Skip to main content

January Girls Read/Guys Read

 Did you know that we have two parent/child book clubs every month at the Provo City Library? They are for children ages 9-12 and a caregiver. This month, they will meet virtually on Zoom on January 26 (girls) and January 28 (guys). Pre-register under the Kids Corner/Program Registration tab on the library website and then pick up a copy of the book at the Children's Desk. We have two great books to discuss this month:

Girls


By Adam Gidwitz
Illustrated by Hatem Aly
New York, NY: Dutton Children's Books, 2016. Fantasy.

In 1242, three children, each magical in different ways, set out on the run across medieval France with their holy dog, Gwenforte. Their story unfolds piece by piece as it is told by a cast of characters who each know a bit of the story. Jeanne, a young peasant girl who can see the future, Jacob a Jewish boy with healing powers, and William, a half-African Christian oblate with superhuman strength, crisscross their way across France hoping to clear their names. Along the way, they encounter a host of trials and adventures. This book is the perfect mix of humor, history, adventure, and epic-fantasy. This Newbery Honoree is sure to engage young readers while sharing a timely message of unity.

Guys


By Jonathan Auxier
New York: Amulet Books, 2018. Fantasy.

Nan Sparrow is a ten-year-old orphan girl who spends her days working as a chimney sweep. Because she is small and quick, she is one of the best "climbing boys" in all of London. One day, when climbing up a flue, she gets stuck and is certain she is going to die when another climbing boy starts a fire in the fireplace. Instead, the mysterious lump of coal she carries in her pocket is brought to life by the burning fire. Her lucky "char" becomes a golem named Charlie and the two misfits become responsible for one another. This is a historical fantasy novel about adventure, friendship, and discovery told in lovely classic-feeling writing. This award-winning novel is a favorite of several Provo City Librarians.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Review: Blood in the Water

Blood in the Water By Tiffany D. Jackson New York: Scholastic, 2025. Fiction. 255 pages. 12-year-old Kaylani McKinnon can't help but feel like a fish out of water. She's a Brooklyn girl spending her summer on Martha's Vineyard surrounded by wealthy family friends in their mansion. All she really wants is to stay home all summer where she her incarcerated father can easily reach her, and she can keep working to find ways to prove him innocent of fraud and embezzlement. Despite her protests, she finds herself on the island with the snooty granddaughters of her host. Soon after Kaylani's arrival, a popular teen boy is found murdered and she decides to conduct her own investigation. As she tries to discover what happened to Chadwick Cooper, Kaylani finds that not everything on Martha's Vineyard is as perfect as it appears. Thrillers for middle grade readers can be hard to find, but Tiffany D. Jackson succeeds in her first middle grade novel. A quick moving plot, tight d...

Review: Fowl Play

  Fowl Play By Kristin O'Donnell Tubb New York: Katherine Tegen Books, 2024. Fiction 277 pages. Still reeling from her beloved uncle's death, Chloe Alvarez is comforted and confused when at his last will and testament reading, Uncle Will gifts her his African Grey parrot, Charlie. Charlie has a robust vocabulary and loves to make Alexa requests for her favorite songs, but when she starts saying things like, "homicide," and "cyanide," Chloe becomes convinced that Uncle Will may have met his demise by murder instead of a genetic disease, as was previously thought. Ultimately, bringing in her brother, Grammy, and Uncle Frank (and of course Charlie,) Chloe's ragtag and adoring family support her search for answers ---going on stakeouts, engaging in fast pursuits, and searching for clues. But as the suspects stack up and the mystery grows, Chole will learn that the process of death and grieving is complicated, and in the end her Uncle Will's words that, ...

Review: Alice with a Why

Alice with a Why By Anna James New York: Penguin, 2026. Fiction. 240 pgs. In 1919, in the aftermath of the first World War, Alyce is living with her grandmother in the English countryside. Her grandmother, also named Alice, tells Alyce (with a y) stories from her childhood adventures in a wonderful land filled with white rabbits and mad hatters. Alyce doesn't really believe the silly stories, she just misses her father who was killed in the war. One day, Alyce receives a mysterious invitation to tea, and subsequently falls into a pond where she is transported to Wonderland. Her grandmother, of course, is that Alice. Alyce is prompted by the Mad Hatter, Dormouse, and March Hare to seek out the Time Being and put an end to the war between the Sun King and the Queen of the Moon. Thus begins Alyce's adventure through Wonderland. I have a certain soft spot for the original story of Alice in Wonderland. It is one of my particular favorites and I often have a hard time reading new int...