Black Butler, Vol. 24

 Toboso, Yana. Black Butler, Vol. 24. 2017. 176p. ISBN 9780316511209. Available in the graphic novels section of the library.

The musical cult of the S4 from Black Butler, Vol. 23 continues to make its mark on London, with people eagerly awaiting the 4th Saturday of the month performance at the Music Hall. With Ciel Phanthomhive's own betrothed, young Elizabeth, also under their influence, this is becoming a pressing problem in need of a resolution. The removal of large quantities of blood poses a risk to both the victims, and to the public order, so Ciel tasks Sebastian to infiltrate the Music Hall and discover who the four stars behind the movement are, and for what purpose is the blood being removed. Lady Sullivan, meanwhile, analyzes the blood previously collected and realizes that there is in fact four types of blood cells. This knowledge would revolutionize how blood transfusions are performed.

With a dearth of information, Phantomhive comes up with a plan. With Elizabeth in danger, why not fight fire with fire? A new music hall is erected across the street, and a new act literally steals the crowd. As their attendance dwindles, how will the mysterious cult fight back?

The Address Book: What Street Addresses Reveal About Identity, Race, Wealth, and Power

 Mask, Deirdre. The Address Book: What Street Addresses Reveal About Identity, Race, Wealth, and Power. 2020. 336p. ISBN 9781250134769. Available at 388.1 MAS on the library shelves.

What's in an address? It's the place where you live. You get your mail there. Your favorite online shopping service sends packages there. But what if you didn't have an address? How would you get your mail? How would you receive information? In this provocative book, Deirdre Mask recounts the history of the street address. From the ancient city of Rome to the development of Philadelphia, it was never pre-ordained that addresses would become one of the most important aspects of modern life and that lacking one would hamper the lives of so many people.

Addresses tell where you live, but they also tell much more. They can tell others about your social class. Someone living at an address on Central Park in New York is more likely to be wealthier than someone living in West Virginia. Certain addresses are in neighborhoods that are inhabited by a majority of people from the same ethnic or racial background. 

Learn all there is to know about addresses and the fascinating history that led to your home having a number attached to it!

Not Your Sidekick

 Lee, C.B. Not Your Sidekick. Book 1 of the Sidekick Squad series. 2016. 283p. ISBN 9781945053030.

Following wars and solar flares that destroyed much of the world but caused the apparition of super powers, life reorganized around nascent superheroes, who helped rebuild societies. At the same time, however, super villains also became prominent, and soon both groups were organized and fought against each other.

Jessica comes from a family of superheroes. Both of her father and mother are Class-C superheroes and they protect the Nevada city of Andover from the villainous Mr. and Mrs. Mischief. Her older sister, Claudia, is a Class-A and is interning with Captain Orion herself, the age's most famous superhero. Jess' younger brother is a genius who is already in college, and he is developing advanced technologies. Unlike all of them, however, Jess has not manifested a power. And now that she turned 17, the window has closed and she is the only one of her family who doesn't have a super power, something she had been looking forward to all of her life.

Knowing she will not have the easy life of a superhero, Jess reorient herself towards a mundane life and looks for an internship that will help you burnish her college application. She's surprised to be accepted by Munroe Technologies' division of special projects, where she will file papers, do administrative work, and other duties as assigned. She is surprised to see that Abby, the girl she has had a crush on for three years, also works there. She is surprised to discover that she will actually work for Mr. Mischief himself. With Jess' super parents' identity secret, she eagerly accepts the job. M, who wears one of Mr. Mischief's old suit, is her direct supervisor.

As Jess navigates the inner works of Munroe Technologies and confides her interest in Abby to M., she learns that the League of Heroes is not exactly what it seems like, and the disappearance of several villains recently indicate a nefarious purpose is at work. Can powerless Jess help M. and Abby discover what is happening?

Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Vol 9: The Long Haul

 Kinney, Jeff. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul. Vol 9 of the series. 2015. 240p. ISBN 9781419711893. Available at FIC KIN on the library shelves.

