Mrs. Tetschner Recommends

Afia in the land of wonders

Araujo, Mia, 1986-,


Sixteen-year-old Afia leaves her beloved twin sister to embark on a journey of self-discovery in a magical land with a beguiling queen and dangers untold. In this magical coming-of-age tale, Afia defies her family's expectations and follows a shape-shifter into the enchanted land of IjÃ¡bÃ¹, only to discover that its beauty hides dark secrets. As she navigates treacherous illusions and dangerous loyalties, Afia must summon the courage to define her own path—or risk losing herself entirely.
Date Published:2025

Sixteen-year-old Afia leaves her beloved twin sister to embark on a journey of self-discovery in a magical land with a beguiling queen and dangers untold. In this magical coming-of-age tale, Afia defies her family's expectations and follows a shape-shifter into the enchanted land of IjÃ¡bÃ¹, only to discover that its beauty hides dark secrets. As she navigates treacherous illusions and dangerous loyalties, Afia must summon the courage to define her own path—or risk losing herself entirely.

Date Published:2025

The Bletchley riddle

Sepetys, Ruta,


School Library Journal starred, August 2024. Booklist starred, September 2024. Horn Book Starred, September 2024. Pub Weekly, July 2024. Bulletin (Center for Children's Books), September 2024. Kirkus Review, August 2024. Follows siblings Jakob Novis and his quirky younger sister Lizzie as they find themselves at Bletchley Park, the home of WWII codebreakers working to decrypt the Nazi's Enigma cipher, where the two struggle to unravel a mystery surrounding their mother's disappearance against the backdrop of the Battle of Britain and Hitler's feared invasion.
Date Published:2025

School Library Journal starred, August 2024. Booklist starred, September 2024. Horn Book Starred, September 2024. Pub Weekly, July 2024. Bulletin (Center for Children's Books), September 2024. Kirkus Review, August 2024. Follows siblings Jakob Novis and his quirky younger sister Lizzie as they find themselves at Bletchley Park, the home of WWII codebreakers working to decrypt the Nazi's Enigma cipher, where the two struggle to unravel a mystery surrounding their mother's disappearance against the backdrop of the Battle of Britain and Hitler's feared invasion.

Date Published:2025

The bridge home

Venkatraman, Padma, 1969-,


School Library Journal starred, February 2019. Booklist starred, February 2019. Library Media Connection starred, May 2019. Kirkus Starred, December 2018. New York Times, May 2019. Horn Book, January 2019. Bulletin (Center for Children's Books), January 2019. Voice of Youth Advocates (V.O.Y.A.), December 2018. Publishers Weekly Annex, December 2018. Four determined homeless children make a life for themselves in Chennai, India.
Date Published:2020

School Library Journal starred, February 2019. Booklist starred, February 2019. Library Media Connection starred, May 2019. Kirkus Starred, December 2018. New York Times, May 2019. Horn Book, January 2019. Bulletin (Center for Children's Books), January 2019. Voice of Youth Advocates (V.O.Y.A.), December 2018. Publishers Weekly Annex, December 2018. Four determined homeless children make a life for themselves in Chennai, India.

Date Published:2020

Dust

Bowling, Dusti,


School Library Journal, October 2023. Publishers Weekly, May 2023. Booklist, July 2023. Kirkus Review, June 2023. When a boy with a terrible secret moves to town there is a sudden increase in dust storms, and asthmatic Avalyn theorizes the storms are linked to his emotions and tries to help as she struggles to breathe.
Date Published:2025

Ferris

DiCamillo, Kate,


School Library Journal, February 2024. During the summer before fifth grade, Ferris Wilkey has her hands full with her little sister terrorizing the town, her Aunt Shirley moving into their basement and her grandmother seeing a ghost--one who has wild, impractical and illuminating plans.
Date Published:2024

The goldfish boy

Thompson, Lisa, (Lisa Anne), 1973-,


Booklist, Horn Book Guide, Kirkus Review, Publishers Weekly, School Library Connection Star, School Library Journal, Twelve-year-old Matthew Corbin has struggled with a severe obsessive-compulsive disorder since the death of his baby brother five years ago--a tragedy he blames on himself. In self-imposed isolation, Matthew stays in his bedroom all day long, watching the neighbors come and go and keeping notes about their daily routines. When a toddler goes missing next door, Matthew starts his own investigation with the help of his neighborhood friends. And in the process of uncovering the truth, Matthew just might be able to break free from his own demons.
Date Published:2018

Booklist, Horn Book Guide, Kirkus Review, Publishers Weekly, School Library Connection Star, School Library Journal, Twelve-year-old Matthew Corbin has struggled with a severe obsessive-compulsive disorder since the death of his baby brother five years ago--a tragedy he blames on himself. In self-imposed isolation, Matthew stays in his bedroom all day long, watching the neighbors come and go and keeping notes about their daily routines. When a toddler goes missing next door, Matthew starts his own investigation with the help of his neighborhood friends. And in the process of uncovering the truth, Matthew just might be able to break free from his own demons.

