It's Monday!! What Are You Reading?

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've been doing A LOT of reading lately! So much that I won't be able to fit it all in one post. Be looking for more posts throughout the week. The snow days this past week didn't help because I spent four hours shoveling by myself on Tuesday, so I was too tired to read! But my do over on Wednesday gave me some reading time! I even had time to post on my Library Media Center blog, which I haven't had a chance to do lately.

Now onto the books!!

The first book this week is the newest installment in the I Survived series by Lauren Tarshis. This one is called The Great Chicago Fire, 1871. Click here for a summary on Goodreads. I have read all of the books in the I Survived series and I think this one is my favorite one. I was a bit hesitant going in because the book about Pompeii was not a favorite of mine. This one had action from the very beginning and didn't stop! I highly recommend this book in the series. I can't wait to share it with my students!

The next book I have been reading since January. It is one that required a lot of thought, so one I got sick I couldn't focus on the book. The book is Hollow City by Ransom Riggs. This is the second novel of Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children. Click here for a summary on Goodreads. I read the first book a while ago and enjoyed it. This type of book is not my usually read, but I was captivated by the picture on the front cover. I was thrilled to see this one in the store because I knew the story wasn't over yet. After another cliff hanger, I'm stuck waiting for the next book to see what happens. Once again the picture on the front cover and throughout the book just fascinate me!



The next two books I got from Penguin Young Readers. I received the copies to review.

One of my favorite characters of all times is Froggy! I read the newest in the Froggy series, Froggy's Birthday Wish by Jonathan London. Click here for a summary on Goodreads. I have been a fan of Froggy since I first started teaching. A program that my school used, I had to read Froggy Gets Dressed every year to talk about active listening. I have not met a Froggy book that I haven't liked. This one is just as great as all the others in my book! It will be published on March 10th.

My final book today is Otto the Owl Who Loved Poetry by Vern Kousky. Click here for a summary on Goodreads. I'm a huge poetry fan and this book was great! There was a nice sample from Eliot, Stevenson and Dickinson along with original poems from Kousky. This is such a sweet story about staying true to yourself and finding those that will accept you for who you are. I can't wait to read this to my students.

Just looking back over my selections in this post I realize what a wide range of books I read. I did forget my nonfiction book for this week, so look for it this week. 

What have you been reading? 

Happy Reading!!


Stacey (@libraryjo92)

Book Smiles!!

Due to the snow, I missed my It's Monday! What Are You Reading post. So I'm saving some of the titles until next week. But I thought I would do a #booksmiles post to highlight a few that I've gotten to read.



The first book is Betty Goes Bananas by Steve Antony. Click here for a summary on Goodreads. I first heard about this book on Matthew Winner's Let's Get Busy podcast. His interview with Steve Antony is episode 115. As I listened, I made a mental note to add this book to my to read list. Imagine my surprise when I looked in the pile of books that I had picked up at the library a week ago and this one was in the pile! So I had to stop what I was doing a read the book! I loved it and can't wait to share with my students. It was a lot of fun to hear the back story for this book and then read it!

And just a little plug for Matthew Winner's Let's Get Busy podcast. If you haven't listened you really need to start. I just did a marathon listening as I shoveled snow for four hours! I got introduced to a few authors/illustrators I didn't know about. I'm excited to check out their books.

The next two books I got from Penguin Young Readers. I received the copies to review.

The first book is Mr. Pants: It's Go Time! by Scott McCormick. Click here for a summary on Goodreads. This is a graphic novel. My kids just LOVE graphic novels. This is one that I know they will relate to and enjoy reading! I fun myself chucking many times throughout the book. I never had any brothers or sisters, but I can see a lot of my students and their siblings acting the same way Mr. Pants and his sibling do in this book. I'm interested in seeing the next one in this series. Mr. Pants: Slacks, Camera, Action! is due out March 3rd. Click here for a summary on Goodreads. Hoping it is as good as the first one!

The second book that I read from Penguin Young Readers is Where is Mount Rushmore? by True Kelley. Click here for a summary on Goodreads. Wow, there is SO much that I didn't know about Mount Rushmore. I learned so many neat facts about Mount Rushmore. I think one of the most interesting one was about how Mount Rushmore got it's name. I'm not going to spoil it here. so if you want to know read the book. My kids just love the Who Is/Was, and What /Is/Was series. I can't keep them on the shelf. I'm very excited to introduce them to the Where Is series so they can get caught up in it too.

What book(s) has made you smile recently?

Happy Reading!!

Stacey (@libraryjo92)

I LOVE My Media Center Because...

At the beginning of February my assistant Carol and I put out a sentence starter "I LOVE my Media Center because" and we wanted to see what the students would say. We got a lot of great responses! Carol put them together to make a bulletin board out in the hallway that you can see below.

Here are some of my favorite responses!

I love my Media Center because...

*it is fun because we get to read books.

*it has a lot of good books.

*it is awesome!

*I love to read books! 

*the teachers are nice!

*we can get free books.

*we do fun stuff on the iPad.

*they have all the books that I need.

*our teachers are amazing!

*there are so many wonderful books on almost every 

topic we do fun activities and do research projects!

*we always do fun things

*of all of the books you have and all of the 

activities you give me. Thank you.

My most favorite one this year is "you have all the books that I like and none of the books that I don't like!"

Happy Valentine's Day!!

Stacey (@libraryjo92)

It's Monday!! What Are You Reading?

