#IMWAYR October 2, 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.

I had a wonderful week. Headway was made in the garden and some housework got finished. Babysitting the grandkids was fun, but exhausting. A weekend away at a cabin on the ocean with two cousins and one of my best friends was the highlight. We laughed. We danced and sang along with all kinds of music. There might have been a few bottles of wine. There was definitely good food and cake.

I just didn't get much reading in.

BLOG POSTS LAST WEEK


BOOKS FOR BABIES

3 stars

Tip Tip Dig Dig
by Emma Garcia

Nice bright colours in an Eric Carle style are paired with simple large text. The different machines are in different colours although they all have google eyes. I like the repetition in extra large text on each page. I can see little ones eventually joining in on this part.


3 stars
Baby's Day by Flowerpot Press

I liked the photographs of the different babies. I like that the book is multicultural and for the most part these babies are genderless. There is one word on each double page spread.

4 stars
Baby Dance by Ann Taylor & Marjorie Van Heerden (Illustrator)

Beautiful bold colours and rhyming text make this one a delightful read aloud!

5 stars
Quantum Physics for Babies by Chris Ferrie

Because, it's never to early to introduce your little ones to nonfiction. 

Our library copy is dual language: English and Chinese. So are the rest of the series, but the books can be purchased in English only. I have come to like both languages on the page. Chris Ferrie, a Canadian father of young children, uses simple illustrations and simple text to explain physics to very young children. Colours in the text match the colours of the different parts of the atom in the illustrations.
I'm sure my grandkids are too young for this, but Ada actually looked at the pictures and I learned about electrons, how they work, and what a quantum is! I suspect that high school physics teachers might want a copy. 

PICTURE BOOKS


3 stars
Tokyo Digs a Garden by Jon-Erik Lappano & Kellen Hatanaka (Illustrations)
-->

I've been thinking hard about what to say about this book. I've read it three times, and I'm still not really sure how much I like it. I like the lush colourful illustrations full of detail. I liked the poetic language like in this section below.
Tokyo and his family live in a city, but his grandfather remembers what it was like before:

"Then, the house looked over hills and forests and Meadows and streams. Deer grazed on the hills. Foxes ran through the forest. Bird saying in the Meadows. Salmon leapt from the streams.
But now, all of that was gone.
Tokyo's grandfather said the city had eaten it all up.
Cities had to eat something, after all."

Similar to Jack in the Beanstalk, Tokyo is given three seeds by an old woman who promises him that the seeds will grow into whatever he wishes. Tokyo planted the seeds in his backyard. In the morning three flowers were blooming. The garden continued to grow, taking over buildings, streets, and eventually the whole city. In a few days wildlife invaded the city and the people were forced to adjust.

I wanted to like this more than I did. Some pages have a lot of text on them, and to make matters worse, the black text on the dark background make it difficult to read.

CHAPTER BOOKS

5 stars
Dory Dory Black Sheep by Abby Hanlon

I don't have to read these books anymore, but when an author creates a character like Dory Fantasmagory, and there is a new book out, I just have to see what that kid has gotten herself into now.
In this one Dory is having some problems learning to read. Her imagination is still as wild as ever though.
If you have primary aged children, this is an ideal chapter book. All of these Dory books will be fun to read out loud because adults will end up loving her as much as their children do.

NOVELS

5 + stars
Beauty Queens by Libba Bray

This is the best book I have read in ages and ages.
A plane full of beauty queen contestants crashes into an island. They are the only survivors. Not only do they survive, they learn to appreciate each other while they become the best people they can be.
I love this book so much. It's both screamingly hilarious and seriously kick ass. It should be required reading in high schools. Never mind that, it should be required reading for people of all ages. If you have read Lord Of the Flies, this is the antidote.
Libba Bray's narrations knocked my socks off. I went around getting people to listen to just a bit of it here and there to try and convince them that they needed this book.

CURRENTLY

I'm still reading When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon and The Inconvenient Indian. I'm listening to The Losers Club by Andrew Clements.

UP NEXT

I'll start Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer and then go on to Scarborough by Catherine Hernandez. My next audiobook will be Refugee by Alan Gratz.

PROGRESS ON MY READING GOALS

#MUSTREADIN2017 25/36 1 in progress

#MUSTREADNFIN2017 7/12 1 in progress

50 Books by Canadian Indigenous Authors 28/50 1 in progress

Chocolate Lily (CL) 51/51

Big Book Challenge 4/6

Goodreads Reading Challenge 308/333

26 comments:

  1. I agree that Dory is fun! I loved the Black Sheep one because of how Dory learns to read. I had a fourth grader last year who absolutely loved reading about Dory. Beauty Queens sounds quite interesting!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It was how authentic Dory's becoming a reader process is that wowed me.
      You must readBeauty Queens!

      Delete
  2. Loved the Losers Club and was sad that Dimple was a bit too YA. Have you nominated books for the Cybils Awards? http://www.cybils.com/2017/10/4794.html

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for the link.
      I'm enjoying The Losers Club, but not really interested in romance so Dimple is not grabbing me.

      Delete
  3. What a great mix of books! I love Dory and Tip Tip Dig Dig.

    ReplyDelete
  4. When Dimple Met Rishi is an awesome YA book! Hope you’re enjoying it, too! Have a great week!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I love parts of it, but I'm not really interested in romance books to begin with.

      Delete
  5. So pleased that you are talking baby books here! I read Beauty Queens a few years ago. It's good! Love Dory! And Piper Green. So pleased these characters exist for our students. So much fun.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Love your sharing of all the baby books, Cheriee. They look fun. Alex Baugh shared lots of board books today, FYI. I want to read When Dimple Met Rishi, maybe someday. And I still have never read Beauty Queens. Thanks for the reminder! Glad you had your weekend away!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You must listen to Beauty Queens read by the author. It is just screamingly hilarious. I'm sure the book itself is fine, but listening to Libba Bray do the character's voices kicks it up several notches!

      Delete
  7. Isn't the audio of Beauty Queens absolutely brilliant? For whatever reason, Libba Bray's other books haven't worked for me, but I think Beauty Queens is incredible. A must, must read. Actually a must listen. I need to catch up on the latest Dory book. I do love that series.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Replies
    1. I've discovered that the babies love photographs of other babies!

      Delete
  9. We love Dory Fantasmagory! Thank you for telling us about this new book in the series

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Isn't she so fabulous! I think this one is the best of them.

      Delete
  10. Thanks for the list of baby books! I'm always on the lookout for new and different books!
    I've never heard what Beauty Queens was about, sounds interesting!
    When Dimple Met Rishi is a book I would like to get to soon. Again, all good things from what I hear!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Michele, Beauty Queens is so much more than you can imagine. I hope it makes it onto your list soon.

      Delete
  11. I love finding great chapter book series for my transitional readers and have not read the latest Dory yet. Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dory is up there with Piper Green as the best characters available in chapter books.

      Delete
  12. Beauty Queens is such a laugh out loud book! I loved it so much when I read it!

    Happy reading this week :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Kellee. I wanted to start it all over again when I was finished.

      Delete
  13. I want to get to Refugee also. Beauty Queens read by Libba Bray is sooooo wonderful.

    ReplyDelete