(1) YA Thirteen-year-old Elsbeth Culpepper, maid to a judge, lives through the Siege of Boston only to find herself in a precarious situation when British troops depart the city, her Loyalist employer leaves with them, and her father goes missing. She lies her way into the employment of a Patriot spy, Mr. Pike, whose large household includes his wealthy ward, Hannah. But what Elsbeth doesn’t count on is the smallpox epidemic that ravages Boston from spring until fall of 1776. As she continues her search for her father and contends with the housekeeper’s dis-pleasure, Elsbeth, who previously survived smallpox, nurses five of the Pike children and their mother through the inoculation process; she also gets swept up in Hannah’s personal affairs and develops romantic feelings for a friend. War and disease speed up Elsbeth’s maturation, as does an unexpected loss before the book’s conclusion. Often a footnote in Revolutionary War history, the smallpox epidemic is the focus of Anderson’s (Chains, rev. 11/08, and sequels) compelling and well-researched tale of human frailty and perseverance, fear and courage amid dire circumstances. Through Elsbeth’s whip-smart first-person narration (with asides to readers in parentheses) plus quotes from historical letters opening each chapter, readers learn about the disease, its symptoms and deadliness, the measures taken to contain it, and people’s fear of inoculation. ­Anderson’s return to historical fiction highlights her mastery of the genre, with well-rounded characters, detailed storytelling, and timely subject matter that make it a must-read for today’s youth.

Reviewer: Cynthia K. Ritter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2025

(3) YA Sixteen-year-old Elijah and his brainy friend Lee spend their free time riding bikes and bonding over the pressures of having Asian moms. Influenced by an older teen, the two start vaping THC, and everything moves slowly and relentlessly downhill from there. The devastating story of addiction is a tough and at times drawn-out read as both boys spiral seemingly beyond help.

Reviewer: Jennifer M. Brabander

(1) YA Seventeen-year-old Neon is in his girlfriend Aria's bathroom, wracked with anxiety because, for the two of them, "tonight is for our first time." Twenty-four seconds earlier, he was rushing to the bathroom and shutting the door. Twenty-four minutes before that, he arrived at Aria's house. And twenty-four hours before that...and so on. The unusual narrative device drops readers immediately into the action and then zooms out to contextualize the moment, introducing a fully realized, frequently hilarious cast of characters who offer advice on sex and relationships. Neon's mother, for example, who has no reservations about loudly discussing pleasure and masturbation with her son -- in a crowded diner. His grandmother, who, while telling stories about her deceased husband, advises that "a little imperfection takes the edge off things." And his well-intentioned friend Dodie, whose explanation of foreplay includes attention to "what he called the...volvo." Their guidance (aside from Dodie's, naturally) and obvious love for Neon has helped shape him into an attentive and respectful boyfriend; there's no betrayal or big interpersonal conflict here. Instead, this is, in Neon's words, "a special, regular story where two people meet and help each other make something beautiful, at the risk of making a mess." The simple plot is balanced by Neon's narration, which sparkles with rhythm and wordplay.

Reviewer: Rachel L. Kerns | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2025

(2) K-3 Mid-century aesthetics, dreamlike storytelling, and meticulous craft combine to create a peculiar tale of good versus evil. Thanks to the aptly named Snarly McBummerpants -- a six-legged humanoid clad in a tie and bowler hat -- the "world got stuck being sad." The villain's minions, the solid but smog-like Mopey Smokes, travel far and wide to ruin everyone's moods; that is, until the arrival of the Rocket Puppies in their doghouse rocket ship. These pint-sized heroes turn bullies into florists, befriend giant sea serpents, and chase away the Mopey Smokes. An epic showdown between the Rocket Puppies and McBummerpants leads to the villain's first-ever laugh and a complete about-face. The surreal narrative possesses an uninhibited stream-of-consciousness quality; however, the highly rendered illustrations appear carefully planned and precise. The book follows a general layout of an all-white page featuring a sentence or two of text (with the occasional spot illustration) accompanied across the gutter by a full-page illustration. A brisk rhythm keeps the purposely nonsensical plot moving, yet lingering on or returning to each illustration greatly develops the overall narrative. Joyce's inclusion of numerous breeds of dogs, individualized jetpacks for each Rocket Puppy, and fairly obscure (for young readers) pop-culture references (e.g., Laurel and Hardy) provide much to appreciate and discover. A puppy-powered romp.

