2013 Favorites

There was no possible way to limit this post to a top ten. I read over 500 books this year and so this is more like my top 10%. Since joining Rich in Color, I have been reading a lot more young adult titles and have been trying to choose more diverse literature. I want to continue that trend next year - more about that tomorrow. Here are some of the best of the best for me this year. -- Cover images are from Goodreads.

Young Adult

Dream Thieves

The Living

Openly Straight

Two Boys Kissing

Boxers & Saints

If I Ever Get Out of Here

Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass

Unravel Me

Bitter Kingdom

Rogue

Since You Asked

Proxy

Hattie Ever After

Winger

Middle Grade

Counting By 7s

True Blue Scouts of Sugar Man Swamp

The Garden of My Imaan

Flora & Ulysses

Doll Bones

Runaway King

The Real Boy

Bluffton

Poetry

Words with Wings

Gone Fishing

Lightning Dreamer

Follow Follow

What the Heart Knows

Non-fiction

The Great American Dust Bowl by Dan Brown

Frog Song

Locomotive

The Tree Lady

A Little Book of Sloth

Barbed Wire Baseball

Building Our House

The Boy Who Loved Math

Where on Earth?

When I Was Eight

A Splash of Red

Parrots Over Puerto Rico

The Animal Book

Tito Puente, Mambo King

Picture Books

Deep in the Sahara

Niño Wrestles the World

If You Want to See a Whale

Journey

Odd Duck

Tea Rex

Knock Knock, My Dad's Dream for Me

Battle Bunny

Marisol McDonald and the Clash Bash

What were some of your favorites?

It's Monday! What are you reading?

It's Monday! What are you reading? is a meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journeys. Jen Vincent over at Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee Moye from Unleashing Readers decided to put a children's and YA spin on it and they invite anyone with an interest to join in. You can participate by creating your post then visit one of their sites to add your site. Finally, visit at least three participant blogs and comment to spread the love.

If you want to know more about what I am reading, visit me at my Goodreads shelf. Images via Goodreads unless otherwise noted.

The Past Week:

Picture Books

Lullaby was my favorite picture book this week. Langston Hughes chose just the right words and the illustrations were beautiful too. I thought the others were nice, but the illustrations in Can You Say Peace? were a bit odd. I didn't like the style I guess. I liked the idea of the book - the word peace in many languages, but the presentation didn't win me over.

Middle Grade

I reviewed From Norvelt to Nowhere here. The Sittin' Up comes out in January and I will review it later this week. It's historical fiction and had humor too. It was interesting to see how a community planned for and held a funeral. The fairy tales were nice retellings. The Blockworld book is a self-published book through Amazon that I got because I have so many students asking for Minecraft books. It was written by a principal here in Wisconsin and was fun to read though I know my students would probably like to have illustrations with it.

Two of these, Little Women & The Hobbit, were re-reads for me. My daughter and I had a Hobbit/LOTR movie marathon last weekend, so I felt compelled to do a re-read. The words, "Christmas won't be Christmas without any presents" popped into my head when I saw the CD set at the library so I grabbed it and listened while I did some of my knitting. I reviewed it here. I am not as big a fan as I have been in the past. I had been looking forward to reading The Living since I have seen many great reviews. I was not disappointed. It's a great survival story with many layers. I will be reviewing it at Rich in Color in January so I won't say much here, but if was definitely a favorite.

Professional 

I loved this follow up to The Book Whisperer. Reading in the Wild reminded me that I need to help guide my students to independence in seeking out reading materials among other things. I am going to make that a focus of my instruction for the second half of the year. It's so easy to just hand them a book or booktalk a few, but I need to be showing them how to find great titles so they can do it on their own when I am not around.

Adult

This was another audio book. Since it is a short story, it was only one CD. I had heard about the movie, but had never seen it or read the book, but grabbed it when I was passing through the library. I wanted plenty of audio books to accompany my knitting escapades over break. Brokeback Mountain struck me as very raw. Annie Proulx packs quite a punch in a small amount of words.

