#IMWAYR March 2, 2015


If it's Monday, then it's time for #IMWAYR. Visit hosts Jen from Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee and Ricki from Unleashing Readers to discover what other readers are blogging about!

It was one of those frenetic weeks for me. On Thursday we celebrated our annual Winter Tonic, a professional development event for teacher librarians in and around Vancouver. As a member of the organizing committee, the days building up to the event were a tad busy. In addition to organizing, I presented a workshop on critical literacy. In the end a wonderful time was had by all, but between all that and supporting my mother, if it were not for audiobooks and picture books, I would hardly have gotten any reading done at all. I tried starting a few new novels at school, but I no sooner started, when I ended up handing them off to students who I caught eyeing them longingly.

I blogged more in depth about these picture books in my Friday post, so if you want to read my comments about them you can click here or on the titles of the books. I might be able to pick a favourite from them if my life depended on it.

5 stars 
Blizzard by John Rocco 
This book is a fabulous celebration of the best of winter, family, community, and of course, reading.
5 stars 
Extraordinary Jane by Hannah E. Harrison 
This is a most beautiful way to say, "Just being you is enough." 


3 stars 
Please Bring Balloons by Lindsay Ward 
This whimsical book has just gorgeous illustrations. I wish the story had grabbed me more.
4 stars 
Take Away the A by Michael Escoffier & Kris Di Giacomo 
Alphabet books are a weakness of mine. This book makes me glad of it.

I finished listening to a number of audiobooks this week.

The Black Cauldron by Lloyd Alexander 

This is the first Lloyd Alexander book I've read. It won't be the last. It is the second in The Chronicles of Prydain, and to be honest, it took me a bit to get the characters all sorted out. I wonder if I'd started with the first in the series if it would have been easier. I intend to go back to find out. The Chronicles were first published in the 1960's. Proof of how well done they are, is that they still hold up 50 years later! (While there is a spunky girl character, her role is very limited.) In this book, Taron, an assistant pig keeper, is one of a party of warriors who head off in search of the black cauldron. The cauldron's magic has been used to create an army of indestructible, undead warriors. Ultimately the cauldron is retrieved and destroyed, but at a great cost. 

Skulduggery Pleasant by Derek Landy
In a #IMWAYR post awhile ago, someone gave this book rave reviews, so when I saw it available as an audiobook, I got it from our local library. It is a reminder to me not to judge a book by its cover, which had turned me off when it first came out. I was delighted to be swept up into this adventure story right from the get go. It has nasty relatives, magic, mystery, humour, and plenty of action, all bound up in a battle between good and evil. While the main character is an intrepid girl, Stephanie Edgley, there is an undead skeleton, Skullduggery Pleasant, in a supporting role. Fans of Lockwood & Co will love this I this.

Emma and the Blue Genie by Cornelia Funke
I'm always on the lookout for books for younger readers that feature strong girls. This one, like most of Funke's female protagonists, most assuredly fits the bill. Emma, who has four brothers, can handle almost anything. This is why she is the perfect person to help Karim, the blue genie, get his nose ring and magic back, all the while defeating the yellow genie.
Currently I'm reading Finding Grace by Becky Citra. It's a book club book that members love. Of course they do, Becky Citra is a gifted writer who tells stories that grab readers. The audio I've just started is The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness.


14 comments:

  1. I'm dying to get my hands on Blizzard, our book jobber seems to be out, always. Extraordinary Jane is new to me, but I'm going to go in search of it. My middle schoolers have loved Skulduggery Pleasant, but I've yet to read it.

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    1. You will love Jane!. SP was a delightful surprise!

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  2. I really enjoyed Blizzard. I love alphabet books too! I'm going to have to look for Take Away The A. I haven't heard of it. My new favorite alphabet book is Once Upon an Alphabet by Oliver Jeffers.

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    1. I love Jeffers book also. (We have two copies in our library) Blizzard is stunning both for the artwork and the text!

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  3. Oh, The Knife of Never Letting Go! Such a book. I'm curious how it works on audio. I still need to read the rest of the series--which means I need to reread Knife first. It's a fairly brutal story, though, so it's been hard for me to want to reread it, even though I think it's an excellent story. Manchee is one of my favorite characters. We'll have to talk about it once you're finished!

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    1. Oh Elizabeth. I started it this morning on my way to work. I sat in the car for a bit because I couldn't stop listening. Holy Crow! What a ride!

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  4. I listened to the whole series starting with The Knife of Never Letting Go, marvelous series. Patrick Ness is such a writer! I loved Blizzard, certainly fun for this year, right? And I have Extraordinary Jane on my list-looks very cute. Thanks Cheriee

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    1. Jane is so lovely LInda. I'm already sucked right into The Knife of Never Letting Go.

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  5. All 4 of your picture books are books on my must TBR list.
    Enjoy the Chaos Walking series! It is pure brilliance.
    I need to read Skullduggery Pleasant. It was one of the books I learned about very early in my middle school teaching career and wanted to read it, but I never got around to it.

    Happy reading this week! :)

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    1. Thanks Kellee. I'm not sure enjoy is the right word for The Knife of Never Letting Go, but gripping, mind boggling, and riveting seem appropriate. Skullduggery was a real treat to read.

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  6. I love both of those first two picture books a LOT. The Knife of Never Letting Go is on my TBR list. I do love this author. You are coming to Serendipity yes?

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    1. But of course I'm coming to Serendipity. (Armed with my school credit card) I look forward to seeing you there. So far, the Knife of Never Letting Go is quite the ride.

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  7. I have a few copies of Skulduggery Pleasant but I haven't started reading them yet, as I have hopes (deluded as they may seem) that I would be able to collect all before I even begin reading. :) The Prydain Chronicles is one of my favourite series of all time - I still think it would have been better though if you started with the first novel, as they do have a very strong continuity component to them, unlike other book series. The Chaos Walking Trilogy by Patrick Ness is also extremely powerful, I hope you enjoy the first book.

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    1. I am addicted to Patrick Ness. I don't want to get our of my car when I arrive at work. I've taken to wearing ear-buds unless I actually have to listen to something or focus outside of the book. Needless to say, I'm getting some spring cleaning done at work and home! I'll take your advice, and go in search of the first book in the Prydain Chronicles. The best thing about Skulduggery, is that just that one book was extremely satisfying. I would be happy to read more, but don't feel cheated by not doing so.

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