Summer Reading- Had me a Blast

Summer Reading- Had me a Blast!

Today is my last day of summer vacation.  So sad :(
Tomorrow, I go back to my life of being a high school social studies teacher.

I want to tell you all about my amazing summer of reading.  I broke my foot in 3 places on May 29th and have been stuck in a boot cast ALL summer.  I am still in the boot cast!  Doctors orders were to put my foot up and stay off of it as much as possible, so I read and read and read and read.  I wrote a little too, on this blog and some short stories and poetry.  I actually took a writing class and met with my writing group on a regular basis.

At the beginning of my summer, I made a goal to read a book a day.  Pretty much this is an impossible goal for me because I'm a slow reader and I have kids and I like to do other things.  Yet, I am so happy with the results of this goal.  I have never ever read this much nor come so close to reading so many books in so many days.

I read 45 books in my 66 days of summer.  Yes!

Here's how I did it:  I read a huge variety of books.  I read graphic novels, children's books, young adult, audio books, novellas and full length novels as well.  I read several books at the same time.  I read during the day and I read different books at night and on the weekends.  I averaged around a 100 pages a day.  I did not read books over 600 pages.  Shorter books were my friends and helped my completion rate rise.

It was so much fun!!  It was nice to read books I've had on my shelf for a long time and I was  regular at my public library this summer as well.

Here is to hoping you had a blast reading this summer too.  How many books have you read?

Huck

Huck.  The Remarkable True Story of How One Lost Puppy Taught a Family and a Whole Town About Hope and Happy Endings by Janet Elder

I have recently become a dog owner and as a result of that, I am finding myself drawn to books with animals.  Having a animal in your life as a pet is a transforming experience and so I was drawn to this book and Janet Elder's experience.

This book is about an adorable, darling, apricot, toy poodle named Huck.  Elder's son Michael had always wanted a dog and was an animal lover since birth.  The author made the decision to get her son a dog when she got the life altering diagnosis of breast cancer.  After all of Janet's chemo and radiation treatments and in honor of Michael's 12th birthday, Huck was adopted and became a valued member of their family. 

The family decides to take a much needed vacation and they leave Huck with Janet's sister in New Jersey.  The Elder's live in a apartment in New York.  Poodles are great dogs and are also fast runners and good escape artists.  I should know as I had a poodle growing up, who jumped out of fast moving cars, and broke through every safety gate and fence we owned.  So it comes as no surprise that Huck escapes and is lost in a unknown town.  What ensues is a community wide search for a beloved pet.

This book was endearing and made me glad that my current dog stays close to my side.  It is a fast read, and a hopeful story.  While the book was mainly about the dog, I wanted more information about Janet and her struggle with breast cancer.  As I read this book, I drew some parallels to my own life.  My son (like Michael in the book) is also twelve, we just adopted a dog, so now I am thinking I better go get a mammogram just for peace of mind.

Huck is available to purchase on September 28, 2010
Check out Janet Elder's blog/website at huckthebook.com
I think it would make a great movie.
I received this book from Crazy Book Tours

I am going to leave you with a picture of my adorable dog.  His name is Titus and he is part German Shepherd, part black Lab.  He is just 3 years old.

The 19th Wife

The 19th Wife by David Ebershoff

Historical fiction opens your eyes to a new world, a different time period or a place you can only imagine.  It may introduce you to people and events you have never heard of or want to learn more about.  These are some of the reasons enjoyed this book.   I was introduced to new people, new places and events I never knew occurred until I read The 19th Wife.

The 19th Wife was an incredibly entertaining and educational read for me.  This book contains a duel story line about two different wives that are both number 19.  The first story is a modern murder mystery where the 19th wife is accused of murdering her husband in 2004.  This part of the story takes place is Mesadale, Utah where a group of "radical" Firsts still practice traditional polygamy that the LDS Mormons removed from their religious doctrine in the 19th century.  It is narrated by the 19th wife's son named Jordan who she left on the side of the road in the middle of the night with 17 dollars in his pocket, when he was 14 years old, because the prophet told her it was the will of God.