The Coming Week: 

I am starting The Golden Boy next and a few picture books about fables. I am also going to start an ARC of the newest Zita the Spacegirl. I have some other ARCs that I need to get to also. It should be a fun week of reading.

Review: From Norvelt to Nowhere

Title: From Norvelt to Nowhere
Author: Jack Gantos
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Pages: 278
Review Copy: Library
Availabilty: On shelves now

Summary: This rocket-paced follow-up to the Newbery Medal–winning novel Dead End in Norvelt opens deep in the shadow of the Cuban missile crisis. But instead of Russian warheads, other kinds of trouble are raining down on young Jack Gantos and his utopian town of Norvelt in western Pennsylvania. After an explosion, a new crime by an old murderer, and the sad passing of the town’s founder, twelve-year-old Jack will soon find himself launched on a mission that takes him hundreds of miles away, escorting his slightly mental elderly mentor, Miss Volker, on her relentless pursuit of the oddest of outlaws. But as their trip turns south in more ways than one, it’s increasingly clear that the farther from home they travel, the more off-the-wall Jack and Miss Volker’s adventure becomes, in From Norvelt to Nowhere, a raucous road novel about roots and revenge, a last chance at love, and the power of a remarkable friendship. -- Cover image and summary via IndieBound

Review: I laughed my way through Dead End in Norvelt multiple times, so I had expectations of some humor. They were certainly satisfied. Once again, Jack Gantos manages to pull together bizarre and amazingly funny situations throughout the novel. I would recommend that people read Dead End in Norvelt first, but Gantos does provide a bit of review in the beginning in case readers have forgotten some of the first book or haven't read it.

I was disappointed that Jack's best friend dresses up as an Indian for Halloween. It is something that children do, but with all of the many costumes that could be chosen, I just wished that a different choice had been made. That was a negative for me, but Gantos did win points when the topic of Abraham Lincoln came up. Miss Volker spews history and she doesn't only tell the boring, sanitized textbook type of information. She brings up some of the aspects of people's lives that people may typically ignore or gloss over so that hero status is maintained. Lincoln ordered thirty-eight Sioux men hanged in 1862. That isn't something that elementary students or even older students always get taught, but Jack learns about it from Miss Volker. Reading this book could really turn students on to history because Miss Volker tells about people with their warts and all. She even shares about FDR cheating on his wife.

Seeing two sides of people is a major theme that comes up over and over along the way. Jack sees many examples of this starting with the Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde classic comic he reads near the beginning of their road trip. Jack notices that he himself seems to bounce back and forth and the adults around him, especially Miss Volker, are also fighting this type of battle inside.

The mystery that began in the first novel continues in From Norvelt to Nowhere kept me reading. I still wanted to know for sure who killed all those ladies back in Norvelt. Before the crime is solved, Jack gets naked, harpoons are launched, and all kinds of mayhem ensues. The humor and the juicy bits of history make this book a lot of fun. It seemed a bit more complex and more of a middle school book than the first, so I am not sure how many of my elementary students are going to rip through this one though many fifth graders enjoyed Dead End in Norvelt. I really appreciate that Gantos is able to write historical fiction that can bring a smile to your face since so many are about war and serious subjects. Books like these from Gantos can help to show students a more lively view of history.

I am looking forward to book talking From Norvelt to Nowhere and hearing back from my students.

Celebrations: The Year in Review

Ruth Ayres has a link-up on Saturdays where people link to posts that are celebrations about their week. I was wanting to reflect on positive things in my life and this looks like a great way to do it. This week I am reflecting on the whole year rather than just this past week.

It is amazing what you can pack into a year and how much you can forget in such a short amount of time. Looking back over my posts from 2013, I find a few that really stand out like those in January concerning the Newbery Challenge which I finished on the day that The One and Only Ivan earned that lovely sticker and we smiled so hard with Colby Sharp.

In February, a fun event was the picture book non-fiction 10 for 10. I couldn't stop with 10, so had a second post that was middle grade and young adult non-ficiton.

