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Spotlight On: Olivetti by Allie Millington

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Allie Millington, photo courtesy the author

Something that has shaped much of my writing is asking the question, “Who have we never heard a story from before?” There were many reasons why I chose to share a typewriter’s untold side of the story, one of them being because I thought typewriters would naturally have many stories to tell (as they’re full of them).

Countless people across history and across the world have a personal connection or fondness toward these charming, clacking machines — and yet, most kids have never had the opportunity to use one. One hope I have for Olivetti is that it can be a bridge between generations, and create opportunities for readers both young and old to share in the nostalgia and power of passing down memories that typewriters bring just by being themselves.

― Allie Millington, Bookweb

Olivetti by Allie Millington

What booksellers are saying about Olivetti

  • All About Olivetti! The beautiful cover art belies the beautiful story. Olivetti tells the story of a family missing connections and how they find their way to new, deeper relationships with each other. plus a magical vintage typewriter! What more could you ask for?!
      ― Susan Williams, M Judson, Booksellers in Greenville, South Carolina | BUY

  • I love this sweet, unique book! Young Ernest is shy and dealing with his family’s secrets doesn’t help. When Ernest’s mom drops off the family’s beloved typewriter Olivetti at the pawn shop and then disappears, the whole family is thrown into an emotional whirlwind. Ernest and Olivetti team up to find out where mom is and why she left. This story will steal your heart – I never expected to have such strong feelings about a sentient typewriter!
      ― Andrea Richardson, Fountain Bookstore in Richmond, Virginia | BUY

  • A wholly original and utterly charming middle grade novel that will hit you right in the feels. It’s a got a little bit of a mystery, a family that’s lost its way, and a plucky typewriter who breaks the rules of his kind trying to help.
      ― Melissa Taylor, E. Shaver, bookseller in Savannah, Georgia | BUY

  • I picked this book up for two reasons: the stunning cover and the comp to Jasmine Warga’s A Rover’s Story. No surprise that it was so well done. With a complex familial theme that pulls at your heart strings and an anthropomorphized typewriter that you wanted so badly to befriend, this book had me hooked. It felt like the hug you get from The Vanderbeekers meets the wonder that you experience reading A Rover’s Story.
      ― Olivia Schaffer, The Bookshelf in Thomasville, Georgia | BUY

  • Devoured in one sitting. I don’t know what I expected, but this beautiful book was not it. The kind of hope and heartbreak and love that gets you in the corners of your heart and makes you want to laugh and cry all at once.
      ― Lauren Brown, The Story Shop, LLC in Monroe, Georgia | BUY

About Allie Millington

Allie Millington first wrote Olivetti on her own antique typewriter, who turned out to have an awful lot to say. She lives near Atlanta, Georgia, with her husband and their fluffy dog. You can find her on Instagram: @alliemillington or online at http://www.alliemillington.com.

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Olivetti by Allie Millington

I love this sweet, unique book! Young Ernest is shy and dealing with his family’s secrets doesn’t help. When Ernest’s mom drops off the family’s beloved typewriter Olivetti at the pawn shop and then disappears, the whole family is thrown into an emotional whirlwind. Ernest and Olivetti team up to find out where mom is and why she left. This story will steal your heart – I never expected to have such strong feelings about a sentient typewriter!

Olivetti by Allie Millington, (List Price: $17.99, Feiwel & Friends, 9781250326935, March 2024)

Reviewed by Andrea Richardson, Fountain Bookstore in Richmond, Virginia

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Darius the Great is Not Okay by Adib Khorram

This is one of the best YA novels I have read recently. Darius is an utterly relatable character who just feels like he never fits in: he’s too Persian for America, too American for Iran. When he travels to Iran for the first time, Darius could not feel more out of place, yet he meets a boy who finally makes him feel okay. This book is a powerful story of friendship and does a beautiful job of normalizing depression and discussing the experience of growing up with multiple cultural identities.

Darius the Great is Not Okay by Adib Khorram, (List Price: $8.99, Dial Books, 9780593857052, April 2024)

Reviewed by Tenley Soergel, Carmichael’s Bookstore in Louisville, Kentucky

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Ferris by Kate DiCamillo

Ferris Wilkey’s summer is not relaxing. Her sister wants to be an outlaw and her grandmother starts seeing a ghost. Before the summer ends, an act of kindness will bring light and joy to her entire household and found family.

Ferris by Kate DiCamillo, (List Price: $18.99, Candlewick Press, 9781536231052, March 2024)

Reviewed by Rae Ann Parker, Parnassus Books in Nashville, Tennessee

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Watch Over Me by Nina LaCour

A powerful ghost story about transformative healing. I could not put it down. Beautiful.

