#IMWAYR January 17, 2022

 Welcome readers! It's #IMWAYR time again, when bloggers share what they have been reading and find out what others have been up to. 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. These are fabulous places to start your search for what to read next. 

Here in Canada the Canada Reads longlist was announced. Canada Reads is hosted by CBC (our national broadcaster.) While it's an adult challenge, many high school classes also participate. The theme this year is books that “inspire readers to reflect on community.” I immediately went to my library and put all the books (except the three I've already read) on hold. I will read from the longlist until the shortlist is announced on January 26. Then I try to read those before the debate in March. 

Just a reminder that if you are participating in the #MustRead challenge, Leigh Anne Eck at A Day In the Life is hosting the last update for 2021 here. When you are ready, post your #MustReadIn2022 goals here. The links are open until the end of January.

Titles with a 🍁 indicate this is a Canadian or Indigenous Canadian Author and or Illustrator.

Clicking on the title will take you to the Goodreads page of the book.

PICTURE BOOKS

5 stars

When Langston Dances by Kaija Langley & Keith Mallett (Illustrator) September 07, 2021

The art in this just gobsmacked me. It's drop dead gorgeous. Langston is such an adorable boy you will want to scoop him off the pages and hug him.
But wait, there is so much more to adore about this book. It's in the beauty of the bodies, the relationship between mother and child, the joy in the child's face, the challenging of gender norms.
The first time his mother takes him to see a ballet, Langston falls in love with dance. He practices in front of his mirror. On the way to his first class he shows off his moves to everyone he meets. The end of the book moves us into the future where we see Langston as a young man dancing on a stage.  

My City Speaks by Darren Lebeuf & Ashley Barron (Illustrations) June 30, 2021 🍁

This book is so beautiful I had to read it twice.
We follow a young girl and her father as they travel through their city on the way to a violin recital. The illustrations provide us with a rich backdrop that highlights the sensory experiences of the young girl, who is blind.
Ashley Barron's artwork was rendered in cut-paper collage, watercolour, acrylic and pencil crayon, with some digital assembly.

Unspeakable: The Tulsa Race Massacre by Carole Boston Weatherford & Floyd Cooper (Illustrations) February 02, 2021

This is an essential book. That it's beautifully written and illustrated underscores the unspeakable horror of the event. In 1921 a white mob attacked and destroyed the thriving black community of Tulsa, Oklahoma. This picture book is an important introduction to this episode in history and a lead into doing more research.
I checked this out of my library to read again to compare it to one of the graphic novels I have been reading. If you haven't read this one, you must. 

GRAPHIC NOVELS

These days I'm mostly reading graphic novels for the Cybils awards. I will do a post to share my thoughts on all of them after we pick a winner. From the ones I've finished, that's promising to be a daunting task. 

Here's what I read last week. If I previously reviewed the book, I've provided a link to it.

Cheer Up: Love and Pompoms by Crystal Frasier & Val Wise (Illustrations) August 10, 2021

Cranky Chicken by Katherine Battersby September 07, 2021 🍁

Across the Tracks: Remembering Greenwood, Black Wall Street, and the Tulsa Race Massacre by Alverne Ball, Stacey Robinson (Illustrations) et al May 04, 2021

In the Shadow of the Fallen Towers: The Seconds, Minutes, Hours, Days, Weeks, Months, and Years after the 9/11 Attacks by Don Brown August 10, 2021

NOVELS

5 stars

False Value by Ben Aaronovitch  & Kobna Holdbrook-Smith (Narrator) February 20, 2020

I adored the references to Ada Lovelace, Charles Babbage, and his thinking machines and how it ended up being connected to the development of artificial intelligence. Peter Grant is right on his game in this one - dealing with upcoming fatherhood, a nefarious tech company, and all kinds of subterfuge in his new role as undercover operative.

5 stars

The Strangers by Katherena Vermette & Michaela Washburn (Narrator) September 07, 2021 🍁

This was a hard book to read. It is a story about the pain and rage felt by indigenous women. It's about unconditional love - or the lack of it.
It's the story of four generations of women. We see how the actions of one generation reverberate, directly or indirectly, through the following ones. In spite of the terrible things that happened to her, I ended up so angry with Margaret, the grandmother. My heart ached most for the recent generation of women. The foster care system leaves much to be desired.
What I liked most about the end of this book is that it leaves us with a glimmer of hope for their futures.

CURRENTLY

Washington Black by by Esi Edugyan (audiobook) 🍁

Chunky by Yehudi Mercado

Fossil Hunter: How Mary Anning Changed the Science of Prehistoric Life by Cheryl Blackford (review coming next week)

UP NEXT 

What Strange Paradise by Omar El Akkad will be my next audiobook.