March was a very busy time that started off with a wonderful EdCampMadison. We also had a fun visit with author Michael Scotto. He shared his writing life with us and read to us too. World Read Aloud Day and Read Across America were fantastic again this year. Finally, in March I began working with Audrey to set up the Rich in Color blog. I am proud of our work there and think we have built a great resource for diverse young adult literature. Here is one of the posts that I did there that explains why diverse literature is important to me.

In April we celebrated Poem in Your Pocket month and I also baked for the blog. I made a lime pound cake from A Tangle of Knots.

May was a slower month on my blog with the school year wrapping up, but I did participate in Armchair BEA and that was a learning experience. It was great to interact with other bloggers.

June was a relaxing month once school was finished and here is a post about an ordinary June day.

A highlight of July was NerdCampBC. I loved learning and sharing with so many Nerdybookclub members and finally meeting them in person. The second learning opportunity I had was the American Indian Studies Institute which was amazing.

August was a great time with Teacher's Write and BookBootCamp. There was so much to learn this summer and a ton of fun. September was when I really kicked in with writing book reviews.

In an effort to become more centered and have some quiet time, I started visiting the local labyrinth in October. I loved the experience. I will have to try it again now and see how different it is with the snow.

The month of November was devoted to National Novel Writing Month. The first year I wrote a contemporary novel about a middle school girl, last year it was a young adult novel with two voices (one of which was written in verse) and this year, I wrote a middle grade book. Once again my daughter participated and it was a lot of work, but we laughed through much of it.

  

In December I have been working on my Nerdlution and I got to attend TIES, a technology conference in MN.  This very nerdybookclub year is drawing to a close. It has been amazing!

TIES Conference

TIES is an exciting technology conference and I have always come away with new ideas and resources. This year I was able to attend quite a few excellent sessions.

Staff members from Inver Grove Heights school district shared how they have had a district wide TIES type conference that is open to the parents and community. The staff set it up, but the sessions are presented by students. Elementary students came to show us what they presented earlier this year. The session they had was about educational apps, but other sessions offered were about many other topics such as creating video or using different devices. This could be done on a much smaller scale and is a great way for students to show their learning and for the parents and/or community to see what is happening in the school. One of the students explained that she was nervouscited, but that once she starts presenting, it gets better.

Another great session was presented by Suzy Boss. She spoke about innovation. She gave us a phrase for inspiring innovation: "I want to be the one who..." and "If not me, who?"She explained that innovation comes more quickly with others working together so another question is "Who will join me?" She said we can encourage students to innovate by remixing, looking at scale and embracing optimism. She also shared this quote, "Many of us have little idea of our own change-making potential." David Bornstein

I attended a session on using Twitter in the classroom. The presenter, Tricia @CarlsonTricia, is a kindergarten teacher and she has been using it with them. I came away with some excellent resources to share with staff.

It was also cool to pop into Tami Brass's session for the last few minutes to see some 3D printing. Way cool.

The second day started with a fantastic keynote by Mizuko 'Mimi' Ito. She shared about the changes that are happening in social interactions around technology. She explained that for students whose culture or identities are not represented in their school culture, the online world is a lifeline. There were tough questions too like - how can we use technology to address the equity gap?

Here are a few tweets that went out during her keynote:

Connected learning is the intersection of interests, academics and peer culture. #ties13
— Jessica McMahon (@SPPS_McMahon) December 17, 2013

Educators help students connect the dots using technology...social...interests...academics...Connected Learning! #ties13
— Christine Gray (@_Christine_Gray) December 17, 2013

After that, I went to some sessions aimed at matching student interests to tech and academics. I was able to go to a session about coding and I also met some more students willing to teach us what they have learned. The demonstrated Goldie Blox, Makey Makey, Algodoo, Kodable, Hopscotch, Voltage Village and many more fun ways to use technology and creativity. Their school, St. Paul Academy & Summit School, has two 45 minute periods a week devoted to high interest activity groups. They call them minis. Their mini was technology, but other minis might be knitting, a language, sport, or anything that teachers may know how to do that they can share. These were some excited students that love what they are learning.

