It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? 9/30/13

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

It’s Monday! What are you Reading? is a meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journeys. 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!

Jen Vincent, of Teach Mentor Texts, and Kellee 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

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stained ALA Freadom Slide 2013 (2) storiesformylittlesister

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

 

Last Week’s Journeys

Kellee: This last week, I had the pleasure of reading The Real Boy by Anne Ursu. I can see now why everyone is raving about the book; it deserves all of the recognition it is getting. Although it was a single book week, it was a wonderful single book!

Ricki: This week, I listened to the I Am the Messenger audiobook. I love Markus Zusak, and I really thought I would love this one. I found the storyline to be very sweet and the book’s message to be good, but it felt a bit slow to me. Ed’s adventures became a bit repetitive for me, and perhaps I would have enjoyed the book more if I wasn’t listening to it.

This Week’s Expeditions

Kellee: This week I plan on reading Jedi Academy by Jeffrey Brown. I actually saw a student reading this at school and began talking to her about Jeffrey Brown books. When she found out I hadn’t read this one, she brought it to me when she finished so I could borrow it. I look forward to talking to her about it.

I also have a pile of picture books we are going to review soon that I want to read and I cannot wait! The pile includes Penguin on Vacation and Bogart and Vinnie—both picture books I have been waiting to read.

Ricki: I am reading several books at once. I have about 50 pages left of The Spectacular Now by Tim Tharp, which is very fun. It reminds me very much of The Catcher in the Rye. I am still listening to Annexed by Sharon Dogar on my rides to and from work. I am slowly pounding my way through the 2014 Printz list on GoodReads’ Listopia. I want to be prepared! Anyone have any predictions?

Upcoming Week’s Posts

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grumbles journey ol mama

 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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Website: Stories for My Little Sister

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A couple of months ago, I was introduced to a wonderful website and today I wanted to share this site with you as I think it is a great resource and would be a lot of fun to use at home and in the classroom. 

storiesformylittlesister

At Stories for My Little Sister, two sisters, Samantha and Diana, share stories that Samantha writes that are illustrated by Diana. These stories are all so much fun! Each story includes a fun animal such as Pink Ethel the elephant and Moochie the turtle. David Goes Green, a story about a goldfish, is written in rhyme, My Friend Stinky, about a skunk, is about friendship. Each story has something that makes it special.

My favorite part of the site, though, is probably Harrison’s Blog. Harrison is a hamster and his blog is filled with his stories and opinions. As Harrison says, “The opinions I express on my blog are my own. I don’t want you to think that I represent hamsters in general. Well, I couldn’t, because I am totally and utterly unique and I could not possibly know what another hamster might be thinking. More importantly, I don’t represent gerbils at all. I could not, in any way, shape or form, even attempt to represent gerbils. That is because I am not a gerbil. I am a hamster!”  I love the idea of taking a character and having a blog for him/her is such a great activity for a classroom and Harrison’s Blog would be a wonderful mentor text for showing an example.

After being introduced to “Stories for My Sister,” I was so interested in learning more. Because of that, after being in touch with Samantha and Diana, came up with a Q&A to learn more about this site:

Unleashing Readers: I love that when you both were younger Samantha used to tell Diana her stories. What is Diana’s favorite story that Samantha used to tell her? What was Samantha’s favorite story to tell?

When we were little     Now we are grown up

Samantha: I’m not sure exactly how it came about, but a long time ago, I started telling Diana that she was an alien from a faraway planet.

Diana: And I loved it!

S: She really did.

D: I must’ve been about two years old…

S: Anyway, the story started from there, and it’s been growing ever since. Her real name is Hora, she’s from a cuboid planet called Horic (its edges kept perfect as all the inhabitants take turns to sand them), and you can fall off – that’s how she got here in the first place.

D: And you can get pushed!

S: I’ve told Diana a lot of stories over the years – I don’t think I could ever stop – but there is and always has been a comfort in visiting Horic every so often and remembering an old adventure or spinning a new one. We’d love to turn it into a book someday.

D: It’ll have to be a series! And I want to put some real science in there, too…


UR: Tell us more about your childhood. Did you both always know you were going to be an author and an artist?

S: No, not at all. When I was a little kid, I wanted to be a doctor! Storytelling was just something that I always did. The themes of my stories tended to be a few steps removed from my real life, yet imbued with my day-to-day thoughts and feelings. I’ve always loved animals, so I guess that’s why they feature so heavily.

