Kellee

Kellee’s 2025 Reading Recap & Stats

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And just for fun: here is Trent’s 2024 Year in Books!

Here are my five star reads from 2025:

Middle Grade

Alone by Megan E. Freeman
Giant Rays of Hope by Patricia Newman
The Liars Society: A Secret Escape by Alyson Gerber
Not Nothing by Gayle Forman
The Deadly Fates: A Conjourer Novel (Marvellers #3) by Dhonielle Clayton
Trials of Apollo #1: The Hidden Oracle and #5: The Tower of Nero by Rick Riordan
The Wild Robot Escapes and The Wild Robot Protects by Peter Brown
(I also reread The Giver, Gathering Blue, The Messenger, & Son by Lois Lowry and The Wild Robot by Peter Brown, all which are 5 star reads)

Young Adult

The Davenports by Krystal Marquis
Everything is Tuberculosis by John Green
The Fountains of Silence by Ruta Sepetys
The Great Misfortune of Stella Sedgwick by S. Isabelle
I Don’t Wish You Well by Jumata Emill
Red as Royal Blood by Elizabeth Hart
Sisters in the Wind by Angeline Boulley
Sunrise on the Reaping by Susanne Collins
Winterkeep by Kristine Cashore
(I also reread The Anthropocene Reviewed by John Green; Graceling & Fire by Kristen Cashore; and The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, & Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins, all which are 5 star reads.)

Happy reading in 2026, friends!!!
To see all the books I’m reading, visit my READ Goodreads shelf and feel free to follow 📖💙

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It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? #IMWAYR 1/12/26

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It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?
For readers of all ages

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is a weekly blog hop we host 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.

We encourage you to write your own post sharing what you’re reading, link up below, leave a comment, and support other IMWAYR bloggers by visiting and commenting on at least three of the other linked blogs.

Happy reading!

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We were on break, so no posts last week.

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Kellee

What I’ve read since 12/8:

Middle Grade

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  • The Curse Breaker (Isle of Ever #2) by Jen Calonita: I cannot really say much because it is a continuation of the story in book 1, but I can say that this is another book filled with mystery, clues, secrets, suspense, and villainy. But also another brutal cliffhanger! I’m ready for the 3rd book already!
  • A Risky Game (The Liars Society #2) & A Secret Escape (The Liars Society #3): This series just keeps getting better and better! Weatherby and Jack are still trying to figure out all that The Liars Society holds, including secrets, advantages, and more, and the reader gets to go along with them as they figure out more and more in these two books. And all books in this series are great, but the third one–SO GOOD!
  • Trapped in a Video Game by Dustin Brady: I listened to this when I needed a quick audiobook, and I am so glad I did because it is as fun as it looks and sounds. Lots of Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle vibes but also unique in its own way. A humorous adventure.
  • I Survived the Destruction of Pompeii, 79 A.D. by Lauren Tarshis: Though formulaic, I love how this series has grown interest in historical fiction books. This one tells the story of Marcus as he lives through the day that Pompeii is covered by Vesuvius. I’ve been wanting to read this since I visited Pompeii this summer, and I’m glad I did it after because I could picture much of what the book talked about.
  • Wonder Cat Kyuu-chan Vols 6, 7, & 8 by Sasami Nitori: This series is adorable. Kyuu-chan is one of my favorite manga cats!
  • The Taylors (#0.5) by Jen Calonita: Disclaimer: this series is obviously written for Swifties but can be enjoyed by anyone! The four protagonists are all named Taylor and all love Taylor Swift. What starts as bonding over their name and namesake leads to true friendship and hopefully tickets to the Eras tour.
  • Secrets of the Broken House by Taryn Souders: So many middle schoolers want to read murder mysteries, and Taryn Souders writes the perfect ones for them! In Secrets of the Broken House, Miss Geraldine is discovered dead by Tucker and he, with the help of his friends, want to figure out what happened. Since Miss Geraldine was mean to everyone, the suspect list is really long, but Tucker can’t let what he knows is a murder be ignored. (Published January 6th! Happy Book Birthday!!!)
  • The Case of the Scarlet Snakebite by Christyne Morrell: Amber is always looking for crimes to solve, even when there is no true crime, but when she overhears a phone conversation about a crime by someone staying at her bed and breakfast, she knows this time there is truly a crime, and she is going to be the one that solves it. But this crime is different than she guessed but still full of twists & turns. Another fun middle school mystery!

