The Black Friend by Frederick Joseph came out this week! It’s such an important, timely book from an amazing author and we can’t wait for you all to read it. Head over to our Instagram account right now and you can enter to win a copy for you and a friend! Good luck!
The Black Friend: On Being a Better White Person By Frederick Joseph
272 Pages | Ages 12+| Hardcover
ISBN 9781536217018 | Candlewick
For Frederick Joseph, life as a transfer student in a largely white high school was full of wince-worthy moments that he often simply let go. As he grew older, however, he saw these as missed opportunities not only to stand up for himself, but to spread awareness to those white people who didn’t see the negative impact they were having. Speaking directly to the reader, The Black Friend calls up race-related anecdotes from the author’s past, weaving in his thoughts on why they were hurtful and how he might handle things differently now. Touching on everything from cultural appropriation to power dynamics, “reverse racism” to white privilege, microaggressions to the tragic results of overt racism, this book serves as conversation starter, tool kit, and invaluable window into the life of a former “token Black kid” who now presents himself as the friend many readers need. Backmatter includes an encyclopedia of racism, providing details on relevant historical events, terminology, and more.
‘Tis the season to cuddle up with a mug of hot chocolate and a cute holiday read. You’ll have to make the drink yourself (sorry), but luckily, we have the book recommendations! Check them out below and make sure to pick them up from your favourite local bookstore!
All I Want for Christmas
By Wendy Loggia 240 Pages | Ages 12+ | Paperback ISBN 9780593179833 | Underlined
Bailey Briggs is counting down the days to Christmas: she lives for holiday music, baking cookies, going on snowy sleigh rides,and wearing her light-up reindeer ears to work at Winslow’s bookstore. But all she really wants this year is the one thing she doesn’t have: someone special to kiss under the mistletoe. And she’s 100 percent certain that that someone isn’t Jacob Marley – athlete, player, and of questionable taste in girlfriends – and that Charlie, the mysterious stranger with the British accent, is the romantic lead of her dreams. Is she right? This will be a December to remember, filled with real-life Christmas magic . . . and, if she stays on Santa’s nice list, a wish that just might come true.
Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares
By Rachel Cohn and David Levithan
288 Pages | Ages 12+ | Paperback
ISBN 9780593309605 | Knopf BFYR
16-year-old Lily has left a red notebook full of challenges on her favorite bookstore shelf, waiting for just the right guy to come along and accept its dares. Dash, in a bad mood during the holidays, happens to be the first guy to pick up the notebook and rise to its challenges. What follows is a whirlwind romance as Dash and Lily trade dares, dreams, and desires in the notebook they pass back and forth at locations all across New York City. But can their in-person selves possibly connect as well as their notebook versions, or will their scavenger hunt end in a comic mismatch of disastrous proportions?
It’s a Whole Spiel: Love, Latkes, and Other Jewish Stories
Edited by Katherine Locke and Laura Silverman
Foreword by Mayim Bialik 320 Pages | Ages 12+ | Hardcover ISBN 9780525646167 | Knopf BFYR
A Jewish boy falls in love with a fellow counselor at summer camp. A group of Jewish friends take the trip of a lifetime. A girl meets her new boyfriend’s family over Shabbat dinner. Two best friends put their friendship to the test over the course of a Friday night. A Jewish girl feels pressure to date the only Jewish boy in her grade. Hilarious pranks and disaster ensue at a crush’s Hanukkah party. From stories of confronting their relationships with Judaism to rom-coms with a side of bagels and lox, It’s a Whole Spiel features one story after another that says yes, we are Jewish, but we are also queer, and disabled, and creative, and political, and adventurous, and anything we want to be. You will fall in love with this insightful, funny, and romantic Jewish anthology from a collection of diverse Jewish authors.
