MADreads for Teens

Teens posts by Molly W

The power of Booker T. Washington's voice

Voices of Black America
A review of Voices of Black America: Historical Recordings of Speeches, Poetry, Humor & Drama by Naxos Audiobooks

This audiobook provides a treasured portal to the past. It features original recordings from 1908-1946 of speeches by Booker T. Washington, the poems of Langston Hughes and Paul Laurence Dunbar recited by the poets, comedy routines, and more. All told, there's approximately 1 hour and 47 minutes of content.

To hear these famous voices is very special. The sound quality is on par with other historical recordings I've heard. That takes a moment to get used to, but feels intimate, like you've gone back in time and are witnessing the moment. 

Posted by Molly W on Feb 22, 2021

When the moon is full

Cover of Mooncakes
A review of Mooncakes by Wendy Xu and Suzanne Walker

Apprentice witch Nova Huang is spending a “gap year” working at the family café and bookshop when she learns that a white wolf has been spotted in the woods. It turns out that Nova's long lost childhood friend Tam Lang is the white wolf. Tam is glad to be back in town but they're hiding something more than their werewolf status. Tam is unsure of and insecure about their werewolf magic and enlists Nova and her grandmothers to find their power. The merging of magic is thrilling and inspirational and the reader will be rooting for Tam and Nova to succeed.

Posted by Molly W on Oct 1, 2020

Podcast of "The Girls"

Cover of Sadie
A review of Sadie by Courtney Summers

Sadie is a teenager who is missing. She's been living in an economically devastated town in rural Colorado, raising her younger sister Mattie on her own after their addict mother takes off. Their situation is stark. Then 13-year-old Mattie goes missing and is found murdered. The story follows Sadie's chase to locate her sister's killer and a reporter's race to find Sadie.

Posted by Molly W on Jun 15, 2020

Odyssey Award Winner for Excellence in Audiobook Production

Cover of Hey, Kiddo
A review of Hey, Kiddo by Jarrett Krosoczka

Scholastic Audiobooks won the 2020 Odyssey Award for Excellence in Audiobook Production for the audiobook adaption of Hey, Kiddo: How I Lost My Mother, Found My Father, and Dealt with Family Addiction.  It is fantastic.  The audiobook is read by the author, Jarrett Krosoczka, and a full cast that includes friends and family featured in the book, his real-life art teachers, and offsp

Posted by Molly W on Mar 31, 2020

When it means the world

Cover of The Year of the Dogs
A review of The Year of the Dogs by Vincent J. Musi

Vincent Musi was a freelance photographer for National Geographic for more than 25 years when he decided to try something different. His son was sixteen years old and growing up quickly and Musi did not want to accept assignments that would take him overseas for long stretches of time during his son's final years of high school. Travel was a basic requirement for National Geographic photographers and Musi wanted to stay close to home. So he built a studio and named it The Unleashed Studio and started capturing the essence of one of my favorite creatures: the dog. This was

Posted by Molly W on Nov 20, 2019

Pumpkins as a muse

Cover of Pumpkinheads
A review of Pumpkinheads by Rainbow Rowell and Faith Erin Hicks with colorist Sarah Stern

Fall is here, school is in full swing and harvest time is now. That means visits to apple orchards, corn mazes and pumpkin patches. Pumpkinheads by Rainbow Rowell and Faith Erin Hicks is the perfect book to read to celebrate the season.

Posted by Molly W on Oct 30, 2019

Granting wishes. Kleenex required.

Cover of Noise: Based on a True Sto
A review of Noise: Based on a True Story by Kathleen Raymundo

This short and thought provoking comic will tug at your heartstrings. It's the first day of school and an introverted girl who wants to be left alone finds an empty seat on the bus. She settles in for a ride of quiet and solitude. This is interrupted by a curious and talkative little boy who keeps pestering her for school supplies. His constant requests and questions wear her down and she finally snaps at him.

Posted by Molly W on Sep 23, 2019

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