The Girl Who Smiled Beads is a well-written non-fiction selection that reads like a heartbreaking and, though the author may not like this description, inspiring novel. Alternating between her time as a refugee and her life after moving to America, the author, Clemantine Wamariya expertly compares and contrasts the two time periods. At one point Wamariya writes, "It was all so arbitrary: You should be killed, you should stand in line for food for seven hours, you should be fabulously educated and heaped with praise." How can there be such extremes in one individual’s life?

Author Rhodes-Courter is back discussing foster care – this time from the perspective of the foster parent instead of as the child in care. This follow up spans her college years to present day.

Unfortunately, she finds that the foster care system hasn’t changed all that much since she was in care. Kids are still bounced around frequently and some are returned to dangerous situations. While kids are in her care though, she does her best to fight for them. She searches for services, advocates for better care, and loves on the kids as best she can. Some of the children she fosters have favorable endings to their stories, but not all. One is particularly gut-wrenching.

All the while, she is still working on how her past is merging with her present. Stories of Rhodes-Courters’ visits with her biological family are both disappointing and heartening.

The reader will both adore and judge the foster families throughout the book: first the reader will feel respect for those helping the children caught in the system; then judgement because they are obviously stifling the teenagers; then excitement: adoption! Then more heartbreak.

Not all of the stories end in heartbreak, but this also isn’t a fairytale. Many children age out of the system each year, and before that, they are bounced around between many strangers’ houses. The author interviewed the children in care as well as the families who were caring for them, and often kept in touch after the child was no longer with the initial family. In some cases, it appeared as if the author was more concerned about the child’s welfare than either the foster family or the case workers.

To The End of June is an in-depth look at foster care, mainly focused on New York, as the author follows a handful of families over the course of a few years. Interspersed in the family narratives are discussions and thoughts from those who are, or were, employed within the foster care system, as well as the author’s own judgements and ideas about what is wrong and what could be done to help fix the care system.

Before they were household names, many of the now-famous actors mentioned throughout Homey Don’t Play That!: The Story of In Living Color and the Black Comedy Revolution were trying to get a foot in the door by way of stand-up comedy. The Wayans family, Jamie Foxx, Jim Carrey, and Eddie Murphy are just a handful of the names to be recognized in this book.

The reader is taken on a journey from Keenen Wayans’ early life, through his years producing In Living Color. To better explain the impact of In Living Color, the author includes many stories from early careers of African Americans in film and television, as well as the historical context of nationwide events and Fox’s foray into broadcast television.

Compiled from many interviews into a cohesive and easily-readable narrative, the author creates an intriguing read for anyone interested in African American history, television history, or those who simply enjoyed watching In Living Color.

This contemporary novel is the story of two sisters, Lucia, the younger sister, and Miranda, eight years older. After their mother's death and Lucia’s newly discovered mental illness, they are at odds for what they think is the best course of action to keep Lucia safe and “healthy” as Miranda always says. Lucia is a wanderer and traveler, and Miranda, the worrier, tries to fix everything.

The sisters’ lives take different paths, evermore widening the gap that’s come between them. Will they be able to come to an understanding? Or will their choices keep pushing each other apart?

Told in alternating narrators, the author writes the characters with such depth that the reader feels a certain empathy for all of them, even through their faults.

Told from sixteen-year-old Starr’s point of view, this heart-wrenching story describes her life – how she feels bounced between two different worlds and how she never feels fully herself. Then her worlds slowly begin to collide when her childhood best friend, Khalil, is fatally shot by a police officer and he becomes a national headline. Full of emotions and a wide cast of characters, this story is well told.

The audiobook version of this contemporary fiction work is wonderfully read and highly recommended. It enhances the dialogue and gives life to the characters in a way words on a page cannot. Be prepared with tissues.

This title is also available in print and ebook.

Host of the popular HGTV show Fixer Upper, Chip Gaines, shares with readers his path to success as well as his stumbles. Chip lays out his adventures in being a landlord, owning a landscaping business and how it led him and Joanna to their real estate and home goods empire known as Magnolia. Fans of the show will enjoy learning more of Chip’s back story and seeing more of their personal lives as the couple makes Waco THE place to live in Texas. VCPL has both print and eBook copies for check out. 

From the Publisher: 

“They told you you need to be thin and beautiful. They told you to wear longer skirts, avoid going out late at night and move in groups - never accept drinks from a stranger, and wear shoes you can run in more easily than heels. They told you to wear just enough make-up to look presentable but not enough to be a slut; to dress to flatter your apple, pear, hourglass figure, but not to be too tarty. They warned you that if you try to be strong, or take control, you'll be shrill, bossy, a ballbreaker. Of course it's fine for the boys, but you should know your place. They told you 'that's not for girls' - 'take it as a compliment' - 'don't rock the boat' - 'that'll go straight to your hips'. They told you 'beauty is on the inside', but you knew they didn't really mean it. Well I'm here to tell you something different.”

This book is a survival guide for young women in today’s society. Girl Up addresses a wide variety of social issues such as sexism, feminism, social media and body image. Laura Bates explores these topics in a way that educates these women about the science behind the female body and explores how public image twists how women feel about their own self. This book is transparent, easy to read and the perfect way to learn how to stand up for yourself in a crucial phase of your life. VCPL has this title available for checkout as a print book.