It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

These are memes started by Teach Mentor Texts and Book Journey, and I'm excited to participate, along with many other bloggers, in reviewing books I read the previous week. I'll be reviewing picture books through adult books.

 

 

PICTURE BOOK

 

 

#9 in the Award Winning Books Challenge

 

Rumpelstiltskin, retold by Paul O. Zelinsky

 

award-winner, award-winning-books-challenge-2013, fairy-tale, picture-book   I read this beautifully illustrated tale of Rumpelstiltskin to introduce our read aloud this month, Rump: The True Story of Rumpelstiltskin. My students really enjoyed it. We never tire of hearing beloved traditional literature over and over!   MIDDLE GRADE   The Surprise Attack of Jabba the Puppett by Tom Angleberger   2013-book, gifted-character, humor, intermediate-kids-book, mock-newbery                                                  I love that I just happened to read this book right after the state letter grades came out that rated our schools! It made me feel better already. Angleberger shows us that the insanity that surrounds high stakes testing is hurtful to kids. In this book, McQuarrie Middle School has eliminated all specials and field trips to roll out FUNTIME, a brain-numbing program designed to raise test scores. Dwight is back at McQuarrie, and he and Origami Yoda form the Rebel Alliance to try to bring creativi...more I love that I just happened to read this book right after the state letter grades came out that rated our schools.  It made me feel better already. Angleberger shows us that the insanity that surrounds high stakes testing is hurtful to kids. In this book, McQuarrie Middle School has eliminated all specials and field trips to roll out FUNTIME, a brain-numbing program designed to raise test scores. Dwight is back at McQuarrie, and he and Origami Yoda form the Rebel Alliance to try to bring creativity, curiosity, and real learning back to the school. I've got kids eagerly waiting for me to put this on the shelf of my classroom library.  It's not going to stay there for long!    ADULT     #10 in the Award Winning Books Challenge   Behind the Beautiful Forevers by Katherine Boo   audio-book, award-winner, award-winning-books-challenge-2013, multicultural, narrative-nonfiction, nonfiction, nonfiction-challenge-2013, read, reading-gap-challenge-2013

 

 

 

I listened to this book, brilliantly narrated by Sunil Malhotra. Katherine Boo spent years researching this book, following the families of Annawadi, a slum near the Mumbai airport. While Boo's writing is incredible, the story itself is heartbreaking. Extreme poverty has made many people living in these decrepit conditions corrupt, selfish, and brutal. While some hold out hope and show great courage, others poison themselves with rat poisoning and light themselves on fire. I winced with horror a...more I listened to this book, brilliantly narrated by Sunil Malhotra. Katherine Boo spent years researching this book, following the families of Annawadi, a slum near the Mumbai airport. While Boo's writing is incredible, the story itself is heartbreaking. Extreme poverty has made many people living in these decrepit conditions corrupt, selfish, and brutal. While some hold out hope and show great courage, others poison themselves with rat poisoning and light themselves on fire. I winced with horror and grief many times throughout the narrative. This book is certainly eye-opening to the tragedies of poverty and a corrupt government. Boo's writing is honest and unflinching. It always amazes me when I think of how a place of birth completely shapes a life, and we continually take for granted how blessed we are who are born into a free and wealthy society.    I was in Richmond, VA this weekend, celebrating my aunt's 80th birthday.  It was a wonderful celebration!  I usually feature what my immediate family is reading, but today, I'm going to share what I noticed my extended family was reading.  I love that when my family gets together, we talk about what we're reading!   My aunt was reading for her book club:     My cousin's wife was reading:     My other cousin's 7-year-old daughter (who is an amazing reader already!) was reading:    The first four Harry Potters She was also reading an adapted and heavily illustrated version of The Call of the Wild   My cousin:     My cousin's 16-year-old daughter:     My cousin's 16-year-old son (reading instructions for a game on the trip back):     My cousin's college kids were both talking about literature courses they're taking.   My mom:     So many books!  So little time!   I'm still listening to:     On deck for listening:     Currently reading:       This one is for book club.  I honestly don't know if I can get through it.  Stay tuned!   On deck: