Fox Point's Own Gemma Hopper

Spangler, Brie. Fox Point's Own Gemma Hopper. 2023. 272p. ISBN 9780593428498. Available in the graphic novels section of the library.

At 13 and in 7th grade, Gemma is over 6 feet tall and stands out like a sore thumb at her middle school. She loves baseball, but she lives in the shadow of her brother Teddy, an 8th grader with a golden arm who's already talked about being a top prospect in the majors. Her friends only want to hang out with her so they can talk with Teddy. Their mother has left the family, and their father works three jobs to make ends meet. Gemma has become the caretaker for the family, cooking meals, doing laundry, and making sure that everyone, including her younger twin brothers, are taken cared of. On the rare occasions her father's home, he's only interested in Teddy.

Through all of this, Gemma does not have time to play baseball. Teddy is under pressure, as he's preparing to go away for months at a training camp for prodigious athletes. He needs the practice time, and Gemma ends up pitching for him over and over. Folks come to watch Teddy hit balls one after another. But Gemma is under pressure too. She has a big fight with her best friend, and she's tired of playing second fiddle with Teddy. 

So when Teddy brings up the intriguing possibility that maybe Gemma should try out for the same team Teddy will be playing with, Gemma is intrigued. How could she possibly abandon her family to pursue the opportunity to play baseball? But with a video going viral, and with the stars aligning, Gemma might manage to pursue her dream after all!

Beautifully illustrated, Gemma's trials and tribulations show her resilience and her grit as she aims to find her own way in the world. Fans of graphic novels will love this story, and those who enjoy a good sports story should absolutely check it out!

The Lucky Ones

Reisz, Tiffany. The Lucky Ones. 2018. 365p. 628 mins. ISBN 9780778331162. Available as an audiobook from Overdrive.

At seven Allison found herself an orphan following a drinking and driving accident. Sent to an orphanage, she was soon adopted by renowned brain surgeon Dr. Vincent Capello, who recognized her intelligence. Allison went to live with him and six other adopted children in his great green house, appropriately called the Dragon, on the Oregon Coast yards away from the Pacific Ocean. Allison's life became perfect, with loving siblings, a doting father, and plenty of room to stretch her wings. But even at seven, Allison was attracted to the enigmatic Roland, Dr. Capello's oldest son. Five years older, Roland had lived his own tragedy when his sister Rachel had fallen in a hole on the beach while they were playing and died buried in the sand. On stormy nights, Allison would often crawl in Roland's bed, looking for security and comfort.

When Allison was twelve, she fell down the 3rd floor stairs and was whisked away from the house by a concerned aunt who had received a phone call that someone was trying to kill her. For the last thirteen years, Allison has done everything she could to forget the house and its inhabitants. She moved across the country, became the mistress of a billionaire, and lived a generally happy life. All of this is thrown into chaos on the same morning her boyfriend breaks up with her and she receives a letter from Roland informing her that their father is dying.

Finally offered an opportunity to figure out what really happened to her that fateful night, and also the possibility of reconnecting with family members, Allison heads west and returns to Oregon, where she is reunited with Roland, which reignite her love for him. Catching up on what has happened in the last thirteen years, Allison can't help but worry that the person who wished her harm is still here. As she asks questions, however, she realizes that everyone has secrets, and that some secrets are deadly and worth killing for ...

Fans of mystery will enjoy this gothic tale, with dark corners always close by. Similar to We Were Liars, the ending is unpredictable and will surprise the reader.

The Gathering

Poblocki, Dan. The Gathering. Book 1 of the Shadow House series. 2016. 217p. ISBN 9780545925501. Available at FIC POB on the library shelves.

Poppy’s mother disappeared when she was six, so she ended up at the Thursday House for orphan children. Everytime she looks in a mirror she sees another girl in the background looking at her. The girl looks sad and never talks to her, but she shows her small objects. When Poppy wakes up in the morning, she discovers these objects on her pillow. The other children believe her to be crazy, and, in the cruel way of children, name her Crazy Poppy. On the day she’s had enough of their bullying, she snaps and it lands her in the director’s office. There, in her file, she discovers a letter a great aunt sent her a letter inviting her to live at her mansion, Larkspur. Polly is thrilled and decides to leave the orphanage and find the only family she has.

