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…you just might discover the next “must-read” book!
Jen Vincent, of Teach Mentor Texts, and Kellee 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
Tuesday: Top Ten Bookish Things We’d Like to Own
Friday: Amulet Graphic Novels: Teaching Guide
**Click on any picture to view the post**
Last Week’s Journeys
Kellee: I love Rose Under Fire. This week has been quite busy, and I have not been able to finish it yet; however, I am so enjoying it. I wish I was reading it right now! I am also reading an e-book called Coyote Summer by J.S. Kapchinske which I am also really liking. I knew nothing about it, and it is quite surprisingly a good book.
Also, we visited Barnes and Noble on Saturday, and I decided to partake in a couple of picture books I’ve been wanting to read: Pigeon Needs a Bath by Mo Willems and Warning: Do Not Open This Book! by Adam Lehrhaupt. Um, I definitely need to own both of these books. I was laughing in the middle of the store. So good.
Trent and I continued our picture #bookaday and read some really great ones this week:
- Global Babies by Global Fund for Children (A great introduction to diversity!)
- Little You by Richard Van Campt (A beautiful poem and a loving message. I also liked the style of illustrations.)
- A Bedtime for Chester Raccoon by Audrey Penn (A Kissing Hand tale that is just as sweet.)
- Owen and Mzee: Best Friends by Isabella Hatkoff (I LOVE Owen and Mzee, and I am so glad there is a board book version of their story.)
- Me Hungry! by Jeremy Tankard (This was the surprise of the week. It cracked me up! Told from the POV of a caveboy, it is quite funny.)
- The Tale of Peter Rabbit by Beatrix Potter (On Easter. Classic.)
- Little White Rabbit by Kevin Henkes (I just adore everything Kevin Henkes writes.)
Ricki: This week, I finished the professional development text, The Shame of the Nation by Jonathan Kozol. It made me look at schooling in an entirely different light. For example: Why is it that schools named after MLK Jr. are filled with black students? Wasn’t MLK Jr.’s message about integration? This is just one of the many questions the Kozol poses. I am still pondering some of the ideas that Kozol presents.
Henry and I enjoyed some great picture books this week. My two favorites were: Library Lion by Michelle Knudsen and Noodle by Munro Leaf. These two will be going on Henry’s wish list. The other books we read were: Wild About Books by Judy Sierra, Never Play Music Right Next to the Zoo by John Lithgow, On Our Way Home by Sebastien Braun, Love is a Handful of Honey by Giles Andreae, Heart in the Pocket by Laurence Bourguigon, Go Dog Go by P.D. Eastman, and Sometimes I Forget You’re a Robot by Sam Brown.
This Week’s Expeditions
Kellee: I am going to finish Rose Under Fire and begin (and hopefully finish!) P.S. Be Eleven. I’ll also continue Coyote Summer. This is my last week of maternity leave, so I am going to cherish it by spending as much time as I can with my son and reading.
Ricki: I am still reading Love Letters to the Dead by Ava Dellaira, and I just started the professional development text, Culturally Responsive Teaching by Geneva Gay. Henry and I are still reading our graphic novel book of classic fairy tales called Fairy Tale Comics, which is edited by Chris Duffy, and we are also still reading The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis.
Upcoming Week’s Posts
Tuesday: Top Ten Characters Who Are Smart
Wednesday: Thrive Blog Tour and Author Guest Post
Friday: Tracy Holczer, author of The Secret Hum of a Daisy, Guest Post
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!
Hi Ladies! Kellee, so glad you go to the Pigeon book! For whatever reason, I liked this one more than some of the other recent Pigeon books. Ricki, love that you’re sharing Fairy Tale Comics, it’s so good! Our favorite one is Little Red Riding Hood. What an amazing Granny 😉 Have a great week! Kellee, enjoy this last week! It’s hard to be away from your little one, but it makes the time together so special!
Michele, I agree. The newest Pigeon is one of my favorites. I will definitely have to buy it. It is almost as good as the original.
I will enjoy this week; although, it is ending up being busier than I wanted. I wanted to just sit with him and enjoy, but oh well. I am so anxious about starting work 🙁 I am going to miss him tremendously!
I loved the Little Red Riding Hood story. The colors and graphics were fantastic. 🙂
Happy you like Rose Under Fire, Kellee. I loved it. And I’m putting more picture books from both your lists on my list. I know some of them, but not all. Me Hungry and Love Is A Handful of Honey sound very fun for my littlest granddaughter. Thank you!
See my response to Kristen above. Loved it!
Me Hungry is a simple text, but it just cracked me up!
Linda, I am so glad to hear it! I always pull from your list, so I am glad to be giving back!
I really need to read Rose Under Fire, I have it on my bookshelves… just have tons to read lately! 🙂 Well, forever really. Enjoy!
Just finished it. Stayed up WAY too late. LOVED it! Brilliant. I will rave about it for a while.
I loved it, too! I highly, highly recommend it. 🙂
I read Pigeon Needs a Bath this week too–just loved it! Ricki, I’m interested in that professional development title. Hope you’ll blog about it as or after you read!
Mo Willems is so brilliant!
Hi, Elisabeth! Are you interested in the Shame of the Nation text or the Culturally Responsive Teaching text? I was debating blogging about one of them, and I can’t decide. They are both intriguing.
I am interested in learning more about the Culturally Responsive Teaching book. But maybe you should blog about both!!
Thanks! I will definitely think about doing that book, then! 🙂
There are so many wonderful books in board book format now! Great that Owen and Mzee is one of them. Tankard is lots of fun. I also liked Grumpy Bird that he did – have it in my classroom board book collection: http://thereisabookforthat.com/2012/01/30/new-books-for-buddy-reading/ Enjoy your weeks with your little ones!
I’ll have to get Grumpy Bird as I though Me Hungry was so great! Thank you again! You are such a wonderful book recommender for Trent 🙂
Pigeon is so funny trying to avoid the bath. I so enjoyed Rose Under Fire & P.S. Be Eleven. Yay – you got to the diverse board books. I thought they were pretty cool.
Ricki you get through so many professional books. Wow!
They are very cool Crystal! I especially liked Little You 🙂
Thank you for introducing me to them. Have to make sure diversity is part of my son’s life 🙂
Pigeon in the bath is very funny too! 🙂
And I LOVED Rose and hope to like Eleven 🙂