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  • WEEKEND PICKS 2023

Weekend Picks February 25, 2022

2/25/2022

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Weekend Picks February 25, 2022
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The Black Flamingo by Dean Atta

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I'm guilty of judging books by their covers. I chose this book for the obvious reasons. I may have a slight problem collecting flamingos, but I am SO glad I picked up this one. WOW! This book is poignant and gave me all the feels. It is a story written in verse and I devoured it. The story has one of the best reading flows I've experienced in a long time. Once I started, I had to know where Michael's (main character) story was headed. This book spans from when he is a young child longing for a Barbie doll, but gets a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle, to his college years and his debut in DRAG as the Black Flamingo. I don't know how Dean told this incredible story with so few words. There is this longing throughout the story about searching for the "just right" group. Michael is too Greek for one group, too Black for another, not quite queer enough. 

There are so many beautiful passages in this novel. One of my favorites is Lennie's (Michael college friend) monologue on page 298 explaining the different kinds of racism, it hits hard. Page 392 brings Micheal's thoughtful speech to Jack (former lover): "I don't need to be a man for you or anyone else." The power and self awareness that he possesses in that scene made me proud. Page 382 delivers a list of thank yous to a multitude of artists. It is 79 names long! I would be remiss to tell you that I took the time to look up every single name! Of course, a handful I was already familiar with, but I loved looking at all of their contributions to the world. 

Lastly, can I just say that I love DRAG! I mean really, the glamour of it all. As I read this book, I felt myself wanting to sit in on one of Mzz B's (Michael's DRAG instructor) classes. Beginning on page 367 there is 5 whole pages dedicated to the true art of DRAG. "It's giving up worrying about being universal and being you. It's doing what feels true. It's knowing that doing drag and being trans are not the same. It's gender nonconforming. It's gender bending. It's gender ascending."

This book is truly special, and I am thrilled that we have more to look forward to from author Dean Atta!



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This is a poem from page 62. 
Thank you for allowing me to share my picks with you this month. I hope you noticed that I intentionally choose all Black authors that write about Black characters in honor of Black History Month. I also hope that you choose to read these books on a random Tuesday in November as well. You can read Black authors any time of the year, in fact we should be celebrating them all year. 

I also want to make note that my last two selections are novels that are frequently banned for being queer literature. I want you to know that you don't have to be a part of the LGBTQ+ community to read these titles. Be an ally and flex those empathy muscles. Be a supporter of ALL banned books and support intellectual freedom.

You're up next Cammie!

Happy Reading!
​-Nikki 💓
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Weekend Picks February 18, 2022

2/18/2022

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Weekend Picks February 18, 2022
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Felix Ever After by Kacen Callender (2021)

I read this book during an online book club on LGBTQ+ themes. Which subsequently, I found out about while attending the YA Summit in 2020. (Thank you Dr. Bickmore and Dr. Donovan!) I encourage everyone to get involved in some way for this year's YA Summit. Thank you for allowing me that plug. Onward...

​This book has stuck with me ever since. We've all been in that place where we are trying to figure out our place in this world, all while navigating first loves and the drama of high school. This book makes me grateful for attending high school in a time when social media wasn't present, but it also allows me a glimpse into the strife my own children and students might face. It shows me the power that  technology can have in positive and negative lights. On page 180, Felix (our main character) searches the following: I'm transgender, but I don't feel like a guy or a girl. Felix doesn't have a strong family structure that he can discuss his feelings with. He resorts to internet searching for answers which I bet is something a lot of us can relate to. In Felix's case they are able to join a support group at a community center and start the process of identifying who they are. This book shows the importance of true allyship. 

The characters are vibrant and bold and they demand respect. Kacen dedicates this novel in the following way: 
For trans and nonbinary youth:
You're beautiful. You're important. You're valid.
You're perfect.

They couldn't have said that more perfectly, but this book isn't just for youth that identify as trans or nonbinary. It is for anyone that has experienced or is experiencing the peaks and valleys of adolescence. It is for anyone that knows the value of self love and discovery. This book is perfect for YOU!

Happy Reading!
-Nikki ❤




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Weekend Picks for February 11, 2022

2/11/2022

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Weekend Pick for February 11, 2022
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One True Loves by Elise Bryant

It's the weekend before Valentine's Day and who doesn't love a love story? Especially one that's set in dreamy Europe, during a 12 day cruise! I get it, some of you have already stopped reading but I adored this book. 


​Lenore Bennett (our main character) is artistically talented, has the fashion sense of a goddess, an amazing friend group, a (pretty) supportive family (we'll get to that later), was accepted to NYU for the fall, but has THE worst luck in love. She finds out at her senior prom the guy she had been dating was actually just using her as a side piece after giving her every excuse in the book. I see you Jay (the ex) and I don't approve. 

Anyway, Lenore is setting sail with her family: mom and dad (super successful people that haven't had a vacation in years), older brother Wally (just "graduated" law school and had a devastating breakup with his boyfriend) and little sister Etta (child prodigy, seriously at ten years old she writes essays for fun and takes classes at the community college). Right before they set sail, there is a huge joint graduation party for Lenore (graduating high school) and Wally (graduating college). At the party Lenore is talking with her beloved grandma and expressing she might be less than thrilled to start at NYU in the fall majoring in art history. She might just be doing it because her parents expect A LOT from their children. Of course, grandma candidly mentions it to her parents and now they are up in arms about Lenore always flip flopping between hobbies. Why can't she be more like her brother Wally who is on the fast track to becoming a lawyer just like their dad? They tell Lenore she better "figure things out" by the end of this upcoming cruise. Pressure much?!