The Heffleys are heading on a family trip! Greg's mother came up with the brilliant idea to go on a vacation together, but everything that can go wrong will. First, the family struggles with limiting their luggage, and Greg soon finds himself stuck in the rear seat with all of the luggage. Greg's dad had bought a boat once that never worked, so he uses the boat and its trailer to haul more luggage. 

In the van Greg's mother attempts to lighten the atmosphere by playing games, but only Manny is interested. At a county fair, Manny wins a pig, and the farmer is insistent they take it, so the family now has a pet aboard the van. Traveling with a pig is no easy feat, however, and things like gas station bathrooms soon become an ordeal. With a nemesis family traveling on the same circuit, what could possibly go wrong?

Enjoy a family trip like no other as the Heffleys travel across the country, looking for things to do in a trip that will be as bad as it will be memorable!

The Way of Kings

Sanderson, Brandon. The Way of Kings. Book 1 of The Stormlight Archive. 2010. 1007p. ISBN 9780765326355.

In this sweeping fantasy epic, Alethela, the most powerful kingdom on the continent is at war with the Parshendi, a nation of strange folks from the Shattered Plains of the Unclaimed Lands. Six years ago, Galivar, king of the newly united kingdom of Alethela, met the Parshendi on the Shattered Plains during a hunting expedition. Similar in many ways to the Alethela's servant race of Parshmen, but bigger and stronger, they sponsored the assassination of the king and claimed responsibility. In response, the ten High Princes led their armies to the Shattered Plains and have been besieging the Parshendi ever since, fighting them on plateaus as each side seek to acquire the valuable gem hearts out of giant chasmfiends. 

Brightlord Dalinar Kholin is brother to the former king, and commands the most disciplined and trained Alethela army. Whispers around the ten war camps talk of his slowly dropping into madness, for every time one of the devastating storm that flows on the continent from east to west he sees visions of the past. Slow to attack, Dalinar has fallen behind in the assaults on the Parshendi, but the visions are telling him he must unite the warring factions in the face of the Devastation that is to come. The storms have become more frequent and more violent.

Kaladin, who was the son of a surgeon, followed his younger brother to war when he was forcibly enrolled in the military so he could protect him. He failed his mission, but soon became an extraordinary squad leader. Slayer of a Shardbearer, a strange armor and weapon from ancient Knight Radiants who once fought against the Devastation, he was sentenced to become a slave so that the Brightlord he served under could claim the armor and weapon for his own. Kaladin finds himself a lowly bridgeman, condemned to serve on Bridge Four's crew. The bridge crews move Brightlord Sadeas' mobile bridges from one plateau to another, so that his army can travel and confront the Parshendi. The death rate of bridgemen is 100%. Against all odds, Kaladin survives, and begins training his own crew of bridgemen to be better than the rest, to increase their own odds of survival. With a windspren named Syl, who seems to encourage him, Kaladin searches for a way out, while he ponders why everything he touches eventually fails.

Shallan hopes to save her family's estate by stealing the Soulcaster worn by a famous scholar, Jasnah, who happens to be the daughter of the former king and niece of Dalinar. But Shallan also hopes to become a scholar, and as she trains under Jasnah, bidding her time to complete the steal, she discovers that the scholar has been studying the Voidbringers, who have been responsible for the last Desolations and the many crumblings of human civilizations. 

With a mysterious Truthless assassin on the loose, and with conspiracy and treachery abounding, it will take more than luck to discover the threat faced by the continent of Roshar.

Dragon Hoops: From Small Steps to Great Leaps

Yang, Gene Luen. Dragon Hoops: From Small Steps to Great Leaps. 2020. 446p. ISBN 9781626720794. Available in the graphic novels section of the library.

Gene loves superheroes. He enjoys reading about them, watching movies about them, and creating his own comic books about them. Gene is an artist who creates his own graphic novels. In search of inspiration, Gene decides to explore his school's winning basketball team, the Dragons. Led by coach Lou Richie, the Bishop O'Dowd High School team is on the road to reach the California State Championship and win, something that has been denied in the past, with the team reaching the finals but never winning.