Young Adult

  • Sisters in the Wind by Angeline Boulley: Angeline Boulley has a way of telling stories that just are exceptional. She is truly an expert storyteller and writer. Like her other two books, which are companions to this one, the reader finds themselves within a mystery full of suspense. However, what I fall in love with while reading her books is her characters and their stories. Another brilliant book.
  • The Executioners Three by Susan Dennard: This story has so much going on in it: rivalry, pranks, romance, curses, legends, suspense, and murder all with the background of the late 1999s. If you’d told me that all of this could be in a book and it would work, I probably wouldn’t believe you, but this book is proof.
  • Powerless by Lauren Roberts: Hunger Games + a romantasy book + tropes we all know and love = an enjoyable read. I will definitely be reading more of the series because I have to see what happens.
  • A Story of Seven Lives by Gin Shirakawa: This is a cat manga that is not one of the funny and cute ones–it is full of trials and tribulations for our cats. Trent read this one and recommended it to me because he said it was emotional, and man, he was right.
  • Spy X Family Vols 12 & 13 by Tatsuya Endo: The main mission continues in the background, but these two volumes are about a spy threatening to expose Loid–will Twilight be able to stop him?!
  • The Taylors: Love Stories (#1) and The Taylors: Cruel Summer (#2) by Elizabeth Eulberg: These books are sequels to the middle grade book about the Taylors by Jen Calonita. While that book takes place in 5th grade, these take place during their first year of high school and look at friendships, relationships, and identity.

Adult

  • Meant to Be #3 (Kiss the Girl by Zoraida Córdova), #4 (Tangled Up in You by Christina Lauren), and #5 (Worth Fighting For by Jesse Q. Sutanto): I love this series for so many reasons but mainly I love how the author takes the Disney story and twists it to make a realistic, contemporary romance. It is so much fun to find the allusions to the original movies, and it is really interesting to see how the author makes it work. I loved reading these during break.
  • The Deserving: What the Lives of the Condemned Reveal About American Justice by Elizabeth Vartkessian: I devoured this book. It made me think so much and, I think, changed me forever.

And you can always learn more about any of the books I’ve been reading by checking out my read bookshelf on Goodreads.

Ricki

Happy New Year! I’ll catch you up on what I’ve been reading next week.

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Kellee

Reading: The Aftermyth by Tracy Wolff
Listening: The Art Thief: A True Story of Love, Crime, and a Dangerous Obsession by Michael Finkel

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Wednesday: Kellee’s 2025 Reading Recap & Stats and 2025 5 ⭐ Reads

Sunday: Author’s Guest Post: “Teaching Dual Perspectives Through Adventure Stories”
by Sarah Branson, Author of For the Love of Glitter & A Pirates’ Pact

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Link up below and go check out what everyone else is reading. Please support other bloggers by viewing and commenting on at least 3 other blogs. If you tweet about your Monday post, tag the tweet with #IMWAYR!

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It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? #IMWAYR 1/5/26

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It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?
For readers of all ages

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is a weekly blog hop we host 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.

We encourage you to write your own post sharing what you’re reading, link up below, leave a comment, and support other IMWAYR bloggers by visiting and commenting on at least three of the other linked blogs.

Happy reading!

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Link up below and go check out what everyone else is reading. Please support other bloggers by viewing and commenting on at least 3 other blogs. If you tweet about your Monday post, tag the tweet with #IMWAYR!

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It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? #IMWAYR 12/29/25

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It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?
For readers of all ages

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is a weekly blog hop we host 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.

We encourage you to write your own post sharing what you’re reading, link up below, leave a comment, and support other IMWAYR bloggers by visiting and commenting on at least three of the other linked blogs.

Happy reading!

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Link up below and go check out what everyone else is reading. Please support other bloggers by viewing and commenting on at least 3 other blogs. If you tweet about your Monday post, tag the tweet with #IMWAYR!

 Signature andRickiSig

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? #IMWAYR 12/22/25

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It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?
For readers of all ages

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is a weekly blog hop we host 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.

We encourage you to write your own post sharing what you’re reading, link up below, leave a comment, and support other IMWAYR bloggers by visiting and commenting on at least three of the other linked blogs.

Happy reading!

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Thursday: Sofia’s YA Book Nook: Author Recommendation!: Ruta Sepetys

**Click on any picture/link to view the post**

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Student Voices: Mark Oshiro’s Visit to Kellee’s Middle School

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This year, in addition to our yearly author visit that we’ll have in February (2026: Christina Diaz Gonzalez, 2025: George O’Connor, 2024: Jerry Craft, 2023: Christina Diaz Gonzalez, 2022: Nathan Hale, 2020: Neal Shusterman, 2019: Jennifer A. Nielsen), a colleague and I were lucky enough to win an auction for a full day visit from Mark Oshiro!

