Busy, Busy Week-Not As Much Reading!

Jen and Kellee host this kidlit meme at TEACH.MENTOR.TEXTS.  Join us to see what we're all reading.

          It's Monday! What are you Reading? is another meme hosted by Sheila at BOOK JOURNEYS that offers reviews of all kinds of books.  

        If you’re on Twitter, use the hashtag #IMWAYR when sharing your link!

        And, Myra, Fats & Imogene host the blog, Gathering Books and challenge us with their reading Challenge, which you can find here.  This week, I read three books that were honored with awards.

Blackout – John Rocco   

Created with the look of a graphic novel, this tells the story of an urban family who finds stars on the roof  (in the night sky) and a party of many neighbors on the street.  Rocco shows the characters with a clever use of light and dark in his cartoon-like illustrations. Even with all the electricity expected, then lost, the family learns the fun of other kinds of entertainment, doing things together! 

Caldecott Honor book in 2012

Monsters of Men – Patrick Ness

I finally finished this very long story, and it continued to be a marvelous, edge-of-the-seat, heart-rending story. The characters are flawed, as everyone is, which made one think again and again, how does one make 'right' decisions and keep from negatively impacting others while defending oneself and others close?   I got so involved with the characters, wishing for good ends so much that I sat in my driveway more than once, listening to just one more part.   It is quite a story, and I wonder how I would have felt if I had read a print book instead of listening?  The actors creating the book were wonderful, and of course after listening to them for over 30 hours, I thoroughly got to know them. 

       winner of the Carnegie Medal last year

       Balloons Over Broadway, The True Story of the Puppeteer of Macy’s Parade – by Melissa Sweet

        There are many who are avid watchers of the annual Thanksgiving parade, sponsored by Macy’s Department store, & they will love this book, filled with city scenes and the most delightful high-rise balloon toys, meant for giants, I suppose.  The book by Melissa Sweet tells the story of Tony Sarg, a boy who grew up making things, or taking them apart, and eventually became an expert in making puppets.  One of his ideas was to have a parade for fellow immigrants.  It started small, grew puppets even taller & finally Sarg tried using balloons.  Now today, these are many helium-filled balloons.  The pages tell the story, but every now & again, Melissa adds her artistic plans for the toys, a la Sarg.  Although Sarg was the master, Melissa says in the book that all the toys shown are her own creation.  Another interesting point is that one of the apprentices who worked with Sarg had Jim Henson as his apprentice.  It’s great to hear that so long ago, a little boy who liked to create grew up to use his gifts that still entertain us today.

   winner - Orbis Pictus Award for Outstanding Nonfiction for Children AND Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Award for the most distinquished nonfiction book for children 

Moving Day – Ralph Fletcher

I’m on the move, and many of you know.  I wrote about my move and this book last Friday, here!  I will be in my new home two weeks from today, hopefully able to write a post. My internet will be up on that Monday, I hope!  I found this, written for a child moving actually, but many of Fletcher’s touched my heart as I make this big change.  His poems show the heartbreak of a young boy leaving his home, his grandparents, his school friends, only to go to the unknown-weather, friends, house.  This book is good for everyone, children and adults alike, and if you have a student who is struggling with a coming move, offer these poems.  They will help.

Amanda Bean’s Amazing Dream – Cindy Neuschwander, illustrated by Liza Woodruff, math activities by Marilyn Burns

This is a great book to use in beginning to introduce multiplication.  Amanda Bean loves counting, but ends up in quite a challenging when she tries to count sheep who zip by fast on their bicycles, and then she wants to count their legs, & tries to keep up, but they go too fast.  This scene, which turns out to be a dream, turns out to be an even bigger challenge, but you’ll have to read the rest to find out what happens.  It’s a good book to have in your math basket!

NEXT:  Listening to Sharon Creech's The Great Unexpected, and reading Don't Feed The Boy by Irene Latham.  Both are terrific, but I just run out of time to read.  I am so-o busy.  

I am beginning two book groups this week, and they are terrific books, but this will add more to my reading plate.  The books are Good Night, Mr. Tom by Marjorie Magorian and American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang.  They'll be quite wonderful books to share.

Happy Reading Everyone!!!