Is it really blogging?

Is it really blogging if you only post about once a semester? How sad is that? Well, I do have to say, I have read a lot in the last couple of months. But I knew that I was not good at keeping up with the blog. I just didn't realize HOW not good. *sigh* Well, I shall try again to be better about it. I have gotten quite caught up in some presentations I was doing on the iPad and educational and library apps to go with it, but I never hope to neglect my books for it. Sooo..where to start....I think a list might be in order. Perhaps with bullet points under each title.

The Magic Thief

• Fantasy
• Poor Orphan Formula
• Magic
• Pretty good read, but not for those who don't like Fantasy

Extra Credit

• Andrew Clements is always a favorite
• I liked that it takes on a topic we hear a lot about (Afghanistan)
• Easy read, so it might be good for reluctant readers
  

Kenny and the Dragon

• Cute story
• Easy read
• Good for young uns - I was a little surprised it was on our Intermediate list

Night of the Spadefoot Toads

• Seems like it should be written by Andrew Clements or Carl Hiassen
• Sort of a slow story compared to the others
• Fine book, but it didn't really pull me in

Jake Ransom and the Skull King's Shadow

• A robust fantasy and the start of, what else, a series
• Poor Orphan Formula
• Magic, danger, excitement, romance
• Fantasy fans will enjoy this one

Shooting the Moon

• Soft spot in my heart for this one as it reminds me of my dad
• Set during the Vietnam War
• A brother sends pictures home to his sister to explain what war is like

Closed for the Season

• Mary Downing Hahn
• Not a good Mary Downing Hahn
• Wasn't scary or creepy
• Wasn't much of a mystery either

The Blue Shoe

• Really fantasy
• Poor Orphan Formula
• Magic and a mysterious Blue Shoe

The Grimm Legacy

• A girl gets a job working at the "repository" where the magical Grimm collection (among other special collections) is stored
• Someone wants to steal the stuff (so surprising, I know...)
• Pretty good read

The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: The Mysterious Howling

• Great book
• A flair of historical fiction with the slightest twinge of fantasy. Though if my hunch is correct, we will get more fantasy as we delve into book two - this is just the first in a series.

The Mostly True Adventures of Home P. Figg

• Good historical fiction
• Much more serious and less funny than the cover lets on
• The cover really did throw me off

The Magician's Elephant

• Who couldn't like Kate DiCamilllo
• Another great book from her
• Sadness, love, redemption....a great read!

Vesper's Rising

• Another 39 Clues book
• Kind of neat to see the start of the family
• I wonder how long they'll milk this product though

The Throne of Fire

• Just as good as the Red Pyramid

Beastly

• One of the Sync YA free audiobooks
• Obvious spin on Beauty and the Beast
• Great character development

The Last Apprentice: Revenge of the Witch

• Another Sync YA audiobook
  
• First in a series
• Good magical fantasy
• Reminds me a bit of Harry Potter when it starts to get darker

*Both books I would consider putting in my library for higher reader intermediate students

A Whole New Mind

• Tremendous adult read for anyone teaching in the 21st Century and anyone interested in learning how times are changing. It makes good sense!

Smokin' Seventeen

• The latest in the Stephanie Plum series
• A lot fun
• Good, juicy parts to the story

I think that's it, but I may have forgotten something. I do have a lot more new books to dig through at school, so I hope to be much better about posting! (Of course, I say that a lot don't I?) :-)

New Books

I've been diving into a few of the books that I wanted to make sure were age appropriate for my kiddos. Dark Life by Kat Falls, Heist Society by Ally Carter, and A Dog's Purpose by W. Bruce Cameron are the first three I picked out. Dark Life is a great new Sci Fi book that take a sort of apocalyptic US and places an experimental colony on the bottom of the ocean floor. There's everything in this book, danger, romance, outlaws, and a fierce dedication to independence. I was concerned there might be too much violence or the romance might get to detailed for my intermediate students, but I ended up feeling it would be an excellent book to recommend to some of my higher readers. Of course, this is going to be a series, so look for more books by Falls to be gobbled up!

