School Library Journal Archives

Top 10 Audiobooks of 2022 [in School Library Journal]

29 Dec, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Audio, Black/African American, Children/Picture Books, Chinese American, European, Fiction, Hapa/Mixed-race, Iranian American, Lists, Middle Grade Readers, Nonethnic-specific, Nonfiction, Persian American, Repost, Thai American, Young Adult Readers

Culled from the 200-plus titles with November 2021 to October 2022 publication dates I’ve reviewed or judged, this is SLJ’s list of top 10 audiobooks. Two picture books, a family history in verse, remade fairy tales, an intertwined podcast, and a haven’t-ever-heard-that-before double recording are...

And They Lived … by Steven Salvatore [in School Library Journal]

28 Oct, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Audio, Fiction, Nonethnic-specific, Repost, Young Adult Readers

*STARRED REVIEW From Steven Salvatore’s warm dedication onward, Kirt Graves ignites the pages with kaleidoscopic talent and charm, fulfilling his self-described “passion ...

So This Is Ever After by F.T. Lukens [in School Library Journal]

27 Oct, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Audio, Fiction, Nonethnic-specific, Repost, Young Adult Readers

*STARRED REVIEW Inimitable Kevin R. Free returns for another happily ever after match with bestselling author F.T. Lukens. As the story begins, the hardest part is over – right? Arek and his BFFs have beheaded the Vile One, saving the realm of Chickpea. Until the rightful...

Ballad & Dagger [Outlaw Saints, Book 1] by Daniel José Older [in School Library Journal]

26 Oct, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Audio, Caribbean, Caribbean American, Fiction, Latina/o/x, Repost, Young Adult Readers

*STARRED REVIEW Lee Osorio bestows Daniel José Older’s newest series with an outstanding first volume – hopefully signaling further perfectly tuned duets. Once upon a time, the Caribbean island of San Madrigal was home to “that particularly wonderful mix of humanity ...

An Arrow to the Moon by Emily X.R. Pan [in School Library Journal]

25 Oct, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Audio, Chinese, Chinese American, Fiction, Repost, Taiwanese American, Young Adult Readers

Emily X.R. Pan melds east and west in a hybrid fantasy/reality novel inspired by two sets of star-crossed lovers: China’s Houyi and Chang’e (the Archer and the Moon Goddess) and Romeo and Juliet. In 1991, Hunter Yee and Luna Chang are 17-year-old seniors at Fairbridge...

The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh [in School Library Journal]

24 Oct, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Audio, Fiction, Korean, Korean American, Repost, Young Adult Readers

Axie Oh adapts the traditional Korean “Tale of Shim Cheong” as the basis of her latest novel, her first foray into exploring folklore. Her unique version features 16-year-old Mina who, unwilling to watch her adored older brother lose his beloved Shim Cheong, replaces herself as...

The Lost Dreamer [The Lost Dreamer, Book 1] by Lizz Huerta [in School Library Journal]

23 Oct, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Audio, Fiction, Latin American, Latina/o/x, Repost, Young Adult Readers

Lizz Huerta introduces a planned duology inspired by Mesoamerican myths, in which she alternates narratives with connections revealed near book’s end. Indir is a Dreamer in a family of multigenerational Dreamers whose visions serve Alcanzeh’s kings. The newest monarch openly disdains the Dreamers, causing imbalance...

Blood Scion [Blood Scion, Book 1] by Deborah Falaye [in School Library Journal]

22 Oct, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in African, Audio, Black/African American, Canadian, Fiction, Nigerian, Nigerian American, Repost, Young Adult Readers

Nigerian Canadian author Deborah Falaye’s Yoruban mythology-inspired debut (introducing a planned duology) presents Nagea, a nation brutalized by the genocidal Lucis. Only her grandfather has managed to keep 15-year-old Sloane safe, until she’s drafted into the army. Being a Scion – “a descendent of the...

The Loophole by Naz Kutub [in School Library Journal]

21 Oct, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Audio, Fiction, Indian American, Repost, South Asian American, Young Adult Readers

Naz Kutub commingles the preposterous and poignant, heightened with myths of lost love. Shawn K. Jain is a sensitive cipher, opening with Kutub’s author’s note that includes content warnings about abuse and expulsion, both of which happen to Sy, the 17-year-old Muslim Indian gay son...

Cinder & Glass by Melissa de la Cruz [in School Library Journal]

20 Oct, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Audio, European, Fiction, Filipina/o American, French, Repost, Young Adult Readers

*STARRED REVIEW Bestselling author Melissa de la Cruz remarkably has two 2022 Cinderella adaptations: The Stolen Slippers, introducing not-evil stepsisters, and this, in which “Cendrillon” is a Lady in King Louis XIV’s Versailles Court. So much of de la Cruz’s exceptional retelling – with even a nod to...

