It’s Monday! What are you reading?
Each week I share a reading photo of the week. I haven’t been teaching for the past two weeks (Spring Break) so I don’t have any reading photos from my classroom. Instead, I will share a view I had on holiday for a week. This was what I looked at when I sat in my reading and writing place. This is early morning after a night of rain.
As we were away last week, I didn’t share a #IMWAYR post so this post includes 2 weeks of reading. Lots of novels!
Join Jen from Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee and Ricki from Unleashing Readers and share all of the reading you have done over the week from picture books to young adult novels. Follow the links to read about all of the amazing books the #IMWAYR community has read. It’s the best way to discover what to read next.
On the blog:
I have written everyday for the Slice of Life challenge. All of these posts can be found here.
If you missed it, I celebrated our week long author/illustrator study of Melissa Sweet here: Riding Through an Artist’s Life
Books I enjoyed:
The Dead Bird written by Margaret Wise Brown and illustrated by Christian Robinson
This is the newly illustrated (2016) edition of Brown‘s 1938 title. I think it is beautiful. Perfectly captures children’s fascination with death and their gentle care. I purchased this one for my collection of books on death and grief.
Spare Dog Parts written by Alison Hughes and illustrated by Ashley Spires
A little girl imagines how her dog must have come to be. Lots of charming in Spires’ illustrations.
Pink is for Blobfish: Discovering the World’s Perfectly Pink Animals written by Jess Keating with illustrations by David DeGrand
I shared lesson ideas for this title in my #nfpb2016 post this week. A must own.
The Princess in Black and the Angry Bunny Horde (Princess in Black #3) written by Shannon Hale and Dean Hale and illustrated by LeUyen Pham
Seriously this is wacky. Purple bunnies that can destroy a landscape or worse in mere moments, on masse. But the best kind of wacky! Love this series for young readers!
Some Kind of Courage by Dan Gemeinhart
Some kind of everything in this book. Fantastic, engaging, emotional, full of heart, full of adventure. This would make the ideal middle grade read aloud or book club selection- truly something for everyone! One of the first books of 2016, I won’t stop talking about!
Stand Off (Winger #2) by Andrew Smith
Ryan Dean West continues to be one of my all time favourite characters. The characters in this book . . . Just fantastic.
All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely
I read this aloud to my family – my 13 year old twins and my husband. Such a powerful story to share. We had moments of silence. On a few pages, I wept. It prompted many conversations. Incredible read.
Goodbye Stranger by Rebecca Stead
This may be one of the all time most wise and wonderful book about preteen/young teen relationships ever. Friendships, choices, worries, decisions, forgiveness, care . . . Stead is an incredible writer.
Paper Hearts Meg Wivott
A novel in verse based on the true story of a group of young women who were forced to work at the munitions factory in Auschwitz while they were imprisoned in the camps. A story of incredible courage, friendship and survival. I couldn’t put it down.
This is the Story of You by Beth Kephart
Someone passed an ARC on to me and I opened the book and never looked up. I love Kephart’s writing more with each book. Reading her words is like being immersed in something beautiful. Everywhere you look is an image you want to hold on to and savour. Released in April 2016. Highly recommended.
Reading Progress updates:
2016 Chapter Book Challenge: 14/75 complete
Goodreads Challenge: 84/400 books read
#MustReadin2016: 12/30 complete
Nonfiction Picture Book Challenge: 15/100 titles
Diverse Books in 2016: 9/50 books read
Up next? I am reading Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys Our family read aloud is Pax by Sara Pennypacker
There's a Book for That 
Any week that includes a Rebecca Stead novel is a good week in my book.
Oh so very true!
What a wonderful selection of books, I especially enjoyed the last three you list. Have a great reading week.
I am so glad you share the book love for many of these titles!
Thank you for sharing your list of books. I feel like a kid in a book candy shop! Your website is a treasure trove for readers. I am curious to hear my 5th graders’ reactions when I share this post and your site with them. Have you read Circus Mirandus by Cassie Beasley? A wonderful middle grade book.
Yes, Cristal, I always feel like a kid in a candy shop, reading Carrie’s posts. Thanks for that Carrie!
Very kind Julie.
It is on my radar but I have yet to read it. I know it is well loved by many.
You did have a couple of great weeks. There are lots of books there that I want to read. Come see my week here. Happy reading!
And to you!
You did bring some great books along! I’ll look for the new Kephart book.
