May & June Diverse YA & Middle Grade Releases! Hey guys! So as I'm writing this it's currently the 27th May, so it is a bit late to be talking about May releases. However, so many great diverse books came out this month that I just had to include them in someway, so I'm going to merge them into this post with some June releases as well. For some reason, most of the books I found happen to be coming out on the same day (quite a few on the 4th May), so please just ignore that. As always, if there are any other diverse books coming out in these two months that I've missed, let me know below and I'll add them in. The same goes I you think any of the information I'm sharing is incorrect. Without further ado, let's get into the new (ish) releases! May Noteworthy by Riley Redgate - Bisexual Main Character Synopsis: A cappella just got a makeover. Jordan Sun is embarking on her junior year at the Kensington-Blaine Boarding School for the Performing Arts, hopeful that this will be her time: the year she finally gets cast in the school musical. But when her low Alto 2 voice gets her shut out for the third straight year—threatening her future at Kensington-Blaine and jeopardizing her college applications—she’s forced to consider nontraditional options. In Jordan’s case, really nontraditional. A spot has opened up in the Sharpshooters, Kensington’s elite a cappella octet. Worshipped…revered…all male. Desperate to prove herself, Jordan auditions in her most convincing drag, and it turns out that Jordan Sun, Tenor 1, is exactly what the Sharps are looking for. Jordan finds herself enmeshed in a precarious juggling act: making friends, alienating friends, crushing on a guy, crushing on a girl, and navigating decades-old rivalries. With her secret growing heavier every day, Jordan pushes beyond gender norms to confront what it means to be a girl (and a guy) in a male-dominated society, and—most importantly—what it means to be herself. Release Date: 2nd May 2017 GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/31447601-noteworthy?ac=1&from_search=true BD - https://www.bookdepository.com/Noteworthy/9781419723735 Ginny Moon by Benjamin Ludwig - Autistic main character Synopsis: Meet Ginny. She’s fourteen, autistic, and has a heart-breaking secret… Ginny Moon is trying to make sense of a world that just doesn’t seem to add up…. After years in foster care, Ginny is in her fourth forever family, finally with parents who will love her. Everyone tells her that she should feel happy, but she has never stopped crafting her Big Secret Plan of Escape. Because something happened, a long time ago – something that only Ginny knows – and nothing will stop her going back to put it right… Release Date: 3rd May 2017 GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34078013-ginny-moon?from_search=true BD - https://www.bookdepository.com/Ginny-Moon/9780778330165 Release by Patrick Ness - Gay Main Character Synopsis: Inspired by Mrs Dalloway and Judy Blume's Forever, Release is one day in the life of Adam Thorn, 17. It's a big day. Things go wrong. It's intense, and all the while, weirdness approaches... Adam Thorn is having what will turn out to be the most unsettling, difficult day of his life, with relationships fracturing, a harrowing incident at work, and a showdown between this gay teen and his preacher father that changes everything. It's a day of confrontation, running, sex, love, heartbreak, and maybe, just maybe, hope. He won't come out of it unchanged. And all the while, lurking at the edges of the story, something extraordinary and unsettling is on a collision course. Release Date: 4th May 2017 GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/31194576-release?ac=1&from_search=true BD - https://www.bookdepository.com/Release/9781406331172 Noah Can't Even by Simon John Green - Questioning/Gay Character - Biracial Secondary Character - Secondary Character with Dementia Synopsis: Poor Noah Grimes! His father disappeared years ago, his mother's Beyonce tribute act is an unacceptable embarrassment, and his beloved gran is no longer herself. He only has one friend, Harry, and school is...Well, it's pure HELL. Why can't Noah be normal, like everyone else at school? Maybe if he struck up a romantic relationship with someone - maybe Sophie, who is perfect and lovely - he'd be seen in a different light? But Noah's plans are derailed when Harry kisses him at a party. That's when things go from bad to utter chaos. Release