And so it continues. I read 16 of the 21 books on the December discussion list. Here is what I thought and what the decision was on each one that we got to:
Milo Imagines the World by Matt de la PenaMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Oh my god. The tears snuck up on me. Not sure what the kids will think, but I'm adding it to my Caldecott list. I want them to hear the message and see the illustrations.
VERDICT: The power of the book relies too much on the pictures, so even though we all loved it, it does not fully meet Newbery criteria.
Almost There and Almost Not by Linda UrbanMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Read this in one sitting while home sick. Loved it. We are totally in Callie's head, and I loved her. She reminded me of my nephew, although he has been in the loop on his parents' issues for years, and he's not even 11 yet. The ghosts were an interesting twist, and I cried at the end.
Issues: WTF with the cleaning service folding clothes in drawers and MAILING LETTERS THEY FOUND IN A BOX UNDER A BED???????? Callie needs to write them a bad review. Or at least a letter. And Isabelle was just the worst. I mean, yes, people suck, but WOW she was the WORST.
VERDICT: Keep
The Beatryce Prophecy by Kate DiCamilloMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
I'm sorry, but that was a pretty nebulous prophecy. That said, a lovely old-fashioned tale. Although I'd like to know more about how the loser king got placed on the throne. I'm thinking the counselor encouraged some murder? Hmm ... there were actually a few murders. But it was still lovely. Lessons on character and friendship.
VERDICT: Keep
Flight of the Puffin by Ann BradenMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
I am a sucker for intertwined stories and for suckly relatives secretly not being so suckly after all. Although several still were. Some reviewers have complained about the coincidences, but I found them believable. And I cried through the last couple of chapters in spite of myself. Addresses many issues in a sensitive way. Good stuff.
p. 41: "I can be my own sunrise."
VERDICT: Keep
Harry Versus the First 100 Days of School by Emily Jenkins
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Super cute with 100 short vignettes following Harry's time in first grade. I feel like his voice rings pretty true. Lots of boogers, puking, poems, and Fluff Monsters in the classroom. But also feelings and working through friendship situations. And Jenkins includes a list of all the books different teachers read to the class.
p. 38: "Harry's job is Calendar. That means that today he writes the number twelve in the correct square in the blank calendar on the wall. Calendar is a terrible job. It's just writing in a square. A baby could write in a square. Okay, a baby could not write in a square. But Harry wants to be Line Leader."
Harry Versus the First 100 Days of School by Emily JenkinsMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Super cute with 100 short vignettes following Harry's time in first grade. I feel like his voice rings pretty true. Lots of boogers, puking, poems, and Fluff Monsters in the classroom. But also feelings and working through friendship situations. And Jenkins includes a list of all the books different teachers read to the class.
p. 38: "Harry's job is Calendar. That means that today he writes the number twelve in the correct square in the blank calendar on the wall. Calendar is a terrible job. It's just writing in a square. A baby could write in a square. Okay, a baby could not write in a square. But Harry wants to be Line Leader."
VERDICT: Keep
Down to Earth by Betty Culley
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
It was fine. Definitely a unique plot, what with dowsing and meteors and magic water.
Loved Henry's notebook of questions. "What is most important is not always the answers, but the questions. Keep asking the questions. Which isn't as simple as it seems, to devise the kind of questions and observations that will lead to answers." (p. 98-99) If our school days left time for science and inquiry, this would be a fantastic way to generate ideas for a PBL project.
Also like his realization that "Good things can make bad things happen, and bad things can cause good things. You can't calculate percents for how that works, either." (p. 198)
Down to Earth by Betty CulleyMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
It was fine. Definitely a unique plot, what with dowsing and meteors and magic water.
Loved Henry's notebook of questions. "What is most important is not always the answers, but the questions. Keep asking the questions. Which isn't as simple as it seems, to devise the kind of questions and observations that will lead to answers." (p. 98-99) If our school days left time for science and inquiry, this would be a fantastic way to generate ideas for a PBL project.
Also like his realization that "Good things can make bad things happen, and bad things can cause good things. You can't calculate percents for how that works, either." (p. 198)
VERDICT: Dropped
The In-Between by Rebecca AnsariMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
Really liked the family stuff. And the vocab journal. But the kids made some crazy leaps of logic with their investigation, and then everything went off the rails. There was no explanation for why Elena and her sister were stuck in the In-Between. And the big reveal was infuriating.
Although I did like the line, "They weren't lies; they're stories I gathered about other kids at your school, invisible as I was. They are the lives of your classmates, some of whom feel as forgotten as you and I do. Find them. See them the way you saw me."
