Ricki

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? #IMWAYR 4/23/23

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It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?
Sharing Picture Books, Early Readers, Middle Grade Books, and Young Adult Books for All Ages!

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is a weekly blog hop co-hosted by Unleashing Readers and Teach Mentor Texts which focuses on sharing books marketed for children and young adults. 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.

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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Tuesday: Hooray for DNA! How a Bear and a Bug Are a Lot Like Us by Pauline Thompson & Greg Pizzoli

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

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Kellee

I am off this week! To learn more about any of these books, check out my read bookshelf on Goodreads.

Ricki

I reread Hey, Kiddo by Jarrett J. Krosoczka to teach it to my class. I haven’t read anything else because the end of the semester is so busy!

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Ricki

 

  • Reading: The Last Cuentista by Donna Barba Higuera
  • Listening: Ace of Spades by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé

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Tuesday: Maps for Penguins and Other Traveling Animals by Tracey Turner, Illustrated by Hui Skipp

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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

Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe

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Gender Queer
Author: Maia Kobabe
Published: May 28, 2019 by Oni Press

Goodreads Summary: In 2014, Maia Kobabe, who uses e/em/eir pronouns, thought that a comic of reading statistics would be the last autobiographical comic e would ever write. At the time, it was the only thing e felt comfortable with strangers knowing about em. Now, Gender Queer is here. Maia’s intensely cathartic autobiography charts eir journey of self-identity, which includes the mortification and confusion of adolescent crushes, grappling with how to come out to family and society, bonding with friends over erotic gay fanfiction, and facing the trauma of pap smears. Started as a way to explain to eir family what it means to be nonbinary and asexual, Gender Queer is more than a personal story: it is a useful and touching guide on gender identity—what it means and how to think about it—for advocates, friends, and humans everywhere.

Ricki’s Review: It has taken me a long time to acquire this book. I was on hold for ONE copy that the library had, and there were 126 people ahead of me. That’s the joy in public banning of books—they sell really well. I am always glad that the authors are making money off of the ridiculousness of book banning. Not surprisingly, the book is banned because it is a powerful story. Kobabe beautifully depicts eir memoir in a way that captivates readers. I am better for having read this book. It allowed me to feel as if I was living Kobabe’s story alongside em. 

Teachers’ Tools for Navigation:
PEN America’s Report
ALA’s Statistics
National Coalition Against Censorship
National Council of Teachers of English’s Intellectual Freedom Center

Discussion Questions: 

  • How did this memoir make you feel? What did you learn?
  • What is the role of gender in the book?
  • How do the images enhance your understanding of the story?
  • Why might people ban the book?

Flagged Page: 

Recommended For: 

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RickiSig

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? #IMWAYR 4/10/23

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It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?
Sharing Picture Books, Early Readers, Middle Grade Books, and Young Adult Books for All Ages!

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is a weekly blog hop co-hosted by Unleashing Readers and Teach Mentor Texts which focuses on sharing books marketed for children and young adults. 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.

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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Tuesday: Nic Blake and the Remarkables #1: The Manifestor Prophecy by Angie Thomas

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

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Kellee

It’s my week off! I’ll be back next Monday! To see what I’ve been reading, check out my read bookshelf on Goodreads.

Ricki

I am embarrassed to say that it took me this long to read Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe. I was number 127th on the wait list at the library, and I decided to wait patiently. It was well worth the wait. This is a powerful book, and I am better for having read it.

I really enjoyed Garvey’s Choice: The Graphic Novel by Nikki Grimes, Illustrated by Theodore Taylor III. I really connected with this book and felt like many of Garvey’s interests and thoughts reflected my own. I can’t wait for my son to read this one.

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Ricki

  • Rereading: Hey, Kiddo by Jarrett J. Krosoczka (I am teaching it as part of a week that my students and I are discussing addiction.)
  • Reading: The Last Cuentista by Donna Barba Higuera
  • Listening: Ace of Spades by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé

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Thursday: Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe

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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

Messy Roots: A Graphic Memoir of a Wuhanese American by Laura Gao

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Messy Roots: A Graphic Memoir of a Wuhanese-American
Author: Laura Gao
Published: March 8, 2022 by Balzer + Bray

Goodreads Summary: After spending her early years in Wuhan, China, riding water buffalos and devouring stinky tofu, Laura immigrates to Texas, where her hometown is as foreign as Mars–at least until 2020, when COVID-19 makes Wuhan a household name.

In Messy Roots, Laura illustrates her coming-of-age as the girl who simply wants to make the basketball team, escape Chinese school, and figure out why girls make her heart flutter.

Insightful, original, and hilarious, toggling seamlessly between past and present, China and America, Gao’s debut is a tour de force of graphic storytelling.

