The Logan Family Saga

Please note that as of this writing I’ve only reread a few books in the series since starting this blog, so my understanding of some aspects might change as I read more.

Oh, the Logan Family Saga! Both the joy and the frustration of many a school librarian – because this series is excellent historical fiction, and because it’s rather difficult to get a handle on the series. Because I plan to review several, if not all, of the Logan Family books, it seems more expedient to make one post about the series order which can then be referred to in all future reviews.

50+ More Diverse Middle Grade Fantasy Novels

Way back in 2017, I started working on a list of diverse MG fantasy novels.  It took three years to compile the first list, and since many books on it begin a series, it has only been growing ever since.  But finding a stopping point was also difficult because I kept coming across more books.  Certainly there were some I’d overlooked or had not been able to access, but there was another reason my list of recommended diverse fantasy novels was quadruple what I’d scraped together five years ago – new releases!

We are living in a time when MG fantasy is rapidly diversifying.  With the success of a few bold publishers and authors, others seem more willing to consider diverse fantasy, or are just interested in market share of an uncornered niche.  Or maybe even, people have been pushing for diversity a long time and the environment is finally right.  I’m not sure why now but this explosion of diverse literature is wonderful.

Today there is no excuse for a fantasy list that does not have even a single book with a character of color, let alone diverse authors.   And there are enough books and series to make not just one, but many lists of diverse MG fantasy!  I did make one change – on this list I included a few white fantasy novels with main characters who had disabilities, were LGBTQ, or had diverse living circumstances. This list also includes books in translation, and a handful of out-of-print but (as of this writing) still obtainable books.

Why Laurence Yep Was Stressful

These posts always tend to stem from a review that gets far too long and I just want to talk about something. In this case it’s my experience as a reader, educator, librarian, and finally just a reader again encountering Laurence Yep. In case you are new here (and how did you land on this post first, go read my reviews or booklists first, they’re better), I’ll mention that I do enjoy and often recommend his books, although they have sometimes caused me some hassle.

I have a long, often fraught relationship with the works of Mr. Yep. He has written a lot of books, and is probably best known for either his Golden Mountain historical fiction series or his fantasy novels. He worked with major publishers so his books could be found at the library. The major pre-internet problem we had, though, was that many of his historical fiction works have dragon in the title. And some of his magical books give no indication that they are magical. And he also has historical fantasy. And sometimes the books would randomly get retitled.

40+ Diverse Middle Grade Fantasy Novels

Lately I’ve seen several of those “What to Read After Harry Potter” type booklists*, mostly aimed at parents of middle grade readers who zoomed through that intense seven book series and are now voracious readers who aren’t quite ready for the heavier content in YA fantasy novels yet.

However, scanning through list after list, I quickly noticed few of those lists had even a single book with a character of color, let alone diverse authors.  In some ways, that makes sense.  While we’ve seen some improvements in children’s literature lately, genre fiction can be slower to change, and the “classics” haven’t caught up to new tastes in reading.  But there ARE amazing diverse fantasy novels, many by #ownvoices authors, some that have been around for decades, and I was incredibly sad that those weren’t better known.

So this is one librarian mama’s list of diverse fantasy novels.**  I considered these to be appropriate for middle grade readers, so generally not too much romance or graphic violence, but please click on the title of any book to read my full review including length, reading level, and age appropriateness – a few do skew towards older or younger MG readers.

Middle-Grade Reads for Adults

Maybe you just want a short read for the weekend.  Maybe you’re looking for a read-aloud for your family, something to read alongside a child, or a book for your students that might hold your interest too.  Here are five fiction and five nonfiction middle grade books that can hold the interest of an older reader – whether a teen who needs a less challenging read, adult who wants to finish a book quickly, or a family wanting to read together. 

Why I Don’t Post My Book Hauls Anymore

In October 2017 we went on a little book-buying spree, our last book purchase of the year.  In the past, I’ve posted about book hauls and then never reviewed any substantial portion of the books.  It takes long time for me to post reviews (I have about a two month turn-around time assuming nothing else comes up).  However, I felt bad about posting pictures of the awesome books on my shelf and then never reviewing them.

Historical Fiction Roundup & TBR

One of my 2018 goals is to read and review more historical fiction.  When I set this goal, I knew I had approximately 10 books in the genre waiting.  So I decided to make a TBR.  After gathering all the books from around the house, I was shocked to see that I had 30 books to review!

Before we get started, I should probably state two things.  First, this is not a recommended list – just what I’m planning to read.  Second, I wrote this list quite a while ago (it was challenging to get cover pictures for all the books and still the whole list won’t load all the photos…) so since then I’ve found a few more.  I’ve even written reviews for a few on this list!

2017 Favorites – Other

Yup, I’m not posting this until well into 2018.  In 2017 I reviewed 98 books (plus 10 board books) and so many of them were so good.  It took me a month just to narrow it down this far…  I just love all the books!

2017 Favorites – Nonfiction

Yup, I’m not posting this until well into 2018.  In 2017 I reviewed 98 books (plus 10 board books) and so many of them were so good.  It took me a month just to narrow it down this far…  I just love all the books!

Here were our 14 favorite nonfiction books in 2017.

2017 Favorites – Fiction

Yup, I’m not posting this until well into 2018.  In 2017 I reviewed 98 books (plus 10 board books) and so many of them were so good.  It took me a month just to narrow it down this far…  I just love all the books!