It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

 

To learn more about It's Monday! What Are You Reading? visit Mentor Texts

This week in addition to reading books for the Newbery Book Club I am re-reading an older favorite for the Quest for the Crown competition we have. 

~~~

Albie struggles in school. He feels alone and like a failure. So easy to identify with.

***Soapbox alert!***

I about lost my mind when Albie’s mom told him he was too old for Captain Underpants, that they were for babies. LET YOUR KIDS READ WHAT THEY LOVE!!! Their reading levels will increase if they are reading, even if it isn’t Johnny Tremain. I PROMISE!

Genre: Realistic

AR level:

Grade appropriate:

RATING BREAKDOWN:

Overall: 5/5-- As the mom of a kiddo for whom learning is very difficult, I loved this book. I loved how he figured things out like the 100 cups making 4 stacks of 25. It was so real. He does the same thing over and over and he just learns naturally. I also loved how he decided that he wasn’t going to get upset over a bully calling him names. It gives him so much power.

One drawback is that is babysitter encourages him to dishonest several times. While I disagree with the way his parents were doing things, I absolutely disagree with a babysitter encouraging a child to lie to his teacher and parents.

Creativity: 3/5-- It’s hard to be too “outside the box” when writing a book like this. Realistic fiction about a kid who struggles.

Characters: 5/5-- Loved Albie. Loved Calista. Loved the transparency of Albie’s parents and the mistakes that they make.

Engrossing: 5/5

Writing: 5/5

Appeal to kids: 5/5-- I think kids are really going to identify with Albie. Everyone feels bullied or like they are dumb at some point.

Appropriate length to tell the story: 5/5

CONTENT:

Language: none

Sexuality: none

Violence: none

Drugs/Alcohol: mild-- Albie’s grandfather (who is not very nice) drinks a red/brown drink when he comes to visit.

Other: This is sometimes a concern at our school but one of Albie’s friends has “dads.” Nothing more is mentioned about it.

~~~

I loved this book the first time around and as always with Rebecca Stead’s books it has a crazy twist ending. I have wanted to read it again now that I know the ending and it being a Bluebonnet/Crown book this year has given me the excuse!

Genre: Mystery

AR level: 3.8

Grade appropriate: 4th and up

RATING BREAKDOWN:

Overall: 5/5

Creativity: 5/5-- Rebecca Stead is a master of the hidden plot. She totally had me fooled the first time I read this book.

Characters: 5/5-- I love Georges’s big picture outlook and the way he stands up to the bullies.

Engrossing: 5/5

Writing: 5/5-- How can she give hints to the hidden plot all along but not give it away?

Appeal to kids: 5/5

Appropriate length to tell the story: 5/5-- very quick read

CONTENT:

Language: none, mild, medium, high--the bullies at school use a couple of bad words. “damn” and they call one girl "Terry Con-chest-y"

Sexuality: none

Violence: none

Drugs/Alcohol: mild-- mom drinks a glass of wine

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

 

To learn more about It's Monday! What Are You Reading? visit Mentor Texts

For Newbery club: 

Genre: Science Fiction 

AR level: 5.6

Grade appropriate: 5th and up

RATING BREAKDOWN: 

Overall: 3/5-- This is not my favorite kind of Fantasy. See my notes on the writing. 

Creativity: 5/5-- Unusual. Not like any story I’ve read before. 

Characters: 4/5-- The characters were fine, but not endearing. There is growth throughout the book for all the main characters. 

Engrossing: 2/5-- I really had to push through this one. I listened to the audio version so that helped me not give up on it. 

Writing: 3/5-- There’s so much that the narrator has to explain to the reader when we are plopped down in the middle of a world so different from our own. Some authors do it in such a way that you don’t even realize and it feels effortless. That is not the case with this book. It is very labor intensive trying to learn the ins and outs of this world. 

Appeal to kids: 4/5-- While not my favorite, this does strike me as one of those books that our hard core Sci-Fi/Fantasy readers will enjoy. 

