It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

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

It was like magic opening the box when this came in the mail. I just caught my breath at how beautiful it is!

And there it is… the reason we can’t keep it in the library or in the Newbery Book Club… Some of the characters are gay. Openly. The elementary library at a Christian school can’t be where our kids learn about this.

I am heartbroken.

Genre: Historical   

AR level: none yet

Grade appropriate: 5th and up

RATING BREAKDOWN:

Overall: 5/5-- amazing, truly.

Creativity: 5/5-- Brian Selznick, The man practically invented his own genre...

Characters: 5/5-- Joseph is every man. His curiosity and need for a friend is very easy to identify with. Frankie drove me CRAZY in the beginning! But she grows on you (and grows up.)

Engrossing: 5/5-- It’s a 24 hour read. This is one of those books where you are reading along and all of a sudden you look up and remember where you are.

Writing: 5/5-- There are no words.

Appeal to kids: 5/5

Appropriate length to tell the story: 5/5

CONTENT:

Language: mild-- my god (1)

Sexuality: none-- Nothing graphic but some of the characters are openly gay.

Violence: none

Drugs/Alcohol: mild-- Joseph accidentally drinks wine and “something that is not water.” Adults drink wine at a dinner party.

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

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

Genre: Realistic

AR level: 4.1

Grade appropriate: middle or high school

RATING BREAKDOWN:

Overall: 5/5-- I really did like this story, but I definitely feel like it’s more appropriate for middle or high school. The bullying is very intense and there is a very scary scene at the end. See my comments below on violence.

Creativity: 5/5-- I love the idea that Raine can collect memories and watch them. That specific part reminds me of Snicker of Magic. One of my favs from last year.

Characters: 5/5-- Loved Raine. Wanted to go running with her. She would have trounced me.

Engrossing: 5/5-- It was absolutely engrossing. I couldn’t put it down.

Writing: 5/5

Appeal to kids: 5/5-- It needs to be YA, but the cover is too young looking. Will have to do some reconciling on that.

Appropriate length to tell the story: 5/5

CONTENT:

Language: none

Sexuality: none

Violence:medium-- the bullying in the books is seriously disturbing. In the end the main character is tied up and put in a burning building. Sometimes in adventure stories the violence is much less disturbing because it's so far fetched. This feels all too real.

