The Cat Who Came In Off the Roof by Annie M.G. Schmidt

The Cat Who Came In off the Roof by Annie M.G. Schmidt
"An act of kindness brings shy reporter Mr. Tibble into contact with the unusual Miss Minou. Tibble is close to losing his job because he only writes stories about cats. Fortunately, Minou provides him with real news. She gets the juicy inside information from her local feline friends, who are the eyes and ears of the neighborhood. Tibble is appreciative, but he wonders how she does it. He has noticed that Minou is terrified of dogs and can climb trees and rooftops with elegance and ease. . . . It’s almost as if she’s a cat herself. But how can that be?"- summary from Amazon

An interesting, fun quick middle-grade read. I finished this pretty much in just one day. It's got some great magical realism in it and a bit of a mystery at the center of it when Miss Minou comes across an evil bit of news regarding someone very prominent in the community.

FTC: Received ARC from publisher. Link above is an Amazon Associate link; any profit goes toward funding contests.

Away We Go by Emil Ostrovski

Away We Go by Emil Ostrovski
"Westing is not your typical school. For starters, you have to have one very important quality in order to be admitted—you have to be dying. Every student at Westing has been diagnosed with PPV, or the Peter Pan Virus, and no one is expected to live to graduation. What do you do when you go to a high school where no one has a future or any clue how to find meaning in their remaining days?"- summary from Amazon

Really interesting, smart, emotional book. I also really liked the gay MC angle, which I didn't know about when I first started the book so it was a nice surprise.

FTC: Received ARC from publisher. Link above is an Amazon Associate link; any profit goes toward funding contests.

The Pages Between Us by Lindsey Leavitt and Robin Mellom

The Pages Between Us by Lindsey Leavitt and Robin Mellom
"Piper and Olivia have been best friends since…well, forever. But they're distressed to find that their new middle school schedules aren't giving them enough together-time. Luckily, an idea sparks when Piper finds a cute, sparkly notebook to disguise as her "French Class" homework. It's genius—now the two BFFs can stick together all the time. And document their adventures—you know, for anthropology's sake.

But as the two navigate the tricky new world of sixth grade, they realize that they may need to branch out more than they originally thought. Their notebook, once a life raft, begins to feel like a big responsibility. Can they grow up, without growing apart?"- summary from Amazon

A very cute, sweet, funny middle-grade read. I love these two authors and it's so cool they wrote a book together. I hope they write more together!

FTC: Received e-galley from Netgalley. Link above is an Amazon Associate link; any profit goes toward funding contests.

Blog Tour- You Know Me Well by David Levithan and Nina LaCour

You Know Me Well by David Levithan and Nina LaCour
"Who knows you well? Your best friend? Your boyfriend or girlfriend? A stranger you meet on a crazy night? No one, really?

Mark and Kate have sat next to each other for an entire year, but have never spoken. For whatever reason, their paths outside of class have never crossed.

That is until Kate spots Mark miles away from home, out in the city for a wild, unexpected night. Kate is lost, having just run away from a chance to finally meet the girl she has been in love with from afar. Mark, meanwhile, is in love with his best friend Ryan, who may or may not feel the same way.

When Kate and Mark meet up, little do they know how important they will become to each other -- and how, in a very short time, they will know each other better than any of the people who are supposed to know them more."- summary from Amazon

I absolutely adored this book, told from both Mark and Kate's perspectives as they each go through their own journeys in life, love, and everything else. It was interesting to see them connect randomly at a night out for Pride Week, both out in the city for different reasons and yet finding each other anyway. This was also such a great representation of gay and lesbian romances, and it was just such a joy to read.

FTC: Received e-galley from Netgalley. Link above is an Amazon Associate link; any profit goes toward funding contests.

I See Reality edited by Grace Kendall

I See Reality edited by Grace Kendall
"An anthology of twelve original short stories by top authors exploring real issues for real teens.

Through prose and comics alike, these heart-pounding short stories for young adults ask hard questions about a range of topics from sexuality and addiction to violence and immigration. Here is the perfect tool for starting tough discussions or simply as an introduction to realistic literary fiction. In turns funny, thought-provoking, and heartbreaking, I See Reality will resonate with today's teens long after the last page has been turned."- summary from Amazon

I really enjoyed this anthology- lots of wonderful stories from my favorite authors and some new ones I hadn't read from before. Such a wide array of different stories- funny, emotional, romantic, poignant, and so many other adjectives. I also really liked how each author's story connected with the photos on the front where their names were; I kept looking at the cover after each story to see what the connection was.

Some of the stories I was really drawn to were The Downside of Fabulous by Kristin Elizabeth Clark, which I really wanted to just keep reading. I loved the characters and wished to spend more time with them in a full-length novel. Three Imaginary Conversations by Heather Demetrios was another winner from such an amazing author- so raw, honest and poignant and just so well-done (I mean, it's told in second person, which you don't see often and is hard to pull off well). Untitled by Faith Erin Hicks was so funny, sweet, and romantic; it was also told in comic-style, which made for an interesting break from all the prose. Finally, The Night of the Living Creeper by Stephen Emond had some drawings in it, and I thought it was really funny, especially since it was told from a cat's point of view at a high school party.

Overall, such a great anthology filled with wonderful stories! If you're a fan of contemporary YA fiction, this is an anthology for you.

FTC: Received ARC from publisher. Link above is an Amazon Associate link; any profit goes toward funding contests.