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.
The Sunflower: On the Possibilities and Limits of Forgiveness by Simon You are a prisoner in a concentration camp. A dying Nazi soldier asks for your forgiveness. What would you do? Withe responses by Robert Coles, The Dalai Lama, … Continue reading →
My Life with the Lincolns by Gayle Brandeis Mina Edelman thinks that her family—her parents and the three girls—are the Lincolns reincarnated. Her dad, whose initials are ABE, has gotten involved in the Civil Rights Movement during the summer of … Continue reading →
Posted in Family Problems, Fiction, Hi-Low/Quick Read, Historical Fiction/Historical Element, Human Rights Issues, Young Adult Literature
|
Tagged 1960s, Abraham Lincoln, Chicago, Civil Rights Movement, Gayle Brandeis, Martin Luther King Jr., Mary Todd Lincoln
|
This is a YouTube video, so if you’re checking this at school, it’s censored (blank below).
High Interest Series Check for these books in our new library section: 372.41 Choices series: The Choices series is for teens who are emerging readers. They are not complete stories. They set up situations that require teens to make a … Continue reading →
Posted in Controversial Issue/Debate, Family Problems, Fiction, Hi-Low/Quick Read, Mature Readers, Read 180, Young Adult Literature
|
Tagged Bluford series, Charmed, Chill, Choices Series, Comeback, EL, English Learners, Orca Soundings Series, Pretty Ugly
|
Crossed by Ally Condie (second book in the Matched series) “I think of all the things he can do—write, carve, paint—and suddenly, watching him stand in the dark at the edge of the empty settlement, something powerful washes over me. … Continue reading →
The Body of Christopher Creed and Following Christopher Creed by Carol Plum-Ucci When Christopher Creed disappears from Steepleton, the rumors fly. He spent his life being bullied, and his disappearance seems the obvious outcome for a high-school misfit. With only … Continue reading →
What about mature teens who are asking for books that delve deeply into the difficult subjects they are grappling with? Do we sanitize reading too much for your age group? You are, after all, sprinting on the heels of adulthood. … Continue reading →
Posted in Adventure Stories, Controversial Issue/Debate, Family Problems, Fiction, Historical Fiction/Historical Element, Mature Readers, Movie Tie-In, Multicultural, Romance, Sci-Fi/Futuristic
|
Tagged Cormac McCarthy, drug dealers in literature, horses, Mexico, Texas
|
The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach All right—this really is a book for mature readers, but it’s such wonderful storytelling on so many levels that I want to include a review of it. Add to that the fact that … Continue reading →
Self Storage by Gayle Brandeis How difficult is it for the ordinary you or me to do the right thing? Well, if we are middle class and living in the US, usually, it’s not too tough. We are supported by … Continue reading →
Take Off by Todd Strasser Kai, having lived in Hawaii most of his life and now on the East coast in the city of Sun Haven, would like to surf Screamers. He’s arrived in Sun Haven with his conman father … Continue reading →
School Library Lady 