Uncle Bobby’s Wedding by Sarah S. Brannen

Illustrated by Lucia Soto 5 stars A delightfully sweet story of a young girl and her favorite uncle. When Uncle Bobby’s announces he’s getting married, Chloe isn’t so sure. She wants him to keep having fun with her. But as she spends more time with him and his fiancé, Jamie, she sees that having two…

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Kenzie Kickstarts a Team (The Derby Daredevils #1)

by Kit Rosewater Illustrated by Sophie Escabasse 4 stars A fast-paced story of leadership, making room for new friends, and sharing a love of roller derby. Best friends Kenzie and Shelly (a.k.a. Kenzilla and Bomb Shell) long to play roller derby but they’re too young. That is, until a new Junior Derby League starts up….

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Jacob’s New Dress by Sarah and Ian Hoffman

Illustrated by Chris Case 5 stars A sweet story about being yourself. Jacob enjoys wearing the dress from the dress-up corner at school and the way his Halloween witch costume swirls around him. Now he wants to wear a real dress to school. His classmate tells him that boys don’t wear dresses and his parents…

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Morris Micklewhite and the Tangerine Dress by Christine Baldacchino

Illustrated by Isabelle Malenfant 3 stars A touching story about Morris Micklewhite, whose favorite part of school is the dress-up center and the swish, swish, swish of the tangerine dress the color of his mother’s hair. Morris is bullied for wearing the dress by his classmates and told that “boys don’t wear dresses”. But Morris…

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Mr. Chow’s Night Market by Emily Sun Li

Illustrated by Yu Ting Cheng 4 stars A sweet story that follows Mr. Chow, a supermarket owner who loves the nighttime and sleeping in. But supermarkets are supposed to be open early. Mr. Chow seeks advice from his neighbors on how to get up earlier. But maybe he doesn’t have to. Maybe he needs to…

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Ali and the Sea Stars by Ali Stroker

Illustrated by Gillian Reid 5 stars A sweet story of creativity, collaboration, perseverance, and creative problem solving. Ali loves performing. With a little inspiration, she decides to put on a show with her friends and family at the beach. But when a big storm rolls in and washes away the sets, the cast will have…

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Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy by Rey Terciero

Illustrated by Bre Indigo 4 stars A fun modern retelling of Little Women. I am always drawn to Jo as a character and this one was no exception. Join the Marches, a blended family living in New York, as they take on life’s battles. The sisters deal with missing their father during his deployment, their…

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In Our Mothers’ House by Patricia Polacco

4 stars A heartfelt story of a family’s love shared in a big house filled with memories. Told by the eldest daughter, the story follows the children from adoption to adulthood, depicting moments from dance parties to grandparent visits, new pets to Halloween adventures, tea parties to block parties. Such an adorable story. It was…

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