Author Archives: Victoria Waddle

About Victoria Waddle

Victoria Waddle is a Pushcart Prize-nominated writer and has been included in Best Short Stories from The Saturday Evening Post Great American Fiction Contest. Her books include a collection of feminist short fiction, Acts of Contrition, and a chapbook on grief, The Mortality of Dogs and Humans. Her YA novel about a polygamist cult, Keep Sweet, launches in June 2025. Formerly the managing editor of the journal Inlandia: A Literary Journey and a teacher librarian, she contributes to the Southern California News Group column Literary Journeys. She discusses both writing and library book censorship on her Substack, “Be a Cactus.” Join her there for thoughts on defiant readers and writers as well as for weekly library censorship news.

New Civil Rights Series–In Print and as eBooks

Posted on September 30, 2014 by Victoria Waddle

If you are doing an assignment on civil rights in the 20th or 21st centuries, come check out a great book. This series deals with South Africa and Apartheid laws; Iran and women’s rights; American Indians and Alcatraz Island; the … Continue reading →

Posted in Historical Fiction/Historical Element, Human Rights Issues, Non-fiction | Tagged 1909, 1930, 1952, 1957, 1960s, 1969, 1970, 1989, 2005, African Americans, Alcatraz Island, American Indians, Apartheid Laws, Cesar Chavez, China, civil rights, Civil Rights Movement, Defiance Campaign, Delano Grape Strike, gay power, gay pride, Gay Rights Movement, integration, International Ladies Garment Workers Strike, Iran, Latinos, LGBTQ, Little Rock Nine, lockouts, lunch counter sit-ins, Mexican Americans, migrant farm workers, Mohandas Gandhi, New York City, Salt March, school integration, South Africa, Stonewall Riots, strikes, student activists, Tiananmen Square Protest, women's rights | Leave a comment

More sequels are here!

Posted on September 29, 2014 by Victoria Waddle

We realized that some of our series are running very popular now and that we needed more copies of the sequels! Here are some that are just in–so you shouldn’t have to wait anymore. Come on over and check … Continue reading →

Posted in Fable/Fairy Tale/Fantasy, Family Problems, Fiction, Hi-Low/Quick Read, Horror/Mystery/Suspense, Over 375 pages, Romance, Sci-Fi/Futuristic, Supernatural, Young Adult Literature | Tagged book reviews, Chemical Garden Trilogy, Dork Diaries series, fantasy, Hush Hush series, Legend trilogy, Paper Gods series, science fiction, Slayer Chronicles, vampires, YA fiction, YA literature | Leave a comment

“My Side”

Posted on September 26, 2014 by Victoria Waddle

My Side by Norah McClintock Addie is trying to pull her life back together after being lured into the woods and then having a sack thrown over her head by a knife-wielding, masked person. When she is locked in … Continue reading →

Posted in Family Problems, Fiction, Hi-Low/Quick Read, Horror/Mystery/Suspense, Read 180, Young Adult Literature | Tagged book reviews, bullying, cyberbulling, hi-low reading, horror, Norah McClintock, Orca Sounding series, Read 180, reluctant readers, YA fiction, YA literature | Leave a comment

Throwback Thursday: “Blood and Chocolate”

Posted on September 25, 2014 by Victoria Waddle

Blood and Chocolate by Annette Curtis Klause Vivian Gandillon is a werewolf. That is, she’s a sixteen-year-old human girl. And she’s a wolf. And not just any wolf, but the daughter of the pack’s alpha pair. She, too, is destined … Continue reading →

Posted in Family Problems, Fiction, Horror/Mystery/Suspense, Supernatural, Young Adult Literature | Tagged alpha females, Annette Curtis Klause, Blood and Chocolate, book reviews, high school students, male-female relationships, romance, supernatural, werewolves, YA fiction, YA literature | Leave a comment

“Please Ignore Vera Dietz”

Posted on September 23, 2014 by Victoria Waddle

Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A. S. King I’m sorry I ignored Vera Dietz for so long, but I finally had the chance to read her story. And loved it. Smart, witty, tragic, redeeming. By turns, of course. Charlie Kahn … Continue reading →

Posted in Family Problems, Fiction, Horror/Mystery/Suspense | Tagged book reviews, bullying, death, death and dying, friendship, grief, romance, YA fiction, YA literature | Leave a comment

Truth, lies, and fiction: Mac Barnett in TED Talk

Posted on September 20, 2014 by Victoria Waddle

He’s right–fiction is the intersection between truth and lies. Readers, writers and artists have always known this, but Mac Barnett has a great way of making us fall in love with that knowledge. Enjoy!

Posted in Adventure Stories, Fable/Fairy Tale/Fantasy, Fiction, Graphic Novel | Tagged children's books, fiction, imagination, lies, Mac Barnett, TED Talk, time travel, truth, whales | Leave a comment

“More Than This”

Posted on July 10, 2014 by Victoria Waddle

More Than This by Patrick Ness In a chilling prologue, a boy is drowning at sea. He tries over and over to save himself, but the water is too cold, the waves too rough, the craggy rocks too close. He … Continue reading →

Posted in Adventure Stories, Family Problems, Fiction, Horror/Mystery/Suspense, Over 375 pages, Romance, Sci-Fi/Futuristic, Young Adult Literature | Tagged adventure stories, book reviews, death, England, GLBT, GLBTQ, LGBTQ, life after death, Matrix readalike, More Than This, Patrick Ness, sci-fi, science fiction, YA fiction, YA literature | Leave a comment

“Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass”

Posted on July 7, 2014 by Victoria Waddle

Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass by Meg Medina You’d think that this was just a titillating title for a silly girl-drama book. But you’d be wrong. Yaqui Delgado wants to Kick Your Ass is a really good … Continue reading →

Posted in Family Problems, Fiction, Multicultural, Read 180, Romance, Young Adult Literature | Tagged book reviews, bullies, bullying, Cuban Americans, family problems, friendship, gangs, high school girls, Latinas, Meg Medina, Mexican Americans, YA fiction, YA literature, Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass | 3 Comments

“Ask the Passengers”

Posted on July 2, 2014 by Victoria Waddle

Ask the Passengers by A. S. King Astrid Jones isn’t sure that her love is acceptable to anyone. She has a lot of it to give, but to whom? While she’s deciding—and deciding takes many months—she spends her odd free … Continue reading →

Posted in Family Problems, Fiction, Romance, Young Adult Literature | Tagged A. S. King, airplane passengers, book reviews, drug abuse, family problems, GLBT, GLBTQ, gossip, lesbians, reputations, romance, small towns, small towns in fiction, YA fiction, YA literature | Leave a comment

Summer Classic Reread: “Walden”

Posted on July 1, 2014 by Victoria Waddle

Summer Classic Reread: Walden by Henry David Thoreau Why I wanted to reread it: Walden is one of the great American classics because it speaks about nature, individualism, and creating a life philosophy. I think a lot about nature (actually, … Continue reading →

Posted in Environmental Issues, Non-fiction | Tagged Adult books for teens, environmental issues, Henry David Thoreau, nature, Transcendentalism, Walden, Walden Pond | Leave a comment