Monday, November 4, 2019

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? 11.04.19

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

Some nonfiction picture books to check out!


Picture Books

The Buddy Bench
The Buddy Bench
written by Patty Brozo
illustrated by Mike Deas
The Buddy Bench has grown in popularity at primary and elementary schools across the United States.  This book would be a helpful introduction.

Reading Beauty
Reading Beauty
written by Deborah Underwood
illustrated by Meg Hunt
From the creators of Interstellar Cinderella, we have another fractured fairy tale to enjoy.  This time, it's a twist on the Sleeping Beauty story except instead of spinning wheels being taken away, it's, gasp, books!

Unicorns 101
Unicorns 101
by Cale Atkinson
An "all about" book about a fun and mystical topic: unicorns!  Bright, very colorful, and of course, glittery - kids will enjoy this spoof on these mystical creatures!

The Bravest Man in the World
The Bravest Man in the World
by Patricia Polacco
A story about the Titanic and one of its musicians that went down with the boat, Wallace Hartley.  Told in Polacco's storytelling style, it's one that young Titanic aficionados will enjoy and one that shows strong character traits.

I Want a Dog
I Want a Dog
by Jon Agee
A good book to use to talk about growth mindset - you don't always get what you want and sometimes that can be a good thing!

Terrible Times Tables
Terrible Times Tables
written by Michelle Markel
illustrated by Merrilee Liddiard
Looking for a unique way for kids to learn their times tables?  Modeled off of the old primers for readers, the book has nine different chapters with stories that follow a school calendar year and rhymes to help learn times tables!

A Night at the Bookstore (A Barnsie® & Noble® Adventure, #1)
A Night at the Bookstore
written by Josh Funk
illustrated by Jessica Gibson
Perfect book for young readers to get them thinking and talking about all the things books provide!  And they will fall in love with characters Barnsie and Noble!
I loved seeing the familiar Barnes and Noble sights in this book.

Chapter Two Is Missing
Chapter Two is Missing!
written by Josh Lieb
illustrated by Kevin Cornell
I wasn't sure whether to put this one under picture books or chapter books since it's a combination of both.  This is a book that will have kids bringing the book to the bathroom (there's a valid reason) and you'll hear some snickers as kids read it!

Middle Grade

Stuffed
Stuffed
by Liz Braswell
This one took me by surprise!  I really didn't know anything about it at all and I was so happy with it!  It's creepy but it's full of heart.  It's going to be so well loved by readers.  I can see it passed hand to hand!
Clark has an army of stuffies and he needs them because they protect him and his family members from the Monsters that come at night.  He creates a barrier of stuffies on top of his bed but sometimes when they fall off... they are taken and when they are found they are definitely worse off.  An evil Monster is in the house and seems to have taken over Clark's dad.  It's up to Clark and a very special stuffy to save him.
The way the book ends definitely leaves an opening for a book 2.  Hoping there are more adventures to come!

The Heroes Return (Bounders #4)
Bounders 4:  The Heroes Return
by Monica Tesler
At some point I often stop reading all of the books in a series.  There are so many books to read!  I read the first few in a series so I know what is going on but I often don't finish the series.  
Not so with this one.  I will see this series to the end... which apparently is book 5.  I need to have a conversation with author Monica Tesler!  I love this series.  I want more.  I will keep on with all of the adventures with this Bounder group!
If you have middle grade readers, you need to make sure this series is in their hands.  Action, adventure, science, travel.  It is so fun!

Currently Reading

The Real McCoys
The Real McCoys
by Matthew Swanson and Robbi Behr
This is a definite must-have for your Diary of a Wimpy Kid readers - it's a perfect ladder book!

Anyone else getting bogged down by life and it really affecting your reading?  Story of my life right now!

9 comments:

  1. Thanks to your recommendation, Stuffed is on my list. And, yes, life does interfere with reading a lot! I feel like this month is flying by, too. I'm counting the days to NCTE and can't believe I have to be ready for that in such a short time!

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  2. Oh wow! These are all unfamiliar to me, so am sooo glad to be seeing new titles not yet on my radar - particularly the one by deborah Underwood. While I can't say that Interstellar Cinderella is a favourite, I have a feeling that I will enjoy Reading Beauty. Thanks for sharing all these goodies.

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  3. Many to put on the list, Michele, especially the new Patricia Polacco book! Thanks!

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  4. I feel like about the Murderbot series like you do about the Bounders. I'm not sure if I should be happy or sad that my library doesn't have those.

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  5. Oh man, when life gets me bogged down I want even more to just lock myself in a room and READ ALL NIGHT. If only that was an option. I'm adding The Bravest Man in the World to my list right away. Ever since I did a research project on the Titanic, I've kinda been obsessed. Plus, it's Patricia Polacco. :) Bounders sounds like a series I need to introduce one of my kiddos to! Thanks for all these shares, Michele!

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  6. I love a good page turner and the author never disappoints. I wrote my first novel and launched it with https://usabookreviewers.com/christmas-gift

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  7. I put Stuffed on hold at the library and looking forward to reading. Definitely need to read I Want a Dog too! It's a new title for me!

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  8. You’ve introduced me to some “now-I-must-read” books here! Thank you for the recommendations!

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  9. Loved John Agee's It's Only Stanley, so I'm sure this dog book is wonderful too. Thanks for all the recs, Michele!

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