Thanks for chiming in, Joanna! I read the Lie Tree and didn’t review it because of the factors you mention, but agree it would have made good discussion material. I do admire her writing–she’s one of the most elegant stylists out there!

Isn’t it interesting? Such an interesting way of telling the story with the back-and-forth between journal and present day.

Ooh, another recommendation we should check out. Thanks!

My 18 & 14 year old daughters love this series of books! They couldn’t put it down!

Ooh, that sounds interesting!

Looks like it’s also by McAllister (same author)!

We haven’t read that particular one, but from a quick look at it, it looks like it’s set during Medieval times… similar to Beowulf (earlier) and Sir Gawain (a little later) when dragons were popular in legend and literature. The books in this series are quick reads for adults, so you may just want to skim it quickly to see if it’s a good fit for your audience.

Brandi, thank you so much for this comment. Sadly, more authors feel they must give a nod to nontraditional domestic arrangements, even if it’s only a mention. If it’s no more than that, parents can use it as a teaching opportunity to reinforce biblical marriage and discuss how the world is trying to normalize unbiblical standards. Some novels go farther, making sexual sin a plot point or theme, and we don’t recommend those. Parents can make up their own minds about passing references, so I’m glad for the heads-up.

Chris, thank you for this comment and I’m sure our readers will take note. I did mention the nonbinary character Erf but neglected to mention Fauna, and for that I apologize. We try to inform readers about books that are getting a lot of attention (and possible Newbery consideration), but our reporting about them is not necessarily a recommendation. I’ll make that clearer in future posts.

I started reading “The Swifts” recently and was planning to have my 10 year old daughter read it as well. In Chapter 6, I came across a character named “Erf” who is referred to as “they” and who the narrator says is not sure if (Erf) is a boy or a girl, and not sure if she should ask. According to a google search, there is also a trans character named Fauna, who I did not encounter because I immediately removed the book from the home once I realized there was homosexuality in it.

According to https://funfandomblog.wordpress.com/2023/06/12/the-swifts-book-review/
“Fauna is a transwoman, and there’s a really sweet moment of solidarity between Fauna and Erf when Fauna tells them about her past. There are so few queer characters in children’s literature, let alone multiple, let alone trans and nonbinary ones. I was already delighted by everything about The Swifts, but this loving inclusion just put it over the edge. ”

Please beware of the LGBT content in this book, which for our family, made reading the book not worth the cost.

Ooh, this would make a GREAT book club choice down the road. I agree 100% with your sentiments! I have questions and thoughts on this book. And yet, the writing is second to none. Auxier is such a gifted writer.

I totally agree that ten years ago the two parts you pointed out, which without trying to see, I did see, would not have made me pause. Now they do.

I’ll make a wish: I wish someday to be a part of a group discussion so I can ask my questions and share my thoughts, and hear the thoughts and questions of other readers.

Lori, thank you for your comment. In my review, I did reference the “they/them” pronouns by which one character introduces himself. It’s our policy to point out details that may be objectionable so that parents could make their own decisions about whether to check out the book. Personally, since pronouns are not mentioned again in the book, I considered it a nod to “wokeness” that had no bearing on the overall content.

Oh Beth, thank you for letting us know! I’m glad you’re using a book like this with 7th graders. I think it will make an impression on them. And I’m ALWAYS glad to encourage a fellow knitter. 🙂

Thank you, Beth–we love discovering books like this and passing on the good news!

Christina,
Thank you so much for letting us know! I wish we had time to revisit series books, but thankful for readers who stay alert! I’ll add a warning to the review.

Tricia,
That’s what we’re here for! Thanks so much for the compliment–it lifts our spirits.

Thank you. Your service is a gift.

Thank you for your valuable perspective, CarrieAnn. I will post a note at the top of the review so the readers will be sure to check out your comment and make their own decisions.

The book is trying to promote polyamory. Gabi’s mom in a relationship with 3 women and 4 men, all of whom Gabi calls “dads.” Gabi’s mom kisses them all at one point in the book (page 328). It is made clear that though they can’t be legally married, they non-the-less have as much love as any family. The book is attempting to normalize this as as an alternative lifestyle because as Sal says when he meets Gabi’s polyamorous parents “love is all that matters.” (page 123)

Gabi’s polyamorous parents are described as the “most fun,”, “magical,” and “the best family” at different points in the book. (page 317 for instance). When Gabi’s mom is asked what she was like when she was young she says that all she did was “fantasize about dating everybody, and I mean everybody.” (page 296-97)

Twice in the book Sal’s mom teaches Sal in regards to sexuality that “you do you.” (page 335, 336). I believe the kids in the book are meant to understand that perhaps they also might discover in their youth that they have any number of sexual propensities that they will be able to act on later in life, just like Gabi’s mom.

There is a lot more too.

This book is a hard no for me. If you are interested, I can send you a list of quotes I pulled from the book including page numbers. I can understand how you could miss what was going on in this book if you weren’t aware that polyamory is a thing that is being promoted more and more.

My elementary school had my 10 year old daughter read this book and a lot of parents were upset when they saw quotes from the book. The reviews available online don’t describe what the book contains and this website could do a big service. I’d love to see an updated review with more of the quotes included. I’d be happy to help if you are interested. I think it would help bring this to light.

