Book Recommendations for May – Some of Our Newest Favorites

June 18, 2021
Yolk – Mary H.K. Choi (MS)
Trigger Warnings: Eating Disorders
Jayne (Ji-Young) and June (Ji-Hyun) Baek used to be the most tightly-knit sisters you would’ve ever seen. Some even
These sisters used to be best friends, bonding over the smallest things until high school and college hit them. When they both move from San Antonio to New York City, they are suddenly pushed back into each other’s lives when June gets cancer.
The Immortalists – Chloe Benjamin (MS)
Trigger Warnings: Death
The tale of four siblings that grow up in a poverty-stricken area in 1969 of New York City’s Lower East Side takes a
Neither four siblings talk about the day in 1969 where their death dates are all told to each other by a mystical woman. No sibling knows each other’s death date, and whether those dates are certain. Once being a family of siblings, they now separated into their own lives as adults. Each of their journeys is unique, but that night where their fates were told, impacts them all as a whole.
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue – V.E. Schwab (MS)
Trigger Warnings: Fear
To escape the inevitable fear of marriage, Addie LaRue does the unthinkable; she prays to the forbidden Gods who
Three hundred years later, Addie LaRue has learned to survive, mostly in the shadows, as a never-aging invisible young woman. When she walks into a bookstore for the second time, she meets a man who will forever remember her name and her face.
The Fixer – Jennifer Lynn Barnes (BEJ)
Trigger Warnings: Death, Violence
Tess Kendrick lives on a farm with her grandfather, until he develops Alzheimer’s. She is then swept away by her
This book will put you on many unexpected twists and turns with Tess’s life, and the lives of her close friends and family too. All while exploring complex family dynamics, and characters going through tumultuous times, regret, and the loss of loved ones through mysterious deaths. The rest of the exciting events and plots unfold in the second book of this duology: Long Game by Jennifer Lynn Barnes.
Scythe – Neal Shusterman (BEJ)
Trigger Warnings: Death, Violence
This book is set far in the future, where human’s tormentors, like death by disease, have been eliminated. The secrets to
Citra and Rowan are taken on as apprentice Scythes by Scythe Faraday. They must learn the ways of a Scythe, and the importance of their job; but understand that their job should not be fun and should not be abused like some Scythes use their status in the Scythedom. When events take a turn for the worse, Citra and Rowan must battle each other for the position of Junior Scythe. Dividing the Scythedom between new order and old guard scythes. This book explores complicated relationships and the intricacies of positions and power, life and death, and society in a world where little has meaning. This book is the first in a trilogy called the Arc of a Scythe, the second and third books are: Thunderhead and The Toll.
The Looking Glass Wars – Frank Beddor (BEJ)
Trigger Warnings: Death, violence
Alyss Heart’s world is turned upside down when her evil Aunt Redd invades Wonderland and kills her parents, the
What she finds in the magnificent city she used to call home is heartbreaking, but she must persevere if she has any hopes of restoring it to its original splendor. Alyss must find herself, and fill the impossible shoes of her deceased mother, the queen when she returns to Wonderland. This book puts you on a voyage of gut-wrenching to heartwarming twists and turns, all set in a mythical world with anarchy, power struggles, and wars of its own. Find out what happens to Alyss and her magical kingdom in the next two books of the Looking Glass Wars trilogy: Seeing Redd, and Arch Enemy.
The Fault In Our Stars – John Green (LN)
Trigger Warnings: Death, Language
This book is great for readers who are into romance-drama genres. 16-year-old Hazel Grace Lancaster was diagnosed
With many genres being included, this book will make you smile, cry, and smile again. Make sure to read this heartbreaking and beautifully written novel written by John Green.
Coraline – Neil Gaimen (LN)
Trigger Warnings: Injury, slight language, button eyes, needles, mice/rats, Dolls, spiders/spider webs, cats, nighttime, insects, thunder/lightning, ghosts, circus music, circus-themes, creepy-like tall figures, eerie.
Bored and lonely Coraline, a young girl living with both of her parents, moves into their new home far away from where they originally lived. The house is big and old and has been divided into apartments. Her neighbors being two women who used to be actresses and a strange old man who claims he trains mice for a circus. One day, Coraline explores the house. She is soon greeted by a big wooden carved door in the drawing-room of the house. When she opens it, there are only bricks behind it. However, when she comes to open it again, the door isn’t only a door anymore- it’s a portal leading to an alternate universe! Coraline soon meets her other mother, a woman who looks a lot like her mom from home, but she has black, shiny buttons for her eyes.
Read this terrifying and amazing story of courage written by Neil Gaimen.
The Whiz Mob and the Grenadine Kid – Colin Meloy (AO)
Trigger Warnings: None
Bored, lonely Charlie Fisher suddenly finds himself entangled in the lives of a group of master pickpockets after
If you enjoyed the Wildwood series, also by Colin Meloy, this book is for you! Filled with quirky characters and wild escapades, The Whiz Mob and the Grenadine Kid is sure to keep you on your toes.
Fruits Basket – Natsuki Takaya (AO)
Trigger Warnings: Suicide, Abuse, Violence, Language, Death, Gore
After her mother’s death, high schooler Tohru Honda moves out of her apartment and makes a home in a tent. Unfortunately, she quickly discovers that she’s set up camp on the private estate of the mysterious Sohma family, and it’s not long before she’s found. But when they offer to take her in, Tohru realizes that her life is about to get even wilder- because the Sohmas have a secret.
Fruits Basket is a story that will make you laugh, cry, and everything in between. With lovable characters, a sweet romance, and a sprinkle of Chinese mythology, it’s sure to touch your heart! Just make sure to keep a box of tissues nearby.

Misha Speede is an 8th grader in Glasgow Middle School. She is currently growing up in a very diverse and multicultural family; her mother is Chinese and she is African American. She can speak Cantonese and Mandarin, and she really enjoys eating all of the Chinese delicacies. Besides speaking three languages, she also enjoys writing, especially poetry and fantasy. She also really like reading, if she could live in a book fandom, she would live at Camp Half Blood. She is also in orchestra at Glasgow, and she plays the violin.

Lana Noredin is a 7th grader at Glasgow Middle school. Her family is originally from Sudan but her and all of her siblings were born in Saudi Arabia and raised in Falls Church, VA. Some of her talents are drawing, painting, and rollerskating. Some things she likes to do for fun are play video games, watch anime, read, and listen to music. Some of her favorite artists are Mother Mother, Beach Bunny, Cavetown, Arctic Monkeys, Babymetal, and Jack Stauber. She had two cats, but one passed away unfortunately. Although she can roller skate, she can’t ice skate or knows how to ride a skateboard.

Alisa Oden (she/her) is an 8th grader at Glasgow Middle School. She was born in Memphis, Tennessee, but has lived in Virginia for most of her life. She enjoys dancing, singing, theater, and playing the violin. Some of her hobbies include sewing and baking, but one of her favorite things to do is paint. She is very passionate about engineering and STEM. This is her third year writing for the Panther Post.

Brooke Ehmann - Jones (she/her), an 8th grader at Glasgow MS has been a writer for the Panther Post since the 2020 school year. She has lived in Northern Virginia all of her life and plays on a soccer team, loves playing music on her saxophone and the piano, enjoys reading, writing, cooking, and painting, and loves spending time outdoors on the many hikes she and her family have been on. Brooke is also very passionate about the environment and enjoys learning about nature, and volunteering to protect it. She has two cats at home, and loves traveling to national parks with her family.