The Nigerian terrorist group Boko Haram kidnapped girls from the country’s villages in the early to mid-2010s and kept them captive as slaves or wives in the forest. Based on interviews with some of the girls who were taken, this story follows one such girl in a fictionalized account of real-life events.

Top 10 Biographies for Youth: 2018

Artists and architects mingle with activists, soldiers, and even a herpetologist in this selection of outstanding biographies, reviewed in Booklist between February 15, 2017, and May 15, 2018.

Top 10 Biographies: 2018

Portraits of a key Harlem Renaissance thinker, the magazine editor who took rock ’n’ roll seriously, a food visionary, the brothers who brought us cornflakes, and two Russian leaders are among the standout biographies reviewed in Booklist since the June 2017 issue.

Carte Blanche: How Does Your Garden Grow?

I’m a Pisces. That means I should love gardening. Wrong! Uncle Michael’s idea of a good time is not falling to his knees to grub around in the dirt, uncovering worms and other vermin that creep, crawl, and slither. And don’t get me started on compost.

Real-Life Reference: Of Marx and Mockingjays

For most of the weekend I am eager—maybe too eager—to help my children with their research. The exception is my Sunday night chat reference session; then it becomes “Don’t interrupt me unless somebody is bleeding.”

Rethinking Shakespeare

When I was in high school, I picked a fight with my English teacher about Shakespeare. I—probably obnoxiously—kept insisting that Shakespeare was just no good at writing women.

Now Hear This: Kirby Heyborne

Acclaimed for his youthful voice and the skill with which he reflects emotions and channels authentic characters, Kirby Heyborne makes magic in the audiobooks he narrates.