I rather forgot I had this blog... oops. Well here is a listing of books I've read lately and would highly recomend!!! I'll get caught up later and writing about how amazing they are.

How Much is a Million? by David M. Schwartz
Puss in Boots by Phillip Pullman
Mrs. Biddlebox by Linda Smith
Hitler Youth by Susan Campbell Bartoletti
Ana’s Story by Jenna Bush
Me No Questions by Marina Budhos
Educating Esmé by Esme Raji Codell (not sure how many times I read this but I finally bought it because I was sick of going to the library for it constantly)
The 21 Balloons by William Pene du Bois
Esperanza Rising by Pam Munoz Ryan
When My Name Was Keoko by Linda Sue Park
Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis

Currently reading.... KING MATT THE FIRST! I love it!!!

Picture Book Pics

This book tells the horrific story of a little boy getting sent to a camp in the 40's because he was of Japanese decent. The little boy tells the story of how baseball got them through the tough times at the camp.

This book is great. It's about a girl who HATES her dad's weird girlfriend. Despite all that she hates about his excentric girlfriend, she is able to come up with a few good things about her. The pictures are really colorful and this would be great for any child who is experiencing their parent dating again.

Leon's Story by Leon Walter Tillage

This heartbreaking true story tells the tale of a little boy growing up in the 40's and 50's. The short, easy to read novel discusses segregation, violence against African Americans, and so many other issues. It is very concise and gives many descriptive, thought provoking stories without becoming too wordy.

I think that an amazing idea to teach your children about the horrors of our history would be to have a book club. I'd make sure the kids knew how to self-select a book and then I'd give the students a few choices (Leon's story, Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry, Meet Addy, The Watson's Go to Birmingham, etc.) and let them choose a book they would be interested in and is just the right level of difficulty. I would then form students into groups of 4 or 5 based on their requests and their needs.

This book is most certainly on my to-buy list!!!

Rosy Cole's Memoir Explosion by Sheila Greenwald

A wonderful book about a little girl trying to write about the most interesting person in her family- herself. She makes many mistakes along the way and students should be able to relate to her and find humor in her mistakes. Very good book.

Six Million Paper Clips by Schroeder

This book is incredible! It tells the story of some 8th graders who created a holocaust memorial at their school by collecting 6 million paper clips- the total number killed by the Nazi's. It is an amazing book with lots of photographs!

Civil War on Sunday by Mary Pope Osborne

A really fast-paced book about two children who travel in time back to the Civil War. It's part of the Magic Tree House series and gives a lot of basic information about the civil war within the adventure of a historical fiction/fantasy book.

Diary of a Fairy Godmother by Esme Raji Codell

What an amazing book! It is so funny- an amazing book about a witch who goes to charm school to learn how to be a bad witch. Her dream however, is to become a fairy godmother. this book alludes to every fairy tale I know and is hilarious!