We Are Mighty: 12 Ordinary Americans Who Did The Next Needed Thing

September 9, 2026

We Are Mighty: 12 Ordinary Americans Who Did the Next Needed Thing by Sharon McMahon, Susanna Chapman
Published by Alfred A. Knopf on May 19, 2026
Genres: Non-Fiction
Format: Picture Book Nonfiction
Source: MSL Book Review
Goodreads
four-stars

Sometimes all that’s needed in this world is for someone to step up and do what they see needs doing. Square the shoulders, pull from their own strengths and gather people to help, that’s how things get done. In this book we see 12 ordinary Americans who saw something that needed to be done and got to doing it; ordinary people who in the end made an extraordinary difference.

Readers will meet Ida Lewis who saw four boys in distress in the ocean during a storm and rowed a boat out to save them without a second thought to the danger she was putting herself in.They’ll also meet María De López who saw the inequities faced by women and fought to change them. María wanted to help in the war in France but was told she couldn’t as she was a woman. She asked “why?”and soon she was working with the Red Cross to get wounded soldiers to lifesaving help at hospitals.

Read about them and ten more remarkable, ordinary individual’s stories who are paired with beautiful illustrations to show how extraordinary we can all be.

Ages 6+
Reviewed by MaryAnn Lopes, Elementary Librarian. Lewiston Public Schools, Lewiston, Maine.

Coco and Stephen, Together Forever

September 9, 2026

Coco and Stephen, Together Forever: How a Kitten and Bunny Became Best Friends by Beth Stern, Joanie Stone, Margaret McNamara
Published by Random House Studio on May 5, 2026
Genres: Animals, Juvenile Fiction / Animals / Horses
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Source: MSL Book Review
Goodreads
three-stars

Coco is a grey kitten and Stephen is a grey and white rabbit. They each live in what they feel is their forever home and then things change. Thankfully they end up being taken to a shelter where they are comfortable, cared for, and have plenty of playmates, sometimes too many. Then they see one another and a true friendship is born. They soon do everything together, eating, sleeping, playing, and getting their zoomies out.

This story is based on the real life experiences of the author and her pets, Coco and Stephen, who live happily together at her house. Backmatter tells their story as well as providing information on rescuing animals.

Ages 3+
Reviewed by MaryAnn Lopes, Elementary Librarian. Lewiston Public Schools, Lewiston, Maine.

Wanted: Your House

September 9, 2026

Wanted: Your House by Monique Polak
Published by Kids Can Press on May 5, 2026
ISBN: 1525313762
Genres: Family, Juvenile Fiction / Social Themes / Friendship, Realistic Fiction
Format: Chapter Book Fiction
Source: MSL Book Review
Goodreads

Cyril’s mother has always dreamed of owning a house of their own. She drags Cyril to open houses to look and dream almost every weekend. She just can’t make the finances work and comes to the decision she needs to stop taking up their weekends with the fruitless dreaming.

Cyril, while bored of going to the open houses, knows how much having a home of their own means to his mother. This is where he gets creative and comes up with a plan of his own, it’s a bit of a stretch but what does he have to lose? He posts flyers asking if any elderly homeowners would consider live-in help and in return the home would be left to his mom in the person’s will.

One older gentleman, Mr. Hartt seems open to the idea. Can he welcome two people into his home and can all of them learn to live together through the hiccups that follow. This book mixes humor, self-exploration and growth in a touching and genuine manner, enjoyable and heartfelt.

Ages 8-12
Reviewed by MaryAnn Lopes, Elementary Librarian. Lewiston Public Schools, Lewiston, Maine.

Blues Boy: The B.B. King Story

September 7, 2026

Blues Boy: The B. B. King Story by Alice Faye Duncan, Carl Joe Williams
ISBN: 006333402X
Genres: Biography/Autobiography, Cultural / African American, Inspiration, Non-Fiction
Format: Picture Book Nonfiction
Source: MSL Book Review
Goodreads
five-stars

Born in the Mississippi Delta, Riley B. King lived a childhood of sorrow and struggle. At a young age, and in short succession, his parents divorced and then his mother passed away. Before her death, his mama said “When you do good and treat folks right, good things will come to you.” Riley went on to live with his grandmother, plowing fields and chopping cotton in the segregated south. He went to school in a one-room school house, but the other children teased him for his patched-up overalls and bad stutter. Seeing his frown one day, his Aunt Mima introduced Riley to blues music on her record player, changing his life forever. Riley bought his first guitar at age 12, and taught himself how to play using a book he purchased from the Sears catalogue – finding that when he opened his mouth to sing, his stutter disappeared. He went on to work farming jobs during the day and playing the blues on street corners at night. Eventually, he made his way to Memphis and became the Blues Boy. The oil, acrylic, and collage illustrations are stunning – and feel like a warm quilt weaving together the journey of B.B King’s life. The book is complete with educational back matter, including a timeline, places to visit, recommended songs and albums, and suggested picture book pairings. This aspirational biography would be a lovely addition to any non-fiction picture book collection. Recommended for ages 5 to 8 (Kindergarten to 3^rd Grade). Nominated for Cream of the Crop.

