Unleashing Readers

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? #IMWAYR 2/5/18

February 11, 2018February 5, 2018 by Kellee

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? From Picture Books to YA!

It’s Monday! What are you Reading? is a meme started by Sheila at Book Journeys and now hosted by Kathryn at The Book Date. It is a great way to recap what you read and/or reviewed the previous week and to plan out your reading and reviews for the upcoming week. It’s also a great chance to see what others are reading right now…you just might discover the next “must-read” book!

Kellee and Jen, of Teach Mentor Texts, decided to give It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? a kidlit focus. If you read and review books in children’s literature – picture books, chapter books, middle grade novels, young adult novels, anything in the world of kidlit – join us! We love this meme and think you will, too.

We encourage everyone who participates to support the blogging community by visiting at least three of the other book bloggers that link up and leave comments for them.

Last Week’s Posts

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

Tuesday: Books We Can’t Believe We’ve Read

Thursday: Guest Review!: Forest of a Thousand Lanterns by Julie C. Dao

Last Week’s Journeys

Kellee

I am so glad that I finally picked up a Gae Polisner book! The Memory of Things is such a special book. It is so much more than just a time machine back to one of the worst days in our history, it is a look at the human spirit.
I am officially done with the published Whatever After books! I love them still; I think Abby and Jonah are such fun kids and their adventures teach such great lessons amidst crazy plots.
Rebels by Accident by Patricia Dunn was recommended to me by a student of mine that is in my class for the second year. She begged and begged for me to read it so she could talk to me about it, and I am so glad I finally did. She is from Egypt, and I can definitely see why this book is special for her. She really only had one concern about the book’s representation of her country; other than that, she (and I!) loved it though we were left wanting more of Miriam’s story.

For this season, Jim, Trent, and I have season tickets to the Orlando Philharmonic’s Storytime Symphony which is every couple of months. This last storytime presentation focused on jazz music, and we were read the story The Jazz Fly by Matthew Gollub, and we were so lucky to have the author there to read to us. We enjoyed it so much that we bought a copy to listen to in our car.
The first Storytime Symphony of the season, in December, was Paddington, so after we listened to The Jazz Fly, I found some Paddington audiobooks through our library to listen to.
In the car on the way to school, we have continued listening to an audiobook every morning. The new ones we’ve listened to recently are Never Play Music Right Next to the Zoo by John Lithgow and King Bidgood’s in the Bathtub by Audrey Wood. The first was a new to me book as well, and it is pretty funny, with a great rhyme & rhythm, and loved the inclusion of a variety of animals. King Bidgood is a book that we read often when I was a kid; however, we had a different audiobook than the one that came with our copy. I wish I could find one that was the same because I can still hear it in my head. This new audiobook adds extra things to the story which, in my opinion, it doesn’t need.

Ricki

I’ve been working on coding data this week. Because I’ve been staying up until 2/3 am each night, I haven’t been able to read as much. I am excited to check out your blogs and see what you all are reading!

I REREAD Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz for the fifth time. Gosh, I love that book so much. I am looking forward to teaching it tomorrow afternoon. If history repeats itself, it will surely be a great class. 🙂

The boys and I read A Color of His His Own by Leo Lionni. I enjoy his books. They are fun to read and colorful. He reminds me a bit of Eric Carle.

This Week’s Expeditions

Kellee

After the Whatever After series, I made quite a drastic change, and I am now listening to Prisoner B-3087. Alan Gratz just is so talented at tying story and history; however, I will tell you that I have to emotionally be ready to listen to it.
Ink by Alice Broadway is such a unique concept, and I cannot wait to share more with you when I finish it.

Ricki

A third of my class is reading Whale Talk next week, and I am excited to be facilitating their group conversation! I will definitely be reading it to prepare!

Upcoming Week’s Posts

Tuesday: Books That Have Been on our TBR List the Longest

Wednesday: History’s Mysteries by Kitson Jazynka

Friday: SuperPowers!: A Great Big Collection of Awesome Activities, Quirky Questions, and Wonderful Ways to See Just How Super You Already Are by M.H. Clark

Sunday: Author Guest Post!: “Art in Stories” by Nancy K. Lodge, Author of Mona Lisa’s Ghost (Lucy Nightingale #2)

So, what are you reading?

