I screwed up big time this week. I thought my book club was later on in the month. We are reading The Boys in the Boat. By Sunday morning, I hadn't started it. There is no way I could plow through 400+ pages of tiny print in 24 hours. I downloaded the YA version to read since it isn't so long.
Titles with a 🍁 indicate this is a Canadian Author and or Illustrator.
Clicking on the title of the book will take you to the Goodreads page of the book.
RECENT BLOG POSTS
#IMWAYR November 24, 2019 - Crow Magic
PICTURE BOOKS
The Ranger by Nancy Vo 🍁
I was intrigued by the cover of this book. Then I fell in love with the first couple of pages. The first shows only a genderless silhouette and the words, "Once there was a ranger. The next page shows an image of a girl and the words, "Her name was Annie." Annie finds a fox who is in a bad way, rescues it, and in turn the two become friends. What we readers eventually come to understand is that friendship is not about keeping score, it's about supporting each other when we need help without any expectation of payment.
Sparse text accompanies Nancy Vo's glorious mixed media artwork in both of these two picture books.
The Outlaw by Nancy Vo 🍁
An outlaw terrifies a town with his misdeeds. Eventually he leaves. Years later a stranger arrives and begins mending parts of the rundown town. In time he is recognized as the outlaw. This book makes you question. Can he be forgiven? Can he be redeemed? Is it enough that he is making amends? I'm itching to read it to a group of students to see what they think.
Truman by Jean Reidy & Lucy Ruth Cummins (Illustrator)
I love the vintage feel to the illustrations in this book. When Sarah leaves their apartment and is away for a very long time (in turtle time.) Truman, the turtle decides to go after her. The book has lots of math potential. It would also be fun to create a map of where Truman eventually went.
The Circle of Caring and Sharing by Theresa Larsen-Jonasson & Jessika Von Innerebner 🍁 (Illustrations)
This beautiful little book, written in rhyming poetry, shows us how important it is to tell our stories and share what we know. It's the best way to deal with conflict.
Listen by Holly M. McGhee & Pascal Lemaître (Illustrations)
I like the idea of this book. It's about how we are all connected to each other and the world around us. It's a reminder to slow down and pay attention. Maybe if we do, we can hear that we are all part of the same heartbeat.
What Riley Wore by Elana K. Arnold & Linda Davick (Illustrator)
Riley is a character you will adore. Riley wears whatever will help get through the day.
I was delighted by the ending. When asked. "Are you a girl or a boy?"
Riley replied.
"Today I'm a firefighter.
And a dancer.
And a monster hunter.
And a pilot.
And a dinosaur."
GRAPHIC
Mighty Jack and Zita the Spacegirl by Ben Hatke
It was wonderful seeing both these characters working together to save earth from some evil giants. I appreciated that while at first Lily was wary of Zita, the two of them end up close friends. I also like that all those secondary characters end up doing important work. It's a truly collaborative action.
NOVELS
The Nest by Kenneth Oppel & Jon Klassen (Illustrator) 🍁
This is truly terrifying. At the same time it's a deep philosophical examination of what it means to be human. It's about love and acceptance.
A Boy Is Not a Bird by Edeet Ravel 🍁
This is the first in a trilogy about an eleven year old Jewish boy growing in the Ukraine. Natt’s life was comfortable up until 1940. Then the Russians arrived. Bit by bit things change. They are removed from their house. His father is arrested. Eventually he and his mother are rounded up and sent to Siberia. They are on the train when the novel ends.
I appreciated reading about this aspect of history and am looking forward to reading the rest of the series.
Dual Citizens by Alix Ohlin 🍁
This is a story of two sisters, Lark and Robin, and their absent Mother. Lark, the eldest, ends up raising Robin, a piano prodigy. The two girls are very close. When Lark goes away to school, their mother takes up with a man who has designs on Robin. She leaves home to join Lark. The two end up going separate ways, but in the end, are there for each other. I appreciated how rich all these characters are. As we learn more about the Mother, we come to understand what life was like for her and come to see that she did the best she could.
Over the Moon by Natalie Lloyd & Cassandra Morris (Narrator)
Mallie's life in her coal mining town is hard. When the opportunity arises for her to make a lot of money and pay off her family's debt, she disguises herself as a boy, and sets off. Mallie soon learns of a conspiracy to keep their families impoverished and obedient.
This is a beautifully crafted book that looks at gender expectations and explores power dynamics and politics. It's a profound story that begs to be discussed.