D: I had lot of dreams as I was growing up. I wanted to be a cartoonist – but I also wanted to be part of the crew on the Starship Enterprise! One of my earliest memories of school is of being given a sheet of paper and told to draw a picture. We could draw anything we wanted. I had a red crayon and I drew a page full of random red dots. I remember very clearly how much I enjoyed creating that picture and how pleased I was with it. I still get that feeling when one of my drawings or paintings works out the way I plan.


UR: Tell me a bit about your background as an author (Samantha) and artist (Diana).

S: I have to say that when people call me an author, I tend to turn around to see who’s standing behind me! I studied psychology at university, but somehow ended up in a series of admin-related jobs. My stories – their invention, revision, telling and retelling – have always been my escape, and ideas are constantly bubbling away in my head. Sometimes there’ll be a theme I want to explore; sometimes a character seems to materialize in my mind, fully formed; sometimes it all starts with a snatch of text that I know fits perfectly somewhere. Perhaps the term ‘storyteller’ is a better fit for me.

D: I have always loved creating art. When I was about twelve years old, my mother noticed what she thought was a little spark of talent and bought me a beginner’s set of oil paints. I just sort of experimented and taught myself, trying out new media as I went along. I don’t have a formal art education: I studied physics at university and worked on space missions for many years, but painting and drawing have always been a big part of my life. In the last few years, with encouragement from friends and family, I began selling my fine art and am now represented by a couple of galleries online.


UR: What made you two decide to combine your forces and make Stories for My Little Sister?

S: Well, having a website was very much Diana’s idea.

D: Yes, and I started work on setting it up on my own at first, but Samantha has a habit of nosing around to see what I’m up to (by the way, Samantha, that’s annoying!) and when she found out…

S: I was happy, but with tears in my eyes!

D: But then she washed her face, rolled up her sleeves and got to work with me to get our website online. I don’t think we ever really decided to join forces as such…

S: It was more something that grew naturally out of what we had always enjoyed doing. It would have been great if we’d had the Web when we were growing up…

D: We’re older than the World Wide Web!


UR: Tell me a bit about the mission behind Stories for my Little Sister.

S&D: We didn’t really have what you’d call a mission when we set out on this journey, building the website, just a love of writing and illustrating together that started in childhood and a spark of hope that maybe there were kids out there who might enjoy our stories.

At the end of our journey, if we were to find ourselves able to say that we’d left some stories in this world that made kids happy, that would be enough; if we were able to say that we’d created a website that made our enthusiasm for storytelling contagious, that would be amazing.


UR: I know it is hard to pick favorites, like picking a favorite child, but which story is your favorite on the website Samantha? Diana?

D: Cricket and Watson – they are a two little birds that want to fly, but they’re not big enough yet. I identify with Watson (sometimes Cricket, but mostly Watson). Cricket is constantly coming up with new schemes to launch them into flight, but she has a habit of trying her ideas out on her long-suffering brother, Watson. She is well intentioned, but she does get them (especially Watson) into a few scrapes. I love the action in the book – it was really fun to illustrate – and I love the message of never giving up.

S: Everybody has a Jar (Harrison’s Blog, Post No. 25) is the one that pops into my head. Just the way the whole situation escalates so rapidly as Harrison jumps from conclusion to conclusion makes me smile. Harrison does manage to get himself into a lot of muddles, but that one was pretty spectacular, even for him! And the pictures of Harrison and Kimster in their prison stripes crack me up every time.

Harrison Hamster I behind bars

May I also sneak in an honourable mention for Tuppence for Christmas? I think the illustrations Diana created for the book are very special. Just check out the vast frozen beauty of the South Pole and Tuppence’s wonderfully expressive face – especially that moment of wide-eyed panic when she’s flapping her wings and finds she can’t take off. Don’t we all have moments like that?


UR: Your website not only has stories, it has coloring, puzzles, and more. Are the two of you in charge of all aspects? Anything else you hope to add in the future?

S: Yes – we create everything on there. It’s exhausting, but we love it!

D: Luckily we come from different educational and work backgrounds, and so we bring complementary skills to the table.

S: We’ve already got plans for more puzzles – not least because we both enjoy designing them. The lovely details in Diana’s pictures lend themselves to ‘spot the difference’ puzzles, and we’ll definitely be creating some of those.