The second story line is the historical and familial stories of  Brigham Young (the second prophet of the Mormon church) and his 19th wife, Ann Eliza Young.  Brigham was over 60 when he married Ann Eliza who was in her early twenties.  She is later abandoned by him and begins divorce proceedings and seeks to end polygamy in the Mormon church.  She writes a book called The 19th wife, which is an ebook you can download, in which this book parallels her story.  Basically the author, Ebershoff, read Ann Eliza's book and presents the important details of her story while weeding out parts he felt unnecessary.  Another interesting historical mystery is that Ann Eliza disappears and no one knows what happens to her.  The author speculates on different scenarios of her death and I have formed my own opinion.  I am curious to know your opinion on what could have happened to her.

The historical accounts in the book were so interesting to me as I didn't know anything about their relationship, nor did I know much about Brigham Young.  So this part contains some history about how the church formed, their time in Illinois, the travels to Utah and the forming of the large Mormon community in Utah.  Totally fascinating and utterly amazing what this group of people accomplished in such a short time.  

Both of these interesting stories intertwine and intersect in the book.  Personally, I learned so much and was blown away by how much I liked this book and how fast I devoured all 600 pages of it.  I liked the approach the author took using websites, Wikipedia, letters, and primary source documents, most of which he wrote himself.  It was interesting reading it, as it felt like reading the true sources.  In some ways I wish he would have included actual sources and documents inside the text. 

I have included two pictures, one of Brigham Young, the other Ann Eliza Webb Young.

I have to say that I really, really loved this book and I would recommend that you read it.  I am curious to know what you think.

It is also important to mention that this is being made into a Lifetime Original Movie set to air in September, 2010.  Check your local TV listings.  I believe the film is only going to cover the modern storyline and not the story of Brigham and Ann Eliza but I am not positive.

Super-Parenting for ADD

Super-Parenting for ADD.  An Innovative Approach to Raising Your Distracted Child by Edward M Hallowell, M.D. and Peter S Jensen, M. D.

As a parent of two children with ADHD, I need all the help and strategies I can get to help my kids be successful.  This book was great for me as a parent.  ADD is described in the book as having a race car brain with bicycle brakes.  I told my kids this and we all agreed it is an accurate, positive description.  ADHD runs in the family so for our little family of four we could potentially have four race car brains inhabiting our home and leaving tracks of debris all over the house.  Welcome to my chaotic super creative life.

One of the things I am going to do this year is educate the teachers of my children better and work on improving their 504 plans.   This book contains a section that you can photocopy especially for the teacher that gives positive,  instructions for helping your child be successful.  I am totally photocopying this section.

If you know any kids with ADD/ADHD most of them believe they are stupid, lazy, disorganized, angry, no one likes them, etc...  It is always negative feedback from their teachers, bus drivers and their own opinion in many cases is negative.  My biggest goal is to be positive this year, as it is so easy to fall into negativity and as a teacher and a parent negativity really hurts kids.  This book does an excellent job of taking a so called negative trait and showing the reader the opposite positive trait that any parent would be proud of.  So instead of saying your child is stubborn use the positive trait, persistent instead.  The authors takes about 10 traits and explains to the reader the positive and negative aspects of each component.  Very helpful.

What I didn't like about the book is that the authors talk about the Kolbe model and suggest you and your child as well as their teacher take an online test to determine your preference but what they don't tell you is that it costs fifty dollars.  What I find frustrating is that these tests cost to much for the average person and I wonder why they can't be priced more reasonably or even offered for free.  Most parents who have kids with ADD/ADHD need help now and paying a lot of money isn't always the best option.

What I have found to help me is having my kids see a child psychologist once a week as well as reading blogs, the ADDitude magazine and books.  Here are a few websites I would suggest:

www.additudemag.com
www.letsgetfittofocus.com

Blogs I like:
A Mom's View of ADHD
Life in our ADHD family

I really love my kids and my crazy ADD life.