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 have not been doing a lot of reading this week because I have been so sick! I knew that I was really sick when I couldn't even focus enough to read. I already had two chapter books started and I started a third while I was at the doctors. I started feeling better this weekend, so I had to finish one!

The book that I started at the doctor's office was The Zoo at the Edge of the World by Eric Kahn Gale. Click here for a summary on Goodreads. This was an interesting read. It is very hard to write a review, because I'm not sure how I feel about this book. The beginning of the book really intrigued me and made me keep reading. I think it is the ending that makes me don't sure how I feel about this book. I hope others read it so I can hear their opinions about this book. I got this book through Jr. Library Guild and was captivated by the cover of it. There are great illustrations throughout.

Last week I forgot to mention a great early chapter book that I read. I was so excited to get Rescue on the Oregon Trail by Kate Messner. This is the first book in the Ranger in Time series. Click here for a summary on Goodreads. I can't say enough good things about this book! I LOVED it so much! There was just enough drama to keep it interesting without being too intense for the younger readers. I can't wait to see where/when Ranger goes next. I might just have to buy it for my library because I want to share it with the kids!!

I'm on the road to recovery health wise so I'm hoping to finish the two other chapter books I have going and a few nonfiction books I've picked up at the library. What are you reading?

Happy Reading!!

Stacey (@libraryjo92)

Update To My Nerdlution 2015!

A few weeks ago, at the start of a new year many on Twitter were posting about their #nerdlution for 2015. I posted a link to mine, which was a little bit different than most. I'm almost a month in, so I thought I would post an update. You can read my original post here. 

As I reflected on 2014 I realized that I wasn't really where I wanted to be. So I wrote a letter to myself about where I wanted to be on December 31, 2015 and sealed it up. If I wanted to be at that place at the end of the year, I have to work on me. There were four big realizations that I had.

1. I need to make time for me! I can't just keep focusing on school.
2. I need to make some healthier choices with food and exercise.
3. I need to declutter some areas in my house. I keep a lot of "things" that I need to let go.
4. I need to get back to being a presence on Twitter and blogging again. I've really missed it.

After a month in and looking back, I've made some progress using these realizations. My one little word for the year is balance. I'm still trying to find it, but once I do it will really help with the first item on my list. I've started be a presence on Twitter again and I've started blogging again. I've got to get caught up on my school blog, but one step at a time. I'm slowly starting to declutter some areas of my house. But it is slow going while I'm still working. I'm looking forward to a relaxing Spring Break of decluttering. And I've made a vow to get most of my school work done at the beginning of Spring Break, so I don't stress the night before I go back.

The biggest success I've had is with realization number two. When I posted a little over a month ago, I weighed the most I ever had. I was not happy with myself at all. So starting on January 5th, I started watching what I ate and started walking more. I have a fitbit and I finally started using all the features. I began to journal my food every day, even writing down those mistakes that I made at the beginning. I try to get 10,000 or more steps in a day. Certain days of the week I stay later at school and I walk. I have to give a shout out to Matthew Winner(@MatthewWinner) and his awesome Let's Get Busy Podcast. I listen to them as I walk. The time walking just flies by and I get to listen to great kidlit interviews! If you are not following him on Twitter or listening to the podcasts, you need to start today! 

Well today I got on the scale and I am down a total of 15.4 pounds!!!!!! I have 11.3 pounds left to go to meet my goal. Once I meet it, I'll set a new goal. If you are still reading this thanks. If you made a #nerdlution for 2015 I hope you are finding success as I am.

Stacey (@libraryjo92)

It's Monday!! What Are You Reading?

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.

Since I skipped last week, I have been doing a bit of reading. I finished some books and still have two chapter books in progress.



The first three books I got from Penguin Young Readers. I received the copies to review. The first book is an old favorite, but it is being released as a paperback on May 12, 2015, School Fever by Brod Bagert. Click here for a summary on Goodreads. I have been a huge fan of Brod Bagert ever since I heard him speak years ago at a reading conference. His poems are just so much fun and really appeal to kids. I have quite a few of Brod Bagert's books on my shelf in the library and can't wait to add this one. I know the kids will love it.

The next book is Dear Mr. Washington by Lynn Cullen. Click here for a summary on Goodreads. This book is based a true story about Gilbert Stuart's famous painting of George Washington. It is a fun entertaining book that will appeal to kids and grownups alike. Also a good vehicle to teach a bit about manners. This book was just published in January. I really enjoyed this book a lot. I know some parents will be able to relate to the antics of the kids.

The final book from Penguin Young Readers this week is Smick by Doreen Cronin and illustrated by Juana Medina. Click here for a summary on Goodreads. This is a simplistic book in words and pictures. I loved it! I really like how Juana Medina mixed a drawn dog with what looks like a real picture of a stick. I still can't figure out if she drew the chick or used a real picture of something and added features to make it into a chick. This one will become a favorite as soon as I put it out for checkout!

I know that my bookgap is nonfiction, so I am making a real effort in 2015 to read more nonfiction. This past week I was excited when my hold came in at the library for Earmuffs for Everyone by Meghan McCarthy. Click here for a summary on Goodreads. I will admit I have never given a thought to who invented earmuffs. I was fascinated by the real story behind earmuffs. There was much more to it than I ever thought. It was a good read.

What other great nonfiction books would you recommend?

Happy Reading!!

Stacey (@libraryjo92)