Thank you for posting a review.

Awww . . . Thank you so much, Carol. It’s an honor and a delight to read ahead for readers like you!
!

Oh, that’s a good question! I’m sorry I don’t know the answer. I’ve only seen Miracle on 34th Street once, so I didn’t make that connection when I read Great Joy, but I wonder if she inspired Ibatouilline?

Thank YOU for the feedback, Jenny!

Great insight, Kimberly–thank you!

That’s the kind of feedback we love to hear, Jenny! R.J. Anderson is one of our favorites, and we’re delighted to introduce you to her.

Kristina – thanks for asking! Those links are long dead, but I still have physical copies of the study guides. I can mail them to you, or scan them, if you prefer. you can email me directly at jbc@redeemedreader.com.

Tricia,
Thanks for writing! We encourage parents and librarians to make their own decisions about book selections, so I understand if you can’t in conscience include Ferris in your collection. I personally found the themes of love and appreciation for life and the world to be more Christian than Eastern (as many Eastern religions focus on detachment and personal spirituality).

Hey Karen! We recently updated our ratings system, so unless a review is starred, we are no longer giving a book ratings. (And since this is a guest post, the review itself has a slightly different format.) Here is a link with more information about our recent rating changes.

I had a teen in one of my high school classes tell me about The Power of One–but I’ve not read it!

Thank you! And you’re not too late–good books are never out of date 😉

Hello Meredith, we just found your reply and received a copy of your book. My 15-year-old and I are planning on reading it together, and we are both very excited!
https://bookshop.org/p/books/blind-beauty-and-other-tales-of-redemption-meredith-leigh-burton/10911955?ean=9781720301288

Ahh, thank you, Ashleigh! I am so glad you have been enjoying this list!!! I should do an updated one this fall with some new favorite titles I’ve found since writing this post 🙂

W.R. Gingell’s Masque was wonderful. Once I read that, I searched out a few more of her books. Staff and Crown was great, and I’m very excited to read Masque’s direct sequel, Castle and Key.

Thank you for this truly lovely list!

Yes, they do.

Thanks for these suggestions, Alison!

The Camping Trip that Changed America: Theodore Roosevelt, John Muir, and Our National Parks pub 2012
Multiple award winning book, spotted by my husband, aka National Park Dad who took our family of five through about 7 of them in one long car ride summer!

Thank you! Correction made.

Yes! In the most recent newsletter (Monday, 1/8/24) but we’ll be including the details again in our regular newsletter later this week!

Fair enough, but we’ve found that graphic novels can be a good introduction to a classic work for younger readers, who often WILL read the original version when they’re older. It was true in my case (admittedly many years ago!) and also my children’s. See our post, “Are Graphic Novels ‘Literature’?“

As I just writing to a friend today, I don’t mind a book that originates as good graphic novel, but I am wary of giving classics a later graphic treatment. Not only does it necessarily strip down the richness of the storytelling, it usurps the imaginative role of the reader in visualizing what they are reading. I read Watership Down as a teen when it was originally published and was of course delighted when one of my daughters read it a couple of years back.

Ohhh – that is a wonderful book! Absolutely loved it.

He also illustrated Nurse, Soldier, Spy: The Story of Sarah Edmonds, A Civil War Hero

Yep–we heard about it from one of our readers.

Thank you! I’m bookmarking it for my own re-reads, and for when the kids are older. Your work is such a blessing.

Agreed, Avril–That Hideous Strength is definitely for adults. You may be interested in the read-along I published on Redeemed Reader several years ago, starting here: https://redeemedreader.com/2011/08/that-hideous-strength-an-introduction/.

Hooray! So glad you enjoyed this series, Jennie. It really is just delightful in every way.

We don’t do enough of these kinds of posts, do we? I think a class on reviewing books would be so much fun to offer on a regular basis. Currently, I just fill in for a children’s literature professor one class period each year. I’m just an extra feature ;-).

I’ve read Devil’s Arithmetic, but it’s been a LOOOONNG time. I remember really liking it. And yes–we should have added Number the Stars!

Thank you, Susan! We’re hard at work on the next WORLD CBotY, so stay tuned!

Thank you for the suggestion! I haven’t read The Devil’s Arithmetic but have heard about it, so I’ll check it out. (There’s also Lois Lowry’s Number the Stars that I completely forgot about!)

I came looking for thoughts on Moira’s Pen too. I so appreciate your thoughtful reviews before I introduce a new book to my teenagers.

Interesting, Brenda! We first encountered the earlier editions, with Getafix’s name intact. I assume these were the English translations via the U.K., but didn’t note the publisher.

Jeannine, that’s so disappointing. I’m glad your childhood copies were well-loved and used, but I know that it’s hard to find replacements. I’ve become more bold in buying used copies, and even buying a whole set off of Ebay and donating the rest just so you have volumes 1-3 might be a consideration. I hope you find something!

It is fun story, isn’t it, Savannah? I know it had me on the edge of my seat!

Hello Lisa! I’m sorry, this booklist is no longer available on the website. It was just included in our latest newsletter though, so I’m going to forward that to you!

I’m so glad you found it helpful!

Great additions! I do remember the Red Scarf Girl having some discussion of a young woman going through puberty (heads up, readers), but it wasn’t overly graphic.