Firekeeper's Daughter by Angeline Boulley

Firekeepers Daughter by Angeline Boulley

2021, 496p. Henry Holt and Co. 

https://catalog.tln.lib.mi.us/?section=frbr&iid=1028415&currentIndex=0&view=frbrFormatDisplayDetailsTab&facetFilters=%5B%5D

This extraordinary debut novel by Michigan Ojibwe author, Angeline Boulley in 2021, Firekeeper's Daughter was named one of the top YA novels of all time by Time Magazine. Taking place in Sault Ste, Marie, MI, the novel introduces you to Daunis, recent a high school graduate, hockey player, brilliant, half  Ojibwe-half white, dealing with identity and the pressure of living up to social and family expectations.  

In a community that values hockey "gods" and social status- where youth born into the indigenous community are looked down upon and judged because of their blood purity, tribal membership and ability to collect tribal annual funds, teens like Daunis and her brother Levi have opportunities like college but struggle with the easy availability of money and drugs. 

The plot, characters and good story writing makes this reading experience one of my all time best reads. I appreciate the author's use of Native American language, ritual ceremony, traditions, prayers and perspective that added much poetry and power to my understanding of this Michigan community-it's history and subsequent struggles that still exist. 

You are on a journey of self exploration and coming of age with a character who feels like she just steps off the page. I think that this book will become required reading in the near future. Read it now for the power and poetry.  

My Rating 5 stars! ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 

Read this now! Daunis Fontaine will capture your heart and stay with you always! 

JB

AWARDS: 

2022 Michigan Notable Book

A PRINTZ MEDAL WINNER!
A MORRIS AWARD WINNER!
AN AMERICAN INDIAN YOUTH LITERATURE AWARD YA HONOR BOOK!

A REESE WITHERSPOON x HELLO SUNSHINE BOOK CLUB YA PICK

An Instant #1 New York Times Bestseller

Soon to be adapted at Netflix for TV with President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama's production company, Higher Ground.

“One of this year's most buzzed about young adult novels.” —Good Morning America

A TIME Magazine Best YA Book of All Time Selection
Amazon's Best YA Book of 2021 So Far (June 2021)
A 2021 Kids' Indie Next List Selection
An Entertainment Weekly Most Anticipated Books of 2021 Selection
A PopSugar Best March 2021 YA Book Selection

The Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James

 

4.5/5 ⭐

This duel timeline horror novel features a haunted motel, serial killers, and a long-lost missing aunt. 

The night shift at the Sun Down Motel seems to attract trouble. Both for Viv, who worked there in 1982. And for her niece, Carly, who seeks it out to learn what really happened to her aunt all those years ago. 

The duel POV and time shift can be a little challenging to get used to but makes it well worth to see the parallel events from two different perspectives.

St. James has a talent for creating captivating settings from page one and manages to only build on it from there. Not only does the build-up create the perfect amount of suspense, the well tidied ending with a twist finishes this one off well. 

~CP

Simone St. James' newest book The Book of Cold Cases which came out in 2022 is available now!

The Kaiju Preservation Society by John Scalzi

 

The Kaiju Preservation Society by John Scalzi is a clever, dynamic, and fun story for sci-fi fans. 

This is not a heavy or brooding science fiction piece. It is, in Scalzi's own words, a 'pop song'. And it truly is. It's engaging and fun and unforgettable. 

If you are newer to science fiction and worried about getting bogged down in explanations, this is the one for you. Scalzi gives us just what the reader needs to know and balances it well with witty dialogue and references to popular science fiction from the past. 

Beyond that, this book is for all the people behind the scenes that have kept and will keep everything running while the CEOs and other higher-ups take their vacations. This book is literally for the people doing the lifting.  

4/5⭐

~cp

Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson

Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson

Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson is a fabulous novel of Black Caribbean heritage, family and the things that hold us together. It tells the story of adult siblings, Bennie and Byron who's mother, Covantina, has died and left them a recording and Black Cake to be eaten when 'it's time". 

The author combines an epic tale of survival as well as deep insight into relationships, family secrets, and the effects of racism on lives from the perspective of  Coventina in the 1960's as well from her children's challenges finding meaningful careers and relationships. The writing is captivating and I learned a great deal about Caribbean, British and American culture in regards to immigration and some of the difficulties faced in the last 50 years.

MY RATING: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

I highly recommend Black Cake. It is a delicious novel!

Jaema