Special Collections
California Department of Education Recommended Literature List 2023
Description: The California Department of Education (CDE) coordinates the development of Recommended Literature List with the assistance of teachers, teacher librarians employed by schools and public libraries, administrators, curriculum planners, and parents.#CDE
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Maizy Chen's Last Chance
by Lisa YeeNEWBERY HONOR AWARD WINNER • NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST • ASIAN/PACIFIC AMERICAN AWARD FOR YOUTH LITERATURETwelve year-old Maizy discovers her family&’s Chinese restaurant is full of secrets in this irresistible novel that celebrates food, fortune, and family.NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY School Library Journal • Booklist • The Horn Book • New York Public LibraryWelcome to the Golden Palace!Maizy has never been to Last Chance, Minnesota . . . until now. Her mom&’s plan is just to stay for a couple weeks, until her grandfather gets better. But plans change, and as Maizy spends more time in Last Chance and at the Golden Palace—the restaurant that&’s been in her family for generations—she makes some discoveries.For instance:You can tell a LOT about someone by the way they order food. People can surprise you. Sometimes in good ways, sometimes in disappointing ways.And the Golden Palace has secrets...But the more Maizy discovers, the more questions she has. Like, why are her mom and her grandmother always fighting? Who are the people in the photographs on the office wall? And when she discovers that a beloved family treasure has gone missing—and someone has left a racist note—Maizy decides it&’s time to find the answers.
The Temperature of Me and You
by Brian ZepkaSixteen-year-old Dylan Highmark thought his winter was going to be full of boring shifts at the Dairy Queen, until he finds himself in love with a boy who's literally too hot to handle. Dylan has always wanted a boyfriend, but the suburbs surrounding Philadelphia do not have a lot in the way of options. Then, in walks Jordan, a completely normal (and undeniably cute) boy who also happens to run at a cool 110 degrees Fahrenheit. When the boys start spending time together, Dylan begins feeling all kinds of ways, and when he spikes a fever for two weeks and is suddenly coughing flames, he thinks he might be suffering from something more than just a crush. Jordan forces Dylan to keep his symptoms a secret. But as the pressure mounts and Dylan becomes distant with his closest friends and family, he pushes Jordan for answers. Jordan's revelations of why he's like this, where he came from, and who's after him leaves Dylan realizing how much first love is truly out of this world. And if Earth supports life that breathes oxygen, then love can only keep Jordan and Dylan together for so long.
THE TEMPERATURE OF ME AND YOU is the story of first love, and the lengths we'll go to figure out our hearts. What starts as an electric, chance encounter at a Dairy Queen quickly evolves into a heated romance, a journey of trust and identity, and a ticking clock for survival.
Star Child
by Ibi ZoboiFrom the New York Times bestselling author and National Book Award finalist, a biography in verse and prose of science fiction visionary Octavia Butler, author of Parable of the Sower and Kindred.Acclaimed novelist Ibi Zoboi illuminates the young life of the visionary storyteller Octavia E. Butler in poems and prose. Born into the Space Race, the Red Scare, and the dawning Civil Rights Movement, Butler experienced an American childhood that shaped her into the groundbreaking science-fiction storyteller whose novels continue to challenge and delight readers fifteen years after her death.