VERDICT: Dropped
Clues to the Universe by Christina LiMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
Love the idea of the Next Big Step.
Do not love the idea of someone refusing to let their kid know who their other parent is.
Nicely executed story of loners finding friends in each other.
VERDICT: Dropped
Red, White, and Whole by Rajani LaRoccaMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
Another reviewer mentioned that this book is set FORTY YEARS AGO, and now I am feeling ancient. I had drop-waist dresses! I knew all the song titles on the mix tape! And the "alternative" bands! I watched The Wizard of Oz once a year on TV! Will these touchstones for me mean anything to today's kids, though?
Anyways, I thought LaRocca did a good job explaining the pressure that Reha felt. And there are many poetic lines. And I think the red and white in the title refers to blood cells? It was fine. But not a Newbery, which is what I read it for.
VERDICT: Dropped
The Year I Flew Away by Marie ArnoldMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
This started out so powerfully, but then got cuckoobananas. The realities of life in Haiti and discrimination in the U.S. were explored well, I thought. And I was ready to accept Lady Lydia because ... well, because she was offering allegorical solutions to Gabrielle's stresses. But then ... the talking rat? In an invisibility cloak? The librarian who never seems to be in the library and is always meting out consequences (or maybe I'm just jealous)?
Other things that bothered me:
- Gabrielle's power to have gone into her friend's mom's depression nightmare never seems to arise again. Besides as a potential reason Lady Lydia wants her. But if she was so sensitive, shouldn't Gabrielle have figured out Tianna's deal?
- The statement on p. 137 when Mrs. Adelman "tells me that she is a Holocaust survivor. I'm not sure what that means, and I ask her to explain. She tells her family's story with tears in her eyes." The author doesn't explain at all. Does she expect readers to look it up?
- Egg the pit bull and his owner play catch in Central Park at midnight?
- The family coming through the portal and acting completely normal.
- FEAR going from invisible to visible.
- Supertornado?
- THREE MONTHS OF FLYING AROUND? WHAT?
- There are references to 1985 pop culture, but I don't think the timing is ever explicitly mentioned.
Extra star for ... creativity.
VERDICT: Dropped
The Mysterious Disappearance of Aidan S. by David LevithanMy rating: 2 of 5 stars
The writing evoked a definite atmosphere, but the plot itself was rather frustrating. Was there really a point? Or was it a meditation on ... truth? Home? Reality?
VERDICT: Dropped
Strong Like the Sea by Wendy S. SworeMy rating: 2 of 5 stars
Skimmed the second half. It just didn't keep my interest. I did like the mentions of the Bletchley Park codebreakers (although the clues Mom left were way beyond me ... except for the rebus-y ones). And some details about life in Hawaii - different foods and words. And I could relate to this:
p. 41: Just when I think I've stuffed one worry down, another pops up and takes its place like a game of whack-a-mole that never stops. Then I worry that I'm worrying too much.
VERDICT: Dropped
Cece Rios and the Desert of Souls by Kaela Rivera
My rating: 2 of 5 stars
I made it page 112, and it's fine, but I don't love it enough to pay overdue fines on it. Maybe our discussion will make me want to finish it later.
Cece Rios and the Desert of Souls by Kaela RiveraMy rating: 2 of 5 stars
I made it page 112, and it's fine, but I don't love it enough to pay overdue fines on it. Maybe our discussion will make me want to finish it later.
VERDICT: Keep ... although I don't know that I will bother finishing
Da Vinci's Cat by Catherine Gilbert Murdock
My rating: 2 of 5 stars
Skimmed the second half after realizing I didn't really like the main characters. Or the plot. All the travel back and forth got confusing. Also, are we not to think that Herbert kind of sucked for making off with art and only paying for it in chocolate?
VERDICT: Dropped
Da Vinci's Cat by Catherine Gilbert MurdockMy rating: 2 of 5 stars
Skimmed the second half after realizing I didn't really like the main characters. Or the plot. All the travel back and forth got confusing. Also, are we not to think that Herbert kind of sucked for making off with art and only paying for it in chocolate?
VERDICT: Dropped
The One Thing You'd Save by Linda Sue ParkMy rating: 2 of 5 stars
I need to know who is talking.
I did like a few lines:
p. 15 - "Both my grans and my dad -- / maybe this will sound silly, but when I'm wearing it, / it's kinda like all three of them are keeping me warm."
p, 23 - "We proved that / the dirt on the streets around here / holds chips and flakes from real stars."
VERDICT: Dropped