D: We have to make one featuring Harrison’s ugly clock! And we’re also working on a way to find a permanent home for the captioned pictures from Harrison’s ‘On my mind…’ feature.

S: Not to mention more books and blog posts – we’re all about the stories. Of course, the printables are important too, in terms of challenging and engaging kids – and, most especially, inviting them to use their own creativity. So you’ll be seeing every aspect of the website growing.

D: We should probably just ask you to ‘watch this space!’


UR: Anything else you want to add?

S&D: We both believe that reading changes everything – it wakes up your brain, opens your eyes and makes you see the possibilities, both in the world around you and in yourself. In the words of others you can find inspiration, new ideas, comfort, hope and whole new ways of thinking. Words from another place or time can resonate with you and help you navigate your life; they can make you laugh or cry; they can make you want to shout out in dissent, or nod your head in quiet agreement.

We are proud to have Stories for My Little Sister featured on a blog whose mission is to ‘unleash readers’: we believe that once a reader is unleashed and free to roam, their potential is limitless and there is no place they cannot reach. To play a small part of that process in anyone’s life is the greatest privilege we could possibly have.

 

Thank you so much to Samantha and Diana,
and I hope you all will check out Stories for My Little Sister.

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I Read Banned Books

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This week to show my support, I wore my “I Read Banned Books” bracelet: 
Banned Books Week is a time to celebrate our freedom to be able to read whichever books we choose as well as being able to access these books. Many of the challenges/bans that happen in the US are on young adult books which are deemed “unsuitable to age group” and are often challenged by parents. As a teacher, I completely understand the right to protect our own children and that some books are more appropriate for different ages; however, I will never understand the need to try to push these beliefs onto others by completely banning a book in a library, school or city. To learn more about banned and censored books and Banned Books Week check out ALA’s Banned & Challenged Books and Banned Books Week.

 

I wanted to share with you some of my favorite challenged books (taken from the ALA Frequently Challenged Books list)—some you will recognize and some that may be new to you, but they are all books that should be accessible. If you want to learn more about each book, click on their cover and it’ll take you to their Goodreads pages.

 

ttyl (series) by Lauren Myracle
Reasons for challenges: offensive language; religious viewpoint; sexually explicit; unsuited to age group

ttyl (Internet Girls, #1)

Hunger Games (series) by Suzanne Collins
Reasons for challenges: anti-ethnic; anti-family; insensitivity; offensive language; occult/satanic; violence

The Hunger Games (The Hunger Games, #1)

What My Mother Doesn’t Know by Sonya Sones
Reasons for challenges: nudity; offensive language; sexually explicit

What My Mother Doesn't Know (What My Mother Doesn't Know, #1)

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Reasons for challenges: offensive language; racism

To Kill a Mockingbird

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
Reasons for challenges: offensive language; racism; religious viewpoint; sexually explicit; unsuited to age group

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

Olive’s Ocean by Kevin Henkes
Reasons for challenges: Reasons: offensive language, sexually explicit

Olive's Ocean

Athletic Shorts by Chris Crutcher
Reasons for challenges: homosexuality and offensive language

Athletic Shorts by Chris Crutcher

Captain Underpants (series) by Dav Pilkey
Reasons for challenges: anti-family content, unsuited to age group, violence

The Adventures of Captain Underpants (Captain Underpants, #1)

In the Night Kitchen by Maurice Sendak
Reasons for challenges: nudity, offensive language, sexually explicit

In the Night Kitchen

Harry Potter (series) by J.K. Rowling
Reasons for challenges: occult/Satanism

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Harry Potter, #1)

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
Reasons for challenges: offensive language

Of Mice and Men

Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
Reasons for challenges: occult/Satanism, offensive language

Bridge to Terabithia

Go Ask Alice by Anonymous
Reasons for challenges: drugs

Go Ask Alice

Crank (series) by Ellen Hopkins
Reasons for challenges: drugs, offensive language, and sexually explicit

Crank (Crank, #1)

Roll of Thunder, Hear my Cry (series) by Mildred D. Taylor
Reasons for challenges: offensive language

Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry

Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher
Reasons for challenges: Drugs/alcohol/smoking, sexually explicit, suicide, unsuited for age group

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Looking for Alaska by John Green
Reasons for challenges: Offensive language, sexually explicit, unsuited for age group

looking for alaska

These are some of my favorite challenged books—what are yours?
How did you celebrate Banned Books Week?