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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Forest of a Thousand Lanterns by Julie C. Dao

February 1, 2018 by Ricki

Forest of a Thousand Lanterns
Author: Julie C. Dao
Published: October 10, 2017 by Philomel

Guest Review by Kaari von Bernuth

Goodreads Summary: An East Asian fantasy reimagining of The Evil Queen legend about one peasant girl’s quest to become Empress–and the darkness she must unleash to achieve her destiny.

Eighteen-year-old Xifeng is beautiful. The stars say she is destined for greatness, that she is meant to be Empress of Feng Lu. But only if she embraces the darkness within her. Growing up as a peasant in a forgotten village on the edge of the map, Xifeng longs to fulfill the destiny promised to her by her cruel aunt, the witch Guma, who has read the cards and seen glimmers of Xifeng’s majestic future. But is the price of the throne too high?

Because in order to achieve greatness, she must spurn the young man who loves her and exploit the callous magic that runs through her veins–sorcery fueled by eating the hearts of the recently killed. For the god who has sent her on this journey will not be satisfied until his power is absolute.

Kaari’s Review: The entire time, I wasn’t entirely sure if the protagonist was the hero or the villain. And, that isn’t necessarily a bad thing! I appreciated this book because it made me think. I’d be cheering for Xifeng and wanting her to win, and then she’d do an awful thing to help her win, and I’d be repulsed by her. This book highlights the struggle of ambition, and how difficult it is for a woman to achieve the dreams she has. And, while I am off put by Xifeng’s methods and don’t necessarily think they were the right decisions, her actions and the way she achieves power could spark great discussions.

The setting and the plot of this book was thrilling, and I Ioved the way that fantasy was woven into a world so seamlessly. The creatures and ideas introduced were thought provoking and had amazing descriptions that made me feel like I was living in the enchanted world with the characters. I do wish that there had been some more resolution regarding some of the magical beings and the warnings they gave, but I think that Dao intends for this to be the first in a series, and I’m sure that more resolution will come in later novels.

Teachers’ Tools for Navigation: I would definitely include this book in a classroom library for kids to check out if they want to read it. However, while this book is interesting, and explores an interesting take on female empowerment, I don’t think I would teach this book in a classroom setting, or use it in literature circles. I am a huge advocate for female empowerment, and discussing the paths for women to claim their power. However, I think that because Xifeng’s methods were so morally questionable, and readers aren’t sure if Xifeng is a hero or a villain, that Forest of a Thousand Lanterns is not the best novel to discuss for this topic. There are many other books that discuss female empowerment in a much more productive light. So, I’d include it in a classroom library, but not necessarily teach it in any way.

Discussion Questions: Do you think Xifeng’s methods were justifiable?; What does the social hierarchy look like in this novel?; Is Xifeng a hero or a villain in this story?; What is the effect of portraying a strong female protagonist in this way?; How is the fantasy world characterized?

We Flagged: “‘I’m a good man, Xifeng. I let you have your own way and speak your mind…’

‘You think I don’t know that? That I’m so blind and stupid?’

‘Yes, I do!’ he shouted, his face bright red. ‘I offer you the world…’

‘Yes, the world as you see it!’

‘I saved you from that evil woman!’

‘Only to trap me yourself.’ She watched him turn away and run a trembling hand over his head. ‘I was Guma’s, and now you want me to be yours. I have my own soul and my own destiny, and I’m tired of belonging to someone else’” (Advanced Reader Copy p. 125).

Read This If You Loved: Monstress by Marjorie M. Liu; Gunpowder Alchemy by Jeannie Lin; Girls Made of Snow and Glass by Melissa Bashardoust

Recommended For:

**Thank you to Kaari for reviewing this book!**

Top Ten Tuesday: Books We Can’t Believe We Read

January 30, 2018 by Ricki

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish and is now hosted at That Artsy Reader Girl. This feature allows us to make lists, which may be one of our favorite things to do!

Today’s Topic: Ten Books We Can’t Believe We Read

Ricki

1. Les Misérables by Victor Hugo

It took me a long time to get through this book. I think I read it in year two of the blog. It was on my “currently reading” section of the IMWAYR post for a solid four months. I was teaching high school at the time, and I remember a student saying, “How are you still reading that?” I took a lot of breaks, but I finished it. Finally.

2. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

I listened to this book on audio. As a tip, if you want to read this book, get it in print. It is incredibly difficult to understand Ray Bradbury’s voice.

3. A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

I have read several Charles Dickens books. I really want to enjoy them, but I find them very difficult to enjoy for whatever reason. I read this book on my honeymoon, too. Ha!

