Monday, July 25, 2011

Summer Reading Challenge week #8

53. Basketball Belles by Sue Macy - picture book - neat story telling of the first time two women's basketball teams played each other - 9/10

54. The Little Red Pen by Janet Stevens and Susan Stevens Brummel - picture book - an absolute must read for any teacher! - 10/10

55. It Doesn't Take a Genius by Randall McCutcheon and Tommie Lindsey - adult - book for my summer class, lots of anecdotes, just ok - 7/10

56. Bird in a Box by Andrea Davis Pinkney - middle grade - Great Depression meets boxing - 8/10

57. Darcy and FitzWilliam by Karen V. Wasylowski - adult - P&P continuation from Darcy and his cousin's point of views, ok - 8/10

58. The Secret Life of Mrs. Finkleman by Ben H. Winters - middle grade - excellent story combining mystery, music, and middle school - great for Andrew Clements or Blue Balliett fans - 10/10

59. I Am Scout: The Biography of Harper Lee by Charles J. Shields - adult - provides a lot of information that I did not know about the author of To Kill a Mockingbird - 9/10

60. The Wonder of Charlie Anne by Kimberly Newton Fusco - middle grade - Great Depression meets Civil Rights meets Little House on the Prairie - 9/10

61. 20 Things Adoptive Parents Need to Succeed by Sherrie Eldridge - adult - just ok, lots of things that don't apply to our adoption situation - 8/10

Started and abandoned:
  • Friends edited by Ann M. Martin and David Levithan: a collection of middle grade/young adult short stories, just didn't get into it
  • The Runaway Princess by Kate Coombs: middle grade, princess goes to fight the dragon, just not my type of story
  • The Fabric of America by Andrew Linklater: adult, theory of how boundaries define the nation, too academic for summer

Monday, July 18, 2011

Summer Reading Challenge Week #7

43. The Penderwicks at Point Mouette by Jeanne Birdsall - middle grade - The third Penderwick adventure, just as good as the first two with a different main narrator - 10/10

44. Mr. Darcy's Little Sister by C. Allyn Pierson - adult - P&P sequel from Georgiana's point of view - 8/10

45. The Case of the Curious Crinoline by Nancy Springer - middle grade - another Enola Holmes mystery, brings in Florence Nightingale - 9/10

46. The Case of the Gypsy Good-bye by Nancy Springer - middle grade - final Enola Holmes mystery, resolves what happened to her mother and her relationship with her brothers - 10/10

47. The Great Wall of Lucy Wu by Wendy Wan-Long Shang - middle grade - Chinese-American girl finds out that her Chinese great-aunt will be spending several months with them and sharing her room - 10/10

48. The Help by Kathryn Stockett - adult - 1960's southern interactions between white employers and African-American domestic help - 10/10

49. The President's Daughter by Ellen Emerson White - young adult - First female President's daughter's experiences on the campaign trail and moving to the White House - 10/10

50. White House Autumn by Ellen Emerson White - young adult - Continuing story of Meg Powers and her family's experience - 10/10

51. Long Live the Queen by Ellen Emerson White - young adult - Meg is kidnapped by terrorists and rescues herself - 12/10

52. Long May She Reign by Ellen Emerson White - young adult - Meg works to rebuild her life after the kidnapping - 10/10

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Summer Reading Challenge Week #6

37. Chasing Fire by Nora Roberts - adult - love story told among Montana wildfire jumpers - 8/10

38. Maria Von Trapp: Beyond the Sound of Music by Candice F. Ransom- middle grade/young adult - the true story behind the main character in The Sound of Music - 9/10

39. DK Biography: Abigail Adams by Kem Knapp Sawyer - middle grade/young adult - love this series - great book! 10/10

40. The Case of the Left Handed Lady by Nancy Springer - middle grade - more Enola Holmes mysteries - 9/10

41. The Case of the Bizarre Bouquets by Nancy Springer - middle grade - even more Enola Holmes mysteries - 9/10

42. The Case of the Peculiar Fan by Nancy Springer - middle grade - Enola Holmes, yet again - 10/10


Started and abandoned:
  • Falling In by Frances O'Roark Dowell - middle grade
  • Heck: Where the Bad Kids Go by Dale E. Basye - middle grade
  • Where Men Win Glory by Jon Krakauer - adult

Monday, July 4, 2011

Summer Book Challenge week #5

28. How Far We Have Come by Linda Wells - adult - final book in a Pride & Prejudice trilogy - 10/10

29. The Limit by Kristen Landon - middle grade/young adult - scarily realistic futuristic novel. Parents who spend over their government limit have their children taken away to a workhouse to pay off the debt. 10/10

30. Elmo Loves You by Sarah Albee - board book - Joy loves Elmo, 'nuff said. 9/10

31. Late For School by Steve Martin - picture book - funny pictures and text to capture the saga of a late dash to school, on a Saturday! 8/10

32. The Case of the Missing Marquess by Nancy Springer - middle grade - first book in a series about Sherlock Holmes' younger sister Enola Holmes. 8/10

33. The Penderwicks on Gardam Street by Jeanne Birdsall - middle grade - The next adventure of the Penderwick girls - this time at home with a newly dating father. 10/10

34. William and Kate: A Royal Love Story by Christopher Andersen - adult - Details behind the royal couple's early lives and romance. A lot of it is probably made up, but a fun read. 8/10

35. Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos by R.L. LaFevers - middle grade - Set in early 1900's Britain, tells the story of a girl who can sense and remove ancient Egyptian curses in the museum where her parents work. 8/10

36. The Redheaded Princess by Ann Rinaldi - middle grade - The story of Princess Elizabeth Tudor from her earliest memories to her ascension to the throne. 9/10