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
We have GIVEAWAYS for the Junket is Nice and Sidekicked pages that are still live. You can enter every day and get 1 free entry daily!!!
**Click on any picture above to view the post**
Last Week’s Journeys
Kellee: This week I had a pretty good reading week. First, I finished my rereadings of the Walden finalists- they are all so great!!! I may even go back and reread some of them again just to get a final feeling for them. I also reread Stardines and Building Our House in preparation for this week’s reviews. I also read Junket is Nice in preparation for the review this week. Finally, I read Liz Kessler’s newest novel, North of Nowhere. It was filled with mystery and students will be guessing throughout the novel. I will be reviewing for you all in a couple of weeks. Overall, a pretty successful week!
Ricki: Like Kellee, I reread all of the Walden Award finalists this week. I am excited to post more about them this Friday. Kellee and I are joining forces for a blog post about our experiences on the book award committee, so check back if you are interested. We will give more information about applying to the committee at that time. This week, I also read Junket is Nice by Dorothy Kunhardt and More Than This by Patrick Ness (both of which I blogged about–click the pictures above if you missed them). Lastly, I finished When Kids Can’t Read by Kylene Beers. Check back on Thursday for my review. I know it is taught in many reading and methods courses, but if you haven’t read it yet, it is absolutely fantastic.
This Week’s Expeditions
Kellee: This week I am driving all week, so I hope to finally finish the David Sedaris audiobook that I’ve been listening to all month. It is hilarious and I want to finish cherishing it. I’ve also started Wonder Light by R.R. Russell, also for review, and enjoying it so far. It’s protagonist is a “troubled” girl who is sent to a pony ranch to “find herself.” After Wonder Light, I’m not sure what I’ll read next. I know I want to read Doll Bones for the #virtualbookclub on August 5th and I have some library books on their way—we’ll see what I end up reading.
Ricki: Last night, I started The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath. This year, my students were really obsessed with mental illness and depression. I bought the book in a used bookstore and gave it to a few of my seniors and they loved it. I’ve always been afraid to read it because I worry it will sink me into a sorrow pit. So far, I really enjoy it, but I probably shouldn’t be reading it while pregnant—too emotional. I don’t plan to post a review because many of you have probably already read it. After that, I think I will move onto The Infects or The One and Only Ivan. I missed that one and everyone seems to adore it. Blogging is new to me, and to be honest, I find it difficult to predict what I will read because my mood fluctuates. I don’t like reading to feel like an assignment, so you may be hearing about an entirely different book next week. Send suggestions my way, as I seem to own half of the bookstore (and particularly the high school books), and I am feeling indecisive today!
Upcoming Week’s Posts
So, what are you reading?
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and
I’m going to read Endangered this week – I’m excited about it – have heard so many good things and now it’s a Walden finalist! Ricki – you’ve GOT to read The One and Only Ivan!!!!
Yes, ma’am. I will do it–and only because you are reading ENDANGERED. It’s a deal. :oP
I can’t wait to hear your thoughts. You will love it.
YAY ape book trade-off 🙂
Hi there Kellee and Ricki, it’s my first time to visit the UnleasingReaders site and I already love it! Thanks for hosting this Monday meme along with Jen at TeachMentorTexts. 🙂 I read Sylvia Plath’s The Bell Jar a few years back – make sure you have light reading in-between, it can be quite depressing. 🙂
Thanks for the suggestion, Myra! It is quite depressing. I think I am finding it more depressing than my students found it to be. I will try to read a more uplifting book next.
It is great to meet you. Thanks for joining us!
Thank you so much for stopping by Myra- glad you enjoyed your visit 🙂
Doll Bones and The One and Only Ivan are BOTH FANTASTIC, enjoy reading you two! 🙂
Thanks, Debbie! Based on peer pressure, I will be sure to read it next. :oD
Looking forward to reading Doll Bones 🙂
Agree on Ivan- love him!!!
I’m interested to hear all about the Walden book awards you’ve been reading for. Will look for the post later. Thanks Kellee and Ricki.
Linda, Kellee and I had to rearrange our schedule a bit, so sorry for the delay. You will surely see a post this Friday. We have two ideas for posts, so you will also be seeing another post after the winner comes out! Enjoy your week!
Excited to share about the award 🙂
I am glad you will be writing about the book award committee process and how to apply. It sounds really interesting. Ricki–You definitely should read The One and Only Ivan. It is a quick read and you will not regret it. I know what you mean about planning your reading. I don’t always know what I will pick up next. I have not read The Bell Jar. I think it would be too emotional for me. Kellee–I want to read Doll Bones too. Thanks for sharing that it is a virtual book club pick.
Andrea, The Bell Jar is depressing but it is nothing of what I expected it to be. I talked about it briefly to my students and then let them read it, and they told me the same thing. Maybe my impression about the book was incorrect. I pictured it to be more like “The Yellow Wallpaper” and there to be more about suicide. It is more gradual than that.
I will definitely read The One and Only Ivan next, but only because you are all good at pressuring me. :oD
Hope you will join us for the virtual book club- I cannot wait to discuss Doll Bones with all of my friends 🙂
Like others, I can’t wait for your post about the Walden book awards. Enjoy The One and Only Ivan. It’s kind of interesting reading a book that has received so much praise and love – enjoy! It really is a special little read! Kellee- I just finished Doll Bones last week – absolutely so impressed. In fact, when it comes out in paperback, I want to read it with my student book club. Happy Reading this week!
I agree—and I always worry I will be let down. But it seems too interesting to be a letdown in any way, and with so many people praising it, I suspect I will love it. Have a wonderful reading week!
Looking forward to sharing more about the Walden Award with you all 🙂
Cannot wait to read Doll Bones- everyone loves it 🙂
Ricki, I know what you mean about your reading mood fluctuating. I’m often sidetracked from my planned reading by books I find at the library. (My TBR stack is so big, I shouldn’t even go to the library!) And I second Andrea, The One and Only Ivan is not to be missed. Happy reading & thanks for hosting!
My mood fluctuates all of the time- unless I have “assignments” I never know what I am going to read 🙂
I’m looking forward to reading more about your awards committee experiences! I’ve been thinking lately about how I’d like to be on an award committee (my dream is the Odyssey award committee since I love audiobooks so much) but the amount of reading and work it requires scares me!
Looking forward to sharing the committee information with you all as well 🙂 Award committees are such a great experience!
The One and Only Ivan is awesome! I used to go visit Ivan at the B&I when I lived in WA state. Pre cell-phone document every part of our lives or I would have a pic to share with students!
Can’t wait to read Sidekicked. I have Primates on hold at the public library.
Wow- that is so neat. I saw Ivan in Atlanta 🙂
Sidekicked and Primates are great- enjoy!
A couple books I want to read from this post: North of Nowhere and More than This. Have a great reading week, you two!