It's Monday! What Are You Reading? 6.15.2020

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

A book about identity and answering THAT questions.  Click here for the post and giveaway!

Animal month continues on my Wednesday Nonfiction Picture Book posts!

Chapter Book Summer series on #road2reading - black and brown girl main characters


Picture Books


What About Worms!?
by Ryan T. Higgins
Have you ever had a fear that felt so real but maybe by having that fear, you missed out on something?  That happens to Tiger - he has a fear of worms!  And just when he starts to enjoy something, he begins to think about worms, and then it's ruined.  And what about the worms?  How do you think they feel?
A good book to use to talk about perspective and how someone else feels.  And it's funny!


Sorry (Really Sorry)
written by Joanna Cotler
illustrated by Harry Bliss
I like this book, but I think it's definitely one to read with kids and then talk about it.
A chain of events is started when cow is mad because her hooves are in the mud.  When Duck comes along, Cow takes out her upset feelings on Duck by flinging mud onto Duck.  Then Duck is mad and ends up calling Frog a name.  The insult gets worse because when Duck tells Frog "sorry", she didn't really sound sorry.
There are a couple of things to talk about.  When you are feeling upset or mad or frustrated, sometimes our reactions are not what we mean them to be.  How can we control that?  And you can talk about how the word "sorry" is used.  And you can talk about making up for your mistakes.


Freedom Soup
written by Tami Charles
illustrated by Jacqueline Alcántara
I book that pays homage to the independence Haitians won from France in the Haitian Revolution, originally celebrated on January 1, 1804.  Every Jan. 1, Haitians celebrate Haitian Independence Day and a common food item is Freedom Soup.  
In this story, young Belle is learning about the history of that day while preparing the soup with her Ti Gran.  Later, the extended family comes together to celebrate.  
Haiti is known for bright colors - in their homes and apparel - and this is shown in the vibrant illustrations.  After reading this story, you'll want to try some Freedom Soup yourself - and you can because the author includes a recipe in the back of the book!


The Seed of Compassion
written by His Holiness the Dalai Lama
illustrated by Bao Luu
This one was not a favorite for me.  The premise of it is neat - it is written by the Dalai Lama and instead of it being a biography, it is supposed to be lessons and teachings for kids by the Dalai Lama.  But it ended up being a really long story and while it talked about compassion, I'm not sure it ever really got to the point.  In my opinion....


When the Babies Came to Stay
written by Christine McDonnell
illustrated by Jeanette Bradley
This is a quirky book, but it works!  Four infants are brought to an island with notes on them for the people to please care for them.  The librarian ends up taking all of them to live with her.  She names them in an orderly way, alphabetizing their names Agatha, Bram, Charles and Dorothy and gives them the last name Book.  The four young children grow up together and when they are asked "where are they from", the librarian tells them the story and it's then we learn how she fits into the names of everyone.  It's a heartwarming end to the story and really makes you love it.  The whimsical illustrations fit so well with the island setting.

Middle Grade


When You Trap a Tiger
by Tae Keller
Fair warning:  this book requires tissues.
This book beautifully blends magical realism and realistic fiction.  It's sometimes easy to remember the fantasy and magical parts aren't a part of the story's reality.
Lily, her mom, and sister, Sam, are moving states in order to move in with her grandmother, Halmoni.  Her halmoni is ill but it's not until later in the story do we discover how ill.  On the way to Halmoni's house, Lily sees a Tiger in the road.  And this sets off the story where the mystical tigers from Korean folktales mixes in with story about a girl trying to save her family and protect her grandmother.
Don't say I didn't warn you.

Currently Reading


Parachutes
by Kelly Yang
I'm about half-way through this book and it is powerful. 


I fell behind in some reading this week.  Hoping to make up for it!  Hope you have a good reading week!