Marcus loves to play the piano, but between his siblings and his mother, he can’t find enough time that don’t disturb the others. He hears a haunting music in his mind that inspires him. His mother is thrilled when he receives a scholarship to a prestigious music school called Larkspur Academy of the Performing Arts. Marcus can’t believe his own luck. He’ll be among other musicians driven like himself.

Azumi needs to leave her Seattle home. Ever since her older sister disappeared during a trip to Japan to visit their grandmother, Azumi has been heartbroken. In her nightmares she keeps reliving her disappearance. She wants a change of scenery, and an internet search keeps returning one website, that of the Larkspur Boarding School.

Twin actors Dylan and Dash have just finished their seven year run as a child named Scooter in a family sitcom, and they are looking for work. An opportunity presents itself when they are invited to become the stars of a horror flick to be filed at Larkspur. They readily accept, and Dash sees this as his opportunity to escape Dylan’s shadows.

These five children all come to Larkspur for their own reasons, sustained by specific hopes. But what they discover instead is the horrors that haunt the old mansion. For the Shadow House seems intent on consuming them all. Once inside, they discover they can’t leave. There are strange children haunting the house. Dolls that look like them are scattered throughout the house. And everywhere they feel the malevolence of Shadow House. What evil forces called the children here? And what must they do to escape with their lives?

Last Pick

Walz, Jason. Last Pick. 2018. 214p. ISBN 978-1-62672-891-2. Available in the graphic novels section of the library.

Sam and Wyatt are twins, and they have always looked out for each other. Sam has been the protective big sister, because Wyatt is autistic. He's often unable to filter his thoughts when he speaks, finds himself confused by nonverbal communication, can't really adopt someone else's perspective when talking to other people, and has trouble regulating his emotions. Even though she finds him weird at times, Sam would go to the mat for her brother.

Now sixteen years old, the twins have been left alone for the last three years, when aliens invaded Earth and kidnapped the entire population between the ages of 16 and 65, leaving behind only the old, the handicapped, the young, and those deemed too useless for their plans. For three years, Sam has been fighting back, stealing food and spreading it in her small city of Elizabethtown. Now that the giant scooper ships have returned, Sam is ready to fight back. And Wyatt's brilliant computer and engineering mind can help them communicate with their missing parents, but only if they have the right part. Can they be the spark that ignite the rejects of humanity into resistance against the invaders?

A great graphic novel with sharp illustrations and colors, Last Pick accurately portrays someone who has trouble functioning of what is left of normal society. The coping mechanisms that Wyatt has developed are realistic, and the siblings' love for each other even when they are angry shows throughout the story. Fans of dystopia and of last stands will appreciate the action and story, and will clamor for the second volume when it comes out!

The Splintered Light

Johnson, Ginger. The Splintered Light. 2018. 404p. ISBN 978-1-68119-623-7. Available at FIC JOH on the library shelves.

Ishmael lives in a gray world. His life has been drab since twin tragedies struck his family. His father died when the well he was digging collapsed, while Luc, his older  brother, disappeared shortly afterwards. Life is always the same on their farm, and consists of hard work and too little food. His world completely changes when Ishmael catches glimpses of a strange color on one of the stall of the barn. With possibilities of a better world out there, Ishmael decides to leave the farm and search for his brother to bring him back home.

A door in a stone wall outside his village takes him to a new world, the Commons. The Commons is the space where all other worlds are created, and every sense is represented in a Hall. Ishmael finds his brother in the Hall of Hues, where all color apprentices reside. Other Halls include the Hall of Gustation, the Hall of Motions, and the Hall of Shapes. When the Commons produce a new door, one apprentice from each Hall are appointed to work together to create a new world, and will be it first residents. Luc has just completed his new world, and is ready to become one of the founders. Unfortunately, Ishmael causes Luc to miss the gate closing on his new world. Luc is now worldless, a condition that has never happened in the history of the Commons.

