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.

 

I haven't posted in a month, so I'm catching up!!  I would normally read a lot more in a month, but my life has been CRAZY busy lately!

 

PICTURE BOOKS

 

 

Home by Carson Ellis

 

2015-book, family, home, mock-caldecott-2016, picture-book       I love the thick pages and muted colors of this book about all types of homes. Gorgeous, sometimes whimsical (Atlantian homes, hollow tree homes, sea homes, and a Moonian home), illustrations accompany spare text. I could see this as being a great addition to my HOME/FAMILY unit and having kids not only describe and illustrate their own homes, but imagine someone's else's home, also. This book reminds me a little of Ted Kooser and Jon Klassen's House Held Up By Trees.   My Pen by Christopher Myers   2015-book, art, creativity, imagination, mock-caldecott-2016, picture-book   The power of the pen! Whether it be writing, art, or any other creative expression, this book encourages readers to make something and let their imagination soar. Beautiful pen and ink illustrations.       Special Delivery by Philip C. Stead, illustrated by Matthew Cordell   2015-book, animals, bookaday2015, family, humor, kindness, mock-caldecott-2016 What a winning combination - Philip C. Stead and Matthew Cordell!! Stead's sweet and humorous story about Sadie sending "mail" to Great-Aunt Josephine to keep her company is made even sweeter and funnier by Cordell's energetic, quirky illustrations. I love the endearing quality of Cordell's work - I'm a big fan! Embedded in this story are the values of kindness, kept promises, and dedication to family.     Mouse & Frog by Deborah Freedman   2015-book, animals, books-for-children-about-writing, character-traits, character-who-writes, conflict-and-resolution, creativity, friendship, mice, mock-caldecott-2016, picture-book, writing-connections   So cute! Deborah Freedman is able to capture expression, personality, and friendship so perfectly in her words and illustrations. This would be the perfect book to teach collaboration, creativity, cooperation, conflict and resolution, and character traits. Love it!                   Yard Sale by Eve Bunting, illustrated by Lauren Castillo   2015-book, bookaday2015, family, home, love, mock-caldecott-2016, moving, picture-book This one really tugged at my heartstrings. Eve Bunting and Lauren Castillo capture a young girl's heartbreak at having to move and sell things that are important to her, but realizing it's family that really matters.     Wolfie the Bunny by Ame Dyckman, illustrated by Zachariah OHora   2015-book, animals, bunnies, character-development, family, humor, identity, mock-caldecott-2016, picture-book, siblings     Adorable. Hilarious. Sweet. Kids will LOVE this one.  Dot will especially make them laugh.     Last Stop on Market Street by Matt de la Pena, illustrated by Christian Robinson   2015-book, character-development, diversity, empathy, grandparents, kindness, mock-caldecott-2016, multicultural, picture-book, point-of-view,social-responsibility, weneeddiversebooks   "He wondered how his nana always found beautiful where he never even thought to look." This is a beautiful story of a grandmother teaching her grandson about beauty, social responsibility, and appreciating life. CJ's and his grandmother's differences in perspective throughout the book until the end reminded me of Lauren Castillo's Nana in the City. Loved the illustrations, also - the city's people are full of diversity. CJ's grandmother helps him learn to appreciate the differences. The spotted dog is adorable.   YOUNG ADULT     Mosquitoland by David Arnold   2015-book, audio-book, character-development, character-traits, coming-of-age, divorce-or-separation, family, friendship, humor, journey, mental-illness, mock-printz-2016,   young-adult-book       “When you were born, you cried while the world rejoiced. Live your life so that when you die, the world cries while you rejoice.” I listened to this one, and now I'd like to go back and read the print version. I loved Mim's acidic but lovable, humorous, and smart voice. This is a journey story, and the characters reminded me a lot of John Green's characters. Mim meets good, quirky characters along the way. I thought Arnold captured the complications of mental illness and medication well. I enjoy “When you were born, you cried while the world rejoiced. Live your life so that when you die, the world cries while you rejoice.” I listened to this one, and now I'd like to go back and read the print version. I loved Mim's acidic but lovable, humorous, and smart voice. This is a journey story, and the characters reminded me a lot of John Green's characters. Mim meets good, quirky characters along the way. I thought Arnold captured the complications of mental illness and medication well. I enjoyed this story, and I think teens will love it. I'm watching this one as a strong Printz contender.       Bone Gap by Laura Ruby   2015-book, abandonment, beauty-issues, brothers, bullying, characters-with-disabilities, kidnapping, magical-realism, mock-printz-2016,  romance, strong-girl-character, teenage-sex, young-adult-book   I wanted to like this book so badly because of the Nerdy Book Club love, but instead, I thought it was creepy and disturbing. A creepy and disturbing book doesn't always turn me off, but this one left me feeling uneasy and icky and would hesitate to give it to a teen - at least, a young teen. With that being said, I recognize the excellent writing and thought the exploration of Finn's disability (to name it would be a spoiler) was fascinating. I also thought the story brought up interesting aspe I wanted to like this book so badly because of the Nerdy Book Club love, but instead, I thought it was creepy and disturbing. A creepy and disturbing book doesn't always turn me off, but this one left me feeling uneasy and icky and would hesitate to give it to a teen - at least, a young teen. With that being said, I recognize the excellent writing and thought the exploration of Finn's disability (to name it would be a spoiler) was fascinating. I also thought the story brought up interesting aspects of what beauty is and how people view anomalies. Furthermore, Roza and Petey are characters that make excellent book club discussions. When I read the acknowledgments, I had to chuckle at Franny Billingsley's "I want more magic" feedback. I think that's exactly what I wanted less of - I'm clearly in the minority though!   ADULT     At Water's Edge by Sara Gruen     2015-book, adult, adult-fiction, audio-book     I was really looking forward to reading another book by Water for Elephants author, Sara Gruen. I LOVED Water for Elephants! I was a little disappointed by this one, though. There seemed to be many comparisons with The Great Gatsby (which was not the problem - I loved The Great Gatsby)- the inane wealthy lives, the threesome (I even thought of You, Me, and Dupree), the betrayals, etc. Lots of dysfunction and family feuds. Those can all be parts of a great story, but overall, it fell flat for me. I was really looking forward to reading another book by Water for Elephants author, Sara Gruen. I LOVED Water for Elephants! I was a little disappointed by this one, though. There seemed to be many comparisons with The Great Gatsby (which was not the problem - I loved The Great Gatsby)- the inane wealthy lives, the threesome (I even thought of You, Me, and Dupree), the betrayals, etc. Lots of dysfunction and family feuds. Those can all be parts of a great story, but overall, it fell flat for me. There wasn't one character I liked or cheered on. I did like the idea of hunting for the Loch Ness Monster, but there wasn't a whole lot about that. It'll be interesting to talk about it at book club. I'll be interested to see what others have to say about it.     God's Story, Your Story: When His Becomes Yours by Max Lucado     I read this book because I'll be co-teaching an upcoming online class at my church on John Eldredge's book, Epic: The Story God is Telling. They are excellent companion books, and both authors urge us to take a look at our own story within God's larger story. We are a part of His story, and He is a part of ours. It gives one a great sense of purpose and meaning. I was very touched by the ending of this one - Lucado's graduation analogy. CURRENTLY READING AND LISTENING TO        Off to read what YOU read this week!