The Evil Wizard Smallbone by Eelia Sherman

This is a fun to read story about 12 year old Nick, who has run away from his mean uncle only to wind up as an apprentice to the Evil Wizard Smallbone whose enemy is a loup garou named Fidelou.  Nick learns magic and learns about his own self worth in this story.  It has excitement and magic and I think that middle school age children will enjoy it very much.

I'm Not Dying With You Tonight by Kimberly Jones and Gilly Segal

Two high school girls, who only know who each other is because they have a class together, are thrust together when a high school football game turns into a riot with a shooting involved.  They escape together only to wind up in another riot as they attempt to locate Lena's boyfriend. 

No One is Too Small To Make A Difference by Greta Thunberg

I listened to the audio book of this collection of Greta's speeches of the course of about a year.  I enjoyed listening to Greta's speeches and I am proud of her for speaking out about the important issue of climate change.  She is right that we need to do something about it now, not later.  I hope that she and many other young people will take up the charge and actually make the changes that need to be made.  Greta is an inspiring young woman and we all need to take heed to her words.

The Girl With The Louding Voice by Abi Dare

I listened to the audio version of this book, which was very well done.  The story is powerful and raw and tells the story of a 14 year old girl in Nigeria who is forced to marry an old man as his third wife.  She later runs away only to be enslaved as a house maid to a woman who beats her.  Yet through it all, she remains strong, wanting to become a teacher to help other girls become educated.  I highly recommend this book.

The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson

Eleanor goes to the mysterious hill house and spends a week with three other people.  The house is said to be haunted and it speaks to Eleanor and twists her mind as well as the minds of the others who are there with her. 

Harry Potter: Knitting Magic: The Official Guide to Creating Original Knits Inspired By the Harry Potter Films by Tanis Gray

Not only does this book have lovely patterns, but each has an explanation about which movie it is based on and where you can see what it is based on in the movie with photos from the movie as well. The patterns are well written and there are instructions in the back of the book that explain some of the more difficult bits. This book is a must-have for Harry Potter loving knitters!

White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism by Robin DiAngelo

The author of this book explains that racism is a system of white power and control over black people.  This is different from mere prejudice or discrimination.  It is a system that is based on an ideology and we live in this system, therefore, by her definition, all white people are racist, however, she does not define racist as someone who intentionally doesn't like people because of race, but rather as unintentional members of a system of racism.  The book is enlightening and brings up some very good points.