Drugs/Alcohol: none

~~~

On our Mock Newbery list.

I decided to move to Moonpenny Island in the first chapter. It’s a sweet little island that seems perfect. And then reality sets in.

This book is all about how hard life can be. It’s a good book, but not one that you want to rush back into.

Genre: Realistic

AR level: 4.2

Grade appropriate: 4th and up

RATING BREAKDOWN:

Overall: 2/5

Creativity: 2/5-- Life on the island made this story different from others like it. But it’s very much like other stories about tough life events.

Characters: 4/5-- very real, not always perfect, not always likeable, but very real.

Engrossing: 2/5-- This was not an easy book for me to finish. I loved it at first, but after a while there are just too many things going wrong. It was not a place I wanted to go if I had the choice of what to read.

Writing: 4/5

Appeal to kids: 2/5-- I think it’ll be a hard sell…

Appropriate length to tell the story: 4/5

CONTENT:

Language: none

Sexuality: none

Violence: mild-- Sylvie accidentally gets pushed down the stairs when her dad and brother are fighting.

Drugs/Alcohol: mild-- Sylvie’s mother has a drinking problem. 

3rd Annual Newbery Book Club

Tuesday was our first meeting of the Newbery Book Club for this year. One of our amazing parents designed a logo for us and I am so excited about it!

Tada! 

Here's the list thus far for this year. This list does change. As we find new books, we add and as we read things that really aren't appropriate for our kids, we take away. Feel free to print. Just click the pic to get a copy

As you can see, the adults in the group TRY to preview the books and make sure there's not TOO much objectionable content. The "Approved" stamp indicates that an adult as read the book and approved it. 

Stay tuned for more Newbery news! 

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

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

Genre: Fantasy

AR level: 4.8

Grade appropriate: 3rd and up

RATING BREAKDOWN:

Overall: 4/5-- I enjoyed this book more than I expected to. It is a very well done spin-off of fairy tales. And we all know that’s a big deal right now. I liked it so much better than Ever After High.

I know, I know! Ever After High is super popular at our library and it’s written by a Newbery Honor winning author. I just found it tiresome, trying so hard to be clever and trendy (hexting for texting. I mean really.) This one’s got more sticking power and won’t be irrelevant so fast.

Creativity: 4/5-- Eh… Another fairy tale spin-off, but a reform school run by Cinderella’s wicked stepmother. I count it as creative.

Characters: 5/5-- You’ve got a thief who’s trying to feed her family. She ends up at reform school and discovers a massive evil plot and has to head up the resistance. It’s a cross between a fairy tale and an adventure novel.

Engrossing: 3/5-- It wasn’t one I was always rushing back to read, but it did hold my interest.

Writing: 5/5

Appeal to kids: 5/5-- Already checked out and on hold by our Ever After High crowd.

Appropriate length to tell the story: 5/5

CONTENT:

Language: none

Sexuality: none

Violence: none

Drugs/Alcohol: none

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

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

This is one of our Quest for the Crown books as well as a Bluebonnet Nominee for 2015-2016. 

I’m not big on animal stories. I was as a kid, but not so much anymore. Can I tell you how much I loved this book? The main character Tony is living with his great uncle because his mom’s in prison. Understandably he is lonely and sad. He friends his uncle’s dog. Well, this picture just says it all.

Beautiful.

Genre: Animal Fiction   

AR level: 5.9

Grade appropriate: 4th and up

RATING BREAKDOWN:

Overall: 4/5-- A wonderful book.

Creativity: 5/5

Characters: 5/5-- Loved Gabe and Tio. Tony grows and matures so much through the story. I feel in love with him too.

Engrossing: 2/5-- This is the one real drawback. I kept finding other things to do instead of reading this book. It wasn’t one I was craving. I am trying to be critical enough to only give 5 stars to the ones I can’t keep my nose out of.

Writing: 5/5-- free verse, well done.

Appeal to kids: 4/5-- It will be a shoe-in for the animal fiction lovers and maybe the boys who love adventure books. Others will have to be coaxed.

Appropriate length to tell the story: 5/5

CONTENT:

Language: none

Sexuality: none

Violence: mild-- Tony’s mom is in prison for training dogs for dog fights. She also fights in prison. The dog fighting and his mom being in prison are definitely the hardest things about this book, but it’s such an uplifting, healing book. It doesn’t leave you there.

Drugs/Alcohol: none

This one is on our Newbery list even though it's basically a picture book. Here's last year's list. I think it'll get some Caldecott attention too. 

Genre: Biography

AR level: 7.0

Grade appropriate: 5th and up

RATING BREAKDOWN:

Overall: 5/5-- Fascinating story about a con artist known as Tricky Vic (obviously.)

Creativity: 5/5-- Absolutely creative. The illustrations are so unique. Because Tricky Vic was so elusive for so long, he’s face is left out of the illustrations and replaced by a finger print. I know, right?!? So fun. So different.

Characters: 5/5-- You really get a feel for Tricky Vic even though the story is so short.

Engrossing: 5/5-- quick read. No time to get distracted.

Writing: 5/5

Appeal to kids: 5/5-- It’s basically a picture book. Will circulate fast and often.

Appropriate length to tell the story: 5/5

CONTENT:

Language: none

Sexuality: none

Violence: none-- Tricky Vic cons Al Capone. The book discusses how Capone who was a criminal was also a bit of a hero during prohibition.

Drugs/Alcohol: mild-- Prohibition is discussed and defined. Often in the cons the “mark” would be drunk after Tricky Vic buys them many drinks.

Frequents bars and gambling houses early in life because he was a professional gambler.