The problem is that Gene doesn't particularly like sports. Why bother, when there are all of these superheroes that have stories to tell. If only he could think of one. Reluctantly, Gene begins following the basketball team, and soon notices that instead of being a monolithic institution, each player brings their own stories, passions, and dreams to the team, and that the quest for a championship is very much like a superhero story, filled with villains, last second rescues, and people trying to do the right thing. And in the end, telling the story of each player and of the team will change not only their lives, but Gene's as well, showing him that athletes can also be superheroes.

Fans of graphic novels will appreciate the details and the illustrations, but will stay for the engaging story about high school students who triumph over adversity.

Spellsinger

Foster, Alan Dean. Spellsinger. Book 1 of the Spellsinger Adventures Series. 2011. 290p. ISBN 9780743498258.

Jonathan-Thomas Meriweather is a pre-law student at UCLA who works as a sanitation engineer (also known as a janitor) for the school, and who appreciates music and marijuana. When he wakes up in the middle of a forest from an epic party the night before, he is thoroughly confused. Why is he not in his bed? Why is this otter wearing clothes and standing on two legs threatening him with a sword? Thinking this must be a dream, Jonathan gets himself stabbed, which reveals to him that he is very much here, in this fantasy world where animals are anthropomorphic.

Brought to meet the great turtle wizard Clothahump by the otter, Jon-Tom, as he becomes known, is informed that the turtle is in fact the one who summoned him here. Looking for an engineer, the turtle brought him over to help defeat an unspeakable evil that threatens their world with destruction.

Armed with nothing but law, politics, and history, Jon-Tom joins a merry rag-tag of animal and human adventurers looking to warn all of the world's communities of the impending doom that will come from their insect-like neighbors, who have acquired a powerful weapon and who hope to finally achieve the conquest they have been denied for thousands of years. From a card-cheating rabbit to a Marxist-spewing dragon and an angry indented bat servant, the group must make its way across the continent before it is too late!

While Jon-Tom learns to master the magic that defines the land, he and his companions gets in all sorts of trouble. Hilarious and poking fun of fantasy tropes, the Spellsinger nevertheless delivers an interesting world building and memorable characters!

Saints and Misfits

 Ali, S. K. Saints and Misfits. 217. 336p. ISBN 9781481499248

When people look at Janna Yusuf, all they see if her headscarf. They don't see that she's a really good photographer, an amazing student, a loving sister, a great helper to an elderly neighbor, open-minded, and a daughter to divorced parents, an Egyptian mother and an Indian father. Strong in her Muslim faith, Janna wears the hijab because she feels comfortable and less exposed. A junior in high school, Janna and her best friend, who is not Muslim, complement each other well. 

In her community, everyone look up to Sarah and to Farouk. Sarah, or Saint Sarah, as Janna refers to her, is the perfect Muslim girl, always respectful, always amazingly dressed, leading all of the fundraising efforts at the Mosque, and studying to complete a doctorate. Her brother, Mohammed, begins to date Sarah, and Janna gets the opportunity to observe her. Then there's Farouk. He can recite the Koran by heart, and is deemed blessed. But behind this facade lays a monster who attempted to rape Janna at a party. 

Terrified of the boy she calls the monster, Janna doesn't know how to bring him down so that other members of her community will see him for what he really is. Janna is also conflicted, because she lately finds her thoughts going to Jeremy, a non-Muslim boy with a nice forehead.

With exams, Mohammed moving back into their small apartment and needing to occupy her room while she moves in her mother's own bedroom, with the monster lurking in the background and her infatuation with Jeremy, what's a proper Muslim girl to do? Can she be both a saint and a misfit?

Janna is a wonderfully real characters, with emotions and a personality that shines throughout the book. Not rebellious by nature, Janna must figure out a way to move forward from her horrifying experience with the monster. Fans of realistic fiction interested in learning about a different culture will love this book!

The Ruinous Sweep

 Wynne-Jones. Tim. The Ruinous Sweep. 2018. 388p. ISBN 9780763697457. 

Donovan doesn't remember how he got into this car. The driver is chatty, and he asks him questions Donovan can't answer, because he has no memories of what happened earlier. All he knows is that he needs to make contact with his girlfriend Beatrice, as there is something very important he needs to tell her, if only he could grasp it again.

