SYLVIE Written and illustrated by Sylvie Kantorovitz (Walker Books US; $24.99, Ages 9-12)     As we approach the one-year anniversary of Sylvie's publication, I had to share an overdue review of Sylvie Kantorovitz's memoir that I only recently read. I've been playing catch-up following an extremely busy year during which I couldn't help but notice how many excellent graphic novels were released. Sylvie Kantorovitz’s compelling middle-grade graphic novel memoir about growing up in the late 1960s and 1970s France was just the book I needed to read last week. It didn’t hurt that I’m a Francophile, but…

#noescape (Volume 3, a #murdertrending novel) Written by Gretchen McNeil (Disney-Hyperion; Paperback $9.99, Ages 14-18)     Fans of Gretchen McNeil’s #murdertrending series will enjoy her new YA, #noescape. Set twenty years before the first book, this companion novel is a wild Las Vegas ride. Seventeen-year-old Persey’s incredible win at an escape room grants her a spot at the All-Stars and the promise of a ten-million-dollar prize. The money would be a much-needed boon for Persey who, after years of surviving with her verbally abusive father and alcoholic mother, will be kicked out as soon as she graduates from high…

  LITTLE NARWHAL, NOT ALONE BY TIFFANY STONE ILLUSTRATED BY ASHLYN ANSTEE (GREYSTONE KIDS; $17.95; AGES 4-8)       Children’s poet and critically acclaimed picture book author Tiffany Stone has brought ocean life to the surface in Little Narwhal, Not Alone, a story that is based on the unlikely real-life friendship between two different species of whales—beluga whales and narwhals who usually do not interact. Poetic, rhyming language flows through each page, while playful illustrations by Ashlyn Anstee guide the reader on this unexpected journey. We are introduced to the sweet little narwhal, with the blue and white tusk…

MY TWO BORDER TOWNS  Written by David Bowles Illustrated by Erika Meza (Kokila; $17.99, Ages 4-8)       ★Starred Reviews - Kirkus, Booklist, The Horn Book, Publishers Weekly    Two towns unite in a spirit of community, outreach, and transnational awareness through the compassion of a little boy and his father in David Bowles and Erika Meza’s My Two Border Towns.  As he does every other Saturday, a boy living in South Texas prepares for a trip with his father to “[E]l Otro Lado”–a short ride to the other side of the border. He grabs his “special bag” of…

TU YOUYOU'S DISCOVERY: Finding a Cure for Malaria Written by Songju Ma Daemicke Illustrated by Lin (Albert Whitman & Co.; $16.99, Ages 4-8)     In 2021 malaria is a preventable and treatable disease but it wasn't always the case. Hundreds of thousands used to die from it annually but the mortality rate has declined since the medicine to cure it was approved. That's why I was curious to read about Tu Youyou, the woman whose determination led to finding a cure for malaria and becoming the first Chinese woman to win a Nobel Prize.  In Tu Youyou's Discovery written…

CURSE OF THE SPECTER QUEEN (Book 1 of 2: A Samantha Knox Novel) Written by Jenny Elder Moke (Hyperion; $17.99, Ages 12 and up)      Set in the 1920s, Jenny Elder Moke’s Curse of the Specter Queen is high-stakes historical fiction fantasy with a female-driven plot. Samantha (“Sam”) Knox isn’t the same after her father is killed in the Great War. She turns away from her lifelong friends (brother and sister Bennett and Joana Steeling) and resigns herself to living a small life in their nowhere US town. She escapes the fate of being a laundress like her mother…

THE BAD MOOD! Written by Moritz  Petz Illustrated by Amélie Jackowski (NorthSouth Books; $17.95; Ages 4-8)       Badger woke up in a bad mood! After working in his garden, he starts to feel better but knows he must make amends when he finds out that his grumpy, rude remarks from the morning have left his friends upset with him in The Bad Mood! written by Moritz Petz, with illustrations by Amélie Jackowski. Now available as an unjacketed hardcover, this beloved classic has been translated into more than ten languages. Bad moods are quite contagious and relatable to most…

  A ROUNDUP OF THE BEST NEW CHRISTMAS BOOKS FOR 2021     All of us at GoodReadsWithRonna.com wish you a warm and wonderful Christmas!   REVIEWS: JINGLE BELLS / NAVIDAD: Bilingual Nursery Rhymes (English & Spanish) Written and illustrated by Susie Jaramillo (Canticos; $10.99, Ages 0-6) This 16 page bilingual, lift-the-flaps board book is not only beautiful to look at (its cover features foil accents), it stars the sweet little chickies from the Emmy-nominated series. What a delightful way to celebrate the holidays than by sharing the "Jingle Bells" song with children in both English and Spanish. There are…