The Hurricane Girls

by Kimberly Willis Holt

Libby audiobook 6 hours

Read by: Aricka Parent

Published: 2023

Genre: YA coming-of-age "historical" fiction

When I initially got this book, it was because I like this author. I put hist fic in quotation marks because that was the designated genre I was searching for in Libby. The book, however, is set in 2017 which is twelve years after the 2005 storm Hurricane Katrina. That doesn't feel very historical to me!

The three girls Greer, Joya Mia (pronounced "hoy-ah mee-ah"), and Kiki (who didn't like the name Katrina) were all born "in the wake" of the hurricane. After doing a report on the hurricane in sixth grade, the three girls became fast friends. Now they are seventh graders and a lot has changed for them.

I thought the book was a little too middle school girl vibe for me. Well, duh. That's the target audience! But as the story went on, I was so impressed by the author's gifts in weaving so many themes without overwhelming the core story of their friendship.

Training for a marathon, being a loving sister, getting your period, not giving up, babysitting, modeling, saving for goals, Old Rusty (bicycle), grief, . . . there is a lot to this story. The audio was well done.

House Arrest

by K.A. Holt

Libby audiobook 4 hours

read by Alex Kydd

Published: 2019

Genre: YA realistic fiction

 

"Timothy is on probation. It's a strange word - something that happens to other kids, to delinquents, not to kids like him. And yet, he is under house arrest for the next year. He must check in weekly with a probation officer and a therapist, and keep a journal for an entire year. And mostly, he has to stay out of trouble. But when he must take drastic measures to help his struggling family, staying out of trouble proves more difficult than Timothy ever thought it would be."

Oh. My. Word.

I love this book! It made me laugh and it made me cry. This would be a great title to recommend to kiddos who enjoy Sonnenblick's Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie. Timothy is a fantastic and relatable protagonist. When he is caught stealing a wallet to pay for his baby brother's really expensive medicine, he has to journal about his thoughts and feelings.

Those thoughts and feelings are held in fairly tightly at first (hello, 12 year old boy) but then he rages at the injustices in his life - mostly on behalf of his baby brother and his hard-working mother. What an incredible kid! 

His probation officer (James) and his therapist (Ms. Bainbridge) are also wonderful characters. This was a delightful, quick story.

<Above posted on 12.8.21. I relistened to it on 11.29.22 because I remembered enjoying it so much and I wanted an audiobook. Such a good story!>

Oh! There was a funny line when he called puking "shouting groceries." That tickled my funny bone.