Grades 3 – 7
Moderated by Dr. Keshia Abraham, J.E.D.I. (Justice, Equality, Diversity, Inclusion) educator.
In J.C. Cervantes’ Storm Runner #3: The Shadow Crosser, Zane Obispo has been searching for the remaining godborns with a nasty demon who can sniff them out (literally). But when Zane tracks down the last kid on his list, he’s in for a surprise: the “one” is actually a pair of twins, and they’re trying to prevent a mysterious object from falling into the wrong hands. So Zane and his friends embark on their most treacherous mission yet – a mission that, with one blunder, could change history as we know it, and worse, destroy the universe.
Tristan Strong, just back from a victorious but exhausting adventure in Alke, the land of African American folk heroes and African gods, is suffering from PTSD. But there’s no rest for the weary when his grandmother is abducted by a mysterious villain out for revenge. Tristan must return to Alke – and reunite with his loud-mouthed sidekick, Gum Baby – in order to rescue Nana and stop the culprit from creating further devastation in Kwame Mbalia’s Tristan Strong Destroys the World.
In Tehlor Kay Mejia’s Paola Santiago and the River of Tears, space-obsessed 12-year-old Paola Santiago and her two best friends, Emma and Dante, know the rule: Stay away from the river. Her mother is constantly warning her about La Llorona, the wailing ghost woman who wanders the banks of the Gila at night, looking for young people to drag into its murky depths. Pao organizes a meetup to test out her new telescope near the Gila, since it’s the best stargazing spot. But when Emma doesn’t arrive and Pao sees a shadowy figure in the reeds, it seems like maybe her mom was right …