It's Monday! What Are You Reading? 8.16.21

This weekly post comes from Jen at Teach Mentor Texts

 and Kellee and Ricki at Unleashing Readers.  

It's a great source to find new books to use with your students.

Last Week's Adventures

Last week was the annual Picture Book 10 for 10 day.  Here are 10 (+1) books about identity!

Hard to believe the Chapter Book Summer series will be coming to an end soon!  Don't miss these chapter books about dogs!

Picture Books

What Are Your Words?: A Book About Pronouns

written by Katherine Locke

illustrated by Anne Passchier

These books are needed so readers hear these experiences being told in stories.  I do think there needed to be a bit more explanation, especially for readers who are just starting to understand that pronouns are something we identify with instead of are assigned to us.  I have to imagine it's a challenge to explain it without it sounding like an explanation! 

When Lola Visits

written by Michelle Sterling

illustrated by Aaron Asis

Celebrating Lola's visit and the many special things they do together before the end of summer and start of the next thing.  It's celebrating those special moments together, but also feeling those sad and empty feelings when a loved one leaves.  This story captures the high and lows and how life continues to move on.

This Very Tree

by Sean Rubin

There are a few books that are being published about the "Survivor Tree".  I like that this book recognizes the tragedy of 9.11, but doesn't dwell on the terror of it for young readers.  It focuses on the story of this tree and what it represents to the survivors, the people of New York, and America.  Something else that is unique is that it's narrated by the tree.

Branches of Hope: The 9/11 Survivor Tree

written by Ann Magee

illustrated by Nicole Wong

Another story about this important tree.  While the story is essentially the same, the illustrations show a comparison of the tree changing and growing with a young girl.  The girl is first shown on 9/11 as a young girl, but as the tree grows, the girl does as well.  

Walking for Water: How One Boy Stood Up for Gender Equality

written by Susan Hughes

illustrated by Nicole Miles

Add this book to your changemaker list.  A story about how a kid started making a difference.  Twins Victor and Linesi have different places to be during the day.  While Victor attends school, preparing himself to have a job in his future, his twin Linesi does not get to attend school, as she must do the tedious work of getting water for their family.  Inspired by his teacher talking about gender equality, Victor stands up in order to make a difference.

Flip! How the Frisbee Took Flight

written by Margaret Muirhead

illustrated by Adam Gustavson

We all know about the frisbee, but where did it start?  While there isn't a definite answer, Muirhead focuses in on one person, in particular - Fred Morrison, in California!  Fred got his start by flipping a popcorn tin to his girlfriend after a Thanksgiving dinner!  They moved on to pie tins eventually, and it caught on quickly!  But did it start somewhere else first?  On the east coast, kids were buying pies from someone named Joseph P. Frisbie and using the empty pie tins to flip to one another.  And of course there's the famous Greek statue featuring a man getting ready to throw a disc.  

This fun book makes you see where some of the origins of this popular toy started!

My Two Border Towns

written by David Bowles

illustrated by Erika Meza

This is such a powerful story.  Told from the perspective of a young boy, he goes between two towns that are on either side of the US/Mexico border.  The young boy is happy to see people on both sides, in towns that seem almost mirror images of each other.  But on return, the boy and his father stop on a bridge and he gives necessary items to a family that is stuck in between - a family that is seeking refuge from the United States but is unable to get in.  

This beautiful story paints a realistic picture from a child's view of living in a United States border town, while having the freedom to visit back and forth.

Publishes Sept. 14th.  Thank you to Penguin for the advanced review copy.

Middle Grade

Stowaway

by John David Anderson

A different genre for Anderson as he pens his first science fiction novel!  I read this one as an e-galley, and I think I would have enjoyed it even more if I had a physical copy.  When I read digitally, it's in smaller segments spread out over a couple of weeks.  This was a novel I wish I could have had longer time periods to read, especially since it is lengthy (close to 400 pages, which is a fairly typical amount for Anderson).  This story has a lot of adventure - I mean, there are space pirates - a lot of heart, and a great moral dilemma.  You won't get everything answered as there looks to be a sequel.  I really enjoyed reading his Nerdy post about this one.  I recommend this one to 5th grade and up because of some mild language (again, if you've read Anderson's previous books you won't be surprised) and the length.  

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Collins for the e-galley.

Young Adult

This Is My America

by Kim Johnson

Wow, powerful book.  When I read Angie Thomas' The Hate U Give, it helped me understand that racial injustices for a Black person are not easily solved.  There are so many parts that a Black person deals with that I, as a white person, never never understood.  For me, you're wrong (shooting someone) and you should go to jail.  That is so not the case (as we see time after time after time...) and it helped shed light for me.  The same goes for this novel, except we're digging more into the justice system when fingers are pointed to a Black person for committing a crime.  Too often decisions are made before there is any evidence.  Loosely based on Bryan Stevenson's Equal Justice Initiative, this book is brilliantly told from a teenage girl who is doing her best to help her father, and now her brother, escape from a system that wants to put Black people away.

Adult Novel

The Last Thing He Told Me

by Laura Dave

This one was good!  I thought it was well thought out and the plot keeps you turning the page.  It's not one that I could guess what was going to happen - in fact I had several incorrect guesses because it didn't fall back on typical cliches that you see in mysteries.  I thought it had a smart ending that I certainly did not see coming.  It was a real page turner for me, I finished it in 2 days, which is really fast for me these days!

Currently Reading

Once Upon a Camel

by Kathi Appelt

Appelt is so good at animal stories.

Thank you to all the well wishes for my daughter.  It was such a stressful week making sure she was ready to go.  She landed in Tokyo and is settling in at training camp!  It's going to be a busy two weeks!