Date Published:2018

Gregor the Overlander

Collins, Suzanne,


When eleven-year-old Gregor and his two-year-old sister are pulled into a strange underground world, they trigger an epic battle involving humans, bats, rats, cockroaches, and spiders while on a quest foretold by ancient prophecy.
Date Published:2013

Impossible escape : a true story of survival and heroism in Nazi Europe /

Sheinkin, Steve,


School Library Journal starred, August 2023. Booklist starred, August 2023. Horn Book Starred, September 2023. Publishers Weekly, June 2023. Kirkus Starred, July 2023. "A true story of two Jewish teenagers racing against time during the Holocaust--one in hiding in Hungary, and the other in Auschwitz, plotting escape"--Provided by publisher.
Date Published:2023

Kareem between

Safadi, Shifa Saltagi,


Booklist, Kirkus Reviews Starred, First, his best friend moves away, then he fails his football tryout, then he is told to volunteer to show the new Syrian refugee kid around school, and finally his mother gets stuck in Syria after returning to help her family--all told, not a great start for Kareem's seventh grade school year. Things look up when the quarterback tells him he might be able to get him another tryout--the catch is that Kareem must do something he knows, in his heart, isn't right.
Date Published:2024

Booklist, Kirkus Reviews Starred, First, his best friend moves away, then he fails his football tryout, then he is told to volunteer to show the new Syrian refugee kid around school, and finally his mother gets stuck in Syria after returning to help her family--all told, not a great start for Kareem's seventh grade school year. Things look up when the quarterback tells him he might be able to get him another tryout--the catch is that Kareem must do something he knows, in his heart, isn't right.

Date Published:2024

The lost year

Marsh, Katherine,


School Library Journal, October 2023. Booklist starred, December 2022. Publishers Weekly, November 2022. New York Times, January 2023. Horn Book, March 2023. Bulletin (Center for Children's Books), December 2022. Kirkus Review, November 2022. In the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, thirteen-year-old Matthew discovers a shocking secret about his great-grandmother's past as he learns about her life during the Holodomor famine in Soviet Ukraine.
Date Published:2023

School Library Journal, October 2023. Booklist starred, December 2022. Publishers Weekly, November 2022. New York Times, January 2023. Horn Book, March 2023. Bulletin (Center for Children's Books), December 2022. Kirkus Review, November 2022. In the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, thirteen-year-old Matthew discovers a shocking secret about his great-grandmother's past as he learns about her life during the Holodomor famine in Soviet Ukraine.

Date Published:2023

Louder than hunger

Schu, John, 1981-,


Booklist, Kirkus Review, Publishers Weekly Starred, School Library Journal Starred, In 1996, thirteen-year-old Jake Stacey volunteers at a nursing home because he likes helping people and because it's easier to avoid others his own age. He constantly feels like the weird or odd one out and would do anything not to be that kid, including listening to voice in his head that tells him things will be better if he shrinks himself down to nothing. The truth is Jake has been starving himself since seventh grade, and the adults in his life are starting to notice. Jake is admitted into an inpatient program, where he's treated for anorexia nervosa, depression, and OCD. While he initially rebels against the staff and pushes back, he eventually settles into his treatment, exploring his relationship with food and opening up to the people around him.
Date Published:2024

Booklist, Kirkus Review, Publishers Weekly Starred, School Library Journal Starred, In 1996, thirteen-year-old Jake Stacey volunteers at a nursing home because he likes helping people and because it's easier to avoid others his own age. He constantly feels like the weird or odd one out and would do anything not to be that kid, including listening to voice in his head that tells him things will be better if he shrinks himself down to nothing. The truth is Jake has been starving himself since seventh grade, and the adults in his life are starting to notice. Jake is admitted into an inpatient program, where he's treated for anorexia nervosa, depression, and OCD. While he initially rebels against the staff and pushes back, he eventually settles into his treatment, exploring his relationship with food and opening up to the people around him.