As Luc falls deeper in despair, Ishmael is appointed by the Hall of Hues to color a Jubilee World, an occasion that happens only once every twenty-five years. Angry at not being selected, Luc is determined to undermine the efforts of his brother’s team. Ishmael himself remains conflicted between returning home to help his mother, and heading out into this new world when it is finished. Facing demands from his past and an uncertain future with an increasingly irrational brother, Ishmael must decide whether a world with colors is worth sacrificing his old life.

The Splintered Light offers a unique fantasy world building by allowing Ishmael and his friends to build their own world. Fans of fantasy will appreciate the well-defined environment in which the Commons’ apprentices operate and the depth of details required to build a successful world.

Mort Ziff Is Not Dead

Fagan, Cary. Mort Ziff Is Not Dead. 2017. 176p. ISBN 978-0-14-319847-5. Available at FIC FAG on the library shelves.

Norman Fishbein is the youngest kid in his family, and his two older brothers are always picking on him. As Norman himself says, it’s as if, when he was born, they received instructions that their only goal in life was to make Norman miserable. Tormenting Norman relentlessly, Marcus and Larry are always topping each other, leaving Norman behind.

When Norman and his brothers enter a contest to guess the number of candies in a jar at the mall, they don’t expect to win, but Norman is surprised months later when he receives a letter in the mail instructing him that he won $1,000. In the winter of 1965, $1,000 is a lot of money. Instead of saving it for himself, buying things he doesn’t need, he decides that the family needs a vacation Florida. Everyone readily agrees with him, and soon the Fishbein family arrives in Miami.

There they meet the Horvath family. Their three girls are the same age as the Fishbein children, and share the same hobbies. Instead of being friends, they become instant enemies. Except for Amy and Norman. Owing no loyalty to siblings who always pick on them, they decide to bow out of this little contest and enjoy their vacation instead. They soon discover that Mort Ziff, one of the most famous comedians from the 1950s, is still working at their hotel, telling bad jokes during dinner. But with Ziff’s position threatened by a Beatles cover band, Amy and Norman come up with a plan to ensure that Ziff will keep working as long as he wants to.

Anyone who has ever been picked on by older siblings will appreciate the quiet and graceful way in which younger siblings Norman and Amy deal with being eclipsed by their brothers and sisters and how they regain a sense of being in control of their own lives. Their success at making their siblings respect them will inspire the reader to reach out to his or her family members and thank them for being part of their family.

The Demon Lexicon

Brennan, Sarah Rees. The Demon Lexicon. Book 1 of the Demon Lexicon trilogy. 2009. 322p. 610 mins. ISBN 1-41696379-0. Available both on the library shelves at FIC BRE and as an audiobook from Overdrive.

At sixteen, Nick Ryves already towers over his scrawny and crippled older brother Alan. They have been on the run for as long as Nick can remember, as their mother, Olivia, is a magician and is being hunted by the Obsidian Circle, an order of magicians she used to belong to. She reportedly stole talismans from the Obsidian Circle, and the order wants them back. Their father died protecting the family, and every few weeks or, at most, months, the three of them move to another ramshackle apartment. With Olivia in a perpetual state of psychosis, they have to fend for themselves.

Nick has never liked school, and has trouble reading. Unlike Alan, who loves to read books, Nick would rather practice with his sword and knives, ready at any time to fight magicians and demons. The two of them have kept their mother alive, and together they have managed to stay alive. But when they are contacted by two teenagers from Nick’s current school with an occult question, everything changes. Mae and her brother Jamie have experienced several strange events recently, and Jamie bears the three marks of demon possession. If he doesn’t get help soon, he will succumb to the demon seeking to take control of Jamie’s body.

Nick doesn’t want to get involved, but Alan volunteers their help. Soon, everything Nick thought he knew about the world, his past, his mother, and his brother turns out to be a lie. With the Obsidian Circle hot on their trail, who can Nick trust to survive?