Team DS Mackenzie 

This was a tight race!! In fact, it came down to a tie breaker vote. Ultimately, From The Desk of Zoe Washington took our winning spot. "Zoe" is an accessible read for most junior high students which appealed to us as it allows some important topics to be covered without heavy reading. The struggle that Zoe faces when faced with the reality that the justice system is not always fair to those that look like her, and the fact that she may have lost all of these years with her father due to a corrupt justice system, are heartbreaking. Yet, the book is written with a certain lightness. Zoe's drive and determination to make in the culinary world mixed with her somewhat innocent fight with her best friend, keep the book feeling "young" and approachable. With that being said, some of us may have shed some tears, especially towards the end as Zoe gets to know her father and eventually finds out whether he is innocent. 

Since it was such a close call though, we can't ignore the beauty of Clap When You Land. Another great read, that felt authentic, gritty at times, raw, and certainly pulled us in from the start. The only downfall is we felt it had a more narrow audience than "Zoe".