It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is a weekly blog hop hosted by Kellee and Ricki at Unleashing Readers which focuses on sharing what we’re reading. 

This Kid Lit version of IMWAYR focuses primarily on books marketed for kids and teens, but books for readers of all ages are shared. We love this community and how it offers opportunities to share and recommend books with each other. The original IMWAYR, with an adult literature focus, was started by Sheila at Book Journeys and is now hosted by Kathryn at The Book Date. 

The Kid Lit IMWAYR was co-created by Kellee & Jen at Teach Mentor Texts. 

I post about my reading here, at the YA blog Rich in Color and as crystalreading at Storygraph. 

The Past Week: For Kindergarten classes this week, we sang a song that is a complete earworm. I am a Robot by Kymberly Stewart following the reading of Stop! Bot! by James Yang. We have been reading books that have gotten awards and it was a Geisel award book in the past. I dare you to listen to the song, but don't blame me if you end up singing it over and over again all day. 

I finally found a copy of The Table by Wiley Blevins and Winsome Bingham with illustrations by Jason Griffin. That's the Jason that co-wrote the first book Jason Reynolds published My Name is Jason. Mine too.  He also did the illustrations for Ain't Burned All the Bright. This picture book is about a table sitting out by the road, how it got there, who had it before and what it was used for and who gets it next and how they use it. It's a simple table and a simple book, but it hits the emotions. 

I finished reading the young adult novel I Am Not Jessica Chen by Ann Liang and will review it for Rich in Color this Friday. I won't say much here except that it was an enjoyable contemporary story with a touch of fantasy and romance and it made me think. 

For a book club, I read The Book of (More) Delights: Essays by Ross Gay. It is a sequel and I had read the first one for a different book club last year. It was a really nice one for the times we're in now because each essay focuses on a delight or joy from that day. It's a great reminder to look for the good and it's upbeat for the most part. 

Speaking of delights, I also read The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Clune. It's a lovely fantasy with found family and it is brimming with many kinds of love. It was also a nice way to occupy my mind when needing a break from news or doomscrolling. 

A little less light was That Librarian: The Fight Against Book Banning in America by Amanda Jones. This book is easy to read, in that it is conversational, but difficult because the topic may make a reader's blood boil a tad. I had mostly been following her situation online, but it was good to find out more of the details and see what it was that she had done in response. I hope I never need the advice, but it is quite likely that something similar will eventually come knocking. 

Currently reading: I'm still slow reading Beloved with others online on Bluesky. It's rough going, but it's a unique experience taking it so slowly and also seeing how others are processing the story and emotions. I also started Becoming Kin: An Indigenous Call to Unforgetting the Past and Reimagining Our Future by Patty Krawec with Nick Estes for the StoryGraph reading challenge Decolonize Your Bookshelf hosted by paperbacks_n_frybread. Paperbacks & Frybread is a bookstore owned by a woman named Dominique from the Lumbee Tribe. Finally, I am also reading Weathering: The Extraordinary Stress of Ordinary Life in an Unjust Society by Arline T. Geronimus because it is a community read at the local university. Whew! I hope you have a great week of reading! 

It's Monday! What are you reading?

It's Monday! What are you Reading? is a meme hosted by Kathryn at Book Date. It's a great way to recap what you read and/or reviewed the previous week and to plan out your reading and reviews for the upcoming week. It's also a great chance to see what others are reading right now...you just might discover your next “must-read” book! 

Kellee Moye, of Unleashing Readers, and Jen Vincent, of Teach Mentor Texts decided to give It's Monday! What Are You Reading? a kidlit focus. If you read and review books in children's literature - picture books, chapter books, middle grade novels, young adult novels, anything in the world of kidlit - join us! We love this meme and think you will, too. We encourage everyone who participates to visit at least three of the other kidlit book bloggers that link up and leave comments for them.

If you want to see more of my reading, visit my StoryGraph account here. 

