This was so darn good. I don't typically gush - but I am gushing. To be fair a lot of my love comes from my perspective as a school librarian. Add to that the "fake news" conversations and top it with the Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus and you have a sure winner. I cannot wait to get my hands on a physical copy of the book. I can see using it with my 4th or 5th graders as we talk about research and evaluation of resources - print and digital. Very well presented and fascinating accounts. It was difficult to tell the truths from the lies.
Ivy's grandmother has always been a bit mysterious. She was in an accident on Twelfth Night in 1969 and lost all her memories. But now, after an accident sends her to the hospital, things start to get weird. Ivy and Seb soon find themselves in a strange new world and a mystery that was set in motion on that night in 1969.
What are uncommoners and uncommon objects? What role did her grandmother and other relatives play? Most importantly how can Ivy and Seb figure everything out and save their parents from the Dirge?
This was a meh for me. Part of my issue has been time and so my reading has been choppy. I will be moving along nicely and then get interrupted. That being said though overall I didn't find enough to keep me riveted and because it is the first in a series there are loose ends. It didn't end horribly but there is much more to be done.
This book is based on the life of Deo Rukundo whose family was displaced by war in Burundi and who ended up in a refugee camp for many years. While there, and through the help of Right to Play, Deo and the other children were given hope and taught how to get along by playing soccer. Later, Deo himself became a coach for Right to Play.
A tale of hope and promise which will fit in well with this theme of the summer reading program and a celebration of diversity.
So, I read a lot. I think I finished this Tuesday night but for some reason didn't do my blog them. Weds. night I went to a meeting and got home after 8:00 and then had Survivor. So 2 days later I am trying to blog. My memory is not great - I envy people who can book talk with great detail. That's not me, I am good with saying whether I liked it or not but I already have another book going and lose the details...
But here goes...Obe's family is in mourning if you will - but it's the loss of land and history. Over time the Devlin's have had to sell their land and now that land is being developed - new homes, new families. With the new families come new kids and suddenly Obe is in a turf war with his former best friend and the neighborhood kids. In addition, Obe feels that the development is encroaching on his territory and cause pollution, trash, and noise.
Then one day Obe meets Marvin. He's unsure what to make of Marvin who is kind of like a dog, kind of like a pig and who eats plastic. Obe develops a friendship with Marvin but worries when Marvin's scat seems toxic and starts causing problems and the neighborhood fears a "danger" they don't understand.
Can Obe keep Marvin safe and mend fences and friendships? I enjoyed this story and the uniqueness of Marvin. It was also a good way to address some environmental concerns without seeming preachy.
I am conflicted about this book. I loved the beginning and the set up. The polar ice caps have melted resulting in global flooding. Many of the survivors are fortunate to live in a secure location known as the Ark led by John Noa. Letta is in training to be a wordsmith. Her job is to create and copy the approved list of words that people are allowed to use. This list has just been cut from 700 to 500. John Noa believes that language is what doomed the human race and he wants to limit people's creativity, drive, and future thinking. He believes people should live for today only - just the food they need for the day. He regulates everything in Ark and Letta never questioned it - until her teacher Benjamin disappeared and she met Marlo - a boy who lives outside of Ark and believes in the right of expression. Soon Letta is caught up in finding the truth. What she finds is more horrible than she imagined because Noa wants to get rid of language altogether.
This was quite intriguing - especially at the beginning. I did not, however, like the ending because the struggle did not seem to have any effect and it was still uncertain. Yes Letta saved the people from becoming wordless but someone else was in control who wasn't much better... This was originally published in Ireland with the title The Wordsmith. It doesn't appear that there is a sequel...
The trouble with short story collections as well as poetry collections is that there are usually great entires and then some that are not as strong. I enjoyed most of the stories in this book but not all. Overall it is a book I will probably purchase for the library because of the featured authors and the diversity represented.
Anytime you see a new book by a Newbery winner or honor winner you go in with high expectations. There must be a lot of pressure. I had this reaction when opening this book - it must be good because it's by Jerry Spinelli. Don't get me wrong - it was good. But not great...
Cammie is living in the late 50s. Her father is the prison warden and she is the warden's daughter. But she is not a happy girl. Her mother died when she was a baby and what she really wants is someone to be her mother. Her dad is distant and busy. She decides to turn to her trustee, a prisoner who has been hired to take care of things in their house. But, Eloda, is distant as well. Cammie struggles through the summer with identity, friendships with girls her own age and with one of the women in the prison, and with her anger and grief. Ultimately, Cammie learns valuable lessons about herself.
My issues are mainly with the pacing and then the ending. The book was pretty decent in the first half - Cammie was a good narrator and the writing was decent. But, it wasn't until about halfway through - when Cammie told us it was going to get good - that things started moving. The ending of events in the main narrative was enough... Ugh, then we had Eloda's diary which really didn't add much more to the story. Finally, we had Cammie in 2017 and again I didn't find it necessary. A decent book but it had some flaws.