4. All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque

I read this in high school and loathed it. I wonder if I’d like it as an adult?

5. A Certain Book with “Grey” In Its Title

My only memory of this book was that it was ridiculous. There was one paragraph in which 8 sentences in a row started with “I.” This was a trendy book, though, so I decided it was in my best interest to read it. My husband made fun of me relentlessly. Needless to say, I had no interest in seeing the movies when they came out.

Kellee

I’m taking this post topic as, “OMG! I cannot believe I finished it! Yay me!” These are all books that I read during my literature degree that I was so proud of myself for finishing!

1. The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner

If you have read Faulkner, you know how tough his style is! This was my first exposure, and I was so proud of reading it.

2. Tender is the Night by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Although I ended up liking The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald is not my thing. I really love Hemingway’s bluntness and dialogue while Fitzgerald is a bit wordy for me. I had trouble finishing this novel, but was glad I did when I was finished.

3. The Prince by Machiavelli

Reading a book that some terrible people feel is the most important book ever is a bit tough.

4. The Monk by Matthew Lewis

I took a Gothic Literature class, and I ended up loving so much of what we read in that class with The Monk probably being my favorite. Super scandalous from 1796!

5. Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens

Like Fitzgerald, Dickens just isn’t my thing, but I ended up really loving Oliver Twist, and it actually started a huge research project for me looking at how prostitutes were written about and viewed in Victorian England.

Which books can you not believe that you read/finished?

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It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? #IMWAYR 1/29/18

January 29, 2018January 29, 2018 by Kellee

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? From Picture Books to YA!

We encourage everyone who participates to support the blogging community by visiting at least three of the other book bloggers that link up and leave comments for them.

Last Week’s Posts

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

Tuesday: Books We Liked A Lot But Cannot Remember Much About

Wednesday: Ellie, Engineer by Jackson Pearce

Thursday: Guest Review!: There’s Someone Inside Your House by Stephanie Perkins

Friday: Pandamonia by Chris Owens

Last Week’s Journeys

Kellee

I apologize for missing another Monday, but for personal reasons, I am taking this week off.

Ricki

You get me this week! Henry and I have been busy reading the Animal Crackers graphic novels. He likes to read graphic novels lately, and I enjoy reading them, too!

We read the Circus Mayhem book tonight. It’s great!

I am so excited to be teaching History Is All You Left Me by Adam Silvera tomorrow. I’ve divided my class into thirds (I have two great interns), and we each are reading a text that features the theme of grief. This book is simply phenomenal for discussing this theme, and I am really looking forward to hearing what my students think about it!

This Week’s Expeditions

Ricki

I’m almost done with We Are Okay and The 57 Bus. I am loving them both!

Upcoming Week’s Posts

Tuesday: Books We Can’t Believe We’ve Read

Thursday: Guest Review!: Forest of a Thousand Lanterns by Julie C. Dao

So, what are you reading?

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Pandamonia by Chris Owens

January 26, 2018 by Kellee

Pandamonia
Author: Chris Owen
Illustrator: Chris Nixon
Published 2017 by Kane Miller Books

Summary: Here’s something to remember: when visiting the zoo, whatever you do, DON’T WAKE THE PANDA!

Join in the fantastic fun of Chris Owen and Chris Nixon’s Pandamonia, as one could-be-grumpy-if-woken-up sleeping panda sets off a frenzy of wild partying.

There’s grunting and growling and prancing and prowling and … so much more in this rollicking, rhyming text. It is so filled with energetic art and action and noise and alliteration that it just begs to be read aloud.

There is a playfulness, a rhythm and an energy to both the text and the illustrations, a cumulative growing and building of words and pictures, plus a whole bunch of animals you might never have seen in a picture book before. And the hilarity will have listeners and readers on their feet!

This is one for story time, or anytime!

Review: This picture book quickly became a regular in our reading because my son is just a bit obsessed with animals and there is such a wide variety introduced and shared in this title. Sometimes we read all the way through and just have fun with it while other times we look up the animals and find them in the pictures and find videos of the sounds they make. A different experience each time. And with the party-filled pages and colorful illustrations, every experience is fun.

Teachers’ Tools for Navigation: This book will be such a fun read aloud! The illustrations are really colorful, the text is alliterative with a ton of onomatopoeias, and there’s lots of fun to be had! In addition to alliteration and sound words, it can also be a way to talk about animals or zoos.