The Past Week at School:

Every Little Kindness by Marta Bartolj (Slovenian author/illustrator) is a great wordless picture book that worked well for the beginning of kindness month. The students helped me read the book by telling what they noticed in the illustrations and what they thought was happening. I used this with fourth grade. 

Whoosh! Lonnie Johnson's Super-Soaking Stream of Inventions by Chris Barton and illustrated by Don Tate was a great book to use with 6th graders. It's a neat story of perseverance, but also super-soakers are pretty cool. 

I shared I am Peace: A Book of Mindfulness by Susan Verde and illustrated by Peter Reynolds with kindergarten classes. We also sang the song and did the motions with Emily Arrow because of course we would. ;)

With third grade, we had a visit with the author Meghan Wilson Duff and they
read their book How Are You, Verity? It was a fantastic visit for World Read Aloud Day. 

Fifth graders also got to meet the author Lisa Stringfellow on World Read Aloud Day. She talked to us about both of her books and read from Kingdom of Dusk. 

With first graders, I read Cesaria Feels the Beat by Denise Rasario Adusei and illustrated by Priscila Soars. The story went well with their science unit about sound. 

My Reading Last Week: I enjoyed the middle grade graphic novel Ash's Cabin by Jen Wang about a young person who runs away to a cabin in the woods to survive because life is challenging. Ash learns a lot about survival, but also a lot about what they actually need and want in life. 

Another middle grade graphic novel was Fake Chinese Sounds by Jing Jing Tsong. Měi Yīng is dealing with bullying at school, but it's not just about that. She also has a visit from her grandmother from Taiwan and is learning more about her language and family. In the midst of that, her friendships are changing. 

I listened to All the Blues in the Sky by Renée Watson through Libro.fm and it made me cry. It deals with grief and friendship and it's a short book considering how much is packed in there. It's beautiful.

A picture book that I enjoyed was Ra Pu Zel and the Stinky Tofu by Ying Chang Compestine and illustrated by Crystal Kung. It's a Rapunzel retelling and she put herself up in the tower so it is a bit of a switch. She is not one to be bossed around. Also, there's a lot of food mentioned. There is a not stinky tofu recipe at the end. I did try it, but be warned, the recipe isn't quite complete. There is a soy ginger sauce, but ginger isn't listed or mentioned so I just added what I thought should be there. Also, you're supposed to put the sauce in the refrigerator for a while, but the instructions never tell you when or how to add it. I wasn't sure if it was also meant to be cooked in the pan or just as a dipping sauce or wha so I went ahead and added it to the pan a when the tofu was just about done. It was quite tasty though.  

I am still listening to Beloved slowly along with a group of people on Bluesky. I have also started to read That Librarian. What are you reading? I hope you have a great week filled with wonderful books. 

Slice of Life - Lunar New Year

 

The Slice of Life Challenge was created by the people over at the blog Two Writing Teachers. The challenge is to write about some part of your day and share it each Tuesday then give feedback to at least three other bloggers.

It's Monday! What are you reading?

 It's Monday! What are you Reading? is a meme hosted by Kathryn at Book Date. It's a great way to recap what you read and/or reviewed the previous week and to plan out your reading and reviews for the upcoming week. It's also a great chance to see what others are reading right now...you just might discover your next “must-read” book! 

Kellee Moye, of Unleashing Readers, and Jen Vincent, of Teach Mentor Texts decided to give It's Monday! What Are You Reading? a kidlit focus. If you read and review books in children's literature - picture books, chapter books, middle grade novels, young adult novels, anything in the world of kidlit - join us! We love this meme and think you will, too. We encourage everyone who participates to visit at least three of the other kidlit book bloggers that link up and leave comments for them.

If you want to see more of my reading, visit my StoryGraph account here. 

I haven't posted for #IMWAYR since November. I knew it had been a while, but didn't realize it was so many months ago. Eek. As noted above, I have moved from Goodreads to Storygraph, so if you're over there, you can find me at crystalreading. I have also moved from Twitter/X to Bluesky with the same handle I had before @librarygrl2. It's tedious to start over again, but I'm slowly finding people and reconnecting with some people that I had formerly interacted with many, many years ago on Twitter so that's nice.

