The Gardener of Alcatraz: A True Story Emma Bland Smith , Jenn Ely (Illustrator)

The Gardener of Alcatraz is a great book to add to any school library all ages. It's up for the California Young Readers Medal 2025. True story of a man who turned his life around from crime to gardening. Add this one to your library. Note the illustrations reflect the mood of Elliott in the story.

Nour's Secret Library by Wafa' Tarnowska , Vali Mintzi (Illustrator)

Nour's Secret Library is a picture book for all grades. It's based on real events but with characters created for the story. It's also up for 2025 California Young Reader's Medal. It's a good book for any library.

Within These Wicked Walls by Lauren Blackwood

Within These Wicked Walls give the feel of Jane Eyre just a little bit. Paranormal beings, murders, ammulents and more plus a bit of romance. Did I like the story? No, it was dark and gloomy. Wasn't my cup of tea.

The Millicent Quibb School of Etiquette for Young Ladies of Mad Science by Kate McKinnon

The Millicent Quibb School of Etiquette for Young Ladies of Mad Science is a farcicle story of a unusal mad scientist teacher with her fanciful animals recruiting orphans who don't fit in various etiquette schools. Fine for middle school libraries

Reading Between the Lies by Lynn Cahoon

Reading Between the Lies is a cozy murder mystery. I am hooked on them. It's a good read/listen too. If you like cozy mysteries you'll enjoy.

Windswept by Margi Preus , Armando Veve (Illustrator)

Windswept is a children's book that also paralells parables. A good book to add to school libraries for children.

Bookshops & Bonedust by Travis Baldree

Bookshops & Bonedust is an entertaining fantasy book to read or enjoy. For adults.

Book Lovers by Emily Henry

Book Lovers is a sexy adult romantic story. A nod to Nora Ephron, When Harry Met Sally, A good read/listen too.

Impossible Creatures by Katherine Rundell

Impossible Creatures is a good book with similarities of the real world if you look for it. A good read and a good listen. Fine to add to any middle school library.

Bad Blood by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Bad Blood is an intense thriller that wraps up the series. A good audiobook and strong characters. FIne for any high school library.

Finlay Donovan Rolls the Dice by Elle Cosimano

Finlay Donovan Rolls the Dice is a sexy cozy murder mystery. Think Lucy and Ethel meets Thelma and Louise. A good read/audiobook. Enjoy this adult story.

Veronica Ruiz Breaks the Bank by Elle Cosimano

Veronica Ruiz Breaks the Bank is a great cozy but also sexy murder mysteries series. You get the back story of her and how she becomes who she is. A good read for adults.

The Diva Serves Forbidden Fruit by Krista Davis

The Diva Serves Forbidden Fruit is a good cozy murder mystery. The audiobook also very good. Enjoy.

The Diva Says Cheesecake! by Krista Davis

The Diva Says Cheesecake! is a great murder mystery and also a good audiobook to enjoy.

The Diva Delivers on a Promise by Krista Davis

The Diva Delivers on a Promise is a cozy murder mystery. The audiobook is entertaining. A good read.

Soul of Stars by Ashley Poston

Soul of Stars is a science fiction story, part 2. There is a cast of characters with their own back stories to create a unified story. Good vs Evil in science fiction story. Enjoy.

Black Star by Kwame Alexander

Black Star takes us back in time when things were unkind and unfair toward black people. A good book to add to any children and middle school library. Audiobook also very good. Add this one to your library.

The Unwedding by Ally Condie

The Unwedding is brilliant. Think Agatha Christie And Then There Were None set in a modern romantic setting. I grew up near Big Sur and yes sometimes landslides take down bridges and roads. I enjoyed listening to this who done it. A good read. Enjoy.

Powerful by Lauren Roberts

Powerful by Lauren Roberts tells the backstory of a seamstress who beocmes friends with a blacksmith with a dangerous talent/ability. A sweet girl who gets mixed up with palace politics.

