In this deeply moving memoir, Hala Alyan reckons with her family, her history and her future as she embarks on a surrogacy journey to motherhood. In each chapter, through the stages of her surrogate Dee’s pregnancy from preconception to postpartum, Alyan weaves her present with fragments of her memories of the people and places that she carries with her. Like Scheherazade, she recounts stories about her family’s continuous exile and displacement from Palestine and Syria to Lebanon and the United States, her youth marked by alcoholism, the unbearable pain of repeating miscarriages and her fraying marriage, the anticipation and uncertainty of waiting for the child she has wanted more than anything in the world. Alyan’s braided narrative is both poetic and unflinchingly honest. Reflexive, profoundly personal and beautifully written, I’ll Tell You When I’m Home is a stunning literary feat sure to both break readers’ hearts and put them back together again.

Fans of cats will enjoy learning about cats through history in this delightful non-fiction picture book. From ancient times to modern day, Cats and Us serves as a fun introduction to how these funny felines have come to shape our lives. Information on the most popular cat breeds is included in the back matter. The illustrations are fun, engaging, and boldly-coloured. Given that the short text seems a little too advanced for the intended audience, this book would be better suited for children aged 5 to 7 in a classroom setting or read by an adult during story time.

Set in an upper middle-class suburb, three women use the possible presence of a panther in the community to reach their own ends: Twig, to raise money for her daughter’s cancer treatment; Emma, to distract from her HOA-violating house remodel; and Coralie, to generate enough interest in big cats for them to reach protected status in Britain. As the story unfolds, each woman gradually reveals her ulterior motives for encouraging interest in the panther, all while the rest of the community descends into hysteria. While an Cat Fight’s premise is intriguing, its underdeveloped characters made it difficult to sympathize with their motivations and the overall stakes were low, making for an unsatisfying and too-perfect ending. As an addition to a collection, this could provide an easy entry into the thriller genre for youth aged 16 and up.

Welcome to Murder Week feels like two novels in one. The mystery week is at the core of this novel; a small village in England hosts an event where participants group together to solve a fake murder set in the town. The book has the camp and romance of Shannon Hale’s Austenland. The other heart of it is a story about a daughter coming to terms with the death of her mother, and examines what she didn’t know about her often absent mother. It weaves beautifully between lighthearted and emotionally complex. I was drawn into the more personal story and laughed at the humour of the mystery week. This book would suit a public library collection, and appeal to both cozy mystery and contemporary fiction readers.

The River Is Waiting begins with a tragic event that immediately sets a heavy tone. Corby Ledbetter’s life takes a sharp turn after one terrible decision. As he adjusts to life in prison, the novel explores themes of addiction, guilt, and the complexity of forgiveness. Wally Lamb portrays the bleakness of incarceration with care, while also focusing on moments of human connection (friendship, reflection, and the possibility of healing). At times, the emotional beats can feel a little saccharine, with some redemptive moments landing too neatly given the gravity of the story. Still, Corby’s inner journey is compelling, and Lamb creates a nuanced portrait of a man reckoning with grief and regret. Relationships are messy, and forgiveness is far from guaranteed. While not always subtle, the novel invites reflection on justice, remorse, and the weight of second chances. Readers looking for a character-driven story with emotional depth will likely find much to sit with here.

A young child gets ready to go to sleep by going over the good things he’ll dream of instead of the things that scare him. Each page contains one line of text, making the book’s sweeping, fantastical illustrations the focus. Deng uses one art style to depict the real world, then switches to pencil crayon drawings to depict the brightly coloured dream setting. It ends with the child being woken by his mother, emphasising parental love. The last page of the book is for the reader to fill out themselves, encouraging them to put into words the things they want to dream of instead of the things that scare them. While the last page is not suitable for library use, the book overall would make a good addition to a children’s collection.

When a supersaurus and a blue whale both claim to be the world’s longest animal, an inchworm and centipede step in to measure using inches and centimeters. But how do you compare different units? Luckily, a math-loving Dragonfly arrives to convert. Who do you think is bigger? The supersaurus or the blue whale? Carolyn Fisher’s vibrant illustrations and playful speech bubbles bring this funny STEM story to life. Kids learn about measurement systems, data collection, and even scientific names. I’m Longer Than You is useful for both learning math and science. It is a smart, funny, and highly original way to explore units of measurement. There are also extra facts, charts, and real-world applications included in the back of the book, a great companion for class activities. This book would make an excellent addition to any library that children have access to, whether it’s a personal, public, or school library.

