Nameless Asterism series by Kina Kobayashi

Tsukasa, Washio, and Kotooka are best friends in middle school.  They do everything together.

But they all have secrets.

Tsukasa has a crush on Washio.
Washio is in love with Kotooka.
And neither of them know that Kotooka knows both of their secrets.

Will their friendship overcome all these secrets and feelings?



This is a great manga series by Kina Kobayashi.  The characters are all interesting -- including the side characters of Tsukasa's twin Subaru and her possible love interest Asakura.  With only five volumes the series is short and sweet.  I would recommend this series to those who enjoy friendship stories or romances.

What Remains by Helene Dunbar

It was always the three of them -- Cal, Spencer, and Lizzie -- ever since first grade.  They were best friends so tight they were almost one person.  Cal and Spencer devoted themselves to keeping Lizzie safe -- from her mother, depression, and life.

Then in an instant everything changes in one car accident.

Lizzie is dead.
Cal required a heart transplant that takes away his life plan of playing baseball.

Now Cal is trying to deal with his grief and guilt from the accident.

He also must deal with Lizzie's heart (now inside him).  It's talking to him and influencing him in ways he can't control.

Cal always thought he and his friends could overcome anything.  Now he's now sure if just him and Spencer will be okay without Lizzie.



While this is obviously not a "happy" story, it is engrossing to read.  Cal immediately grabs your attention so that you want to know if and how he heals.  I found this book ultimately to be very optimistic.  I would definitely recommend this book to all teens.

Each Little Bird That Sings by Deborah Wiles

Comfort Snowberger has attended more funerals that anyone else her age as her family owns the local funeral parlor.  But when Great Aunt Florentine dies it is different.  Comfort not only has to deal with her grief for Aunt Florentine but also her annoying cousin Peach and her best friend who has suddenly turned away from her.


This book is loosely connected to the Aurora County novels by Deborah Wiles.  I enjoyed this book.  It was entertaining and funny even while dealing with the various forms grief can take.  I would recommend this book to all kids.

A Long Line of Cakes: An Aurora County Novel by Deborah Wiles

Emma Lane Cake belongs to a family of traveling bakers.  They arrive in a new town every few months to set up a bakery and leave after helping the town with their problems.

Now they've arrived in Halleluia.  Emma is afraid to make another best friend that she'll have to leave again soon.  But she soon meets Ruby Lavendar and can't help becoming her friend.

Now Emma and Ruby must come up with a plan to keep the Cakes in Halleluia forever.



This is the fourth book in the Aurora County series by Deborah Wiles.  While it isn't the first book, you don't need to read the others to enjoy it.  This book is filled with family and friends with a hint of the mystical. 

Top Ten by Katie Cortugno

Ryan and Gabby have been best friends since freshman year.  No one really gets their friendship.  They are complete opposites.  Ryan is the popular hockey player which Gabby has crippling social anxiety.  Yet somehow their friendship works. 

Now it is graduation and they are looking back at the top ten moments of their relationship -- both the good moments and the bad . . . .



This book shares the top ten moments that make up Ryan and Gabby's relationship told from both their points of view.  It jumps through time as it shares those moments.  This would be a great book for fans of Jennifer E. Smith or Morgan Matson.

Boomerang by Helene Dunbar

Michael Sterling disappeared five years ago.  Everything thought he had been kidnapped.  They've been searching for him for five years.

Now he's returned home.

They didn't know that he wasn't kidnapped . . . instead he ran away.  He changed his name to Sean Woodhouse.  He found a new family and a new best friend -- Trip.

They don't know he only returned to get the inheritance from his grandparents.  Then he plans to once again disappear -- this time with Trip.


This was a very interesting book to read.  You grow to care about Sean and his difficulties returning to his past and determining what to do in his future.  This would be a good book for those who enjoy mysteries or suspense.

Friends Come in All Shapes and Sizes

This week, I am sharing picture books featuring stories about friendship.  Here are a few of my favorites . . . .

My Friend Bear by Jez Alborough
Eddie is feeling sad, and so is the bear. They both wished they had a friend to talk to, All they have are their teddies, and teddies can't talk. or can they?.

Waiting for Goliath by Antje Damm
While waiting for his friend Goliath, Bear ignores the suggestion made by other animals that Goliath will never arrive.

Ribbit! by Julie Folguiera
When a pig visits a frog pond, sits on a rock, and says only "Ribbit!", news spreads fast but only the wise old beetle has an explanation.

The Adventures of Beekle: The Unimaginary Friend by Dan Santat
An imaginary friend waits a long time to be imagined by a child and given a special name, and finally does the unimaginable--he sets out on a quest to find his perfect match in the real world.

Stick and Stone by Beth Ferry
Stick and Stone are both lonely until Pinecone's teasing causes one to stick up for the other, and a solid friendship is formed.


More Friendship Stories --
And to Think That We Thought We'd Never Be Friends by Mary Ann Hoberman
Boom, Snot, Twitty by Doreen Cronin
Boy + Bot by Ame Dyckman
Buddy and the Bunnies in Don't Play With Your Food by Bob Shea
Don't Need Friends by Carolyn Crimi
Don't Worry Bear by Greg Foley
Elwood Bigfoot: Wanted: Birdie Friends! by Jill Esbaum
Four Friends Together by Sue Heap
Good Night Bat! Good Morning Squirrel! by Paul Meisel
He Came with the Couch by David Slonim
Horace and Morris But Mostly Dolores by James Howe
How I Found a Friend by Irina Hale
I Got a New Friend by Karl Edwards
The Invisible Boy by Trudy Ludwig
Little Blue and Little Yellow by Leo Lionni
The Lonesome Polar Bear by Jane Cabrera
My Friend Rabbit by Eric Rohmann
My Friends Make Me Happy by Jan Thomas
Pug & Doug by Steve Breen
Sleepover with Beatrice and Bear by Monica Carnesi
A Splendid Friend, Indeed by Suzanne Bloom
Squid and Octopus: Friends for Always by Deb Pilutti
Toot & Puddle by Holly Hobbie
A Visitor for Bear by Bonny Becker
Waddle! Waddle! by James Proimos
We Forgot Brock! by Carter Goodrich


Check these books out on display at the Arnold Branch through July 19, 2019.