The Finisher by David Baldacci

The Finisher is a distopian story that turned out to be really good. I listened to the audiobook and that was helpful. There is a lot going on in the story. I would say it's perfect for public library. A good mystery. Enjoy.

Betting on You by Lynn Painter

Betting on You is a nod to When Harry Met Sally. It's an okay story, I wouldn't purchase it for my school but the public library has it so if someone wants to read, there you go.

Places We've Never Been by Kasie West

Places We've Never Been is a fine story to add to high school libraries. Kasie West is a local author in my town and I would love to invite her to my high school. Her books are fine to add to any high school library.

Finlay Donovan Jumps the Gun by Elle Cosimano

Finlay Donovan Jumps the Gun a guilty pleasure to listen or read. It's funny and smart. The character development is great with their snappy conversations. It's a delightful comedy of errors. Just enjoy.

Walking Shoes by Lynne Gentry

Walking Shoes is book one in a series that I think is off to a great start. I listened to this book and enjoyed how a woman must find herself after her preacher husband dies on the pulpit. Her grown children who have moved away return home to pay their respects and help their mother. The family dynamics and friends dynamics works well. It's a good story. Not preachy just perfect. A good read.

The Automatic Millionaire: A Powerful One-Step Plan to Live and Finish by Rich David Bach

The Automatic Millionaire: A Powerful One-Step Plan to Live and Finish Rich was a book I wish I had when I was younger and out of high school. The audiobook also good. I would add this to my high school library.

The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing: Violate Them at Your Own Risk by Al Ries

The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing: Violate Them at Your Own Risk has some helpful information. It was written in 1993, so some information is helpful but I wonder if there is an updated version. It's fine for a foundation to start looking for marketing strategies.

Once Upon an Eid by S.K. Ali

Once Upon an Eid is written by multiple authors. I didn't know anything about Eid before listening to this book but I appreciate how the stories brought me into another world and give me better understanding of a culture I'm still learning about. Having students from diverse backgrounds, this book is a good one to add to children's and middle school libraries.

Lula Dean's Little Library of Banned Books by Kirsten Miller

Lula Dean's Little Library of Banned Books is an excellent book. There are some serious moments but wow, a great book. A book banner creates problems in a small town. A teen switches her approved books with banned books and uses the book jackets from the approved jackets. The story follows different people with the books and how it changes them. An excellent read!

Finlay Donovan Knocks 'Em Dead by Elle Cosimano

Finlay Donovan Knocks 'Em Dead is an entertaining murder mystery of a author mom dealing with her ex, her babysitter and partner in crime, so to speak and one hot bartender, one hot police detective and a charming family. The audiobook is also good. Her husband has a hit on him. She keeps trying to save him and uncovers all sorts of secrets and then there's the mob. A good read.

Where the Dark Stands Still by A.B. Poranek

Where the Dark Stands Still is a fairystory that is similar to Beauty and the Beast but not quite and a few other fairy tales. It works, there's magic, witches, dangerous monsters and a guardian of the woods with a dark back story.

The Girl with No Reflection by Keshe Chow

The Girl With No Reflection is a fantasy romantic adventure story. In someways it's good but there is some plot errors that weren't explained away. There are also some f*bombs that weren't really necesary. It's okay but I felt it was a bumpy story.

The Girl Who Fell from the Sky by Heidi W. Durrow

The Girl Who Fell From the Sky is a good story but not at a teen level. FYI there are some negative words and some dangerous situations. Rachel is found with her mother and siblings after fallen from the roof of an apartment. The story is told in multiple viewpoints. We watch her grow up to be a young teen. She's light skinned, blue eyes and is targeted because of her different looks. Find out what happened to cause a family to come to a tragic ending and with one survivor. A good read and a good audiobook.

Wish You Were Here by Jodi Picoult

Wish You Were Here by Jodi Picoult is a good read/audiobook. Wow!!!! When Covid hits it changed so many lives. A doctor in New York City is taking care of so many people and it's not good. Meanwhile his girlfriend is off on an island trapped by Covid and can not leave. She meets a man and his teen daughter and gets to see the island, not as a tourist but as a local. And then she has a life changing event that will forever redirect her life.

