Kidlit – Page 4 – Trigger Warning Database

Ghost by Jason Reynolds

Ghost by Jason Reynolds

Running. That’s all that Ghost (real name Castle Cranshaw) has ever known. But never for a track team. Nope, his game has always been ball. But when Ghost impulsively challenges an elite sprinter to a race—and wins—the Olympic medalist track coach sees he has something: crazy natural talent. Thing is, Ghost has something else: a lot of anger, and a past that he is trying to outrun. Can Ghost harness his raw talent for speed and meld with the team, or will his past finally catch up to him?

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

Domestic violence mentioned, including an scene where an drunk man shoots at his wife and child (who remain unharmed)
Alcohol consumption & drug & alcohol abuse mentioned (secondary adult characters)
Bullying & physical assault (fistfights)

Coach by Jason Reynolds

Coach by Jason Reynolds

Before Coach was the man who gave caring yet firm-handed guidance to Ghost, Lu, Patina, and Sunny on the Defenders track team, he was little Otie Brody, who was obsessed with Mr. 9.99 (a.k.a. Carl Lewis) and Marty McFly from Back to the Future. Like Mr. 9.99—and his own dad—Otie is a sprinter. Sprint free or die is practically his motto. Then his dad, who is always away on business trips, comes home with a pair of Jordans. JORDANS. Fine as fine can be. Otie puts them on and feels like he can leap to the moon…maybe even leap like Mr. 9.99 when he won the Olympic… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

Minor blood depiction & injuries (bloodied nose, cuts)
Drug use & alcohol consumption mentioned (secondary characters)
Car accident mentioned
Bullying, including fistfights and intimidation tactics (threatening with clippers, throwing students into lockers)

The Leaving Room by Amber McBride

Accidentally in Love by Amber McBride

Gospel is the Keeper of the Leaving Room—a place all young people must phase through when they die. The young are never ready to leave; they need a moment to remember and a Keeper to help their wispy souls along. Gospel assumes that there are countless other Leaving Rooms because many children pass, but she suspects they are not like her Leaving Room which is small (like a walk in closet)with shelves full of tiny jars that hold the memories of those who have gone. When a random door opens and a Keeper named Melody arrives, their souls become entangled. Gospel seriousness… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

Death of a child (theme)
Car accident
Animal death mentioned (bird)

Hurricane Heist by James Ponti

When a category three hurricane hits Miami Beach, it uncovers a body buried at the renowned Moroccan Hotel. The body is identified as the man who served as the hotel’s bell captain sixty years ago…and the presumed culprit of the million-dollar jewel heist that took place just before his disappearance. Since the bell captain clearly didn’t take off with the goods as had been long believed, the Sherlock Society sets their sights on uncovering the real culprit of the theft. But when the thief may also be implicated in the bell captain’s murder, even sixty years later, there are people who want the truth to stay buried.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

Dead body uncovered during a hurricane (theme)

Wish by Barbara O’Connor

Eleven-year-old Charlie Reese has been making the same secret wish every day since fourth grade. She even has a list of all the ways there are to make the wish, such as cutting off the pointed end of a slice of pie and wishing on it as she takes the last bite. But when she is sent to the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina to live with family she barely knows, it seems unlikely that her wish will ever come true. That is until she meets Wishbone, a skinny stray dog who captures her heart, and Howard, a neighbor boy who proves surprising in lots of ways. Suddenly…. Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

Parent in jail (protagonist)
Bullying & minor fistfights (on-page)

Dream by Barbara O’Connor

Idalee Lovett is content with her life in small-town Colby, North Carolina, living in her family’s huge house with rooms for rent. But she has big dreams, just like her mama. While Mama is on tour for the summer with her cover band, Lovey Lovett and the Junkyard Dogs, Idalee decides to hone her craft as a songwriter—since her truest wish is to hear her country songs on the radio one day. When the local radio station announces a songwriting contest with the winning song being recorded by an up-and-coming singer, Idalee is determined to win. It would definitely be possible if only she could buy the shiny blue guitar in… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

Alcohol consumption mentioned
Amputation mentioned, including a secondary character who lost toes in an axe incident and a cousin who lost a finger in a fireworks incident
Parent in jail for assault (secondary character)
Fistfight mentioned

The Miracle on Ebenezer Street by Catherine Doyle

When George stumbles across Marley’s Curiosity Shop at the Christmas fair he finds a mysterious snow globe. The scene it contains is just the first in a series of impossibilities . . . George and his Scrooge of a dad are soon swept on a hilarious adventure to Christmases past, present and future. With help from an enthusiastic elf, a rather grumpy purple reindeer and a very mischievous Nan, can George find a way to bring the joy of Christmas home once again?

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

Death of a parent in a car accident

Vendetta by Catherine Doyle

When five brothers move into the abandoned mansion next door, Sophie Gracewell’s life changes forever. Irresistibly drawn to bad boy Nic Falcone, Sophie finds herself falling into an underworld governed by powerful families. When Sophie’s own family skeletons come to life, she must choose between two warring dynasties – the one she was born into, and the one she is falling in love with. When she does, blood will spill and hearts will break…

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

Attempted sexual assault
Drugging

The Dagger and the Flame by Catherine Doyle

In Fantome, a kingdom of cobbled streets, flickering lamplight, beautiful buildings, and secret catacombs, Shade-magic is a scarce and deadly commodity controlled by two enemy the Cloaks and the Daggers – the thieves and the assassins. On the night of her mother’s murder, 17-year-old Seraphine runs for her life. Seeking sanctuary with the Cloaks, Sera’s heart is set on revenge. But are her secret abilities a match for the dark-haired boy whose quicksilver eyes follow her around the city? Nothing can prepare Sera for the moment she finally comes face-to-face… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

Death of a mother recounted
Poisoning mentioned

Twin Crowns by Catherine Doyle and Katherine Webber

Wren Greenrock has always known that one day she would steal her sister’s place in the palace. Trained from birth to return to the place of her parents’ murder and usurp the only survivor, she will do anything to rise to power and protect the community of witches she loves. Or she would, if only a certain palace guard wasn’t quite so distractingly attractive, and if her reckless magic didn’t have a habit of causing trouble… Princess Rose Valhart knows that with power comes responsibility. Marriage into a brutal kingdom awaits, and she will not let a small matter like waking up in the middle of the desert in the company of an extremely… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

Persecution for witchcraft (theme)
Child abuse recounted (on-page)
Alcohol consumption (on-page)
Attempted murder by poisoning (on-page)
Minor blood & injury depiction
Murder of a father by poisoning mentioned
Murder of a mother & great-aunt from their throats being slit (recounted & on-page)
Minor battle scenes and fantasy violence, including sword, bow and arrow & knife violence (recounted & on-page) as well as discussions of past war and genocide
Imprisonment (on-page)
Torture mentioned (off-page)
Kidnapping (on-page)
Loss of autonomy (magical-induced memory loss and sleep)
Animal death (snow leopard, elk, birds)
Bullying, including being magically suffocated and thrown off a cliff into the ocean to drown (on-page)