Friends and Family

Friends: True Stories of Extraordinary Animal Friendships
by Catherine Thimmesh
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2011
review copy provided by the publisher

The first thing you'll do when you pick this book up is look at all  of the CUTE photos of unusual and extraordinary animal friends -- monkey and macaque, giraffe and ostrich, capybara and squirrel monkey...and my favorite, the toad and mouse.

Then you'll go back and enjoy the rhyming text.

A friend connects...

A stretch, a slight strain, 

a balancing feat,

friends go to great lengths 

in order to meet.

(Asian camel and Vietnamese miniature pig)

No matter

who has

a snout

or a beak,

connecting with friends

is something friends seek.

(giraffe and ostrich)

Finally, you'll want to know the story of how each pair of animals became friends, and you'll go back to the nonfiction paragraph below each poem to find out more about the animals, where in the world, and how they became friends.

Little Treasures: Endearments from Around the World
by Jacqueline K. Ogburn
illustrated by Chris Raschka
Houghton Mifflin Books for Children, 2011
review copy provided by the publisher

Jacqueline Ogburn, author of A Dignity of Dragons: Collective Nouns for Magical Beasts, seems to be the kind of person who loves words, and language, and quirky terms.

In Little Treasures, Ogburn has collected parental terms of endearment in fourteen languages. There are three or four terms from countries as far-flung as Uganda, the Slovak Republic and Argentina. The borders of many countries are dissolved by including terms that Russian-speaking or Arabic-speaking or Hindi-speaking people use. For the non-English languages, there is a pronunciation guide, and for the languages that do not use the Latin alphabet, the term is written in the alphabet of the language, and the pronunciation guide includes a Latinized version of the term.

Through it all, Chris Raschka's illustrations emanate love and joy and playfulness. You'll want to pick up your own "little coconut candy," your own "habibi/beloved," your own "Knuddelbaerchen/little huggy bear" and snuggle and cuddle and call them whatever it is that YOU call your little one.

There are no little ones in my house (well, not counting the cat...), but I can't wait to take this book to school and see if my students can add to this list. One my mom calls me, "pumpkin," is in the book, but "sugar plum" is mine, all mine!

What are YOUR favorite terms of endearment for your children, and what were YOU called as a child?

A FORT OF BOOKS!

This summer, my friend, Drew Jones (our school's amazing art teacher) created this video at the Ohio State University library. Somehow I missed it until today but I am sooooo happy I found it.  And I had to share  So lucky to teach with him. Enjoy!

Fortress from Corey Aumiller on Vimeo.

My Next-Read Stack-Winding Up 2011 Newbery Possibilities

At NCTE, I picked up some great 2012 books that I can't wait to read.  I am tempted to move to my 2012 stack. And blog posts such as the one at READ, WRITE, REFLECT about Jo Knowles' new book don't help:-) But I know that if I dig into those, I will most likely never come back to the 20 or so 2011 middle grade novels I had hoped to get to this year.This year, I have read more than any other year.  I have read nearly 300 books and have enjoyed almost 100 percent of those books. I give full credit for this to my friends, both local and online and the fact that Goodreads, Twitter and Facebook have all allowed me to find the best books out there. But, with the number of amazing books out there, it is easy to miss some great ones every year.

So, 2012 is only a few weeks away. I still have many, many book from 2011 that I hope to read before I move into the 2012 books. But in reality, I know I can't get to all of them.

There is really no good way to decide how to prioritize my next read stack when it is packed with so many great books. My favorite strategy was the one that John Schumacher used to prioritize his next read stack. It was quite brilliant and I would highly recommend it!

I have decided to use Anderson's Bookshop Mock Newbery List to help me prioritize. From what I hear, Anderson's ALWAYS has the winner on their short list. I've also payed close attention to Betsy Bird at  Fuse #8 and the Heavy Medal blog.

I am looking forward to Holiday #bookaday to help me catch up again. I had my own Thanksgiving #bookaday this year and was able to read WORDS IN THE DUST by Trent Reedy,  THE GREAT WALL OF LUCY WU by Wendy Wan-Long Shang, THE UNWANTEDS by Lisa McMann and GHETTO COWBOY by G. Neri.  I'm glad I spent so much time reading over Thanksgiving as I would have hated to miss any of these amazing titles.

