Where Wolves Don’t Die
Anton Treuer

I’ve started listening to Where Wolves Don’t Die, the new juvenile novel by Anton Treuer, and I can see what all the buzz is about! Treuer narrates the audiobook himself, and I think a Native narrator is crucial for this book. Ezra lives in Minneapolis with his father, an Ojibwe language professor. After Ezra gets in a fight with Matt, a fellow student (or more accurately, a bully) Matt’s house burns down and it seems best to get Ezra out of town, or even better, out of the country. Ezra goes to stay with his grandparents in Canada. There’s a fair amount of Anishinaabe culture woven into the story (some of which Ezra is learning along with the reader), but I think what will be most appealing to kids reading this is the mystery and the outdoors adventure feel to it (think Hatchet by Gary Paulsen.)

Telephone of the Tree
Alison McGhee

As much as we wish it weren’t so, children experience death.  Perhaps a pet, a family member, or something on the news. Alison McGhee has written a sensitive story about Ayla, a young girl in denial after the sudden death of her best friend, Kiri. One day, Ayla discovers an old-fashioned rotary dial phone in the branches of her favorite tree. She watches as various people in her town make calls on the phone to their departed loved ones. Gradually, Ayla is able to begin processing her grief and deal with the negative space in her life.

Don’t wait for a death to put this book in the hands of children you care about. Introduce it now. Perhaps read or listen to it together and talk about it.

The book is for ages 8-12.

I listened to the audio book from Libro.fm.

A family of two moms and two kids is looking forward to their traditional holiday celebration, complete with lots of visiting relatives, special food, goofy charades and three kinds of Grandma’s pies. A snowstorm makes all that impossible. What will the family do? They adapt! Soon stew from what’s in the refrigerator is cooking in the slow cooker while the family hikes in the snow. After a yummy meal, they play cards, but then disappointment breaks through. No Grandma and no pies! Soon, Grandma is on the computer screen and walks the family through making apple crisp. It wasn’t their traditional holiday, but perhaps the little family has created a new tradition! (And the book even includes a recipe for apple crisp!) An excellent book for children who have ever faced disappointment!

Griffin is the author of perennial favorites at the bookstore,
Rhoda’s Rock Hunt and Ten Beautiful Things.

Note: this book will be released August 27.

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