Next time you set the board books aside and your sweet totz to bed, reach for Return to Me. Justina Chen delivers a raw, realistic look at change, redefining normal, and lasting love. Here's the description from Amazon: Nothing is going as planned for Rebecca Muir. She's weeks away from starting college--at a school chosen specifically to put a few thousand miles of freedom between Reb and her parents. But her dad's last-minute job opportunity has her entire family moving all those miles with her! And then there's the matter of her unexpected, amazing boyfriend, Jackson, who is staying behind on the exact opposite coast.
And if that isn't enough to deal with, mere days after moving cross-country, Reb's dad drops shocking, life-changing news. With her mother and brother overwhelmed and confused, Reb is left alone to pick up the pieces of her former life. But how can she do that when everything can change in an instant? How can she trust her "perfect" boyfriend when her own dad let her down? Reb started the year knowing exactly what her future would hold, but now that her world has turned upside down, will she discover what she really wants?
Join the Celebratory Twitter Party at #LBSchat at 5 PT, 8 ET! Return to Me by Justina Chen Little Brown Books for Young Readers, 2013
As we approach the end of March we recommend North of Beautiful by Justina Chen Headley for the teen sibling of your totz. With three starred reviews, this work will challenge you to talk about the concept of beauty with your adolescent.
Terra plans to leave her small town in the Northwest and escape to college, but she is under the thumb of her controlling father. As she searches to define herself with a facial birthmark, an accident places Terra in Jacob’s path, and the Goth boy tests her beliefs about herself, beauty, and life. With a visit to China, Justina's characters journey to find their own north of beautiful.
Justina is offering a Find Beauty Challenge wherein she will donate $10 for cleft palate surgeries for each video entry that defines beauty. Here's the one I created!
And here's Justina's:
Challenge yourself and distill your thoughts on beauty. Help totz around the world smile with confidence!
I asked Justina a few questions, and here are her answers:
Lorie Ann: Justina, NOB is our pick for teen siblings of totz. I myself have a brother ten years my junior. Are you from a family with a wide age span between children?
Justina: There's a 10-year age gap between my oldest brother and my little sister. Interestingly, my brothers (both older than me) share the same birthday.
Lorie Ann: How many totz do you have?
Justina: I have 2 amazing, wonderful, beautiful, not-so-small-anymore totz.
Lorie Ann: Are there any totz in your novel?
Justina: I snuck in a few totz in my novel: the first to appear is Jacob's little brother. I took inspiration for him from my son at that age, 3 or 4. Then there's a pivotal scene in the novel set at a Chinese orphanage filled with totz. One in particular had a life-changing impact on Terra, the protagonist.
Lorie Ann: Terra travels to China in NOB. Have you traveled extensively with your totz?
Justina: Luckily, my kids inherited a sense of adventure. I've been fortunate to be able to take them to Japan, Europe, China, Canada, and around the country here at home.
Lorie Ann: What discussions might you hope to engage between parent and teen as they read NOB?
Justina: I hope NOB sparks discussions about the meaning of true beauty, the elements of a good relationship, honesty and tough decisions, separating from parents, standing on our own.
Lorie Ann: Can you tell us a little more about the Find Beauty Challenge that is going to aid many totz?
Justina: I tie community service to every book I publish. So with North of Beautiful, I decided to host the Find Beauty Challenge, asking people to tell the world in a 90 second video what true beauty means. For every uploaded video, I'm donating $10 (up to $1000) to fund reconstructive surgeries for kids with cleft lips in the third world. The videos people have created are powerful statements about beauty. I'm inspired!
Lorie Ann: Thank you so much for your time, Justina. Here's to true beauty!
It’s okay to like this book. It’s definitely okay to like this book. Readers of The Okay Book will learn that it’s also okay to have freckles, wear different socks, and try new things.
The art is all bold black lines with bright, solid-color infills. They’re childlike in their simplicity, but the story packs a powerful message: You are okay as you are.
Inside Scoop: Todd Parr says: “My overall message is to empower kids to feel good about themselves while learning about differences, reminding them to be kind, and inspiring them. The end. Love, Todd.”
At 6 ½ inches square, The Okay Book is a fairly typical board book size, but its interior pages are heavyweight paper rather than board.
Todd’s website lists twenty-nine books to his credit. The Peace Book is another of my favorites and I love the whole Otto the dog series, which is based on Todd’s pit bull.
If your readertotz can’t get enough Todd, you’ll also find his characters on TV at ToddWorld on TLC and Discovery Kids. Your readertotz might enjoy these clips from the show. I particularly enjoyed seeing Todd interact with kids during a school visit 123 (in three parts) on YouTube.
This review wouldn't be complete without a quick shout out to author-illustrator Laura Kvasnosky for introducing me to Todd Parr’s books during a critique session in Seattle about five years ago. Thanks, Laura!
