Category Archives: It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?

Welcome to the weekly meme, It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? Visit Teach Mentor Text and Unleashing Readers to learn more about this weekly reading celebration and sharing event.

 

And end-of-year ritual–Don and I sort, clean, and cull our 13 bookshelves. We discover duplicates. We reunite series sisters. We donate books to the four corners–classrooms, children, colleagues, charities.  A subtle shift on every shelf–some books disappear and others move to permanent shelf space. A year of reading closes and another opens.

This time of year, my reading choices vacillate between must-read 2013 titles like award nominees and ALA Award hopefuls, the books I received for Christmas, and emerging 2014 titles. It’s overwhelming. My reading experiences last week and my reading plan for this week reflect my scattered approach to book selection right now. I am enjoying #bookaday during the school break and finding gems on my newly-catalogued shelves.

Last Week’s Reading Highlights

 

If You Find Me by Emily Murdoch

 

God Got a Dog by Cynthia Rylant, illustrated by Marla Frazee

 

Rutherford B., Who Was He?: Poems About Our Presidents by Marilyn Singer, illustrated by John Hendrix

 

Stolen Into Slavery, The True Story of Solomon Northrup, Free Black Man by Judith Bloom Fradin and Dennis Brindell Fradin 

 

Becoming Ben Franklin by Russell Freedman

 

Fat Boy vs. The Cheerleaders by Geoff Herbach

 

This Week’s Reading Plans

 

The Night Gardener by Jonathan Auxier

 

Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy by Karen Foxlee

 

When We Wake by Karen Healey

 

The ongoing bookshelf purge continues. I will uncover more unread treasures. Thankfully, I have another year of reading ahead to enjoy.

Happy New Year and Happy Reading in 2014!

 

 

As I move into the second week on my new blog, I am excited about participating in the weekly meme, It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? Visit Teach Mentor Text and Unleashing Readers to learn more about this weekly reading celebration and sharing event.

My reading life is all over the place right now. I am trying to power-read Nerdy Book Club Award nominees that I have missed before voting opens on December 15th, AND read new books I acquired during the NCTE and ALAN conferences last month. I am enjoying some great books!

Last Week’s Reading Highlights

Antigoddess by Kendare Blake.

As I posted on Twitter,

The Animal Book by Steve Jenkins

I wanted to be a vet for most of elementary school. I am still fascinated with animals. The Animal Book is the type of book ten-year old Donalyn would have pored over–looking at every elaborate cut-paper illustration, reading diagrams, and memorizing facts. A must-own for the animal-lovers in your life.

Miss Moore Thought Otherwise: How Anne Carroll Moore Created Libraries for Children by Jan Pinborough, illustrated by Debby Atwell

Anne Carroll Moore and her colleagues were trailblazers who believed in the importance of quality children’s literature and positive reading experiences for children. Through their influence, libraries developed reading rooms and library programs for children. I found this introduction to the early years of children’s library programs fascinating.

Fortunately, the Milk by Neil Gaiman

A distracted dad pops around the corner for a quart of milk and finds himself in a battle for the fate of the Universe. Hilarious and odd in all the best ways. I am a huge Gaiman fan. I read everything he writes–adult fantasy like The Ocean at the End of the Lane and Anasi Boys, and his children’s books like The Graveyard Book and Coraline. My students love his books, too. I cannot wait to share Fortunately, the Milk with them!  This would make a great short read-aloud for those bleak winter days after holiday break.

This Week’s Reading Plans

I am traveling this week, and I brought a few books with me for company. I look forward to reading and sharing these books!

Dragonborn by Toby Forward

The Infinite Moment of Us by Lauren Myracle

The Shadow Throne by Jennifer Nielsen

Who knows what other interesting books will cross my path? Enjoy a wonderful week and some wonderful books!