Monday, July 31, 2017

I have been following a great handle on Twitter called @diversebooks. This handle has great information about new and upcoming diverse books. Amina's Voice  has been all over Twitter since I saw the author at The North Texas Teen Book Festival. Amina is a Pakistani American Muslim struggling to live with her family's cultural beliefs and trying to fit in at a new middle school. She witnesses many changes as her uncle arrives from Pakistan for a long visit,  her best friend going through some major changes, and her mosque being the target of a terrible hate crime. I think many Christie readers will be able to identify with Amina as she steers through some tricky times in her life. I really enjoyed reading this book and am excited about book talking it with our readers!


Friday, July 28, 2017

I have been wanting to read Matylda Bright and Tender since I have been seeing it everywhere on Twitter. Sussy and Guy are 4th grade best friends and have been best friends for years. One day Sussy and Guy decide on a pet to raise together.  They bike to their local pet store and pick a spotted lizard, Matylda. Lots of fun are in store raising her until there is a terrible accident. Sussy must then navigate through life without her best friend. Some of her decisions take her down a wrong path until at the end she decides she needs to be brave for Guy. Christie readers who love books about grief, bravery and resolve will really learn some life lessons in this story.


Tuesday, July 25, 2017

Balderdash! John Newbery and the Boisterous Birth of Children's Books had some interesting information about John Newbery that I didn't even know about. John Newbery lived in the early 1700's in England, grew up on a farm, and then decided to work for a printing press. He loved all the ink and the machines and decided to become a publisher. John loved children and figured out they didn't have anything fun to read so he opened a store and sold children's books and toys and it was a hit!! He wrote many books for children that were small enough to fit in your pocket. He felt that reading should be enjoyable to children. He then published magazines for children since adults liked magazines so much..why shouldn't children like magazines? This biography in picture book form will interest readers of all ages. At the back of the book is some interesting facts about John Newbery, how he is considered the father of children's literature, and how the Newbery medal came to be.  I would love to start a Mock Newbery book club with older students showcasing books that might be nominated. This would be a great segway into a book club like that!


Friday, July 21, 2017

A wonderful first day of school read aloud and on this year's Texas 2x2 list is School's First Day of School. When we think about the first few days of school, we always think of the students being worried. We never think about the school being worried. In this story, a school is built and treated with loving kindness by the janitor. When it is time for the first day of school, the school is worried about the children, the noise, and all the messes. While the school is worried, there is a new little girl who is worried, too. As she gets used to the school, the school gets used to all the new busyness that surrounds it. Reminded me of the many first day read alouds we do with students.. I loved the school's point of view ...because we never really think of a school feels!


I have been wanting to read She Persisted: 13 American Women Who Changed the World for several weeks now. I have been hearing great things about this book, and when my librarian friend over at Bright Elementary showed me she had just purchased it, I had to go get one , too! So glad I did. In this book, Chelsea Clinton spotlights 13 American women who overcame adversity to be the leader in their field. These women are all ages and accomplished different feats that helped changed America as we know it today. This biographical book written in a picture book style will captivate readers of all ages.  The information is short and to the point with wonderful illustrations and a quote from each woman. I love how "she persisted"  was written into each paragraph describing what that amazing woman accomplished. I am trying to beef up our high interest nonfiction section, and I think Christie readers will love the short stories, the illustrations, and the message!


The Remarkable Journey of Charlie Price was definitely a different  book than I thought it would be. Charlie, his sister, and dad are all trying to come to terms with his mother's recent death. Charlie and his sister stay involved in all of their school's activities while his dad is not around much because he is so busy at work.  Also, his best friend, Frank, went missing months ago and no one knows what happened to him. This makes Charlie and his sister miss his mom even more until his sister finds a secret passageway under her bed that leads them to a parallel world where their mother is alive. Or is she? And what happened to Frank? When I first start reading a book, I do not always look at the summary because I want to be surprised, and I was! I had no idea what direction the book would take, and I loved it! I think Christie  readers will like this book as much as I did.  This book is from another debut author from last year, Jennifer Maschari.


Tuesday, July 18, 2017

In Gertie's Leap to Greatness, 5th grade Gertie tries to be the best 5th grader yet. She has two loyal best friends and meets up with a new seat stealing girl on the first day of school. Gertie and the new girl, Mary Jane, do not hit it off, and Gertie tries really hard and studies all the time to be the best. But, of course , some obstacles stand in her way. She tries hard in trying out for the school play, and wants to invite her non existent mother who lives across town. Gertie definitely reminded me of Ramona Quimby. Gertie has a very loving father , who is out of town a lot on an off shore drilling rig, and a great aunt who takes great care of her..however, Gertie does try to come to terms with living in the same town as her mother who wants nothing to do with her. I think Christie readers will love this book with its several laugh out loud moments,  and readers will try to figure out how this whole story will wrap up.