A young girl feels misunderstood by the kids on her school bus because she lives on a reservation. Rez Kid tells the story of how she overcomes their meanness through the teachings of her elders, each of them teaching her traditional values and skills. We walk through these interactions with valued elders and families while she wonders how to share all the rez has taught her with those bullies on the bus. This beautifully written book, accompanied by enchanting and vibrant illustrations, offers young readers a heartfelt lesson in empathy while celebrating the importance of community and tradition. This book would make an excellent addition to any library that children have access to, whether it’s a personal, public, or school library.

Villagers don’t know where he comes from or where he goes during the day, all they know is that the Giant comes out at night and wreaks havoc on their village while they sleep. From switching roofs off of houses and using cars as skates, the mischievous Giant has fun while evading the detective. This whimsical picture book is illustrated in shades of blue and yellow, perhaps to contrast and highlight the colours of light and darkness, without giving the book a sombre feel. Although there doesn’t seem to be much of a plot to the story, perhaps the purpose of The Night Giant is to capture the spirit of childhood and the purity of a child’s imagination while at play, rather than to give us a message. Because of this, there is not much to this book that stands out. However, with the short and easy-to-read text, this book may be useful for young children learning to read. Therefore, it would be a good addition to a preschool school library, and would be better suited for younger children aged 3 to 5, rather than the recommended 3 to 7 years.

A child donates the last can of their favourite food, Zoodelicious, to a food and mitten drive their class is organizing for those in need. Their can is the 100th can and gets a special snowflake sticker on top. But when their mother comes home with a pair of red mittens with the very same can of Zoodelicious with the snowflake sticker on top, the child asks their mother if they are some of those people in need. Thinking of the other children in their school who might also be in need, the child donates another pair of mittens with a sweet note inside. One Can can be used as a tool to preface a holiday food drive collection in a classroom, and to explain the importance of giving to those in need. The authors do a good job of bringing up the topic in an accessible way for young children. This adorably-illustrated picture book would be a great addition to any library for children.

My Street Remembers depicts and describes everyone who has ever existed on a particular city street. Beginning over 14,000 years ago, each page contains a date and a brief text description of the occupants of the land: from mammoths, to bison, to First Peoples, to colonial settlers, to the founding of Canada as a country, to Reconciliation endeavours. Accompanying illustrations help visually depict what life was like during each time period. The book ends with encouragement to welcome those to come and to heal past wrongs. Back matter contains a much more detailed history of the real street the book is based on for educators and parents to read and be able to discuss with children. This book is a strong addition to public and school libraries as a way to encourage discussion about colonialism, reconciliation, and immigration.

From his “Holding-in-a-Fart Face” to his “I’m-There-For-You-Face”, a young boy lists all the different faces his friend makes and the reasons he likes them in this adorably-illustrated picture book. I Like You Face is a sweet ode to all the best friends we have out there, showing appreciation for all the different “faces” they wear and emotions they feel, through rain or shine. This book would be a perfect addition to a school library’s social and emotional learning (SEL) collection, a classroom, and even a personal home library. It shows that boys can cry too, and still be loved for it. Although advertised to younger children, this book would be suitable up to age 8.

On a walk with her mom one winter day, Emma meets a woman named Margaret living in a tent in the forest. Concerned for Margaret in the cold, Emma and her mom visit Margaret several more times that winter. They bring Margaret food and winter clothing, and Margaret shares the reality of what living in a homeless shelter is like. In the spring, Margaret disappears, and they don’t see each other again until the next winter. Wanting to help Margaret as much as possible, Emma gets her mom to call a new local welfare agency, which turns out to have a private room for Margaret. This book introduces the experience of homelessness and complicated systemic social issues in a direct yet thoughtful way. The author’s note at the end explains housing insecurity and suggests courses of action in a way educators may find helpful when discussing with children. This book is suitable for a children’s collection in a school or public library for ages 3-6.

Whether they are questioning why they feel the urge to stomp their feet when mad or knocking their knees when nervous, tweens will get to learn the answers in Feeling Your Feelings. In an accessible language, this book serves to help tweens navigate all the confusing emotions puberty brings about, informs them on how these emotions not only affect them cognitively, but also how they manifest in them physically, and as well as provides strategies on how to work through these emotions. Well-researched, filled with funny illustrations, and interspersed with “dad jokes”, this book feels like an older friend one can turn to when looking for answers. A glossary of terms and a list of further reading are included in the backmatter. Feeling Your Feelings would be best suited in a school library’s SEL (social and emotional learning) collection.

