Quiet Power by Susan Cain

 This is the "young reader" version of "Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can't Stop Talking" (why do nonfictions always have to have long titles?).  I didn't read the adult one, but this one is excellent.  It gives both introverted and shy kids tips on how to survive, cope, and thrive in a world that often rewards extroverts.   There are different sections on dealing with teachers, peers, taking leadership roles, doing sports, and dealing with family members.  Cain doesn't portray introversion as a challenge to be overcome, but as a strength to be exercised. As I read the author's advice, I kept thinking of myself as a child, but also about the children I know who struggle with shyness.  I especially liked the part at the end when the author gives ideas to parents and teachers how to make subtle changes in home and class management to help introverted children thrive.  (2016, 288 p)

Playing the Cards You're Dealt by Varian Johnson

 Ant (short for Anthony) is excited to compete in a Spades card game tournament. His performance in the tournament the previous year was not so great, and he is eager to do better and live up to his family legacy of Spades winners. The tournament is not the only thing on his mind.  His mom is extra stressed and his father is acting oddly.  His best friend and Spades partner is acting up too, and manages to get himself expelled and grounded for fighting.  The only bright spot in Ant's life is a new girl in school, who is not only pretty and smart, but can play Spades and trash talk with the best of them.  As the competition approaches, things at home get worse, and Ant finds himself dealing with way more than he ever imagined. His dad keeps telling him to man up, and keep his secrets, but Anthony can't ignore the feeling in his gut that keeping secrets that could harm his family is not what a real man does.

I checked this book out because I was waiting for another hold and it was short, plus really liked The Parker Inheritance by the same author.  I am so glad I did.  I don't know how much I would have enjoyed reading the book in print, but the narrator of the recorded book, Dion Graham, was fantastic.  The author does a great job of depicting the different people in a closely knit urban neighborhood.  Then Graham gives each one a pitch perfect voice.  The three old men at the convenience store were my favorite.  I could imagine and picture them just as if I were standing there in person.  Johnson addresses a lot of issues about what it means to be a pre-teen male in modern society; including respecting girls, what it means to be strong, and what "consent" looks like to a 10 year old. I was impressed with how Johnson was able to bring up and address these difficult ideas in a totally age appropriate way. The sad thing is that I don't think many people in my community would even pick up this book.  The title and the cover are a little unfortunate. Our library doesn't own a physical copy. Even though I loved the book, I am not sure it would be worth while to purchase one because I don't know who would read it. (2021, 320 p)

The Last Musketeer by Stuart Gibbs

 Gregory has grown up in a large historic estate, and has always attended private schools.  Now his family's inherited wealth has run out and his parents have decided to sell many of the antiques in their mansion to an interested buyer in France. When they get there they find that the man purchasing their heirlooms is mostly interested in his mother's necklace, a broken piece of crystal. When he gets his hands on it, a time portal opens up and he, Gregory's parents, and Gregory himself are sucked into 17th century France where Greg meets Athos, Porthos, and Aramis, the Three Musketeers, as teenagers.  Greg enlists their help to try to free his parents who have been imprisoned in La Mort. 

I am almost always up for a new book by Stuart Gibbs.  I liked his Moon Base Alpha series, his Spy School series, and his Charlie Thorne series.  This one was OK, but I didn't like it as well and some other Gibbs books I have read.  For one thing, the story loses a lot if you are not familiar with the Three Musketeers by Dumas, or at least seen one of the movie adaptations.  How many middle grade readers are? Also, Gibbs falls back on a lot of slap-stick type physical humor. A ten-year-old boy might laugh at the schtick, but I found it a bit too cliché. I did appreciate the realistic portrayal of some of the less appealing aspects of 17th century France, like the lack of sanitation, high levels of pollution, and the intense smells that must have permeated city life in the past. Even though I didn't like this book as much of some of Gibb's others, I will still recommend it to readers looking for historical action and adventure. (2018, 272 p)

Present Danger by Elizabeth Goddard

 Jack Tanner is former FBI but is now working as a detective in Montana.  Terra Connors is a US Forest Service special agent.  When a dead body is found in a national forest the two, who are estranged high school sweethearts, find themselves working together on the case.  The investigation leads to artifact trafficking, more bodies, and danger close to home for Terra.  Her danger triggers protective feelings in Jack and the beginnings of hope that, even though Jack and Terra have a difficult past, maybe they could have some kind of future together.

I chose this book because it had an intriguing genre description; murder mystery Christian romance.  It turned out to be mostly a murder mystery romance, with only a few token Christian elements, like prayers during life threatening moments.  I would say it was a B level read overall.  The dialog was a little stilted, though may have been accentuated by the recorded book reader.  Her reading style was a little stiff.  Still, it began to bug me that every time they talked about a car, they said "vehicle" instead of car.  Every. Single. Time.  I get it that they are supposed to be law enforcement talking in police jargon, but really?  Also, even though this is the first book in a series, I kept thinking, "did I miss a prequel?"  There is a lot of back story, and it was rolled out so slowly that I kept feeling like I had missed something. 

