A Different Pond

Written by: Bao Phi and Thi Bui

First line: Dad wakes me quietly so Mom can keep sleeping.

Why you should read this book: Hours before sunrise, a small boy and his father set out in the darkness to catch enough fish for the family's dinner before the father goes off to work. In the quiet, pre-dawn hours, the father teaches the son about fishing and responsibility, and even lets slip a few words about his old life in Vietnam, which he rarely mentions. A romantic picture of the lives and emotions of the hardest-working American immigrants, who will do anything to give their children the upbringing they deserve without allowing them to forget where they came from or the importance of family.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You really hate fish. 

Girl Juice

Written by: Benji Nate

First line: Nana...Naaaana! Help! I'm booored!

Why you should read this book: This absolutely irreverent and somewhat madcap comic follows perpetually sexy and slutty Bunny, who wants nothing more than to remain "hot and simple" forever, being admired by everyone who sees her and having weird freaky sex with everyone she meets, without taking responsibility for anything, a position that fascinates and grates on her roommates. Some of these pages stand alone, and others follow little arcs that involve scenarios like Bunny going camping or her roommate being possessed by a demon. Lighthearted but not lightweight, this book is always funny and sometimes serious.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You get bent out of shape by sexual debauchery and go out of your way to shame sluts who refuse to feel shame, or you are afraid of clowns. 

Wash Day Diaries

Written by: Jamila Rowser and Robyn Smith

First line: Stand clear of the closing doors, please.

Why you should read this book: Four young Black women support each other as they navigate relationships, careers, family, mental health issues, and their hair. Kimana is avoiding an abusive ex while preparing for an upcoming gig; Cookie is repairing her relationship with her homophobic grandmother while crushing on a new girl, Nisha is navigating being pursued by two hot guys who are also professional connections, and Davene is hiding chronic depression. The ride-or-die friends are always there for each other, accepting of their foibles and journeys and rejoicing in each other's success.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You don't believe in accepting other people's foibles and journeys.

A Color Named Loved

Written by: M. Ellery and Clara Reschke

First line: Anna lived in Loville.

Why you should read this book: It's a children's book about polyamory, focusing on the abundance of love available to a child growing up in a stable and healthy polycule. Anna isn't quite sure about the new adults joining her family until she understands that she isn't losing anything, but gaining new "colors" in her life, as her parents' new partners bring their own personalities and strengths to raising her. It's a very upbeat and optimistic view of the situation, sure to delight polyamorous people and piss off people who oppose polyamory.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You're one of those fundamentalist nutjobs who blows a gasket upon learning that other people are happy leading lives that offend you because they go against your rigid beliefs, and you go absolutely nuclear when you see children be happily raised in those situations. 

American Oz

Written by: Michael Sean Comerford

First line: Rose Dog's eyes fixed on me as he danced around the trailer in agony.

Why you should read this book: Recently divorced and spoiling for adventure, the author (age 53) resolves to spend a year working as a carnie--building, running, and tearing down rides, sleeping in terrible conditions, getting paid under minimum wage, eating on a dollar a day--in order to write a book about this hidden American culture. Along the way, he meets a fascinating cast of characters, hitchhikes thousands of miles, learns skills and lingo and history that most people will never use, is victimized by criminals, cops, and carnies, and generally Jack Kerouacs his way around the country in a cotton candy fever dream. Anyone who's ever dreamed of running away to a magical and terrible world unlike the place they've always lived will find inspiration (possible to stay home) in this engaging and wonderful memoir.

Why you shouldn't read this book: The life described by the author is magical and also terrible, to the point that it almost feels like he might be punishing himself for some past transgressions related to the end of his marriage, but as the story progresses it become obvious that he is delighted to sleep in the rain on highway on ramps and get hit in the head with giant pieces of hardware and have his life threatened by angry men and be pushed around by cops and so on, and the only person suffering in this story is his elementary-age daughter, who doesn't really understand her dad's journey and only feels his abandonment.  