Bee is the first one called after Donovan was brought to the hospital following a hit and run three houses down from his home on a quiet street. With multiple injuries, the staff at the hospital is not optimistic about his chances of survival. With his mother and stepfather off camping in the woods, and with his father missing, Bee is the only family Donovan's got. Sitting by him, she hears him whispers disparate sounds, and she decides to record everything he says, in case it will be helpful.

When Bee is visited by police officers, she realizes it was not a random accident. Donovan's father is dead, and Donovan is the last one who saw him. The baseball bat used to kill him is Donovan's, and the police suspects that he might have killed his father before throwing himself in front of a jacked-up red pickup truck to kill himself. Bee is not buying it, despite Donovan's whispers that indicate he might have done just that. First, there's the missing pickup. Then why would Donovan be three houses away from his home, on the wrong side of the street, heading to a dead end? Bee decides to investigate further.

Meanwhile, Donovan encounters people from his past, and they try to help him go back to Bee. Several times he's able to call her on his phone, but her voice is muffled and she's not very expressive. He does manage to give her several pieces of information, but he doesn't remember why they are important. As he begins to recall what happened earlier that evening, his encounter with his father looms large, and it is as if his father is either chasing him along, or leading him on towards an unknown destination. Can Donovan and Bee manage to reconnect so that together they can shed light on what happened to him?

Told from alternating perspectives, this murder mystery is partly inspired by Dante's Divine Comedy, the first part of which is The Inferno. Bee is determined to solve this mystery, even if it puts her in danger, and Donovan is just as motivated making it back to her. A boy with a short temper and a dysfunctional father, Donovan has all of the motives to have killed his father, but Bee doesn't believe he would be capable. Fans of mystery will enjoy this tale, even if the conclusion seems too perfect.

The Henna Wars

 Jaigirdar, Adiba. The Henna Wars. 2020. 400p. ISBN 9781624149689. 

Originally from Bangladesh, Nishat and her family moved to Ireland, and settled in Dublin. Her father runs a restaurant, and her mother takes care of both Nishat and her sister Priti. Attending an all-girl Catholic school, Nishat sticks out like a sore thumb with her dark skin, her Muslim faith, and the secret that she likes girls. Attending a Bengali wedding, she decides it's time to tell her parents. At the wedding she is reunited with Flávia, a girl from her elementary years. Flávia is half-Brazilian, half-Irish, and her brown skin looks a lot like Nishat's own. Nishat is instantly smitten, but can't act on her impulse, plus it's unlikely she'll run into Flávia again.

Finally mustering the courage following the wedding, she tells her parents that she is a lesbian, only to be met with incomprehension. Only her sister Priti supports her. Returning to school for a new school year, Nishat is shocked to see Flávia is not only now attending school, but their lockers are right next to each other. Unfortunately, Flávia happens to be China's cousin, and China is the biggest gossip and the meanest girl in school, and has been demeaning Nishat since they were freshmen.

At school, a business competition is announced, and Nishat decides she will draw henna designs, used in traditional Bengali weddings, as her business. Unfortunately Flávia, who's a great artist, joins forces with China and they also offer henna designs, something Nishat perceives as an appropriation of her culture. Torn between loving Flávia and hating her, Nishat faces hard decisions about her life, her sister, her family, and her own identity.

Fans of When Dimple Met Rishi will appreciate Nishat's resilience and the vivid descriptions of her culture and her home life. Nishat is strong and refuses to break in the face of adversity. Her parents eventually come around to her sexual identity, and though she doesn't win the business competition, she does win Flávia's heart.

Locke & Key. Vol 1: Welcome to Lovecraft

 Hill, Joe and Gabriel Rodriguez. Locke & Key, vol 1: Welcome to Lovecraft. 2013. 9781600102370

After their father, Rendell Locke, was brutally murdered by Sam Lesser, Tyler, Kinsey and their younger brother Bode move with their mother away from San Francisco to Lovecraft, Massachusetts. Located on a peninsula, Lovecraft is where Rendell grew up. They hope to rebuild a semblance of a normal life, far away from the prison where Sam Lesser, a classmate of Tyler back in California, now resides.

