Monday, September 28, 2009
Monday Morning Inspiration
The aim of education should be to teach us rather how to think, than what to think - rather to improve our minds, so as to enable us to think for ourselves, than to load the memory with thoughts of other men. ~Bill Beattie
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Fall Into Reading 2009
It's here! The first day of Autumn and it's a blistering warm day. This is Florida after all. So no, I don't see leaves turning beautiful bright colors on trees; I don't smell those wood fires burning; nor is it anywhere near appropriate to put away the summer wardrobe. However, I have pulled out last fall's Pumpkin Spice lotion from Bath and Body Works; I've plugged in the "leaves" scented wall flowers, as well as the cinnamon scented ones, and I'm using pumpkin spiced creamer in my coffee. It's official: today is the first day of my favorite season.
And no one needs more of an excuse to read than me so today is the kick off of Callapidder Days annual Fall Into Reading. My goal this fall is to read 25 books. Wish me luck!
Here is what's at the top of my To Read List (or already sitting in my library bag).
- The Sign of the Beaver by Elizabeth George Speare (starting it today)
- Deep and Dark and Dangerous by Mary Downing Hahn
- The Brooklyn Nine by Alan Gratz
- Granny Torrelli Makes Soup by Sharon Creech
- Things Not Seen by Andrew Clements
- Catherine, Called Birdy by Karen Cushman
- Skellig by David Almond
- Palace of Mirrors by Margaret Peterson Haddix
- The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
- The Ask and the Answer by Patrick Ness
- Al Capone Does My Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko
- The Sea of Monsters by Rick Riordan
Monday, September 21, 2009
Monday Morning Inspiration
Teaching is the profession that teaches all the other professions. ~Author Unknown
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Spring Reading Thing 2009 - Wrap Up
Spring ended June 20th but I was on vacation and haven't had time to wrap up the reading challenge until this morning. Overall, I am pretty thrilled with how well I have done. SRT has been hugely motivational for me as well as learning I will be teaching 5th and 6th language arts next school year. I haven't done a lot of reading for me, but I am finding that a lot of the children and young adult novels are just as enjoyable and fulfilling. So what are the results?
Well, I had from March 20th to June 20th to read as much as possible. ***
1. The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
2. Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli
3. Zach's Lie by Roland Smith
4. Flipped by Wendelin Van Draanen
5. Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson
6. The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness
7. Running Out of Time by Margaret Peterson Haddix
8. Tunnels by Roderick Gordon and Brian Williams
9. Milkweed by Jerry Spinelli
10. The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi
11. The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin
12. The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare
13. Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer
14. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
15. Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli
16. The Luxe by Anna Godberson
17. Gone by Michael Grant
18. My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult
My favorites: Milkweed, The Witch of Blackbird Pond, My Sister's Keeper
My goal for next year is to read 25 books. In fact, I'll make that my goal for summer '09!
***This does not include the educational books I also read:
19. Donalyn Miller's The Book Whisperer
20. Kelly Gallagher's Readicide
21. Nancie Atwell's The Reading Zone
Well, I had from March 20th to June 20th to read as much as possible. ***
1. The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
2. Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli
3. Zach's Lie by Roland Smith
4. Flipped by Wendelin Van Draanen
5. Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson
6. The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness
7. Running Out of Time by Margaret Peterson Haddix
8. Tunnels by Roderick Gordon and Brian Williams
9. Milkweed by Jerry Spinelli
10. The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi
11. The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin
12. The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare
13. Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer
14. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
15. Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli
16. The Luxe by Anna Godberson
17. Gone by Michael Grant
18. My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult
My favorites: Milkweed, The Witch of Blackbird Pond, My Sister's Keeper
My goal for next year is to read 25 books. In fact, I'll make that my goal for summer '09!
***This does not include the educational books I also read:
19. Donalyn Miller's The Book Whisperer
20. Kelly Gallagher's Readicide
21. Nancie Atwell's The Reading Zone
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Shamed
What makes writing "good?"
I just finished Jodi Picoult's My Sister's Keeper and I was blown away by the story. I quickly went on to Goodreads to give it five stars and write a quick review about how it wowed me from the start. Afterward, I read reviews from other Goodreads members and a huge majority had given the book the lowest ratings of twos and ones. So I read what had them so peeved.
Many said Picoult's writing was too cliched. The B-story about Campbell and Julia was fluffy and unnecessary. The ending was ridiculous and blew. They hated Sarah. The story is "trash pop fiction." The more I read the reviews, the more embarrassed I felt about giving it a five star rating, about loving it.
In college, I took a Modern Novels course in which I had to read a different book each week, many of which were killer-boring and painful to read. I still hate Thomas Wolfe's Look Homeward, Angel. We finally came to a novel that I was enthralled with from the start, Joyce Carol Oates' The Falls. I finally had great things I wanted to say to contribute to the class discussion, after having certain opinionated students dribble on for weeks about the greatness of the other selections. So, as I was discussing with a peer next to me before class started, I admitted to liking the story for once. Almost immediately I was drop-kicked by one overly-opinionated chick who said it reminded her of a trashy novel you could pick up on the shelves of Target. Just like that, my opinion was nulled.
Is there such thing as a book snob? What makes writing good as opposed to the kind of writing that the masses go for? Isn't an author's job to make you feel and think no matter the feelings or thoughts evoked? If we look closely at Shakespeare, while yes poetically written and clever, his plays were filled with sex and drama and conflict. All cliches stem from his plays as he used every one of them. If he were to rewrite for this generation, would others still be apt to call it popular garbage?