Let It Snow
By John Green, Maureen Johnson, and Lauren Myracle 368 Pages | Ages 12+ | Paperback ISBN 9781101998618 | Speak
An ill-timed storm on Christmas Eve buries the residents of Gracetown under multiple feet of snow and causes quite a bit of chaos. One brave soul ventures out into the storm from her stranded train, setting off a chain of events that will change quite a few lives. Over the next three days one girl takes a risky shortcut with an adorable stranger, three friends set out to win a race to the Waffle House (and the hash brown spoils), and the fate of a teacup pig falls into the hands of a lovesick barista.
New Year’s Kiss
By Lee Matthews 256 Pages | Ages 12+ | Paperback ISBN 9780593179857 | Underlined
Tess and her opinionated older sister Lauren are spending the week after Christmas at the snowy Evergreen Lodge in Vermont and they aren’t happy about it. Their stern grandmother, who owns the holiday resort, is not known for her warmth and good humor. But when shy, straight-laced Tess meets Christopher in the lobby, things are suddenly looking up. And when she decides to get out of her comfort zone and create a bucket list of things to accomplish before the New Year-like singing in public and skiing a black-diamond slope-Christopher is happy to help, even as he keeps a secret that could turn everything upside down. When the ball drops, will Tess and Christopher share a magical kiss-or will Tess start the new year off alone?
What Light
By Jay Asher 272 Pages | Ages 12+ | Paperback ISBN 9780448493640 | Razorbill
Sierra’s family runs a Christmas tree farm in Oregon – it’s a bucolic setting for a girl to grow up in, except that every year, they pack up and move to California to set up their Christmas tree lot for the season. So Sierra lives two lives: her life in Oregon and her life at Christmas. And leaving one always means missing the other. Until this particular Christmas, when Sierra meets Caleb, and one life eclipses the other. By reputation, Caleb is not your perfect guy: years ago, he made an enormous mistake and has been paying for it ever since. But Sierra sees beyond Caleb’s past and becomes determined to help him find forgiveness and, maybe, redemption. As disapproval, misconceptions, and suspicions swirl around them, Caleb and Sierra discover the one thing that transcends all else: true love.
This fall, we’re testing our general knowledge and hanging out with some of our fave authors in a three-part trivia series! Join us for part three on Wednesday, November 25th at 7pm EST on Zoom. We’ll be joined by Kat Cho (Vicious Spirits), Tanaz Bhathena (Hunted by the Sky), and Kiersten White (The Camelot Betrayal) who will be asking questions about Korea, women warriors, and betrayals. RSVP here and we’ll “see” you there!
Vicious Spirits
By Kat Cho
416 Pages | Ages 12+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9781984812377 | Putnam BFYR
Somin is ready to help her friends pick up the pieces of their broken lives and heal. But Jihoon is still grieving the loss of his grandmother, and Miyoung is distant as she grieves over her mother’s death and learns to live without her fox bead. The only one who seems ready to move forward is their not-so-favorite dokkaebi, Junu. Somin and Junu didn’t exactly hit it off when they first met. Somin thought he was an arrogant self-serving, conman. Junu was, at first, amused by her hostility toward him until he found himself inexplicably drawn to her. Somin couldn’t deny the heat of their attraction. But as the two try to figure out what could be between them, they discover their troubles aren’t over after all. The loss of Miyoung’s fox bead has caused a tear between the world of the living and the world of the dead, and ghosts are suddenly flooding the streets of Seoul. The only way to repair the breach is to find the missing fox bead or for Miyoung to pay with her life. With few options remaining, Junu has an idea but it might require the ultimate sacrifice. In usual fashion, Somin may have a thing or two to say about that.
