kittens, she is desperate to keep one of them. Whether or not her mami says yes to a new pet, the rest of the kitties will need homes -- and Natalia has the purrfect plan.
With help from her friend Reuben, Natalia starts an anonymous online account to find each cat the right owner. But as her classmates apply, her matchmaking scheme gets more complicated. And when her former best friend Meera applies for a kitten, Natalia doesn't know what to do. Will her attempt to spread kindness help heal their friendship, or simply tear her and Meera further apart?
