Far from the Tree – Robin Benway

33830437Far from the Tree by Robin Benway

My rating: 2 of 5 stars
Received: Borrowed
Published: October 2017
Publisher: Harper Teen
Recommended Age: 12+
Pacing: Normal
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Poetry, Siblings, Realistic Fiction, Family Drama, Adoption


BLURB:

Being the middle child has its ups and downs, But for Grace, an only child who was adopted at birth, discovering that she is a middle child is a different ride altogether. After putting her own baby up for adoption, she goes looking for her biological family, including Maya, her loudmouthed younger bio sister, who has a lot to say about their newfound family ties. Having grown up the snarky brunette in a house full of chipper redheads, she’s quick to search for traces of herself among these not-quite-strangers. And when her adopted family’s long-buried problems begin to explode to the surface, Maya can’t help but wonder where exactly it is that she belongs. And Joaquin, their stoic older bio brother, who has no interest in bonding over their shared biological mother. After seventeen years in the foster care system, he’s learned that there are no heroes, and secrets and fears are best kept close to the vest, where they can’t hurt anyone but him. Continue reading

Little Red Reading Hood

35659034Little Red Reading Hood by Lucy Rowland

My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars
Received: Raincoast Books
Publication Date: January 25th, 2018
Publisher: Macmillan
Genres & Themes: Picture Books, Fairytale Retelling, Books about Books, Magic


BLURB:

Little Red Reading Hood LOVES reading books and making up stories of her own. When she meets a cunning wolf while on her way to the library, he convinces her to stray from the path and read for a little while. But hasn’t she read this in a story before? Perhaps it’s time she came up with a new ending . . .

Continue reading

One – Sarah Crossan

23524610One by Sarah Crossan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Received: Borrowed
Published: 2015
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Recommended Age: 13+
Pacing: Normal/Fast
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Poetry, Romance, Family Drama, Siblings, High School


BLURB:

Grace and Tippi. Tippi and Grace. Two sisters. Two hearts. Two dreams. Two lives. But one body. Grace and Tippi are conjoined twins, joined at the waist, defying the odds of survival for sixteen years. They share everything, and they are everything to each other. They would never imagine being apart. For them, that would be the real tragedy. But something is happening to them. Something they hoped would never happen. And Grace doesn’t want to admit it. Not even to Tippi. How long can they hide from the truth—how long before they must face the most impossible choice of their lives? Continue reading