Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins

Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins

Book Description:

Gregor is stuck watching his two year old sister, Boots and his grandma for the summer. During the laundry session, his sister looses her ball in the grate and they both get sucked into the Underland. The Underland is filled with giant bugs, spiders, and rats. He just wants to get back home, but discovers two things. The first is that a prophecy foretells a role for him in the future of the humans living in the Underland. And second, the mystery of his father's disappearance is uncovered. The quest all unfolds as the mysterious prophecy plays out.

My Thoughts:

This book started a bit slow for me. I really didn't get into it until about the fourth chapter or so. It did pick up though, and I did enjoy it overall. I really appreciated the research on the different animals used to create their characters and attitudes. I was inclined to go and read about rats and their teeth, to find out if the fact was true or not. I think it is a great book for boys because of the quest and adventure. They would love that part for sure. 

A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park

A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park

Book Description: Tree-ear is an orphan living with a crippled man under a bridge in Korea during the twelfth-century. This bridge is near the village of Ch'ulp'o, known for its remarkable pottery, the delicate celadon ware. Tree-ear has a passion to make his own pot someday. This passion leads him to secretly watch Min, the master potter work. Due to circumstances, Tree-ear becomes a worker for the elderly master. He learns much of the trade, but will Min teach him the art of spinning the wheel? 

My Thoughts: It's a Newberry winner for a reason. It is very good coming of age story where Tree-ear is put onto situations where he must decide to do what is right, or what is easier. I enjoyed the Korean culture that was brought out through the relationships of the characters in the book. 

An example of the glaze color of Celadon.

Planting the Trees of Kenya by Claire A. Nivola

Planting the Trees of Kenya by Claire A. Nivola 

Fun picture book about the story of Wangari Maathai, first woman from Africa to receive the Nobel Peace Prize in 2004. As a child she remembers her home in Kenya with many farms and villages where people ate the food they grew. She was able to attend college in the US, where she studied biology in hopes to return to Kenya with her new knowledge. In those five years, though, Kenya had changed dramatically. The trees had been cut down for more plantation fields, which led to various problems. Wangari Maathai taught the women to grow trees from seeds.  This turned out to be the best thing for the people of Kenya.

My thoughts:

I thought the book was really good for younger children to learn about a person out making a difference in her home country. The pictures are colorful. 

Young Fu of the Upper Yangtze by Elizabeth Foreman Lewis

Book Description:  Young Fu and his mother are forced by a famine to leave their small village in the mountains to move to the big city of Chungking.  Young Fu is bound for seven years as an apprentice to the copper-smith, Tang.  Young Fu learns more from his kind master than just the skills required of a copper-smith.  From each adventure that Young Fu finds himself in, he begins to make his own opinions about the western world and life in general. Set in the 1920's, China is slowly changing as a country and Young Fu changes with it, from a boy into a man.

My Thoughts: Having lived near the Yangtze River for a few years I was intrigued by the descriptions made about the junks that traveled to and from Shanghai. What I really liked was the way that Elizabeth Foreman Lewis intertwined the old superstitions of Young Fu's mother and his newer ways of thinking. For example, she was highly fearful of foreigners, but Young Fu found them to not be scary and a few to be very helpful and caring. I enjoyed reading this story, though fictional, about this era right before China's revolution began.  Elizabeth had lived in Chungking during this time, so the descriptions of the streets and surroundings made for a fun, run down memory-lane read for me (even if it was a different era, somethings I found still the same...)

No Talking by Andrew Clements

No Talking by Andrew Clements
Description:
The Laketon Elementary school has had a huge problem with the Unshushables, the nickname of the fifth grade class. They have been talkative and loud since first grade.  But, what happens when Dave and Lindsey start a No Talking Contest between the girls and the boys? A 2-day contest with a 3-word limit to be used only when an adult asks a question? Whichever side talks less, wins!  How do the teachers react? the parents? How about the principal with her red plastic bullhorn?