Reviewer: Patrick Gall | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2025

(1) YA Illustrated by Danica Novgorodoff. "Be like water," Isaiah says. "Always," Darius replies. These are the final words the boys say to each other before Darius takes off on his bicycle to break the Guinness world record for a wheelie. Isaiah is in charge of watching for cars, but a chaotic, unexpected confrontation ends with a tragic fatal accident. Isaiah and his other best friend, Drew, each deal with grief and guilt in their own way: Isaiah wants to open up about his pain, while Drew withdraws. Written in verse, this resonant coming-of-age novel flows with accessible language that quickly draws readers into the story; emotionally moving grayscale illustrations are interspersed. After Isaiah is violently attacked, he begins to shut down, and his mother sends him to visit relatives in North Carolina. There, Isaiah begins a journey of self-acceptance and unpacking of the emotional weight he has been carrying. Williams (Genesis Begins Again, rev. 1/19) handles the sensitive topics of death, grief, racism, violence, and racial and gender expression with care, making sure the narrative doesn't become overly dark and heavy. The novel's focus on Isaiah's inner world allows readers to witness the evolution of a thirteen-year-old Black boy dealing with life-altering events, navigating challenging relationships with friends and family, and, finally, feeling comfortable enough to reveal his full self in the process.

Reviewer: Monique Harris | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2024

(1) PS Illustrated by Eric Rohmann. Rohmann returns to the natural history museum setting of his debut, Time Flies, but this outing is far cozier than that 1995 Caldecott Honor Book. It's just as fanciful, though. Penny, a brown-skinned girl with exuberant, textured hair, is visiting the museum on a school field trip. "In a quiet corner of the dinosaur exhibit, something astonishing happened." Penny notices the hatching of an adorable baby sauropod, who wags his tail at her, then scales the short glass barrier and follows her. A little bit behind Penny, the wee green reptile creeps between a stuffed grizzly's legs and later perches atop a model Earth, perspectives adding gentle humor. Their bond is cemented back in the dinosaur hall, where the little dino and Penny find themselves surrounded by massive skeletons. Fleming's understated text leaves space for Rohmann to let composition and body language do the talking: Pip is the only living dinosaur there, and he needs Penny. Fortunately, Penny understands, and she arrives at a brilliant plan that allows them to leave the museum and head "into the future...together." Young readers will be thoroughly charmed by the text's absolute faith in this future. Rohmann's loose strokes of black colored pencil, digitally colored, position his characters against uncomplicated, mostly white backgrounds that keep the focus on their emotional connection. Like Pip, this openhearted invitation to imagination is a keeper.

Reviewer: Vicky Smith | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2023

(2) PS Illustrated by Sean Qualls. McGhee and Qualls present an exuberant celebration of dads and their babies. A recurring, multiracial cast of father-and-baby pairs enacts the fun, with McGhee's rhythmic, rhyming text backgrounding the mood: "Give me that tie / and I'll tie you a bow, // Give me your foot and I'll give you a toe. // Your drumming, my strumming. // Your beats. / My treats." In Qualls's illustrations, a baby plays with some neckties before their father fashions one into a bow for his little one; another one balances on their pop's feet while they dance together in the living room; yet another tot gleefully bashes pots and pans while their dad cobbles together a fruit cup. While there's nothing in the text to suggest that the narrative voice is male, all the parent figures present as such, and one sports a T-shirt that reads "SUPER DAD." Qualls's trademark bubbles and swirls decorate the pages, the mixed-media application--acrylic paint, colored-pencil, and collage--lending the compositions an improvisational DIY look that suits these dads' collective aspiration for their babies: "Wherever you are and whoever you'll be / just know that you're already perfect for me. // My baby, oh baby, oh baby, just...BE." In a market where the mother-child bond is still more prominently featured than that between fathers and their children, this bouncy outing, while not exactly unique, feels fresh.