 

Mark spoke to students about being an author, writing for the Percy Jackson universe, hints and tricks for writing better dialogue, and hosted a Q&A session. Students in one presentation were even given a sneak peek of an upcoming novel!

Here are some reflections from my students after the visit.

How did the author visit impact you as a student & what was your biggest educational takeaway?

  • The visit motivated and inspired me to put my mind to my goals, because I got to see Mark as a kid wanting to be an author, and being a New York Times bestselling author.
  • It impacted me as a student by allowing me to get introduced into a new type of writing style and allow me to learn more aspects to the book writing process.
  • It made me want to go for my dreams.
  • It made feel confident about reading.
  • I learned more about writing that I didn’t know before.
  • Being able to meet and talk to someone as famous (and has worked with famous authors like Rick Riordan) one on one and learn from them as to what they do to be successful.
  • it made me realize how long it takes to write books and also two people can make a book together and how they make the book
  • I just feel as though I learned a lot and they were informative and helpful to me as a younger kid (like 8) who all I wanted to be was an author.
  • I think the author visit impacted me by teaching me there are always more options and it’s never to late to change and do your passion
  • I learned that if I chose to write or do anything in life you can’t just always blindly follow the rules and it’s important to always push boundaries
  • That it doesn’t matter where you start as long as you start somewhere.
  • what ever you dream is do it like when mark wrote a book when he was 11 and he is still writing books
  • Being able to learn how to properly make characters talk and also a lot of writing tips.
  • Everyone writes differently and there’s no specific set of rules
  • That it is ok to write about anything that represents you.
  • That writing a book is a long process and you can’t just sit down and write a good book in a day.

Why was this visit important? Why is it important and powerful to have an author visit our school?

  • For kids who may want to be authors to get inspiration.
  • The visit was important because because it can motivate kids dreams and a really fun thing to do. Overall, that day really made my month.
  • i personally think it is interesting to meet authors and hear about the reasons why they do what they do, and i often end up reading many more of their books after the visit
  • This visit was important because it helps to teach kids that things about being an author. Its powerful to have an author visit our school because it can help inspire kids that are doubting their talents and their ability to pursue a career in it. Seeing the perspective of someone who had a childhood dream to be an author, and ended up being successful gives students motivation and hope for their futures.
  • This visit was important because it allowed us to hear the background behind their stories. It’s important to have an author visit our school because it gives us that educational experience you wouldn’t normally get in class plus it comes with a long lasting memory.
  • It’s important because many students get inspired by authors and it gives students an understanding about the author’s books. Author visits encourage and influence kids.
  • It was important for inspiration and was also important for the author promote their book.
  • It was important to me because it can help make people feel better when their writing about something.
  • This visit was important because it allows us to learn about different perspectives and about things that we may have not heard of before. Having author visits at our school can be powerful because it could maybe allow someone to find out that they want to write or be an author.
  • To be able to hopefully inspire the kids to continue to read and write their way through life.
  • This visit was important because learning more about writing and being an author can inspire other kids to peruse with their older. It is very powerful to have an author visit our school because it inspires and it’s fun and different from every other day in the school year. I am so happy that our school does this!
  • Because it makes us understand why books are still important and because its so fun to be with a famous author and getting to know them.
  • it is a rare occasion and a great gift for authors to come to our school and trach us some stuff about writing books.
  • It is important to have an author visit because it encourages kids to learn about new authors they may like and encourages reading. It also is good for the author because they can possibly get good feedback from their own readers, especially younger people. I think it is important to have a STRONG author too, because then kids don’t get bored as easily, and it is more fun and exciting to come see this author, especially if they write books that are more common for middle schoolers to read, ex: Mark Oshiro.
  • I think the reason author visits are important because it shows that you have more options in life then you think and you don’t always have to go work an office job and it shows us that with hard work you can make your dreams come true.

What was your favorite part of the visit?

  • The Q & A part because Mark interacted with us in a way that was very nice!
  • My favorite part was when they talked about how they, with Rick Riordan, ended up writing the Nico series together.
  • Being able to see an authors perspective in general, and when they read us a part of new book that’s not published yet.
  • Mark was really funny.
  • I love being able to get to talk and get to know someone who has worked with someone as well known as Rick Riordan and also get a sneak peek into what secret projects their working on.
  • My favorite part was learning interesting facts about Mark because they are a cool and funny person.
  • Hearing Mark Oshiro talk about their experiences.

How did you like the visit overall?