NONFICTION
The Grand Mosque of Paris: A Story of How Muslims Rescued Jews During the Holocaust by Karen Gray Ruelle & Deborah Durland DeSaix
This is a fascinating account of how the Muslim community in Paris came to the aid of Jews and other people during the Second World War. There is a lot of text on each page so it will work best with intermediate and older readers. The art is spectacular!
The Boys in the Boat: The True Story of an American Team's Epic Journey to Win Gold at the 1936 Olympics by Daniel James Brown & Gregory Mone (Adaptor)
This was riveting! I had to take a short break to deal with the details of life, but mostly finished the book in one sitting! It's the story of how a group of young men, most from difficult situations, became the fastest rowers in the world. They won the gold medal at the Olympics in Germany in 1936. It focuses on the life of Joe Rantz and goes back in forth in time from his rough early years to his time on the crew. I am really looking forward to the movie! Check out the book trailer below!
I started Dig by A. S. King, but had put it on hold to read The Boys in the Boat: The True Story of an American Team's Epic Journey to Win Gold at the 1936 Olympics. I'm listening to American War by by Omar El Akkad. Dion Graham's narration is brilliant!
UP NEXT
I've got a collection of graphic novels I want to finish up. I plan to get back to Dig and on to Ink Knows No Borders.
PROGRESS ON MY READING GOALS
How exciting is this? I have reached nearly all my reading goals!
#MustReadIn2018 25/25
#MustReadNFIn2018 11/12 - one in progress
25 Books by Canadian Indigenous Authors 25/25
25 books by Canadian Authors 91/25
Goodreads Reading Challenge 391/333
Titles with a 🍁 indicate this is a Canadian Author and or Illustrator.
Clicking on the title of the book will take you to the Goodreads page of the book.
RECENT BLOG POSTS
#IMWAYR November 24, 2019 - Crow Magic
PICTURE BOOKS
 |
| 5 stars |
Sparse text accompanies Nancy Vo's glorious mixed media artwork in both of these two picture books.
 |
| 5 stars |
An outlaw terrifies a town with his misdeeds. Eventually he leaves. Years later a stranger arrives and begins mending parts of the rundown town. In time he is recognized as the outlaw. This book makes you question. Can he be forgiven? Can he be redeemed? Is it enough that he is making amends? I'm itching to read it to a group of students to see what they think.
 |
| 4 stars |
I love the vintage feel to the illustrations in this book. When Sarah leaves their apartment and is away for a very long time (in turtle time.) Truman, the turtle decides to go after her. The book has lots of math potential. It would also be fun to create a map of where Truman eventually went.
 |
| 4 stars |
This beautiful little book, written in rhyming poetry, shows us how important it is to tell our stories and share what we know. It's the best way to deal with conflict.
 |
| 4 stars |
I like the idea of this book. It's about how we are all connected to each other and the world around us. It's a reminder to slow down and pay attention. Maybe if we do, we can hear that we are all part of the same heartbeat.
 |
| 5 stars |
Riley is a character you will adore. Riley wears whatever will help get through the day.
I was delighted by the ending. When asked. "Are you a girl or a boy?"
Riley replied.
"Today I'm a firefighter.
And a dancer.
And a monster hunter.
And a pilot.
And a dinosaur."
GRAPHIC
 |
| 4 stars |
It was wonderful seeing both these characters working together to save earth from some evil giants. I appreciated that while at first Lily was wary of Zita, the two of them end up close friends. I also like that all those secondary characters end up doing important work. It's a truly collaborative action.
NOVELS
 |
| 4 stars |
This is truly terrifying. At the same time it's a deep philosophical examination of what it means to be human. It's about love and acceptance.
 |
| 4 stars |
This is the first in a trilogy about an eleven year old Jewish boy growing in the Ukraine. Natt’s life was comfortable up until 1940. Then the Russians arrived. Bit by bit things change. They are removed from their house. His father is arrested. Eventually he and his mother are rounded up and sent to Siberia. They are on the train when the novel ends.
I appreciated reading about this aspect of history and am looking forward to reading the rest of the series.
 |
| 4 stars |
This is a story of two sisters, Lark and Robin, and their absent Mother. Lark, the eldest, ends up raising Robin, a piano prodigy. The two girls are very close. When Lark goes away to school, their mother takes up with a man who has designs on Robin. She leaves home to join Lark. The two end up going separate ways, but in the end, are there for each other. I appreciated how rich all these characters are. As we learn more about the Mother, we come to understand what life was like for her and come to see that she did the best she could.
 |
| 5 stars |
Mallie's life in her coal mining town is hard. When the opportunity arises for her to make a lot of money and pay off her family's debt, she disguises herself as a boy, and sets off. Mallie soon learns of a conspiracy to keep their families impoverished and obedient.