My Take (warning: spoiler alert!):
This was a great book with a focus on language and how we use it throughout the day.  Language can be spoken. It can be gestures or sounds. Language can be mean or kind. And in this book you see the demonstration of the power that words can have. Words can tear down or build up.
I loved that Mr. Clements brought out those elements, not with just the students, but you see what the teachers are all thinking as well. They are clueless about the contest at first, so it is interesting to see their different reactions. Some are ecstatic at first, then frustrated because the kids are only answering with three words. Others love it because they are now quiet and the teacher doesn't have to yell at all. Then there are some that don't like it right from the start. Kind of hard to teach music when they won't sing....
I think this is a great middle grade book that kids will love because the students are doing something that is driving some teachers crazy. It is really well written with some great illustrations to enhance the book. I feel Mark Elliot captured some great expressions of the kids with his drawings.

Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH by Robert C. O'Brien

Mrs. Frisby is a widowed mouse with four small children.  Winter is ending soon and they need to move to their summer home. But, the youngest has pneumonia and can't be moved. What's a mom to do? She searches for help, even from those who are most likely to refuse. But, the rats of NIMH have a grand plan to help her in her dilemma.

I really enjoyed this book. It was written in 1971 and received the Newbery award in 1972.  

**Spoiler Alert**

There are themes in this book that will never grow old. Like being kind to everyone, no matter who it is. And that if you are kind to them, most likely they will return that kindness.  I know that not everyone is kind back, but the importance of being kind and compassionate is something we all long for. Even the bully craves those things.

As a mother, I could relate to Mrs. Frisby.  Her worries, doubts, fears, and determination were all strong and very real. I like that about this book. That as a child I could read it and love the adventure and the mystery as to why the rats are so helpful. But, as an adult I can relate, too! 

Can't wait to read this on out loud to my kids!

The Screwtape Letters - C.S. Lewis

The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis

Goodreads Description:

The story takes the form of a series of letters from a senior demon, Screwtape, to his nephew, a junior "tempter" named Wormwood, so as to advise him on methods of securing the damnation of a British man, known only as "the Patient".

Screwtape holds an administrative post in the bureaucracy ("Lowerarchy") of Hell, and acts as a mentor to Wormwood, the inexperienced tempter. In the body of the thirty-one letters which make up the book, Screwtape gives Wormwood detailed advice on various methods of undermining faith and promoting sin in the Patient, interspersed with observations on human nature and Christian doctrine. Wormwood and Screwtape live in a peculiarly morally reversed world, where individual benefit and greed are seen as the greatest good, and neither demon is capable of comprehending or acknowledging true human virtue when he sees it.

My Thoughts:

I have heard of this book for years, but just have never taken the time to read it. So glad that I put it on my list of books to read because it was a great one.  The letters are written during WWII when Britain is dealing with the fear of bombs from Germany. Screwtape mentions this in various letters and how it will affect the "Patient" for their benefit or for the "Enemy's" benefit.  Even though the setting is historical, the content will always be current.  What I liked the most is that it is so deep with gut wrenching quotes that make you stop and think about your own life.   (Okay, maybe I don't always like to look at the "yuck" in my life. But, evaluating isn't a bad thing.)

This is definitely a book that I want to read again.

Inkheart by Cornelia Funke

Goodreads Description:
Twelve-year-old Meggie learns that her father, who repairs and binds books for a living, can "read" fictional characters to life when one of those characters abducts them and tries to force him into service.


I'll be honest, this was a hard book for me to finish. I just wanted it to end. It just kept going and going and going...you get the point. I felt like the plot never really thickened. That the climax could've come much earlier in the story.  That the character development never got really deep. I didn't connect with a single one. It was just a strange feeling after reading it. So, later I looked at some of the other reviews. My research led to believing it is either a love or a hate it kind of book. There wasn't much in between.  
In light of e-readers, I thought the job of repairing old books was an art that in a few years may just become that. An art.

