Kaylani Juanita

Joyful young narrators celebrate feeling at home in one's own skin.

Ace gets her mountain bike ready for the big bike race, but during the race Ace's bike chain comes off the sprocket, and a tire goes flat--luckily she has her tools with her to fix the problem so she can finish the race.

"Aidan, a transgender boy, experiences complicated emotions as he and his parents prepare for the arrival of a new baby"-- Provided by publisher.

Ace builds her own skateboard, but it takes a lot of practice (and some falls) to learn to skate well--and then she builds a ramp and takes it to the park to skate with her new skateboarding friends.

"A young artist has drawn birds and bird houses in corresponding colors. Now it's time to match them up. The blue bird goes in the blue house, the orange bird in the orange house, and so on. But wait! The birds don't agree with the narrator's choices and, much to her distress, are rebelling by swapping houses. Can the narrator make the birds see sense? Or is it possible that you just can't tell a bird by its feathers?"-- Provided by publisher.

This exploration of the natural world and family bonds through the eyes of a young mixed-race narrator is a living, breathing, dazzlingly multi-faceted, exuberant masterpiece, firmly grounded in her sense of self-worth and belonging. If Walt Whitman were reborn as a vibrant young woman of color, this is the book he might write. America, we hear you singing! Samara Cole Doyon sings a carol for the plenitude that surrounds us and the self each of us...