Seconds Away

I am so excited about this young adult series by adult novelist, Harlan Coben!  Finished the first book this morning and immediately texted LT to let her know that this was the next book she should read!  Like me, she has a never-ending list of books that she could/should read, but when we find a book we know the other would love, we interrupt that line-up for something special.  And trust me, this series is worth the interruption!  

I loved the first book so much, I downloaded a digital copy of this sequel because I cannot wait until after Spring Break.  I have two copies in our library and they're both checked out...now I understand why the readers were so "frenzied" to get their hands on it!  A direct sequel.  The action picks up EXACTLY where it left off in the first book.  I personally love that... This is pure mystery.  A wonderful example of the genre to share with my students.  And now, I have the perfect book for students who repeatedly ask for a good murder mystery.  Wow.  Thanks, Harlan Coben!  You just made my work a lot easier and much more enjoyable!  I love it!

Here's a YouTube video I found on the official Mickey Bolitar site...enjoy!
  Seconds Away






Happy Reading!
RC

Shelter

Currently, I'm reading Shelter by Harlan Coben.  Fascinating mystery.  I appreciate the character's development.  Love the intrigue.  The suspense.  Plan on using it with my students as an example of how an author creates mood using word choice, sentence length, punctuation and imagery.  It's the author's first book for young adults and pages 1-110 impress me already!  

I used this book for Winter Book Frenzy this year and the 6-7-8 graders who read it, loved it.  The adult who led the table is a murder mystery fan and I knew she'd be enthusiastic about it.  (Coben has a good reputation for his adult novels.)  And because of the effect this book had on the students, I introduced it as a possible title for the new Kentucky Bluegrass Award middle school ballot.  I'm not sure if it will make the final cut, but it is one we thought Kentucky's students would love.  

To read an excerpt for yourself, go to www.mickeybolitar.com

Happy Reading!
RC 

Prodigy

I stayed up until 11:30 last night, attempting to finish Prodigy, the second installment in the Legend Series by Marie Lu.  It's a fantastic book if you immediately read it following Legend, but given several months since I'd read the first, I was in desperate need for a review of the characters, setting and the plot!  I felt completely clueless as I started this book...asking LT to remind me who Thomas was and how Metias died and all the other critical plot elements that should have been evident to me.  Why did I have such trouble reconnecting?  No clue.  Perhaps it was that I read Legend too quickly as I previewed it for the KBA list.  Who knows?  

To remedy my situation, I visited the author's website, Googled images of the characters and a last chapter summary for the first book.  I was determined to reconnect.  And as LT suggested, because she was further ahead in the book than I, the author did eventually attempt to catch me up herself.  Thank you, Ms. Lu.  You did an excellent job.  And how do I know?  Because I loved the book.  I actually care about the characters and am looking forward to the final book.  Please hurry and release it this year!  LOL

For those of you who struggle with retention...please know that I understand.
Happy Reading and Remembering!  (And if you'd like a synopsis of both books, visit www.marielu.org)

RC

Winter Book Frenzy 2013

Every year, I host a Fall Book Frenzy and because it's such a popular event and so worthwhile, my principal asked that I host another during the second semester, one in which I could invite our 6th graders who are too "fresh" in October to participate.  You see, because of the nature of the event, I can't include 6th graders in October.  We don't know them well enough as readers.  Would they even finish a book?  Would they be too intimidated by the 7th and 8th graders to share their thoughts?  Would they even show up?  I'm so glad I chose not to invite them until the second event...I witnessed so much maturity amongst the attending 6th graders that I KNOW wouldn't have been present earlier in the year.  I'm glad they had the chance to sit under our fantastic 6th grade reading teachers who teach them not only how to read a great book, but how to talk about one.  

  Luckily, for us, we've had a couple of mild winters and we had no problems getting everything organized and read for February 27th, the day of our Winter Book Frenzy.  So I can report that everything went well.  Enjoy these pictures of the event.  They didn't want to cooperate while creating this post, so it's taken me a few days to share. 

Some of our door prizes.  The fluffy pillows are the favorites!

Always...a selection of fiction for every reader.

One of our teachers leading a discussion table for Ways to Live Forever by Sally Nichols.

A glimpse at the room...and a close up of the Journey Back table.

King of the "Post-Its"  :)

One of our 7th graders.

I'm already thinking about Fall Book Frenzy 2013! 
Happy Reading!
RC

What I've been reading lately...

Haven't felt my best this past week, with seasonal headaches making themselves known again, but I have managed to attack the stack of books beside my bed.  You know the one, those books that others have loaned me and I've been wanting to read, but other books have somehow managed to wedge their way in front of them.  

Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys is one of the books I've wanted to read for quite some time.  Actually, I should rephrase that... it's a book I have needed to read for a long time.  The title itself has drawn this beautiful piece of historical fiction through the literary mud puddle.  Yes, it's similarly entitled to the adult novel, Fifty Shades of Gray.  But that's definitely where any comparison stop.  Yes, parents have noticed the similarity.  Yes, students have been confused.  And I hate that, for this book is a story of the author's family who miraculously survived WWII and the Soviet occupation of Lithuania.  Students are drawn in by Lina's story of survival over the years as a political prisoner, serving her time in Siberia.  The injustice is blatant and mirrors what many innocent people endured in Europe and Asia during Hitler and Stalin's attack on the world.  I'm so glad I read this story.  So glad to finally be able to defend it against parents who become confused and wrongly accuse it of being anything like the adult novel.  How unfortunate for everyone involved...