I used to describe Swindle as Ocean's Eleven for kids, but now I think Heist Society will take that description. When Katarina has to rescue her father from an unexpected situation, she has to assemble one of the best teams of art thieves ever. Even though this book had the potential to go way out of age-appropriate range, it was excellent. Again, we had romance, intrigue, danger....but it stayed at a level that was fine for my intermediate level kids. It will again be a good recommendation for my higher readers.

Now...prepare the tissue box. If you are a dog person, like me, and you haven't had a dog in a while, like me, you will still bawl your way through this book. If you love a dog and have one or have recently lost yours, you will not be able to hold this book up to read it. (Or in my case, see out the windshield while driving to school.) I was worried this book might be too adult, as is listed in some places as adult fiction. But really, the content was not anything too out of bounds for my students. The book is told from a dog's point of view and cycles with him as he is reincarnated several times while he learns his purpose in life. That is part of what keeps you from losing it all together because you know the dog is coming back. :-) There are a few places where the puppy doesn't understand the new game he wants to partake in with the female dogs and why he needs to go to the doctor and end up with a cone on his head. And once in a while, some of the owners "wrestle" on the couch together. But I think that these minor areas are handled with a pretty good delicacy. My students probably see worse on tv every night. The story is heart-warming and endearing and has you rooting for all the heroes all the way through the book. If you couldn't read Marley and Me, you won't probably do well with this book. But if you can handle the emotion of the story, it's a wonderful read.

I have almost read all the Stephanie Plum books too. So I'll be ready when seventeen hits the stores this summer.

I really need to get a jump on the books for next year's children's choice awards for our state. So next on my plate is The Magic Thief. After I finish the last two "between the numbers" novels for Stephanie Plum, I'll also pick up a few more of those books to read. Hopefully, I'll be back soon with more reviews!

OMG

Really??? August 10th???? Really???? That was the last time I updated? Holy macaroni I've fallen down on my job. Not reading, of course, I never stop reading! So I guess this is going to be the mother of all book blog posts! Let's get down to business. First a list, then reviews.

V is for Vampire
Baker Street Irregulars: The Fall of the Amazing Zalindas
Catching Fire
Mockingjay
The Lost Hero
The Girl Who Played with Fire
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets Nest
The Graveyard Book
Theodosia and the Staff of Osiris
Heat Wave
Naked Heat
Out of My Mind
Stephanie Plum series 4 - 9
Strange Case of the Origami Yoda
Hero
Into the Gauntlet

And that's what I can remember. I might have missed a few! LOL!

Ok. Let's see...adult books first. I finished up the series of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Definitely enjoyed reading those. I can see how some might not stick with the series though. You have to get past the ten page descriptions of Ikea furniture. And I thought the break between the second and third books was a little weird. But in the long run, very good reads.

I started reading some fan fiction. Anyone watch the show Castle? I love that show and they have the books that Castle supposedly writes available to read. Naked Heat and Heat Wave were really fun. I ended up getting the second one on my iPad because the narrator for the first one was utterly ridiculous. It was really destroying the image I had in my head of the characters.

After I got done with those, I also wanted some other adult books along those lines. So, after taking a poll of my friends, I picked back up the Stephanie Plum series. I had already read 1-3. Now I've read 4-10 as well. Just good fun those books are. (Notice I didn't necessarily say "clean".)


I finished the Hunger Games trilogy. And that was phenomenal. I have mixed emotions about the ending, but I think you had to expect that everything wasn't going to end up roses. I will certainly recommend these to my advanced readers in 5th grade, but I decided not to put them into my library. I don't think most of the kids on their age level would get the abstract concepts and the violence would upset some people. Definitely a powerful read though!

I also read a few more books in some other series. The Lost Hero is a new book in the Heroes of Olympus (Percy Jackson) line. Percy isn't in this book, but it was the same concept. It was good and will continue to hook all those readers who want more of the Percy Jackson stories. I especially like that my hometown is featured in it for several chapters. The last 39 Clues book came out, Into the Gauntlet, and wrapped up the series rather nicely. Of course, there's room for a new spin-off series. And since Scholastic is in charge and doesn't have to worry about author burn-out, I can imagine that another one will be coming out soon. I read the first in a new Vampire series aimed at my tween readers. V is for Vampire will hopefully satisfy some of those girls who want to read Twilight that are sad I don't have it at my school. It was not too meaty in the love and violence department, so I think it's great for my kids. The Baker Street Irregulars series I think will be really good for boys who like mysteries and a bit of historical fiction. With the Sherlock Holmes movie coming out last year, I think the interest is there to push this book. It was really enjoyable and I can see this becoming a movie as well.