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Stained by Cheryl Rainfield

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Stained
Author: Cheryl Rainfield
Expected Publication October 1st, 2013 by HMH Books for Young Readers

Goodreads Summary: In this heart-wrenching and suspenseful teen thriller, sixteen-year-old Sarah Meadows longs for “normal.” Born with a port-wine stain covering half her face, all her life she’s been plagued by stares, giggles, bullying, and disgust. But when she’s abducted on the way home from school, Sarah is forced to uncover the courage she never knew she had, become a hero rather than a victim, and learn to look beyond her face to find the beauty and strength she has inside. It’s that—or succumb to a killer.

My Review: Cheryl delves into two very different tough subjects in this book. First, we meet Sarah who is a 16-year-old girl who was born with a port-wine stain. As with anything that makes you different when you are a teenager, it affects your life daily. Sarah has trouble fitting in, is bullied, and only has a few friends. Through this experience, though, she has also had a very narrow focus on physical appearance and pushes people away because she is focused so much on a surgery that would temporarily remove her port-wine stain. However, as she is dealing with not receiving her surgery, Sarah is thrown into the scariest situation a girl could become part of: she is kidnapped, locked away, and abused by her kidnapper.

Though this is a very tough book to read, it was one that I couldn’t put down. It is amazing how Cheryl takes the tragedies she has been through and transports her strength and experiences into her characters.

Teacher’s Tools For Navigation: This story will resonate with many students because it is about a circumstance that far too many teenagers find themselves in or know someone that has experienced being bullied or abused. This makes it a very important book that needs to be accessible because sometimes teenagers need to know about having courage to stand up against evil: “Sometimes you have to be your own hero.”  [I think this is a perfect book to review during Banned Books Week because Cheryl has found her books challenged. However, why should we keep books off the shelf that have ultimately saved readers’ lives? Hear more about my thoughts on banned/challenged books tomorrow.]

Discussion Questions: Sarah has dealt with having a large birthmark on her face since birth and has had to deal with the bullies. Do you think Sarah dealt correctly with the bullies? Could some of the other students around have done something differently?; What traits does Sarah have that helped her during her horrible situation?; Why was the title of the book Stained?

We Flagged: “I feel so dirty, like his smell is clinging to me still, sweat and cologne and sex. Like he’s stained me deeper than my birthmark ever could. Stained my soul, stained everything that makes me who I am.” (p. 99)

Read This If You Loved: Room by Emma Donoghue, Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson, The Mockingbirds by Daisy Whitney, Hunted by Cheryl Rainfield, The Missing Girl by Norma Fox Mazer, Girl, Stolen by April Henry, Stitches by David Small

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All Our Yesterdays by Cristin Terrill [Ricki’s Review]

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All Our Yesterdays
Author: Cristin Terrill
Published: September 3rd, 2013 by Disney Hyperion

GoodReads Summary: “You have to kill him.” Imprisoned in the heart of a secret military base, Em has nothing except the voice of the boy in the cell next door and the list of instructions she finds taped inside the drain.

 Only Em can complete the final instruction. She’s tried everything to prevent the creation of a time machine that will tear the world apart. She holds the proof: a list she has never seen before, written in her own hand. Each failed attempt in the past has led her to the same terrible present—imprisoned and tortured by a sadistic man called the doctor while war rages outside.

Marina has loved her best friend James since the day he moved next door when they were children. A gorgeous, introverted science prodigy from one of America’s most famous families, James finally seems to be seeing Marina in a new way, too. But on one disastrous night, James’s life crumbles apart, and with it, Marina’s hopes for their future. Now someone is trying to kill him. Marina will protect James, no matter what. Even if it means opening her eyes to a truth so terrible that she may not survive it. At least not as the girl she once was.

All Our Yesterdays is a wrenching, brilliantly plotted story of fierce love, unthinkable sacrifice, and the infinite implications of our every choice.

Review: This is a great science fiction text that will please readers who enjoy reading about time travel and/or dystopian settings. I was immediately pulled into the prison cell with Marina. Terrill does an excellent job with imagery, and I enjoyed the way the plot unfolded. As with most books that discuss time travel, I found a few paradoxes that felt like plot holes, but most books with a time-traveling plot seem to raise this concern for me, as time traveling is sort of a paradox in itself. Overall, I think Terrill did an excellent job trying to alleviate any possible plot issues, and I was impressed with her ability to build such an, intricate, complex plot. While there was a love story, it doesn’t take front and center of this novel, which I appreciated. Often, love stories forced in science fiction books, and Terrill seems to achieve the perfect balance between plot, theme, and romance. The book contains wonderfully richly realized themes that I will discuss in the next section, and I think teachers would be wise to add this book to their classroom libraries. Teens will absolutely love this one.

