Stormy Seas: Stories of Young Boat Refugees by Mary Beth Leatherdale and Eleanor Shakespeare

 

Last week, I reached an important milestone: I read my tenth 2020-2021 Rebecca Caudill nominee. I'm now halfway through this year's list, which I think is pretty awesome. The book I read was Stormy Seas: Stories of Young Boat Refugees by Mary Beth Leatherdale and Eleanor Shakespeare. Stormy Seas is a short collection of true stories about five young people from all around the world who left their homes to seek better lives as refugees. These stories cover why they left, what happened during their experiences, and what happened after. Although the journeys are dangerous, the stories are hopeful and the young refugees succeed in finding safe places to build new lives for themselves.

A couple weeks ago, I read The Only Road by Alexandra Diaz, so this book gave me even more insight about the immigrant experience, this time in a non-fiction format. I loved that the young refugees chosen were from different times and countries. One was from Europe, two were from Asia, another one was from the Caribbean, and the last one was from Africa. They also all ended up in different places. It was interesting that although she didn't end up in Cuba, one of the refugees initially sought asylum there, while another left it for the United States. Additionally, I thought Shakespeare's collage artwork was very beautiful and added to the tone and style of the book. This book contains sidebars, fact boxes, timelines, and resources for more information. I would recommend Stormy Seas to anyone who is interested in the hot topic of immigration.

The Parker Inheritance by Varian Johnson

 

Yesterday, I finished reading The Parker Inheritance by Varian Johnson. This book was an outstanding mystery about two kids who look for a hidden treasure. After her parents' divorce, Candice Miller has to spend the summer at her grandmother's house in Lambert, South Carolina, even though she would rather be back home in Atlanta. When Candice finds a letter written to her grandmother in the attic, she and a fellow book lover, Brandon Jones, get swept into the letter's clues that can lead them to a treasure and help right the injustices of the past in Lambert. Although the clues are challenging, Candice and Brandon work together to solve the puzzles and find the fortune the writer of the letter left behind.

My mind was completely blown away by this book. I absolutely adored how the letter Candice found contained ingenious puzzles that she and Brandon, her new friend, had to use cleverness and creativity to decipher. I was fascinated by the puzzles because they oftentimes contained wordplay or lead to clues that are a play on words. I also enjoyed the chapters with flashbacks to the past because they explained the events in Lambert that lead to the anonymous letter-writer hiding a huge donation to be used for improving the city and the experience Candice's grandmother had when trying to find the inheritance. Additionally, the flashbacks showed how African Americans and people of mixed race faced significant discrimination in Lambert. When writing this mystery, Varian Johnson was inspired by Ellen Raskin's The Westing Game, which is a book I really want to eventually read, too. At the end of the book, Johnson includes an author's note explaining the real-life history behind the story. If you like mysteries or puzzles, this book is a fantastic choice to read.

The Only Road by Alexandra Diaz

 

This past week, I read The Only Road by Alexandra Diaz. This novel is a realistic story about two cousins who travel on a journey from Guatemala to the United States for a better life. When Jaime's cousin and best friend Miguel is murdered by a local gang called the Alphas, he is left with very few options. He can join the Alphas, not join but possibly be killed himself, or go to the New Mexico to live with his older brother. With the support of their family, he and Miguel's older sister Ángela decide to risk everything and pick the third option. Although the journey is dangerous and full of hardships, Miguel and Ángela make new friends along the way and rely on each other to survive.

I thought that The Only Road was very suspenseful. I was constantly worried for Miguel and Ángela's health and safety because they had to fend for themselves on their journey without the help of their parents and relatives besides the food in their backpacks and the money sewn into their pants. Some of the challenges they faced were preserving their food rations as long as possible, avoiding both gangs and the immigration police, and traveling on trains. In one scene, I was terrified that they would either be caught or be killed. There were light-hearted moments scattered throughout, though. Miguel, Ángela, and their friends heal an injured dog and take it with them. I also enjoyed whenever Miguel had free time to draw.  This story is inspired by true events, and Diaz includes an author's note, a glossary, and a list of books and resources about the immigration experience from Mexico and Central America to the U.S. at the end of the book. This book is a great choice for anyone who wants a realistic story about family or a perilous journey.

New Kid by Jerry Craft

 

Last week, I read the graphic novel, New Kid by Jerry Craft. This book is about Jordan Banks, a twelve-year-old who wants to go to art school and be a cartoonist, but whose parents send him to Riverdale Academy Day School instead. Although RAD is a private school with great academics, Jordan is one of the only black kids there and finds himself struggling to fit in. Over the school year, Jordan begins to make new friends while keeping his neighborhood friends and learns how to navigate his new school.

I enjoyed reading New Kid because it blended the challenge of switching schools with humor. I thought Jordan was absolutely hilarious sometimes, especially his comics, which gave plenty of insight into his life and his opinions about RAD. It was fun, too, how Craft put a spin on pop culture references in the chapter titles. The story had a lot of warmth and heart and the facial expressions of the characters in the illustrations were outstanding. I could tell exactly how the characters were feeling when they were bullied, teased, or had a teacher or classmate call them the wrong names. I would recommend this graphic novel to anyone who has ever had to make new friends or wants to read a realistic story told through comics.