The Blue House by Phoebe Wahl (Picture Book)
Wahl's illustrations took my emotions on a rollercoaster. I felt everything through her art - coziness (messy but comfortable home), love (Leo dancing and cooking with his dad), loss (Leo hearing his dad on the phone talking about how their home would be torn down next), helplessness (how they handled their grief of losing their home through music), and acceptance (painting the walls). Wahl must disappear into some kind of magical realm when she's creating her books because I, too, briefly disappear when reading them. I especially enjoyed the record sleeves and expressions on the cat's face!
Eat Joy edited by Natalie Eve Garrett (Adult Nonfiction)
A touching and beautiful collection of essays by a wide variety of authors, some well-known and others I've never heard of before. This is all about comfort food, and while a few recipes sound interesting, it's not really a traditional cookbook (a few example recipes are brownies from a box mix, a blueberry pie made with tears, and a Seder brisket made with green chilies). Each author's essay shines a light on a comfort food that has helped them find joy and brings up a memory or lots of memories. Favorite essays are Anthony Doerr's Homesick at the Outer Edge of the World (he has the brownie mix recipe), Heather Sellers' A Brief Recipe for Happiness (As a child she tried to slip unusual food items into her mom's shopping cart with zero success), Colum McCann's Dessert (he turns an ordinary moment of a woman eating chocolate cake alone into something extraordinary), Lev Grossman's General Tso (General Tso's Tofu soothes the pain he felt after his divorce), and Rakesh Satyal's Bake Your Fear (he combats bullying with baking).
Everything Naomi Loved by Katie Yamasaki & Ian Lendler (Picture Book)
The message of community, connection, change, and acceptance is beautiful. I love the music, light, and rainbows swirling across each page like different threads representing all the beauty of the world, including Naomi's community and neighborhood, a neighborhood which is slowly razed by progress. I love how Mister Ray teaches Naomi how to hang onto things that go away by painting their images on a wall. The way Naomi carries the memories of her old neighborhood and creates a way to keep them alive in her new neighborhood will fill your heart with joy, and the threads of music, light, and rainbows will continue off the last page and swirl right into you.
P.S. Here is a must-see video about this book:
You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson (Teen Fiction)
Liz Lighty is a fierce and lovable character who is surrounded by an eclectic and supportive group of friends. Though her family is small, they don't have much money, and her brother has a serious disease, they are super tight and supportive of each other. Liz is under a lot of stress. It's her senior year and she finds out she's not getting a scholarship to the college of her dreams. In a desperate attempt at another scholarship, she signs up for this prom marathon thing that lasts for weeks! I hope proms aren't like this - lots of volunteering that doesn't make a lot of sense, cheesy events, and intense scrutiny for weeks. I can't imagine the pressure! Liz's character is beautifully human and flawed (bravo Leah Johnson!), so she naturally makes some mistakes. But she never completely changes who she is or takes anyone down with her insecurities or desperate need to win. Her relationship with Amanda is my favorite part of the story. It's not a perfect relationship, but their care and love for each other is evident even when the relationship is falling apart. Overall, You Should See Me in a Crown has it all - complex and lovable characters, an intense, though slightly weird, competition, just a touch of angst, and a satisfying ending full of hope.
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