I just finished SPARROW ROAD by Sheila O'Connor last night and loved it. I found this one on the Anderson's list and again, so glad I didn't miss this title. This is for sure one of my favorite middle grade reads of the year.

Below is the rest of my stack and how I have prioritized. I am sure it will change often before January 1, but for now, it gives me a bit of direction.

Must Reads Because I Want to Have Read the Newbery Before It is Announced (There are five from the Anderson's list that I haven't read and would like to.)

THE LUCK OF THE BUTTONS by Anne Yivisaker
THE EMERALD ATLAS by John Stephens
THE APOTHECARY by Maile Meloy
 THE AVIARY by Kathleen O'Dell

DRAGON CASTLE by Joseph Bruchac

Books I Must Read Because I Have Kids Who Would Love Them
13 GIFTS by Wendy Mass

THE DRAGON'S TOOTH by N. D. Wilson

ICEFALL by Matthew Kirby

Books I Don't Want to Forget About if I Don't Get to Them by 2011
PIE by Sarah Weeks

THE THIRD GIFT by Linda Su Park

BIRD IN A BOX by Andrea Pinkney

THE MOSTLY TRUE STORY OF JACK by Kelly Barnhill

THE NO. 1 CAR SPOTTER by Atinuke 

A YEAR WITHOUT AUTUMN by Liz Kessler

Early Chapter Books that Will Be Great for Transitional Readers That I Can't Believe I Haven't Read

CLEMENTINE AND THE FAMILY MEETING by Sarah Pennypacker
A VERY BABYMOUSE CHRISTMAS by Jennifer Holm

SPUNKY TELLS ALL by Ann Cameron

2011 YA Books I'd Like to Read
HOW TO SAVE A LIFE by Sara Zarr
THE FUTURE OF US by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler

Books From Past Years that I Only Recently Learned About

THE CHAOS WALKING series by Patrick Ness

I guess overall, this is a good problem to have-so many great books to read! I will keep you posted and hopefully get through a good bunch of these in the next few weeks.

Your 6th Annual Elf Yourself Holiday Greeting from A Year of Reading!

Consider this your 6th Annual Elf Yourself Holiday Greeting from Mary Lee and Franki!

Also, consider it a Public Service Announcement...No matter how busy you are, take a few minutes to create an ELF YOURSELF video this holiday season. 

Seriously, they never get old--no matter how many times you create them or how many times you watch them! Treat yourself to some fun!

Happy Holidays!

Anna Walker

I am so happy when I find a new author that I love. Recently, I discovered Anna Walker, an author/illustrator from Australia. How I had missed her books is beyond me, but I am so glad that I've discovered them.  In October, when I attended the CAWP/Literacy Connection conference, I was able to hear Sharon Esswein and Stella Villalba (My World-Mi Mundo) speak about writing in the primary grades. They shared many, many books and I spent quite a bundle after their session.

My favorite find from the session was the set of "I LOVE..."(I Love Ollie) books by Anna Walker.  These are perfect books for K-1 readers and writers and I purchased the whole set for our school library.

One of the challenges is building a school library collection is in finding enough authentic,  quality picture books that new readers can read on their own.  Anna Walker's books have everything, in terms of support, that new readers need. And the books are fabulous.

In each of these books, Ollie (a lovable zebra) shares with us the reasons that he loves one specific thing--such as I LOVE TO SING, I LOVE TO DANCE, I LOVE BIRTHDAYS, I LOVE MY MOM and I LOVE MY DAD.  Each book focuses on one thing and follows the I LOVE pattern.

These are the PERFECT books to use with young students to introduce the idea of reading like a writer--really thinking about the decisions an author makes. For me, one reason for studying an author is to be able to think about what you can expect from this author in the future. Another is in thinking about what you can learn from the author to try in your own writing. Anna Walker's books are perfect for both of these things.

