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She Dared: Malala Yousafzai by Jenni L. Walsh, 128 pages.  Scholastic, 2019.  $7.   Content: Language: G; Mature Content: G; Violence: PG.   B UYING ADVISORY: EL, MS – ADVISABLE   AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE    Malala lived in Pakistan with her parents and two brothers.  She dreamed of becoming a doctor and loved everything to do with school.  When the Taliban leaders start to infringe on the rights of the people in her community, Malala starts to speak out against the oppression.  She is targeted by the Taliban and shot while taking the bus home from school.  She received medical care in England and has used her experience to try and bring attention to the needs of girls around the world.   This is a great succinct biography about Malala’s life.  I especially enjoyed the ending that includes all the ways that she has reached out and helped since this experience.  Her story is inspiring and courageous and this version of the story is well done without being scary.   C. Peterson

Coco Chanel : Pearls, Perfume and the Little Black Dress by Susan Goldman Rubin , 133 pages. NON FICTION Abrams Books for Young Readers, 2018 $18.99.  Content: G. BUYING ADVISORY: MS - ESSENTIAL, HS - ADVISABLE AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH  Susan Goldman Rubin gives us a well researched biography of the famous designer. Beginning with her childhood, mostly spent in poverty, living with relatives or in an orphanage, through her schooling and eventual rise to fame as the designer for the rich and famous in Paris.   Rubin does a great job of separating fact from fiction; telling both Chanel's story and the researched history. Well illustrated with captioned historical photographs, includes a list of museums with artifacts, fashion firsts introduced by Chanel and an extensive bibliography.   Lisa Librarian 

Nevertheless, We Persisted: 48 Voices of Defiance, Strength, and Courage by Amy Klobuchar , 275 pages. Alfred A. Knopf (Random House Children’s Books), 2018. $18.99 Language: R (12 swears, 4 “f”); Mature Content: PG13; Violence: PG13 BUYING ADVISORY: HS – OPTIONAL AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH The 48 contributors who have shared their stories have done so to help readers know that they are not alone, that they can overcome the obstacles in their paths, and that they can accomplish anything they want. These men and women have faced biases and bigotry, war and injury, divorce and disability, discouragement and more—and they have chosen to come out of all those hardships on top. They rally around their readers to help each of us know of our worth and fight to become the best we can be, in whatever form that looks like. In reading all the hardships that others have fought through and how a lot of these persisters have only arrived at where they are because of the hardships they faced, I feel like

Lincoln in His Own Words by Milton Meltzer, illustrated by Stephen Alcorn, 221 pages.  Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 1993 (reprint 2018).  $13.  Content: Language: G; Mature Content: G; Violence: G.   BUYING ADVISORY: MS, HS – ADVISABLE   AUDIENCE APPEAL: LOW   This is a biography of Abraham Lincoln told with a mixture of the author’s explanations and Lincoln’s own words.  From the time Lincoln was little, he was interested in understanding the world around him.  He was a humanitarian and lawyer and he loved his country.  During his presidency, Lincoln tried to keep the country together during the Civil War and fought for slaves’ freedom.  In these moving speeches Lincoln’s goodness and passion for what is right becomes evident.   This is a slow read with lots of interesting facts and great quotes.  I think this book would work well in a classroom where the teacher can concentrate on specific quotes (not necessarily the whole book at one time) and have the students study history from Lin

Prince Harry & Meghan: Royals for a New Era by Jill Sherman , 48 pages. NONFICTION. Lerner Publications, 2019. $32. 9781541539457.  Language: G (0 swears); Mature Content: G; Violence: G BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ADVISABLE AUDIENCE APPEAL: EL, MS - AVERAGE This is a short informational/biographical text of Prince Harry of Wales and his now-wife, US-born Meghan Markle. Basic information is covered about both of them--with more emphasis on Harry than Meghan--and colorful photographs illustrate every step of the way. The book ends with their royal 2018 wedding. The back of the book has a timeline, source notes, and a basic index and bibliography. This was a great nonfiction biography at a perfect level for upper elementary and middle school readers. Those who are interested in this famous royal couple (and who isn't?!) will get the basic info they want; the numerous pictures are appropriate and add a nice touch. I liked the writing style and overall feel like this is a good fit

Survivors Club: The True Story of a Very Young Prisoner of Auschwitz by Michael Bornstein and Debbie Bornstein Holinstat, 344 pages.  Farrar Straus Giroux, 2017.  $17.   Content: Language: G; Mature Content: G; Violence: PG-13.   BUYING ADVISORY: MS, HS – ESSENTIAL   AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH    Michael Bornstein was the youngest child to survive Auschwitz.  In this harrowing story, Michael tells of his family’s experience in Poland during World War II.  Michael was born shortly after the war started, but through research among his family members he paints a vivid picture of the losses suffered by Polish Jews.  He explains his father’s role as a mediator between the German soldiers and the Jewish community and his mother’s strength in the work camp as well as Aushwitz.  After Aushwitz is liberated, Michael tells of some of the hardships of coming home and moving on.   I devoured this book in two days.  I listened to the audio book read by Fred Berman (who did an outstanding job) and it is

Lights! Camera! Alice! : The Thrilling True Adventures of the First Woman Filmmaker by Mara Rockliff , Illustrated by Simona Ciraolo, PICTURE BOOK, BIOGRAPHY, Chronicle Books. 2018. $18. 1452141347 BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - ADVISABLE EL, MS - ESSENTIAL  AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH   Alice Guy Blaché is one of the world's first movie makers. She worked for a camera company and was allowed to make movies after hours which she used to demonstrate the new motion picture camera. Soon her films became a huge success in France. One of the first pioneers of motion pictures, she is little known - mostly because she was a woman. She made hundreds of films in America and even more in France.  Formatted like a silent movie, in frames and short ideas - sprinkled with French and title cards this was a delight to read. I want to know more about Alice! Good thing the author has included a short author's note, bibliography, articles and movies. A fun read for a theater or film study class, or a les

Picturing America : Thomas Cole and the Birth of American Art  By Hudson Talbott   PICTURE BOOK, Biography, Penguin Random House, 2018. $18. 9780399548703 BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3), EL,  MS - ADVISABLE  AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE   Thomas Cole loved to draw. He and his sister walked all over the hillsides in England drawing everything they could see. In 1818 his family moved to America, and Thomas learned to paint, making beautiful landscapes. No one painted like Thomas Cole.  This picture book biography is stunning. Talbot has incorporated Cole’s art, and seamlessly tells the story while introducing and explaining his works. So accessible to young readers, I’m showing this to my art teacher.  Lisa Librarian 

Spring After Spring : How Rachel Carson Inspired the Environmental Movement by Stephanie Roth Sisson  PICTURE BOOK, NON FICTION Roaring Brook Press, 2018, $18. 9781626728196 BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) -,  EL -,  MS - ESSENTIAL  AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH  Rachel Carson was always interested in animals. As a child she would rush outside in the spring to hear all the sounds of the birds, animals and insects - sounds that grew louder as spring turned into summer. Year after year she wrote, and wanted to be a writer - but college changed her focus to Biology. Her writing and her observations came together with the publication of Silent Spring which eventually lead to the Environmental Protection Agency and a change in how we feel about the environment and things like pesticides.  Sisson has illustrated her picture book like a graphic novel, with panels and word bubbles (for the sounds of nature.) Easily accessible to a 3rd grader and up, this important lesson on how appreciating the environment