“When every piece falls into place, it’s like a dance, a delicate but powerful balancing act. The art of holding on and letting go at the same time.”

Such is the beautiful writing in the winner of Elephant Rock Books’ 2016 Sheehan YA Book Prize, The Art of Holding On and Letting Go, by Kristin Lenz. A fellow Michigander, Lenz has written a powerful story of family, finding yourself, and growing up. 

Need a great summer read? I’ve got a great anytime read for you, dear wanderers. Girls Who Travel, a novel by Nicole Trilivas, landed in my hands last week. Let me tell you from experience: don’t start reading this book at 11pm. Because pretty soon it’ll be the early hours of the morning, and birds will be chirping, and coffee never looked so good, but you’ll be imagining drinking it in London, not stumbling to in your kitchen. But the good news is that your reading wanderlust will be supremely satisfied.

Got the travel bug? Always planning your next big trek? I have had it bad, but as a teacher, funds were limited. Sigh...

I decided to feed my travel bug by sponsoring overseas student tours, which gave me an opportunity to see the world (for free) as I exposed my students to life beyond our northwoods community. Traveling with teens was a joy (well, mostly)—their enthusiasm great fun. 

Some books come into your life and stay with you. For whatever reason, they strike a chord and fit right in. And while this is rare, it does happen. One book that is forever lodged in my heart is Lassoing the Sun: A Year in America's National Parks, by Mark Woods. It's a personal look at natural spaces, at family and friends, at moving and doing, at being in nature. It's a thoughtful record of exploration and listening and thinking, of love, of essence of place.

Being a teen is hard. Being a teen with a series of life changes is even harder. One new YA book that explores this theme is Avenging the Owl, by Melissa Hart.

Please support 'This Is My Country,' a photobook by Ingetje Tadros on Indiegogo

Safari in Tanzania - it's a bucket list dream for most people. What makes it so? Maybe the incredible animal diversity, or the interesting locals. Or maybe it's the chance to get away from one's life, and experience something completely different. Whatever it is, we want to go!