Month: June 2016

Nonfiction

The Book Itch: Freedom, Truth & Harlem’s Greatest Bookstore by Vaunda Micheax Nelson

The Bookish Librarian

Grades 2-3

book itch

The Book Itch: Freedom, Truth & Harlem’s Greatest Bookstore by Vaunda Micheaux Nelson tells the true story of how the National Memorial African Bookstore came to be. The narrator, Louie, tells the story of how his father, Lewis Michaux Sr. opened the bookstore. He did it so that people would be able to read, talk and learn from books and each other. Read The Book Itch: Freedom, Truth & Harlem’s Greatest Bookstore by Vaunda Micheaux Nelson to find out how one very special bookstore changed lives.

Adult Fiction, Romance

A Paris Apartment by Michelle Gable

The Bookish Librarian

Ages 18+

paris.jpg

April Vogt is a continental furniture specialist who works for Southeby’s. When her boss tells her about an apartment that has been abandoned for the last 70 years in Paris, she immediately signs on to take the job. She can’t wait to get there!

Once she does, she finds a goldmine of furniture and artifacts that belonged to the late owner of the apartment. The most interesting piece, by far, is a painting done by the famous artist, Giovanni Boldini. And not only does April discover the painting, she discovers the journals of the woman in the painting herself, Marthe de Florian, who lived in the late 1800s.

April’s mission now isn’t so much about the furniture that will make Southeby’s millions at auction, however it’s to discover Marthe’s story. Read this book for a bit of romance, and lots of Parisian charm.

Romance, YA Fiction

Love & Gelato by Jenna Evans Welch

The Bookish Librarian

Grades 9-12

love and gelato.jpg

Lina’s mother’s dying wish is for her daughter to spend the summer in Tuscany so that she can get to know her father. The man that’s been absent from her life for 16 years. Even though it’s Italy, it’s the last place Lina wants to be right now. She doesn’t know anyone, doesn’t care to meet her father, and least of all, doesn’t care to live in the house in the cemetery that her father runs.

Then Lina receives her mother’s journal, where she reads all about her time in Italy as a photography student. It’s also where she became pregnant with Lina. The journal reveals a lot of things about Lina’s mother’s life, but it also leaves a huge question unanswered. Will Lina be able to find the answer while navigating her own love life?

Memoirs

The Pregnancy Project by Gaby Rodriguez

The Bookish Librarian

Grades 9-12

pregnancy

Gaby Rodriguez comes from a large Latino family. Her mother and her sisters all got pregnant as teens, and she has 31 nieces and nephews in total. People in Gaby’s life expected her to follow “the family tradition,” and become pregnant too.

Each graduating student has to do a senior project, and, during her sophomore year, Gaby already knows what hers will be: faking a pregnancy. She wants to do an experiment to see how people will treat her when they find out she’s pregnant—her family, her teachers, her peers. First she has to get it approved by the principal and members of the school board. Will she be able to pull it off? Read this intriguing memoir and find out!