Sunday, July 16, 2017

If you are into games, The Gauntlet is for you! This book took me back to Jimanji, Zathura, and even the Mr. Lemoncello series. In this story, 3 twelve year olds get sucked into a game and have to win the different challenges to get to go back home. However, right before these kids get put into the game, the main character's (Farah) brother gets taken into the game so she needs to find him. So, not only do she and her two friends need to win these challenges, they are looking for her brother, too, who is lost in the game. They need to win this game so all the people that are in the game , who played before them and lost, can go home, too. This book has been on many Mock Newbery lists. I liked this book because you definitely want to find out if they win, and I liked the Middle Eastern twist as well. I learned a lot about Farah's culture while they are traversing the mechanical game board. This is another gem of a book by a debut author, Karuna Riazi.


Wednesday, July 12, 2017

This seems to be the year for authors debuting their first novels. And what a year it has been!! The Someday Birds , The Ethan I Was Before , and this gem of a novel , Lemons, are written by first time authors. Melissa Savage has written a fun novel about two kids who are Bigfoot detectives. Lemonade Witt is staying with her beloved teacher temporarily after Lemonade's mother dies. Everything is going well until a social worker shows up one day, and takes Lemonade to live with a recently discovered family member 6 hours north (somewhere in northern California I believe). Lemonade reluctantly goes thinking she will be back with her teacher in no time at all. Lemonade discovers she is going to stay with a grandfather she has never met, and her life is forever changed. Lemonade meets Tobin who lives across the street and together they hunt the illusive Bigfoot who has been seen in their area. Christie readers will love love this book as it takes them on a great adventure as Lemonade finds a new home and family after losing her mother.


Monday, July 10, 2017

When I started at Christie last fall, the graphic novel section was pretty small. Graphic novels have become such a hit with kids these days, and many of the students were asking for more. We added The Babysitters Club,  Sisters, Smile, Ghosts, and the Amulet series. These were so popular I never saw them on the shelf. Well, now it is time to increase the graphic novel section again at the beginning of the school year. I am excited to add Shannon Hale's new graphic novel, Real Friends to our graphic novel section. This book is going to be a hit, so I will probably order 2 or 3. This graphic novel is a definite must in schools today. We can all remember the pain of forging friendships back in elementary and middle school. This book took me back to my elementary years for sure! This graphic novel is an autobiography of Shannon Hale's years in elementary school, and she takes you through  the tricky web of trying to fit in with different friends and different 'groups'. Some of this is a little  painful which is the same today for students. Students will definitely find themselves in this story, and hopefully will feel better about what is going on in their friendships, too. This is a must read and everyone should not miss the dedication page and the author's note. Those are just as important as the book!


Sunday, July 2, 2017

This book is an oldie but a goodie! Lockwood & Co. is a series written by the English author, Jonathan Stroud. When the 3rd book was released last summer, I had heard that it was good, so I had been wondering about this series. I would tell students that I heard this series was good, but the series was rarely checked out. So, I just finished the first book, The Screaming Staircase and I loved it!!  This series will conclude with the 5th book being released this fall. Our Christie library has the first three. If you love ghosts, then this book is for you! Lockwood & Co. consists of 3 young teens who are ghost hunters. The book takes place around our time period, maybe some years before, in England. Here in England, ghosts are rampant and only children and young teens  who are 'sensitive' can see or hear them.  So, there are several ghost hunting agencies that are run by adults but employ young teens to do the ghost hunting.  Lockwood & Co. is a ghost hunting agency that is not at the top of the list because of some unfortunate disasters, but they do get embroiled in several page turning mysteries. I loved this book, and I think those Christie readers who love a good (though a little scary) ghost story will love it,  too! I will be book talking it big time!!


On our vacation in Washington D.C., we happened on several really cute bookshops. It is so nice to be able to go into a independent bookstore other than Barnes and Noble for once. I really do not know of any independents here in the Dallas area. So, while we were at one shop, they happen to have a stack of picture books that they were getting ready to shelve.  I had heard of several picture books in the pile. The first book I picked up was Maya Lin: Artist-Architect of Light and Lines. How fitting that the first book in the stack was about the young girl who designed the  Vietnam Memorial Wall while we were in D.C.? Even though I had visited the wall before, I had no idea a young woman won a contest to design the memorial wall. Maya Lin is a young college student who loves to look at the spaces around her: her house, her backyard... When she hears of the design contest for the creation of the Vietnam Memorial Wall, she enters.. along with 1500 other people..several who are famous artists. This is a great book for any girl  who might desire to achieve something big, something that mainly boys achieve. I loved this book, and I loved rooting for Maya during the book! Can't wait to order it for  Christie's library collection!