Northhanger Abbey Readalong week #4

Northhanger Abbey Readalong week #4

Pages read: 179-257
Chapters read: 24-31

This week was the dramatic conclusion of Northhanger Abbey.  It reads a bit like a soap opera minus the erotic passion and kissing.  The drive behind relationships tends to be wealth and titles.  In the end Catherine gets her man although she has to fret and worry for awhile since they are no cell phones for Henry to call.  He must actually drive his carriage to her home if he wants to speak with her.  In the end, I am not really sure why he wanted to marry her.  Maybe because she was so in love with him and that made him love her or maybe it was to anger his father and teach him a lesson.  It seems that eventually everyone in the book lives happily ever after except Isabelle and her wretched brother.

I have learned several things while reading this book.  First of all, Jane Austen book's are not as boring as I thought they were.  The second thing I learned is that I really like readalongs.  They get you to read a challenging book with other people, that you may or may not read alone and it kinda forces you to keep to a schedule and then reflect on what you read.  It is kinda like a online book chat.  So I am going to read more Austen and participate in more readalongs.

I also plan to read Radcliffe's book The Mysteries of Udolpho soon, while Northhanger is still relatively fresh in my mind.  I also want to watch the PBS film adaption of Northhanger Abbey as my reward for reading the book. I would like to thank Jennifer at Reading with Tequila for hosting the readalong.  It was fun to participate.

Every Last One

Every Last One by Anna Quindlen

Anna Quindlen is one of my favorite authors. I have read five books penned by Quindlen and each time I walk away in awe. Her non-fiction books are life changing and her fiction books tend to knock my socks off every time.

This book was a 5 hanky read for me. The family in this book have three children and the mother, Mary Beth narrates the story. She has one son named Max, as do I, and their personalities and problems were so similar, I couldn't help crying just because I was reliving a bit of my own experience. In the book Max is depressed, angry, misunderstood, seeing a psychologist, is a drummer and loved immensely by his mother. This describes my son too and I am crying just writing these words. Parenting is so hard especially when one of your children is suffering.

I would compare Anna Quindlen's fiction writing to Flannery O'Connor. Have you ever read O'Connor? Well, they both pack a punch. Basically, you are reading the book, thinking in your head, well there is a little foreboding going on, this guy is a little strange, this is a story about a regular family, she's so sweet and then WHAM!, a swift punch right to the stomach and you can't breathe. You don't know what hit you or how you can keep reading, but you do keep reading. That is my experience reading Every Last One.

As a person who has PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder), this book had me crying to the very last page. I believe that several of the characters in the book also suffered from PTSD and that this is their story of survival amidst tragedy. Humans fight hard to survive even though it is more difficult than dying. Surviving trauma is very hard work.

Is this book sad? Yes
Is this book scary? Sort of but not in the way you think
Is this book worth reading? Definitely
Will everyone like this book? Not sure
Will this book make you think? Absolutely
Will I read more Quindlen books? You better believe it!

Where will this book go? I am donating this book to Crazy Book Tours. If you want to read it, sign up, I believe there is still space available.

Check out the author's website at annaquindlen.net

Speak

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

Let me introduce you to Melinda. She is entering her first year of high school, she has no friends and has lost her ability to really speak her mind. Over the summer she attended a party and things got out of hand. Melinda called the police and as a result lost her way of life. She is trying to navigate 9th grade amidst the chaos of high school cliques, failing grades, a secret and her inability to SPEAK.

Enter Mr. Freeman, the art teacher. His assignment for the year is to choose a topic out of the hat and focus on that topic for the year. Melinda draws Tree. Now, look at the book cover, it SPEAKS volumes. Next look at the name of the art teacher. Freeman. He is going to be special to Melinda as are the students in this class.

This book won a Printz honor in 2000. In my opinion it took an honor for its memorable characters, realistic portrayal of high school, and the subject matter of the book which sadly happens to too many young women nowadays. The story made me laugh, cry and think about the power of teachers to change lives.

As a inner city high school teacher I see many wounded teens sitting in my class trying to blend into the background. As a parent and a teacher, I want to remind everyone that if your child is failing classes, something is going on and you need to find out what it is. Whether it be social, emotional or mental, failing a class or classes is really a cry for help in my opinion. Have a meeting of the minds with all you students teachers, counselors, social worker etc, to problem solve. Did you know that most schools have social workers and can help your child in many ways? Please help your teachers help your child, work with the teacher and not against the teacher for the benefit of the child.

