This week we’re chatting about Sick Kids in Love by Hannah Moskowitz, a heartwarming #ownvoices tale of two chronically ill teens who don’t die at the end! (Transcript)   In today’s episode… Sick Kids in Love by Hannah Moskowitz Isabel is sick. Not “Make-a-Wish” sick, though. Isabel has Rheumatoid Arthritis, the kind of sick that hurts her every single day and requires constant treatments, but isn’t going to kill her. Her friends and family, although they care about her, sometimes forget that she’s sick at all. After all, Isabel is dealing with it so well, and works hard to never be an imposition on their lives. Sasha’s world is different. He’s sick, too, with Gaucher disease, but he and his family are open and unapologetic about his life and struggles. When the two meet during […]

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Our friend Courtney joins us to chat about A River of Royal Blood by Amanda Joy. It’s perfect for fans of Children of Blood and Bone or Three Dark Crowns! (Transcript) In today’s episode…   A River of Royal Blood tells the story of two rival princesses, Eva and Isadore, in a land of magic and mystery. Eva, our POV character, has always known that when she comes of age, she and her sister will fight to the death for the crown. Even though she wants to rule and be a good queen, Eva has never believed she’d have a chance because she’s never been able to use her magic of Blood and Marrow. It’s a terrifying magic with a sinister past, and Eva’s father could never find someone to teach her. When a mentor […]

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Writer & teacher L. Samantha Smith joins us to chat about The Stars and the Blackness Between Them by Junauda Petrus, a lush, split perspective YA debut. (Transcript)     In today’s episode… The Stars and the Blackness Between Them follows two girls, Audre and Mabel. Audre has just been sent to Minnesota from her home in Trinidad after her mother found her with another girl. Mabel is ready to welcome her, but barely has the energy to enjoy much these days. After a startling diagnosis, Mabel counts on Audre for calm and peace. She also begins a correspondence with an imprisoned writer. It feels like these two people are alone in understanding her and anchoring her to this life. Can the two girls shape happiness in the space and time they have left together? […]

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This week we’re chatting about Pet by Akwaeke Emezi. Our guest is author H.D. Hunter who has some great insight into this totally unique YA new release. (Transcript)     In today’s episode… Pet by Akwaeke Emezi The people in the town of Lucille know that there are no monsters anymore – not since the angels came and took them all way. But when a creature from one of Jam’s mother’s paintings comes to life and declares it’s here to hunt a monster, Jam believes it. The creature tells Jam to call it ‘Pet’, and asks her to help it find a monster lurking in her best friend’s house. Can Jam navigate the tricky waters of hunting a monster when no one believes they still exist?       These Show Notes use Amazon Affiliate […]

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BookTuber, Nikea JaLynn (cohost of the series #BlackGirlLit), joins us to chat about The Revolution of Birdie Randolph by Brandy Colbert. (Transcript)   In today’s episode… The Revolution of Birdie Randolph by Brandy Colbert Dove “Birdie” Randolph has tried hard to live up to her parents’ expectations: she’s at the top of her class, she works hard, and she even quit playing soccer to make more time for schoolwork. She seems to be the perfect daughter. But Birdie has a secret: she’s seeing a boy named Booker, a boy who’s been in Juvie, and Birdie’s sure her parents won’t approve. When her estranged aunt Carlene comes to town, Birdie’s life gets even more complicated. Carlene’s in recovery, but Birdie’s mother still braces herself for the moment when it will all come crashing down. Can Birdie […]

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Stacey Lee does it again! The Downstairs Girl is exactly the kind of historical fiction we need right now. We loved it, and your students will too. (Transcript)         In today’s episode… The Downstairs Girl by Stacey Lee Being a Chinese American teenager in late 19th century Atlanta isn’t easy, but Jo Kwan has made a life with some stability. She and her caretaker, Old Gin, live in secret in a hidden room below a house, eavesdropping on the family living above them. When Jo’s fired without cause from her job as a hat maker she has no choice but to return to work as a lady’s maid for a girl she despises. Luckily, Jo has a secret. She’s taken to writing an advice column as “Miss Sweetie,” a sauce box of […]

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Project Runway meets Mulan in the new YA fantasy novel Spin the Dawn by Elizabeth Lim. Joining us to chat is author and filmmaker, Maura Milan. (Transcript)   In today’s episode…   In Spin the Dawn, Maia Tamarin wants to be the best tailor in the land but can’t even officially apprentice as a girl. Her brothers have gone off to fight in a bloody civil war, and she’s all that holds the family business together. When her aging father gets called to the emperor’s court to be the imperial tailor, Maia slips away in his stead, posing as one of her brothers. When she arrives, she discovers that there are several tailors vying for the job, and she must best them in a series of challenges. Soon, Maia discovers that there’s more at stake […]