Date Published:2024

My nest of silence

Faulkner, Matt,


School Library Journal starred, October 2022. Booklist starred, July 2022. Horn Book Starred, November 2022. Pub Weekly, September 2022. New York Times, November 2022. Kirkus Review, August 2022. Library Media Connection, October 2022. A graphic novel/prose hybrid which tells the story of a young Japanese American man who leaves his family in the Manzanar internment camp to fight in the European theater during World War II, and of his ten-year-old sister who, frustrated over her brother risking his life for the government that imprisoned them, decides to stop talking until he returns.
Date Published:2023

School Library Journal starred, October 2022. Booklist starred, July 2022. Horn Book Starred, November 2022. Pub Weekly, September 2022. New York Times, November 2022. Kirkus Review, August 2022. Library Media Connection, October 2022. A graphic novel/prose hybrid which tells the story of a young Japanese American man who leaves his family in the Manzanar internment camp to fight in the European theater during World War II, and of his ten-year-old sister who, frustrated over her brother risking his life for the government that imprisoned them, decides to stop talking until he returns.

Date Published:2023

The mystery of the Radcliffe riddle

Souders, Taryn, 1977-,


"Ages 8 and up"--Jacket flap. Publishers Weekly, May 2023. Booklist, May 2023. Kirkus Review, May 2023. "Grady and his father inherit the town oddball's old tapestry and discover it is a highly coveted treasure map"--OCLC.
Date Published:2023

One big open sky

Cline-Ransome, Lesa,


Booklist, Horn Book Guide Starred, Kirkus Reviews Starred, Publishers Weekly, School Library Journal, In 1879, a young African American girl named Lettie and her parents leave their home in Natchez, Mississippi, and head West after her father, Thomas, decides the family should join a wagon train heading to Nebraska, where he would no longer have to work on a white man's land but could acquire his own property. Her mother, Sylvia, is less inclined to leave their family behind but reluctantly agrees. Along the way, they meet a young woman named Philomena, who's heading to Nebraska for a teaching job, and she soon becomes a mentor and role model for Lettie. They face many challenges on their journey, including their wagons being attacked, their food supplies running low, hazardous weather, and losing friends and family to death. But despite these hardships, the group tries not to lose sight of their dreams.
Date Published:2024

Booklist, Horn Book Guide Starred, Kirkus Reviews Starred, Publishers Weekly, School Library Journal, In 1879, a young African American girl named Lettie and her parents leave their home in Natchez, Mississippi, and head West after her father, Thomas, decides the family should join a wagon train heading to Nebraska, where he would no longer have to work on a white man's land but could acquire his own property. Her mother, Sylvia, is less inclined to leave their family behind but reluctantly agrees. Along the way, they meet a young woman named Philomena, who's heading to Nebraska for a teaching job, and she soon becomes a mentor and role model for Lettie. They face many challenges on their journey, including their wagons being attacked, their food supplies running low, hazardous weather, and losing friends and family to death. But despite these hardships, the group tries not to lose sight of their dreams.

Date Published:2024

The Otherwoods

Winans, Justine Pucella,


Booklist Starred Reviews, Kirkus Review, Publishers Weekly Starred, For most of their life, twelve-year-old River Rydell has know they can see and talk to monsters. In their dreams, River even visits the Otherwoods, a terrifying place filled with the creatures. River doesn't speak about their encounters, no one would believe them anyway, and it would only add to the alienation they already feel. Fortunately, River has a friend in Avery, a girl with whom they've developed a crush. When Avery is abducted by creatures from the Otherworld, River undertakes a terrifying journey to save her with their cat Pancakes and a teen spirit guide named Xavier, but facing their own insecurity and anxiety is just as terrifying as the monsters in the realm.
Date Published:2023

Booklist Starred Reviews, Kirkus Review, Publishers Weekly Starred, For most of their life, twelve-year-old River Rydell has know they can see and talk to monsters. In their dreams, River even visits the Otherwoods, a terrifying place filled with the creatures. River doesn't speak about their encounters, no one would believe them anyway, and it would only add to the alienation they already feel. Fortunately, River has a friend in Avery, a girl with whom they've developed a crush. When Avery is abducted by creatures from the Otherworld, River undertakes a terrifying journey to save her with their cat Pancakes and a teen spirit guide named Xavier, but facing their own insecurity and anxiety is just as terrifying as the monsters in the realm.

