Atkins, Jeanne. STONE MIRRORS : THE SCULPTURE AND SILENCE OF EDMONIA LEWIS

Atkins, Jeanne.  STONE MIRRORS : THE SCULPTURE AND SILENCE OF EDMONIA LEWIS
New York : Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2017
IL YA
ISBN 1481459058

This is a fictional account of sculptor Edmonia Lewis.  Lewis was the daughter of an Ojibwe woman and an African Haitian man.  Her father left before she was born and her mother passed away when she was young.  Lewis studied at Oberlin but was asked to leave after being falsely accused of poisoning and theft.  She moved to Boston and was able to get some work creating busts of famous Civil War heroes.  The world really opened for her when she received a commission to create a marble statue of Abraham Lincoln.  Lewis was able to move to Italy and began working in marble.  Although not much is known about Lewis, Atkins uses verse to tell the story of what we do know.

Podcast: https://spark.adobe.com/video/WuabWKYtDhJHI

Madonia, Kristen-Paige. INVISIBLE FAULT LINES

Madonia, Kristen-Paige. INVISIBLE FAULT LINES
New York : Simon & Schuster, 2016
IL YA
ISBN 1481430718

Callie's father has disappeared.  He simply didn't come home from work one day.  No warning.  No reason.  He is just gone.  As Callie tries to come to terms with her father's disappearance, her friends try to help her cope.  When they take her to an art exhibit, Callie cannot believe her eyes.  There in a photograph from the 1906 earthquake is a man who looks exactly like Callie's father.  Of course that can't be him.  The story then shifts to the earthquake's aftermath and we meet a man who cannot remember who he is and how he got there.  How can these two stories be related?


Podcast:  https://spark.adobe.com/video/myNVGP8P8U47G

Karo, Aaron. ME YOU US

Karo, Aaron.  ME YOU US
New York : Simon Pulse, 2016
IL YA
ISBN 1481440640
Shane has had his heart broken.  Many high school kids feel this at one time or other.  But for Shane, it came out of the blue and he vowed to try to figure out why.  While studying the situation, Shane comes up with the secret of dating.  He devises a formula, or Galgorithm and becomes the go to guy for students (and a teacher or two).  He tries to keep his role a secret and certainly doesn't take any money for the lessons.  His Galgorithm works great for others.  So why is he alone?


Podcast:  https://spark.adobe.com/video/qjgsing1qNr3D

Carbone, Courtney. MACBETH #KILLINGIT

Carbone, Courtney.  MACBETH #KILLINGIT
New York : Random House, 2016
IL YA
ISBN 0553538802

Have you heard of the Shakespeare play Macbeth?  It is one of his better-known tragedies that has been a favorite for centuries.  But you probably have never seen it like this.  Carbone has adapted this play and retold the story in texts!  What do you think?
Podcast:  https://spark.adobe.com/video/glNTW8P5lbf5g

Budhos, Marina Tamar. WATCHED

Budhos, Marina Tamar.  WATCHED
New York : Wendy Lamb, 2016
IL YAISBN 0553534181

Meet Naeem Rahman.  He spends his days cutting classes and running the streets of Queens.  Since his family immigrated from Bangledesh, he feels like he has to keep running.  When a friend tricks him into shoplifting, Naeem's life takes a drastic turn.  Instead of feeling he is being watched by all the cameras and police, Naeem agrees to become the one watching.  To stay out of jail, he agrees to spy on his neighbors and report back about suspicious activities.  From the mosque to the streets to the people in the neighborhood, Naeem reports on them all.
Podcast:  https://spark.adobe.com/video/5PNBJlBNpfQmn

Tremayne, Peter. ABSOLUTION BY MURDER : A SISTER FIDELMA MYSTERY

Tremayne, Peter.  ABSOLUTION BY MURDER : A SISTER FIDELMA MYSTERY
New York : Signet, 1994
IL AD
ISBN 0451192990
The story takes place in medieval England in the seventh-century.  King Oswy of Northunbria has called an assembly of representatives from Ireland, Britain and Rome to determine which Church doctrine the Kingdom of Northumbria will follow. There is a divide between the Irish faction and the Roman faction.  But all this takes a new direction when one of the main speakers is murdered.  Sister Fidelma, an advocate of the courts of Ireland, is called upon to solve the murder.  Did the murder have anything to do with the assembly?  Or were there other motives involved? This is the first of a series about Sister Fidelma.


Podcast: https://spark.adobe.com/video/dR9HUZLqt98lU

Sarn, Amelie. I LOVE I HATE I MISS MY SISTER

Sarn, Amelie.
I LOVE I HATE I MISS MY SISTER
New York : Delacorte Press, 2014
IL YA 
ISBN 0385743769
Two sisters are very different but very close.  Sohane is in her last year of high school and is very serious about her studies.  Her sister Djelila is a year younger and loves playing basketball, wearing tight jeans and makeup.  And her boyfriend.  The girls live in France in a housing project with many other Muslim refugees.  France has outlawed the wearing of head scarves by Muslim girls in school.  But Sohane decides that she wants to wear one and is expelled from school when she refuses to take it off.  On the other side of the issue, Djelila is being harassed by the boys in the housing complex for being too modern.  The two side of the issue lead to a tragic outcome.

Podcast: https://spark.adobe.com/video/XEBdcQr8gR4Ip