Ok, my commentary sounds harsh.  It really wasn't bad.  On the positive side, it was very clean and I don't think there was any swearing. I enjoyed it enough that I finished the whole 11 hours of the recorded book without turning the playback speed up to 1.25. Still, I am not really planning on reading the rest in the series. (394 p. 2021)

A Tale of Beauty and the Beast by Melanie Cellier

Because Princess Sophia won the Princess Tourney, she is now betrothed to cursed Prince Dominic of Palinar.  When she arrives all alone at his palace, she is dismayed to discover she no longer has a mental link with her twin sister Princess Lily.  Her betrothed is frightening and rude, but Sophia learns to hear the invisible servants who try their best to make her stay at the castle tolerable. Sophie tries desperately to find a way to break the curse over the castle and free herself from the betrothal, but none of her ramblings around the castle, nor her conversations with the servants bring her closer to a solution. When something happens and the prince is injured trying to save Sophie from some wolves, the hearts of the two lost souls start to turn toward each other instead of away. Time is running out for the prince, and Sophie must decide whether to follow her heart or continue trying to save the kingdom.

After the last book, I was eager to read this one and see how Cellier handles the story of Beauty and the Beast.  In the end I was a little disappointed.  Cellier borrows too much from the Disney version of the story, and only makes a few nods to the original fairytale. I am a little surprised she could draw so much from the Disney version and not have their legal department come down on her.  The scene where the Prince is battling wolves and the description of Sophie's hair and dress at the ball are straight from Disney.  There is the secret library that the Prince makes for Sophie, and the handsome bad guy who asks the princess to marry him, and then ends up fighting with the prince.  I am perhaps being too critical.  It was an okay book and if I wasn't comparing it to the Disney version, I probably would have enjoyed it more. Still, I might wait a while before I read another in the series. (296 p. 2017)

I Can Make This Promise by Christine Day

 Edie's mother is part Native American but was adopted by a white couple as an infant.  Edie doesn't know much about her Native heritage, but one day she finds a box in the attic that has pictures of someone named Edith who looks a lot like her.  Edie and her friends decide to try to figure out who the woman is and how she is connected with Edie. When Edie begins to ask her parents about her family history they always dodge her questions.  Gradually Edie comes to learn about the mysterious Edith and about how Native peoples where treated in the past.

I read this book in honor of Native American Heritage Month in November, and also because I was featuring it in a display at work, and I never like to put anything in a display that I haven't read yet. It is the first book written by the author and is based on elements from her own family history.  The book is well written and Edie is a sympathetic character.  It is a good introduction for young people about some of the injustices of history.  (spoiler alert) I didn't know that for decades about 1/3 of children of Native people in the US were taken without their parent's consent and put in foster care or up for adoption. The justification was that the homes they were born into were in "indigent" conditions. It seems horrifying to us today, but I can see how people then considered it the right thing to do because poverty was a major issue among Native people. It is ironic that the government condemned them for their poverty, when a generation or two before that same government drove them off of good prosperous lands and forced them onto reservations that were in the worst, least productive regions of the country.  (288 p. 2020)

A Dance of Silver and Shadow by Melanie Cellier

Princess Lily and her twin sister Sophia are off to make diplomatic alliances with the Duchy of Marin. Upon their arrival they discover that they are being forced to participate in a magical princess tournament to establish who will marry a cursed prince in a neighboring kingdom.  The 12 participants range from ages 13-18, and have to descend into a magical underground realm every three days to compete in various feats of whit and skill. None of the princesses really wants to wed the cursed prince, but if they do not try their best one of their loved ones will suffer.  As the oldest, Lily and Sophia know they are most likely to win, but Lily has a secret plan to protect her sister by trying her best to surpass her.  The prince of Marin comes to first admire, then love Lily, so he doesn't want her to win.  On the other hand, his own three sisters are competing as well, so he can understand Lily's determination to try to save the other girls. The couple also face political treachery within the land of Marin., Torn between duty and love, both know that following their hearts might bring ruin on their friends and family.

I was sick all this week, and this book was just the thing to get me through the worst times.  The 12 Dancing Princesses has long been one of my favorite fairytales, and this is probably my favorite novel adaptation of the story I have read so far. Maybe because I was sick, I couldn't see how the author would resolve the conflict until right before the end. Lily is a charmingly human protagonist, who, although she knows she must not get to attached to Prince John, nevertheless, keeps finding herself unable to resist his comfort, support, and embraces. I liked this book enough that I put the second in the series on hold right away, and have already checked it out to read next. (2017, 444 p.)