My Hometown, Fairy trees, and a touch of Charisma. It's Monday, What Are You Reading? July 6, 2015

It's Monday! What are you Reading is a meme began by Sheila at Book Journeys as a way to share what you read and/or reviewed the previous week and what is in store for the upcoming week. It's also a great chance to see what others are reading. I first learned about it from Jen at Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee and Ricki of Unleashing Readers and have become a regular linked up blog. Thanks #PLN



My Hometown by Russell Griesmer

A nearly wordless tale of a boy who finds a magical newspaper that transports him through the 150 years of his town's history. The story is told through changing images and colors beginning in antique sepia tones and slowly evolving into bright colorful fall colors. I have a sneaking suspicion that the statue of the apparent town's founder may be behind the time travel newspaper. Wordless picture books are excellent tools in the classroom as they prompt rich discussion among students offering their own interpretations.

 

See my review of Piper Green and the Fairy Tree by Ellen Potter here
I really like this new early chapter book series. Imagine riding a school boat instead of a school bus. How cool!

 

My YA read this week in preparation of our 2016 Teen Bookfest by the Bay 
I had to postpone reading Charisma but have picked it up again. I really hope Jeanne Ryan is included in our author line up.  Charisma is intriguing and thought provoking.

I am reading many more books here and there as I catalog books for my library but these are the highlights this week.

Ready for a Reading Road Trip, It's Monday, What are You Reading, July 21, 2014

It's Monday! What are you Reading is a meme began by Sheila at Book Journeys as a way to share what you read and/or reviewed the previous week and what is in store for the upcoming week. It's also a great chance to see what others are reading. I first learned about it from Jen at Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee and Ricki of Unleashing Readers and have become a regular linked up blog. Thanks #PLN

There's a Mouse Hiding in This Book! by Benjamin Bird

Source: Net Galley

Referred to as a meta-fictional picture book, this interactive story features our old cartoon buddies Tom the cat and Jerry the mouse. Jerry is hiding in the book and making quite a mess for poor old Tom. Tom asks the reader for help moving through the pages of the book sometimes quickly to avoid a dog attack and other times slowly to prevent setting off mouse traps.

I have been a fan of Tom and Jerry cartoons for many years so I liked it. I would have liked to have seen more interactions with the reader maybe Jerry was nibbling on some cheese and we have to smell it or Tom gets tangled up and we have to wiggle out. otherwise, it's cute.

Dear Wandering Wildebeest: And Other Poems from the Water Hole
by Irene Latham
Source: Net Galley

Wildebeest, impalas, elephants, giraffes, vultures and other African animals gather around a watering hole in this book of poetry infused with general information about the animals who co-exist, dependent on each other and the watering hole.

Favorite book of the week:

I became a fan of Rainbow Rowell after reading Eleanor and Park and Fangirl was just as wonderful. I can't wait to get my hands on Landline. Rowell has such a fresh and unique writing style and I appreciate the subtle humor sprinkled throughout her books.

This week I am taking a road trip to the Scholastic Reading Summit in Houston with six fellow librarians + one classroom teacher. Several months ago I registered our group and boy am I glad I did because it sold out quickly. I guess everyone heard that the amazing Donalyn Miller was going to be the keynote speaker. The sessions sound terrific and I am hoping to bump into Twitter friends while we are there.


 My current reads:
 I have already read The Book Whisperer and this week, I am starting Reading in the Wild.

I also picked up two books today that I have been really wanting to read and 

can't wait to sink my reading teeth into them.

 

Now tell me, what are you reading?

Julia's House for Lost Creatures and Bug on a Bilke

My lunch break Net Galley reads today were Julia's House for Lost Creatures and Bug on a Bike. I appreciate all the publishers who offer these titles up to librarians and reading advocates who do their best to seek out the very best books for their book collections.