The assault and murder broke an already dysfunctional family. Coming upon the armed killer, Tyler had to escape in the basement, while Kinsey hid herself and her younger brother on the roof of their house. Tyler was able to stop Sam, and smashed his head in with a brick multiple times, leaving permanent scars. All siblings, as well as their mother, are traumatized by what happened, but of all of them Bode, being young, has adapted the best to their current situation at the Locke house. 

In fact, that's where he found the old well, and its resident, some girl or spirit only he can talk to. Bode also discovers that one of the doors of the Locke house causes him to die and become a ghost every time he goes through it, but he can always return and cross the door in the other direction, regaining consciousness in his body.

Tyler holds himself responsible for his father's death, since he's the one who suggested the possibility to Sam Lesser. Of the three siblings, he has the hardest time adapting to his new life on the East Coast. Kinsey also has trouble fitting in at first, but makes a connection with a track and field girl and they become training partners.

As the family attempts to put their lives back together, the spirit in the well guides Bode to provide her with tools, which she passes back to Sam Lesser in his prison cell. For Sam is also connected to Lovecraft, and as he escapes from prison and makes his way east. With Sam on his way, and with the spirit in the well yearning to break free, the Locke family is once again in mortal danger!

A great graphic novel, Locke & Key manages to maintain the suspense through amazing illustrations that convey the tones of darkness and dread. Fans of horror will not be disappointed with this gruesome book!

The story continues in Locke & Key, vol. 2: The Headgame.

Stay Gold

McSmith, Tobly. Stay Gold. 2020. 368p. ISBN 9780062943170. 

Starting his senior year at a new school is the perfect opportunity for Pony to leave his old self behind, literally, and begin with a new clean slate. Pony used to be Sarah, but even at a really young age he knew that the only girl thing about him was the body he had been born into. Going through hormone therapy, Pony is short and frail for the average boy, but bigger and stronger than the average girl. Hillcrest High is Pony's opportunity to escape the label transgender and just experience life as a normal boy.

Georgia is the stereotypical cheerleader, pretty, popular, driven. Behind an exterior of not caring, Georgia is in fact a smart student who would love to write for the school newspaper, but you can't do both activities without violating the cheerleading credo. Always telling stories and exaggerating, no one quite knows the real Georgia, and even Georgia doesn't really know herself. 

When the two of them cross each other's eyes at the beginning of school, the sparks lighting up mutual interests ignite more than a friendly relationship. Recovering from a bad breakup, Georgia has promised herself she wouldn't date her senior year. Pony has yet to date anyone, and though smart and witty, he lacks confidence that he would be accepted as he is, girl bits and all. With Pony's previous life a secret, can the two of them find common ground to resolve their differences, learn to trust each other, and become girlfriend and boyfriend?

Dust

 Swanson, Kara. Dust. 2020. Book 1 of the Heirs of Neverland series. 348p. ISBN 9781621841265.

Claire Kenton doesn't remember much as a child, aside from always being with her twin brother Conner. Bouncing from foster home to foster home, the pair could never find stability, mainly due to Claire's uncontrolled shedding of sparkling dust that could turn deadly when shed in anger. After accidentally burning a foster mother when she was 5, the twins have made their way through home after home, learning that the only thing they have is each other. Connor has always loved books and movies about Peter Pan, and used to tell Claire that they were from Neverland. He once successfully convinced Claire to jump out of a second story window and try to fly with her dust, but the result was a disfigured Claire, a broken dumpster, and a scarred body.

Connor went missing four years ago, Claire has spent her time and resources trying to track him down. She met the enigmatic N online, and after years of efforts he tells her he finally found some security footage from Los Angeles International Airport that shows Connor willingly following a stranger on board a plane to London.

Desperate to be reunited, Claire sells all of her meager possessions and heads to London, where she discovers that Neverland is not just a book, but a real place, and that Connor was brought to London by Captain Hook himself. Mad at Peter Pan for stealing her brother, Claire vows to destroy him if she gets the chance. 

Peter Pan has been exiled from Neverland and is unable to return. Tinkerbell is dead, the pixies are in disarray, and Hook and his band of pirates have joined forces with Lost Boys who are slowly aging to try to catch him. Peter has been looking for Claire for years, but has not been able to find her, so when he stumbles upon her by his statue in London, he is surprised and thrilled. When she reveals her hatred for him, however, he pretends to be a Lost Boy named Ben, and begins to explains to her the challenges that a wilting Neverland inflicts on its former residents.

