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 BOOKS

 

 

Maple & Willow Together by Lori Nichols

 

2014-book, conflict-and-resolution, family, picture-book,  sisters     I'm so glad Lori Nichols continued the story of Maple. Maple ended with our introduction to Willow, her baby sister. Despite a little conflict in the middle of the story, it makes me wish I had a sister!     Kid Sheriff and the Terrible Toads by Bob Shea, illustrated by Lane Smith   2014-book, dialect, humor, mock-caldecott-2015, model-for-writing, picture-book, setting, tall-tale   I laughed out loud and enjoyed this tall tale immensely. The Toad brothers are bringin' a heap of trouble upon Mayor McMuffin's desert town. Until hope rides into town. Slowly. On a tortoise. The new sheriff is the dinosaur expert, Ryan, a little boy with a big white hat. Ryan is convinced all the robbin' in this town has actually been done by dinosaurs. Kids will love how he ends up capturing the bad guys. This book has a lot of uses (besides pure enjoyment) in the intermediate grades - writing I laughed out loud and enjoyed this tall tale immensely. The Toad brothers are bringin' a heap of trouble upon Mayor McMuffin's desert town. Until hope rides into town. Slowly. On a tortoise. The new sheriff is the dinosaur expert, Ryan, a little boy with a big white hat. Ryan is convinced all the robbin' in this town has actually been done by dinosaurs. Kids will love how he ends up capturing the bad guys. This book has a lot of uses (besides pure enjoyment) in the intermediate grades - writing dialect, experimenting with sentence fragments, writing traditional lit with a twist, surprise endings, etc. Great addition to the ELA classroom!!     Sam & Dave Dig a Hole by Mac Barnett, illustrated by Jon Klassen     2012-book, 2014-book, dogs, journey, mock-caldecott-2015, picture-book, witty     This dynamic duo has done it again.  But why should I write a review about this amazing team's new book when you could read Travis Jonker's brilliant one?!      Hug Machine by Scott Campbell   2014-book, emotions, humor, love, picture-book   The Hug Machine hugs everything - you're never too big, too small, too square, or even too spiky - to hug. I love all the expressions on the characters getting hugged. Even the Hug Machine likes to be hugged. Little kids would love this book! It will make them laugh, and maybe even inspire them to do some more hugging.   YOUNG ADULT     Noggin by John Corey Whaley   2014-book, cancer, character-development, death, divorce-or-separation, friendship, lgbt, loss, love, mock-printz2015, reluctant-hero, romance, science, science-fiction, theme, young-adult-book     I didn't know what to expect of the crazy premise: a teenage boy has terminal cancer, but there is a possibility that if the doctors freeze his head, technology could be perfected enough to reattach his head to a healthy body donor in the future. So Travis and his parents agree - he would go through the procedure, and they would wait to see...five years later, they are able to do it, and Travis Coates is alive again, with a way better body than he had the first time around! Sounds ridiculous, do I didn't know what to expect of the crazy premise: a teenage boy has terminal cancer, but there is a possibility that if the doctors freeze his head, technology could be perfected enough to reattach his head to a healthy body donor in the future. So Travis and his parents agree - he would go through the procedure, and they would wait to see...five years later, they are able to do it, and Travis Coates is alive again, with a way better body than he had the first time around! Sounds ridiculous, doesn't it?! Well, Whaley somehow manages to make it sound believable, complete with all the normal young adult material - heartbreaking romance, changing friendships, teen angst, family struggles, the pain of growing up, etc. It's tender, funny, and compelling. There would be so much to talk about in the high school grades around this book - science, spirituality, truth, mortality, illness, family, home, change, etc. I highly recommend it!   CURRENTLY LISTENING TO:       CURRENTLY READING     What are YOU reading this week?