by Ingvild Rishøi, trans. by Caroline Waight
The truism that good things come in small packages is affirmed by Ingvild Rishøi's Brightly Shining, an unexpected emotional force disguised by its small stature. It is also true of the novel's narrator, 10-year-old Ronja. Ronja is a burning ember, staying hopeful in the face of her father's alcoholism and the instability it brings. When he has a good stretch of sobriety, Ronja wants to believe, but her older sister, Melissa, knows the good days can't last: "He'd just been at work then come straight
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by Zahid Rafiq
Former journalist Zahid Rafiq's resounding debut collection, The World with Its Mouth Open, offers 11 stories that distill quotidian moments--a walk, a job search, new neighbors--into opportunities for deep insight. Reflecting his own background, Rafiq's characters live in Kashmir, a disputed territory on the Indian subcontinent uneasily governed by India, Pakistan, and China. They navigate the demands of family and community, struggling to survive amid chaos and violence.
Rafiq's title haunts "Crows,"
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by Sarah Everett
Sarah Everett's surprising, full-hearted second work of middle-grade fiction, The Shape of Lost Things, depicts the changes that take place in one family when a Black girl's brother is returned home by his abductor father.
Four years ago, Skye and Finn's dad kidnapped then-10-year-old Finn and went on the run. Now 12-year-old Skye fills in for her older brother every September 3rd for his "MIA birthday." But Skye thinks of herself as "a very bad Rent-a-Finn"; Finn was "hilarious and fun and cool" while Skye
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by Julia Armfield
Pushcart Prize-winning novelist Julia Armfield (Our Wives Under the Sea) offers an engrossing look at existential dread and the bonds that keep people afloat in Private Rites. A speculative retelling of King Lear by way of Lars von Trier's Melancholia that focuses on the perspective of the three daughters, Armfield's novel is set in a drowning world where it won't stop raining. Under the constant threat of submersion, most of the world struggles with what it means to live during the probable end of the world.
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by Amanda Lee Koe
Amanda Lee Koe's sophomore novel, Sister Snake, is a deliciously provocative examination of female agency, with startling, serpentine bite. Once upon a time in Hangzhou, China, a white krait and a green viper became "sworn sisters" after the latter nursed the former back to health from "unspeakable violence." Disillusioned by her own kind, the white snake longed to be human, and although her sister was satisfied with their way of life, the green snake "would try anything once." In the year 815, the green
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by Hilary Horder Hippely, illus. by Matt James
Hilary Horder Hippely (A Song for Lena) champions courage and kindness while presenting a difficult and relevant topic--unhoused families--in I Know How to Draw an Owl. Award-winning illustrator Matt James (The Funeral) elevates Hippely's heartfelt story with his richly layered, deeply saturated art.
"Today we're drawing owls," Ms. Rio announces. Among her students' results, Belle's work is especially notable. Belle merely shrugs in response; she knows exactly why, but she's hardly ready to tell. Once upon
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