It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey as a way to share what you have read and/or reviewed in the past week. It's also a terrific way to find out what other people are reading.

Jen Vincent, of Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee Moye of Unleashing Readers have given this meme a children's literature focus: picture books, middle grade novels, etc. They "encourage everyone who participates to support the blogging community by visiting the other bloggers that link up and leave comments for them.

I've been trying to get out and walk more now that the weather is so gorgeous. We had so much rain the previous two weeks, it felt so good to get back outdoors. Just in our neighborhood, there are so many adorable wild animals. Summertime is the best for getting to see the best nature has to offer. Hope your weather is nice enough for you to enjoy with family and friends. Here are the books I enjoyed last week out on my deck:

Middle Grade Fiction

The Root of Magic by Kathleen Benner Duble

I had the opportunity to read a NetGalley digital ARC of this middle grade fantasy novel in exchange for a review. Navigating the rough waters of adolescence is tough, especially when you’re also faced with a health crisis in your family and the resulting strains on relationships. Willow’s younger brother, Wisp, has a rare, mysterious illness that affects his ability to eat and also makes him weak and tired much of the time. Willow’s mom is consumed with worry as she seeks out a cure from health care professionals, nutritionists, and any other promising source.

When an unexpected New England winter storm leaves the three of them stranded in Kismet, Maine with only the clothes they’re wearing, they have to rely on the kindness and generosity of the mysterious townspeople. Willow feels very uncomfortable with how much everyone seems to know about her and her family, even though they’ve never met. When a doctor in the town’s hospital seems to have a promising treatment for Wisp’s condition, Willow’s mom decides to stay in Kismet indefinitely.

Willow meets some of the other kids her age that live in Kismet, and what she learns about the town’s magic only leads to more questions. She becomes romantically close to Topher, who is about to turn thirteen. When kids in this town turn thirteen, they are required to either accept the magic of the town or leave forever. This story will have readers wondering if they would prefer the assurance of always knowing what is going to happen next (even if you’re bound to accept the fate that has been shown to you) or enjoying the surprises that come your way and somehow finding the courage to face life head on in the face of the unknown.

The story moves along pretty quickly, and I think that readers who enjoy a little romance with their magical situations will enjoy this book. The romance is written appropriately for middle grade students (grades 5-8) with hand holding, hugging, and a kiss or two. The book has a good climax in which readers will really want to find out what the characters will decide. It could also generate some good discussions for groups or pairs that read the book together.

Picture Books

How to Read a Book by Kwame Alexander, Melissa Sweet (Illustrator )

This awesome picture book is a fantastic celebration of reading that will definitely become a favorite in libraries, classrooms, and personal bookshelves. The reading party breaks all the rules and splashes out of the pages in bold colors, juicy sensory descriptions, and snippets of literature inviting young readers to escape into another world. In an author's note in the back of the book, Alexander says he wrote this poem as a way of "painting a picture of the journey readers take each time they crack open a book, get lost in the pages, and wander through the wonder." The collage art from Melissa Sweet includes "pages from a worn-out copy of Bambi" because the artist "loved the imagery of the fawn, the paper was a beautiful color, and because it was once a beloved children's book." There is so much to love about this book. I found myself flipping back and forth between the pages and discovering something new each time.

I'm Worried (I'm Bored! #3) by Michael Ian Black, Debbie Ridpath Ohi (Contributor)

The world is becoming more and more stressful every day. Kids have so much to deal with and managing emotions can be tricky. This third in the humorous "I'm Bored" series has Potato stressed out because something bad might happen. Potato's worry causes Flamingo to worry. The little girl helps them remember that worrying doesn't help, because no one knows what's going to happen in the future. It's best to be happy in the present time. This is good advice for everyone, and the centerpiece of the practice of mindfulness. Young readers will get a few chuckles at the humorous side of this book.

Where Are You From? by Yamile Saied Méndez, Jamie Kim (Illustrator)

The question "Where are you from?" is often asked to newcomers as a way to be conversational. But it can also be a subtle, and maybe even unconscious, way of trying to place the newcomer in a box or separate them from us as "other" or "different". With friends and neighbors that come into our communities from places near and far, it's never been more important to realize that in order to build relationship we need to consider where we're from in ways that unite us, rather than paint us as different from each other. The grandfather/abuelo in this story has a beautiful answer to this question. Illustrated with beautiful digital paintings, this story tells us where we're all from. This would be a terrific book to share with young readers as the beginning of the school year to help build unity in classrooms.

Llama Destroys the World by Jonathan Stutzman, Heather Fox (Illustrator)

I can totally relate to the llama in this cute picture book. He eats way too much cake, rips his pants, and creates a black hole that destroys the world. Fun cause and effect text and humorous illustrations make this a fun book that will make young readers giggle. This could be a good way to talk about cause and effect chains in literature and making predictions. This could also be a good mentor text to inspire young writers to create their own cause and effect chain stories.

You Made Me a Dad by Laurenne Sala, Mike Malbrough (Illustrations)

This beautiful, heartwarming picture book will probably have some readers reaching for the tissues. With emotional, poetic text and softly colored illustrations, this book is a tender celebration of fatherhood. This would be a great Father's Day gift or anytime gift to a dad in your life.

Some Things Are Scary by Florence Parry Heide, Jules Feiffer (Illustrator)

The world is full of scary things. This fun picture book uses humorous illustrations along with a list of scary things that many readers will be able to relate to: stepping on something squishy when you're in your bare feet, being on a swing when someone is pushing you to high, and getting a shot. Since most people can identify with the items on the list, kids will realize that even though things are scary, they are survivable. This could be a great mentor text to help young writers create their own lists of things that are scary, things that are funny, things that are sad, etc.

Good Night, Gorilla by Peggy Rathmann 

Young readers will giggle as they watch a mischievous little gorilla swipe the zookeeper's keys as he says "Good Night." With very spare text and humorous illustrations, readers get to see the gorilla release more animals from their cages. The parade of animals follows the unaware zookeeper home. This charming picture book would be a fun way to practice making predictions. It would also be fun to have young writers describe what's going to happen next.