Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. The feature was created because The Broke and Bookish are particularly fond of lists (as are we!). Each week a new Top Ten list topic is given and bloggers can participate.

 Today’s Topic: Top Ten Characters We Wish Had Their OWN Books

We loved these characters and think they deserve their own books!

Ricki

1. Alaska from Looking for Alaska by John Green

I would love to hear the story from her perspective. It would make a wonderful book.

2. Jasmine from Tyrell by Coe Booth

Jasmine always intrigues me, and I continually think about her. I would love for her to have her own book.

3. Sohrab from Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

Sohrab is one of my favorite characters of all time. I wish I could read the story from his perspective.

4. Tom Robinson from To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Wouldn’t the story be different if we heard Tom’s voice?

5. Any other character from We Were Liars by e. lockhart

I would love to see Cadence from another character’s perspective.

Kellee

I realized while making this list that I just really want to hear stories with male protagonists told from the female character’s point of view.

1. Hermoine from Harry Potter by JK Rowling

I would love to hear Hermoine’s voice.

2. Annabeth from Percy Jackson by Rick Riordan

Annabeth is one of the many reasons why Percy survives so many crazy situations. I would love to hear her thoughts!

3. Sabina Pleasure from Alex Rider by Anthony Horowitz

I would love to hear what she thinks about Alex and what she thinks about being lied to.

4. Margo Roth Spiegelman from Paper Towns by John Green

Wouldn’t it be wonderful to hear Margo’s true thoughts?

5. Lady Brett Ashley from The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway

Hemingway isn’t the best writer of female characters, so I would love to learn more about Lady Ashley and truly hear her voice.

Which characters do you think are worthy of their own books?

 and 

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. The feature was created because The Broke and Bookish are particularly fond of lists (as are we!). Each week a new Top Ten list topic is given and bloggers can participate.

 Today’s Topic: Top Ten Books We Want to Reread

We’d love to reread these books because they were incredible!

Ricki

1. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

I could read this book a thousand times and never get tired of it. I last read it over a year ago, and I am antsy to read it again.

2. The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven by Sherman Alexie

This is one of my favorite books. I haven’t read it in a few years, and I would love to get lost between the pages again.

3. Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë

This is one of my favorite classics. I have a beautiful, illustrated, vintage version that I would love to read.

4. The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster

I haven’t read this book since I was very young. I bought a version and want to reread it again as an adult.

5. The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett

Along the same lines, I’d love to reread this classic I enjoyed as a young girl

Kellee

1. The Giver Quartet by Lois Lowry

My favorite. I love to read it over and over and over.

2. Percy Jackson and the Olympians then The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan

Despite what The New Yorker says, I love Percy Jackson! I read all of the original series and then the first of the Heroes of Olympus series, but I haven’t read the rest! So, I’d love to reread them all and then continue the series.

3. Shadow Children series by Margaret Peterson Haddix

I never read the final book in this series, so I would love to reread and finish.

4. Alex Rider series by Anthony Horowitz

Stormbreaker is one of my go-to book talk books because it is such a fun series, and I would truly enjoy living Alex’s adventures with him again.

5. The first book of so many series that I have not finished

I have so, so, so many series that I have started and not finished, and it has been too long to just jump into book 2 or 3. This means there are a lot of Book 1 of series that I need to reread.

Which books would you reread?

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Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. The feature was created because The Broke and Bookish are particularly fond of lists (as are we!). Each week a new Top Ten list topic is given and bloggers can participate.

 Today’s Topic: Top Ten Characters Who We Would Want To Be For Halloween

These characters would be a blast to be for Halloween!

Ricki

1. The Giving Tree from The Giving Tree

Throughout the night, I could get shorter and shorter.

2. The Giver from The Giver

I can rock a pretty sweet beard.

3. Lyra from The Golden Compass

Henry could be my daemon.

4. Fire from Fire

Can you imagine how cool my hair would be?