These books each follow a predictable pattern, they use sight vocabulary that new readers are familiar with. There is rhyming in the books and the pictures support the text.  And there is predictability across stories--Fred, the dog is a companion in each book. The beginnings and endings follow similar patterns across books.  The books provide lots for kids to notice and to love. With our first graders, I read aloud 3 of the books as we added on to the things we knew about the books.  They became fast favorites for every class. As these books invite writing, many students took time in library to create their own I LOVE books, after being inspired by Anna Walker. The books took on titles ranging from I LOVE BASKETBALL to I LOVE MERMAIDS.

I love Anna Walker and plan to buy every book she ever writes for kids. She so understands young children and writes to that audience so well.  It seems she is an Australian author/illustrator and I can't see to order some of her books here yet. I need to work on that.

Not only do I love Anna Walker's books, but I think we would be great friends if she were my neighbor.    I spent some time on her blog and it is a great celebration of so many things.  It is definitely a blog that will go into my reader.  So happy to discovered this new-to-me author!

Poetry Friday -- Building Bridges

The Bridge Builder

by Will Allen Dromgoole

An old man going a lone highway,
Came, at the evening cold and gray,
To a chasm vast and deep and wide.
Through which was flowing a sullen tide
The old man crossed in the twilight dim,
The sullen stream had no fear for him;
But he turned when safe on the other side
And built a bridge to span the tide.

“Old man,” said a fellow pilgrim near,
“You are wasting your strength with building here;
Your journey will end with the ending day,
You never again will pass this way;
You’ve crossed the chasm, deep and wide,
Why build this bridge at evening tide?”

(The answer to the fellow pilgrim's question is here, at the Poetry Foundation.)

Carol has the Poetry Friday roundup today at Carol's Corner.

November Mosaics

I've had loads of fun with the ComicBook app this month! It's gotten me taking more pictures on my phone because I'll be able to use them in a comic!

Actually, it looks like the company, 3DTopo, has several more apps that I need to look into. Motivational Poster looks like a hoot!

So as you can see, November started with Election Day. We had success at the state level getting SB5 repealed, but at the local level around our area, results were mixed on the school levies.

Above is a nod to the season. The leaves have been down for awhile, but it's only in the last couple of days that it has really FELT like November. (Not that I miss the usual dank chill...)

And of course, November brings NCTE. Here are a couple of collections of Chicago pictures, and one from NCTE itself. You might be able to tell how much I loved the Field Museum!

And here's the "standard" mosaic for this month:

In the top row, you will find a reunion. That's me and a former student, David Donofrio, who has just announced that he is running for a spot in the OH House of Representatives!

We've had an unusually nice November this year -- look at all those blue skies! You might not be able to tell what the first picture in the second row is. You'll need to check it out on Flickr to get the full effect -- the title is Brutus Buckeye Butt and Blimp: Fun With Alliteration. 

In the fourth row are two I took from my classroom window. We watched that squirrel napping in the top of the Sweet Gum tree for most of an afternoon. And there's Mr. William, our big handsome kitty, basking in the sun by the back door. We humans aren't the only ones who enjoyed the sunny November!

In the fifth row is Bill, from Literate Lives. (His is the picture in the middle, silly. That other turkey is the one we ate for an early Thanksgiving dinner with friends!) Bill did a family storytelling event at my school and I finally got to see firsthand how he works magic with his Picks from the Pit. I, too, lovelovelove I Want My Hat Back, (Franki's posts here and here) but I love it even more now that I've heard him read it aloud. 

And now, on to December! Bring it, Twelfth Month! Show us what you've got! Next week I'm going to review a picture book that's giving me some ideas for a way to spice up my Project 365 for 2012. Stay tuned!

Stories With Surprises

A Dog is a Dog
by Stephen Shaskan
Chronicle Books, 2011
review copy provided by the publisher

"A dog is a dog, unless it's a...CAT!" And that cat is a cat unless it's a...SQUID! And so on, until...

...Nah, I'm not going to tell you! You have to read it to find out! Suffice it to say that this is a book with a surprise every couple of pages. (That squid came at me from out of the blue!) It's a book about the essential nature of well-known animals, about disguises, and about surprises. I can imagine this book making Franki's Million Times list, or Bill's Picks From the Pit.