Ricki’s Review: I read this book last year and immediately knew I wanted to use it in my class. It fit into so many topics that we discuss in class, and it is a powerful memoir. Gao offers a nuanced look at discrimination, specifically against Wuhanese Americans related to COVID-19, and she also offers insight into issues that many immigrants face in the US. I love the book description that she is trying to figure out “why girls make her heart flutter.” Gao’s sexuality is a part of the book, but it isn’t the plot driver. This normalization is important in literature, and I think readers expect that when a character is LGBTQ, it will be the main focus of the text. Instead, Gao’s life—told with a great level of humor, even when topics are tough—is depicted through images and words in a way that will connect with readers.

Teachers’ Tools for Navigation: It would be interesting to have students depict the themes of this book visually.

Discussion Questions: 

  • What are some of the themes of this text?
  • How does Gao integrate images and words to tell her story?
  • What aspects of this book connected with you?
  • What did you learn about discrimination related to Wuhanese Americans?

Flagged Spreads: 

Recommended For: 

readaloudbuttonsmall classroomlibrarybuttonsmall closereadinganalysisbuttonsmall

RickiSig

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? #IMWAYR 3/27/23

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It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?
Sharing Picture Books, Early Readers, Middle Grade Books, and Young Adult Books for All Ages!

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is a weekly blog hop co-hosted by Unleashing Readers and Teach Mentor Texts which focuses on sharing books marketed for children and young adults. 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.

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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Tuesday: Trent’s Favorite Books He Read When He Was Eight

Sunday: Author Guest Post: “Every Child Needs Space to Play” by Mark Angelo, Author of Can We Play Baseball, Mr. DeMille?

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

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Kellee

This is my week off! To learn more about any of these books, check out my read bookshelf on Goodreads.

Ricki

A Thing Called Snow by Yuval Zommer is about two animals who are searching for snow. It’s a sweet book that my almost 4-year-old really loved.

I am so mad I didn’t know about this book sooner. It’s really cool! Milo’s Museum by Zetta Elliot tells the story of a child named Milo who doesn’t see herself in the museum, so she creates her own.

Goodbye Winter, Hello Spring by Kenard Pak is a beautiful story about the changing of seasons.

I reread Promise Boys by Nick Brooks to teach it to my class last week. They absolutely love it, and so do I!

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Ricki

I am reading Squire by Nadia Shammas and Sara Alfageeh. I am excited because I’ve heard it is great!

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Tuesday: Student Voices: Christina Diaz Gonzalez’s Visit to Kellee’s Middle School

Thursday: Messy Roots: A Graphic Memoir of a Wuhanese-American by Laura Gao

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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 3/13/23

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It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?
Sharing Picture Books, Early Readers, Middle Grade Books, and Young Adult Books for All Ages!

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is a weekly blog hop co-hosted by Unleashing Readers and Teach Mentor Texts which focuses on sharing books marketed for children and young adults. 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.

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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Tuesday: Ring of Solomon by Aden Polydoros

Thursday: Blog Tour, Giveaway, and Author Guest Post!: “Let Nonfiction Sing” by Margarita Engle, Author of Destiny Finds Her Way: How a Rescued Baby Sloth Learned to be Wild

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

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Kellee

I am off this week! To learn more about any of these books, check out my read bookshelf on Goodreads.

Ricki

My book club chose this (adult) book (What My Bones Know), and I thought it was a powerful memoir. Stephanie Foo shares how her abuse as a child led to C-PTSD (complex post-traumatic stress disorder). I learned a lot from her story.

Everyone’s been talking about this (also adult) book (The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V. E. Schwab), so I had to try it! I enjoyed it, but I felt like it was really long. It felt a bit repetitive in parts (but I suppose that’s the point of the story!).

I loved The Life and Crimes of Hoodie Rosen by Isaac Blum. It reminded me so much of my childhood! I liked the first three-quarters the most, and then there’s a turn in events, and I kind of hoped it hadn’t taken that direction. That said, I loved every minute of this book!

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Ricki

I am going to be rereading Promise Boys by Nick Brooks because my class is reading it! I’ve linked my previous review!

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Tuesday: Global by Eoin Colfer and Andrew Donkin, Illustrated by Giovanni Rigano

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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 2/27/23

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It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?
Sharing Picture Books, Early Readers, Middle Grade Books, and Young Adult Books for All Ages!

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is a weekly blog hop co-hosted by Unleashing Readers and Teach Mentor Texts which focuses on sharing books marketed for children and young adults. 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.

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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Tuesday: I Don’t Care by Julie Fogliano, Illustrated by Molly Idle and Juana Martinez-Neal

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

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Kellee

I’m off this week; I’ll see you next week for my update 🙂

To learn more about any of books I read, check out my read bookshelf on Goodreads.

Ricki

I had to take the week off. I’ll return in two weeks!

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Tuesday: Educators’ Guide for The Marvellers by Dhonielle Clayton

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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