‘Benita and the Night Creatures’ by Mariana Llanos

Benita just wants to read her brand-new book, while creatures from Peruvian folklore do their best to scare her in Benita and the Night Creatures, written by Mariana Llanos with illustrations by Cocoretto.

‘A Queer Guide to Saving Democracy’ by R. K. Maril

A vital, powerful, and compelling read, A Queer Guide to Saving Democracy was not a book I could rush through. I had to pace myself. I had to give myself breaks for my own self-care because the book describes a political and cultural crisis that directly affects me.

‘Rick’ by Alex Gino

When thinking back to the first time I encountered an asexual character in fiction — someone other than a god’s chosen paladin or avatar and someone who explicitly navigates the identity of “asexual” — Rick by Alex Gino is the book that comes to mind. In honor of Ace Week, which is observed each year during the last full week in October, I want to recommend Rick for middle-grade and tween readers.

‘I Shall Never Fall in Love’ by Hari Conner

As part of promoting a culture of reading at Santa Rosa Charter School for the Arts, I encourage young readers’ book reviews of their favorite books. In that spirit, I display five-star reviews of books that I’ve especially enjoyed. Here is one of my recent five-star reviews, for I Shall Never Fall in Love by Hari Conner.

‘Papá’s Magical Water-Jug Clock’

My read-aloud this past week in SRCSA library was Papá’s Magical Water-Jug Clock, written by comedian Jesús Trejo and illustrated by Eliza Kinkz.