The Dark Lord Clementine

Clementine Morcerous is destined to take over as Evil Overlord from her father, and she's spent her life learning dark magic and dastardly deeds.  She is also accustomed to a father of few words, but when she notices something strange about her father one morning at breakfast, he's even more short-tempered than normal.  Is it possible his nose is...thinner...almost like it's been whittled down.  When she mentions this, he flies off to his tower in a temper and tells her he is not to be disturbed.

Well, this leaves Clementine in a bit of a pickle.  Normally, the farm would take care of itself, but the magical scarecrows seem to be breaking down.  Could this have something to do with her father's mysterious malady?  With the help of her magical library, she discovers her father may have been cursed by a witch, the natural enemies of Dark Overlords.  Even though her father has forbidden her for doing anything, Clementine can't just sit around.  

For the first time in her life, she ventures into the village to find help.  That's how she ends up with a gaggle of boys who want to be knights and who actually end up helping her on the farm.  Also for the first time in her life, she has actual friends.

When she realizes her father won't be able to save himself, she decides to go after the witch herself with the help of a new friend and a spellbook in the form of a chicken who lays spell eggs only when they are appropriate to the situation.  Will this be enough to save her father and protect the village from something far worse than her father?

Sarah Jean Horwitz's book is a tongue in cheek fantasy adventure perfect for readers who like their fantasy with a good dose of humor and a heroine who isn't quite sure which side she's on.  

I Have No Secrets

People have always underestimated Jemma because of her cerebral palsy.  She's been almost completely paralyzed for most of her life, and no one outside of her foster parents even thought she was aware enough to know what was going on around her.  School is sometimes torture because teachers aids may treat her like she's not even there or, even worse, like she's a little kid rather than a teenager.  

Sarah, her live-in aid,  is one of the best parts of her life.  She talks to Jemma like a real person and treats her like a teenager instead of a little kid.  The one thing Jemma doesn't like is Sarah's boyfriend Dan.  He always puts on a good face for Jemma's parents, but she knows the truth.  When he is alone with her, he likes to taunt her, telling her he knows she'll keep his secrets because she can't speak.  

When a young man in the neighborhood goes missing, Dan all but confesses to the murder, but there is nothing Jemma can do.  She sees the way he is becoming more and more controlling of Sarah, and it makes her nervous, especially since Sarah can't quite seem to let go of her ex-boyfriend.  Then Sarah goes missing, and Jemma fears the worst.  What if Dan killed her?

When Jemma's mom hears about a new technology that could potentially help her communicate, Jemma is beyond excited, but Sarah's disappearance makes her even more anxious to try it out.  For a while, she could use a device controlled by her eyes, but a seizure took that control away.  Could this doctor have a new solution?  

Even more disturbing, what if Dan finds out Jemma may soon find her voice?  Will he do what he's threatened to do before and kill her before she can expose his secrets?

Penny Joelson's book is an interesting combination of a girl with disabilities finding her independence and campy thriller.  The unfortunate this is this book is really marketed as a thriller, but there are a lot of other things going on here.  Despite some genuinely creepy scenes, the thriller plot often takes a backseat which takes away some of the momentum of the story.  There is also an interesting subplot about a surprise twin sister who does not have CP.  This book is definitely worth a try, especially since there are so few books portraying a paralyzed person like Jemma as an active character.  

Stand Up, Yumi Chung!

Yumi dreams of becoming a comedian, but she is not exactly poised for success.  The kids at school call her Yu-MEAT because she always smells like her parents' Korean barbeque restaurant, her mom insists she needs a perm to somehow camouflage her round face, and she is suffering from #shygirlproblems.  Instead of spending the summer working on her comedy act, her parents have enrolled her in an intensive test prep program so she can get a scholarship to her expensive private school.

Ugh.  Yumi doesn't even want to go to that school!  Remember that whole Yu-MEAT thing?  But she doesn't have a choice.  Her parents' restaurant isn't doing so well, and school is there number one priority.  They would never understand her goal to become a comedian, especially when they compare her to her perfect older sister who graduated high school early and is now enrolled in medical school.