I also made time to read The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chobsky.  90s realistic fiction at it's best.  I don't know how much my readers will be able to connect with the characters or how they'll handle the mature content, but I'm sure they'll be hooked from page 1.  Charlie is a magnetic character that any introvert will see themselves in.  I know I sure did.  However, I appreciated the fact that the author didn't reveal the reasons behind Charlie's social awkwardness all at once.  Very subtle.  Very effective.  Some readers will love Sam, the hypnotic female love interest/infatuation of Charlie's and others will love Patrick.  This book includes every controversial subject that a young adult might be looking to learn more about.  And for that reason alone, it resides in our "restricted collection".  I watched the movie, released last year, and was disappointed.  Charlie's character wasn't awkward enough.  Perhaps the author shouldn't write the screenplay after all.  Perhaps I appreciate another interpretation of the characters/plot more than I originally thought.  

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And now, I'm spending this rainy afternoon reading an adult novel,  from that same stack, recommended to me by one of our teachers.  It's a thriller.  I can tell I'm going to be hooked at about the 3/4 mark!  It's definitely a book you think about when you're not reading and for that reason I will recommend it to LT.  She loves books like that.  I'll go ahead and suggest you pick up a copy at the library if you have a chance.  Before I Go To Sleep by S.J. Watson.  It's a debut novel about a woman who wakes up every morning and has no memory of the day before.  Very "40 First Dates" at first, but then you realize that her husband may not be trustworthy and you need to know why not!  I predict he'll be the villain and her life will be in danger!  I just can't figure out why!   

I'm liking it so far.  And I'd like to get back to it.  Happy Reading!  
RC 

Star Gazette

One of the reporters for our school newspaper, The Star Gazette, has requested a list of my favorite books for middle school readers.  At first thought, I dug in and began to list books by literary genre.  No problem, right?  Wrong.  So wrong.  I am having the worst trouble editing the list.  I have so many favorites that I don't know where to begin.  Do I list my all-time favs?  Do I list recent favorites? What should I do?  I hate the idea that the only good books are new releases...I really try to introduce students to books that are what we at North Middle consider high-quality literature.  Some of the best books are the oldest!  I've even gone as far to trick my students into reading older copyrights by purchasing newly released editions.  If it looks new, they'll check it out.  One such story that has lasted the test of time is Hinton's The Outsiders.  My 8th graders, which read it during the second semester, will agree that even though this book was written in the 1960s, it's still a "great" book.  I even share some of S.E. Hinton's personal story with them to help them understand why she wrote the book.  Perhaps they'll use a positive outlet like writing to express themselves and escape their bitter reality.  (It also helps that we have a classroom set of the more popular cover of this book.) 

And although I am a current member of the Kentucky Bluegrass Award panel, I'm aware that not every great  book makes the cut.  I have fantastic reads on the shelf that I wish were part of the nominee lists each year, but with the list being limited to only 10 titles, we must make several "cuts".  Authors like Richard Peck and Jennifer L. Holm haven't made the list because there was one of two books slightly better for middle school kids that year.  I even went as far as to purchase multiple copies of Penny from Heaven  by Holm and On the Wings of Heroes by Peck because I just knew they were sure things!!  Both are fantastic works of historical fiction.  Naturally, Holm's book is more suited for girls and Peck's book for boys, but as Ralph Waldo Emerson stated, "A good reader makes the good book."  And I have found throughout the years that statement is completely accurate!  A good reader can read anything!

So after much contemplation, I've decided to create a list based on the stories themselves, regardless of copyright date.  And my fingers are crossed that the public library carries the "newest and coolest" edition of each.  :)  And so the following list of my personal favorites will be submitted to the school newspaper this week...

Realistic Fiction:
     Slob by Ellen Potter
     Call Me Hope by Gretchen Larson
     Runaway by Wendelin van Draanen
     Red Kayak by Priscilla Cummings
     Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff

Historical Fiction:
     Penny from Heaven by Jennifer L. Holm
     On the Wings of Heroes by Richard Peck
     Night Fires by George Edward Stanley
     Woods Runner by Gary Paulsen
     The Silver Cup by Constance Leeds 

Fantasy:  (This is my favorite genre!)
     The Alchemyst series by Michael Scott
     Gregor the Overlander series by Suzanne Collins
     Keturah and Lord Death by Martine Leavitt
     Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling
     Beautiful Creatures series by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl
     Wicked Lovely series by Melissa Marr
     A Great and Terrible Beauty trilogy by Libba Bray

Science Fiction:
     Gone series by Michael Grant
     The Bar Code Tattoo trilogy by Suzanne Weyn
     Maximum Ride by James Patterson
     Dark Life by Kat Falls