Julia’s House for Lost Creatures by Ben Hatke
First Second Books
My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Ben Hatke has his pulse on what children like to read. Julia's House for Lost Creatures is a sweet story of a girl who lives in a house that rests upon the back of a giant turtle (although you don't realize this until the end of the book). Julia moves to the beach and finds her new home too quiet so she makes a sign welcoming lost creatures to move in and boy do they! First comes a kitten and then a troll soon followed by a variety of interesting creatures who have lost their homes. With so many guests, chaos ensues so Julia makes a new sign with a list of chores for everyone. Once peace is restored the faucets begin to leak and drip so one more sign is needed- a help wanted sign for a repair-person. I love the illustration of the steam punk looking repair-creature.

Julia's House for Lost Creatures is a winner and I will be buying a copy.

Bug on a Bike by Chris Monroe
Lerner Publishing Group
My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Bug on a Bike is a rhyming story of a bug who leads an eclectic assortment of friends up, down, around, and over until they reach a big party. I read Bug on a Bike on Net Galley and some of the word bubbles were not visible to the reader so it might have been a bug birthday party. I admire writers and illustrators but this book did not work for me. The rhymes did not flow easily and the illustrations were not vivid enough for my weak eyes. I did like all the party illustrations-they were lively and fun looking.

View all my reviews

...And they rode off into the sunset to begin their own great adventures #IMWAYR August 26, 2013

It's Monday! What are you Reading? is a meme began by Sheila at Book Journeys as a way to share what you read and/or reviewed the previous week and what is in store for the upcoming week. It's also a great chance to see what others are reading. I first learned about it at Teach Mentor Texts. 

What I am reading electronically:

I woke up sick in the middle of the night and decided to read until I fell asleep again. I chose The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater via my Net Galley account.

The Dream Thieves picks up a month after The Raven Boys left off and is filled with mystical forces and paranormal happenings. I sort of loved the part when Ronan throws Noah out a window (not really a spoiler, just added characterization).
I enjoy the stories Stiefvater weaves and her use of complex and flawed characters. Her works are always fresh and unique.



*Librarians and educators have free access to Net Galley.
NetGalley is a service to promote and publicize forthcoming titles to readers of influence. If you are a reviewer, blogger, journalist, librarian, bookseller, educator, or in the media, you can use NetGalley for FREE to request and read titles before they are published. (as stated on Net Galley)

What I am reading for ideas:

Scholastic's Book Fairs Ideas Guide Fall 2013 and School Resource Catalog

During our Meet the Teacher event at my school on Friday, a very special package arrived for me. It was the Scholastic Book Fair Planning Kit jammed pack with flyers, posters, and these goodies. I quickly whipped up a couple of posters to hang so families would know we have a book fair coming up soon. I decided to take home the Idea book and new Resource catalog. Hey, this is also reading, you know.






What I am reading for professional development:
Book Love by Penny Kittle

My dear friend, Mapuana, loaned her autographed copy of Book Love by Penny Kittle to me with the promise that I would read it within a week.

If you looked up the definition of a Book lover in the dictionary, it would state: Example: see Mapuana Jones. On her school district web page, she keeps a personal statement.

"When someone shares something of value with you, and you benefit from it, you have a moral obligation to share it with others."

I am not sure who is actually to be credited with this quote-possibly Confucius or it may be a Chinese proverb, but it is precisely the type of thing Mapuana believes in. Otherwise, I would not have been able to pry her beloved Book Love from her perfectly manicured fingers.

What the family is reading together:
From Lukas and Josiah's personal library collection

Lukas is getting ready to start Kindergarten so we needed a marathon read session in case his new teacher asks this question, "Does anyone read at home with their families?" Lukas has been carefully coached to tell her that his BB (me) reads to him all the time and will be happy to give her books for her classroom library. Yeah, he's that kid who always donates books to his teacher. She's set for the year! He has also met his new librarian, Mrs. Lynch, aka "the hat lady" who plans to wear a cute hat to school every day as part of her librarian persona. I love it!

...and filled with wonderful stories of giants, beanstalks, princesses, brave knights, and fire breathing dragons, BB's boys rode off into the sunset to discover their own magical stories and adventures.