Read recently:

Yesterday I reviewed We Miss You, George Floyd by Shannon Gibney with illustrations by Leeya Rose Jackson. It's an excellent picture book for sharing with young ones who are having a hard time processing his murder or any similar death. Gibney shares his life and death, but also shows how the community mourns and what people can do in the aftermath. 

I also reviewed Bingsu for Two at Rich in Color. It's a cute YA Rom-com and I had a fun time reading it. 

Recently I was reading a ton of picture books because I did mock award units at school. My four sixth grade classes read Sibert contenders, my four fifth grade classes read Coretta Scott King contenders, and my five fourth grade classes read Pura Belpré contenders. You can see our results at the Mock YMA page here. 

The biggest stand out of my recent picture book reading recently was Chooch Helped by Andrea L. Rogers illustrated by Rebecca Lee Kunz. It's simply gorgeous and totally deserving of the Caldecott Award, but the story is also beautiful and made my heart happy. 

Currently Reading: 

I'm reading a graphic novel called Fake Chinese Sounds, I'm listening to The Enigma Girls, I'm reading The Book of (More) Delights for a book club, and I'm also doing a slow read of Beloved with a group of people on Bluesky (hosted by @heymrsbond.com and @marcusluther.bluesky.social) which is kind of amazing. What are you reading? Have a great week. 

Book Review: We Miss You, George Floyd

Title: We Miss You, George Floyd

Author: Shannon Gibney

Illustrator: Leeya Rose Jackson

Publisher: University of Minnesota Press

Review Copy: Final copy provided by publisher

Availability: On shelves now

Summary: A young Black girl in Minneapolis grapples with the death of George Floyd. In this candid and powerful book, a young girl hears about an unfolding tragedy in her neighborhood. It’s on the news, on the radio, and talked about in her community, and she learns of the murder of George Floyd—and about who he was. As she tries to reckon with the senseless violence of his killing, she finds solace at George Floyd Square. The space is filled with the art of protest and resistance, and she is moved to create her own signs and drawings, lifting her voice to harmonize with the outpouring: “We miss you, George Floyd.” 

For children working through George Floyd’s murder and the police violence plaguing our country, and for the grown-ups trying to help them, this book is an invitation to open up difficult conversations. With striking illustrations reflecting Floyd’s world and a child’s perspective, Shannon Gibney’s clear-eyed account offers healing and inspiration for the strength and solidarity we need to build a more peaceful and just future.

My Thoughts: Tragedies like the murder of George Floyd are difficult for an adult to grapple with and explaining it to a young person is an extremely challenging task, so a book like this is quite helpful. The book opens showing different folks who are grieving and then shares what happened in simple and honest terms. The text and illustrations paint a picture of who George Floyd was to other people and the many ways he was seen by his neighbors, friends, and family. Then, it moves to a variety of responses to his death including protests, marches, organizing, storytelling and calls for justice and liberation. 

The illustrations really bring the time and place to readers in a vibrant way. The street corner and the memorial is shown in vivid colors and the artwork seems to breathe in contrast to his loss of breath. On each page there is a group of wavy lines like a paintbrush has wandered through. It changes color on each page and seems like a breeze coming through or a line of connection. There is a poster in memory of Breonna Taylor on the narrator's bedroom wall as well as signs that people hold up outside and someone wears a t-shirt with Say Her Name on it. The art does a lot to help convey facts from the text and beyond it. The illustrations also convey an incredible amount of emotion whether it's sadness, anger, or hope for the future.

As the summary says, this book would be an excellent way to start the hard conversations around George Floyd's death or other injustices that are happening around us or around the world. It shows the many ways that one can respond and how we can be in community with each other when we experience tragedies like this. 

Recommendation: This book is an excellent addition to any library for young people, but is also a good starting point with older readers too. I would recommend it for any reader who has a heart filled with loss and too many questions especially related to police violence.