Since I'm a round 2 Cybils judge, I am busy reading and rereading the finalists in the graphic novel categories.  Hopefully I will find time for other books.

READING GOALS

#MustReadFiction 2/24 

#MustReadNonFiction 1/18 one in progress

Canadian Authors 5/100

Canada Reads Finalists /5 one in progress

Indigenous Authors 1/25

Goodreads Reading Challenge: 18/250

#IMWAYR October 22, 2018

#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.

It was a lovely week. Not only did I read some spectacular books, I finished piecing two quilt tops and got some knitting accomplished. Ada's baby doll now has her own knitted outfit. Now I'm trying to get a couple of pumpkin hats finished for my grandchildren and work on some Christmas projects. 
The larger of these two quilt tops is from a kit that was given to me and I created the smaller one from the leftover fabric. I'll be taking those in to be quilted this week. 

Because I have appreciated other bloggers who link their reading to Goodreads, I've decided to do that here. If you click on the title, the link will take you there. 

PICTURE BOOKS

5 stars

Drawn Together by Minh Lê & Dan Santat (Illustrator)

I now get what all the buzz is about. This book is visually stunning. The ultimate connection through art by an estranged grandfather and grandson makes my heart sing. Hope and love vibrate through it!

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4 stars

Please, Open This Book! by Adam Lehrhaupt & Matthew Forsythe (Illustrator)

This reminded me of a Sesame Street book, There is a Monster At the end of this Book, that I read to my boys over and over and over again when they were little. Please, Open This Book! is hilarious and I'm sure will entertain many new generations of youngsters. Whatever you do, don't close the book!

4 stars

Introducing Teddy: A Gentle Story About Gender and Friendship by Jess Walton & Dougal MacPherson (Illustrator)

I like the simple, straightforward way gender is dealt with here. Aside from the fact that we are talking about a Teddy Bear acknowledging it's true gender, the responses from the friends feels genuine. My suspicion is that adults make way more fuss about this than children would.

GRAPHIC

5 stars

Crush (Awkward #3) by Svetlana Chmakova

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

Don't tell anyone, but my middle school self has a huge crush on Jorge. I can't help it. He's sweet, honest and exceptionally kind. He’s an athlete but not into toxic jock culture. Alas Jorge already has a crush on someone else.

Seriously, this book captures the essence of the tumultuous time of adolescence. It's all completely believable. I love how earnest Jorge and Olivia are about making their school a safe place. Sure there are the usual insecure, nasty jerks, one of whom is near to them. but ultimately these are great kids with good teachers.

Now I have to go back and read Brave, the second in this series. I am loving this high caliber graphic series. If you haven't read them yet, I encourage you to find and read Awkward, the first one. You too will be hooked.

NOVELS

5 stars

Louisiana's Way Home by Kate DiCamillo (From Netgalley)

Oh my, if I could, I would give this book more stars. Louisiana just jumps off the page and into your heart. There is just so much I adore about this book. It's deeply philosophical. It's gut wrenching. It's got heart and soul. I cried with sorrow and joy. This is a must read middle grade novel that celebrates the best in all of us.

4 stars

The Third Mushroom by Jennifer L. Holm & Georgette Perna (Narrator)

This was a satisfying sequel to The Fourteenth Goldfish. I love the characters. This one has lots of science, a bit of romance on multiple levels, positive friendships, and a tragedy. It's so delightful to read about a healthy functioning family. I adore this school librarian!

ADULT NONFICTION

5 stars

The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma by Bessel A. van der Kolk & Sean Pratt (Narrator)

Sometimes a book can change the way you see the world, others and yourself. This is one of those. If you work with children, or people of any age group, you must read this. If you have ever experienced trauma, or know someone who has, you need to read this. If you just want to understand yourself better, read this book. Ultimately this book is about hope. The author, Bessel van der Kol, shows that there are many ways to help PTSD and other survivors of childhood abuse recover and live meaningful lives.

CURRENTLY

These days I'm listening to Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls 2 by Elena Favilli & Francesca Cavallo. I'm in the middle of Be Prepared by Vera Brosgol and am almost finished Barbara O'Connor's Wonderland.

UP NEXT

I hope to start listening to A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness, one of my Mustread titles for this year. I fear that I will not meet my goals if I don't get really really busy reading from those lists! Other than this, I'll see what strikes my fancy in the pile of books here. 

PROGRESS ON MY READING GOALS

#MustReadIn2018 21/25

#MustReadNFIn2018 9/12

25 Books by Canadian Indigenous Authors 20/25

Goodreads Reading Challenge 355/333

#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

The Big Bad Fox by Benjamin Renner

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)

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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