The Strange Case of the Origami Yoda was incredibly popular at our book fair this year. I had already purchased it for the library after hearing many, many things about it. I think the kids are really going to like this book. It dealt with some of the just nearing puberty things that these kids are facing, but was funny and had a good lesson. It's written in that graphic style that the kids are big on right now (like Diary of a Wimpy Kid). I heartily recommend it for this age level.

Somehow, I thought it would be fun to be on the selection committee for our state children's choice awards. This means you get to help decide the ten nominees for the following year. I thought this would be fun until the list of 40 or so intermediate titles got sent to my inbox. Now I don't think they expect you to read every single one, but I certainly WANT to read a lot. So, I've started picking some of the ones that have drawn my attention. Out of My Mind by Sharon Draper caught my eye immediately. The book is written from the perspective of 11-year-old Melody. Melody is in a wheel chair and can't move most of her body. She also can not speak. But Melody is a genius and has a photographic memory. Her story is heart-warming and wistful and it makes you think a bit harder about how you interact with some of your students. Though I don't really appreciate the way Draper paints the public school system (apparently, we are all idiots who think all special education students are imbeciles and would think it's a good idea to rotate with new sped teachers every year), I really love the way that Melody triumphs in her story.

Finally, I picked up the book Hero by Mike Lupica. Lupica takes a bit of a break from his typical sports fiction in this story. I saw it mentioned on Barnes and Noble's website and had it on my wish list. When it showed up on the book fair, I scooped it up right away. Like many of our stories these days, our main character - Zach - is discovering that he is more special than he would have imagined. After a tragedy strikes his family, Zach needs to figure out who he is and exactly what he can do. We, of course, do not get all of our answers in this book...a new series has been born. My students are eating up these kinds of stories though, and next to Origami Yoda and School of Fear, this was probably the hottest book at the fair.

I have a lot more books waiting for me at school to add into our system after our book fair. A few I feel I have to read before adding into our catalog: Smile, Heist Society, and Dark Life. And I need to get cracking on my state awards for next year. Too many books, too little time!!

I know I always promise to be a better blogger. I'm sorry! :-) I really will try this time! Fair warning though, I have a lot more Stephanie Plum books to read!!

New Classic

Ok. Wow. Everyone kept telling me it was good. It just hadn't made it to the top of my priority list yet as it was a young adult book and wouldn't go into my library. But about two weeks ago, Sync YA Listening and Audiobook Community offered "The Hunger Games" by Suzanne Collins as a free download. After reading and listening to the first and the second books in the trilogy, I now understand what everyone has been raving about. It is a new classic.

Collins is a tremendous writer. The way she paints our heroine, Katniss, makes her such a complex character, it's easy to get wrapped up in her life in District 12. Katniss is strong and yet emotionally fragile. The pull she experiences between her life in District 12 and the "life" that the Hunger Games brings her is illustrated so realistically, that you agonize with her over what choices to make. The Games themselves are an amazing creation by Collins, creating drama, action, despair, and joy, all laced with a tinge of hope and sadness. The emotional highs and low that the reader rides on are urged along by all the twists that Collins creates. I, like so many others, say that this book is amazing. And I will be anxiously awaiting the 24th when the 3rd one in the series is released.

I also dug my teeth into "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" by Stieg Larsson. My friend told me I needed to get past the first 150 pages for it to really get good. And I thank her for the heads up. (Thanks Laurie!) Mr. Larsson had a knack for the verbose. The amount of exposition in the story really made the first chunk of the book difficult. But right about that 150 page mark....it shifted into high gear. With a pairing of an older man and a younger woman, a mystery, and a sick violent criminal, it all took on a bit of a Dan Brown flair. I think I am a sucker for the traumatized but strong heroine like Katniss in "The Hunger Games" or Lisbeth in this book. I'd really like to get farther into the second book, but between "The Hunger Games" and school starting, I got a bit derailed.