Books have the uncanny ability to change lives and make you SPEAK your mind!

Where will this book go? I put it on my bookshelf in my classroom when school starts.

Athena

Athena. Grey-Eyed Goddess by George O'Connor

O'Connor is an excellent graphic novelist. His books about Greek myths and legends are entertaining, artistic and Athena is no exception. His first book in this series, Zeus, I reviewed earlier, was superb. Athena is the second book in the Olympian series. The third book Hera is due out in September but don't quote me on it and according to his blog Olympians Rule! he is currently writing the fourth book, Hades. I sincerely hope he writes more than four books in the Olympian series.

The three Fates narrate and weave Athena's story throughout the novel. Within the book are five of Athena's adventures that led to her current image as female warrior and goddess. Some you may of heard of like the tale of Arachne or Medusa but other tales are included that you may not have known.

Some of the features of the book that I really enjoy is the Olympian Family Tree at the beginning of each book, I tend to refer to it often. I love, love, love the artwork, it is just beautiful. I really like that the author includes a note at the back of the book, discussion questions and highlights specific gods and goddesses featured in the book as well as tells the reader where to find more books on the subject. You have to see it to believe it. I wish all authors included extras like this in their books.

My family and I are lovers of Greece. I teach a unit on Greek history, have visited Greece and we are all immersed in the Rick Riordan series The Lightning Thief. We are currently reading the second book. The Olympians Rule series is a great companion read to these books. I bought this book for my son's twelfth birthday and he devoured it immediately. Where will this book go? Back on my son's bookshelf.

Shadowed Summer

Shadowed Summer by Saundra Mitchell

I entered a contest to win Shadowed Summer for my school book club a few months ago and I didn't win but the author was kind enough to send me a copy anyway. I knew I wanted to make time this summer to read it.

It has been a long time since I have read a really good ghost story. So I was thrilled and stuck like glue to the book until it was finished. It is a fast paced read that will scare just about any teenager. What I liked about the book is that it is spooky with a mix of reality, mystery and graveyard fun thrown in.

Iris, the main character, is very intuitive and connected to the ghost who is haunting her. He keeps saying, "Where y'at, Iris?", throughout the book. He surprises Iris at odd times with odd pranks and tricks. He wants Iris to find him and solve the mystery surrounding his disappearance but he is not very nice to Iris and she frequently gets in trouble with her Dad.

Are you an intuitive person? Have you ever been in contact with a ghost? As a highly intuitive child, I grew up in a haunted house that was over a hundred years old. So I have a special fondness for ghost stories. I have not seen ghosts mostly because I don't want to but I have felt their presence in the room and seen what they can do. I also spent a lot of time playing in the graveyard across the street from my Aunt Sherry's house when I was a child so I could relate to the games the characters played in the graveyard.

If you like a good ghost story be sure to read Shadowed Summer. If you are looking for other books like this one, I would recommend The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaimen and House of Spirits and Whispers. The True Story of a Haunted House by Annie Wilder. Annie Wilder lives here in Minnesota and has tea parties in her haunted house. I met Annie Wilder last year and plan on attending one of her parties soon.

Where will this book go? This book will go to my 13 year old niece Jasmine. I want her to read it. When she gives it back to me I will either put it on my classroom bookshelves or donate it to the school library.

Where y'at readers?

Hector and the Search for Happiness

Hector and the Search for Happiness by Francois Lelord

This best selling French novel is being published in English and released in the U.S. in September, 2010. A film is currently being made as well as two follow up novels, HECTOR AND THE SECRETS OF LOVE and HECTOR IN PURSUIT OF TIME to be released in France this year.

Hector is a French psychiatrist who has realized that a large number of the patients he treats are very unhappy and yet seem to have no clear reasons why they are unhappy. Hector decides that he is becoming unhappy himself and wants to undertake a journey to understand what makes people happy. During his journey around the world he imparts little bits of wisdom. The book encompasses up to 23 individual lessons. The story is told with a simplistic voice.

