Welcome to the second episode of The Book Sighting: Hidden Reads! This week, Watson Mountain’s very own Mahdi discusses Alan Gratz' Refugee. Mrs. Och, one of Watson's fabulous English teachers, serves as guest interviewer.

From Goodreads:

JOSEF is a Jewish boy living in 1930s Nazi Germany. With the threat of concentration camps looming, he and his family board a ship bound for the other side of the world...

ISABEL is a Cuban girl in 1994. With riots and unrest plaguing her country, she and her family set out on a raft, hoping to find safety in America...

MAHMOUD is a Syrian boy in 2015. With his homeland torn apart by violence and destruction, he and his family begin a long trek toward Europe...

All three kids go on harrowing journeys in search of refuge. All will face unimaginable dangers -- from drownings to bombings to betrayals. But there is always the hope of tomorrow. And although Josef, Isabel, and Mahmoud are separated by continents and decades, shocking connections will tie their stories together in the end.

As powerful and poignant as it is action-packed and page-turning, this highly acclaimed novel has been on the New York Times bestseller list for more than four years and continues to change readers' lives with its meaningful takes on survival, courage, and the quest for home.

Welcome to the inaugural episode of The Book Sighting: Hidden Reads! This week, Watson Mountain’s very own Nishi discusses Remy Lai’s Read at Your Own Risk. Mr. Howells, Watson's Instructional Technology Facilitator, serves as guest interviewer.

From Goodreads:

Read at Your Own Risk is the illustrated sketch diary of a girl who is being haunted after a game goes terribly wrong and an evil spirit starts conversing with her on the page—perfect for fans of R.L. Stine and Steven Seagle's Camp Midnight.

Hannah and her friends were just having a bit of fun when they decided to play a game to communicate with spirits of the dead. Little did they know something would answer their call and crawl its way into the pages of Hannah’s journal. What started out as a game has turned into something much more evil. With dire, horrifying consequences.

Is there any way to escape the curse?