Date Published:2023

The poetry of car mechanics

Stemple, Heidi E. Y.,


School Library Journal starred, April 2025. Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books starre, March 2025. Kirkus Review, April 2025. "Dylan seeks solace through birdwatching and poetry in the woods behind his grandfather's auto shop--but when he rescues an injured hawk, he must learn to confront the broken parts in himself, too"--Provided by publisher.
Date Published:2025

The second chance of Darius Logan

Walker, David, 1968-,


School Library Journal, July 2024. Publishers Weekly, May 2024. Booklist, July 2024. Kirkus Review, May 2024. When he is arrested, teen Darius Logan is sure he is headed for prison. Instead, he is offered the opportunity to join the Super Justice Force, where he discovers he has powers he did not know about and which may help save the post-Attack world from an alien enemy.
Date Published:2024

The serpent's secret

DasGupta, Sayantani,


Booklist Starred Reviews, Horn Book Guide, Publishers Weekly, School Library Connection, School Library Journal Starred, Up until her twelfth birthday, Kiranmala considered herself an ordinary sixth-grader in Parsippany, New Jersey, but then her parents disappear and a drooling rakkhosh demon shows up in her kitchen, and soon she is swept into another dimension, full of magic, winged horses, talking birds (very annoying), and cute princes--and somehow Kiranmala needs to sort it all out, find her parents, and basically save the world.
Date Published:2019

Booklist Starred Reviews, Horn Book Guide, Publishers Weekly, School Library Connection, School Library Journal Starred, Up until her twelfth birthday, Kiranmala considered herself an ordinary sixth-grader in Parsippany, New Jersey, but then her parents disappear and a drooling rakkhosh demon shows up in her kitchen, and soon she is swept into another dimension, full of magic, winged horses, talking birds (very annoying), and cute princes--and somehow Kiranmala needs to sort it all out, find her parents, and basically save the world.

Date Published:2019

Shadowed

Deuker, Carl.


School Library Journal, November 2024. Kirkus Review, September 2024. "Nate plays soccer, but he doesn't love it. He plays because it's what his family expects. Then Lucas Cawley moves in across the street. Lucas isn't like any of Nate's sports friends--he's poor, his parents are mostly absent, and he's devoted to his sister, Megan, who has a learning disability. Lucas may be an outcast at school, but he and Nate find common ground in their fierce games of one-on-one basketball. It's not long before Nate realizes that basketball is his sport. But Nate has an ax to grind with star players Colin and Bo, who have disrespected him for years. Nate believes that outplaying those two is the most important thing . . . until he learns that life is about more than getting ready for the next game"--Amazon.
Date Published:2024

School Library Journal, November 2024. Kirkus Review, September 2024. "Nate plays soccer, but he doesn't love it. He plays because it's what his family expects. Then Lucas Cawley moves in across the street. Lucas isn't like any of Nate's sports friends--he's poor, his parents are mostly absent, and he's devoted to his sister, Megan, who has a learning disability. Lucas may be an outcast at school, but he and Nate find common ground in their fierce games of one-on-one basketball. It's not long before Nate realizes that basketball is his sport. But Nate has an ax to grind with star players Colin and Bo, who have disrespected him for years. Nate believes that outplaying those two is the most important thing . . . until he learns that life is about more than getting ready for the next game"--Amazon.

Date Published:2024

Skeleton man

Bruchac, Joseph, 1942-,


"Ages 10 up"--Cover p. [4]. Wilson's Children, July 2002. School Library Journal starred, August 2001. Notable/Best Books (A.L.A.), January 2002. Book Links (A.L.A.), December 2002. Publisher's Weekly, August 2001. Bulletin (Center for Children's books), September 2001. Voice of Youth Advocates (V.O.Y.A.), October 2001. Kirkus Review, August 2001. Multicultural Review, December 2001. After her parents disappear and she is turned over to the care of a strange "great-uncle," Molly must rely on her dreams about an old Mohawk story for her safety and maybe even for her life.
Date Published:2003

"Ages 10 up"--Cover p. [4]. Wilson's Children, July 2002. School Library Journal starred, August 2001. Notable/Best Books (A.L.A.), January 2002. Book Links (A.L.A.), December 2002. Publisher's Weekly, August 2001. Bulletin (Center for Children's books), September 2001. Voice of Youth Advocates (V.O.Y.A.), October 2001. Kirkus Review, August 2001. Multicultural Review, December 2001. After her parents disappear and she is turned over to the care of a strange "great-uncle," Molly must rely on her dreams about an old Mohawk story for her safety and maybe even for her life.

Date Published:2003