Spring Reading Thing 2010

Whoa, am I behind! Callapidder Days launched Spring Reading Thing 2010, oh, March 20th and I'm just now getting around to my first post. Since it's almost halfway over, I've decided I'm going to create my summer reading list. From now until August 20th, here's what I'd like to read:

1. The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan (Just got it from B&N this afternoon and am reading it now.)

2. Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer (I had started this at the end of my spring break, then had to return it to the library because it didn't qualify for renewal; put it on hold again, and just picked it up from the library *again* yesterday.)

3. Unwind by Neal Shusterman (listening to it in the car)

4. The House of Dies Drear by Virginia Hamilton

5. Heaven Looks a Lot Like the Mall by Wendy Mass

6. Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld

7. Touching Spirit Bear by Ben Mikaelsen

8. Devil's Arithmetic by Jane Yolen

9. The Midwife's Apprentice by Karen Cushman

10. Catherine, Called Birdy by Karen Cushman

11. Splendor by Anna Godbersen

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

SRT Update

There are now more books to add to my Spring Reading Thing list. A reminder to myself: my list is growing faster than I have the ability to get through each one. Especially since I'm stuck on one book that I tell myself I should like but am not convinced. My goal is to have it finished today, so that I may start on one that will be more enjoyable. The challenge ends June 20th, and I'm hoping I'll get most of my reading done in those three weeks after school is out. Right now, end of the year responsibilities, parties, events, and exerting all of my energy in keeping my kids roped in for these last few days is eating up all of my time and draining my battery. Plus, in lieu of summer shorts and bathing suits, I've given up soda and sweets and that makes me no happy ray of sunshine.

Back to my initial statement before I got lost in rant... I went to Barnes and Noble last night and picked up some books that are not on the list. My choices were based on the following: Is there a copy of this somewhere at school that I can borrow (or acquire)? Is this title more than likely available at the public library? Does this book fit into a unit of study I will teach next year? Is it appropriate for the age range of my students? Have I read enough about it from the blogosphere and Goodreads that there is an 80% chance I won't be disappointed? Is it available in paperback?

I had about eight books cradled in my arms until my husband found me and gave a worried look. Alright, it had gotten a little out of hand. So I went through my pile again and decided on the following:

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne

Looking for Alaska by John Green

All three of these books are listed for grades 9 and up. (I'll be teaching 5th and 6th next year.) The Holocaust isn't taught until 7th grade. And Looking for Alaska ties into no units that I can think of right now. However, these have been laying idle on my To-Read list for some time and I really couldn't bear putting them back on the shelves from which they came. If I'm to become a true bibliovore, I need to read books for myself as much as I read books for my students, and that is how I sleep at night.

Spring Reading Thing 2009

I finished the first four books on my list that I checked out from the library at the end of March, as well as two additional books from Donalyn Miller and Kelly Gallagher. Yesterday, I took another trip to the library. I had a huge list of books that I brought with me. Unfortunately, my library doesn't have the latest and greatest, stocked and on the shelves. I ended up getting one from my list: Patrick Ness's The Knife of Never Letting Go. Additionally, I picked up Running Out of Time by Margaret Peterson Haddix (I was looking for Found), Roderick Gordon and Brian Williams's Tunnels, and Jerry Spinelli's Milkweed. I can't wait to crack the first one open, but I'm having a hard time deciding which to start first?

Forget Cleaning, It's Spring Reading!

Katrina over at Callapidder Days has started a reading challenge for the spring. Create a list of books you'd like to read between now and June 20th. Then start reading! After the challenge is over, each participant is to write a post about how it went. Your list can be long, or as few as two books, so there's no pressure. This is a great way for me to dive into my TBR list. So, here goes nothing...

1. The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
2. Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli3. 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. Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson
8. Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson
9. A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court by Mark Twain
10. Animal Farm by George Orwell
11. Donutheart by Sue Stauffacher

*12. Running Out of Time by Margaret Peterson Haddix

*13. Tunnels by Roderick Gordon and Brian Williams

*14. Milkweed by Jerry Spinelli

**15. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

**16. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne

**17. Looking for Alaska by John Green

**18. Peony in Love by Lisa See

**19. The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi

**20. The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin

**21. The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare

**22. Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer

**23. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

**24. Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli

*indicates new additions to list

**indicates even more new additions to the list

I stopped by the library on my way home from school today and checked out the first four books on the list so I've already got a good start. This list will more than likely change over time but I'm excited to finally sit down with some of these titles. What do you plan to read?