We Don't Eat Our Classmates

Written by: Ryan T. Higgins

First line: Penelope Rex was nervous.

Why you should read this book: School-aged dinosaur Penelope is having trouble making friends in school due to the fact that she thinks children are delicious and she can't stop herself from trying to eat her classmates. Although she is made to spit them out every time, she finds herself shunned by her peers, who do not appreciate her attempts to devour them. Only when the class pet chomps on her finger does Penelope learn a shred of empathy and begin to understand why her behavior is so abhorrent, and how to behave so people will like her.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You think some people deserve to be bitten. 

Locomotion

Written by: Jacqueline Woodson

First line: This whole book's a poem 'cause every time I try to/tell the whole story my mind goes Be quiet!

Why you should read this book: A children's book that discusses big issues, this novel in poems takes us into the mind of Lonnie "Locomotion" Motion, a young boy grieving the loss of his parents in a fire, and his separation from his little sister in foster care. Pursuing excellence in self-expression, he examines his own feelings, limns his classmates and the adults in his life, and builds relationships. The voice is remarkable, honest and vulnerable but observant and clever, and Lonnie's journey takes him outside of himself, and into the lives of the people around him, while elevating his own mind from tragedy to hope. 

Why you shouldn't read this book: You're a mean foster mom. 

To Be Honest

Written by: Michael Leviton

First line My parents prepared me far in advance for life's inevitable tragedies (death, rejection, failure, etc.).

Why you should read this book: Raised by parents who taught a strict code of radical honesty, which included everyone sharing every thought that moved through their minds at all times, with the assumption that nobody could possibly be offended by this behavior because they are just being honest and sharing their thoughts, the author grows up never fully understanding what everyone else's problem is, and also not caring. It's both hilarious and heartbreaking, and as he carries this philosophy into adolescence and adulthood, it impacts every facet of his life until he realized, one day, that lying might be a habit that could actually improve his life, at least the part that involves interacting with other humans. After astonishing Ira Glass with his life story and worldview, he decides to be brutally honest in sharing his recollections in print. 

Why you shouldn't read this book: Honestly, I loved everything about it, although I wondered if the author and his father ever considered that some of their policy was borne out of neurodiversity as well as honesty. 

Eerie Tales from the School of Screams

Written by: Graham Annable

First line: Okay, who would like to go first?

Why you should read this book: A delightfully creepy anthology-style graphic novel with a frame story: an elementary teacher who, for some reason, is cheerfully inviting her students to tell her the eeriest stories they can think of. The tales are a little funny but quite spooky, appropriate for elementary students who enjoy horror (scary without being gory) and span a variety of subgenres: ghosts, sea monsters, aliens, dismembered talking corpses, interdimensional monsters that feed on fear. Wonderfully, the last story ties back to the frame to create a perfect circle of eeriness.

Why you shouldn't read this book: For some readers this book might be too extreme; for other, not extreme enough.

Castle in the Air

Written by: Diana Wynn Jones

First line: Far to the south of the land of Ingary, in the Sultanates of Rashpuht, a young carpet merchant called Abdullah lived in the city of Zanzib.

Why you should read this book: It is technically a sequel to the delighting Howl's Moving Castle, although for the majority of the book, it feels more like an homage to 1,001 Arabian Nights, and the connection to the original story doesn't become clear until chapter fourteen. Our protagonist, Abdullah, makes a modest living as a carpet salesman, barely tolerating the aggressive meddling of his distant relations, and dreaming primarily of beautiful gardens beyond his reach, until the day he is bullied into purchasing a shabby but magical flying carpet. Suddenly true happiness in the form of a beautiful princess is within his grasp, but Abdullah's quest to marry Flower-in-the-Night is constantly foiled by mortal and supernatural opposition, and he has a long road ahead of him if he is to ever come to the happy conclusion of his quest.

Why you shouldn't read this book: Although I have seen the Miyazaki film about a hundred times, it's obviously different from the original novel, which I wish I had read before reading this one.