NCTE Sessions on Digital Reading/Digital Writing

Below are two sessions I was a part of for NCTE 2011.  One was as part of a panel on Digital Reading. I had a great time working with Sara Kajder, Teri Lesesne and Donalyn Miller on this one. I learned so much from each of them and loved thinking together.  My specific piece was about digital tools and how we can use them to create opportunities for deeper reading. When I uploaded the slides onto Slideshare, some of the text was cut off but I think you'll get the general idea.

How Digital Tools Can Help Us Create Opportunities for Deep Reading

View more presentations from Franki22


The other session was one I did with Becky McCraw and Bill  Bass. When I served on the NCTE Executive Committee a few years ago, Bill and Becky and I were part of a group that helped to create the Framework for 21st Century Curriculum and Assessment. I feel lucky to have ongoing conversations with these two and others in the group about our work in schools around these ideas. One thing we've been talking about is the idea of mentor texts in a digital writing workshop so we shared our current thinking together at NCTE's convention.

Mentor Texts in the Digital Writing Workshop

3 Great Middle Grade Novels

At NCTE, I was thrilled to pick up a box full of 2012 middle grade and young adult ARCs. But when I got home, I realized how many 2011 titles I still had on my to-be-read list.  I know myself as a reader and once I dig into the 2012 books, I won't take the time to go back to many of the 2011 books. Once 2012 starts, new books will be coming out fast. I am dying to read Kate Messner's upcoming EYE OF THE STORM (which looks FABULOUS!), but am trying to wait to get some more 2011 books read. Since this blog began as a way for Mary Lee and I to share our thinking around and to predict Newbery winners, I made a list this weekend and there are about 20 that I'd love to read before the new year begins. I won't get to them, but thankfully, my Twitter friends are helping me prioritize.  Over Thanksgiving weekend, I was able to finish 3 middle grade novels and I loved all three of them.


If you know Jennifer Holm, then you know that THE TROUBLE WITH MAY AMELIA will be a good book.  As Betsy Bird says in her review of this book, "Yet thus far Ms. Holm has remained fairly dud-resistant. There’s a level of quality to her writing that pleases consistently"  This is the 2nd story about May Amelia.  From what I understan, you should read the first one first.  But I didn't do that and this one totally stands alone. May Amelia lives in a houseful of brothers and is constantly getting into a bit of trouble.  This books is filled with the stuff of real life. I found myself laughing on one page and then crying on the next.  May Amelia is a character that I fell in love with in the first few pages of the book.


I had not heard of GHETTO COWBOY by Greg Neri until Colby Sharp mentioned it on Twitter last week. Why this book is not getting more buzz is beyond me. This is the story of Cole, a 12 year old boy is gets himself in a lot of trouble. Finally, his mother has had enough and she takes him to live with his father (the father he has never met) in Philadelphia. Cole's father, Harper, runs a stable right in the middle of the city and Cole begins to take to the horses.  This is a great story about a father and a son, a community working to do the right thing, and finding out who you are. And although this is a work of fiction, it is based on a true story. (See video below from Greg Neri's website.)







G. Neri's "Ghetto Cowboy" book trailer from Greg Neri on Vimeo.



I discovered THE UNWANTEDS by Lisa McMann on several Mock Newbery lists. Once the students in our Newbery Club heard about the book, I haven't been able to get a library copy back. It is quite popular with our 5th graders. So, I ended up buying the Kindle version and read it that way. The UNWANTEDS is a great new fantasy. It is a dystopian type story of a place called Quill that gets rid of their "Unwanteds" each year. They get rid of those people that are not obedient, do not follow the rules, have thoughts of their own. And they get rid of them when they are 13 years old. They are taken out of the city to be killed. This is the story of one group of Unwanteds. It is a great good vs. evil story with characters and plot that will hook a variety of readers. It definitely feels like a classic and the story will appeal to a variety of readers.   I am always looking for great new fantasies and this is one that I think will be popular for years to come.