Watch Over Me by Nina LaCour, (List Price: $11.99, Rocky Pond Books, 9780593108994, January 2022)

Reviewed by Abbe Townsend, Quail Ridge Books in Raleigh, North Carolina

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Didn’t See That Coming by Jesse Q. Sutanto

A December Read This Next! Title

Second in Sutanto’s YA series, Didn’t See That Coming focuses on Kiki as she’s forced by her parents to transfer to a top school for her final year. Fortunately, her young friend Eleanor Roosevelt is there, but that seems to be the lone bright spot as she’s bullied by nearly everyone from the principal to her classmates. But Kiki is able to escape into gaming where, because of the massive amounts of abuse, she’s been playing as a male player. But she’s made a great friend in game. However, when she realizes that her friend actually goes to her new school, she must find out who he is. Didn’t See That Coming is both hilarious and heartbreaking while being a fantastic read.

Didn’t See That Coming by Jesse Q. Sutanto, (List Price: $12.99, Delacorte Press, 9780593434048, December 2023)

Reviewed by Jennifer Jones, Bookmiser in Marietta, Georgia

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Spotlight On: All We Need Is Love and a Really Soft Pillow! by Peter H. Reynolds

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Peter H. Reynolds, photo credit Dawn Haley Morton

I’m writing my own story, I make a movie in my head. That’s kind of how I start. I come up with the idea and then suddenly I just imagine that idea, you know, cast with characters and settings, and it becomes a little movie in my head. And I write it down, and I jot down the images that I have in my head, but I think the same thing happens… You know, when I read somebody else’s work, I immediately turn it into a movie, and I could see it in my head as I’m reading. I’m turning your words into characters.
― Peter H. Reynolds, Interview, Good Story Company

All We Need Is Love and a Really Soft Pillow! by Peter H. Reynolds, Henry Rocket Reynolds

What booksellers are saying about All We Need Is Love and a Really Soft Pillow!

  • Written in honor of the beditime story, Peter wrote this with his son. When Peter said “All you need is love,” Henry would add one more thing. A reminder of the things that are important and how much you are loved.
      ― Angie Tally, The Country Bookshop in Southern Pines, NC | Buy from The Country Bookshop

  • Peter H. Reynolds signature style shines in this endearing ode to love. Because even when it seems all is lost, love survives … and offers a soft landing.
      ― Stephanie Staton, CoffeeTree Books in Morehead, KY | Buy from Coffee Tree Books

  • What a tender story about the things we really need and the reminder that even if we lose “things” we will always have love. Beautiful illustrations, made me think of The Lorax!
      ― Morgan DePerno, Bookmarks in Winston-Salem, NC | Buy from Bookmarks

About Peter H. Reynolds,

Peter H. Reynolds is a New York Times bestselling author and illustrator of many books for children, including Happy Dreamer, The Word Collector, Say Something!, Be You!, and Our Table. He is also the illustrator of When Thing Aren’t Going Right, Go Left by Marc Colagiovanni. His books have been translated into over 25 languages around the globe and are celebrated worldwide. In 1996, he founded FableVision with his brother, Paul, as a social change agency to help create “stories that matter, stories that move.” He lives in Dedham, Massachusetts, with his family.

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Spotlight On: Last Girl Breathing by Court Stevens

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Court Stevens, photo credit the author

I read and write young adult fiction for the same reason people go to high school reunions — there’s something about figuring out how to be a person that begs us to return. Fiction is a natural place to explore those beautiful themes.

The first time we loved, lost, were heartbroken, broke hearts, made mistakes, had success, won trophies, came in last, found freedom, felt contained by adults, broke rules, were punished, got away with something, cared about people, cared about the world, etc. The first time. That’s the key. You don’t have to read young adult to know that formative experiences are vital understanding humanity on the whole and self-identity. We don’t ask people about the third or fourth time they fell in love. We ask them about the first time so we’ll understand their starting point. If every person is a road map with a marked journey; we want to put a pin in the place they began. Young adult fiction is that pin.
― Court Stevens, Interview, Musings, Parnassus Books

Last Girl Breathings by Court Stevens

What booksellers are saying about Last Girl Breathing

  • am so excited that Court Stevens is back with another small town thriller! Her exploration of family, grief, and truth, all with underlying simmering suspense, is the hallmark of a Stevens novel, and Last Girl Breathing has it in spades. If you loved The June Boys and We Were Kings, don’t miss Court’s newest!
      ― Sarah Arnold, Parnassus Books in Nashville, TN | Buy from Parnassus

  • Once again, Court Stevens has delivered an enthralling thriller. On its surface Last Girl Breathing is a murder mystery, but – as is often the case with Stevens’ novels – the story goes much deeper. This is a book about trauma and grief and family – about the wounds that shape us and the people who help us bear them. All of these themes are masterfully rooted in a sense of place. Stevens deftly paints her Kentucky setting, giving the town and its people a southern vibrancy and authenticity that never once slips into the realm of stereotype.
      ― Kate Snyder from Plaid Elephant in Danville, KY | Buy from Plaid Elephant Books

