Monday, February 22, 2016

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? #IMWAYR 2/22/16


It's Monday! What are you reading? was started by Sheila at Book Journey and was adapted for children's books from picture books through YA by Jen of Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee of Unleashing Readers. You can visit either site for a round up of blogs sharing their weekly readings and thoughts or search Twitter for #IMWAYR.



Last Weeks' Posts


Picture Books



Swap! (2/9/2016) by Steve Light. A few weeks ago, I received a curious envelope containing a bright red button and the suggestion to try and swap that button for the greatest haul. My students and I enjoyed studying the cover art and speculating about the book. This charming, near-wordless tale, shows how a little ingenuity - and some clever swaps - can help out a friend.


Imaginary Fred (2015) by Eoin Colfer and illustrated by Oliver Jeffers. This interesting take on the imaginary-friend-picture-book focuses on the imaginary friend, Fred, and his fervent desire to not be forgotten and separated from the human friends he keeps making. This one has some cute twists and humor that will appeal to kids. (Another to add to my growing list of Fun Picture Books about Imaginary Friends.)

This is one of several books I am catching up on to be prepared for the upcoming March Book Madness - who, helpfully, made the list of picture books available earlier, so I hope to have all of them in my classroom for the big launch on March 1st.


Robo-Sauce (2015) by Adam Rubin and illustrated by Daniel Salmieri. This one is a concept book, which I think kids will find really appealing, but I'm not sure about the lasting appeal beyond the concept. Kids like robots and robot-induced destruction, so we shall see what my students think.

Middle Grade



Fridays with the Wizards (2/16/2016) by Jessica Day George. This is the fourth book in the Castle Glower series (which begins with Tuesdays at the Castle) and one of my new favorites. Unlike some of the middle books, the story is decently self-contained within the one book, and there are plenty of clues for savvy readers to follow as the mysteries grow. When I lent this book first to one of my previous students who had introduced me to the series, the squeals and whoops were audible all down the hallway, so I had to snag this one quickly to get it back circulating to its ever-growing hold list.

Happy Reading!

10 comments:

  1. I didn't know Jessica Day George had a new book in that series. I thought the rest were great and will have to look for this one too. Come see my week here. Happy reading!

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    1. It just came out last Tuesday. I forgot that I had preordered it, so it was an exciting surprise in the mail!

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  2. Thanks for linking to March Book Madness. I think I'll do the picture book event with my Children's Lit class. I have most of the titles already and it seems like a fun way to promote more interest in PBs. Imaginary Fred looks very good--though I'm feeling burned out on imaginary friend stories!

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    1. I really want to know what was in the writer-water that resulted in so many imaginary friend stories! What an odd cultural statement.

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  3. Imaginary Fred sounds like it might be interesting to pair with Crenshaw by Katherine Applegate - Thanks for the recommendation

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    1. Yep, could be. Crazy how many "imaginary books" there are of late!

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  4. I am curious about Robo Sauce - looks like a lot of fun - I want the chance to examine it myself! Imaginary Fred is on my To Read list. Think I will love it

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    1. The kids are coming down firmly in Robo-Sauce's favor. It is a constant choice, and they love flipping the books back and forth.

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  5. First I'm hearing of the Tuesdays at the Castle series. Looking forward to finding it. Imaginary Fred was a lot of fun - I'm glad you enjoyed it too.

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    1. It is a SUCH a great series! (Have you read her Dragon Slippers trilogy?) A princess story that has very little in common with most princess stories and one that has become a favorite with many of my students.

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