Monday, December 3, 2018

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? #IMWAYR 12/03/18



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.



Recent Posts


Picture Books


We'll be doing a Mock Caldecott again this year, so I have been doing my best to try and catch up on possible picture book contenders for this year. These are a few I had time to browse from our school library's display.


A House That Once Was (2018) by Julie Fogliano and illustrated by Lane Smith. This is a soft and quiet kind of book, and my fifth graders instantly settled down as the read aloud began. There are some really interesting things going on here, artistically, especially between the two art styles of the "real" and the imagined sections of the book. Lovely.


Teddy's Favorite Toy (2018) by Christian Trimmer and illustrated by Madeline Valentine. I love that this is a book about a boy and his favorite doll - and that it is NOT a story about any issues with him being a boy with a favorite doll. What I loved less was the weird break into unrealistic at the end as his mom (literally) swoops in to the rescue. Some of my students felt that this was too much like Knuffle Bunny and too predictable of a story.

Middle Grade



The Bigfoot Files (2018) by Lindsay Eager. Class president and all-around-perfect student Miranda is hiding a secret at home: her mother is obsessed with finding evidence of Bigfoot and other legendary creatures, often pulling Miranda from school to accompany her on wild jaunts around the country following elusive leads. Miranda has had enough and decides to plan once last adventure to prove to her mother than there's nothing out there to find.

I absolutely adored Linday Eager's debut book, Hour of the Bees, and it's subtle blend of magical realism and lavish descriptions. I'm not sure it worked as well here, especially for a book premised on whether an unrealistic creature is possible or not. I found this book far less satisfying. (An advanced review copy of this book was provided by Candlewick. All thoughts are my own.)

What books are on your ALA award lists?

Happy Reading!

Saturday, December 1, 2018

Join us for December's #diversekidlit!

Welcome to #DiverseKidLit ! Please join us in sharing your diverse children's book links and resources, as well as visiting other links to find great suggestions and recommendations.

What Is #DiverseKidLit?


Diverse Children's Books is a book-sharing meme designed to promote the reading and writing of children's books that feature diverse characters. This community embraces all kinds of diversity including (and certainly not limited to) diverse, inclusive, multicultural, and global books for children of all backgrounds.

We encourage everyone who shares to support this blogging community by visiting and leaving comments for at least three others. Please also consider following the hosts on at least one of their social media outlets. Spread the word using #diversekidlit and/or adding our button to your site and your diverse posts.

DiverseKidLit

We hope this community serves as a resource for parents, teachers, librarians, publishers, and authors!

#DiverseKidLit is Hosted by:


Katie @ The Logonauts
Blog / Twitter / Facebook / Pinterest

Becky @ Franticmommmy
Blog / Twitter / Facebook / Pinterest / Instagram

Bethany @ Biracial Bookworms
Blog / Twitter / Facebook / Pinterest / Instagram / Goodreads

Carolina @ La Clase de Sra. DuFault
Blog / Twitter / Facebook / Google+

Gauri @ Kitaab World
an online bookstore for South Asian children's books, toys and games
Blog / Twitter / Facebook / PinterestInstagram

Gayle Swift, Author of ABC, Adoption & Me
Blog / Twitter / Facebook / Google+

Marjorie @ Mirrors Windows Doors
Blog / Twitter / Facebook / Pinterest

Mia @ Pragmatic Mom
Blog / Twitter / Facebook / Pinterest / Instagram

Myra @ Gathering Books
Blog / Twitter / Facebook / Pinterest / Instagram / Goodreads

Shoumi Sen, Author of Toddler Diaries
Blog / Twitter / Facebook

Svenja @ Colours of Us

Want to be notified when the next #diversekidlit linkup goes live?

Receive an email reminder for each new #diversekidlit linkup





Interested in joining as a host or an occasional co-host? Contact katie at thelogonauts.com.

(Never participated in a linkup before? Please click here for a more detailed step-by-step.)

Get #DiverseKidLit Recommendations on Pinterest!


Our Pinterest board highlights a wide range of amazing posts and resources for Diverse Children's Books. Please consider following the board for even more great books!


Share Your Link Below