I'd like to say that I read much more, but I haven't. I spent quite a bit of time enjoying the joys of summer and grading papers for my college class. I did listen to "The Power of One" by Bryce Courtenay, making it the umpteenth time I've read that book. It is another fantastic tale with amazing characters and layers of hope and sadness. I also finally picked up "Gabriel's Horses", one of our state award nominees. Historical Fiction like this is not really my cup of tea and I felt the pace lagged quite a bit. I didn't feel that pull to keep reading until about chapter eleven.

I REALLY need to read the last book that I have to read for our state award nominees. I'm sure it won't be bad or anything, it's Peg Kehret after all. But I have a feeling it will be the same story that we often get from her and I'm finding it hard to pick up. I also need to read "Vampire Island" to make sure that it's ok to hand out to my kiddos. And there the Baker Street Irregulars that I want to check out (maybe that's the pull of Robert Downey, Jr. and Jude Law calling me there). We'll see what I can manage with school actually starting up tomorrow!

So many books....

So little time. I've knocked out a portion of good books. Some I needed to read, some I just wanted to read. I got to pick out a selection of books from my new order that came in for my library and that was fun, but I easily could have picked out a bunch more! But without any more delay...the reviews.

Did you know John Grisham wrote a kids book? I didn't, but when I found out, I was very intrigued. I love mysteries, and Theodore Boone I think will interest kids. More sophisticated than Encyclopedia Brown, Theodore gives legal advice to his classmates. Coming from a set of lawyer parents and living life at the courthouse makes him uniquely qualified to help his peers. When the biggest trial ever in their small town hits center stage, Theodore is in his element. But soon, he's approached by a classmate who could change the course of things. A bit too good to be true sometimes, Theodore Boone will still hold the interest of the age group for which it's intended. A good read and a good start to a new series.

I read the latest book in the Sisters Grimm series. I hate to be sort of negative about Buckley, given the other book I read by him, which I will get to shortly, but there might be a bit of negativity here. I thought this was going to be the final installment, but *sigh* it's not. While I read it and it was fine, I'm ready for the series to be over. It felt like Buckley was trying so hard this time. The gimmick of using a master book to move through stories provides an easy way to introduce new characters and move the action. The story was fine, the action was ok, but I wish we'd reach some resolution here. We'd didn't really move the plot along much this time. Of course, I'll read the next book...I can't stop in a series when I've come this far, but I hope the next book is the last.

Do Not Pass Go by Kirkpatrick Hill is another one of our state award nominees. I'm down to two books now, and I really need to finish them. I really enjoyed Do Not Pass Go, but I think it will take a special kind of student in my kids' age group to really appreciate it. Very philosophical and with a little bit of heavy material, some students will find the book out of reach. Deet's family is a good-hearted family. Their financial situation is not the best, but his Dad works hard to provide. Working two jobs has been difficult on him and he begins to take some pills a coworker gives him in order to stay awake. A broken headlight draws the attention of the local police and Deet's dad is arrested on drug possession charges. Deet struggles with all the different feelings that would overcome a 13-year-old boy in this situation. Deet is a bit more insightful than I would expect most kids that age, and certainly more responsible, but story touches you emotionally, and I think it is a good book. It might have been better in the YA category, instead of the Intermediate, but I still enjoyed the book.

I did take a quick break from my library books to read a book just for me. Fun fluff. That's what the Kiki Lowenstein books are all about. If you love scrapbooking and you love mysteries, you'll love these books. It helps that I identify with frumpy housewife Kiki, even if I never had the pampered start to marriage that she did. A midwestern girl trying to find her way about upperclass St. Louis (where my family hailed from), Kiki is downright admirable in her fierce love for her daughter and her desire to be desired by an exciting man. In this third installment of the series, Kiki, yet again finds herself wrapped up in a murder. This one takes place at her daughter's school and lands Anya smack in the middle of all the action. I'm anxious for another book in the series...just because they are fun!

When I was at AASL in November, one of the authors I got to meet and get an autographed advanced copy of a book from, was Michael Buckley. He was very nice and gracious, and I truly have enjoyed the Sisters Grimm series. But I think Buckley's moving on to a new series that my students will really like and I'm excited about that. I did get an autographed copy of NERDS, but I never read it. I gave it away as a prize during our bookfair. I ordered a hardback copy of it for our library though, and I pulled it out of the box to read. A high tech spy game for kids, NERDS (National Espionage, Rescue, and Defense Society) has stuff that my 4th & 5th graders will love. Action, unrealistic technology, adventure, bad guys, and kids that are smarter than adults. I think this has the potential of becoming a popular series.