This is a beautifully crafted book that looks at gender expectations and explores power dynamics and politics. It's a profound story that begs to be discussed.
NONFICTION
 |
| 4 stars |
This is a fascinating account of how the Muslim community in Paris came to the aid of Jews and other people during the Second World War. There is a lot of text on each page so it will work best with intermediate and older readers. The art is spectacular!
 |
| 5 stars |
This was riveting! I had to take a short break to deal with the details of life, but mostly finished the book in one sitting! It's the story of how a group of young men, most from difficult situations, became the fastest rowers in the world. They won the gold medal at the Olympics in Germany in 1936. It focuses on the life of Joe Rantz and goes back in forth in time from his rough early years to his time on the crew. I am really looking forward to the movie! Check out the book trailer below!
CURRENTLY
I started Dig by A. S. King, but had put it on hold to read The Boys in the Boat: The True Story of an American Team's Epic Journey to Win Gold at the 1936 Olympics. I'm listening to American War by by Omar El Akkad. Dion Graham's narration is brilliant!
UP NEXT
I've got a collection of graphic novels I want to finish up. I plan to get back to Dig and on to Ink Knows No Borders.
PROGRESS ON MY READING GOALS
How exciting is this? I have reached nearly all my reading goals!
#MustReadIn2018 25/25
#MustReadNFIn2018 11/12 - one in progress
25 Books by Canadian Indigenous Authors 25/25
25 books by Canadian Authors 91/25
Goodreads Reading Challenge 391/333
I LOVE that you went with the YA version - it is a great book. We are reading many of the same titles. I loved Truman and Listen. Looking forward to What Riley Wore and wondering if I should read The Nest. You made it a must read and a may not want to read at the same time ...
ReplyDeleteI heard Kenneth Oppel read from The Nest when the book was published. It terrified me so much that it took forever for me to garner enough courage to finally read it. It is definitely a book to read.
DeleteThe Boys in the Boat is a favorite, glad you did get it read, Cheriee. And I adore those two Nancy Vo books, hope she has another soon! Truman is sweet & thanks for sharing A Boy Is Not A Bird, What Riley Wore & Dual Citizens, all new to me. Have a great week!
ReplyDeleteDual Citizens was a Scotiabank Giller Prize Nominee and a Rogers Writers' Trust nominee for fiction this year. Alex Ohlin is a local author. I had to read it!
DeleteI really enjoyed Truman when I read it. I also just ordered Listen, What Riley Wore and The Grand Mosque of Paris from my library. Great list this week. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteHope you enjoy those titles as much as I did!
DeleteThe Nest has been sitting on my bookshelf already, but I'm wondering how scary it is. Have a great reading week!
ReplyDeleteIt's scary, but there is a much deeper issue being addressed so it's worth it!
DeleteCongrats on nearly reading your reading goals! Those Nancy Vo books look amazing. I'm very pleased to discover my library has them!
ReplyDeleteI thought of you as I read them. I hope you like them as much as I did. I can hardly wait for the next in the series.
DeleteI absolutely adored Truman. I'm putting it in my schoolwide Mock Caldecott.
ReplyDeleteI understand why!
DeleteThe two Nancy Vo books look so fascinating. I just checked the libraries in my area and no one has them. YET! I need to get my hands on them!! Also, I just checked out The Grand Mosque of Paris after hearing about it through this community, so I have that to look forward to reading this month. Thank you for these reviews, Cheriee!
ReplyDeleteNancy Vo is remarkable. I just about swooned the first time I read them.
DeleteI just got a copy of Mighty Jack and Zita the Spacegirl! I might lend it out before I get to read it though.
ReplyDeleteI hope you manage to get to it. It is wonderful!
DeleteI just added all of the picture books that you described to some of the lists that I keep. I really enjoyed both The Nest and Mighty Jack and Zita. I have been hoping to get to Dig for a while and have had it be bumped by something else a couple of times. Thanks for the great post!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad to see you back. I count on you to introduce me to Canadian authors!
DeleteHi Cheriee! I love seeing all the picturebooks you shared here - most of them are unfamiliar to me, so will be on the lookout for them. I enjoyed Nest when I read it and found it to be sufficiently creepy!
ReplyDeleteHave a great reading week.
Hi there. I am sure you will love those Nancy Vo titles.
DeleteOver the Moon is a favorite and we have it in our Mock Newbery for this year. It's been fun hearing conversations about Malie and what she does!
ReplyDeleteI still need to read the Mighty Jack and Zita book!