We are grateful for and delighted with Toronto silent book club member Sundus Butt’s ongoing collections of young adult (YA) titles and recommendations. Enjoy all the monthly YA installments here.

When Stars Are Scattered by Omar Mohamed and Victoria Jamieson, illustrated by Victoria Jamieson and Iman Geddy (9+)

I had been a horrible friend to Jeri. No one would want a friend like me back.
But the good news was, we weren’t friends.
We were brothers.
And the thing about a brother is, you don’t need words to understand each other.

This graphic novel follows Omar and his younger brother, Hassan, as they spend years in a Kenyan refugee camp. The hardships they face from lack of food to lack of medical care for Hassan (who is largely non-verbal) are heartbreaking. And although the story focuses on the interminable despair and waiting refugees face, it is also full of hope and light. What stayed with me most was the remarkable way people are able to create a sense of family and home even in the grimmest of places.

Alexandria of Africa by Eric Walters (9–12)

“You and the other Maasai I saw on the road always wear red. Why?” I asked.
“Some people believe it is a warning to the lion. He sees the red and runs away.” Nebala explained. “Others say that the lion is attracted to the red because it looks like the blood of a fresh kill, so he goes for the warrior and leaves the cattle alone.”
[…]
“It can’t be both,” another person objected.
“One thing can be many things,” he said.

Alexandria is a spoiled rich teen who has been caught stealing (again). She and her family decide to take a deal where Alexandria must go to Africa with an international aid group rather than spend four months in juvie.

Walters does a good job of making Alexandria feel convincing. And although it’s difficult to read from the perspective of a character that you’d like to pick up and throw across a room, the impact the Kenyan people and environment have on Alexandria is satisfying. Overall, this is a light read, but it shows how a person’s perspective can shift (even if it’s slightly) when exposed to ideas and cultures outside their own.

Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool (11–14)

“[…] the person you encounter is often more than the person you see.”

Abilene Tucker arrives in Manifest feeling abandoned by her father and counting down the days until she’s reunited with him at the end of summer. But Abilene quickly finds there’s a lot more to her father’s old town than she first thought.

This is a charming read full of the simple joys of childhood exploration and discovery. The olden setting and variety of characters feel real almost instantly. Combined with Vanderpool’s warm writing, this is an enjoyable coming-of-age story.

Fish in a Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt (10–13)

My grandpa used to say to be careful with eggs and words, because neither can ever be fixed. The older I get, the more I realize how smart my grandpa was.

This story follows Ally as she struggles through school without anyone (including herself) understanding why. A new teacher is able to discover that Ally has dyslexia. With hard work and belief, Ally discovers she’s capable of more than she imagined.

Hunt does a great job of conveying Ally’s isolation and shame in being unable to read properly and ask for help. You really feel for Ally right from the start with her behavioural issues and a slew of misunderstandings that arise from her dyslexia. But as she begins to understand why she’s had so much trouble, Ally slowly gains confidence and hope, and realizes that people are built differently and learn differently, too. This story celebrates those differences between us, and also those amazing teachers that go deeper and genuinely change a child’s life.

The Giver by Lois Lowry (13+)

Of course they needed to care. It was the meaning of everything.

Set in a colourless (figuratively and literally) world of conformity, this story focuses on 12-year-old Jonas as he’s assigned to The Giver to receive memories of the past. As Jonas begins to receive these memories, he discovers experiences and ideas that cast his world in a new light.

Lowry packs a lot of social commentary into this short novel, not just by what she chose to include, but also by what she omitted. The atmosphere in the story is well crafted. The sterility of Jonas’s environment and in the people he speaks to feels tangible and it clearly communicates a world that has lost all sense of what it means to live a life and live it fully.

Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo (15+)

You do not call bad spirits into the room, & you do not smudge a person’s dignity by pretending they are not still alive & right in front of you, & perhaps about to receive a miracle.
You do not let your words stunt unknown possibilities.

Written in verse, this novel follows two 16-year-old girls, Camino (in the Dominican Republic) and Yahaira (in New York City), who never knew about each other, but are now connected by the tragedy of their father’s death.

Acevedo beautifully and commandingly crafts a story that covers so many different ideas including the imperfections of family, culture, identity, grief, poverty, as well as the dangers of being a young woman. This is a raw and emotional story delivered in a unique, lyrical way.

The Thief by Meghan Whalen Turner (13+)

Discretion prevented me from saying that I thought she was a fiend from the underworld and that mountain lions couldn’t force me to enter her service.

Gen, a boastful (but apparently unsuccessful) thief is plucked from a prison by the king’s scholar, the magus, to attain an ancient lost treasure. The story largely centres on their journey, revealing the history and political intrigues of the different regions along the way.

The writing in The Thief is excellent. There isn’t a lot of action, but Whalen’s descriptions and mini-myths are so enjoyable to read. On the character front, the wit and banter provided by Gen is terrific—he’s a lot of fun to follow (and I imagine he was a lot of fun to write, too). The Thief is a wonderful, old-world fantasy and kicks-off a great series.