I think this book appeals to readers because we are all searching for happiness. Lesson number 7 states: It's a mistake to think that happiness is the goal. I found this lesson intriguing. It is probably the lesson I learned the most from. There are many determinants of happiness and happiness is hard to measure in each individual. The lesson I learned from this book is that happiness is found when you are not searching for it.

I have read some non-fiction books about happiness and as I was reading about Hector, I kept thinking about them. THE BEGGAR KING AND THE SECRET OF HAPPINESS is awesome! I also loved A SHORT GUIDE TO A HAPPY LIFE by Anna Quindlan. THE GEOGRAPHY OF BLISS is the non-fiction version of HECTOR AND THE SEARCH FOR HAPPINESS. Both travel around the world to search for happiness, both speak to a professor of happiness studies. I think they would make excellent companion reads. the voice in each are drastically different but would make great discussion for book clubs.



If you are unhappy, you need to check your vitamin D levels and read a few of these books. If you are happy, like me, you will love the journey of happiness these 4 books could take you on.
So hop on the happiness train.

I received this book from Crazy Book Tours. If you would like to read and review it, go and sign up, as there is still space available.

What makes you happy?

Who are your literature heart throbs?

Summer Break Reading Challenge Activity #6:

If I could live in a book which one would it be? I'm going to make that decision by the men I've fallen in love with between the pages of the books. Here are my literature heart throbs.

My first love is Rudy Steiner from THE BOOK THIEF by Markus Zusak. He made me laugh, cry and rejoice that I was alive. Plus he was Liesel's best friend (a best friend any girl would want) and supporter. I wish more men were like him.

My second love is Paris from TROY by Adele Geras. Alas, the good-looking Greek who helped start the Trojan war. I love Greek history and mythology and Paris is one of my favorites.

My third love is Percy Jackson from THE LIGHTNING THIEF by Rick Riordan. I love his youthful, innocent way of saving the world. Plus I love that he is a demi-god who is powerful but yet struggles to read and frequently gets expelled from school. He is a boy every mother could love!

Lastly, I feel the need to announce that I prefer Jacob over Edward from the TWILIGHT series. I am definitely a sucker for the underdog. Plus Jacob just seems a lot more fun than Edward. I want a man who can lead me to adventure and not constantly coddle me to keep me safe.

There you have it, my secret loves, hidden between the pages of a book.

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer an...

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows

Wow, this book moved my spirit. I love a book that speaks to my heart and soul and moves me to hope, laughter and tears. There are some books that I love so much that I want to carry it with me at all times and sleep with it under my pillow so that I can dream about it. This is one of those books for me. It is beautifully written in epistolary style with 20 different voices in the novel. I truly didn't want it to end.

The book begins when Juliet Ashton receives a letter from a stranger who lives on the Island of Guernsey. Dawsey writes Juliet because he spent the war years reading a book by Charles Lamb that she previously owned and decided to write her. Guernsey is a English Isle that was under German Occupation during WWII and the people there were hungry for books, news, plants, shoes, everything they missed out on during the war. Juliet decides to write back and it forever changes her life and those around her. The year is 1946.

Here are some of my favorite quotes from the book.
"I wonder how the book got to Guernsey? Perhaps there is some secret sort of honing instinct in books that brings them to their perfect readers." (page 10)

"That's what I love about reading: one tiny thing will interest you in a book, and that tiny thing will lead you onto another book, and another bit there will lead you onto a third book. It's geometrically progressive-all with no end in sight, and for no other reason than sheer enjoyment." (pages 11-12)

"Have you ever noticed that when your mind is awakened or drawn to someone new, that person's name suddenly pops up everywhere you go? My friend Sophie calls it coincidence and Mr. Simpless, my parson friend, calls it Grace. He thinks that if one cares deeply about someone or something new one throws a kind of energy out into the world, and "fruitlessness" is drawn in." (page 116)

Such poignant writing. If you love English Literature, WWII History and reading other people's letters from a period of history long gone, you will like (love) this book.

Summer Break Reading Challenge

Summer Break Reading Challenge

I have decided to take part in the summer break reading challenge. I need to share my summer reading goals.

I recently listed my summer books a few weeks ago so I will update you on my progress and note a few changes.

