What I Read in May

May was pretty hectic (not as bad as summer, but still). But I managed to read a good bit. I'm planning to try reading mostly books I own already for the summer, so it could get interesting.

Two YA books for review this time:



Dread Nation by Justina Ireland

So far, this is one of my favorite teen books this year. In an alternate post-Civil War United States, African-American and Native American children are forced to train in combat schools to protect rich white Americans for the undead. In this world, the Civil War ended because the two sides had to work together to put down zombies. Jane is one of the best, and most troublesome, students at Miss Preston's School of Combat in Baltimore. When she tries to help a friend, she and two others end up shipped off to a frontier town with a whole lot of secrets. Will they survive? And will Jane ever make her way home?

Jane is the heroine we need and deserve right now. And the snark and social commentary are on point. But Jane isn't the only awesome character. You are going to love her friends Katherine and Red Jack, too. Not so sure about Gideon or Redfern, but even minor characters like Lilly and Nessie are so well-drawn you will feel like you have met them before.

And the action scenes are just the right amount of gore and fight. The flashbacks and info given through letters reveals just enough backstory at just the right times.



Tess of the Road by Rachel Hartman

This is a hard book to review but a good one. Tess is the black sheep of her family, especially after she does something that could ruin the whole family's reputation. But when she disrupts her sister's marriage, it is the last straw that could get her sent off to a convent. Instead she takes to the road, working through her problems and helping others along the way.

This is the same world as the Seraphina books but from a completely different perspective. Tess is not as likeable as Seraphina, and that is exactly what I liked about her. I identify with her situations, perspective, and wants far more. And yes, this book can stand alone. So maybe a Printz contender?

This is a road trip book and it ambles, so if you are looking for a fast-paced adventure, this is not the one. However, it ambles with extreme purpose. Tess needs that amble and, for the most part, you as the reader do, too.

Also, it is a book about the damage our families and society can cause. It is about rape culture. It is about healing at your own speed and accepting who you are, who your family members are, and learning to accept the world when you must and change it when you can. These have been really hard lessons for me personally, so it was refreshing to see that difficulty reflected in a book for teens.

And really, I love the quigutl, especially the philosophies of opposites and biting as a way of healing. I've always "bit" when I need to heal and often people give you a hard time about it. Sometimes the only way to move past something is to blow up about it. Then you heal and move on.


 1. Enchanted Chest by Jean-Francois Chabas
 2. Case Closed vol. 64 by Gosho Aoyama
 3. Dude! by Aaron Reynolds
 4. Hello Hello by Brendan Wenzel
 5. All the Animals Where I Live by Phillip C. Stead
 6. White Houses by Amy Bloom
 7. California Dreamin': Cass Elliott Before The Mamas & The Papas by Penelope Bageiu
 8. Relay (FCBD 2018) by Zac Thompson
 9. Shade, the Changing Girl vol. 1: Earth Girl Made Easy by Cecil Castelucci
10. Close Encounters With Humankind: A Paleoanthropologist Investigates Our Evolving Species by Sang-Hee Lee
11. Delilah Dirk and the Turkish Lieutenant by Tony Cliff
12. your name vol. 1 by Makoto Shinkai
13. Oblivion Song vol. 1 by Robert Kirkman
14. Sea Otter Heroes: The Predators That Saved an Environment by Patricia Newman
15. For Everyone by Jason Reynolds
16. Slam! vol. 1 by Pamela Ribon
17. The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert
18. The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo
19. La Belle Sauvage by Philip Pullman
20. Dread Nation by Justina Ireland
21. A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo by Jill Twiss
22. The Great War: Stories Inspired by Items from the First World War by David Almond
23. Turning 15 on the Road to Freedom: My Story of the 1965 Selma Voting Rights March by Lynda Blackmon Lowery
24. Marlon Bundo's Day in the Life of the Vice President by Charlotte Pence
25. Tess of the Road by Rachel Hartman
26. Black Hammer vol. 1: Secret Origins by Jeff Lemire
27. Black Hammer vol. 2: The Event by Jeff Lemire
28. School-Live! vol. 5 by Norimitsu Kaihou
29. School-Live! vol. 6 by Norimitsu Kaihou
30. Black Butler vol. 24 by Yana Toboso
31. Sherlock: A Study in Pink by Steven Moffat
32. Coyotes vol. 1 by Sean Lewis