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

This is the second book of the Hunger Games Trilogy. I didn't realize this when I put this on my list, so I read Hunger Games in a day and picked Catching Fire the next day and finished it that night. I was a bit hesitant with this trilogy because of fear of the descriptive writing.  But, I was surprised that it wasn't that bad. I mean, there was some pretty gruesome parts, but they were never forced or overboard. It seemed to concentrate more on the relationships and the "Big Picture" problem of the Capitol controlling then the actual "games".

Here is the summary from Goodreads.
"Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark won the annual competition described in Hunger Games, but the aftermath leaves these victors with no sense of triumph. Instead, they have become the poster boys for a rebellion that they never planned to lead. That new, unwanted status puts them in the bull's-eye for merciless revenge by The Capitol. Catching Fire maintains the adrenaline rush of Suzanne Collin's series launch."

Can't wait to get my hands on Mockingjay, the final book of the Hunger Games Trilogy.

Matilda by Roald Dahl

What a fun read. Right from the start I was hooked. I loved how his voice was directed at the reader.  How he sarcastically reflected what many teacher's think about students whose parents dote on them way to much.
Two of my favorite passages are what the narrator would want to write on end-of-term reports to doting parents if he had been a teacher.
"Your son Maximilian", I would write, "is a total wash-out. I hope you have a family business you can push him into when he leaves school because he sure as heck won't get a job anywhere else."
or
Or if I were feeling lyrical that day, I might write, "It is a curious truth that grasshoppers have their hearing-organs in the sides of the abdomen. Your daughter Vanessa, judging by what she's learnt this term, has no hearing-organs at all."

But, Matilda's parents are not those types of parents. No she has a different type. The type that doesn't think she is anything, when in fact she is brilliant. 
Here's an excerpt from the bookcover.
Who put superglue in Dad's hat? Was it really a ghost that made Mom tear out of the house? Matilda is a genius with idiot parents - and she's having a great time driving them crazy. But at school things are different. At school there's Miss Trunchbull, two hundred menacing pounds of kid-hating headmistress. Get rid of the Trunchbull and Matilda would be a hero. But that would take a superhuman genius, wouldn't it?

I liked the book. I found the word choice to be strong, which is always good for vocabulary for upper elementary kids.

Twilight by Stephenie Meyer

 

I'm not a fan of horror. At. All.  I have learned that I cannot watch or read that genre. I have nightmares for weeks. I still shudder when I think about those movies from the eighties. You know Freddie and Jason. Ugh!  I'm a wimp, I know. So, when I heard that this book was about vampires and such I didn't pay attention to it until a friend of mine told me that I could handle it. It wasn't bad in the scary department.  So, that is why I put Twilight on my list to read.

Here is Goodread's description of the book:

     Isabella Swan's move to Forks, a small, perpetually rainy town in Washington, could have been the most boring move she ever made. But once she meets the mysterious and alluring Edward Cullen, Bella's life takes a thrilling and terrifying turn. Up until now, Edward has managed to keep his vampire identity a secret in the small community he lives in, but now nobody is safe, especially Bella, the person Edward holds most dear.  The lovers find themselves balanced precariously on the point of a knife - between desire and danger. Deeply romantic and extraordinarily suspenseful, Twilight captures the struggle between defying our instincts and satisfying our desires. This is a love story with bite.

I liked the book more than I thought I would. I can see why the series has become a huge hit.  I was reading it every spare minute I had. But, there was a part that I had to put down the book because it was late at night and my mind does crazy things at that time. I had to do something else to get my mind cleared from the scary thoughts and then go to bed. But, the next day I had the book and continued reading.  I'm not sure if I'll read the other books in the series, though.  I've heard that the other books are even better, which makes me want to read them. But, I've also heard that they are a bit more graphic, which makes me not want to read them.  So, for now I think I'll stick to my 100 list and maybe later I'll change my mind.

The New Kid at School by Kate McMullan

I liked this book okay for an early chapter book. I didn't like how the ending left me with more questions. But, I guess that is because it is the first book in a series and if you want to find out the answers you have read the other books.

