Teach Mentor Texts: It's Monday! What Are You Reading? 06/11/12

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? From Picture Books to YA!

It's Monday! What are you Reading? is a meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journeys. It is a great way to recap what you read and/or reviewed the previous week and to plan out your reading and reviews for the upcoming week. It's also a great chance to see what others are reading right now…who knows, you might discover that next “must read” book!

After doing the meme for a couple of weeks, we realized this would be a fun meme to start up with a kidlit focus - anyone reading and reviewing books in children's literature - it can be picture books, chapter books, middle grade novels, young adult novels, you name it in the world of kidlit and it's in! We have loved being a part of this meme and we hope you do too! We encourage everyone participating to go and visit the other kidlit book bloggers that link up and to comment on as many posts as you can. We love talking books and believe in sharing and discussing what we're reading. We hope you join us!

Last Week's Book Adventures:

Jen Says: Ugh...I am sad about my reading in the last week. I finished school on Monday but was in for meetings on Tuesday and then busy the rest of the week. This week will be my first real week of summer - the kiddos are done with preschool/daycare and my husband and I are both off now. I have been reading all of my books - but didn't finish any. :( Seriously, I think I have too many going on. I also think making time to write has taken away from some of my reading time. I miss my commute to and from work when I listen to my audiobooks. I am enjoying Froi of the Exiles and an adult book, I've Got Your Number. I've been listening to it on my runs in the morning. I adore Sophie Kinsella and her writing. Her characters crack me up. I wish I could say I had a better reading week.

I guess I did read a great bookstack on Wednesday. There were some good books and some okay books. None really stand out to me right now except for Larf by Ashley Spires. I did love that one! She is the same author/illustrator of the Binky the Space Cat series. I also read a lot of books that are illustrated by Nancy Carpenter because her illustrations are fun.

Kellee Says: This has been a great reading week! I didn't even realize how much I'd read until I went back to look on my Goodreads shelf.

First, as you know, I love chimpanzees so I read a couple of books on them that I had lying around that I hadn't read yet.
*A Chimpanzee Tale by Karen Young which is a picture book that discusses the importance of protecting chimps.
*Chimpanzee: The Making of the Film was a book given to me by a friend about the new Disney movie but it has been a huge hit with my kids so it hasn't been in my classroom until now (because school is over :-P). It is a great book for chimpanzee fans and anyone interested in making documentaries.
*Chimpanzees I Love: Saving Their World and Ours by Dr. Jane Goodall was an account of Jane's time in Gombe. I love Jane Goodall. I wish I could be her and this book is a great introduction to Jane as well as great for anyone who is already a fan.

Also, I read more books from We Give Books which makes me feel good every time I read one.
*Thank You Bear and Good Luck Bear by Greg E. Foley are about friendship and supporting your friends.
*Bunny Money and Bunny Cakes by Rosemary Wells are cute books about Ruby and Max, sibling bunnies.
*Llama Llama Red Pajama, Llama Llama Misses Mama, Llama Llama Mad at Mama, and Llama Llama Holiday Drama by Anna Dewdney are books I will definitely be getting for my children. Each book teaches the reader a lesson through Llama Llama's action.

I did get around to some young adult novels too and they were all very intense and amazing. I finished:
*Guantanamo Boy by Anna Perera which is a horrific account of an innocent young boy who gets imprisoned at Guantanamo Bay
*Requiem: Poems of the Terezin Ghetto by Paul B. Janeczko is a haunting poetry collection- it was like Janeczko transported himself back to the Holocaust to write this collection.

*Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park about The Lost Boys of Sudan.
*Orchards by Holly Thompson is a novel in verse about a young girl who is sent to Japan to her mother's childhood town after her friend commits suicide.

Finally, I finished The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern on audio which I wish I loved, but I just liked. I actually wish that I had read it instead of listening to it (although I love Jim Dale). AND I was able to read an e-galley of Raina Telgemeier's Drama and it will not disappoint fans of Smile. I'll definitely review it closer to its release.

Reviewed Last Week:

Just click on any picture above to go read the review

Upcoming Book Adventures:

Jen Says: Since I'm making time for writing, I'll also need to make time for reading apparently. My first goal is to finish Teach Like a Champion. I've been reading it all school year and just have to finish it up. I also need to clean off the 4th CD of The Penderwicks on Gardam Street because it wasn't playing in my CD player. I'm hoping to finish that and then start with The True Meaning of Smekday. Hoping for more reading!!!

Kellee Says: This is actually my (and Jen's!) birthday week! I don't know how this will affect my reading, but right now my plans include What Can(t) Wait by Ashley Hope Perez, Want to Go Private? by Sarah Darer Littman and Summer of May by Cecelia Galante. I also hope to get to Amulet #1-#4 by Kazu Kibiushi so that I can read my e-galley of #5. I also brought home the Captain Underpants series so that I could read the e-galley of the newest. My students have been bugging me to read this series all year and I promised them I'd read them this summer. I'll also continue my reading of picture books on We Give Books including the Skippyjon Jones series.