Reviewer: Vicky Smith | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2023

(2) YA Illustrated by Zeke Peña. In the previous installment (Miles Morales, rev. 9/17), sixteen-year-old Miles ("Boricua and Black and Brooklyn as hell") was bitten by a radioactive spider, became the latest Spider-Man, and defeated the Warden, head of an ancient white supremacist organization. Now he sits in In-School Suspension (ISS) for standing up to his racist history teacher, along with classmate Tobin Rogers, who is in ISS for removing books--Baldwin, Morrison, Angelou, Angie Thomas--from the school library. Even more weirdly, Tobin was eating the pages; all that were found were the books' spines. Add a termite infestation at school for an intriguing puzzle for Miles to solve. This sequel is more multilayered than the first installment, with action-packed digital drawings, Miles's first-person poems, and a third-person narrative all capturing a day in the life of Miles Morales--his neighborhood, his crush on Alicia Carson, his friendship with Ganke, and his conflicts with teachers. There is room, though, for a climactic action scene in the boys' bathroom, where a creepy monster is thrillingly unmasked.

Reviewer: Dean Schneider | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2023

(1) 4-6 Illustrated by Raúl the Third. Set one week after its predecessor (Stuntboy, in the Meantime, rev. 1/22), this illustrated novel follows Portico Reeves through one very eventful day as the self-appointed superhero struggles with anxiety ("the frets"), dabbles in misbehavior, and confronts his parents' recent separation. When Portico's mother sends him off on what should be a short two-floor trip to his father's new apartment for their very first "DAD-urday," the young hero is weighed down by both literal and figurative baggage: carrying a garbage bag of old apartment leftovers and the fear of permanently being "in-between" his parents. Once Portico meets up with his two best friends, he quickly strays off-course thanks to run-ins with bizarre bullies, eccentric neighbors, and out-there scenarios (like catching seventeen iguanas). Presented as if episodes of a retro TV show (complete with theme music, commercial breaks, etc.), each self-contained chapter generally features a new problem and speedy resolve; however, Reynolds's imaginative, layered storytelling continuously explores large, overarching themes of family, friendship, and belonging with recurring motifs and metaphors. Supporting and expanding the lively text are Raul the Third's kinetic illustrations, playful characterizations, and eye-popping spreads. A lived-in, tactile quality to the overall design is achieved through thoughtful coloring, engaging layouts, and an incorporation of real-world textures such as bricks, plaster, and paint. While a realistic resolution is achieved for Portico's family, Stuntboy's outrageous adventures (thankfully) don't seem to be over yet.

Reviewer: Patrick Gall | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2023

(1) K-3 Illustrated by Jerome Pumphrey & Jarrett Pumphrey. An intriguing photograph of writers Maya Angelou and Amiri Baraka dancing at a party at the New York Public Library's Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture is the springboard for Reynolds's first (traditional) picture book. In 1991, people in Harlem gathered to celebrate the grand opening of the Langston Hughes Auditorium and the literary brilliance of its namesake. At the "fancy-foot, get-down, all-out bash," guests boogie to the beats and bops of music as renowned word-makers are pictured leaning in from the spines of books on the shelves, captivated by the dazzling whirlwind of excitement. The master poet, Langston Hughes, was called "the 'word-making king.'" He "could make the word America look like two friends making pinky promises to be cool, to be true" and turn words into laughter, "bringing joy to the little and the big." In his own evocative and kinetic style of word-making, Reynolds exudes reverence for Langston and the festive tempo of the occasion. The Pumphreys' vibrant illustrations, created with digitized handmade stamps, extend the theme of wordsmithing in creative interpretations of text, as in the double-page spread of Angelou and Baraka dancing with the letters of their first names forming the shape of their bodies. A jubilant tribute to the enduring legacy of one of the most prominent voices of the Harlem Renaissance and others whom he has inspired.