Hunted by the Sky
By Tanaz Bhathena
384 Pages | Ages 12+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735267022 | Penguin Teen Canada
Gul has spent her life running. She has a star-shaped birthmark on her arm, and in the kingdom of Ambar, girls with such birthmarks have been disappearing for years. Gul’s mark is what caused her parents’ murder at the hand of King Lohar’s ruthless soldiers and forced her into hiding to protect her own life. So when a group of rebel women called the Sisters of the Golden Lotus rescue her, take her in, and train her in warrior magic, Gul wants only one thing: revenge. Cavas lives in the tenements, and he’s just about ready to sign his life over to the king’s army. His father is terminally ill, and Cavas will do anything to save him. But sparks fly when he meets a mysterious girl – Gul – in the capital’s bazaar, and as the chemistry between them undeniably grows, he becomes entangled in a mission of vengeance – and discovers a magic he never expected to find. Dangerous circumstances have brought Gul and Cavas together at the king’s domain in Ambar Fort . . . a world with secrets deadlier than their own. Exploring identity, class struggles, and high-stakes romance, Hunted by the Sky is a gripping adventure set in a world inspired by medieval India.
The Camelot Betrayal
By Kiersten White
384 Pages | Ages 12+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9780525581710 | Delacorte BFYR
King Arthur is expanding his kingdom’s influence with Queen Guinevere at his side. Yet every night, dreams of darkness and unknowable power plague her. Guinevere might have accepted her role, but she still cannot find a place for herself in all of it. The closer she gets to the people around her – Brangien, pining for her lost love Isolde; Lancelot, fighting to prove her worth as Queen’s knight; and Arthur, everything to everyone and thus never quite enough for Guinevere – the more she realizes how empty she is. She has no sense of who she truly was before she was Guinevere. The more she tries to claim herself as queen, the more she wonders if Mordred was right: she doesn’t belong. She never will. When a rescue goes awry and results in the death of something precious, a devastated Guinevere returns to Camelot to find the greatest threat yet has arrived. Not in the form of the Dark Queen or an invading army, but in the form of the real Guinevere’s younger sister. Is her deception at an end? And who is she really deceiving – Camelot, or herself?
It’s been a decade since Rachel Cohen and David Levithan first introduced us to one of our fave couples, Dash and Lily, and now they’re getting an adaptation! Make sure you tune into Dash & Lily on Netflix starting November 10 and catch up on the books if you haven’t already!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AmW5GO6btMM
Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares By Rachel Cohn and David Levithan 288 Pages | Ages 12+ | Paperback ISBN 9780375859557 | Knopf BFYR 16-year-old Lily has left a red notebook full of challenges on her favorite bookstore shelf, waiting for just the right guy to come along and accept its dares. Dash, in a bad mood during the holidays, happens to be the first guy to pick up the notebook and rise to its challenges. What follows is a whirlwind romance as Dash and Lily trade dares, dreams, and desires in the notebook they pass back and forth at locations all across New York City. But can their in-person selves possibly connect as well as their notebook versions, or will their scavenger hunt end in a comic mismatch of disastrous proportions?
The Twelve Days of Dash & Lily By Rachel Cohn and David Levithan 240 Pages | Ages 12+ | Paperback ISBN 9780399553837 | Knopf BFYR Dash and Lily have had a tough year since readers watched the couple fall in love in Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares. Lily’s beloved grandfather suffered a heart attack, and his difficult road to recovery has taken a major toll on her typically sunny disposition. Lily’s spark has dimmed so much that Langston, her brother, has put aside his grudge against Dash to team up and remind Lily what there is to love about life. With only twelve days left until Christmas – Lily’s favorite time of the year – Dash, Langston, and their friends take Manhattan by storm to help Lily recapture the holiday spirit of New York City in December, a time and place unlike anywhere else in the world. Told in alternating chapters, The Twelve Days of Dash & Lily is bound to be a Christmas favorite for seasons to come.
Mind the Gap, Dash & Lily By Rachel Cohn and David Levithan 256 Pages | Ages 12+ | Paperback ISBN 9780593301531 | Knopf BFYR Dash and Lily were feeling closer than ever…it’s just too bad they’re now an ocean apart. After Dash gets accepted to Oxford University and Lily stays in New York to take care of her dog-walking business, the devoted couple are struggling to make a long distance relationship work. And when Dash breaks the news that he won’t be coming home for Christmas, Lily makes a decision: If Dash can’t come to her, she’ll join him in London. It’s a perfect romantic gesture…that spins out of Lily’s control. Soon Dash and Lily are feeling more of a gap between them, even though they’re in the same city. Will London bring them together again – or will it be their undoing?