5. The Girl on the Cover of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children

She is just really neat. Maybe I could figure out a way to levitate?

Kellee

I love the idea of family costumes, so these are the ones that I think would be the most fun to dress up as a family:

1. Cat and the Hat and Thing 1 & 2

I know it is kind of cliche, but they are a fun trio!

2. Elephant and Piggie

This is only a duo, so we’d have to figure out which parent wouldn’t dress up (or we could be the Pigeon!), but I would love to represent some Mo Willems!

3. Winnie the Pooh, Piglet, Eeyore, Kanga, Owl, or Roo

We are big Pooh fans here in the Moye house, so I know we’d all love to dress up as Pooh characters.

4. Harry Potter, Hermoine, and Ron

And my husband has red hair already!

5. Crayons from The Day the Crayons Quit

Love this book, love crayons, and would be fun to dress as them. I wonder which crayon will be Trent’s favorite!

Who would you love to dress up as? 

 and 

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. The feature was created because The Broke and Bookish are particularly fond of lists (as are we!). Each week a new Top Ten list topic is given and bloggers can participate.

 Today’s Topic: Ten Places We Want To Visit (After Reading Books)

Books can transport you, but these are the places we’d actually like to go to.

Ricki

Some of the places I wanted to visit in our book vacation post were Europe, Africa, Salinas (California), the Seven Kingdoms, and Pullman’s multiverse. I can most certainly think of five more. 🙂

1. The back of my wardrobe

C.S. Lewis created magic in the back of his wardrobe, so I want to see if I can go exploring in mine.

2. An old-fashioned locomotive

Brian Floca’s Locomotive is an incredible picture book that shows the complexity of steam engines. I want to visit one and explore.

3. Arches National Park

Edward Abbey’s Desert Solitaire was one of the best books I read in college. The way Abbey captures the beauty of this park in his nonfiction text will make you want to go there to see it for yourself.

4.  Midnight Gulch

If you haven’t read Natalie Lloyd’s A Snicker of Magic, I recommend you drop everything and read it. It is the most spindiddly, magical books I have ever read.

5. America (Road Trip Style)

From Travels with Charley by John Steinbeck to Amy and Roger’s Epic Detour by Morgan Matson, books always seem to make me want to go on a road trip across America. Anyone want to join me on a book-themed road trip? Kellee?

Kellee

I touched on the real places I would love to visit based on the setting of a book on our book vacation post, so I thought today I’d post about fictional places I would like to visit.

1. Hogwarts (and Diagon Alley)

I don’t think I need to elaborate. It’d be so cool!

2. Rabbit Island from Rabbit Island by Jake Parker in Explorer: The Lost Islands edited by Kazu Kibuishi

Well, first: talking rabbits. Second, in the end they have such a great society. Third, the island is beautiful. Fourth, robots!

3. Kingdoms in Hero’s Guide books by Christopher Healy

I would love to visit the fractured fairy tale world of Healy’s. Although there are some trolls, witches, etc., many of the towns would be so much fun to visit.

4. Under water society (without all the issues) in Dark Life by Kat Falls

How amazing would it be to live underwater?!

5. Airships from Matt Cruse series by Kenneth Oppel 

In Oppel’s books, airships are like cruise ships in the sky. I would love to be able to go fly in one of them.

Where would you love to visit? 

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Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. The feature was created because The Broke and Bookish are particularly fond of lists (as are we!). Each week a new Top Ten list topic is given and bloggers can participate.

 Today’s Topic: Ten Books For Readers Who Like Character Driven Novels 

If you prefer character drive novels, these books are for you!

Ricki

1. Fire by Kristin Cashore

Cashore’s first book, Graceling, is plot-driven (but also with good character development). Often, people find Fire to be much slower than Graceling, and I think this is because it is so beautifully constructed to reveal the inner depth of the characters.

2. If I Stay by Gayle Forman

Much of this book takes place in Mia’s head, but it captured my attention from the first page to the last. Forman’s writing is very lyrical.