Reviewer: Pauletta Brown Bracy | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2023

(2) K-3 Bob, a teardrop-shaped bird, is risk averse. When Crow invites him to perch with the other crows on the telephone wire, Bob worries about what might go wrong (bad breath, a collapse). He makes up an excuse: "Oh thanks...but um...I've got loads to do out East--maybe later?" He in fact has nothing to do out East but flies off anyway. Bob meets Pigeon, who offers him some city-street delicacies. He's curious--and hungry--but fears the new foods could make him sick. He makes an excuse and wings it to another locale. Down South, Flamingo encourages Bob to swim at the beach; it's no surprise that Bob can't...he has a meeting out West. Finally, Bob encounters majestic Eagle, who empathizes with Bob's anxieties and inspires him to take a series of "mini chances." This successful experience gives Bob the confidence to visit Flamingo and Pigeon on the way home and try what he'd avoided before. (The everything bagel blows his mind: "OMG. Are you kidding me with this deliciousness?!") Rim's (­illustrator of Happy Springtime!, rev. 5/21) watercolor, pencil, and digital illustrations are full of humor and energy, as is the personality-filled text. This power-of-positive-thinking story speaks to the Bob in all of us.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2023

(2) 4-6 Illustrated by Martina Heiduczek. At school in East Prussia in the early 1940s, Liesl is taught to revere Adolf Hitler. When Germany wins the war, which she believes is inevitable, fountains will run with lemonade and ice cream, and every family will be given a puppy. Then, in 1944, Russian soldiers come; Germany has lost the war; Liesl, her brother, and their baby sister must flee in the dead of winter. Separated from their mother, they live "like wolves" in the forest, subsisting on frogs, squirrels, and wild plants; sometimes they're lucky enough to find unharvested potatoes or to work for Russian soldiers. The children eventually find refuge with a loving Lithuanian couple. To be safe, however, they must erase all vestiges of their German background. What will remain of her, Liesl wonders, once she has relinquished even her native language? As Liesl begins her slow unlearning of Nazi propaganda and comes to understand the atrocities against which she had been sheltered, she gains true insight into who she is--and who she can become. The incidents and challenges involved in the children's survival (based on true events of the Wolfskinder, or "wolf children," who, per an introductory note, were themselves "victims of war") are both sobering and enlightening.

Reviewer: Deirdre F. Baker

(1) 4-6 Illustrated by Jason Griffin. Reynolds's introspective narrative poem, with a young man at home during quarantine as its speaker, shares the stage with Griffin's emotive collagelike illustrations done in Moleskine notebooks and reproduced on the pages to make it look like a real teen's journal. The first-person text is presented in three parts, or "breaths." In "Breath One," the narrator says he's "sitting here wondering why / my mother won't change the channel // And why won't the news change the story / And why the story won't change into something new." Along with concerns about the world outside, he thinks about his father coughing behind closed doors, his sister talking about protests, and his brother lost in video games. When the wonderings get to be too much, the narrator reminds himself to breathe "in through the nose // out through the mouth." By the end of "Breath Three," the narrator realizes that his "oxygen mask" for living through this uncertain time is the people he loves and the moments they share. The poem and images create an authentic-sounding adolescent narrator trying to grapple with the confusion and fear of the double pandemic (COVID-19 and systemic racism) he is facing. The book ends with a conversation between the two Jasons about their collaborative process for creating this work during the pandemic.

