#IMWAYR July 24, 2017


#IMWAYR time again, when readers share what they have been reading and find out what others have been up to in the past week. Kathryn hosts the adult version of this meme at Book Date. Jen at Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee and Ricki at Unleashing Readers host the kidlit rendition. Whatever you are looking forward to in your next great read, these are fabulous places to start your search.

Hello everyone, I didn't get much reading in this week. I've been busy, busy, busy doing other things. When we were in the Okanagan it was mostly about listening to audiobooks while working around the house. I finished up and dropped off a quilt at the quilters. My mother started it years ago and but didn't complete it before her death. I've been participating in Teachers Write and so writing, or thinking about writing every day, has taken time away from reading. I've posted one piece below if you want to read it.

We went through a bit of an environmental shock last week. In the space of 5 hours we went from Oliver, where it was so hot that by the time a load of clothes had been hung on the line, the first of them were already dry, to back here in Vancouver where we've been wearing sweaters and long pants.

Babies update: Isn't it amazing the things we forget about our times with our own newborns? Do you remember just how much work they are and how their crying instantly invokes anxiety in the listeners? I had forgotten how hard bodily functions are for these wee people, nevermind how fast they grow. I was away for less than a week and swear they almost doubled!

Here is what they look like now!



BLOG POSTS LAST WEEK

Miles Morales (A Spider-Man Novel) by Jason Reynolds

Teachers Write - July 20, 2017 The Waiting Room

NON FICTION PICTURE BOOKS 



4 stars
The Journey That Saved Curious George : The True Wartime Escape of Margret and H.A. Rey by Louise Borden & Allan Drummond (Illustrator)

The graphic format of this book is really appealing. The text is interspersed with photographs, original images and Allan Drummond's modern whimsical ink and watercolour illustrations. It's written chronologically and provides a history of Europe and the world, at the same time as telling us the story of Margret and H.A. Rey. At the end of the book is additional information about their lives after they escaped.



4 stars
The Music in George's Head: George Gershwin Creates Rhapsody in Blue by Suzanne Slade & Stacy Innerst (Illustrations)
I can't gush about this too much. Stacy Innerst's illustrations with all those blues just WOWED me. I'm compelled to return again and again to admire them. The typeface, text, and these illustrations are inseparable from the narrative. It all came together i
n this picture biography of George Gershwin to just enthral me. At the end of the book there are notes from both the author and illustrator. There is a timeline and a bibliography. I was left feeling sad that George Gershwin died so young and wondering what else he might have accomplished if he had more time.


NOVELS


4 stars
Miles Morales (A Spider-Man Novel) by Jason Reynolds

Sijo poetry plays a significant role in this book, so I'm going to give one a try here. Click on the link above to read my full review if you want to know more. 


Miles Morales is Spider Man, a black, teenage superhero

Having extraordinary powers requires much soul searching
How can he save the world if he can't even save himself?

Serafina and the Splintered Heart (Serafina #3) by Robert Beatty & Cassandra Campbell (Narrator)


4 stars

When I discovered this book was available as an audiobook that I could download and listen to immediately, it was a 'be still my beating heart' moment. If you have not been introduced to this series, I am very sad for you. It's part folklore, part horror, and mostly just really good stories about the bonds of family and friendship against a backdrop of a battle between good and evil. Beatty's characters are impossible not to connect with. This story begins with Serafina waking up in a coffin. You will have to read the book to find out what happened to her, how she manages survive, defeat her longstanding enemy, and save all the people at Biltmore who she loves. Along the way she makes new friends and comes into her own. 


ADULT NON FICTION


3 stars
Hallelujah Anyway: Rediscovering Mercy by Anne Lamott

I started this because one of the #IMWAYR participants wrote about it, and I loved Bird by Bird. I had no idea what to expect. I'm not at all religious in a traditional sense, but appreciate Lamott's honesty and ability to examine her own life. I found the last half more inspiring than the first, but it was all good. 



CURRENTLY


I'm trying to limit how many books I have on the go at a time. On my device I started a Netgalley title, Elsie Mae Has Something to Say by Nancy J. Cavanaugh, but need to postpone it because of a pressing need to finish other titles that have to be returned to the library before we head off wilderness camping. I'm listening to Posted by John David Anderson. I've just started The Rain in Portugal by Billy Collins.

UP NEXT

Figuring out what to read next depends on what has to be returned to the library first. I have to finish Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic by Alison Bechdel, The Rain in Portugal: Poems by Billy Collins, and Odin's Ravens by Kelley Armstrong. I'm saving Mighty Jack and the Goblin King by Ben Hatke, Rose's Run by Dawn Dumont, and a pile of other books for when I am away.