Polar Bear in Love by Koromo

It's love at first sight when Polar Bear and Little Seal pup meet . . . at least it is for Polar Bear.  Little Seal is positive he's about to be eaten.

Can they overcome this misunderstanding?

Can their love survive?



This was a fun manga to read.  The story works on multiple levels for kids, teens, and adults.  The misunderstandings between the two characters are funny.  In fact, I found myself laughing out loud several times.

Devils Within by S.F. Henson

Nate was 8 years old the first time he stabbed someone.  

He was 11 years old when he earned his red laces for spilling blood for his father's "cause".  

He was 14 years old when he murdered his father, the leader of the white supremacist group The Fort.  

Nearly two years later, he's being sent to live with his uncle who hates him in a town that ignores him.  

Then he meets Brandon, a person The Fort taught Nate to hate on sight.  

Brandon can never know Nate's past . . .

While this is a difficult book to read it is also a very well written book that draws you into the story and into caring for Nate.  This is a book that looks at hate and how it is indoctrinated into people without their even realizing it.  I would recommend this to teens looking for a realistic and gritty book that is also about redemption.

Not If I Save You First by Ally Carter

Maddie thought she would be best friends with Logan forever.  That is until her decides to move her to Alaska with no warning. 

It's been six years without one word from Logan -- even though she wrote him every day for two years. 

She accepted that he no longer wanted to be friends. 
She accepted that her life only includes two people -- herself and her dad.
She accepted that she'll always be alone.

Then Logan shows up on her front step and he's brought trouble with him. 

Now they're trying to survive kidnappers and a wild Alaskan blizzard in the woods.  Will they make it through alive or will Maddie end up killing Logan?

This is a great stand-alone book by the author of the Gallagher Girls, Heist Society, and Embassy Row series.  I would highly recommend it to those who enjoy survival stories as well as those who like romances.

Real Friends by Shannon Hale

Shannon and Adrienne have been best friends since the start of school.  But one day, Adrienne becomes friends with Jen.  Now, they are all part of The Group, a circle of girls that are friends.  Everyone wants to be next to leader Jen and some of girls will even bully the others to get to that coveted position.

Now every day is a roller coaster for Shannon.  Will she and Adrienne stay friends?  Can she stand up for herself?  And is she part of The Group -- or not?



This graphic novel memoir by author Shannon Hale is really well done.  It accurately portrays how it feels when your friends start to abandon you and when a former friend becomes an enemy.  It also incorporates OCD in children without forcing the issue.  The symptoms are merely mentioned at times without any commentary.  I would highly recommend this to grade school girls to read.

The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee

Henry "Monty" Montague is heading out on his Grand Tour of Europe with his best friend Percy.  It's meant to be one last hurrah for Monty and Percy before he settles down to estate management with his father.  However, his father is using it to punish Monty for being a little too interested in boys.  So Monty sets out for Paris with Percy, his sister and their leader.  But Monty can't seem to keep out of trouble.  He gets caught naked at Versailles, steals a locked box, is chased by an angry baron, set on by highwaymen, poisoned, and attacked by pirates -- all while bringing everything he knew about life and love into question.

I would recommend this book to teens who enjoy romance, adventure, or historical fiction as it combines all three genres seamlessly together.  The main character of Monty goes on a literal and emotional journey throughout the book as he discovers what love means to him.  He also learns what is most important to him.  The author also includes several notes at the end of the book on the grand tour, politics of the time, epilepsy, and queer culture through history.

This Would Make a Good Story Someday by Dana Alison Levy

Sarah had big plans for the summer.  She was going to learn to surf and speak Latin.  She was going to rebrand her image with a new look and nickname.  She was going to practice yoga daily for inner peace.

She was not going to take a month-long train trip with her family.
However, that's exactly what she ends up doing when Mimi, one of her mothers, wins a free trip across the country for the whole family as part of a writing program.

Now, Sarah is trapped on the train with her animal-obsessed younger sister Ladybug, her activist older sister Laurel and her boyfriend Root, and her two moms.  To make it worse, there's a second family also in the same program with a Texan dad, too-friendly teen son, and two rambunctious senior citizen aunts.

It's going to be a crazy summer!

This book by Dana Alison Levy follows the family mentioned quite often in her Family Fletcher books.  It's another great book featuring LGBT parents without making it the entire issue of the book.  It's just the way their family is made.  I would recommend this to anyone who enjoyed the Family Fletcher books or  those who like family stories.

Orange by Ichigo Takano

On the first day of 11th grade, Naho receives a letter from her future self directing her to save the life of a Kakeru, new student at her school.  To her surprise, there is a new student that day who becomes a good friend.  Now, with the help of the letter and her friends she must somehow save Kakeru.

This was an unusual manga that was realistic with hints of the supernatural.  It deals with the very serious subjects of self-confidence, depression and suicide.  With only two volumes in the series, it is a quick read for those who like manga.