Reviewer: Nicholl Denice Montgomery | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2022

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Briana Mukodiri Uchendu. In this effective and affecting introduction to race relations and police brutality in America, Jay is a young boy who loves racing up and down the block with his friends. He also loves his family: his grandpa, who tells him about all the amazing runners of the past, like Wilma Rudolph and Jesse Owens; his nana, who pinches his cheeks (even though he pretends not to enjoy it); his father, who lets him "drive" in their parking space; and his mother, who continually checks his height against his bedroom wall. Mom and Nana seem concerned when he grows a few inches, though, and Grandpa and Dad begin to add instructions to his innocent activities. Jay is advised to keep his hands out of his pockets; not to gather with peers in groups of more than four; to be cautious while he's in a car. These instructions finally lead to Jay's family sitting him down for "the talk." They tell Jay that while his actions may be scrutinized unfairly by others because of his skin color, he will always have a community of family and friends that love him and that it's not his fault. Jay's innocence is a constant throughout the story, with the digital illustrations providing much of the context. As Jay's mother frets over his height, we see her glance at a television news story involving a person of color and the police. A trip to the store with friends is monitored with suspicion by a frowning white couple. Jay's commitment to remaining a happy child is a welcome element in this exploration of an all-too-relatable experience with no easy answers.

Reviewer: Eboni Njoku | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2023

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Sam Boughton. Not a formally trained artist, Nek Chand built the famed Rock Garden in Chandigarh, India, "rock by rock," using discarded and found materials. Bradbury's text illuminates the artist's intuitive creative process as a means of easing his feelings of dislocation and homesickness after the Partition of India causes him and other Hindus to depart their ancestral villages, now considered part of the new Muslim nation of Pakistan. "That missing moved from his heart into his hands, and his hands knew what to do," writes Bradbury in the scene where Chand first finds the secluded piece of land on which he builds the garden, with its myriad sculptures, structures, and a "maze of tunnels and paths and arches and stairs." The garden serves as both a monument to the home Chand lost and a secret means of bringing joy and beauty to his new home. When others discover the garden (now grown to cover over forty acres), they are astounded, and the community rallies to save it from officials who threaten to tear it down in the name of development. Throughout, Boughton's illustrations burst with color. The art emulates Chand's use of found materials in its incorporation of newsprint and fabrics into digital collage. The illustrations make several overt references to some of Chand's actual figures, structures, and mosaics, with back-matter pages treating readers to photographs of the Rock Garden and of Chand himself. Pair with Rosenstock and Nivola's The Secret Kingdom (rev. 3/18).

Reviewer: Megan Dowd Lambert | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2021

(1) K-3 What is going on in our brains, on our phones, and in the world when we send or receive a text message? Emberley's skillfully crafted picture book answers this not-so-simple question in a delightful mix of illustrations, diagrams, and captions with a clear through-line narration that makes the complicated science behind our electronic interactions comprehensible. Readers follow along when a late-night text message awakens a child from their sleep, as a series of physiological events ("cells inside the eyes detect the photons, then translate the photon's message into an electronic signal, which travels through soft threads of hollow nerves...straight into the brain") results in a reply that must travel halfway around the world. Emberley illustrates every step in the process as the message travels through the air ("as a unique, invisible, electromagnetic radio wave"), through wires (both copper and glass), underground, and below the ocean before finding its way to the recipient's--as we learn, the child's mom's--screen. Detailed illustrations feature numerous labels, and offset captions further illuminate the scientific and technological explanations, allowing the narrative to focus on the larger actions as the message's digital signal races on. Readers will never again think the same way about the basic act of sending a text message. Back matter provides additional technical details, including an explanation of when and under what conditions satellites become involved in the process. A list of resources for further reading is included.

