Mirrors and Windows

The Dragon Thief By Zetta Elliott

Stealing a baby dragon was easy! Hiding it is a little more complicated, in this sequel to reviewer favorite Dragons in a Bag.

Jaxon had just one job--to return three baby dragons to the realm of magic. But when he got there, only two dragons were left in the bag. His best friend's sister, Kavita, is a dragon thief!

Kavita only wanted what was best for the baby dragon. But now every time she feeds it, the dragon grows and grows! How can she possibly keep it secret? Even worse, stealing it has upset the balance between the worlds. The gates to the other realm have shut tight! Jaxon needs all the help he can get to find Kavita, outsmart a trickster named Blue, and return the baby dragon to its true home.

The Long Ride By Marina Budhos

In the tumult of 1970s New York City, kids are expected to figure out issues of race that adults haven't when seventh graders are bused from their neighborhood in Queens to integrate a new school in South Jamaica.

Jamila, Josie, and Francesca are three mixed-race girls who have always felt like outsiders in their mostly white neighborhood in Queens, but at least they have each other. Now it's seventh grade, and they're part of an experiment where kids will go on a long bus ride to integrate a new school in a black neighborhood. Maybe there the three girls can finally fit in.

But Francesca's parents put her in private school. And Jamila and Josie discover that they're not even in the same classes.

How do they find their place in a school divided between black and white? And what about the boys wanting to be friends--and maybe more? Can kids come together when grown-ups stay apart?

In this tender story of friendship and family love, award-winning author Marina Budhos captures what it's like to tip from twelve to thirteen and to try to carry the dreams of adults.

Full Disclosure By Camryn Garrett

"An unflinchingly honest, eye-opening, heartful story that's sure to keep readers talking." --Angie Thomas, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Hate U Give and On the Come Up

"Romantic, funny, hopeful, and unflinchingly real." --Becky Albertalli, New York Times bestselling author of Simon Vs. The Homosapiens Agenda

The uplifting story of an HIV-positive teen, falling in love and learning to live her truth.

Simone Garcia-Hampton is starting over at a new school, and this time things will be different. She's making real friends, making a name for herself as student director of Rent, and making a play for Miles, the guy who makes her melt every time he walks into a room. The last thing she wants is for word to get out that she's HIV-positive, because last time . . . well, last time things got ugly.
     Keeping her viral load under control is easy, but keeping her diagnosis under wraps is not so simple. As Simone and Miles start going out for real--shy kisses escalating into much more--she feels an uneasiness that goes beyond butterflies. She knows she has to tell him that she's positive, especially if sex is a possibility, but she's terrified of how he'll react! And then she finds an anonymous note in her locker: I know you have HIV. You have until Thanksgiving to stop hanging out with Miles. Or everyone else will know too.
     Simone's first instinct is to protect her secret at all costs, but as she gains a deeper understanding of the prejudice and fear in her community, she begins to wonder if the only way to rise above is to face the haters head-on. . . .

"Full Disclosure is such a joy to read." --Erika Sanchez, National Book Award finalist for I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter

"A big-hearted love letter to inclusivity, bravery, and acceptance, Full Disclosure is a wonder of a book." --Kathleen Glasgow, New York Times bestselling author of Girl in Pieces

Gravity By Sarah Deming

Rocky meets I'm Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter in this YA novel about a young female boxer who learns to fight for what she wants.

*"A riveting pugilistic must-read." --Kirkus Reviews, starred

Gravity "Doomsday" Delgado is good at breaking things. Maybe she learned it from her broken home.

But since she started boxing with a legendary coach at a gym in Brooklyn, Gravity is finding her talent for breaking things has an upside. Lately, she's been breaking records, breaking her competitors, and breaking down the walls inside her. Boxing is taking her places, and if she just stays focused, she knows she'll have a shot at the Olympics.

Life outside the ring is heating up, too. Suddenly she's flirting (and more) with a cute boxer at her gym--much to her coach's disapproval. Meanwhile, things at home with Gravity's mom are reaching a tipping point, and Gravity has to look out for her little brother, Ty. With Olympic dreams, Gravity will have to decide what is worth fighting for.

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Nevertheless, We Persisted By Foreword by Senator Amy Klobuchar

A powerful collection of essays from actors, activists, athletes, politicians, musicians, writers, and teens, including Senator Amy Klobuchar, actress Alia Shawkat, actor Maulik Pancholy, poet Azure Antoinette, teen activist Gavin Grimm, and many, many others, each writing about a time in their youth when they were held back because of their race, gender, or sexual identity—but persisted.

"Aren't you a terrorist?" "There are no roles for people who look like you." "That's a sin." "No girls allowed." They've heard it all. Actress Alia Shawkat reflects on all the parts she was told she was too "ethnic" to play. Former NFL player Wade Davis recalls his bullying of gay classmates in an attempt to hide his own sexuality. Teen Gavin Grimm shares the story that led to one of the infamous "bathroom bills," and how he's fighting it. Holocaust survivor Fanny Starr tells of her harrowing time in Aushwitz, where she watched her family disappear, one by one.

What made them rise up through the hate? What made them overcome the obstacles of their childhood to achieve extraordinary success? How did they break out of society's limited view of who they are and find their way to the beautiful and hard-won lives they live today? With a foreword by Minnesota senator and up-and-coming Democratic party leader Amy Klobuchar, these essays share deeply personal stories of resilience, faith, love, and, yes, persistence.

An International Latino Book Award Winner
A National Council for Social Studies Selection

"Each tale is a soulful testament to the endurance of the human spirit and reminds readers that they are not alone in their search for self. . . . An unflinchingly honest book that should be required reading for every young person in America." —Kirkus Reviews, starred review

"An invaluable collection of snapshots of American society." —VOYA, starred review

"[A] gem of a book. . . . There's a lot to study here and talk about on the way to becoming kinder, more empathetic, and most important, compassionate." —Booklist

"Readers encountering injustice in their own lives may be compelled to take heart—and even action." —Publishers Weekly

"A powerful collection of voices." —SLJ

"The sheer variation in writing styles, subject-matters, and structure to these narratives provides readers with inspiration in assorted forms and a complex interpretation of what it means to persist." —The Bulletin

Who Put This Song On? By Morgan Parker

"Unflinchingly irreverent, laugh-out-loud funny, and heartbreakingly honest." —Elizabeth Acevedo, National Book Award winner and New York Times bestselling author of The Poet X

In the vein of powerful reads like The Hate U Give and The Poet X, comes poet Morgan Parker's pitch-perfect novel about a black teenage girl searching for her identity when the world around her views her depression as a lack of faith and blackness as something to be politely ignored.

Trapped in sunny, stifling, small-town suburbia, seventeen-year-old Morgan knows why she's in therapy. She can't count the number of times she's been the only non-white person at the sleepover, been teased for her "weird" outfits, and been told she's not "really" black. Also, she's spent most of her summer crying in bed. So there's that, too.

Lately, it feels like the whole world is listening to the same terrible track on repeat--and it's telling them how to feel, who to vote for, what to believe. Morgan wonders, when can she turn this song off and begin living for herself?

Loosely based on her own teenage life and diaries, this incredible debut by award-winning poet Morgan Parker will make readers stand up and cheer for a girl brave enough to live life on her own terms--and for themselves.

"Morgan Parker put THIS song on--and I hope it never turns off." —Nic Stone, New York Times bestselling author of Dear Martin and Odd One Out

“A triumphant first impression in the YA space.” —Entertainment Weekly

“An incredibly heartfelt, deep story about a girl's coming of age.” —Refinery29