I loved the third Princess in Black book. I laughed out loud and anytime that happens, I feel like I have a great book to pass along to kids!
Princess in Black titles are real winners. Kephart is a favourite author for me.
Holy cow! So many great books to comment on this week! 🙂
First of all, I totally need to read Spare Dog Parts. That looks adorable. And I love Ashley Spires after reading The Most Magnificent Thing.
I am very impatiently waiting for Pink is for Blobfish to come in at my library.
I love that you read All American Boys as a family read aloud. Such an important book for discussion.
And Ryan Dean West? He’s my all-time favorite character too! ❤
All American Boys was amazing to read together. Even though I could barely make it through the last pages and sound coherent. What a book!
Needed: Some Kind of Courage & Stand Off. I loved All American Boys. Coupled with Between The World and Me, heartbreaking. Thanks for all, Carrie. Glad you got to read so much on your break. Have a good week!
Stand Off is fantastic. If you liked Winger, this is a MUST!
You read some of my favorite books this week! Stand Off! All American Boys! Goodbye Stranger! So much love here.
They are amazing! I agree!
Wonderful books here of course! My reading life for me has really suffered with the new homeschooling schedule and slicing. My morning read time has become morning desperately-fishing-for-a-slice time or desperately-trying-to-keep-up-with-commenting time. Someday I will read again! And several of these books will be on my list!
Yes, my reading has also been impacted by the Slice of Life posts – both the writing and the commenting. What a month. 2 more posts! I am thinking April should be a BIG reading month!
What a fabulous reading life you’ve lived in the last few weeks! I’m finishing up When I was the Greatest and them moving on to All American Boys. I love Jason Reynolds.
Me too! I also loved The Boy in the Black Suit
Thanks for these suggestions, Carrie! I, too, loved Goodbye Stranger! My librarian asked me to do a “favor” for her this week…spend a $500 purchase order at the local bookstore near my house. I copied down some of your recommendations. Happy spring break book shopping to me!!!!
Indeed! Have fun!
I must get Paper Hearts!
It is just incredible. A hard read but a beautiful story of how we rise above cruelty.
Must be a Spring Break thing as it seems like there are more excellent books on people’s lists. I second what you wrote on Goodbye Stranger. If I was still in a middle school, I would consider that a must read! I have some kids that will be able to handle it in my 5/6 class and I will share with them my copy. I have been wanting to read Winger for a long time but it might have to wait for summer. You have sold me on Some Kind of Courage too.
We are using the first of the Life in a Zoo books in our lit circle/Battle of the Books and Pink is the new Blobfish will go with that as well. Thanks for sharing your ideas for that book. Jess Keating is great, I have been enjoying her Youtube channel for a while.
She really is great! I loved Pink is for Blobfish! Goodbye Stranger is really fantastic – my 13 year old devoured it after I read it.
We loved Goodbye Stranger too. Thanks for telling us about Spare Dog Parts – We are big Ashley Spires fans!
It’s very cute.
My daughter and I LOVE The Princess in Black! I need to get a copy of Pink is for Blobfish! Spare Dog Parts looks adorable. Thanks for sharing! I will add it to my list!
The Princess in Black is really so much fun!
I will have to get This is the Story of You. It sounds like a must read.
It really is Crystal. I am such a fan of Kephart.
I have yet to read a Beth Kephart novel – this new book sounds like something I’d enjoy. I pinned the new Margaret Wise Brown picturebook too – love those big-themed picturebooks. 🙂 great photo of your vacation as well! gorgeous!
Beth Kephart is an incredible writer. One of my favourites of hers is Small Damages. Please check her out!
Oh spring break, how I wish we had one of those here at the library, we ended up with all the kids out of school. 🙂 It can be wonderful when a classic picture book is re-imagined with new illustrations, it can be such a great way to introduce it to a new generation of readers. Good luck heading back to school!
Thanks Jane! We had a lovely first day immersed in books, writing and connecting.
So much to talk about here!
First, I NEED to read the newest Princess in Black. I LOVED the first two! Hale is so wonderful.
I also adored Honest Truth, so I look forward to reading Dan’s newest.
I love Ryan Dean also!!! So much!! But I have not read Stand Off. I feel like I have failed him. I need to fix that!
I am starting All American Boys today, so I look forward to talking about it.
I could keep talking about, but I will stop there.
So many I want to read!
Happy reading this week! 🙂
You must read Stand Off! And All American Boys