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

Ack! Three weeks into It's Monday! What Are You Reading? From Picture Books to YA and I'm already behind on posting! And I don't have a lot of progress to report, unfortunately. I was a bit preoccupied with a slightly flooded basement (darn you, 12 inches of snowmelt!) and planning a belated Valentine's Day party for my daughter's class. Excuses? You betcha! But I often let Real Life get in the way of my Ideal Life, sadly.

[To rehash the concept :: post what you read last week, what you're reading now, and what you plan to read this week. If you have a review of the book(s), great! If you have a picture of the book(s), wonderful! If you have a book giveaway, fantastic! If you just list the title(s) of the book(s), not a problem! Make it as simple or as complex as you need it to be. At least, that's the message I got. This version of the meme is hosted by Jen and Kellee of Teach Mentor Text, which, in turn, was inspired by Sheila over at Book Journey, who hosts the original It's Monday! What Are You Reading?]

WHAT I READ LAST WEEK:

Fire! Fuego! Brave Bomberos by Susan Middleton Elya

Jinchalo by Matthew Forsythe

Ms. Marvel, Issue #1 by G. Willow Wilson

WHAT I'M READING NOW:

Courage Has No Color: The True Story of the Triple Nickles, America's First Black Paratroopers by Tanya Lee Stone

The Ghosts of Tupelo Landing by Sheila Turnage

Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy by Karen Foxlee

WHAT I PLAN TO READ THIS WEEK:

The Heroines of History: Heroines of the American Revolution: America's Founding Mothers by Diane Silcox-Jarrett

Orani: My Father's Village by Claire A. Nivola

Saltypie: A Choctaw Journey from Darkness Into Light by Tim Tingle

This is why we do what we do ...

I received the nicest email this morning from the mom of a former student telling me her daughter (a 3rd grader) finished the Harry Potter series. Now, this is an accomplishment in and of itself, but it's all the more special because this particular student was a bit of a reluctant reader at the beginning of 2nd grade, mostly because of vision problems that were being corrected at the time. The mom came to me asking for reading suggestions throughout the year, and we helped build up her confidence and love of books. (Some of the first books I suggested were Chris Riddell's Ottoline books, which I love.)

And, now, she's reading books that are hundreds of pages long! She specifically asked her mom to email me to 1) let me know she read all of the Harry Potter books, and 2) to ask for book suggestions of character-driven books that she might enjoy.

As someone who reluctantly left her job working with kids in a school library, there's nothing more rewarding than having a student still look to me for reading advice. That I had an impact on her life, no matter how small, is something that makes me truly proud of the work I did. And to miss it greatly. 

Niño Wrestles the World by Yuyi Morales

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

I love when I've loaded up on books from Maya's school library and the public library. It makes it easy to have something to post for It's Monday! What Are You Reading? From Picture Books to YA.

[To rehash the concept :: post what you read last week, what you're reading now, and what you plan to read this week. If you have a review of the book(s), great! If you have a picture of the book(s), wonderful! If you have a book giveaway, fantastic! If you just list the title(s) of the book(s), not a problem! Make it as simple or as complex as you need it to be. At least, that's the message I got. This version of the meme is hosted by Jen and Kellee of Teach Mentor Text, which, in turn, was inspired by Sheila over at Book Journey, who hosts the original It's Monday! What Are You Reading?]

WHAT I READ LAST WEEK:

Ahmed and the Feather Girl by Jane Ray

Barnum's Bones: How Barnum Brown Discovered the Most Famous Dinosaur in the World by Tracey Fern

Far Beyond the Garden Gate: Alexandra David-Neel's Journey to Lhasa by Don Brown

Make Your Mark, Franklin Roosevelt by Judith St. George

Pecan Pie Baby by Jacqueline Woodson

Sleep Like a Tiger by Mary Logue

Uncle Andy's: A Faabbbulous Visit With Andy Warhol by James Warhola

Midwinterblood by Marcus Sedgwick

WHAT I'M READING NOW:

Courage Has No Color: The True Story of the Triple Nickles, America's First Black Paratroopers by Tanya Lee Stone

The Ghosts of Tupelo Landing by Sheila Turnage

WHAT I PLAN TO READ THIS WEEK:

The Heroines of History: Heroines of the American Revolution: America's Founding Mothers by Diane Silcox-Jarrett

Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy by Karen Foxlee

Meeting the Author :: Sheila Turnage

Three Times Lucky by Sheila Turnage was my favorite book during the summer of 2012. It's a fantastic mystery with Southern charm and a spunky main character in Miss Moses "Mo" LoBeau. Now, it's sequel, The Ghosts of Tupelo Landing, has finally arrived!

I was off to Politics and Prose for a reading by Ms. Turnage and to purchase a copy of the book ... and have her autograph it, of course!

[Reading from The Ghosts of Tupelo Landing]

[Ms. Turnage as a first grader when she figured out she wanted to be a writer]

[Her home in North Carolina]

[Signing books after her reading]

[me and Sheila Turnage @ Politics and Prose]

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

I'm finally back to posting It's Monday! What Are You Reading? From Picture Books to YA after a hiatus of a year and four months. Talk about neglect!

[To rehash the concept :: post what you read last week, what you're reading now, and what you plan to read this week. If you have a review of the book(s), great! If you have a picture of the book(s), wonderful! If you have a book giveaway, fantastic! If you just list the title(s) of the book(s), not a problem! Make it as simple or as complex as you need it to be. At least, that's the message I got. This version of the meme is hosted by Jen and Kellee of Teach Mentor Text, which, in turn, was inspired by Sheila over at Book Journey, who hosts the original It's Monday! What Are You Reading?]

WHAT I READ LAST WEEK:

The Tortoise and the Hare by Jerry Pinkney

Year of the Jungle by Suzanne Collins

Toys in Space by Mini Grey

Pablo Neruda: Poet of the People by Monica Brown

Franklin and Eleanor by Cheryl Harness

The Museum Book: A Guide to Strange and Wonderful Collections by Jan Mark

The Grimm Conclusion by Adam Gidwitz

Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales #2: Big Bad Ironclad! by Nathan Hale

WHAT I'M READING NOW:

Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy by Karen Foxlee

Midwinterblood by Marcus Sedgwick

WHAT I PLAN TO READ THIS WEEK:

Ahmed and the Feather Girl by Jane Ray

Barnum's Bones: How Barnum Brown Discovered the Most Famous Dinosaur in the World by Tracey Fern

Far Beyond the Garden Gate: Alexandra David-Neel's Journey to Lhasa by Don Brown

The Heroines of History: Heroines of the American Revolution: America's Founding Mothers by Diane Silcox-Jarrett

Make Your Mark, Franklin Roosevelt by Judith St. George

Pecan Pie Baby by Jacqueline Woodson

Sleep Like a Tiger by Mary Logue

Uncle Andy's: A Faabbbulous Visit With Andy Warhol by James Warhola