Cop up. No one wants to admit she's danced around to a Top 40 song at one point in her life. She's too cool for that. Metallica was cool until they sold out.
I admit I hated Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code. And yet, I read it straight through to the disappointing end. I also don't think too highly of Twilight. But I also just recently purchased New Moon, to give it another shot. I'm not going to insult anyone's intelligence by saying they must be a moron for enjoying popular fiction. And so maybe I shouldn't take it to heart when other's disagree with my viewpoint. I just want it to be okay to love a book that everyone loves (or hates).
I just finished Jodi Picoult's My Sister's Keeper and I was blown away by the story. I quickly went on to Goodreads to give it five stars and write a quick review about how it wowed me from the start. Afterward, I read reviews from other Goodreads members and a huge majority had given the book the lowest ratings of twos and ones. So I read what had them so peeved.
Many said Picoult's writing was too cliched. The B-story about Campbell and Julia was fluffy and unnecessary. The ending was ridiculous and blew. They hated Sarah. The story is "trash pop fiction." The more I read the reviews, the more embarrassed I felt about giving it a five star rating, about loving it.
In college, I took a Modern Novels course in which I had to read a different book each week, many of which were killer-boring and painful to read. I still hate Thomas Wolfe's Look Homeward, Angel. We finally came to a novel that I was enthralled with from the start, Joyce Carol Oates' The Falls. I finally had great things I wanted to say to contribute to the class discussion, after having certain opinionated students dribble on for weeks about the greatness of the other selections. So, as I was discussing with a peer next to me before class started, I admitted to liking the story for once. Almost immediately I was drop-kicked by one overly-opinionated chick who said it reminded her of a trashy novel you could pick up on the shelves of Target. Just like that, my opinion was nulled.
Is there such thing as a book snob? What makes writing good as opposed to the kind of writing that the masses go for? Isn't an author's job to make you feel and think no matter the feelings or thoughts evoked? If we look closely at Shakespeare, while yes poetically written and clever, his plays were filled with sex and drama and conflict. All cliches stem from his plays as he used every one of them. If he were to rewrite for this generation, would others still be apt to call it popular garbage?
Cop up. No one wants to admit she's danced around to a Top 40 song at one point in her life. She's too cool for that. Metallica was cool until they sold out.
I admit I hated Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code. And yet, I read it straight through to the disappointing end. I also don't think too highly of Twilight. But I also just recently purchased New Moon, to give it another shot. I'm not going to insult anyone's intelligence by saying they must be a moron for enjoying popular fiction. And so maybe I shouldn't take it to heart when other's disagree with my viewpoint. I just want it to be okay to love a book that everyone loves (or hates).
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Throwing in the Towel
So, I have until 7 in the morning to finish the book challenge, but I'm really proud of what all I've accomplished so far and I just don't see myself staying up through the night to try to rush through a book just to have one more. I'd rather read when I'm awake and lucid enough to comprehend what's happening. Since 7:30 Saturday morning, I have read 5 books. That's five in less than two days! I'm sure I've never done that in my life. Here is the run down of my accomplishments:
1. Fever 1793 - 243 pages - 3 hrs.
2. Maniac Magee - 184 pages - 3 hrs.
3. The Graveyard Book - 307 pages - 4 hrs. 15 min.
4. Life As We Knew It - 337 pages - 6 hrs. 30 min.
5. The Witch of Blackbird Pond - 223 pages - 4 hrs. 30 min.
Totals: 5 books, 1294 pages, 21 hrs. 15 min.
Congratulations to everyone who participated this weekend. I know I was never in the running, but I'm so excited for what I've accomplished!
Oh, and for the Greater Good, I pledged $1.00 for every 50 pages I read to my two charities. I will be donating $25.88 to both Rose Brooks and LiteracyKC.
1. Fever 1793 - 243 pages - 3 hrs.
2. Maniac Magee - 184 pages - 3 hrs.
3. The Graveyard Book - 307 pages - 4 hrs. 15 min.
4. Life As We Knew It - 337 pages - 6 hrs. 30 min.
5. The Witch of Blackbird Pond - 223 pages - 4 hrs. 30 min.
Totals: 5 books, 1294 pages, 21 hrs. 15 min.
Congratulations to everyone who participated this weekend. I know I was never in the running, but I'm so excited for what I've accomplished!
Oh, and for the Greater Good, I pledged $1.00 for every 50 pages I read to my two charities. I will be donating $25.88 to both Rose Brooks and LiteracyKC.
Just Finished Reading...
48 HBC #5
The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare
time spent reading... 4 1/2 hours
time spent blogging... 12 min
I am ending on a high note. This is my favorite book of all the ones I read this weekend. I loved it. Romance, crazy Puritans, witch trials, history, romance. Kit from Barbados has recently lost her grandfather, and having no other immediate family members boards a ship headed for Connecticut, to an aunt's she has never met and who is unaware of her visit. Kit is like a colorful peacock that sticks out amongst gray pigeons in Puritan New England. She shocks the natives over and over again. She can swim and read and oh, that "witch" at the outskirts of town? a wonderful new friend! A couple of chapters devoted to the witch trial reminded me of the insanity also seen in The Crucible. This story, however, does everything a good book should. It was fun, worrisome, irksome, sweet, funny, and had a very happy ending. What more could a girl want?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)