Discussion Questions:

How did the author use the word pandemonium and panda as a premise to his book?
What animals did the author include that you didn’t know?
What type of medium do you think the illustrator used to make the illustration?
How did the author use onomatopoeias and alliteration in the story?
What do you think will happen if the panda gets woken up?!?!

Flagged Passages:

Read This If You Love: Du Iz Tak? by Carson Ellie, Nothing Rhymes with Orange by Adam Rex, The Curious Case of the Missing Mammoth by Ellie Hattie, Hello Hippo! Goodbye Bird! by Kristyn Crow, Can Aardvark Bark? by Melissa Stewart, Other books about animals or zoos

Recommended For:

**Thank you to Lynn Kelly from Kane Miller for providing a copy for review!**

There’s Someone Inside Your House by Stephanie Perkins

January 25, 2018 by Ricki

There’s Someone Inside Your House
Author: Stephanie Perkins
Published: September 26, 2017 by Dutton

Guest Review by Kaari von Bernuth

Goodreads Summary: One-by-one, the students of Osborne High are dying in a series of gruesome murders, each with increasing and grotesque flair. As the terror grows closer and the hunt intensifies for the killer, the dark secrets among them must finally be confronted.

International bestselling author Stephanie Perkins returns with a fresh take on the classic teen slasher story that’s fun, quick-witted, and completely impossible to put down.

My Review: This book was gripping from the first page. I found myself getting sucked into it, trying to figure out the mystery of who the killer was, but also of what Makani’s past entailed. The author, Stephanie Perkins, did an amazing job of planting foreshadowing and clues that hinted toward the answers to the multiple mysteries that kept my brain working the entire time that I was reading.

I also loved the emphasis on friendship groups, feeling like an outsider, and bullying/hazing as many adolescents face these topics every day. The way that these topics were portrayed in Makani’s friend group, and the way that the friends help Makani to deal with her hazing trials were something that I appreciated. However, there were two things that I wish were approached differently in this book. 1. Even though this is a small point, one of the characters was a stereotypical, loud Christian character who tried to force his beliefs on everyone else, including a mention of how he managed to get rid of any mention of evolution in his school textbooks. He was characterized as a Lutheran. While this probably wouldn’t mean much to other people, I am a Lutheran, and all of the Lutherans I know believe and support evolution, and don’t at all act like this negative christian stereotype character does. But, this book makes it look like all Lutherans act this way. I wish that there had been no mention of the character’s denomination. 2. I wish that more emphasis had been placed on dealing with the deaths that occurred in the books, as well as the motivations of the killer, as those were both just glanced over. This is problematic as it leaves a huge hole in understanding of the novel, and makes it harder to talk about some of the prominent events in the story. Overall though, it was a very entertaining novel.

Teachers’ Tools for Navigation: This would be a great book to have in a classroom library for kids to enjoy. Given the graphic, violent nature of some of the scenes, I wouldn’t recommend teaching to an entire class. However, it will appeal to students who enjoy the horror genre. This book also has great potential in literature circles. Perkins does a great job of foreshadowing and giving hints not only as to what is going to happen, but to stories that have already happened that the readers don’t know about yet. As I was reading, I loved being able to piece together the clues that were given to try to guess what had happened and also what was going to happen. A literature circle could have a lot of fun trying to piece those clues together as a group. This book also touches on other important topics such as bullying/hazing and family struggles which could be discussed in a literature circle, as well as the elements of forgiving oneself/dealing with guilt (which Makani experiences as a result of the hazing incident). The one thing that I found this book lacking was any form of dealing/acknowledging grief and death, as well as an acknowledgement of mental health issues (which the killer would have to have). These failings in the book could also be discussed in relation as to how to acknowledge those topics in a healthy way.

Discussion Questions: Where do you see foreshadowing in the early parts of the books?; How does Perkins create suspense in her novel?; What is Makani’s relationship with her parents like?; What was Makani’s experience with hazing like? Have you experienced something similar?; How does blame and justice appear in this book? Is it always fair?