PROGRESS ON MY READING GOALS

#MUSTREADIN2017 16/36

#MUSTREADNFIN2017 6/12

50 Books by Canadian Indigenous Authors 21/50

Chocolate Lily (CL) 51/51

Big Book Challenge 3/6

Goodreads Reading Challenge 233/333

24 comments:

  1. I got The Journey that Saved Curious George at a conference last fall, but still haven't read it. I've also never read any of the Serafina books, but I watched a trailer for one of the books and it looked really intriguing. I'll get around to reading it one of these days!

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    1. The Serafina series is full of suspense and tension. I am usually a wuss with this kind of book, but became addicted to this one. I think that The Journey that Saved Curious George was reissued last September with a new cover. I don't know if there are other changes.

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  2. The babies are adorable. Congratulations again.

    I read the first Serafina book and need to get around to reading the next two. Miles Morales is definitely on my must read list.

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    1. Reynolds takes the superhero genre to another level in this book. I especially admire how he shows us that even though he has super powers, Miles still has to deal with all the stuff around being black in America.

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  3. I'm behind! I've only read the first Serafina! Also totally want to read the Miles Morales. *cutebabies!*

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    1. They are both so adorable I can't get enough of them! You have a treat in store with Miles Morales!

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  4. Love seeing your babies, Cheriee! And yes, they do change quickly don't they? You are busy, and it's fun to hear what you're doing. I haven't read the Serafina books either, & have them on my list, but there are so many on that list! Thanks for the shout out about them.

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    1. Cassandra Campbell's narration of the Serafina novels is so perfect she has become Serafina to me. I'm not sure if I could read them with just my eyes anymore.

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  5. I'm so glad you loved The Music in George's Head. Such a great picture book biography!

    And I'm totally jealous you got to read Miles Morales already. I'm comping at the bit to read that one. :) Especially after interviewing Jason for the Voices from the Middle podcast where he talked about how this is more than just a Spiderman story.

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    1. Thanks for mentioning that podcast Beth. I've bookmarked it and am green with envy that you actually interviewed him!!!
      It is absolutely more than a superhero story. Even being Spiderman doesn't exempt MIles from having to deal with what it means to be a black kid growing up in American.

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  6. I am looking forward to the Miles Morales book too! Next week it comes out, I believe!
    Sounds like I need to move Serafina up in my piles!
    I love that your grand babies are growing up so close together. How wonderful for them!

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    1. It's wonderful for all of us that we are so close together.
      Serafina is a fabulous character!
      I'm looking forward to reading what others think of Miles Morales. I do think learning about about him a comic book character beforehand is a good idea.

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  7. I was going to complain if there wasn't a baby photo posted! So cute!! I can't wait to read the second Mighty Jack. y class from last year LOVED that title. It was perhaps the favourite from the year!

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    1. I wanted to post another picture just for you Carrie, but it was on my partner's real camera and he hasn't downloaded them yet.
      I'm looking forward to the Mighty Jack title too!

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  8. Ha, ha. I love your review for Serafina. I definitely need to check it out.

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    1. I guess that is good, and yes you do! The audiobooks are wonderful!

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  9. Those babies are just adorable! I am jealous that you've read Mile Morales, too - can't wait until I get my copy.

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    1. I'll look forward to reading everyone's thoughts on Miles Morales and hope they love it as much as I do.

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  10. I grew up loving Curious George, so I definitely want to read The Journey That Saved Curious George. Looks like an awesome book, and I know that Allan Drummond writes awesome nonfiction picture books. Have a great week!

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    1. On of my nephews was an absolute Curious George fanatic so I he was in my heart as I read that book. I think it was those books that turned him into a reader!

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  11. I haven't read any Serafina boooks--from your post, I am assuming you'd tell me to start them ASAP. :)
    I have Miles Morales to read--I look forward to it! And Trent LOVES George. I'll have to find this NF account of the authorship.

    Happy reading this week!

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    1. Yes indeed! I think you will love Serafina Kellee since we mostly love the same kinds of audiobooks.

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  12. When I was a child, my parents had a tape of Gershwin's "greatest hits", and I grew up warbling along with Bing Crosby and Ella Fitzgerald, and still sing those songs in the shower without even realizing it! A picture book all about the creation of Rhapsody in Blue just speaks to that inner child who loves her some good music. :)

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    1. It is beautiful! After I finished reading (and while I was just perusing the images again and again,) I went to spotify and listened to it. So stunning.

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