3. brown girl dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson

Woodson’s autobiographical brown girl dreaming is another phenomenal, character-driven text. You won’t be able to put it down. This book holds a special place in my heart.

4. The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly

Years after reading this book, I still feel like I am being embraced in a warm hug when I think about it. This historical fiction doesn’t have a lot of plot, but the character development will blow you away.

5. Dr. Bird’s Advice for Sad Poets by Evan Roskos

This book is very character-driven, but unlike the others I listed, it also has quite a bit of plot. That said, I felt I knew James Whitman like he was a brother/son after reading this book. It was one of my all-time favorites, and I am consistently recommending it to others.

Kellee

By definition, character driven novels are “stories where the emphasis is on characterization, inner conflict, and relationships,” so my choices are all books where the biggest changes and conflict can be found in the characters.

1. The Giver by Lois Lowry

Whenever my students begin reading The Giver in their language arts class, I always hear, “Miss, why is this book your favorite, it is so slow!” I then have to talk to them about how some books are character driven and not plot driven. We then start talking about Jonas and what is going on with him, and VOILA! they get into the book.

2-6. All of the 2014 AEWA Finalists and Winner

All of the books we honored this year are amazingly written character driven novels. Each is very unique but focuses on identity. (I know it is kind of a plug, but really almost all of the Walden books while I was on the committee are amazing novels that usually have a character-driven focus.)

Which books would you recommend?

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Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. The feature was created because The Broke and Bookish are particularly fond of lists (as are we!). Each week a new Top Ten list topic is given and bloggers can participate.

 Today’s Topic: 

We found these books difficult to read because of their content.

Ricki

1. Endgame by Nancy Garden

The bullying and brutality by his peers leads a young man to enter his school with a semi-automatic gun. This book was difficult to read because Garden brilliantly crafts the text so the reader feels the boy’s actions might be justified—even though no school shooting is ever justified. The ounce of doubt makes the reader feel like a terrible person for even understanding the boy’s reaction to the bullying.

2. Nothing by Janne Teller

This is the most depressing book I have ever read. Pierre-Anthon reminds us of how insignificant we are and that nothing really matters. Yet, it is a phenomenal book that I recommend to everyone. It is one of the best books I have ever read.

3. Inexcusable by Chris Lynch

He is a good kid, but he makes a horrible decision that is inexcusable. This book is award-winning, and I think the poor GoodReads ratings reflects just how difficult it is to stomach its contents.

4. The Child Called It by Dave Pelzer

Any book about child abuse is very difficult to read, but this one still gives me the shivers. I felt so much anger toward Dave’s mother in this memoir.

5. On the Run by Alice Goffman

How are we failing as a society? This ethnographic book sheds light on the issues of mass incarceration of African American males and makes readers uncomfortable about their own privilege.

Kellee

I second Ricki on A Child Called “It”. I read the whole series, and Dave Pelzer’s story is devastating.

1. Lessons from a Dead Girl by Jo Knowles

The story of how even though someone is dead they can still haunt you.  This book still haunts me.

2. Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock by Matthew Quick

Leonard is saying good bye to everyone who is important to him because today, his 18th birthday, is going to be the last day of his life.

3. Tweak: Growing Up on Methamphetamines by Nic Sheff & Beautiful Boy: A Father’s Journey Through His Son’s Addiction by David Sheff

So tough to read about a young boy’s descent into drugs from his and his father’s point of view.

4. Stained by Cheryl Rainfield

Sarah Meadows is kidnapped then repeatedly raped, and abused by her captor. These, obviously, are quite frightening situations to read about. I almost picked Room, but I think Stained was tougher to read because it is from the abused’s point of view.

5. But I Love Him by Amanda Grace

A story of a teenage abusive relationship. This, along with other books about this subject, are so tough to read, but are so important to have available for our teens.

Which books were difficult for you to stomach?

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