(2) YA Relationships between Pirates Cove Projects kids (So Done) in the talented and gifted program and those who aren't have become strained. Best friends "Simp" and Rollie still hang out during neighborhood basketball; unfortunately, the league unofficially requires working for the local drug dealer, and escaping that life is easier said than done. Fans of Jason Reynolds and Angie Thomas will enjoy this rough and relatable novel told in alternating third-person narratives.

Reviewer: Eboni Njoku | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2019

(2) K-3 Young dancer Lena is worried about whether she'll be able to meet her recital's requirement of white ballet slippers: "At home, money was tight..." Happily, the night before the recital, Lena finds an ingenious solution. An understated text focuses on Lena's joy in dance and the anxiety of her predicament. Unfussy ink, watercolor, and acrylic illustrations use a variety of perspectives to further communicate Lena's emotions.

Reviewer: Katie Bircher | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2019

(2) 4-6 This heartbreaking and resonant story of twelve-year-old best friends Asha (who is wealthy and Indian) and Yesofu (who is poor and Black) takes place during the Indian expulsion period in 1972 Uganda, which was part of President Idi Amin's Africanization policy. Athaide probes questions of nationalism, poverty, and privilege in original and compelling ways, and explores Asha's recognition that some differences cannot be easily bridged. Reading list, timeline. Bib.

Reviewer: Julie Hakim Azzam | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2019

(2) YA Gurley uses the star-crossed-lovers theme to good effect in his YA debut set in a (fictional) blue-collar California oil town. The romance between alternating narrators Vanessa (an aspiring astronomer) and Zach (an artist) is tentative and chaste but emotionally intimate as they unpack their respective family baggage. This love story is also a timely, moving statement about income inequity and a reminder that everyone struggles.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2019

(3) 4-6 In Jakarta, Indonesia, Nia's food-vendor widower father is mired in poverty and alcoholism while the young teenager cares for her little brother. When Nia survives a minibus accident, superstitious locals believe that she has miraculous powers, which aspiring-writer Nia uses to raise money for her schooling. Readers will cheer Nia's real powers--her storytelling talent and her resiliency--in this vividly set story. Glos.

Reviewer: Melinda Greenblatt

(2) K-3 Illustrated by April Harrison. In this story of giving, James Otis marvels that Mama is contributing to the church's "love box" for a family in need when they have so little themselves. But hearing "what is given from the heart reaches the heart" helps James Otis start thinking differently about what he does have. Detailed, highly textured, strikingly patterned collage illustrations invite readers to linger over the pages and add depth to the characters.

Reviewer: Michelle H. Martin | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2019

(3) YA Eighteen-year-old Harlowe Compton's southern Appalachian community is defined by mining, poverty, and, too often, despair. His brother's murder (Harlowe suspects the powerful Prater family is to blame) sends Harlowe into the darkest secrets of his family and his community. This well-written debut offers a stark and powerful depiction of modern-day rural devastation, especially opioid addiction.

Reviewer: Norah Piehl

(1) YA Sixteen-year-old Bri attends a public arts high school and dreams of being a rapper like her late father. After winning a rap battle in her neighborhood, doors start to open--but at a price Bri isn't sure she's willing to pay. Thomas's sharp, even piercing, characterization includes a remarkably well-rounded cast. A richly woven love letter to hip-hop, with Bri's lyrics and her thought process behind them included throughout.

Reviewer: Christina L. Dobbs | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2019

(2) 4-6 To escape their abusive father, eleven-year-old narrator Viji and her intellectually disabled sister Rukku run away to Chennai, the capital city of Tamil Nadu, India, where they befriend two homeless boys. Written in short chapters directly addressed to Rukku in which traumatic events are balanced with personal reflection, this bittersweet story is about breaking the cycle of abuse, reaching for your dreams, and finding home in the most unlikely places.

Reviewer: Julie Hakim Azzam | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2019

(3) YA In Andrews's satirical dystopian world, one's physical size is directly related to one's wealth or poverty. "Bigriches" are gigantic; "littlepoors" are so tiny they can be killed by "middlerich" footfalls. The one place everyone is the same is Dreamworld, where littlepoor protagonist Warner has powerful talents for shaping dreams. Andrews uses a mixture of colloquial slang, words run together, and phonetic spelling in this allegory about economic inequities.

