Five years ago, in the middle of a math lesson on a snowy day in January, our school librarian sprinted into my classroom and interrupted (read saved) the kids from having to finish simplifying a mixed numbers problem. She handed out a list of books and said “If you’ve read at least 5 then vote for your favorite book at lunch tomorrow!”
Replay this scene every year. And every year, I am mad at myself because I didn’t read five. So this summer I jumped straight in. This vote won’t sneak up on me this January.
Here are the books I’ve read so far:
- Harriet the Invincible by Ursula Vernon. I absolutely loved the hamster humor in this book and admired Harriet’s strong, fearless adventure. The illustrations in this graphic novel are beautiful.
- The Poet’s Dog by Patricia MacLachlan. As a writer and pet lover, this book tugged all my heart strings. The flashbacks and the distinctive voice of the narrator, Teddy, made this a book that I will love reading again and again. It’s a great example of how a ‘short’ book can still carry the biggest of life’s themes.
- Ancient Egypt by Ken Jennings. Jennings talks directly to the reader right from the first page. His clever description of time travel and ability to frame the setting in a way that kids can relate to is going to make this a read that everyone can learn a lot from! I’ll report back with my favorite fact when I am finished.
I hope you will join me in this year’s MCBA adventure! Here is the website for more information:
http://massachusettschildrensbookaward.blogspot.com/
Happy reading, happy writing!