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We are joined by Zshavette, a Pinay bookstagrammer to chat about Patron Saints of Nothing by Randy Ribay. It’s one of our favorite reads of 2019! (Transcript)     In today’s episode… In Patron Saints of Nothing by Randy Ribay, we meet Jay Reguero, a Filipino-American teenager. He has mostly maintained his connection to his family in the Philippines through letters to his cousin, Jun. Or did, before they lost touch a few years ago. Now, Jay is just trying to make it through his senior year before heading to college in the fall. When he gets news that Jun has died, no one will give him any details. Jay wants answers, and he travels to the Philippines to get them. As he learns more about President Duterte’s drug war and the truth about his […]

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This week we chat with author Justina Chen about Gilmore Girls, Firefly, and of course our featured title, Tell Me How You Really Feel by Aminah Mae Safi. (Transcript)   In today’s episode… Tell Me How You Really Feel by Aminah Mae Safi Rachel Recht is the next great filmmaker. At least, she will be as soon as she can get her movie finished. She works hard not to rely on anyone—especially not Sana, the beautiful cheerleader who asked her out freshman year as what had to be some kind of cruel joke. Sana is the picture of the perfect daughter. She may not know what she wants to do next year—does she want to go to Princeton like her family believes, or fly halfway across the world for an internship in India?—but she knows […]

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Author/editor Jessica Spotswood joins us to chat about the blood witches and bad breakups in These Witches Don’t Burn by Isabel Sterling, a fun YA mystery. (Transcript) In today’s episode… In These Witches Don’t Burn by Isabel Sterling, Hannah Walsh wants to get through her summer breakup, but sharing a coven with her ex-girlfriend Veronica doesn’t make life easy. Hannah is an elemental witch—she’s able to control the four elements through magic. But she’s still underage and not fully trained, meaning no one believes her when a dangerous Blood Witch comes to town. She thinks it’s a Blood Witch. She’s pretty sure. Working with Veronica is the only way to convince her family of the threat, but it’s hard to focus on the dangers facing them when Veronica keeps trying to hook back up. In […]

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  This week we are joined once again by our friend Anna aka @never_withouta_book to discuss Elizabeth Acevedo’s newest book, With the Fire on High. (Transcript)     In today’s episode… With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo  Since getting pregnant at fourteen, Emoni has done everything she could for her daughter and her abuela. Between being a full-time mom and a full-time student, Emoni doesn’t have time to think about her future. She loves cooking and people say her food is magic, but can she really squeeze in more school? Shouldn’t she get a job instead? When her school offers a culinary elective with an immersion trip to Spain in the spring, it feels like a dream to Emoni. Can she find a way to let her talent shine and still keep her […]

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This week we discuss an indigenous #ownvoices novel, The Marrow Thieves by Cherie Dimaline, and how we as teachers can assist with Truth and Reconciliation. (Transcript) In today’s episode… The Marrow Thieves by Cherie Demaline In a world wrecked by global warming, most people have lost the ability to dream. The state believes the answer to this loss is inside the bones of Indigenous people, and they try desperately to steal it. This is the world where French and his friends are on the run—they grow as their own family and try to stay away from the “schools” the government has created for their people. And although their government envies and despises them, they work to build a life together. They will stand with, love, and guard each other, no matter the dangers.   These […]

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Don’t miss this lively chat with author Natasha Deen! She shares about her life and we discuss the new YA fantasy, The Tiger at Midnight by Swati Teerdhala. (Transcript) In today’s episode… The Tiger at Midnight by Swati Teerdhala Esha, the legendary assassin known as the Viper, is on a mission: take down the brutal General Hotha and strike at the heart of the Pretender King’s rule. But when she arrives at the General’s quarters, he’s already dying, and someone has left a fake whip in place to frame Esha. But why? As the General’s tenacious nephew, Kunal, pursues Esha, she must untangle the threads of conspiracy and corruption. And as her connection with the soldier deepens, Esha realizes both their lives are at stake.   These Show Notes use Amazon Affiliate Links for your […]

