May 26: Bless Me Ultima by Rudolfo AnayaSet in New Mexico, a young boy, Antonio, finds himself at a crossroads between a mother who wants him to become a priest and a father who would rather see him follow his own footsteps as a vaquero. Along the way, a curandera, one who heals through herbs and natural ways, moves in with Antonio’s family. Antonio’s life journeys towards manhood with Última’s graceful guidance at his disposal.
June 30: A Certain Slant of Light by Laura Whitcomb
For more than 100 years, Helen has lived amongst the living attaching herself spirit to human hosts, including Emily Dickinson. All this ends when a boy “sees” her as she really is while she haunts a 21st Century high school English teacher. The premise of a gothic-style romance and Victorian era ghosts makes for an intriguing tale.
For more than 100 years, Helen has lived amongst the living attaching herself spirit to human hosts, including Emily Dickinson. All this ends when a boy “sees” her as she really is while she haunts a 21st Century high school English teacher. The premise of a gothic-style romance and Victorian era ghosts makes for an intriguing tale.
July 28: Book of Fate by Brad MeltzerA two-hundred-year-old code devised by Thomas Jefferson becomes the key to a present-day conspiracy at the highest levels of Washington. Mysterious facts of Masonic history and a presidential crossword puzzle are included in the Book of Fate which holds everyone’s secrets, especially ones worth dying for. What does it say about you?
August 25: The Jewel of Medina by Sherry JonesBorn A’isha bint Abi Bakr in 7th Century Arabia, she would become the favorite wife of the Prophet Muhammad and of the most revered women in the Muslim faith. This novelization illuminates the difficult path A’isha endured from her youthful dreams of becoming a Bedouin warrior to her life as the beloved wife and confidant of the founder of Islam.
