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: Ricki’s NCTE/ALAN Reflection
Wednesday: Kellee’s NCTE/ALAN Reflection
Thursday: Ricki’s Top Books from NCTE/ALAN
Friday: Kellee’s Top Books from NCTE/ALAN
**Click on any picture/link to view the post**
Last Week’s Journeys
Kellee: I did not read very much this week, and I have no excuse. Each night I just found myself booked, and then it was bedtime. I read a few pages of The Complete Persepolis and A Boy and a Jaguar by Alan Rabinowitz (BRILLIANT), but that’s all. I am having a bit of trouble just keeping up with everything right now, so unfortunately reading is getting pushed aside. I need to fix that because I feel like my mind is missing something.
Trent and I did continue to read though because that is a favorite time of day for me. We read Fifteen Animals by Sandra Boyton for the first time, and it made me laugh out loud when we read it the first time. We also read Boynton’s Barnyard Dance. If you have never heard the songs that go with some of Boynton’s books, you are missing out. Check them out! I love them, and we periodically listen to them as we read along. Trent also sat attentively for the entire Ivan: The Remarkable True Story by Katherine Applegate which is SUCH a compliment.
Ricki: This week, I read and enjoyed Arcady’s Goal by Eugene Yelchin (author of Breaking Stalin’s Nose). This beautifully illustrated novel is about an 12-year old orphan whose parents are “enemies of the people” during WWII Soviet Russia. He has a passion for soccer and wants to play for the Red Army. I liked how it crosses genres and can be considered historical fiction and sports fiction. This is one of those books that teachers love because it is very literary and also engaging. I was hooked from the first page and couldn’t put it down.
This Week’s Expeditions
Kellee: I am going to finish The Complete Persepolis, so I can start in on my pile of books that I should have read already including Counting by 7s, A Snicker of Magic, and One for the Murphys and books I cannot wait to read including Fish in a Tree, All the Bright Places, Paper Cowboy, and Read Between the Lines. If nothing else, break is soon, and I cannot wait to read, read, read!
Ricki: I am halfway through Jennifer Niven’s All the Bright Places, and I am savoring it. So far–wow, wow, wow. I love it.
Upcoming Week’s Posts
Tuesday: Top Ten New-to-Us Authors We Read in 2014
Friday: Author Guest Post from Dorothy Heart, Author of Wolf Chronicles series
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!
and
Hope you enjoy all those ‘old’ books, Kellee. It’s quite a list, & I can’t wait for Fish In A Tree, and also, Ricki, All The Bright Places. Ah-time… Have a good week!
Time is always the issue isn’t it. 🙂
I will let you know if it is worth your while. So far, I am going to say, “YES.” 🙂
Just finished All The Bright Places, upsetting and beautiful combined! The Complete Persepolis took me quite a while to read, fascinating novel… Happy reading to you both.
It is so fascinating! I am glad I am not alone on it taking a while 🙂
Can’t wait for All the Bright Places!
I am glad you liked it! I always worry that a book will tank near the end. So far, so good over here.
Kellee, I loved Counting by Sevens. I hope you enjoy it, too. I still haven’t read A Snicker of Magic and feel like I’m missing out! Ricki, someone over on the Centurians Facebook page was asking for book recommendations set in the Soviet Union. Arcady’s Goal sounds like it would be a good one! Happy reading this week!
I feel like I am missing out because I haven’t read so many great books, but there are always too many good books and, like Linda said, not enough time 🙂
I just saw that! I was remiss and didn’t join that group this year. I just requested to join and will recommend it! I highly recommend Snicker. It was one of my absolute favorites this year.
I could so relate to your comments, Kellee, about the lack of reading that happened this week. It was my last week of the semester before finals and so, so busy. Lots of crazy at home too. But this week I am determined to prioritize reading because everything feels off when I’m not reading!
These 3 weeks before winter break always are so rough! I cannot wait until break! Hopefully yours is filled with reading as well 🙂
Elisabeth, I was the same way! The only reason I read a book was because I was donating it. I didn’t want to give it away before I read it, so I pounded it out at 5am. It is the book I described above and was well worth the read.
Kellee – I’m so with you, between NCTE and the holidays, I’m having a lot of trouble getting into reading. Well, finding time!
Ricki – I’ve heard great things about All the Bright Places! Can’t wait to get to it!
Exactly! Break is so soon!
It is very good, Michele!
Yay for Trent loving the new Ivan book! 😀
That’s exactly how I felt!! I was so excited 🙂 It is the longest book he’s sat through since he started moving!
Kellee I found some things in Counting by 7s to be a bit of a stretch, but I love it anyway. Ricki, I am looking forward to reading Arcady’s Goal. I heard a great book talk about it and then heard Matthew Winner interview the author during one of his podcasts and it sounds wonderful. I hope you both have great book adventures this week.
That’s intriguing Crystal–I cannot wait to read it!