About Court Stevens

Court Stevens grew up among rivers, cornfields, churches, and gossip in the small-town South. She is a former adjunct professor, youth minister, and Olympic torchbearer. These days she writes coming-of-truth fiction and is the director of Warren County Public Library in Kentucky. She has a pet whale named Herman, a bandsaw named Rex, and several novels with her name on the spine: The June Boys, Faking Normal, The Lies About Truth, the e-novella The Blue-Haired Boy, Dress Codes for Small Towns, and Four Three Two One. Find Court online at CourtneyCStevens.com; Instagram: @quartland; Facebook: @CourtneyCStevens; Twitter: @quartland.

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Okra Stew by Natalie Daise

You can almost smell the salt marsh in this stunning homage to Gullah culture, father-son love, and Okra. With art reminiscent of Lois Ehlert or Faith Ringold this one is a must for all young southern foodies.

Okra Stew by Natalie Daise, (List Price: 19.99, Henry Holt and Co. (BYR), 9781250849663, October 2023)

Reviewed by Angie Tally, The Country Bookshop in Southern Pines, North Carolina

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When Sea Becomes Sky by Gillian McDunn

This is now one of my favorite books. I was devastated for myself and every character I had met along the way while reading this wonderfully crafted story. This book will rip your heart out and put it back together perfectly. I highly recommend When Sea Becomes Sky for readers young and old.

When Sea Becomes Sky by Gillian McDunn, (List Price: $16.99, Bloomsbury Children’s Books, 9781547610853, February 2023)

Reviewed by Rayna Nielsen, Blue Cypress Books in New Orleans, Louisiana

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Alma y cómo obtuvo su nombre por Juana Martinez-Neal

Alma y cómo obtuvo su nombre trata sobre una niña a la que no le gusta lo largo que es su nombre, y su padre que le cuenta la historia de quién viene. Una gran historia del legado que cada niño lleva consigo y la historia que solo ellos pueden contar sobre sus propias vidas. ¡Altamente recomendado!

Alma y cómo obtuvo su nombre por Juana Martinez-Neal, (List Price: $8.99, Candlewick, 9781536220438, septiembre 2023)

Reseña escrita por Jessica Nock, Main Street Books en Davidson, North Carolina

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Alma and How She Got Her Name by Juana Martinez-Neal

Alma and How She Got Her Name is about a little girl who doesn’t like how long her name is, and her father who tells her the story of who she comes from. A great story of the legacy that each child carries with them and the story that only they can tell about their own lives. Highly recommend!

Alma and How She Got Her Name by Juana Martinez-Neal, (List Price: $8.99, Candlewick, 9781536220438, September 2023)

Reviewed by Jessica Nock, Main Street Books in Davidson, North Carolina

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Jane, Unlimited by Kristin Cashore

It’s impossible to say enough about this book! This is definitely being added to my top reads of 2020. There’s magic, art heists, ghosts in the house, space pirates, talking dogs, and so, so much more! It’s part Clue, part Sliding Doors, part Knives Out (before Knives Out existed though), and pure genius on Cashore’s part! It has a Choose Your Own Adventure feel to it, with lots of quirk and heart and just overall fabulousness!.

Jane, Unlimited by Kristin Cashore, (List Price: 18.99, Little, Kathy Dawson Books, 9780803741492, September 2017)

Reviewed by Kate Towery, Fountain Bookstore in Richmond, Virginia

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There’s Always Room for One More by Robyn McGrath

This picture book is so sweet. It would make the perfect book for a child whose family is going through same changes (in this case, making room for a grandfather coming to live with them). I love the message that it is ok to feel a sense of loss for the parts of life that will be different, but that making space for those we love sometimes requires us to give up things we loved in the past and replace them with things we can learn to like even more. Both the story and the pictures are filled with heart!

There’s Always Room for One More by Robyn McGrath, (List Price: $18.99, Simon & Schuster/Paula Wiseman Books, 9781665925372, August 2023)

Reviewed by Kate Storhoff, Bookmarks in Winston-Salem, North Carolina

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Cape by Kevin Johnson

A June 2023 Read This Next! Title

A touching story about grief. Losing someone is never easy and often we never know what to do with those feelings. Cape shows us the beauty of remembering someone we’ve lost and how through remembrances we can find some peace.

Cape by Kevin Johnson, (List Price: 18.99, Roaring Brook Press, 9781250840509, June 2023)

Reviewed by Keeshia Jacklitch, Bookmarks in Winston-Salem, North Carolina

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