My nine year old son loved it, so I'd recommend it if you have a young reader at home. But, note that there is a palm reading in the first chapter. It's not huge, but some people are very cautious about these things.

Wiglaf is an odd child in his family. He is little and doesn't like to hurt living things.  But, when he is told that he will one day be a hero he leaves home to attend DSA, Dragon Slayers' Academy. He decides that he will slay a dragon and bring back the gold to his family.  His first day of school turns out very different than planned. He doesn't just learn about slaying dragons, but he gets the opportunity to fight a real fire breathing dragon.

Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine

Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine is a great "Cinderella" story with a twist. I've always liked the story of Cinderella, I mean, what girl doesn't?
But, I loved how we step back and look at her life before she enters the home of her step-family. And the twist of the enchanted spell given to her at birth.

That obedience spell made me think deeper about the act of obedience verses the attitude of obedience. You can see it played out in Ella so well. She has to obey, but she finds ways to make the act a little bit mischievous or she resents the person making the request.
With raising my own kids, I am aware of the times they are obedient in attitude or not.  I want them to obey, not just in their action, but also in their attitude. I don't want them to be resentful because they "have to do" something. Not every child is the same, so this makes parenting even more of a challenge at times, ya think?

Anyway, back to the review. I've not watched the movie, but now want to. I'm sure it's not as good as the book....they never are, are they? But, just the same I think it would be fun to see all the dresses and to watch the story all fold out once again. To see the girl live "happily ever after" with her prince.  I'm still a young romantic at heart.

Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis

Bud, not Buddy immediately finds himself shuffled out of the home for boys and into the home of the Amos', his new foster family.  But, not even 24 hours later, Bud is on "the lam". Not exactly out of choice, but because "one door closed and another door opened" - a theory he obtained from his deceased mother. He carries around a beat up suitcase with his treasures neatly packed. These treasures are clues to his past - to who he is - clues that could lead him to his father...Herman E Calloway, a musician.  From the flyers that his mother had saved, Bud, not Buddy, finds himself on a journey from Flint, Michigan to Grand Rapids.
This book made me laugh out loud, seriously. I enjoyed the voice of the MC. You could really hear him talking and thinking to himself, which ten year old boys can be quite creative in their thinking...which leads to why I laughed out loud in a hospital lobby while reading this book.
I also loved that Mr. Curtis used his two grandfathers as characters in this book.  One was a musician and the other was named "Lefty Lewis".  How fun is that?  Also, the author is from Flint..just another cool fact that was at the end of the book.

The Shakespeare Stealer by Gary Blackwood

I put this on my list before our trip to England this past summer. It looked like a fun read and it was about the players of The Globe during Shakespeare's time.  It was an insightful historical look during that time when everyone wanted their hands on William Shakespeare's plays and how many of the plays were stolen. I liked how it explained why that was so bad for his theatre company to let other companies perform his plays.
It starts with Widge, an orphan taken in as an apprentice. He learns a secret written code from a doctor, who then sells him to a man who wants Widge to use this skill to copy one of Shakespeare's plays, Hamlet.  Widge is successful after his second trip to the theatre, but it gets stolen from his wallet.  He then pretends to want to be a player so he can steal the play and save his life from his new master.  But, it is tough to steal. One, they keep it locked up in a chest in a locked room. And two, the players become family, something he has never had. And he makes friends, something he has never done.  Can he betray them?  It's a tough decision  that keeps you reading to see how he will make the right decision and still live.

The Tales of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo

This John Newbery Medal Award book was so much fun to read out loud to my son.  Despereaux, a little mouse with big ears, is born. We watch this mouse grow up. His big ears are not the only thing that separates him from the rest of his kind. He hears music, he reads books, he dreams of the Princess Pea...he just is NOT your typical mouse. But as the story unfolds little Despereaux seems to grow in size. This is due to his bravery and "the quest" set before him....he must save the Princess Pea from the dungeon, from the rat who took her to the dungeon, and he must do it alone.
But, this story doesn't just follow Despereaux.  It also follows a young servant girl named Miggery Sow and a rat named Roscuro.  And you see how these three lives intertwine with the Princess Pea and the dungeon.  It is really quite a clever story with lots of depth in character development.

