It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? From Picture Books to YA!
It’s Monday! What are you Reading? is a meme started by Sheila at Book Journeys and now hosted by Kathryn at The Book Date. 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…you just might discover the next “must-read” book!
Kellee and Jen, of Teach Mentor Texts, decided to give It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? a kidlit focus. If you read and review books in children’s literature – picture books, chapter books, middle grade novels, young adult novels, anything in the world of kidlit – join us! We love this meme and think you will, too.
We encourage everyone who participates to support the blogging community by visiting at least three of the other book bloggers that link up and leave comments for them.
Last Week’s Posts
**Click on any picture/link to view the post**
Tuesday: Top Ten Tuesday: Ten Great Books with a Tree on the Cover
Wednesday: Kwame Alexander: The 2017 CSLP Summer Reading Champion
Thursday: Guest Review: The Dark by Lemony Snicket
Last Week’s Journeys
Kellee
Happy summer break to many of you! And thank you everyone for being so understanding about me taking last Monday off. There are at least 3 more Mondays I’ll have to take off because of obligations this summer, so please accept my early apologies for not commenting as much this summer–it is going to be a busy one! Please know that I am still lurking and reading posts, just not commenting or responding as much as I try to do usually.
Since the last time I posted on the 22nd, I’ve actually not read a ton. End of the school year tired is more tired than just about any other time of the year. I did finish two very good and VERY different young adult novels:
Wolf by Wolf by Ryan Graudin was a Walden Award finalist, and I can definitely see why they chose it. It is action-packed, thought-provoking, and so wonderfully written.
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas is everything everyone promised and more. I am still thinking about it, and I finished it on the 23rd. At the end of the novel, I couldn’t stop listening, and I actually sat in my living room and ignored my family to finish the last hour. And I definitely have an audiobook hang over–it is going to be really hard to follow this one.
Ricki
The boys were really excited about the Fall 2017 #PenguinPicks. Henry barely let me eat breakfast. All three books are stellar, and I will write full reviews as separate posts. In a nutshell:
Come With Me by Holly M. McGhee tells the story of a little girl who is fearful of the terror that is pervasive the news. As a parent, it reminded me of the ways that my children might perceive the world and how I can help them through their fear. It reminds us (both my children and me) to be brave and kind.
Sarabella’s Thinking Cap by Judy Schachner. My goodness. This book is so, so beautiful. I suspect it will be in the running for the Caldecott. Sarabella has difficulty focusing. Her daydreams take her brain to wonderfully imaginative places. I could spend hours with this book. I plan to frame some of the pages for my kids’ bedrooms.
La Princesa and the Pea by Susan Middleton Elya is a bilingual retelling of The Princess and the Pea. There is a bit of a twist, and I laughed out loud as I read a section of the book. This book will bring great joy to kids. It does a great job of using Spanish words in ways that require children to consider context clues. Bonus: The illustrations are stunning!
Henry loved doing a page in this Paint by Sticker Kids book by Workman Publishing. It took us two hours to finish this page (with a break in the middle), but it was very rewarding for him. It’s definitely tricky for a 3.5 year old, but he had so much fun. We talked about numbers and shapes, and he definitely exercised his fine motor skills.
This Week’s Expeditions
Kellee
I just didn’t get enough of Ryan Graudin, and I am currently reading the sequel to Wolf by Wolf.
After I finish with Blood by Blood, I plan on reading The Explorers: The Door in the Alley by Adrienne Kress for a blog tour post. (Michele says it is good, so I am looking forward to it.
Ricki
I am reading three books right now! (One is in each room of my house.)
Jane, Unlimited by Kristin Cashore, Holding Up the Universe by Jennifer Niven, and Highly Illogical Behavior by John Corey Whaley. All three are fantastic. To be honest, I have been having a lot of book luck lately. Everything I’ve been reading has been really great.
Upcoming Week’s Posts
Tuesday: Top Ten Tuesday: Twenty Books We Want to Read from Lily, Freddy, and Joey, 6th grade
Wednesday: Preaching to the Chickens: The Story of Young John Lewis by Jabari Asim
Thursday: Guest Review: The Wonderful Things You Will Be by Emily Winfield Martin
Friday: Author Skype Visits with Kellee’s 7th Grade Lunch Book Club
So, what are you reading?
Link up below and go check out what everyone else is reading. Please support other bloggers by viewing and commenting on at least 3 other blogs. If you tweet about your Monday post, tag the tweet with #IMWAYR!
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Wow, you both added to my TBR list this time. So many good books are out, or are coming! I still need to read Wolf by Wolf & there’s already a sequel! And I do need to read Highly Illogical Behavior. I’ve had it a long time! Have a wonderful week!
I need to read it too!
So many great books! The picture books all sound wonderful. I have not heard a negative word about The Hate U Give. I have to get to reading it soon!
There isn’t a negative word to say.
That paint by sticker book looks fun. When my great niece gets a little older , I will get her one.
I’m hoping to find Jane, Unlimited at ALA! It’s on my list.
Kellee, I hope you like Explorers! It takes a bit to get into, but it’s good! K finished it before we left and really liked it.
I am actually going to put Blood by Blood on hold and start it soon 🙂
No worries, Kellee – do what you have to! I’ll miss some weeks for vacation, too. So glad you loved The Hate U Give as much as I did – wasn’t it just stunning?? So powerful but also just a great story. It will stay with me for a very long time.
Ricki, your boys are so adorable!! Love that they get so excited about books 🙂 I SO miss those days of reading aloud to our boys – enjoy it!
I have never read a Jennifer Niven book, but it sounds like I am missing out – yet another author to add to my TBR list!
Sue
2017 Big Book Summer Challenge
Thank you, Sue! It is so hard to miss when you are hosting, but I don’t ever want people to think I am just skippin’ out 🙂
The Hate U Give is such a special book–I think it should be a one country, one book read!
So glad you loved THE HATE U GIVE, Kellee! It’s by far my favorite YA book of 2017. I can’t stop thinking about it either and I finished it back in April.
I think it’ll be one of my favorite YA books ever!
I so loved Jennifer Niven’s books. HUTU did not gut me the way ATBP did, but it was still a magnificent read. I am looking forward to Jane Unlimited, because it’s been a long time since I read a Cashore book, and her Graceling books are among my favorites.
Sam @ WLABB
I just put more Kristin Cashore books on my reading wishlist http://www.unleashingreaders.com/?p=13140 My wish came true!
Kellee, I’ve added Wolf by Wolf to my for later shelf and my local library. I have almost as many unread books there as I do on Goodreads. I agree with you about The Hate U Give. I’ve been recommending it to everyone.
Rickie, I love the picture of your little folks with their books. Those PB’s look great too! I’ve added Jane, Unlimited to my list, because if you are reading it along with those other two that I loved, I suspect I will love this one too.