Two kids with the same Korean name do a Freaky Friday/The Prince and the Pauper with their summer internship at the rich kid's dad's company. Well, both kids' dads work there, but one is CEO, and one is a barely-tolerated finance guy there. It goes well for a while, with the CEO's son Elijah getting to make genuine connections and Jessica thriving as an executive trainee. Inevitably their ruse is de-rused, and there are consequences. And luv. 

Doris, a smart Georgia teen's life trajectory first changes when her mother takes ill, and she has to drop out of school to take care of her family. Then it changes again when, at 17, she finds herself in the family way. Despite her religious piety and general obedience, Doris does not wish to remain pregnant. She reaches out to her beloved former English teacher, Mrs. Lucas, who, it turns out, has secrets of her own. Mrs. Lucas endeavors to help Doris get an abortion by taking her to Atlanta and the home of an old friend who gives them a place to stay and offers to pay for the abortion. 

We meet historical figures like Coretta and Martin Luther King Jr., Bayard Rustin, and SNCC organizers. It's a compelling story, and reads a little like a play. 

It's a fun book, but there's too much middle. The science is of particular interest, and the academic bullshit, too. 

This is an enjoyable book about a young, isolated witch building community. I felt like the love story was superfluous. 

In this baking show romance, Tori, a divorced mother of two rising college first years, is preparing for empty nesting. One of the show's hosts, Kendra, has been told that she's too mean (#TheChopper), so she's trying to be nicer. She immediately finds Tori easy to be nice to, but of course fraternization is against the rules. It's fun seeing how the story works out, who the villain is, etc. Really enjoyable!

Good stuff, but a lot of it was too small or low contrast for me to read. Shout out to Joey Alison Sayers for some of my favorite entries. Read for the living while gay content. 

Avi starts her freshman year at Briarcliff Prep, a historically Black boarding school, where her sister, Belle, is a senior. Their twin brothers are at the brother school, Preston Academy. The story is told from Avi's pov, but most of the drama is concentrated on Belle, whose boyfriend seems a little sus. Avi has her own boy drama--with the twins' roommate, Quincy. 

Oops--forgot to review this closer to when I read it, so my memory is a little hazy. It's fun in that it takes place in Salem. The protagonist works in the fakest of fake witch stores and dgaf about witchcraft until a weird tarot package shows up, followed by a couple of weird girls, one of whom is hottt. 

I liked the characters and respected their challenges. 

I have a tough time with people making bad decisions. 

I do read the occasional book written for adults, and sometimes I get through them and even like them! Ellie and Homa meet at children after Ellie's father dies and her and her mother's circumstances are reduced. Ellie's mom is a snob, but Ellie is all-in on hopscotch and even skipping school for an afternoon in the marketplace with Homa. Despite Homa being with Ellie at the top of their class, Ellie's mother is more concerned with appearances. Homa is not just poor, she's the daughter of a communist. In mid-20th century Iran, that wasn't the safest choice (not that there was a safe choice that didn't involve totalitarian bigotry). We follow the two girls as they are reunited and separated again and as they become women, experiencing love and loss.

One of them is more obviously a lion woman, but the title of this book is lion women. There are different ways of fighting, surviving, and helping others to thrive. 

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