Have you heard of the Pocket Change Collective? It’s an on-going series of big ideas wrapped in cute little packages from a variety of voices across North America. They deal with huge topics like the gender binary, art, and the plastics crisis and we’re obsessed with them. And they make great stocking stuffers or small holiday gifts for the budding activist in your life! Check them out below and keep an eye out for a few new installments in 2021!
If you need more encouragement to pick these little books up, we’ve included links to panels we did with the entire Pocket Change Collective team in collaboration with the Koffler Centre of the Arts in Toronto!
Beyond the Gender Binary By Alok Vaid-Menon Illustrated by Ashley Lukashevsky 64 Pages | Ages 12+ | Paperback ISBN 9780593094655 | Penguin Workshop Alok Vaid-Menon challenges the world to see gender not in black and white, but in full color. Taking from their own experiences as a gender-nonconforming artist, they show us that gender is a malleable and creative form of expression. The only limit is your imagination.
The New Queer Conscience By Adam Eli Illustrated by Ashley Lukashevsky 64 Pages | Ages 12+ | Paperback ISBN 9780593093689 | Penguin Workshop Voices4 Founder and LGBTQIA+ activist Adam Eli offers a candid and compassionate introduction to queer responsibility. Eli calls on his Jewish faith to underline how kindness and support within the queer community can lead to a stronger global consciousness. More importantly, he reassures us that we’re not alone. In fact, we never were. Because if you mess with one queer, you mess with us all.
Imaginary Borders By Xiuhtezcatl Martinez Illustrated by Ashley Lukashevsky 64 Pages | Ages 12+ | Paperback ISBN 9780593094136 | Penguin Workshop Earth Guardians Youth Director and hip-hop artist Xiuhtezcatl Martinez shows us how his music feeds his environmental activism and vice versa. Martinez visualizes a future that allows us to direct our anger, fear, and passion toward creating change. Because, at the end of the day, we all have a part to play.
This is What I Know About Art By Kimberly Drew Illustrated by Ashley Lukashevsky 64 Pages | Ages 12+ | Paperback ISBN 9780593095188 | Penguin Workshop Arts writer and co-editor of Black Futures Kimberly Drew shows us that art and protest are inextricably linked. Drawing on her personal experience through art toward activism, Drew challenges us to create space for the change that we want to see in the world. Because there really is so much more space than we think.
Catch up with Kimberly and Xiuhtezcatl at the Koffler Centre – October 6, 2020
Concrete Kids By Amyra León Illustrated by Ashley Lukashevsky 96 Pages | Ages 12+ | Paperback ISBN 9780593095195 | Penguin Workshop Concrete Kids is an exploration of love and loss, melody and bloodshed. Musician, playwright, and educator Amyra León takes us on a poetic journey through her childhood in Harlem, as she navigates the intricacies of foster care, mourning, self-love, and resilience. In her signature free-verse style, she invites us all to dream with abandon–and to recognize the privilege it is to dream at all.
Taking on the Plastics Crisis By Hannah Testa Illustrated by Ashley Lukashevsky 64 Pages | Ages 12+ | Paperback ISBN 9780593223338 | Penguin Workshop Youth activist Hannah Testa, founder of Hannah4Change, shares how she led a grassroots political campaign to successfully pass state legislation limiting single-use plastics and how she influenced global businesses to adopt more sustainable practices. Through her personal journey, readers can learn how they, too, can follow in Hannah’s footsteps and lower their carbon footprint by simply refusing single-use plastics.
Catch up with Amyra and Hannah at the Koffler Centre – October 21, 2020
The Black Friend: On Being a Better White Person