You can also see Kellee’s point of view by viewing her review here.

Teacher’s Tools for Navigation: The themes of this novel truly make it shine. This book would provide for some fantastic classroom discussions. Teachers could have students examine power and how it influences people, or they could look at loyalty and whether there is a limit to our loyalty to our loved ones. Students would have a lot of fun imagining one thing they would change if they could use a time travel machine (either changing a worldly event or a personal life event). The journal opportunities are endless.

Discussion Questions: How does power influence an individual? Given extreme power, will all people be driven to selfishness?; Who are we most loyal to? Is there a limit to our loyalty?; What events would we change if we could travel back in time? How would our changes impact the world or our lives in a positive way? What are the negative outcomes?; What paradoxes come with time travel? Is there any way to alleviate these?; If we had the power to travel in time, should we? How might time travel be harmful?

We Flagged: “‘Was [the world] always this beautiful and we just never noticed?'” (Chapter 5).

“…But progress is always dangerous, isn’t it? Most of the time, walls don’t get dismantled brick by brick. Someone has to crash through them” (Chapter 19).

Please note: The above quotes are from the Advanced Reader Copy. The e-book (a galley) did not provide page numbers. The quotes may change when the book is published.

Read This If You Loved: When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead, The Time Machine by H.G. Wells, The Giver by Lois Lowry, Legend by Marie Lu, Divergent by Veronica Roth

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**Thank you to NetGalley and Disney Hyperion for providing the Advanced Reader Copy for review!**

The Wolf Girls: An Unsolved Mystery from History by Jane Yolen and Heidi Elisabet Yolen Stemple

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NF PB 2013

Nonfiction Picture Book Wednesday

Nonfiction Picture Book Wednesday is hosted by Kid Lit Frenzy and was started to help promote the reading of nonfiction texts. Most Wednesdays, we will be participating and will review a nonfiction text (though it may not always be a picture book).
Be sure to visit Kid Lit Frenzy and see what other nonfiction books are shared this week!

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The Wolf Girls: An Unsolved Mystery from History
Authors: Jane Yolen and Heidi Elisabet Yolen Stemple
Illustrator: Roger Roth
Published August 1st, 2000 by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

Goodreads Summary: In 1920 a missionary brought two young girls to an orphanage in India. The girls didn’t know how to talk, walk, or eat from a plate. Some people thought the girls had been abandoned by their parents. Some people said the girls were brought up by wolves in the wild. Still others thought that the missionary who ran the orphanage made up the story about the girls. No one knows for sure.

Become a detective as you read this true story, study the clues, and try to figure out the fate of the wolf girls of Midnapore. The Unsolved Mystery from History series is written by acclaimed author Jane Yolen and former private investigator Heidi Elisabet Yolen Stemple. Read carefully and check your clues. You might be the first to solve a puzzle that has baffled people for years.

My Review: This story was fascinating as I had never heard of the wolf girls and came in with no prior knowledge about the mystery. It was so much fun to be full on submerged in the mystery and following the clues that are given throughout the “case notebook”.

Teacher’s Tools for Navigation: This book is set up just like the Salem Witch Trials: An Unsolved Mystery from History and could be used the same way in the classroom: This book promotes studying history, inquiry, and vocabulary. The book begins with an introduction to a young girl who enjoys unsolved mysteries from history and then the book is set up like her case notebook. Each page of the case notebook includes a narrative nonfiction section, an informational nonfiction section where facts about the story are explained even more in detail, and then there are vocabulary words from the two sections defined for the reader. Finally, in the back of the book the different theories about what could be the answer to the unsolved mystery are shared and briefly discussed. The set up of this book leads to infinite possibilities of being used in the classroom. Students could debate, write research papers, could do their very own case notebook about a different mystery, etc. Another option is to get all of the Unsolved Mystery from History books and have students get into lit circle groups and have each group read a different mystery then research and share.

What I like particularly about this one is that there is so much to debate as there aren’t many clues given throughout the story. Many of the eye witnesses are unreliable and there aren’t many facts shared throughout the book. I think this book would lead to a great discussion about primary and secondary sources as well as reliability.