Appropriate length to tell the story: 3/5-- Too long 

CONTENT: 

Language: none

Sexuality: none 

Violence: none-- the girls are almost trapped by slave traders and they are rough with the girls. 

Drugs/Alcohol: none

~~~

 

To learn more about It's Monday! What Are You Reading? visit Mentor Texts

For Newbery club: 

Genre: Science Fiction 

AR level: 5.6

Grade appropriate: 5th and up

RATING BREAKDOWN: 

Overall: 3/5-- This is not my favorite kind of Fantasy. See my notes on the writing. 

Creativity: 5/5-- Unusual. Not like any story I’ve read before. 

Characters: 4/5-- The characters were fine, but not endearing. There is growth throughout the book for all the main characters. 

Engrossing: 2/5-- I really had to push through this one. I listened to the audio version so that helped me not give up on it. 

Writing: 3/5-- There’s so much that the narrator has to explain to the reader when we are plopped down in the middle of a world so different from our own. Some authors do it in such a way that you don’t even realize and it feels effortless. That is not the case with this book. It is very labor intensive trying to learn the ins and outs of this world. 

Appeal to kids: 4/5-- While not my favorite, this does strike me as one of those books that our hard core Sci-Fi/Fantasy readers will enjoy. 

Appropriate length to tell the story: 3/5-- Too long 

CONTENT: 

Language: none

Sexuality: none 

Violence: none-- the girls are almost trapped by slave traders and they are rough with the girls. 

Drugs/Alcohol: none

~~~

This is not a new book, but it's one I never read when it was new. Let me tell you, it is a WEIRD concept that two young girls would hide a dead body and live weeks by themselves after burying it in the garden...

Genre: Realistic

AR level: 4.4

Grade appropriate: 5th and up

RATING BREAKDOWN:

Overall: 3/5-- such a disturbing thought that 2 little girls would hide the body of a dead aunt so they didn’t have to answer to child protective services…

Creativity: 4/5-- It is an unusual idea...

Characters: 5/5-- I really liked Angel and Stella. I wanted them to succeed. I loved George.

Engrossing: 2/5-- I don’t know if you’ve picked up on it yet, but I didn’t love this book…

Writing: 3/5

Appeal to kids: 2/5-- It’s a book we’ve had in the library for a while and even though the cover is appealing it doesn’t get much circulation.

Appropriate length to tell the story: 3/5

CONTENT:

Language: none

Sexuality: none

Violence: none

Drugs/Alcohol: mild-- the vacationing parents drink beer as they cook out.

Other: Not sure if this will put anyone off, but one of the vacationing families has 2 moms. The book does not mention anything else about the family.

This is not a new book, but it's one I never read when it was new. Let me tell you, it is a WEIRD concept that two young girls would hide a dead body and live weeks by themselves after burying it in the garden...

Genre: Realistic

AR level: 4.4

Grade appropriate: 5th and up

RATING BREAKDOWN:

Overall: 3/5-- such a disturbing thought that 2 little girls would hide the body of a dead aunt so they didn’t have to answer to child protective services…

Creativity: 4/5-- It is an unusual idea...

Characters: 5/5-- I really liked Angel and Stella. I wanted them to succeed. I loved George.

Engrossing: 2/5-- I don’t know if you’ve picked up on it yet, but I didn’t love this book…

Writing: 3/5

Appeal to kids: 2/5-- It’s a book we’ve had in the library for a while and even though the cover is appealing it doesn’t get much circulation.

Appropriate length to tell the story: 3/5

CONTENT:

Language: none

Sexuality: none

Violence: none

Drugs/Alcohol: mild-- the vacationing parents drink beer as they cook out.

Other: Not sure if this will put anyone off, but one of the vacationing families has 2 moms. The book does not mention anything else about the family.

2nd Annual Newbery Book Club

It's that time again! Yesterday was the kickoff of our Newbery Book Club. 

We had 25 students join us during lunch for the first meeting.

Here's our plan: 

We are all reading books published in 2014. We will get together every week between now and the Newbery announcement in January. We'll each talk about which book we read this past week and we'll discuss which ones we think are Newbery contenders. 

