Marcolino hates practicing his scales on the piano, but feels he must because he is the reason his mother never became a grand pianist–until his grandfather lets them both in on a little secret.
Piano Piano
Realistic Fiction
Realistic Fiction genre
Mommy, Tell Me About Haiti
Jeanine Agnant shares her memories about Haiti, the land, and the culture with her granddaughter, Josephine, to connect the generations.
Mommy, Tell Me About Haiti is endorsed by the Haitian American Historical Society.
Seventeen
While Jonatan lies comatose in the emergency room, his father tells him stories of his meeting with Jonatan’s mother, their life as a family, and the events that caused them to be separated for more than a decade.
Dear Vincent
17 year old, Tara McClusky’s life is hard. She shares the care of her paralysed father with her domineering, difficult mother, forced to cut down on her hours at school to help support the family with a part-time rest home job. She’s very much alone, still grieving the loss of her older sister Van, who died five years before. Her only source of consolation is her obsession with art and painting in particular. Most especially she is enamoured with Vincent Van Gogh: she has read all his letters and finds many parallels between the tragic story of his life and her own. Luckily she meets the intelligent, kindly Professor Max Stockhamer (a Jewish refugee and philosopher) and his grandson Johannes, and their support is crucial to her ability to survive this turbulent time. The book tackles the difficult topic of suicide fearlessly, with a novel that’s not afraid to go to the dark places but which resolves its story beautifully.
See the review at WOW Review, Volume VI, Issue 3
That Night’s Train
A young motherless girl becomes friends with a teacher/writer who weaves the story of their friendship into her novel. A moving book about promises and the nature of stories.
See the review at WOW Review, Volume VI, Issue 3
Maude: The Not-So-Noticeable Shrimpton
Being noticed is what all the members of the Shrimpton family lived for – all except, that is, for Maude. She prefers to blend into the background rather than stand out in a crowd.
The Boy On The Bridge
It is 1982 and nineteen-year-old Laura Reid is spending a semester in Leningrad studying Russian, but when she meets Alyosha she discovers the dissident Russia–a world of wild parties, underground books and music, love, and constant danger.
Saving Kabul Corner
Twelve-year-old Ariana, a tomboy, and her ladylike cousin Laila, recently arrived from Afghanistan, do not get along but they pull together when a rival Afghani grocery store opens, rekindling an old family feud and threatening their family’s livelihood.
Razia’s Ray of Hope
Razia dreams of getting an education, but in her small village in Afghanistan, girls haven’t been allowed to attend school for many years. When a new girls’ school opens in the village, a determined Razia must convince her father and oldest brother that educating her would be best for her, their family and their community.
My Happy Life
Dani is happy to be starting school and she is even happier when she meets a girl named Ella who becomes her best friend, but something unexpected happens to Dani and Ella’s friendship.