Tessa (Lenore's bestie) instructs her to toss a coin into the Trevi Fountain at the beginning of the cruise and make a wish for a European love affair. Lenore is of course cynical, but she does it anyway, and...BAM! she meets Alex. Alex is dreamy and of course super motivated. He's attending UCLA in the fall on the pre-med track in the footsteps of his mom. Alex and Lenore's families hit it off because they are seated together in the dining hall. They don't necessarily fall head over heels in love at first sight, but if they did this book wouldn't be any good. You would be surprised at the ups and downs they encounter on this 12 day cruise and it's more than just the literal ones that make Lenore sea sick. This book ends in the beautiful Park Guell, but I can't tell you the ending, because that's cheating, so read it for yourself. You'll love it!

I loved this book for the love and the dreamy settings, but also for the courage that Lenore and Wally have to face some tough decisions about their futures. They have been living for their parents approval and not making decisions that will make them happy in their futures. This is a hard time in anyone's life when you make the choice to start living for you and not for the approval of others. 

Elise Bryant, thank you for making me laugh (yoga fart scene on page 142), cry (Wally speaking his truth about succumbing to severe panic attacks page 277), and smile (when grandma gives Lenore her old pink Polaroid camera from her childhood page 45). I will be reading EVERYTHING you write from now on!

Happy reading!

-Nikki 💓


***Special thanks to my twelve year old daughter "R" for loaning me her pretty pink camera. It was fun pretending to be as cool as Lenore. I hope you grow up to do ALL the things that bring you joy!***
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Weekend Pick for February 4, 2022

2/4/2022

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Are you looking for something to read? 
Pick one of these great books!

Are your students looking for book recommendations?
Send them to browse through the picks for this or those from other years listed below.
​
For the picks from 2021 click here

For the picks from 2020 click here.
For older picks click from 2019 click here.
For the even older picks click here.
This Weekend Pick is presented by Nikki Bylina-Streets, an elementary school librarian, who loves reading and spreads this love around her school and community. Nikki is one of the curators of this page and will be sharing her favorite books with us in February. 

Weekend Pick for February 4, 2022

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5 Reasons I Love this Book:
​Love is a Revolution by Renee Watson (2021)
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1. Honestly look at this cover! This character (Nala) is gorgeous! Those braids, the hoops, her outfit. Thank you, Renee, for writing about a plus size character where her size is NOT the main storyline.

 “I don’t mind you telling me I’m beautiful. Just tell me because you see it, not because you think I don’t know” (p. 173).

2. I devoured this book in four hours! (and I am not a fast reader) I loved the lists that Ms. Watson used throughout the story. It makes the book an ideal weekend read.

“Top 3 Foods I Can’t Live Without: 1. Meat 2. Ice Cream 3. Cheese” (pp. 30-31). Same girl, same. 

3.  This book has a roll call of amazing African Americans and references to Black History: 1619, CJ Walker, Annie Lee, Countee Cullen, Frederick Douglas, Malcolm X, Maya Angelou, James Baldwin, Chiamanda Ngozi Adichie, Shirley Chisholm, Fannie Lou Hamer, Michelle Obama, Audre Lorde, Paul Robeson, Arturo Alfonso Schomburg, Alvin Ailey, Bryan Stevenson and many more. Nala (main character) says at the beginning of this novel that she likes to binge watch Netflix shows, but will every now and then watch a docu-series to be educated and that is exactly what this book does. It leaves these breadcrumbs for the reader to do some additional research so in Nala’s words “your brains will be learning something” (p. 2).

4.  IMO Rene Watson should receive a Grammy! Yes, you read that right. It’s become popular for authors to include playlists that support their writings. Renee not only created a playlist for this novel, but she created the artist (Blue) and wrote the lyrics to those songs. WHAT?! Please someone set these beautiful lyrics to music!

 Everywhere, anywhere
Being free, do’in me.
Wearin’ what I want to wear.
Big body on display. This skin I’m in, so free, so me.
Hips hypnotizing, hips mesmerizing.
All this me walking down the street. (pp. 42-43)
​5. OK, you read in my bio that I am an elementary school librarian by profession, so I love that Renee is an author my students can grow into. They can read her picture books in elementary school such as Born on the Water, they can read her middle grade novels (Ryan Hart series and Piecing Me Together) and then all of her amazing YA novels including this one! 
Happy Reading!
-Nikki 💗
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    Curators for the Weekend Picks

    Leilya Pitre
    Leilya taught English as a foreign language in the Ukraine and ELA/English in public schools in the US. Her research interests include teacher preparation, clinical experiences, secondary school teaching, and teaching and research of Young Adult and multicultural literature. Together with her friend and colleague, Mike Cook, she co-authored a two-volume edition of Teaching Universal Themes Through Young Adult Novels (2021). ​
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    Cammie Jo Lawton
    Cammie is a current doctoral student at the University of Tennessee Knoxville and serves the Center for Children and Young Adult Literature as a graduate research assistant. She is especially interested in how YA can affect readers, create empathy and possibly shift thinking. 
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    Nikki Bylina-Streets
    Nikki is a elementary librarian who just keeps reading YA literature. She is a constant advocate for reading at every level. You can also follow her through her ​Instagram account dedicated to my school library work. @thislibraryrocks
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