Mystery:
     Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie
     And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
     The Face on the Milk Carton by Caroline B. Cooney

Dystopian Fiction:
     The Giver series by Lois Lowry
     Matched by Ally Condie
     The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
     Blood Red Road/Dustlands series by Moira Young

Hybrid Fiction:
     Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld
     The Apothecary by Maile Meloy


Happy Reading!
RC



    

Beautiful Redemption

Reading the fourth and final book in the Caster Chronicles now...Beautiful Redemption.  This makes book #51 for me for the year.  Whew!  I haven't read as much as I usually do, but what I have read, I've enjoyed.  And I can honestly say I've loved this series.  As a reader, I'm satisfied with character and plot development.  And I love the setting...who wouldn't love the southern setting of Gatlin, South Carolina and frequent visits to Savannah and New Orleans?!  It's also comforting in a way to read the authors' interpretation of the afterlife...how those we love can visit and see us.  Obviously, the authors are writing from personal experience, as I sense they've each lost someone they miss dearly.  Those scenes are written with such gentleness that I connect easily with those "left behind".  

I can't wait to find out if Lena and Ethan are reunited, if Liv and John end up together and if somehow the world as they knew it can be repaired.  And, of course, I HAVE to know more about Ridley,  my favorite character!  If this southern supernatural romance goes the way I want it to, all will be reunited and the world will once again be at peace, with the mortals and the casters existing in harmony.  But, I really doubt that happens.  Hopefully, the authors have something much more exciting waiting for me!  

Back to the books!
Happy Reading!
RC

Precocia (book #50)

It doesn't matter what I'm reading when Dale E. Basye releases a new book.  I'll make room for another installment in the Circle of Heck series.  So currently, I'm reading two young adult fantasies and trying not to get confused!  Precocia is the 6th book in this fantastical series about Milton and Marlo Fauster who find themselves prematurely in the afterlife.  The tongue-in-cheek wit of this author's style keeps me reading and excited for more.  In every book, the kids run into vice principals who attempt to teach them a lesson...but the truth is that these kids are GREAT kids.  So far in this book, they've met Napoleon and Cleopatra, Albert Einstein and the Hindu goddess, Kali.  Although I'm about 1/4 of the way through, I'm posting to the blog anyway because I know I'll like it.  That's how much I like this author!  I already know the next installment is titled, Wise Acres.  So funny!

Can't wait to see where the Fausters end up next!
Now back to reading...
RC

Beautiful Darkeness, Beautiful Chaos

One of the more "fun" activities for this reader is reading a book and then watching the movie.  Did exactly that a couple of weeks ago...Beautiful Creatures, a young adult novel by good friends Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl, was just released in theaters last month and I had the privilege to attend a matinee with my "book friend forever", LT.  Loved the book.  Not so crazy about the movie, of course.  I am never satisfied.  Why can't they make a 14 hour movie, complete with all the dialogue and details from the book?  I don't understand!  I'd buy that ticket!  haha

Although I have a HUGE stack of books I need/want to read, I decided to work in the rest of the books in the series.  So I started Beautiful Darkness and finished it in two days.  No small feat considering I work full time and am a mother.  Plus, I'm busy with the KBA panel this time of year and it's basketball season.  Whew!  But it was totally worth it.  The authors emerged me back into the southern city of Gatlin and I was hooked once again.  Lena and Ethan are separated...very reminiscent of Stephenie Meyer's second book, New Moon, but that's where the similarities end.  The book opens with Macon's funeral.  Lena tries throughout the book to deal with the guilt and grief she feels concerning her uncle's death.  Ethan and Lena are torn apart and he is left to discover not only more about himself and the southern city's history, but he meets a new girl, Liv... a keeper-in-training.  John Breed, a mysterious new character, is introduced in this second installment and provides much-needed mystery to the plot.  He appears to lure Lena away towards the darkness... this is not something Ethan will take lightly.

 Had to immediately pick up the third book, Beautiful Chaos.  It was also a quick read...considering I couldn't put it down and read it for hours at a time.  I appreciated the plot twists and turns.  In this book, Lena and Ethan must endure the "end of days" as plagues and drought settle over their city.  Lena's choice in the second book obviously has upset the Order and now someone must pay.  That's about all I can say without spoiler alerts!  Ha!  Perhaps I can add that I truly enjoyed Link's new "character" and missed Ridley for most of the book.  She just up and disappears at one point!  So Ridley!  Amma turns "dark" according to the authors, but I didn't get it.  I would have done the same thing...she is the only mother Ethan has.  Her maternal instinct is strong.  To me, that doesn't make her a dark character.  Stubborn?  Sure.  Dark?  No way.  I love Macon's character in this next to last book in the series.  And I would love to see both the second and third book made into movies, although I'm not sure with the ending of the first movie and the changes made by the director, if it will even be possible.  And, I'd like them released as soon as possible.  Now.  Ha!

Contemplating ordering the next book digitally because I can't wait...Beautiful Redemption.
Happy Reading!
*And I highly recommend this for girls.  They'll love it!
RC