I started the book 100 Cupboards on audio. It's one that I wanted to read a while ago and never got around to it. It's interesting so far, but not so gripping that I want to pick up the book and read when I'm not listening in the car. We'll see once things get really moving with the story if I change my mind...after all, we haven't even gotten the cupboards open yet.

I also picked up the Red Blazer Girls and V is for Vampire, the first book in the Vampire Island series. I purchased this as a potential alternative to those students that really want me to carry Twilight. But I figured I better read it first in case I were to get any complaints.

I am trying to complete the summer reading program at our local library and have my son doing it too. I only have to read five books, and I have two down. I'm not sure if my books have to come from their library or not, so I have to read up on the rules. That would make sense to me to do it that way. But we'll see where I end up on this!

I'm sure I'll be back in a week or so with more reviews. Summer is wonderful!!

Ahhh...Summer

I can tell that summer has truly arrived for me. I got three books done in the last four days!

I'm a little backlogged though as the end of the school year had me so busy. So, although it's been a little while, I haven't read a ton of stuff. Here's the list:

Emmy and the Incredible Shrinking Rat by Lynne Jonell
The Long Shot by Mike Lupica
Trackers Book One by Patrick Carman
Storm Warning (39 Clues Book 9) by Linda Sue Park
The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan

The first two were state award nominees. I still have three of those left to read and I have one in my hands that I'm going to start tonight. Emmy was your standard "kid discovers there is magic in the world and has to overcome a bad guy" story. It was a little like a watered-down Gregor the Overlander. But it was enjoyable enough. A taste of fantasy for kids who don't like the full-on immersion into unrealistic worlds. I think kids will enjoy it, but I don't think it will become a huge hit. There's not enough spark and originality to the tale. In fact, the title gives you the basic premise...Emmy meets an incredible rat that shrinks people. Things just go from there as Emmy tries to save friends and family alike from a mean nanny.

The Long Shot was really good. I am not necessarily a sports fiction gal, but this was a little like a "Hoosiers" sort of story. Our main character, though a bit unrealistic at times as a sixth grade boy, is a likeable young man with intelligence, integrity, and basketball skills. He decides to run against the super-star of the school for class president and the story goes from there. Lupica writes with his usual flair and I think both boys and girls will enjoy the story. A bit idealistic at times, but still has you rooting for the characters throughout the story.

Trackers: Book One was interesting. I don't think it was the griping story that I really hoped/expected. The entire book sort of felt like the first scene of a play where all you get is exposition. Maybe the second book will really move the story along and add some drama, if not, the series will fall flat. I realize the book is directed at techies and supposed to be interactive, but the approach didn't work well for me. Every chapter, there would be a "video" that you could either go online and watch or turn to the back of the book and read a "transcript" of the video. It really, really broke up the story to me and I found it more annoying than anything. And I'm a techie!!

Book 9 of 39 Clues was very good. We got a good amount of questions answered and are set up rather nicely for the last book. I rather enjoyed the side of Nellie that is revealed in this book and I think Park's touch as a woman really helped pull this portion off. I can't wait for Book 10, which comes out on August 31st. Margaret Peterson Haddix wrote the 10th book, so I'm sure it will be filled with her specialties...adventure and suspense.

Finally, The Red Pyramid. Riordan is hoping to fill the void left by the end of the Percy Jackson series. I picked up The Lightning Thief almost a year before anyone else began reading it and making it popular. I have a soft spot for both Greek and Egyptian Mythology. So when I found out that Riordan was writing another series, I was both excited and skeptical. I wasn't sure that he could capture the same excitement again. During the first couple of chapters or so of the Red Pyramid, I wasn't convinced he had. By the end, though, I was devouring the book. Though slow to start, we really get engaged with our main characters of Sadie and Carter. Their mother is dead, their father goes missing, they are introduced to a strange mythological world that has come crashing into their reality. Riordan really did a wonderful job with the emotion in this book balancing out the action. And in the end, I think the book was fabulous. I really liked the way Riordan set up the premise for having a "series" with these characters (this is after all, book one of the "Kane Chronicles"). Though similar to some of the details in the Lightning Thief, Riordan I think allowed himself more flexibility this time with who could tell the story of the battle that is coming. I also appreciated the slight nod to the Lighting Thief, as well as the hint that other series could develop after the Kane Chronicles is over.