I also attended a session on using e-readers and another on the changing role of library media specialists. They focused on our role as curators, but also on the need to teach students how to curate their own resources. There was a lot to learn. My brain was packed with information that needed to be curated.

I have already begun to use some of the information that I gathered there with some of my classes and I look forward to more great learning when we get back to school after break.

Review: Seven Stories Up

Title: Seven Stories Up
Author: Laurel Snyder
Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers
Pages: 240
Review Copy: Netgalley
Availability: January 28, 2014

Summary: In this companion to Bigger than a Bread Box, a leap back in time and an unlikely friendship changes the future of one family forever.

Annie has never even met her grandmother before. In fact, she’s never had much family to speak of. So when she and her mother pull into the drive of her grandmother’s home in Baltimore, Annie can hardly contain her excitement! But when she actually meets her grandma, the bitter old woman doesn’t seem like someone Annie could ever love, or miss. Until one magical, stormy night changes everything. It’s impossible that Annie could have jumped back in time. . . right? But here she is in 1937— the year her grandmother was just her age! Molly is an invalid. She lives by herself, on the top floor of a hotel. She seems a little lonely, but friendly and fun, nothing like the horrible old woman Annie just met. Annie entices Molly down from her room, and together the two girls roam. They sneak around the grand hotel, and explore the brick streets of old Baltimore. Carnivals and taxis, midnight raids on the kitchen. The two grow closer. But as Molly becomes bolder, and ventures further from the safety of her room, Annie begins to wonder how she’ll ever get back home. Maybe she’s changed the past a little too much. . .  -- Cover image and summary via IndieBound

Review: I fell in love with Seven Stories Up almost immediately. Laurel Snyder has a gift for bringing the reader right into her world. Like in Bigger than a Breadbox, there is an element of fantasy, but the story still seems very realistic because the characters are so vibrant. Annie can't connect with her cranky old grandmother, but when she goes back in time, she begins to see what led her grandmother to be so bitter. It is wondrous to watch their friendship develop. They both grow as they get to know each other.

Time travel books can be twitchy since changes in the past affect the future. I appreciated that Annie actually thinks about this as she is navigating life in the past. This brings a healthy dose of tension to the story that kept me reading.

Seven Stories Up manages to feel old-fashioned and wholesome without being too sweet. This is a book I will happily recommend. I look forward to re-reading it in January at release time and meeting Annie and Molly once again.

By the way, if you haven't read Bigger than a Breadbox - what are you waiting for? You do NOT need to read it first, but you are certainly missing out on an excellent book if you haven't read it. Here's the trailer.

It's Monday! What are you reading?

It's Monday! What are you reading? is a meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journeys. Jen Vincent over at Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee Moye from Unleashing Readers decided to put a children's and YA spin on it and they invite anyone with an interest to join in. You can participate by creating your post then visit one of their sites to add your site. Finally, visit at least three participant blogs and comment to spread the love.

If you want to know more about what I am reading, visit me at my Goodreads shelf. Images via Goodreads unless otherwise noted.

The Past Week

This was a wonderful week of reading. I finished a few more Nerdy nominees before voting. What the Heart Knows was fantastic. Sidman has created beautiful poems that do speak to the heart. They can even inspire a bit of poetry writing. I think I'll be reading this one many times in the future.

Knock Knock was not a nominee, but I wonder if it would have made the list had it been published earlier in the year. It may not have been read by very many people yet. It's a powerful book based on the poem Daniel Beaty performs below:

The Coming Week:

I am listening to Little Women which is a re-re-re-read or something like that. I have lost count over the years. I started re-reading The Hobbit since we had a Tolkien marathon on Sunday. We watched both Hobbits and the Lord of the Rings trilogy complete with hobbit food. I have a large stack of books for winter break, but don't know which ones I will get to. I started The Living and am loving it. What will you be reading? Have a fantastic week.