But the boy who never wanted to grow up will need to be very convincing to get Claire to follow him back to Neverland to look for her brother Connor, for her distrust runs deep, and Peter Pan is not known for his honesty. Plus, he might be falling in love with Claire, which won't do. With Hook working his own angle, and the mysterious N still in the picture, Claire is about to enter into a fantastic tale despite her best efforts.

Fans of fiction and of Neverland will appreciate this twist on an old tale. For a different take, read Everland.

Monkey

Wu, Cheng-en. Monkey. 2020. 819 mins. ISBN 978-1094016429.

Monkey rules over a tribe of monkeys on the summit of a mountain. There, Monkey acquires enough smarts, weapons, and skills to pretend to join the Jade Emperor's court in Heaven. Monkey may be many things, but what he is most certainly not is patient and humble. In confrontations with deities, Monkey makes enemies, and fights many battles. He is quarrelsome enough that even the Jade Emperor is forced to banish him from Heaven. 

Seeking enlightenment, Monkey heads to a renowned school, where he learns the many forms designed to reach Buddha's grace. He unfortunately angers Buddha himself, who casts him off and imprisons him underneath a mountain. For five hundred years, Monkey is stuck and must reflect on his wanton ways.

When a monk tasked to head west from China to India, to retrieve holy scriptures and bring them back to the Chinese court passes by, he rescues Monkey, who joins him as a disciple. Accompanied by others who are also castaways from Heaven, the small group make their way to India where, after countless perils, adventures, and confrontations with demons, they secure an audience with Buddha himself, and gain a copy of the holy scriptures.

Returning to China, the group is redeemed and achieves enlightenment, and even Monkey learns to become a better individual.

Originally written in the 16th century but most likely told even before, this story tells of the many adventures of the Monkey King. Combining folk tales with lessons on humility and achieving enlightenment, these stories are entertaining and filled with advice. Fans of this story will also enjoy The Epic Crush of Genie Lo, inspired from the Monkey King's epic tales, or the graphic novel American Born Chines.

Crescendo

 Cheney, Allen and Julie Cantrell. Crescendo: The Story of aMusical Genius Who Forever Changed a Southern Town. 2019. 336p. ISBN 9780785217404.

On the day that Fred Allen died, his sister, who was pregnant, went into labor and delivered a healthy baby boy that she named Fred in honor of her deceased brother. The midwife who helped deliver baby Fred was also known as an oracle, and she predicts that the baby will be very smart, but also very different. Born in striking poverty in rural Georgia during the Great Depression, Fred soon reveals that he is a gifted musician when at three years of age he can play full pieces on the piano without missing a single note. 

His parents work in the cotton mills, and their abject poverty and crushing existence lead to Fred being neglected and sexually abused by an uncle. He finds salvation in music, however, and rediscovers his love for singing and playing. Motivated and encouraged by dedicated educators and mentors, Fred escapes his family and heads to college. There he meets Winnie, the love of his life, and after graduation they marry. Fred continues to play music and to seek out a career in the field. Having made many contacts along the way, he moves to New York City with his wife and young daughter and enrolls at the Juilliard School, Union Theological Seminary, which possesses the best organ anywhere in the world, and Columbia University. Juggling all three schools, playing in a church in New Jersey, and his wife and daughter, Fred earns a position at RCA records, and wins Grammies for his producer talents.

None of these accomplishments are fulfilling, however, and Fred still dreams of Broadway. A crushing depression brought on by the developing awareness of his abuse as a child forces him to re-evaluate his priorities, and he moves his family away from New York back to Thomasville, Georgia, where he becomes the leader of a youth choir, and soon joins the faculty at the local high school. With his wife and daughter, he creates an amazing musical program that forty years later continues to be successful.

Fred's life as a musician and educator forever changed so many lives. His positive outlook and his dedication transformed sulky and taciturn teenagers into some of the best singers of his time. Fred's life is proof positive that the impacts educators have on their students can never truly be measured.