A Thousand Steps into Night by Traci Chee [in School Library Journal]

19 Oct, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Audio, Fiction, Japanese American, Repost, Young Adult Readers

Grace Rolek, who was part of the audio cast for Traci Chee’s We Are Not Free, makes her solo debut with this rousing Japanese-inspired epic. In fictional Awara, where demons, spirits, magical beings, oh – and humans – all coexist, 17-year-old Miuko is deemed “average...

Theo Tan and the Spirit Fox by Jesse Q. Sutanto [in School Library Journal]

18 Oct, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Audio, Chinese American, Fiction, Indian African, Indonesian American, Middle Grade Readers, Repost, Singaporean American

Jesse Q. Sutanto makes her middle grade debut with a Chinese and Indian mythology-inspired epic examining identity politics, bullying, capitalist greed, and unblurring the lines of integrity. “I hate that I’m a Chinese American kid who lives in Chinatown,” Theo readily admits. But he’ll have...

Winnie Zeng Unleashes a Legend [Winnie Zeng, Book 1] by Katie Zhao [in School Library Journal]

17 Oct, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Audio, Chinese American, Fiction, Middle Grade Readers, Repost

“Middle school. Is there a scarier place on the planet?” 11-year-old Winnie laments. “In books and movies, everything bad happens in middle school.” She’s not wrong, alas. Plenty of scary and worse are about to happen in sixth grade, but good will conquer a lot. Hoping...

I Was a Rat! by Philip Pullman [in School Library Journal]

16 Oct, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Audio, British, Fiction, Middle Grade Readers, Repost

*STARRED REVIEW Philip Pullman’s 1999 fairy-tale-adjacent, murine fable begets a delightful audio adaptation, gloriously dramatized by British actor Robert Glenister, who effortlessly showcases a dazzlingly vast cast. One moonlit night, a little boy in a torn uniform knocks on cobbler Bob and washerwoman Joan’s door announcing,...

Pilar Ramirez and the Escape from Zafa [Pilar Ramirez, Book 1] by Julian Randall [in School Library Journal]

15 Oct, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Audio, Caribbean American, Fiction, Latina/o/x, Middle Grade Readers, Repost

Escaping the Dominican Republic’s murderous Trujillo regime is how Julian Randall’s own family arrived in the United States two generations ago. His debut novel seamlessly combines that history – political and personal – with Dominican mythology for his Pilar Ramirez duology (book two publishes February...

Kiki Kallira Conquers a Curse [Kiki Kallira, Book 2] by Sangu Mandanna [in School Library Journal]

16 Sep, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Audio, British Asian, Fiction, Indian, Middle Grade Readers, Repost, South Asian

Indian-born British actor Zenia Starr returns to narrate the second volume of Sangu Mandanna’s Hindu mythology-inspired series, featuring now 12-year-old Kiki whose artistic prowess can engender whole worlds. To read both titles in order (Kiki debuted in Kiki Kallira Breaks a Kingdom), of course, is...

The Last Mapmaker by Christina Soontornvat [in School Library Journal]

15 Sep, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Audio, Fiction, Middle Grade Readers, Repost, Southeast Asian, Southeast Asian American, Thai American

*STARRED REVIEW Thai American and double Newbery Honoree Christina Soontornvat gets culturally and linguistically matched with Thai-fluent, (self-described) “blended” Asian American (of Thai, Chinese, Vietnamese, Japanese heritage) Sura Siu for engrossing high-seas exploits in search of mythical lands. For 12-year-old Sai, being Master Mapmaker Paiyoon’s assistant means...

Glass Slippers [Sisters Ever After, Book 2] by Leah Cypress [in School Library Journal]

11 Sep, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Audio, Fiction, Middle Grade Readers, Nonethnic-specific, Repost

Any mention of glass slippers instantly conjures Cinderella. Here she’s Queen Ella, married six years to now-King Ciaran with two young royals of their own. Her two evil stepsisters were banished, but Ella kept her third stepsister, Tirza, close: “I’d hoped you were too young...

Thornwood [Sisters Ever After, Book 1] [in School Library Journal]

10 Sep, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Audio, Fiction, Middle Grade Readers, Nonethnic-specific, Repost

Leah Cypess debuted her middle grade “Sisters Ever After” series in 2021 with this enchanting retelling of Sleeping Beauty with maybe a bit of Rumpelstiltskin mixed in. The audiobook follows a year later, releasing simultaneously with the series’ second installment, Glass Slippers. Prolific, versatile Jessica Almasy...

The Lost Ryū by Emi Watanabe Cohen [in School Library Journal]

09 Sep, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Audio, Fiction, Hapa/Mixed-race, Japanese American, Jewish, Middle Grade Readers, Repost

*STARRED REVIEW A sigh of relief is almost immediate as Kurt Kanazawa effortlessly pronounces “ryū” – with exacting attention to that diacritical – then “Hiroshima” just so. The Julliard-trained actor displays his Japanese fluency, adroitly enhancing Emi Watanabe Cohen’s poignant first novel in which dragons –...

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