We Flagged: “Sharing her story now, however, had opened a valve of tremendous internal pressure. Her secret- this self-inflicted burden- had finally been released.” (page 207 of Advanced Reading Copy)

Read This If You Loved: The Merciless by Danielle Vega; Dead by Morning by Kayla Krantz; The Forest Dweller by Deborah McClatchey; Confessions: The Private School Murders by James Patterson

Recommended For:

**Thank you to Kaari for reviewing this book!**

Ellie Engineer by Jackson Pearce

January 24, 2018 by Kellee

Ellie Engineer
Author: Jackson Pearce
Published January 16th, 2018 by Bloomsbury USA

Summary: Ellie loves to build. She’s always engineering new creations with the help of her imagination and her best friend Kit. Unfortunately, with Kit’s birthday just around the corner, the French-braiding machine Ellie built turns out to be more of a hair-knotting machine. What’s Ellie going to do? Luckily, the girls overhear Kit’s mom talking about Kit’s surprise – it must be the dog she’s always wanted! Ellie is struck with inspiration: she’ll build Kit the best doghouse ever! The project quickly becomes more than just a present for Kit – it builds a bridge between Ellie and those bothersome neighbor boys, as well as the other handy girls in her class.

Designed to look like Ellie’s notepad, with pencil-on-graph-paper illustrations of her projects interspersed throughout the book, Ellie, Engineer inspires creative and crafty girls to get hands-on with their imagination. Ellie’s projects range from the simple (using a glass against a wall to amplify sounds), to the practical (the doghouse), to the fantastical (a bedroom security system featuring spikes) – encouraging readers to start small but think big. Ellie’s parents support her engineering experiments, with important safety tips sprinkled throughout, and her relationship with Kit is a glowing example of positive female friendship. They share their hobbies – Ellie likes to get her hands dirty, while Kit prefers ballet – reminding readers that there’s no wrong way to be a girl. Ellie’s hand-drawn tool guide at the end explains basic tools in accessible terms, rounding out this fun and funny adventure, and giving girls everything they need to be their own Ellie!

About the Author: Jackson Pearce lives in Atlanta, Georgia. She is the author of a series of teen retold fairy-tales, including Sisters Red, Sweetly, Fathomless, and Cold Spell, as well as two stand-alones, As You Wish and Purity. As J. Nelle Patrick, she is the author of Tsarina. In addition to The Doublecross and The Inside Job, her middle grade novels include Pip Bartlett’s Guide to Magical Creatures, co-written with Maggie Stiefvater. Visit her at www.jacksonpearce.com and @JacksonPearce (Twitter and Instagram).

Review: I so often hear stories from women my age that share that they loved science or nature or math when they were younger but that they were steered away from that those interests in little ways that they don’t even remember, but they do remember just not loving science anymore. This is exactly the scenario that has raised awareness in the need for STEM or STEAM books, programs, and role models for young girls. Ellie Bell is a perfect girl for this mission! Ellie wants to be an engineer when she grows up and even has her own workshop where her parents give her free reign to work on projects (with the safer tools–power tools require supervision). Pearce has even set up Ellie Engineer to include drawings and plans for Ellie’s projects to show readers how Ellie goes from an idea to a project. And Ellie’s story is one that all readers will connect with as well, so it is a win-win in narrative and STEM!

Teachers’ Tools for Navigation: Books like Ellie need to first be found more in classrooms and libraries. That is step one! After that, I think that using Ellie’s process for keeping track of her projects and how she brainstorms and plans could be an amazing exemplar for a classroom of students who are embarking on project-based learning.

Discussion Questions:

Which of Ellie’s projects would you build?
How has the way Ellie’s parents parented helped Ellie become the engineer she is?
How did Ellie’s assumptions about the boys in her neighborhood stop her from seeing their real personalities?
What does Toby teach us in the story? The Presidents? Kit?
Compare and contrast Kit’s mom and Ellie’s mom.

Flagged Passages:

Ellie’s plan for building her friend a dog house:

Read This If You Love: Ellie Ultra by Gina Bellisario; Juana and Lucas by Juana Medina; Bea Garcia by Deborah Zemke; Cody and the Fountain of Happiness and Cody and the Mysteries of the Universe by Tricia Springstubb; Upside-Down Magic by Sarah Mlynowski, Lauren Myracle, and Emily Jenkins; The Trouble With Ants by Claudia Mills;Lola series by Christine Pakkala; Salem Hyde series by Frank Cammuso; Here’s Hank series by Henry Winkler and Lin Oliver; Bramble and Maggie series by Jessie Haas; Flora & Ulysses by Kate DiCamillo; Eleanor series by Julie Sternberg

Recommended For:

**Thank you to Casey at Media Masters and to Bloomsbury for providing a copy for review!**