#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's been hot here in Vancouver, BC. I made it to the folk festival Saturday and enjoyed listening to the music and discovering artists I didn't know about. I was especially impressed by Canadian indigenous artists, Iskwé and Leonard Sumner.
Other than that I've been hunkered down inside reading, writing, and sewing. A friend's daughter is expecting a baby and I'm making a quilt for her. I'll post a picture when it's done.
PICTURE BOOKS
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| 4 stars |
This is an important book that shows the consequences of bullying.
I like how Carey Sookocheff’s simple illustrations highlight the important characters and show these consequences. I also like that we don't know the bullied child's gender. When this child finally tells their mother, the mom does a good job of helping the child understand the bully’s perspective. I’m not sure that the eventual solution is realistic, although I concede that telling the principal doesn’t always make a difference.
This is a book that should be in every school library. It’s a book that needs to be read and talked about in all classrooms.
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| 4 stars |
This reminded me of a Robert Munsch tale. Chuck goes for a walk and has all kinds of adventures and close escapes. It’s hilarious. The cartoon illustrations enhance this humour. My only complaint is that it’s written in rhyming verse and while it works most of the time, there are sections where it doesn’t and the flow of the language falls apart.
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| 4 stars |
I read this a couple of times because I've read reviews that praised it. The first time I thought it was sweet but it didn't wow me. The second time I read it I started to think about its potential. This is a book I would love to read with intermediate aged students. I think there is a lot to unpack about who we are and our responsibility for the earth.
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| 3 stars |
The art in this is lovely, but the book itself didn't quite work for me and I can't help but wonder if it will engage children.
NOVELS
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| 4 stars |
I liked many things about this book. It took me a bit to get into, but then I connected with the characters and couldn't stop reading. Charlotte and Ben are online friends who play scrabble together. Both are going through hard times at home and at school. Some of the school stuff, like friends moving apart is somewhat ordinary, but the bullying is pretty intense.
To be honest it felt like too much to deal with in one book. That said, Erin Entrada Kelly had me right there with those children throughout their ordeals.
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| 5 stars |
Wow! There is so much to love about this book. First off, it's about baseball. Baseball is the one sport I love to watch. Second, Stacy Mozer, (a fellow #IMWAYR blogger) has created authentic characters who grow and mature throughout the novel.
Sam Barrette loves baseball and is also very good at it. She's the only girl on her team and her coach rides her hard and complains about her attitude. When she goes away to baseball camp she has to deal with more misogyny, but manages to overcome these obstacles to become an even better player. The bit of romance is just right. I can't wait to read the next in the series!
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| 4 stars |
Jerome is a 12 year old black boy who is killed by a white police man while out playing in the park with a toy gun. He's now a ghost who wanders through the world visiting his family, looking at the courtroom, and spending time at the police officer's home. It's there he meets Sarah, the officer's daughter. She is able to see and talk to him. Jerome discovers that there are a lot of ghost boys out there. One of them, the ghost of Emmet Till, is there to support him through whatever comes next. Jerome has some things to figure out before he can move on to that. Sarah and Emmet are part of this.
Add this one to your list. It's a fine book to partner up with The Hate U Give and Dear Martin.
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| 4 stars |
To be honest, if I wasn't listening to this book while I was sewing, I might have put it aside, but it turned out to be the perfect book to keep me company. I was transported into this almost perfect world.
It's a slow book. Nothing really happens as Celeste Ng takes us from character to character spiralling deeper and deeper into each one of them. If you like thoughtful riveting stories, this one's for you. It's a compassionate look inside people, some who aren't really very nice. It's so well done that you will end up feeling sorry for them anyway.
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| 5 stars |
This book will wrench your guts out and break your heart. Terese Marie Mailhot’s memoir gave me insight into what it means to have a bipolar diagnosis. Her life has been filled with all kinds of horrors most of us can’t imagine. She seems to have come out the other side, and is a successful writer and teacher, but I still find myself worrying about her.
I can’t recommend this book highly enough!
CURRENTLY
I bet you are getting tired of me saying I am working on Naomi Klein’s This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs the Climate. So am I, but I did read a few pages this week. I started reading Amal Unbound by Aisha Saeed, but then the audiobook became available so I switched to it. I've just started reading The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl by Stacy McAnulty.
UP NEXT
I'm hoping to read The Epic Fail of Arturo Zamora by Pablo Cartaya. Then I'll decide between Rebound by Kwame Alexander and Out of Left Field by Ellen Klages. I'm hoping to start listening to The Grapes of Wrath by John Stienbeck. I've wanted to read it for ages. It's one of my #MustRead titles for this year and one of my #BigBookSummer reads. How's that for killing a few birds one stone! Then there is also that pile of picture books to get to...
PROGRESS ON MY READING GOALS
#MustReadIn2018 17/25
#MustReadNFIn2018 5/12 1 in progress
#BigBookSummer 2/4 1 in progress
25 Books by Canadian Indigenous Authors 13/25
Goodreads Reading Challenge 243/333
