New Jersey – Mom Read It

Fiction, Middle Grade, Middle School, Realistic Fiction, Tween Reads

A fun Summer mystery! Saltwater Secrets

Posted on July 30, 2021 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Saltwater Secrets, by Cindy Callaghan, (Apr. 2021, Aladdin), $7.99, ISBN: 9781534417434

Ages 9-13

Originally published in hardcover last year, the paperback release of this fun Summer mystery is perfect for beach reading while ruminating on how water ices can save the world. Half-sisters Josie and Stella spend every summer together: Josie lives in Australia with her mom, while Stella lives in New York with her mom and stepdad. They share their summers – and their dad – together at the Jersey Shore, where they have their rituals. This year, Stella is pushing back against those rituals, because she’s on the verge of high school and wants to act more adult; Josie revels in their childhood memories. What starts out as a story where two sisters are growing up yet afraid of growing apart gets infinitely more interesting when you realize that chapters alternate between the sisters’ story and a debriefing at a police station. Something big has happened, as the story unfolds through each chapter, and it has to do, somehow, with the new smoothie store that took the place of Josie’s beloved water ice shop; a pop star coming to perform a concert at the pier, and the jellyfish population, currently undergoing a marine life crisis. This family story becomes a co-plot to an environmental mystery that brings the sisters back together to solve as they work out their growing pains, and it is guaranteed to keep readers glued to the pages. There’s a fun cast of supporting characters, great pacing and dialogue, and an eloquent statement about the environment and how we affect it, for better or for worse. Put this on your shelves with other summer books like Kayla Miller’s graphic novel, Camp, Mae Respicio’s Any Day With You, Melissa Savage’s Lemons, and – naturally! – Rita Williams-Garcia’s One Crazy Summer.

Adventure, Fiction, Historical Fiction, Middle Grade, Realistic Fiction, Teen, Tween Reads

The Perils of Daring Darleen, Queen of the Screen!

Posted on March 5, 2020March 3, 2020 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Daring Darleen: Queen of the Screen, by Anne Nesbet, (Apr. 2020, Candlewick Press), $18.99, ISBN: 9781536211757

Ages 10-14

It’s 1914, and silent serials are all the rage at movie houses. Fort Lee, New Jersey, is the filmaking hotspot, and 12-year-old Darleen is the star of Matchstick Studios’s adventure serial, Daring Darleen. The studio, run by Darleen’s father, uncles, and aunt, churn out serials where Darleen faces bad guy after bad guy while searching for her dear papa, but the dangers she faces onscreen are nothing compared to the turn her real life takes when a publicity stunt goes haywire and Darleen finds herself kidnapped – FOR REAL – alongside a young heiress. Darleen and Victorine, a “poor little rich girl”, quickly bond and work on a way to escape their captors and keep Victorine safe from her money-hungry relations.

Daring Darleen is a great piece of historical fiction, with a rich background of the early filmmaking industry and Fort Lee’s place in it (an author’s note touches on the industry and real characters who cameo in the story). Darleen is a smart, spunky young heroine and Victorine is her protege; the two have a remarkable chemistry that comes together on the page and makes them a formidable duo. Victorine blossoms as Darleen’s daring rubs off on her, and Darleen is always working to keep one step ahead of everyone else. Two strong female heroines, a good supporting cast of characters, and a well-paced, plotted story make Daring Darleen a book to have on your shelves. Will Daring Darleen have more adventures? Like the silent serials of old, we just have to wait and see!

Daring Darleen: Queen of the Screen has starred reviews from Publishers Weekly and Kirkus. Publisher Candlewick has a sample chapter available on their website, and librarian/podcaster/reviewer extraordinaire, Betsy Bird, has an interview with author Anne Nesbet here. Want to show off a silent film to get your reading group in the mood for a Daring Darleen discussion? Check out one of Anne Nesbet’s favorites, Alice Guy Blaché’s Falling Leaves (1912), right here:

Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Teen, Tween Reads

Not just the flu: Pandemic

Posted on September 17, 2016September 17, 2016 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Pandemic, by Yvonne Ventresca, (July 2016, Sky Pony Press), $9.99, ISBN: 9781510703902

Recommended for ages 12+

This is the paperback release of the 2015 SCBWI Crystal Kite Winner for the Atlantic region.

Liliana used to be an outgoing, top student. Until the whole thing with Mr. B happened; now, she’s withdrawn, her grades have plummeted, and her outlook has changed from a glass half full to the glass being smashed on the floor. Only a few people know what happened, and she’s lost some friends over it, but Lil has bigger problems right now: there’s a fast-spreading flu going through her New Jersey town, and friends and neighbors are getting really sick. Her medical journalist father is in Delaware covering the disease’s early stages, and her mother, on business in Hong Kong, is unable to get a flight back home when everything hits. Lil is on her own, and she’s terrified. As the disease marches through her world, she’s got to reach deep down inside herself and become the person she once was to survive.

Pandemic is a good read. It moves fast, has good characters, and puts them in a scary situation that’s all too real for a lot of us watching the news these days. Lil is on a journey without realizing it. Readers don’t know her before the incident with a teacher, but we see her go from a withdrawn, depressed teen to a strong young woman who can think, organize, and act to keep herself and the people around her as safe as she can, all while facing terrifying odds. I love a good, strong heroine, and was really appreciative that Yvonne Ventresca gives readers a take-charge main character who’s flawed but recognizes the need to push forward.

If you know readers who love a good plague story (minus zombies here), add this one to your shelves. For readers who want the gripping lead-up to dystopia, but minus the government-run aftermath.

Pair this with your cataclysm books: Chris Weitz’s The Young World series, Em Garner’s Contaminated books, and Lex Thomas’ Quarantine series are some good starts (and make Pandemic look like everyone’s getting off easy).

Edited to add: Holy cow, I sent this to publish too soon. Yvonne Ventresca’s author page has links to a Pandemic Pinterest board and an educator’s guide. Make sure to check it out!