Maria's Mélange

It turns out that when you set reading goals based on the fact that reading is pretty much your ONLY hobby.... and then start a new hobby (crochet).... not all the reading goals get met. Overall, though, I am fairly pleased with the amount of reading I did this year. (My lack of blogging about said reading is an entirely different matter, of course). "Must Read in 2015" List  (Pop Sugar Challenge will be a separate post) I had 39 books on this list. I read 29 of them.... There are four I am still reading (one is a super long audio book, one is a read aloud with my son that I left at home and we are almost done, one is a super long book that I just started) Six are getting added to the 2016 list. I think 2016 will be my year of mostly "catching up" with just a few new books added. Title Author Category Genre Date Read Notes, Awards, etc. Feed Anderson, MT YA Dystopian Nov 2014 ... shhh Not terribly excited by this one.  Poisoned Apples: Poems for You,...

It's Treat Tuesday! A wonderful excuse to share what we are reading at the Selke lair. The boys love this, especially because it means they get to eat a treat. Thanks to Niki at Daydream Reader for this weekly theme - be sure to hop onto Twitter and look for the tag #TreatTuesday. A bigger photo today so you can see what the older is reading with his ears. Younger: The Son of Neptune  - this is actually what he and I are reading at night. We are so close to being done, so he wanted to share it with you all. Older: Dragon Rule by E.E. Knight (from the Age of Fire series) He's listening to this one, since we had the first four on our kindle app but didn't have the fifth. He's a bit of a dragon fan at the moment, having read this series, Eragon, and the D'Lacey dragon books. Me: George's Secret Key to the Universe . (Yes, that IS Hawking listed as the author - Stephen and his daughter Lucy teamed up for this title). I haven't started it yet. ...

It’s Monday, what are you reading? Check out Teach Mentor Texts for other great books to add to your TBR list. Umm… I have a confession to make. I hardly finished any books this week. I’m in the middle of a few, but I really only crossed the finish line on some short ones… Picture Books: Owl Moon by Jane Yolen– as part of my ReReading in April quest (and my desire to immerse myself in the glorious writing of a master craftsman), I read this lovely Caldecott winner. There’s a reason it’s a time honored classic in elementary schools. Darth Vader and Son by Jeffrey Brown.  This was ADORABLE! If you are (or know) a Star Wars fan, this is the perfect gift. It’s a sweet and funny look at Darth as a good dad with Luke. Geeky inside jokes run rampant. I read it several times, so I’m counting it for the ReRead as well! Graphic Novels Giants Beware ! By Jorge Aguirre  Wonderful, wonderful! Girls and boys will love this tale. Adventurous, amusing, and...

It's time for another Newbery Challenge Update! Check out Watch.Connect.Read for a description of this challenge. I’m focusing on two types of Newbery books in April – rereads (part of my effort to join in with the Teacher Mentor Text “A-Okay toReread in April” ) and audio books. I’ll be back on track with the earlier Newbery books in May. I left off at 1934. The Midwife’s Apprentice by Karen Cushman  (1996)      I love this book every time I read it. It's a quick and easy read, but with a lot of historical information. Not for the faint of heart - or the very young - as there is a decent amount of (not too gory) childbirth information in there!      I'm fascinated by the middle ages and by herblore, so I just love this one! It’s a “starter” historical fiction, without a ton of heavy historical data, but I think it will hook readers into wanting to learn more about the time. Miracles on Maple Hill  by Virginia Soren...