  • Honestly I thought it was really fun and I had such a good time with my friends and listening to Mark Oshiro talk
  • I enjoyed it a lot and they were funny and relatable in some ways
  • i loved it, i learned a lot about Greek mythology and Percy Jackson. I loved Mark’s energy and the way they interacted.
  • It was really fun and I’m so grateful that I got to meet Mark Oshiro and get my book signed.
  • I really liked the visit it was very fun and interesting.
  • IT WAS AMAZINGG
  • I LOVED it! They were such a kind and relatable person.
  • I really liked the visit I think this is my favorite author visit I’ve been to.

As you can see from the comments and love, my students and I would highly recommend Mark for a school visit!

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It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? #IMWAYR 12/8/25

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It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?
For readers of all ages

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is a weekly blog hop we host 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.

We encourage you to write your own post sharing what you’re reading, link up below, leave a comment, and support other IMWAYR bloggers by visiting and commenting on at least three of the other linked blogs.

Happy reading!

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Kellee

I hope everyone enjoyed their end of November! The ALAN workshop was as amazing as always, though the icing on the cake is seeing my friends, including Ricki!

It has been almost a month since I have shared my reading, so I have a lot to share!

Middle Grade

 

  • The Sun and the Star: A Nico DiAngelo Adventure by Rick Riordan and Mark Oshiro: Nico and Will must face Tartarus to rescue a friend that Nico left behind the last time he was there. I loved getting to know Nico more in this book; he truly gets fleshed out and becomes his own person. And Mark Oshiro’s voice is a lovely addition! (I can’t wait to tell you on Wednesday all about Mark’s visit to my school.)
  • Control Freaks by J.E. Thomas: Doug wants to prove that being him and all that he loves is just as important as being an athlete, so when his school puts on a team competition for his school, he knows he has to win (even if his team is full of outcasts). Mixed with STEAM competition and family dynamics, Control Freaks is a story about underdogs taking on a challenge.
  • Alone by Megan E. Freeman: After sneaking out to stay at her grandmother’s apartment alone, Maddie wakes up to an abandoned town–everyone is gone. What follows is a story of Maddie learning to survive as she faces this terrifying new world alone.
  • Away by Megan E. Freeman: This is the companion to Alone where readers get to learn about why everyone left town. These companion books combine together to make such a fascinating dystopian story that I am so glad I read–such wonderful reads!
  • Abby in Neverland and Mirror, Mirror by Sarah Mlynowski: When I went to go read the last of the Whatever After series, I realized that I’d never read one of the special editions, so I started with it then read the series finale. I truly love this series: twisted fairy tales with extra adventures!

Young Adult

  • The Scammer by Tiffany D. Jackson: Like all of Tiffany Jackson’s books, this one is inspired by a real life event, but Tiffany adds to it in a way only she can. This one really creeped me out, but in a different way than her other books. The scam in the book is true manipulation and shows you how easily young people can be convinced of idiocracy.
  • Tell Me What Really Happened by Chealsea Sedoti: During the camping trip, Maylee, who planned the whole trip, disappears and is found dead. The police are interviewing her friends who were on the trip and it takes all of their points of view to find out what really happened, and it is so messed up!
  • Falling Like Leaves by Misty Wilson: This was a perfect romance book to read during autumn. It had so many fall vibes and a friends to enemies to lovers trope in a quaint Connecticut town–just a truly fun rom com read!
  • I Don’t Wish You Well by Jumata Emill: Five years after the a serial killer terrorized the football players in a town, a teen investigator believes that the individual who was blamed for the deaths was actually framed, so he starts a podcast to dig back into this case even though it is definitely not what anyone in the town wants. This intense read proves that sometimes you should trust your gut and push the norms because the truth is worth figuring out.
  • Red As Royal Blood by Elizabeth Hart: This is one of my favorite recent reads–it will probably end up on my favorite reads of 2025! The king dies after a long illness and leaves the kingdom to Ruby, a castle maid. When she enters his room (her room now), she finds a note sharing that if she was reading the note, the king had been murdered and she shouldn’t trust anyone! This begins an adventure filled with secrets, love, lies, and, of course, ball gowns!

And you can always learn more about any of the books I’ve been reading by checking out my read bookshelf on Goodreads.

Ricki

See you next week!

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Kellee

 

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Wednesday: Student Voices: Mark Oshiro’s Visit to Kellee’s School

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Link up below and go check out what everyone else is reading. Please support other bloggers by viewing and commenting on at least 3 other blogs. If you tweet about your Monday post, tag the tweet with #IMWAYR!

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