Date: 4th May 2017 GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/33961524-noah-can-t-even?ac=1&from_search=true BD - https://www.bookdepository.com/Noah-Can-t-Even/9781407179940 The Lines We Cross by Randa Abdel-Fattah - MIna is a refugee from Afghanistan. - Mina & her family are Muslims. Synopsis: A remarkable story about the power of choosing tolerance from one of the most important voices in contemporary Muslim literature, critically acclaimed author Randa Abdel-Fattah. Michael usually concerns himself with basketball and hanging out with his friends, but every once in a while, his parents drag him to meetings and rallies with their anti-immigrant group. And it all makes sense to Michael. Until Mina, a beautiful girl from the other side of the protest lines, shows up at his school, and turns out to be funny, smart -- and a Muslim refugee from Afghanistan. Suddenly, his parents' politics seem much more complicated. Mina has already had a long and arduous journey leaving behind her besieged home in Afghanistan, and the frigid welcome at her new school is daunting. She just wants to settle in and help her parents get their restaurant up and running. But nothing about her new community will be that easy. As tensions increase, lines are drawn. Michael has to decide where he stands. Mina has to protect herself and her family. Both have to choose what they want their world to look like. Release Date: 4th May 2017 GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35087567-the-lines-we-cross?ac=1&from_search=true BD - https://www.bookdepository.com/The-Lines-We-Cross/9781407173474 The Way Back Home by Allan Stratton - Secondary Character with Alzheimer's - Transgender Secondary Character Synopsis: Zoe Bird is going nowhere fast. She’s angry and lonely, and her only true friend is her granny, whose Alzheimer’s is worsening. When her parents put Granny in a home, Zoe decides now is the time to break free. She smuggles Granny out and together they hit the tracks on a cross-country trip to find Zoe’s long-lost uncle. But there will be some home truths along the way. . . An emotional story about family, surviving school and being true to yourself for fans of The Art of Being Normal and Unbecoming. Release Date: 4th May 2017 GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/31348272-the-way-back-home?ac=1&from_search=true BD - https://www.bookdepository.com/The-Way-Back-Home/9781783445219 I Have No Secrets by Penny Joelson - Main Character with Cerebral Palsy Synopsis: Jemma knows who did the murder. She knows because he told her. And she can't tell anyone. Fourteen-year-old Jemma has severe cerebral palsy. Unable to communicate or move, she relies on her family and carer for everything. She has a sharp brain and inquisitive nature, and knows all sorts of things about everyone. But when she is confronted with this terrible secret, she is utterly powerless to do anything. Though that might be about to change... A page-turning thriller seen through the eyes of a unique narrator, this is a truly original, heart-rending and compulsive book for young adult readers. Perfect for fans of Wonder, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time and Looking for JJ. Release Date: 4th May 2017 GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34042519-i-have-no-secrets?ac=1&from_search=true BD - https://www.bookdepository.com/I-Have-No-Secrets/9781405286152 Countless by Karen Gregory - Main character with an eating disorder Synopsis: When Hedda discovers she is pregnant, she doesn’t believe she could ever look after a baby. The numbers just don’t add up. She is young, and still in the grip of an eating disorder that controls every aspect of how she goes about her daily life. She’s even given her eating disorder a name – Nia. But as the days tick by, Hedda comes to a decision: she and Nia will call a truce, just until the baby is born. 17 weeks, 119 days, 357 meals. She can do it, if she takes it one day at a time … Heartbreaking and hopeful by turns, Karen Gregory’s debut novel is a story of love, heartache and human resilience. And how the things that matter most can’t be counted. Perfect for fans of Lisa Williamson, Non Pratt and Sarah Crossan. Release Date: 4th May 2017 GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34299826-countless?from_search=true BD - https://www.bookdepository.com/Countless/9781408882504 June Truth or Dare by Non Pratt - Biracial Character (half-Turkish, half-welsh) - British Pakistani Character - Secondary Character with a neurodisability (from a brain injury) Synopsis: A powerful and moving novel about bravery from the Guardian's "writer to watch" Non Pratt, perfect for fans of Rainbow Rowell, John Green and Holly Bourne. How far is too far when it comes to the people you love? Claire Casey hates being the centre of attention. But if it means getting Sef Malik to notice her, it’s a risk she’s happy to take. Sef is prepared to do anything to help his recently disabled brother. But this means putting Claire’s love – and life – on the line. Because when you're willing to risk everything, what is there left to lose? Release Date: 1st June 2017 GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25458747-truth-or-dare?from_search=true BD - https://www.bookdepository.com/Truth-or-Dare-Non-Pratt/9781406366938 Troublemakers by Catherine Barter - Gay Secondary Character Synopsis: In three years I will be able to vote and I will still have less power than I did at the moment that I saw that email, which was such a tiny thing but look what happened. Fifteen-year-old Alena never really knew her political activist mother, who died when she was a baby. She has grown up with her older half-brother Danny and his boyfriend Nick in the east end of London. Now the area is threatened by a bomber who has been leaving explosive devices in supermarkets. It is only a matter of time before a bomb goes off. Against this increasingly fearful backdrop, Alena seeks to discover more about her past, while Danny takes a job working for a controversial politician. As her family life implodes, and the threat to Londoners mounts, Alena starts getting into trouble. Then she does something truly rebellious. A searing, heartbreaking coming-of-age tale for fans of Lisa Williamson, Jenny Downham and Sarah Crossan. Release Date: 1st June 2017 GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/31817307-troublemakers?ac=1&from_search=true BD - https://www.bookdepository.com/Troublemakers-Catherine-Barter/9781783445240?ref=grid-view&qid=1495978250530&sr=1-2 This Is Just A Test by Madelyn Rosenberg & Wendy Wan-Long Shang - Chinese secondary character - Jewish characters Synopsis: David Da-Wei Horowitz has a lot on his plate. Preparing for his upcoming bar mitzvah would be enough work even if it didn't involve trying to please his Jewish and Chinese grandmothers, who argue about everything. But David just wants everyone to be happy. That includes his friend Scott, who is determined to win their upcoming trivia tournament but doesn't like their teammate -- and David's best friend -- Hector. Scott and David begin digging a fallout shelter just in case this Cold War stuff with the Soviets turns south... but David's not so convinced he wants to spend forever in an underground bunker with Scott. Maybe it would be better if Hector and Kelli Ann came with them. But that would mean David has to figure out how to stand up for Hector and talk to Kelli Ann. Some days, surviving nuclear war feels like the least of David's problems. Release Date: 27th June 2017 GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30053510-this-is-just-a-test?ac=1&from_search=true BD - https://www.bookdepository.com/This-Is-Just-Test-Madelyn-Rosenberg-Wendy-Wan-Long-Shang/9781338037722 All The Things That Could Go Wrong by Stewart Foster - Character with OCD Synopsis: The unforgettable new novel from the award-winning author of THE BUBBLE BOY. Dan is angry. Nothing has been the same since his big brother left, and he’s taking it out on the nearest and weakest target: Alex. Alex is struggling. His severe OCD makes it hard for him to leave the house, especially when Dan and his gang are waiting for him at school... When the two boys’ mums arrange for them to meet out of school and finish building the raft that Dan started with his brother, it seems like the end of the world. But could it be the start of an unlikely friendship? Release Date: 29th June 2017 GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34728992-all-the-things-that-could-go-wrong?ac=1&from_search=true BD - https://www.bookdepository.com/All-the-Things-That-Could-Go-Wrong-Stewart-Foster/9781471145421
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorHello and welcome to Books With Beth! I'm Beth and on this blog I share a mix of all my bookish thoughts through reviews, book tours and hauls. Have fun! Categories
All
Archives
August 2019
|