I loved the voice in this book. There are many stops and the "Narrator" speaks to the "Reader".  This "Narrator" had questions for us to ask ourselves, which usually were answered a few lines after the question. This really drew us into the storyline as we watched it unfold.

The drawings in the book are well done and add a depth to the reading.

Three Cups of Tea

Talk about an inspiring story...this is one of them.  I read the Young Reader's Edition adapted by Sarah Thomson, which has a great interview in the back of Amira, Greg's daughter. She is just as inspiring as her father, which is so great to see in one so young...she was 12 at the time of this interview.  She challenges kids of all ages to do something and has ideas of ways that they can. 

Greg Mortenson was separated from his climbing buddies as they descended down K2.  He was found by his porter, but then he lost his way again. He came upon a poor village where they took him in and took care of him.  From gratitude, he left with a promise to return to build them a school for their children.  Tree Cups of Tea tells Greg's story of how a poor boy from the US raised money to build a school for this village and how that promise turned into something bigger than he had planned.

This was so inspiring for me on so many levels. I won't go into them all, I promise.  But, this quote from Greg is so relevant in my life and speaks so much..."We Americans think you have to accomplish everything quickly....Haji Ali taught me to share three cups of tea, to slow down and make building relationships as important as building projects."  It is so true in my life. How quickly do I worry and work on the project and forget about the relationship.  

Now to go and have a cup of tea (or coffee) with a fellow friend or co-worker....how about you, you up for it?

MaDonna's 100

The List:

1. .  Abott, Tony. The Postcard

2. Appelt, Kathi, “The Underneath” 

3.  Austin, Jane, “Pride and Prejudice”

4. Austin, Jane, “Sense and Sensibility”

5. Austin, Jane, “Persuasion”

6.  Austin, Jane, “Northanger Abbey”

7.  Bartoletti,  Susan Campbell,  “Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow” 

8.  Bissinger, “Friday Night Lights: A Town, a Team and a Dream”

9.  Blackwood, “The Shakespeare Stealer” 

10. Bloor, Edward, “Tangerine”

11. Blumberg, Rhoda “Shipwrecked! The True Adventures of a Japanese Boy”

12. Bronte, “Jane Eyre”

 13. Boniface, William, “The Extraordinary Adventures of Ordinary Boy”

14. Bryant, Jen. “Pieces of Georgia: A Novel”

15. Brashares, Ann ,”The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants”

16. Choldenk, Gennifer, “Al Capone Shines My Shoes”

17. Chbosky, Stephen , “The Perks of Being a Wallflower”

18.Cochrane, Mick, “The Girl Who Threw Butterflies” 

19. Colfer, Eoi, “Eoin Colfer’s Legend of … the Worst Boy in the World”

20.Collins, Suzanne, “Catching Fire”

21. Connor, Leslie, “Waiting for Normal”

22. Cowley, Joy “Snake and Lizard”

23. Clements, Andrew, “No Talking”

24. Clare, Cassandra, “City of Bones”

25. Curtis, Christopher Paul, “Bud, Not Buddy” 

26. Dahl, Ronald,  “The BFG”

27. Dahl, Ronald, “Matilda”

28.DuPrau, Jeanne, “The City of Ember”

29. Deuke,r Carl, “Heart of a Champion”

30.Delyo, Elaine E, “Kansas City Marvels – the FBI Briefcase”