Reviewer: Eric Carpenter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2021

(2) PS Illustrated by Eric Rohmann. It's Christmas Eve, and Bulldozer is worried: "He didn't have any presents for his friends. Not one." He sees an old tire sticking out of the snow: "I wonder what other treasures are under there?" With his playful cat friends from Bulldozer Helps Out (rev. 7/17) as company, he digs and digs, amassing an impressive pile of salvage. He's discouraged at first, then inspired: "Through the swirling, whirling, / twinkling snowflakes, he thought he saw-- / Was it? / Could it be?" Poking, pushing, nudging his creation into shape, Bulldozer brings his vision to life. A string of lights and a large gearwheel at the top complete the surprise. Fleming's warmhearted story and Rohmann's bold relief block print illustrations are both full of treasures.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2021

(2) K-3 Caldecott winner Floca (Locomotive, rev. 9/13) presents a love letter to New York City and its essential workers during COVID-19. "We are here at home now, watching the world through our windows. Outside, we see the city we know, but not as we've seen it before." As children peer out from their apartment windows, the streets are quiet, but not empty. There are food deliverers on bikes, sanitation workers, mail carriers, first responders, and more; an ambulance pulls into a hospital driveway, and we enter the building to see the medical professionals and support team, "everyone working through long days and worry to help patients heal." As evening falls, we're back to the neighborhood, where at seven o'clock people open their windows, clap their hands, bang pots and pans, shout, and cheer their thanks. (The appended author's note provides further context.) Floca's watercolor, ink, acrylic, and gouache art, in his beautifully realistic style, features delicate lines, light-catching hues, and pore-over-able details, much like an actual city scene. Motion-filled vignettes alternate with expansive spreads to help pace the narrative and hold readers' attention; so, too, do many of the figures' gazes, looking directly out at viewers. The text is true to events but un-alarmist, with restrained lyricism that underscores unity: "We hear the city say to us--and we say back to the city--that we are still here, and we are here together."

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2021

(2) YA An introduction by Jason Reynolds, coauthor with Kiely of All American Boys (rev. 11/15), begins this honest and informative reflection on what it means to be white--and a call for white readers to take anti-racist action. After stating that conversations about race and racism often occur between caregivers and children of the Global Majority (the term Kiely uses throughout), the author opens the door to a conversation on whiteness for an assumed white readership. Using the first-person perspective, and with a casual tone but a deliberate use of language, the author relates personal stories, while acknowledging the contradictions of his authorship and of de-centering whiteness. Voices of youth and of those not always recognized by mainstream society are celebrated. Section breaks pace readers and invite them to pause and reflect; questions offer further opportunities for reader engagement. Kiely carefully scaffolds content, embraces discomfort, rejects either/or binaries, and owns his mistake-making: "I know I'm not going to get everything right. But I think I have to try." Charts and timelines showcase facts about history and racist systems and institutions; extensive back matter is included. Throughout this heartfelt model of white racial identity development, the emphasis remains on self-interrogation, group responsibility, and anti-racist accountability.

Reviewer: Elisa Gall | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2022

(1) 4-6 Illustrated by Raúl the Third. Color by Elaine Bay. This ingeniously crafted illustrated novel offers a multifaceted and heartfelt take on the classic superhero story. Portico Reeves is a kid with a "secret secret"--he likes to think of himself as Stuntboy, a homegrown and self-styled superhero whose power is "making sure all the other heroes stay super. And safe. Supersafe." The selfless Stuntboy protects the quirky and racially diverse cast of characters in his apartment building, particularly his own family members and his best friend Zola. Instead of super strength or flight, Stuntboy performs a variety of odd "stunts" to help others, which also lets him burn off some energy. When he is Stuntboy, the young hero isn't affected by his anxiety, or "the frets," which are made worse for Portico by his parents' constant bickering and his relentless bullying by "Herbert Singletary the Worst." In ten episodic chapters, Reynolds employs fast-paced, realistic dialogue loaded with wordplay and humor. A parallel narrative, in the form of the television show Super Space Warriors, artfully reflects Portico's parents' impending separation. Raúl the Third's cartoon illustrations are integral, active components of the story. From the smallest possible detail in a skyline to commanding double-page action spreads, the art makes Portico's world feel real and vibrant. Bay's color work is invaluable, oscillating between pulsating palettes and subdued screentones. Keeping to the superhero tradition, the creators end on a cliffhanger, leaving readers with a promise of more adventures to come.

Reviewer: Patrick Gall | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2022