Hopefully, I'll have more to review next week. Look for reviews of Stolen Children, Gabriel's Horses, Do Not Pass Go, and more. I also see that my next big order for my library should be shipping this week....it's always fun picking some new titles to read out of that pile!

Grown Up Books...

I noticed a few traffic reports in my email. Apparently, some of you have been checking to see if I've blogged lately or maybe just kicked the bucket. :-) I've gotten quite a bit read lately. I've been proctoring our new computerized state reading test, and there is only so much wandering around the room you can do when there are two of you. So perched on the counter in the back where I could see all the kids and their computers, I would read off and on.

I picked up one of the books that I've been wanting to read for a long time, the sequel to The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde, Lost in a Good Book. This is a series for grown-ups *gasp* and I have been enjoying it, but I am a little glad to come to the end. After the second, I read the third, and now I'm on the fourth. I'm a little neurotic when it comes to series books. This Sci-Fi/Fantasy novel is fun for us bookavores. Lots of good literary references, the literary worlds we know and love interacting, drama, action...it's just good fun. I'm considering if I want to read Fforde's newer series, Nursery Crime (inspired a bit by one of the books in the FIRST series). But I might just put them on my wish list and save them for a rainy day.

I have read some children's books though. I read two more of our state awards for next year. The first was Paint the Wind by Pam Munoz Ryan. I really enjoyed it and I can see the horse lovers latching on to this book big time. It's got a bit of emotional drama in it, along with a little adventure. The contrast in scenery from the fist part of the book to the end is wonderful. Our heroine finds a family that she loves, grows up a bit, and discovers her true strength in a dire situation. I don't really see why we need a graphic description of the birthing of a horse right at the beginning, but maybe that's because I'm not a horse person. All in all though, I think my students will enjoy it.

I also read Cicada Summer by Andrea Beaty. The voice in this book reminded me a bit of Each Little Bird that Sings, but not nearly as quirky. The subject matter is heavy enough to draw you in, but the "voice" of the main character really interests you. I put that in quotation marks because we learn right away that the main character pretends have some physical/mental challenges after a tragedy. While I do think that it takes far too long to reveal the tragedy and the climatic event is a little too unbelievable to really get you into it, the story was a good read and I found myself tearing up a bit.

What I've really spent quite a bit of time on is something I'm doing with my students. It started with the book The Daring Nellie Bly: America's Star Reporter by Bonnie Christensen. I've sort of fallen in love with Nellie and this project has really taken off. I, of course, had to read the classic Around the World in 80 Days by Jules Verne since it is what inspired Nellie to embark on her own journey 'round the world. I found many books on Nellie and her life, as well as graphic novels of Verne's book. I checked out a children's book called Nellie Bly's Monkey and, while neither the most factual, nor the most age appropriate vocabulary, the kids just think it's funny that someone tried to write a book from the monkey's perspective. I found a book with amazing photographs called Bylines: A Photobiography of Nellie Bly. And numerous others. We've read about Nellie, watched a short video about her, researched the locations she went to (using a reliable, school-provided database), found pictures of the locations she went to (using Wikimedia Commons and learning about copyright), wrote paragraphs about them (not plagiarizing), typed the paragraphs (practicing keyboarding and word processing) and it will all be compiled into one big Google Lit Trip. I'm very excited with how this is turning out.

Next week sometime I plan on picking up the copies of next year's state awards for the library. I'm sure I will need to dive into the few that I haven't read yet!

And be on the lookout for a column at Mental_Floss's blog by a children's librarian. Miss Kathleen wrote a fun article that I contacted her about when I found out that she would be writing a regular column. After corresponding back and forth, she's decided to write a column on little known literary awards...like our state's children's choice one! So that could be very exciting! (Ok, maybe I need to get out a little more and redefine my sense of exciting...but that's what Fridays are for right?!) Enjoy weekend everyone!