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Join us this week as we chat about In the Key of Nira Ghani, the story of a Guyanese-Canadian teen who longs to pursue her passion of playing jazz trumpet. (Transcript) In today’s episode… In the Key of Nira Ghani by Natasha Deen Nira Ghani feels like she doesn’t fit in in her mostly-white Canadian school. It’s not just that she’s Guyanese or so poor her clothes “apologize for their existence”, but also that she just can’t be herself. At home, she throws herself into playing trumpet, but she knows her parents would never let her join Jazz band. Kids at school pick on her, her father’s obnoxious brother and his family look down on her, and she doesn’t want the same dreams her mother wants for her. How can she be the perfect daughter […]

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Author H.D. Hunter joins Danielle for a discussion of Trauma-Informed Teaching and YA books that touch on grief, like Pilu of the Woods by Mai K. Nguyen. (Transcript)   In today’s episode… Pilu of the Woods is a graphic novel following an episode in Willow’s life after the death of her mother. After Willow gets in a fight with her sister, she runs away to the woods to calm down. She meets Pilu, a young tree spirit who feels her mother doesn’t love her. Can the two girls help each other find peace among turmoil?     These Show Notes use Amazon Affiliate Links for your convenience. If you decide to purchase this book, please consider doing so through our affiliate links. Your support makes this podcast possible.   Episode highlights… Today’s entire episode is […]

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A typical Muslim-American teen saves the world (with the help of her teleporting dog), in our 50th episode, Ms. Marvel Vol. 1: No Normal by G. Willow Wilson. (Transcript) In today’s episode… In Ms. Marvel Vol. 1: No Normal by G. Willow Wilson, Kamala Khan is your average Pakistani-American teenager living in Jersey City. She feels her parents’ expectations of her are too strict, when she’s shown them time and time again that she’s a good, trustworthy daughter. When she decides to ignore their wishes and sneak out to a party, she and the other party-goers are enveloped in a strange green mist. Kamala finds herself with new, unruly transmorphic powers. Can she use her powers to emulate her favorite superheroes, fighting for justice and good to prevail? Or will her parents find out and […]

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Join us this week as we discuss Internment by Samira Ahmed, a gripping book with a dark vision of a future that is too close for comfort. (Transcript) In today’s episode… Internment is a look at a horrifying near-future United States in which Islamophobia and fear-mongering have won. As their freedoms are stripped away, Muslims are registered and eventually rounded up as the first internment camp is opened. Layla and her family are sent to live at Mobius, passing the site of Manzanar on the way. Layla knows that history has shown us just how much hate and fear can divide the country. And even though her parents want her to keep her head down, Layla wants to find a way to make her voice heard.     These Show Notes use Amazon Affiliate Links […]

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Author Amanda K. Morgan joins us to chat about Girls with Sharp Sticks by Suzanne Young, a new YA thriller that kept us guessing all the way through! (Transcript)   In today’s episode… In Girls with Sharp Sticks by Suzanne Young, Philomena is the perfect student at a school that makes perfect girls. Behind her school’s gated walls, girls are molded to become perfect wives for powerful men–girls who are beautiful to look at and won’t ask too many questions. They are constantly told the school has their very best interests at heart, with important financiers invested in each girl’s future. Every girl’s emotion and reaction is carefully tamped down–until it isn’t. On one of their rare trips into the outside world, Philomena encounters a civilian who is horrified at the way they are treated. […]

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It’s time for another #throwbackthursday, and this week we are arguing, I mean talking, about Liar by Justine Larbalestier. (Transcript) In today’s episode… Liar by Justine Larbalestier. Micah Wilkins is a liar, she’ll lie about anything. Not just for personal gain, not just for a good reason, but to see how easily someone falls for the lies that comes easily as breathing. But all that’s behind her now. When her maybe-boyfriend Zachary is found dead, her whole life is thrown under a spotlight. This time, she’s going to tell the whole truth. Well, almost the whole truth, anyway.       These Show Notes use Amazon Affiliate Links for your convenience. If you decide to purchase this book, please consider doing so through our affiliate links. Your support makes this podcast possible.   Episode highlights… […]

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Beware: dragons ahead! Join us as we dive into the epic fantasy world of The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon, with our guest Somaiya Daud. (Transcript) In today’s episode… The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon is an epic fantasy set in a world with sharp divisions. For those in the West, dragons are their most hated enemy, and the only thing keeping them safe is a Queen’s dynasty that has lasted 1,000 years. In the east, sea dragons are gods, guarding and guiding the kingdom. When the enemy of humanity begins to stir, every nation must make a choice on how to fight it and what to believe. Told in third person, Priory follows the queen’s attendant, a prospective dragon rider, a loyal diplomat, and a disgraced alchemist to tell […]

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