My Hero Academia, Vol. 26

Horikoshi, Kohei. My Hero Academia, Vol. 26. 2021. 200p. ISBN 9781974719778. 

Kicking their training in higher gear, Endeavor has taken Midoriya, Bakugo and his son Todoroki under his wings with the express mission that they must be faster than he is. Midoriya continues to work on his control of air force and his black tendrils, while Bakugo seeks to improve his speed yet again. Todoroki remains conflicted about the role his father played in his life. Invited by his sister Fuyomi to their house for dinner, the boys find themselves in an awkward family reunion when they are joined by Natsu, Todoroki's older brother. He too holds their father responsible for their mother's nervous breakdown and subsequent hospitalization.

Following the dinner, Natsu is taken hostage by Endgame, a villain recently released from prison who seeks to be killed by Endeavor. The current #1 hero is cut at the knee with his son's life in the balance, The boys, however, do not lose their cool, and they manage to rescue Natsu, thus being faster than Endeavor.

Meanwhile, the Safety Commission and their secret infiltrator Hawk have secured vital information that a massive villain attack from the Liberation Front is in the final planning stages. This attack seeks to destroy all heroes. All Might is but a shadow of himself, yet he holds high hopes that Midoriya will help them defeat the villains...

Sasha Masha

Borinsky, Agnes. Sasha Masha. 2020. 256p. ISBN 9780374310806.

Alex has never been comfortable in his own body. His parents love him and are supportive, but they've never really understood him. The only person that really got him was his queer friend Mabel, but at the beginning of junior year Mabel's father has been relocated to Pittsburg from Baltimore, and Mabel's calming presence in his life becomes tenuous, hanging only by texts and the occasional phone call. It is with Mabel that Alex first became Sasha Masha, a truth he discovered about himself when he first put on a beautiful dress. It suddenly made him feel that everything was right.

Now that Alex is alone, he reconnects with some old friends, and they stir him towards Tracy, a beautiful girl who has more than a passing interest in him. The longer their relationship lasts, however, the less right it feels for him. Every day that passes, he feels less like Alex, and more like Sasha Masha. Sasha Masha ends up being dumped by Tracy, but meanwhile he connects with Andre, a lively boy who introduces him to another queer side of Baltimore Sasha Masha didn't know existed. As the two of them get to know each other, Sasha Masha also gets to know himself, and comes to the conclusion that it's okay to be who he is, regardless of what others think he should be.

Fans of self-discovery books will really appreciate Sasha Masha and the process of finding out who one truly is. The presence of guiding and supportive elder queer individuals add an element often missing in LGBTQ+ literature.

Trell

 Lehr, Dick. Trell. 320p. ISBN 9780763692759.

Trell has never gotten the chance to be tucked in bed by Romero Taylor, her father. He's missed all of her school events. He's only seen her once a week for a few hours, but it's not his fault. He's in prison, for the murder of a twelve-year-old girl named Ruby Graham who was shot and killed in 1988 by a stray bullet while sitting on a mailbox in Roxbury, a Boston neighborhood. For fourteen years, Trell has been raised by her no-nonsense mother Shey, who has looked after her and who has taken her to visit her father in prison every weekend.

He's always claimed his innocence, but Trell has never really cared about that until she meets Nora Walsh, a pugnacious defense lawyer who agrees to look into Romero's case. What she finds disturbs her. Following the death of Ruby, the police was under extreme pressure to find a killer quickly. Corners were cut, investigations were sloppy, his legal representation was awful, and Romero ended up convicted. 

Even with a heavy school load, Trell finds time to volunteer with Nora and help her build a case, but upon the dismissal of Romero's appeal for a retrial, Trell decides it's time to bring in a reporter to help investigate their case. She contacts Clemens Bittner, and despite several refusals, tenaciously pursues him until he agrees to take a look at the case. What he finds bothers him enough to join Trell and Nora and look at the circumstances that led Romero to prison. 

As the investigation progresses, Trell becomes convinced her father didn't do it. And if he was committed for a crime he didn't commit, then someone else out there killed Ruby Graham, and likely won't appreciate people looking again into that case. Threading a dangerous needle, Trell pursues her investigation, knowing that her life becomes more and more in danger the closer she gets to the truth!