1. Moby Dick (on page 195)
2. Superparenting for ADD ( on chapter 9)
3. Pope Joan (Finished)
4. New Moon (Finished)
5. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (will finish today)





Still to read:
6. Glass
7. Every Last One
8. The 19th Wife
9. Looking Glass Wars
10. Shadowed Summer

I will add these books if I have the time before the challenge ends, otherwise I will read them in the last days of summer. I believe the challenge concludes at the end of August but there is no set date yet.

11. Speak
12. Athena
13. Away Laughing on a Fast Camel
14. 13 Reasons Why

I don't want the summer to end but I really can't wait to delve into all these great books!

New Moon

New Moon by Stephanie Meyer

It was a rainy summer day when I began reading New Moon. The Eclipse was soon to be released and the world has gone mad in anticipation for either Team Edward or Team Jacob. I tried to jump on the band wagon this time but Bella’s whining and crying began to get on my nerves. When will this story ever end, I said, but alas all things, good or bad must end unless you are really a vampire and so the book ends but not the story.

Here is some advice for my dear Bella and other vampire love stricken girls, men are not responsible for your happiness, you are. If you get depressed, get help! If he leaves you, move on! Your life and your happiness are so important.

New Moon is the second book in the Twilight series and things were reading pretty well for me but somewhere along the way, I just started getting annoyed that Bella kept carrying on about the same thing over and over, like I am doing in this post. My book snobbishness is starting to show. UGH! The Eclipse of the New Moon must be better.

I started reading these books in the last six months because of the cultural phenomena they are becoming. I originally received all four of these books from the publisher and I read the back of the books and thought, this high school vampire stuff isn’t for me and so I donated them to the library at the high school I teach at. Little did I know that they would be so popular and stolen from the library. My own children knew more about the stories than I did just from riding the bus to school and back. So I knew I had to read them. I really hope the story picks up in book three.

Pope Joan

Pope Joan by Donna Woolfolk Cross

Pope Joan is historical fiction at its finest. The book takes place during the dark ages in the 9th century when it is forbidden for women to be educated. During this time the church has been ridding the world of pagans and converting them by force. You must either convert or die. So Joan's mother, Gudrun is a Saxon who converts to Christianity and marries the canon, a man who believes he must beat the devil out of women and children to save their souls. Gudrun has three children, two sons Matthew and John, with the youngest child being Joan. The year Joan is born the Frankish emperor Karolus (known to us as Charlemagne) dies, sending the empire into an uncertain future.

An educated woman was known to be a dangerous woman. Joan was forbidden an education but her brother Matthew taught her secretly. When her fathered discovered she owned a book he beat her to within a inch of her life. Eventually to continue her education she had to live her life as a man and enter a monastery. She was in constant fear that she would be discovered and be executed as a witch. She is not the only woman who has done this. Throughout history many women have chosen to live their lives as men because of the opportunities that were denied to them as women. Men were very fearful of women and of menstrual blood. The author states in her author's note that "Menstrual blood was believed to turn wine sour, make crops barren, take the edge off of steel, make iron rust, and infect dog bites with an incurable poison".

Is Joan a real person? Did she really become Pope in 853 and reign until 855? I believe so! In fact the author states there are more historical references to Pope Joan than King Arthur and yet more children know the story of King Arthur. The reason why most people have never heard of Pope Joan is because when the Catholic church discovered Pope John Anglicus was a woman they tried to erase her from history by destroying documents and after Joan's papacy all future Popes were required to show their manhood before assuming the role of Pope.

I am so thankful that I am living now in this time and place instead of in the past. My children once asked me if I could go back in history and live at any moment, what year would I live in? My response was that I wouldn't go back, at least not as a woman. I enjoy the luxuries of today, like reading, writing, voting and working. Women have more opportunities now than ever before and we still have a long way to go. I love being a woman in 2010.

I would consider this book to be one of the best books I have read so far this year. I am overjoyed to have discovered a movie version has been made but unfortunately I cannot find a U.S. release date. Leave a comment if you have some information about the film. The trailer looks great and so I included it in my post. You can also check out the website for Pope Joan at www.popejoan.com My advice to you is to definitely read this book and spread Joan's legacy to the world!