The Poe Estate by Polly Shulman

The Poe Estate is perfect for middle school. I got a little lost in the story. Author went an interesting direction. The audiobook is fine.

The Brightwood Code by Monica Hesse

The Brightwood Code by Monica Hesse is an excelent historic fiction story. I got to listen to the audiobook. Fine for any high school library. I would say read first because there is a near rape scene and multiple victims. An important read.

Sunny Song Will Never Be Famous by Suzanne Park

Sunny Song Will Never Be Famous is a book that is fine for teen libraries. At first I didn't like Sunny but then at the end she redeemed herself. Audiobook also good. Enjoy.

Faker by Gordon Korman

Faker by Gordon Korman is a good book to add to any middle school library. The son is tired of being uprooted of his fake life. His younger sister starts doing dangerous things that will get them in big trouble. A good read and a good audibook.

Vinegar Girl by Anne Tyler

Vinegar Girl by Anne Tyler is the retelling of Taming of the Shrew. Have you seen 10 Things I Hate About You? That's the teen retelling of Taming of the Shrew. Lots of twists and turns. Enjoy. Audiobook also good.

No Words by Meg Cabot

No Words is an adult romance novel that is cute. Sometimes you need a fun little book. I like reading Meg Cabot stories. The audiobook also good. Enjoy.

Close Knit by Jenny Colgan

Close Knit by Jenny Colgan is a lovely book to enjoy if you enjoy adventures in Scotland. I enjoy Jenny Colgan stories. She brings characters to life.

Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree

Legends & Lattes is a great read/listen. I hope more books are written with these characters. I like how the community rallied together for this former soldier. A good read.

Under the Surface by Diana Urban

Under the Surface takes place in Paris. As I listened to the story, I found the girls annoying and I might have left them under the city. But it does get more interesting at the end. The book is fine for any high school library.

War Dogs: Tales of Canine Heroism, History, and Love by Rebecca Frankel

War Dogs takes you down the history of how dogs served in war over centuries and across borders. A good read and a good listen as well. Go into the world of the life of soldiers and their dogs.

Hot and Sour Suspects Vivien Chien

Hot and Sour Suspects by Vivien Chien is a cozy mystery. I am so hooked on them. I enjoyed listening to this book while driving around. A good mystery to solve. Enjoy.

Finlay Donovan Is Killing It by Elle Cosimano

Finlay Donovan is Killing It series is my new guilty pleasure. This book is so funny and also elements of danger. Listening to this book brought lots of chuckles as I was listening. It reminded me of I love Lucy meets Ellery Queen. A fun read. Enjoy.

A Land of Books: Dreams of Young Mexihcah Word Painters Duncan Tonatiuh

A Land of Bookscreate by Duncan Tonatiuh is a subject that has interested me for a long time. The books of the Aztec culture was tragically destroyed by invaders so many centuries ago. Tonatiuh is one of my favorite author/illustrators. A book for any library. A good read.

For Every One by Jason Reynolds

For Everyone is a book that should be added to every high school library. The audibook is also worth listening too. Inspirational.

The Ex Hex by Erin Sterling

THe Ex Hex is definitely adult with mature content. It's one sexy book. I got the book for free and I ended up listening to the audiobook. It's entertaining.

The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo

Leigh Bardugo is one of my favorite modern authors. The Familiar is definitely an adult book that takes you back in time to Spain and the Inquisition. People are being persecuted for dangerous reasons. A young servant girl, yearing for more then her dreary life, is caught making miracles and now is forced in to a competition. A mysterious man is helping her. Each has their secrets as she navigates around others who are also talented and equalling cunning. A good read and a good audiobook.

All In by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

All In is part of a smart series of teen sleuths working for the FBI. They are a small group of teens, in everystory, one teen's back story is revealed. These unusual teens have a life story that gives them unqiue abilities. A serial killer is on the lose and as they work together to solve the case the realize that it is deeper then they had expected. It's a good read.