Battle of the Books

March Madness's final votes have been tabulated and it is time to announce the winning titles.  But first, thank you to everyone who took the time to vote.  You saw a robust collection of sixteen possible titles and chiseled them down to the two ultimate crowd favorites.  While supplies last, participating teens this summer will receive free copies of these two books as well as our wildcard selection.

And without further ado, the winners are.....

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Concealed by Christina Diaz Gonzalez.  (mystery; thriller). What if you had no name, no past, and no home? Ivette. Joanna. And now: Katrina Whatever her name is, it won't last long. Katrina doesn't know any of the details about her past, but she does know that she and her parents are part of the Witness Protection Program. Whenever her parents say they have to move on and start over, she takes on a new identity. A new name, a new hair color, a new story. Until their location leaks and her parents disappear. Forced to embark on a dangerous rescue mission, Katrina and her new friend Parker set out to save her parents--and find out the truth about her secret past and the people that want her family dead. But every new discovery reveals that Katrina's entire life has been built around secrets covered up with lies and that her parents were actually the ones keeping the biggest secret of all. Katrina must now decide if learning the whole truth is worth the price of losing everything she has ever believed about herself and her family.

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Frizzy by Claribel A. Ortega. (graphic novel; realism). Marlene loves three things: art, her cool tía Ruby and hanging out with her best friend, Camilla. But according to her mother, Paola, the only things she needs to focus on are school and growing up. That means straightening her hair every weekend so she can have "presentable," "good" hair. But Marlene hates being in the salon and doesn't understand why her curls are not considered pretty by those around her. With a few hiccups, a dash of embarrassment, and the much-needed help of Camila and Tía Ruby--she slowly starts a journey to learn to appreciate and proudly wear her curly hair.

Additionally, our wild card pick is.......

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Breathe and Count Back From Ten by Natalia Sylvester. Verónica has always dreamed of being a mermaid. When she's in the water, the pain caused by her hip dysplasia fades, and people can't see the scars from her numerous surgeries. On land, things are less clear. First, there's her cute new neighbor, Alex, who she's falling hard for but is afraid to get close to. And then - amazingly - a spot opens up at Mermaid Cove, a local Florida attraction where professional mermaids perform underwater. But she would have to lie to her overprotective Peruvian parents to audition. Even if she could convince them that she could handle the job's physical demands, being a mermaid is not exactly the ambitious future they have in mind for her. And God forbid if they knew what she was up to with Alex. Then Verónica discovers that her parents have sheltered her from the full truth about her medical condition. So maybe it's time for all the secrets to come out and for her to make her own choices, on her own terms. Because who's in charge of her body, and her life, anyway?

Registration is not yet open, but check back in on this site for more information. Teens in grades 6-12 can join a team at their preferred library branch. While supplies last, participants will receive a copy of the three books, discuss them as a team, and then, on July 19th, meet at the Headquarters Library to visit virtually with author Natalia Sylvester and face off in the ultimate trivia competition.

For any questions, please contact us at ysref@aclib.us.

Thank you again for voting.

And also, a big thank you to the Friends of the Library for their generous contributions that helped to fund this program.

I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys.  (historical fiction). In a country governed by isolation, fear, and a tyrannical dictator, seventeen-year-old Cristian Florescu is blackmailed by the secret police to become an informer, but he decides to use his position to try to outwit his handler, undermine the regime, give voice to fellow Romanians, and expose to the world what is happening in his country.

Mirror Girls by Kelly McWilliams. (historical; paranormal). As babies, twin sisters Charlie Yates and Magnolia Heathwood were separated after their parents, a mixed race couple, were lynched. Now, at the beginning of the Civil Rights Movement, Charlie lives in Harlem with her grandmother while white-passing Magnolia is in rural Georgia and knows nothing of her racial heritage. When she learns the truth, her reflection disappears from mirrors--the sign of a curse. Meanwhile, the girls' grandmother becomes ill and her last wish is to be buried back home in Georgia. Thus, Charlie and Magnolia finally meet as teenagers in a haunted town and find they must work together to break the curse.

One night, Lacey comes across the broken form of a highly advanced baku. After she repairs it, the cat-shaped baku she calls Jinx opens its eyes and somehow gets her into her dream school. But Jinx is different than any other baku she's ever seen...He seems real.

Run (Book One) by John Lewis.  (graphic novel; historical). For John Lewis, the Civil Rights Movement as he knew it ended with the signing of the Voting Rights Act in 1965, but his struggle in the following years echo many of the same questions of civil rights and equality that are being asked today. The movement secured the right to sit at a lunch counter, but what about the right to earn a dollar to pay for your meal? Ousted from the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee due to internal disorder, Lewis went on to work on Robert F. Kennedy's campaign, to be shocked by the events of 1968. Struggling with the larger question of how to rebuild the movement, Lewis had an idea: someone should run for the 5th Congressional district seat in Georgia. Starting with the tragic death of Martin Luther King Jr., Run tells the story of how John Lewis entered politics, working within the community, and organizing a campaign that has taken him to one of the most important seats in Congress.