1 min read
As he finishes his morning repast, Lemony Snicket receives a message that he has consumed Poison for Breakfast (Rock the Boat, £10.99, illustrated by Margaux Kent). He sets off to investigate, musing — in his wonderfully quizzical Series of Unfortunate Events voice — on death, on how he can compare his mother to an apple (he would like neither better if baked and sprinkled with cinnamon); on being one of a displaced people; on the kabbalistic concept of tzimtzum; on imagination and imprisonment; on bewilderment — and, most of all, on story-writing. Melancholy, meandering, uplifting, consoling — a bit like the best sermon you ever heard. Age 14 to adult.
A stone-setting at Edgwarebury Cemetery is the start of a dangerous mission for Edie, in Don’t Doubt the Rainbow by Anthony Kessel (Crown House, £6.99). A year after her mother’s death, Edie discovers a trail of clues, not only leading to her mother’s murderer but also revealing a conspiracy surrounding a virus. Dotted with North London landmarks, this page-turning thriller incorporates puzzles that enlist the reader as co-detective. To stretch the brain further, Kessel offers an extra, psychological/spiritual dimension. Nina Tara’s striking cover design is the perfect complement to the mystery. Age 11 up.
Ezra’s sister Bea has run away from home — and through their email exchanges, we discover where she’s heading and what has led to the disintegration of their family. Ezra, caught between boyfriends — his own (supportive) and Bea’s (discarded) — is fighting his own battles, meanwhile, and the rapid-fire emails convey their desperation. Take Me With You When You Go, by David Levithan and Jennifer Niven (Penguin, £7.99) cleverly sets up and knocks down the reader’s expectations, using gaps and delays in communication to ramp up the tension. Awash with teenage angst. Age 13 up.
Have you heard of Hannah G Solomon? The founder of the (American) National Council of Jewish Women — a welfare and campaigning organisation — is unlikely to be familiar to UK readers, but her life story is simply and informatively told in Hannah G. Solomon Dared to Make a Difference by Bonnie Lindauer (Kar-Ben, £12.95). The book focuses on the work of Solomon and her friend, Jane Addams, in assisting immigrant families and working for women’s rights. Sofia Moore’s illustrations depict a bright and bustling Chicago of the 1890s and then neatly bring the story into the 21st century. Age 8-11.