Hana Banana Reads

The Lost Girl by Anne Ursu Age Range: 8-12 Release Date: February 12, 2019 Walden Pond Press 9780062275097 “[M]ost of all, this is a story of the two sisters, and what they did when the monsters really came.”* Anne Ursu has certainly been busy lately. The important work she has been doing to make the book industry a better place for women is impressive and this work is marvelously reflected in her newest novel, making it a truly important tale for boys and girls alike to read. Don’t misread me. The Lost Girl is not a preachy message wrapped up in the guise of a story. It is a story, a fabulous story of the best kind. The sort with a purpose and a message so strong and profound that it is truly the tale’s heartbeat. The sort of story that should make its reader strive to be better. But let’s start at the beginning. Iris and Lark are identical twins. This is all anyone ever seems to know about them. They are the same because they look the same. They must have ES...

Girls Made of Snow and Glass by Melissa Bashardoust Age Range: 13 & up Release Date: September 5, 2017 Flatiron Books 9781250077738 “If they love you for anything, it will be for your beauty.” Mina carries these words with her, spoken by her father years ago. Since Mina’s heart is made of glass, she is told this renders her incapable of love. At sixteen, Mina leaves her southern home and travels to the north, where she sets out to win the heart of the newly widowed king and become someone worthy of love, believing she must use her beauty to do so. Sixteen years later, Mina is queen and her stepdaughter has grown up. Princess Lynet is constantly told how strongly she resembles her mother, but she would much rather take after her fierce and regal stepmother, the only maternal figure she has ever known. As Lynet grows, she comes closer to taking the crown, and Mina knows that one day they will be at odds. For the queen has no intention of letting that crown go. ...