Reviewed by: Jenn Mead, Charlotte Hobbs Memorial Library, Lovell

Our Wicked Gifts

September 5, 2026

Our Wicked Gifts by Kathryn Foxfield
Published by Random House Genres: Supernatural, Suspense
Format: Young Adult
Goodreads
four-stars

Meet the Winters, a wealthy, beautiful, fashionable family whose ancestor made a deal with the devil to secure power(s) for herself and her descendants. Cicely, the POV character, has a strained, to put it mildly, relationship with her mother Allegra. Cicely is able to connect to the Ruin, a dark magical realm, by using an insect as a conduit and her connection becomes stronger but more fraught when she discovers that Soren, a boy her family murdered four years earlier lives on in the Ruin. Even more fraught is her reluctant acceptance of the love she feels for him despite his vow to destroy her family.

Blending romance, mystery, fantasy and the perpetually popular trope that rich people are terrible, Foxfield has created a fast-paced, if uneven, romp through the exploits of the billionaire class. The characters are so relentless it’s hard to say whether they even need the gifts delivered through the ancestral Faustian bargain; one can picture them succeeding in wealth, though perhaps not happiness, just fine on their own. This YA dark fantasy will be popular with fans of The Inheritance Games, or any reality TV show in which everyone looks fabulous all the time (there is a lot of sartorial detail). It’s worth noting that the book has beautiful sprayed edges with a dragonfly motif.

Reviewed by Sarah Maciejewski, Patten Free Library, Bath

Thornbird

September 2, 2026

Thornbird by E. Kennedy, Elle Kennedy
Published by Delacorte Press on June 30, 2026
ISBN: 9798217026500
Genres: Psychological thriller
Format: Young Adult
Source: MSL Book Review
Goodreads

After the death of her grandmother, Ryan Shipley must move in with her aunt in Starling, Tennessee on the 10th anniversary of the Gabriel Thorn murders. The problem is that Ryan Shipley is actually Gabrielle Thorn, Gabriel’s daughter. Gabriel pled guilty to the murder of 7 women, including Ryan’s mother, and is set to be executed by lethal injection. Ryan must conceal her true identity in order to protect her aunt and cousins from further harassment – the town has a grim fascination with the murders, which includes teens throwing house parties to celebrate the execution, and a particularly zealous podcaster/forum poster by the name of Zed. Ryan attempts to live a normal life, but secrets have a way of getting out. Especially after the families of the victims offer a $1m reward to whoever can locate the remains of the victims.

The novel is clearly interested in critiquing true crime fervor. Positioning Ryan as the main character gives the reader a rare moment to consider the family of the perpetrator, who are often victims themselves. Though the premise at times strains credulity (surely sending her back to her hometown where she has to conceal her identity is not safe for Ryan?), the number of times Ryan has to hear classmates and neighbors callously discuss the crimes should be an eye opener for readers, and allow them to reflect on real life discussions. Ryan’s own PTSD, including recurring nightmares, is thoughtfully explored without feeling voyeuristic. Descriptions are at times gruesome. Multiple 3rd act twists muddy the resolution, but the core of Ryan’s story and healing will stick with a reader.

The novel also has one more secret: the identity of its author. E. Kennedy is the YA thriller pen name for adult romance author Elle Kennedy of Off Campus fame. This background becomes clear in a romance subplot between Ryan, Everett, the handsome star quarterback, and Chase, the motorcycle-riding bad boy with a heart of gold. The romance at times feels too tropey for the greater story about grief, but it does provide some levity between extremely tense scenes. Kennedy’s time in romance lends itself well to pacing emotional tension, romantic or not. There is one sex scene in the later half of the book that gestures toward specific actions without being overly explicit.

Recommend to thriller readers who enjoy Karen M. McManus and Holly Jackson ready for dark commentary on the genre and more psychological themes.

Three stars.

Reviewed by Kristin Arsenault, Mountain Valley High School, Rumford.