Reviewer: Deirdre F. Baker

(3) YA Rome, a (supernaturally) gifted mechanic in Cottonwood Hollow, Kansas, trades her car to her vile landlord for rent when her mom loses her job. A diary sends Rome and similarly gifted friends Lux and Mercy in search of treasure, but the pioneering ancestress who buried it may have blessed their friendship as the better asset. Threads of romance, poverty, and the supernatural combine for a satisfying Midwestern ghost story.

Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Corinna Luyken. Chloe doubts Adrian's imaginative claims that he owns a horse, considering he receives free lunch at school and has worn-out shoes. Expressive sketch-style illustrations rendered in ink, colored pencils, and watercolor feature mainly yellow and earth tones on abundant white space. The art pairs nicely with the thoughtful narrative to capture Chloe's transformation from mean-spirited skeptic to friend. Hidden equine figures provide additional interest.

Reviewer: Sheila M. Geraty

(2) YA Growing up in a low-income housing project, thirteen-year-old friends and dancers Mila and Tai have always trusted each other. After living with her aunt for a summer, Mila seems to care only about auditioning for a new gifted arts program. But Tai's not the only one who's been hurt, and eventually Mila reveals her secret. Readers will root for both young women as they tell their stories in memorable alternating voices.

Reviewer: Eboni Njoku | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2018

(1) K-3 Illustrated by Van Thanh Rudd. A child in an unnamed village "where we live inside our mud-for-walls home" describes the diversions of daily life, including zooming about with "my crazy brothers" on a "patchwork bike" built of scrap. Clarke's spare, mellifluous language is hand-lettered on Rudd's rough, tactile paintings composed of heavy acrylic paint on recycled cardboard. The illustration choices reflect the book's theme--exposing the harsh reality of life while acknowledging the resilience that comes from homemade joy.

Reviewer: Thom Barthelmess | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2018

(3) YA Annie's foster family takes good care of her, but she won't let go of her troubled "bio family." She devises a way to see them: at a basketball tournament, her team purposely drops into the losers' bracket, resulting in more games for Annie's birth family members to attend. Annie's first-person narrative, with intermittent transcripts from her therapist visits, is that of a smart, athletic teen surviving the family she has and finding the support system she needs.

Reviewer: Dean Schneider

(3) YA This informative volume covers the history, development, and ongoing propagation of economic inequality in the United States. Using accessible language and easily relatable examples, Frazer covers topics such as the housing bubble and economic depression of the 2000s, the inequality of opportunity, and the cycle of poverty, as well as the connection between wealth and political power. Reading list, websites. Bib., glos., ind.

Reviewer: Kristy Pasquariello

(3) 4-6 A small, depressed city in southern New Jersey is hit by a rolling blackout. Sixth grader Luis and his friend Maura collaborate to uncover the motive for the computer hack that's caused the problem. Equal parts thriller, STEM lesson, political satire, and commentary on class and racial inequality, this fast-moving story with plenty of heart is well constructed and thought-provoking. Includes electricity facts and emergency-kit instructions. Bib., glos.

Reviewer: Miriam Lang Budin

(3) YA Maya and her friend Lily discover that their grade-seven classmate Jewel has been living at school; Jewel's sister, who protected her from the worst of her parents' abuses, has disappeared, and Jewel is not safe at home. Garvie explores socioeconomic privilege (wealthier Maya initially sees Jewel as kind of a project), secret-keeping, and the nature of home. The quiet novel ends with a better (not perfect) situation for Jewel and believable growth in Maya.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano

(3) 4-6 After her stealing compulsion lands twelve-year-old Hush in the Sass, Georgia, sheriff's office, she's offered a second chance working at a plant nursery. Bolstered by a good friend, a compassionate community of quirky characters, and the discovery of her own ability to help others, Hush flourishes. Harkey softens a story of neglect and poverty with a resilient protagonist, distinct voices, and a touch of magical realism.

Reviewer: Megan Lynn Isaac

(2) 4-6 Exceedingly well-mannered and excruciatingly poor ten-year-old Rupert Brown stumbles upon his rich classmate's Christmas celebration. After Rupert leaves still empty-stomached and empty-handed, guilt-ridden members of the wealthy family attempt to make amends. Their misguided efforts include a silk suit; a visit to a fancy restaurant; and excursions via a cardboard-box time machine. With hints of Dickens, Dahl, Travers, and others, Horvath's latest is brainy, hilarious, and poignant.

Reviewer: Monica Edinger | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2019