the book trail’s guest host this month, kt larson, is a children’s librarian and young adult author living, writing, reading, and strawberry-soup making in davis, california.
here’s what she has to say about her pick for december.

Ride this month’s book trail from Lemon Tree, CA to Oaxaca, Mexico with Naomi Soledad Leon Outlaw in Becoming Naomi Leon, by Pam Munoz Ryan. Naomi and her brother Owen live with their Gram in Avocado Acres trailer park and face the kind of trials you’d have if you were 11 and had to wear polyester clothes that your grandma sewed for you and had four strange sounding names instead of the normal two. These trials pale, though, when Naomi’s mother (absent for the last 7 years) shows up, demanding custody of just Naomi–not her brother. What can Naomi and Gram do to keep their little family together? (I’ll give you a hint–it involves radishes, a far-away father, Christmas, and little animals carved out of Ivory soap.)

This book is a quick-moving, little read–just 240 pages. But it packs a punch, I promise. I hope you’ll join me!

A few links, if I haven’t convinced you yet:
an amazon review
a slideshow of radishes
pam munoz ryan’s (the author’s) website