This meme was started by Sheila at Book Journey. The kid's version was started by Jen at Teach Mentor Text and Kellee at Unleashing Readers.
I'm on a roll, two weeks in a row posting! I have certainly had a great week of reading!
Last week I posted about How to Outrun a Crocodile When Your Shoes Are Untied by Jess Keating. I had the opportunity to get an ARC from NetGalley of Jess Keating next book, How to Outswim a Shark Without a Snorkel. This book was as good, if not better, than the first one. Click here for a summary on Goodreads. I love how the characters take on more depth in this book and we learn a little bit more about them. I'm hoping that there are more books coming in this series!
The next book that I read was Rain, Reign by Ann M. Martin. Click here for a summary on Goodreads. When I started this book, I wasn't sure what I was in for. But once I started reading it, I couldn't stop reading. The main character Rose different than the rest of the kids in her class. She has OCD, Asperger's Syndrome and homonyms are her obsession. This book give you a really good glimpse into the mind of a child with Asperger's Syndrome. I also have to say, I learned a lot of homonyms that I had never even thought about. I highly recommend this book!
The last book that I read this week and LOVED was one that I read about on Amy B.'s Blog. Click here for a link to her blog post. The book was The Screaming Staircase by Jonathan Stroud. This is the first in the Lockwood and Co. series. Click here for a summary on Goodreads. I am so glad that I read Amy's blog because this book was wonderful! It was creepy and had lots of ghosts. I had to force myself to put the book down so I could get some work done this weekend. It does take place in London. I have already put the second book on hold at my public library. If I had known how much I would love this book, I would have put the second one on hold at the same time! Now I just have to wait!
Don't forget about the Virtual Book Club meeting tonight at 9:00pm EST. How to Outrun a Crocodile When Your Shoes Are Untied is the book being discussed. Use #vbcbooks when on Twitter!
What are you reading?
Happy Reading!
Stacey (@libraryjo92)
This meme was started by Sheila at Book Journey. The kid's version was started by Jen at Teach Mentor Text and Kellee at Unleashing Readers.
Wow, this is my first #IMWAYR post since July 28, 2014! It feels good to start the routine again!
Since it is just the beginning of 2015, I haven't had time to read a lot yet. I've finished one book and have started another!
The first book that I read was The Family Romanov: Murder, Rebellion, and the Fall of Imperial Russia by Candace Fleming. Click here for a summary on Goodreads. I am such a history buff, in college I was one of eight students in a class on Tudor/Stuart England history. I was captivated by this book. I knew the story of the Romanov family, but not the details. I never realized that there was so much going on in Russia during this time period. I am also in awe of the amount of research the Candace Fleming does to make sure that her work is accurate. I highly recommend this book. I've read quite a few of her pictures books, which I love! I also highly recommend Amelia Lost: The Life and Disappearance of Amelia Earhart. As I looked at the list of Fleming's books I found some other books about historical figures that I need to get a hold of.
The book that I'm currently reading is How to Outrun a Crocodile When Your Shoes Are Untied by Jess Keating. Click here for a summary on Goodreads. I am LOVING this book! I can't believe it has taken me so long to read it! This book was so great that I finished it in one day! I just love Ana because all the feelings that she expresses, most are the same ones that I felt growing up. All of Keating's characters were very true to life. I'm also excited to read it because this book is the first in the line up for the Virtual Book Club (#vbcbooks) on Twitter on January 12th at 9:00 pm EST. Can't wait to discuss this book. Below is the list for the rest of the year! Try to join the chat. There is also a sequel coming out very soon (January 6th) called How to Outswim a Shark Without a Snorkel. I've heard it is as good, if not better than the first! Can't wait to start!
Happy Reading!!
Stacey (@libraryjo92)
Since I wasn't blogging much from September through December I missed talking about some really great books and ones that were #booksmiles for me. One of the things that I realized I also wasn't keeping up with was recording all of my reading in Goodreads. I have to do this in 2015 because I didn't achieve my goal for 2014, according to Goodreads. But I keep coming across books that I forgot to enter, so I think I made my goal. That is why I kept my goal the same for this year. Here are three that I wanted to write about, but just couldn't during those months.
The first book is The Terrible Two by Mac Barnett and Jory John. Click here for a summary on Goodreads. This book was a lot of fun. The main character Miles, moves to a new town which does not make him very happy. He has been known as a prankster, but he comes to find out there is already one in his new town. There is enough hi-jinks to grab even a reluctant reader. I've got a few in mind to give this book to when it is published in January 2015. Also I learned a lot about cows in this book! Make sure you give this one a read, I don't think that you will be disappointed!
Every since I went to Alaska for a family vacation, and no it was not a cruise, I have loved puffins. So of course when I saw the book The Angry Little Puffin by Timothy Young I had to read it. Click here for a summary on Goodreads. The puffin in this story is very upset when everyone confuses him with a penguin. He is tired of explaining the difference over and over again. I love how this story is a great story on its own, but it also teaches a lesson about being alone and how to get over being angry. Don't miss out on this one!
Kirby Larson has become my go to author for good historical fiction. Until I started reading her books and a few others, I was not a fan of historical fiction at all! It was an section that I had a huge book gap. Lawson's book Dash is a wonderful historical fiction story! Click here for a summary on Goodreads. Mitsi, a Japanese American, has her life uprooted after the attack on Pearl Harbor. She with her family, but separated from her dog Dash. I couldn't wait to share this book with one of my students who I had in mind when I was reading it. I had a bit of a hard sell because she is a horse book kind of girl. But two days after starting this book she came to me and told me she loved it and asked if I had any more dog books like this one. Luckily I had Kirby Larson's Duke read for her. Make sure if you haven't read this one, you pick up a copy.
Happy Reading!!
Stacey (@libraryjo92)
The other two books that I got a chance to read were from Penguin Young Readers. I received both copies to review. The first book was The First Dog by Jan Brett. Click here for a summary on Goodreads. This book was originally published in 1988, but is being released with a new cover. I somehow missed this book the first time around. I've always been a Jan Brett fan. This book has the gorgeous illustrations that you expect with a Jan Brett book. I liked the story of the first dog, but it is not one of my favorites. It could be because I'm not a dog person. Students will enjoy all the prehistoric animals in this story. I can see it being very popular in my library once I put it on the shelf.
The second book that I had the pleasure of reviewing I am Jackie Robinson by Brad Meltzer. This book is part of the series Ordinary People Change the World. Click here a summary on Goodreads. This is another great book in a great series! I love that this series brings Jackie Robinson's life down to a level that the elementary students can relate too. It went into the details of what happened to Jackie Robinson without getting to graphic. I know that my students will love this biography. I can't wait to read and share more of them with my students!