31. DiCamillo, Kate, “The Miraculous Journey of Edwrd Tulane”

32. DiCamillo, Kate “The Tale of Despereaux”

33. Feldman, Jody, “The Gollywhopper Games”

34. Friedman, “Laurie B. Red White & True Blue Mallory”

35. Funke: “Inkheart”

36. Gaiman, Neil. “The Graveyard Book”

37. Gaiman, Neil, “Anansi Boys”

38. Hale, Shannon and Dean, “Rapunzel’s Revenge” 

39. Huang, Tiffany, “Taiwan Tiff”

40. Haddix: “Uprising”

41. Hughes, Dean. “Soldier Boys”

42. Hurricane, Terry, “Trueman”

43. Kadohata, Cynthia, “Kira-Kira” 

44. Kingsolver: “The Poisonwood Bible: A Novel” 

45. Judge, Lita. “One Thousand Tracings: Healing the Wounds of World War II”

46. Kimmel, Elizabeth Cody, “Ice story: Shackleton's Lost Expedition”
47. Lewis, C.S., “Screwtape Letters”

48. Lewis, Elizabeth Foreman, “Young Fu on the Upper Yangtze”

49. Lin, Grace, “The Year of the Dog”

50. Lin, “Where the Mountain Meets the Moon”

51. Li, Moying, “Snow Falling in Spring, Coming of Age During the Cultural Revolution”

52. L'Engle,  “A Wrinkle in Time”

53. Levine, Gail Carson, “Ella Enchanted”

54. Law, Ingrid, “Savvy” 

55. Meyer, Stephanie, “Twilight Begins”

56. Moore, Beth, “Get Out of the Pit”

57. Mortenson and Relin: “Three Cups of Tea”

58. Meehan, Kierin, “Hannah’s Winter”

59. Nelson, Jandy, “The Sky is Everywhere”

60. O'Brian, “Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH”

61. Nivola, Claire. “Planting the Trees of Kenya: The Story of Wangari Maathai”

62. Patron, Susan, “The Higher Power of Lucky” 

63. Perkins, Lynne Rae, “Criss Cross” 

64. Park, Linda Sue, “A Single Shard”

65. Park, Samuel, “This Burns My Heart”

66. Picoult: “My Sister’s Keeper”

67. Parry, Rosanne, “Heart of a Shepherd”

68. Pratchett, Terry, “Nation”

69. Philbrick, Rodman, “The Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg”

70. Rowling, “Harry Potter #1”

71. Raskin, “The Westing Game”

72. Ryan, Pam Munoz, “Becoming Naomi Leon”

73. Smelcer, John, “The Great Death”

74. Schalesky, Marlo, “Shades of Morning”

75. Stead, Rebecca, “When You Reach Me”

76. Sachar, “Holes”

77. Schroeder, Lisa, “Far From You”             

78. Schroeder, Lisa, “I Heart You, You Haunt Me”

79. Spinelli, Jerry, “Stargirl”

80. Stone, Tanya Lee, “Almost Astronauts: 13 Women Who Dared to Dream”

81. Stork, Francisco X, “Macelo in the Real World”

82. Scieszka, Jon, ed. “Guys Write for Guys Read”

83. Tolkein, J. R. R.. “The Fellowsip of the Ring”

84. Thorp Tim, “Knights of the Hill Country”

85. Tolkien, “The Hobbit”

86. Vautrin, Minnie, “Terror in Vautrin’s Nanjing, Diaries and Correspondence 1937-38”

87. Whelan, Gloria, “Listening for Lions”

88. Wilson, Jacqueline, “Best Friends” 

89. Winter, Jonah. You Never Heard of Sandy Koufax?!

90. Woodson, Jacqueline, “After Tupac & D Foster”

91. Collins, Suzanne, “Gregor the Overlander”

92. Buckey, Michael, “The Fairy-Tale Detectives”

93.  Riordan, Rick, “The Lightning Thief”

94. McMullan, Kate, “The New Kid at School”

95. McSwigan, Marie, “Snow Treasure”

96. Wrede, Patricia C., “Dealing with Dragons”

97.  Newberry 2011

98. Newberry 2012 

99. Newberry 2013

100. Newberry 2014