Discussion Questions: Which theory do you believe about the wolf girls?; Do you think a journal written a year after an incident is reliable?; Many of the scientific facts and theories shared are from the 18th and 19th century, are these facts still what science believes?; Why do you think the missionary’s wife never spoke of the wolf girls?; Why do you think that Singh’s accounts were different than his daughter’s?; Singh said he did not want to exploit the girls yet he let people come to see her – is this exploitation? Do you think what he did was wrong?

We Flagged: Narrative nonfiction “After nursing the two girls back to health, the Reverend Singh loaded them into the cart and drove them for eight days to his orphanage in Midnapore. But the wolf girls were so weak and emaciated, they could not move about, so at first no one outside of the orphanage saw them. Singh wrote in his journal, ‘They were accepted simply as neglected children.’

Informational Nonfiction Singh wrote in his journal that the girls were mud-covered, with scratches, scars, and fleas. The heels of their hands were callused from running on all fours. Their ears trembled like a dog’s when they were excited. Their brows were bushy and long. Each had arms almost reaching their knees. Their teeth were close-set, uneven, with fine, sharp edges, the canines longer and more pointed than is usual in humans. However, Singh took no scientific measurements and invited no scientists to examine the girls. He took photographs that were fuzzy and indistinct. Years later, his own daughter, when interviewed, did not remember the distinctive teeth or exceptional ears or terrifically bushy brows.

Vocabulary Emaciated: thin and feeble due to disease or poor food; Neglected: not take proper care of” (p. 20-21)

Read This If You Loved: Yolen’s other Unsolved Mystery from History books

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What mystery from history do you wish Jane Yolen had written about? 

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Top Ten Tuesday: Best Sequels Ever

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Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. The feature was created because The Broke and Bookish are particularly fond of lists (as are we!). Each week a new Top Ten list topic is given and bloggers can participate.

 Today’s Topic: Top Ten Best Sequels

Unlike the stereotype, these sequels will rock your world!

Ricki

1. Prodigy by Marie Lu

I greatly enjoyed Legend, but I might argue that Prodigy was even better! It is rare that I like the second book more than the first. I wonder if I was just more into the world that Lu created after the second book. This second book is incredibly good.

2. Living with Jackie Chan by Jo Knowles (Warning: This is a companion book, not a sequel.)

Oh, look, I cheated again. I just read this book a month ago, and I absolutely adored it. It is a companion book to Jumping off Swings and is told through Josh’s voice. I don’t care if it isn’t technically a sequel, it is going on my list.

3. Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore (The third book in the Graceling realm—Does this count?)

I disregarded food and sleep while reading this book. It is one of my all-time favorite reads. If you haven’t gotten lost in this series of companion books, do yourself a favor and read them. They rock.

4. The Subtle Knife by Philip Pullman

His Dark Materials will always hold a special place in my heart. I read the first book in college in a literature course about Hell and the devil, and I couldn’t stop there. Each book was excellent.

5. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

I really enjoyed both The Hunger Games and Catching Fire, and I secretly wish they never became a movie series because the craze seemed to water down how truly great these books are. I was hooked to this second book, so I thought it was deserving of this top ten list.

Kellee

1. Hattie Ever After by Kirby Larson

I loved both Hattie books, but the sequel actually resonated more with me. In both Hattie faces circumstances that most woman wouldn’t face in the early 1900s; however, in the sequel, Hattie really grows up and finds herself. I also loved that in this one she was going after HER dream.

2. Son by Lois Lowry (the 4th book in The Giver quartet, but technically the only true sequel to The Giver)

The Giver has been my favorite book for 20 years now and I have always been fine with the ending, but when companions came out and finally a series finale, I couldn’t not read them. Though some people found that the end of the series was a bit too wrapped up, I loved finding out what happened to all of my favorite characters.

3. The Ask and the Answer and Monsters of Men by Patrick Ness

This series is just so epic and the two sequels of Knife of Never Letting Go are just as intense as the first.

4. Red Glove and Black Heart by Holly Black

I love this world that Holly Black came up with and Cassel’s adventures are just as addictive in the sequels as the first.

5. The Trouble with May Amelia by Jennifer L. Holm

Like Hattie Ever After, this is a sequel that while I really liked the first, I found the sequel to really hit home for me. I think it once again has to do with our protagonist growing up.

What are your favorite sequels?

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