We did this last year and it was so much fun! Not just for me. I have it on good authority that the kids and other teachers loved it too. 

We did run into one minor bump in the road this year. We made a short list of 27 books we had researched and that had the "Newbery Buzz!" But we had 25 students and 5 teachers wanting these 27 books. 

I decided that this was an awesome problem and since ANY book published in 2014 can win I ordered another 10 books that are new this year. We are keeping our short list, but we are being very open about reading ANY 2014 book.

Here's our short list. I'd love to see it compares to the ones other people are considering. 

You can print our list by clicking on either page below. 

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

 

To learn more about It's Monday! What Are You Reading? visit Mentor Texts

Still chipping away at the books we are considering for our Newbery Book Club this year. This week's read was one of my new all-time favorites.

This book really meant a lot to me before I was done. I am an adoptive parent and Milo's struggles hit home with me. I especially loved the author's note at the end. I hope everyone who reads this book loves it as much as I did. 

Genre: Mystery

AR level: none yet

Grade appropriate: 4th and up

The bizarre guests are snowed in at the Greenglass House! What a wonderful and mysterious place to be stranded! It’s magical and heartwarming.

RATING BREAKDOWN:

Overall: 5/5-- Loved this book! It was one that I wished I could escape into. I remember feeling that way about stories when I was a kid, but it doesn’t happen all that often now.

Creativity: 5/5-- Mystery stories do tend to be very similar. This one breaks the mold.

Characters: 5/5-- I love Meddy’s confidence. Even as Milo is telling her how ridiculous her game is she very calmly and confidently says “No, it’s how the game works.” and keeps on and Milo follows because she seems to know what she’s doing.

I also love how Milo goes from being insecure and anxious to confident and a leader. The game worked a miracle in him. “He did get to decide what he was going to do from here… he got to decide who Milo was. He got to choose who and what he was going to be from now on.”

Engrossing: 5/5-- 384 pages and I read it in 3 days… With a full time job and small children.

Writing: 5/5-- I so prefer, when being drawn into an unfamiliar world, to start out with a character who knows nothing of the world and learn with them (as this book introduces us to the game) rather than being thrown into a world where the narrator is constantly having to explain the vernacular that the reader knows nothing about. It feels much less awkward or forced.

The research (or prior knowledge) Kate Milford needed of gaming and fantastical creatures is amazing.

Appeal to kids: 5/5-- If they can get over the size of it, they’ll love it!

Appropriate length to tell the story: 4/5-- It’s daunting to look at! I’m worried that will put kids off. Most of the time I was reading I was so engrossed I didn’t worry about it. However, about page 300 I started to look ahead and see how much more there was...

CONTENT:

Language: mild-- “We’re still having Christmas, come hell or high water.” “All hell broke loose.”

Sexuality: none

Violence: mild-- two people in the history of the house fell to their deaths and the story is told in the book. The bad guy does threaten the house’s residents with a gun.

Drugs/Alcohol: mild--the adults drink whiskey in hot toddies and in their coffee occasionally.

Other: The main character reads a book with several creepy stories in it. In one a girl challenges the Devil, in another selkies (seals who transform into beautiful women and try to trick people) are briefly mentioned.

There is also a ghost story associated with the Greenglass house.

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

 

To learn more about It's Monday! What Are You Reading? visit Mentor Texts

Along with the other teachers in our Newbery Book Club, I am focusing on books preparing for the club. These two are on our list. 

 

Genre: Science Fiction
AR level: 6.0
Grade appropriate: 5th and up

Clever and witty! But probably a bit too mature for most elementary kids.

RATING BREAKDOWN:
Overall: 5/5-- I thouroughly enjoyed this book. But I am going to require the kids in our book club to have parent permission to read it. It's going to take a mature elementary school student to be able to handle it. It's a perfect middle school book.

Creativity: 5/5-- inventions left behind by Nikola Tesla that cause the near apocalypse? Creative.

Characters: 5/5-- loved the characters. Quirky, funny, & real

Engrossing: 5/5-- It’s magnetic! I could not put it down.