So, Yumi goes to test prep, but on her way to the library after class one day, she sees something amazing.  Her favorite YouTube comedian, Jasmine Jasper, is hosting a kids comedy camp in the old theater in her neighborhood.  This is too good to be true, but there is no way her parents would agree.  Surely just a quick peek won't hurt, right?

When everyone assumes Yumi is Kay Nakamura, the only kid who didn't show up, she's too flustered to correct them.  That is how shy girl, Yumi Chung, came to live a double life!  She knows she should tell the truth, but being Kay is so much fun.  Somehow she can shed her #shygirlproblems and just be funny.  

But what will she do when the truth is revealed?  She never meant to hurt anyone, but it seems like she's going to hurt everyone who's important to her.

Jessica Kim's story of an aspiring comedian and YouTube star is funny and heartfelt.  I love the balance she strikes between the importance of parents listening to their child and the child upstanding she can't always get everything she wants.  I read this in one sitting because it was just so engaging.  Recommended!

The Lost Girl

Iris and Lark are identical twins who have always done everything together.  Even though they aren't interested in the same things, they always work it out to be together.  When their class assignments for the fifth grade arrive, they realize they will be in different classes for the first time ever.  This is unacceptable to the girls.  Iris quickly takes charge of the situation and promises the more delicate Lark, she will fix it.

But it seems this is a problem that can't be fixed.  The powers that be have decided these identical twins need some time apart.  To make matters worse, their parents have decided the girls to join different after school clubs, too!  Lark will indulge her artistic talent in the art club, but Iris isn't sure what to do.  She always just goes along with Lark to protect her sister.  Besides she's not really interested in any particular club.  Being a twin is kind of her defining feature, so she ends up joining a girls club at the library.

It's clear to Iris from the beginning, this is not going to work out.  Lark's new teacher is too overbearing for her gentle sister, and Iris has no interest in developing friendships outside of her twin.

Then things go missing all over town, big things and small things.  Lark loses things, too, and at first everything things it's just flighty Lark forgetting where she put her keys, but the lost items in their home seem to connect to the larger lost items in town.

A new shop opens in town selling antiques, and Iris feels strangely drawn to the odd place as well as its odd proprietor.  Something is happening in their town, and it may be connected to this shop.  

Eventually, Iris realizes she is the only one who can stop what's happening in her town and save her twin, but she may also have to reach out for help and make connections beyond Lark if she is going to do it.

This new novel by Anne Ursu is an interesting fantasy story about figuring out who you are and breaking out of your comfortable mold.  Iris and Lark thought they only needed each other, but they realized they were stronger when they invited others in.  This might be a good pick for kids dealing with social anxiety.  They are in 5th grade, and that does often make it a harder sell for middle school readers.  

Santiago's Road Home

Santiago's only happy memories are of the time when he was small before his mother died.  Now, he is simply passed around amongst his abusive or neglectful relatives, but anything is better than living with his Abuela.  She is the worst abuser, and he has the scars to prove it.  When one more relative hands him bus fare to go back to Abuela's house, he decides he won't go back.

He wants to try to cross the border in el otro lado.  It has to be better than the life he is living now.  He isn't sure how to do any of this until he meets Maria Dolores and her young daughter, Alegria.  Maria Dolores is young enough to be his older sister, but she instantly sees the good in Santiago, and makes him part of her little family.

Together, the three begin their journey north, but things go wrong right from the start, and soon they are simply trying to survive in the desert on their meager supplies.  They make it across the border, but they are soon too weak to continue.  When they are discovered, their lives are saved, but they are soon sent to three different ICE folding facilities.

Maria Dolores and Santiago have made a vow to protect each other on the journey, and Maria Dolores has promised her adopted brother he will be part of her family in the U.S, but now he isn't sure what will happen.  Will he be sent on a bus back to Mexico without even a chance?  Will he get to plead his case for asylum?  Will he ever see Maria Dolores and Alegria again, the only real family he's known since his mother died?

Alexandra Diaz's story about a young man's journey is heavy and dark, filled with people and systems who would rather abuse a young orphan than help him, but it is also peppered with people who are ready and eager to help Santiago in any way they can.  While conditions in the ICE facility are bleak, Santiago does meet a lawyer who does everything she can to help him and a teacher who encourages him to learn how to read.  This is a painful and all too real story that eventually ends with hope.  Recommended for grades 6 and up.