A graphic novel written about a prince who is being told to look for a wife, but he is secretly more interested in dressing up in beautiful gowns.  Enter the dressmaker who comes highly recommended.  But she has dreams of her own.  How long can she keep his secret quiet without destroying her own future?

A Very Large Expanse of the Sea is written by Tahereh Mafi.  It is set in 2002, one year after 9/11.  It is about a 16 year old Muslim girl, Shirin, who feels like she is being profiled at school.  She wears a hijab to school everyday and feels like she is being ignored and ridiculed.  Consequently, she has built up walls to protect herself and doesn't have any friends.  She decides to join her brother and his friends who form a break dancing club after school.  She finds that she is really good at it and she begins to gain confidence.  Things begin to change when she is assigned a lab partner in class, Ocean James.  As they get to know each other, she feels that he seems to want to get to know who she is, but she is not sure if she can let go and really be herself with him.  Will they be able to cross that Wide Expanse of the Sea and overcome their differences?

Hey Kiddo is a graphic autobiography written by Jarod Krososocka.  If you read the Lunch Lady while growing up, then you are familiar with his work.  The book is based on his difficult childhood.  His grandparents raised him because of his mother's drug addictions.  Hey Kiddo was nominated and was a finalist for the National Book Award and it also won the Harvey Award for 2019.  On a side note Lunch Lady is being made into a movie by Universal Studios starring Amy Pohler.

Shout is written by Laurie Halse Anderson.  It is a Poetry memoir and is written in free verse about the abuse she suffered as a young girl.  Anderson also wrote Speak 20 years ago which is the fiction version based on her experiences over the same topic.  Both books are timely in light of recent events in the news.

Internment is written by Samiri Ahmed and is set in a futuristic United States.  Seventeen year old Lela Amin and her family are rounded up and sent to an internment camp because they are Muslim.  The story centers around contemporary issues of speaking out against oppressive behavior and hate.  Watching her family and community suffer, Lela decides to fight back.

With Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo

by Elizabeth Acevedo

This is the story of Emoni Santiago who is balancing Senior year as well as taking care of her 3 year old baby.  She finds that she can escape a lot of the worries that go along with her life by cooking, and the recipes she creates are like magic and soothing to her soul.  Plus, she finds out that she is really good at it.  She would like to pursue her dream of going to Culinary school and becoming a chef.  But can she overcome life's obstacles and achieve her goals?