Writing: 5/5-- Most of the time if the writing and phrasing is not noticeable, I call it a win. If the author can tell a wonderful story and not get caught up in the language that’s a plus. But this book had such wittiness! It reminded me of a well-done adult book. “After a change in barometric pressure that fogged all the windows of her house, the sky let forth with the kind of psychotic determination that made people build arks.”

Appeal to kids: 5/5-- middle school

Appropriate length to tell the story: 5/5

CONTENT:
Language: mild-- “Hell breaks loose in a variety of ways.” “God!” "Hellish reality" without tv.

Sexuality: mild--kissing, talking about wanting to make-out, boxers that say "This package is explosive!"
Some innuendo that most elementary students will not catch, almost like a kids movie with adult content hidden in.

Violence: none-- The Accelerati (bad guys) kill someone (off scene) for talking to the kids and the kids “reanimate” him to learn what information he had.


Drugs/Alcohol: none 

~~~

  

Genre: realistic

AR level: 5.3
Grade appropriate: 4th & up

RATING BREAKDOWN:
Overall: 4/5-- sweet book that deals with real life problems that kids face all the time.

Creativity:3/5-- a lot like other middle grade novels about kids from low income families

Characters: 5/5-- likeable, realistic characters

Engrossing:3/5-- this book didn't suck me in like I hoped it would

Writing:4/5

Appeal to kids:4/5-- I just don't know yet...

Appropriate length to tell the story: 5/5-- easy read

CONTENT:
Language: none

Sexuality:mild-- a character draws bras on magazine covers, Star's teenage sister gets pregnant

Violence:mild-- Star gets into a food fight, one of her friend punches people (he has issues)

Drugs/Alcohol: none-- but girls at school tell Star that only drug addicts live in the trailer park 

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

To learn more about It's Monday! What Are You Reading? visit Mentor Texts

Both of the books I read this week are being included in our Newbery Book Club. 

 

We are not 100% sure that this book will qualify for the Newbery since the author lives in Australia, but it is such a good book and getting so much attention we are including it in our book club either way.

Genre: Fantasy

AR level:4.9
Grade appropriate: 3rd grade and up

I have to admit, I started this book a while ago & then stopped. I picked it up again because of all the attention it seems to be getting. I was glad I did.

RATING BREAKDOWN:

Overall:4/5-- good modern day retelling of a fairy tale we don't hear all the time. It takes place in modern day but feels timeless. I love that!

Creativity: 5/5-- not many people tackle The Snow Queen for a retelling.

Characters: 5/5-- I liked the main characters which is always a big deal to me. If I'm going to spend time with this story & characters I want to like them or grow to like them.

Engrossing:3/5-- like I mentioned above, I put this book down the first time I picked it up. Can't quite pinpoint what the problem is. I just wasn't sucked in...

Writing:4/5-- the writing is good. It doesn't get in the way of the story.

Appeal to kids:4/5-- I hope kids will be drawn to it.

Appropriate length to tell the story: 5/5

CONTENT:

Language: none

Sexuality: none

Violence:mild-- a sword fight with the villain at the end

Drugs/Alcohol: none

 

~~~

Genre: science fiction
AR level: None yet
Grade appropriate: 4th & up

RATING BREAKDOWN:
 
Overall: 5/5-- this is a story about a girl whose grandfather is a mad scientist. It's funny, silly, poignant and thought provoking.
 
 Creativity: 5/5-- how many books are about a middle schooler whose 14 year old grandpa comes to live with them?
 
Characters: 5/5-- loved Ellie & grandpa. The characters are real & likeable
 
Engrossing: 5/5-- I read it in e-book format. That should tell you something right there. I can't seem to finish e-books. This one was good enough that it transcended it's medium.
 
Writing: 5/5
 
Appeal to kids: 5/5-- they're gonna love it!
 
Appropriate length to tell the story: 5/5

CONTENT:
Language: none
Sexuality: none
Violence: none
Drugs/Alcohol: mild-- grandpa drinks red wine at one point & gets sick.