An Ancient Witch’s Guide to Modern Dating is a cozy supernatural romance about a witch in the 17th century who is transported forward in time to modern times. It’s lighthearted and funny. It kept me reading with quirky elements like talking cats and spell craft. It’s a slow-paced romantic comedy that tackles online dating and hot veterinarians that might be warlocks. While the romance is sweet, the fish-out-of-water comedy is what drives this narrative. I liked the premise and comedy, but it didn’t satisfy my hope for a romance with a lot of tension. I would recommend it to public libraries and readers who want a comedy with a little bit of romance.

The best thing about Let’s Make a Scene is that while it pairs beautifully with book one in the Theo & Cynthie series, reading book one is not a requirement. It’s a fast-paced, witty, funny, yet deeply emotional romance. The plot goes back and forth through time between the shooting of a period piece movie and its sequel many years later. The main characters Cynthie and Jack are perfectly opposed to each other as co-leads, who quickly become enemies then lovers. It’s a new up-and-coming actress versus a classically trained nepobaby leading man. All the supporting characters are loveable. What appealed to me the most was that there is a lot of character growth from the first movie in the past and the new movie in the present. It deals with tough issues like toxic relationships and emotional abuse. Yet, it also is very comical with hilarious pranks. This book would suit a public library collection.

A girl panics when the pool she is swimming in becomes overcrowded with other swimmers. There are so many people that there is no room for even her tears. Feeling out of place, she swims to the very bottom of the pool’s drain, only to emerge into an old swamp. There, she comes to terms with her feelings of being “unnatural” and returns to the pool to inspire others to be their “unnatural” selves too. The illustrations in this picture book, although beautiful, are also uncanny. This is perhaps to highlight the protagonist’s feelings of being “unnatural”, but they may be a little too eerie for readers under the age of 6. The message of this story, although confusing at first, seems to be that one must sit with their feelings and come to accept themselves for who they are. Although the intent behind Unnaturally Blue is a good one, unless a child has great inferencing skills, I feel the message will be lost on younger readers. It would be better recommended in a class setting, where the metaphors and messages in the story could be explained in detail and discussed with an adult.

The beloved Hockey in the Wild is back in paperback format! Beaver goes to swim one day and realizes that the lake is now ice. Excited, he calls over Moose and Bear to play hockey… only to realize that the lake is not thick enough to play hockey as they fall into the ice. Hilarity ensues as they wait for the lake to freeze over enough to play. The three delightfully funny critters are sure to please both children and adults alike with their quirky antics. The illustrations are fun and lively, in Nicholas Oldland’s usual style. This more affordable version of the picture book would be a wonderful addition to any library catering to children.

Aggie is excited to move out on her own, but discovers a ghost haunting her house. At first, Aggie tries to get along with the ghost by establishing some house rules. But the ghost constantly breaks them, leading Aggie to challenge the ghost to a game of tic-tac-toe: if the ghost loses, he must move out. They tie the game and return home together, but the next day the ghost is gone, and Aggie quickly realizes being alone is not everything she hoped for. Making one final rule, Aggie tells the ghost to never visit her every now and then, which, of course, the ghost breaks, and they become good friends (though not the best of friends). Illustrations are composed of soft lines and a cozy colour palette, which add additional meaning to the 2-4 lines of text per page. Aggie and the Ghost would make an excellent addition to a school or public library children’s collection for ages 4-8, as Aggie navigates setting boundaries with a companion that constantly oversteps.

The Book of Lost Hours is a thrilling blend of historical and science fiction. Lisavet Levy, a child hiding from the Nazis on Kristallnacht in Germany 1938, becomes trapped in the time space, a library where all of the world’s memories are stored. In 1965, Bostonian Amelia Duquesne learns of the time space after her uncle—a CIA agent for the Temporal Reconnaissance Program—is killed under mysterious circumstances. Gelfuso takes readers on a journey through time, space and memory, following both young women as they work to understand their role in remembrance. The author weaves the stories of these two women together in a way that is at times surprising and heartbreaking, all while asking important questions about the power of controlling narratives. With its unique concept and story full of government secrets, rebellion, romance and plenty of action, The Book of Lost Hours is a great read for anyone looking for an adventurous and gripping book.