The Sydney Taylor Shmooze

Summer Nights and Meteorite by Hannah Reynolds G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers, 2024 Category: Young Adult Reviewer: Melissa Lasher Buy at Bookshop.org Summer Nights and Meteorites is Reynolds’ third standalone YA romcom. Each revolves around a different will-they-won’t-they romance, and they’re all set at the sprawling Nantucket family home owned by the old-money, sharp-witted Sephardic Barbanel family. What a joy it was to be back in Hannah Reynolds’ Nantucket, with its vast blue seas, rambling gardens, and—mezuzahs. Or at least one modest mezuzah on the not-at-all-modest Golden Doors mansion. Our heroine is a less-moneyed and serially unlucky-in-love summer visitor, Jordan Edelman. Jordan’s vibe is very Magic Shell on the outside, melty ice cream on the inside. She fumes with an ocean’s worth of resentment for how much time her single dad spends with his summer research assistant, the mysterious Ethan Barbanel. She’s furious about spending her last summer before coll

Snail's Ark by Irene Latham, illustrated by Mehrdokht Amini G.P. Putnam's Sons (imprint of Penguin Random House), 2022 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Arlene Schenker Buy at Bookshop.org A beautifully lyrical take on Noah’s ark, though Noah is not heard from at all and the ark is only a minor player. Little snail Esther knows that a big storm—the biggest in the history of the world--is coming. She trails off with all the other creatures towards the water, praying and persevering through her fear. But when she remembers her snail friend, Solomon, she retraces her steps to warn him of the impending danger and usher him along. Esther’s loyalty and bravery, along with a miraculous gust of wind at the right moment, land them on the “giant something” that is the ark. The illustrations of the animals, who take center stage, are stunning with intensely saturated colors. The book has definite literary merit, and children and adults will want to return to this book again and again, bo