My Favorite Reads of 2014

2014 was a fabulous year for me as far as reading goes. I read so many really good books. I have narrowed down my list to my favorite books for adults, young adults, and middle grades.  This is an extensive list, but it was so hard to narrow down any further. I hope you enjoy!

This year I read 29 Novels for Adults

My favorites:

I finally read En el tiempo de las mariposas (In the Time of the Butterflies) by Julia Alvarez. What a beautiful novel! This is one that rose straight to the top of my all-time favorites.

This is a love story about the love of books and reading as much as anything else. It is an incredibly wonderful story and you absolutely need to read it.

The Crane Wife is a gorgeous story based on a Japanese folk tale. Patrick Ness is genius and writes such beautiful stories. His writing always makes me think and this one is no exception to that rule. This is another must-read book.

It is the cover that caught my eye with this book. I am so glad it did. This is another wonderful story about love and life and the ways that lives intertwine.

In The Blood by Lisa Unger is not the most literary of books, but it is a thrilling read with a twisting plot. I was intrigued by the premise of the book and the central question of whether there is a genetic influence to being a psychopath and what you would do if you were the son or daughter of a killer.

I don't know how to describe this novel exactly. It was an interesting premise and definitely made me think about how one event can influence the future.  The book is an interesting look at the era in history in which we experienced both World Wars, starting with the birth of the protagonist in 1911.

I listened to the audiobook of this one. For some reason, I thought this would be a mystery book. Boy, was I surprised when it was a fantasy book. However, I really lost myself in the world created by this author. I am really looking forward to the next one.



I read 63 Young adult books

My favorites:

I don't really want to give away too much about this book. I absolutely felt for Gerald. This is another one by A.S. King that is about much more than what it seems to be about. I love the way her books make me think.

I could not put The Adoration of Jenna Fox down. I was so intrigued by the science fiction and riveted by the mystery in the book.

What I thought was going to be a retelling of Snow White became an historical fiction novel about the holocaust. Jane Yolen is a master storyteller and manages to teach readers about history through the powerful narratives she writes.

Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A.S. King is a powerful story about grief and letting go as well as the destructive power of keeping secrets.

An absolutely brilliantly written book that devastated me. I was unable to pick up another book for a few days after finishing this one. Powerful, powerful writing.

It took me a couple tries to get into this book, but this time it really got me. I don't exactly know why it wasn't one that I could sink my teeth into before, but I really enjoyed the story this time. I love the way Markus Zusak plays with conventions in his books. This book also made me think about the ways in which we influence others in our lives without always knowing that we are doing so.

With every new installment of this series, I am loving it more. If you haven't read it yet, what are you waiting for?  Get out and read it now.

Eliot Schrefer is doing some great things by highlighting these great apes and their home lands. This story is every bit as enthralling as Endangered and I cannot wait for more. These stories tell about the plight of the apes as well as the plight of the humans in the dangerous areas of the world in which the apes live.

This was a beautiful story about how a special child deals with the grief of losing both her parents. Suddenly a child who needs the structure of routine is thrust into circumstances that would be hard for anyone. It is a heartwarming story about forming bonds and accepting new people into your life.

I really liked this fantasy trilogy and I loved how it ended. The strength of a female protagonist really shines in this book and I highly recommend this series.

I loved this book. It was so heartwarming to read about the transformative power that companionship brings. I loved reading about the lessons that the teenage protagonist learned throughout this story.

Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock by Matthew Quick was a powerful, powerful read.

I am cheating a little bit here because I technically finished this one in 2013, but it was released in 2014 so I am going to include it here. This is a powerful story that you won't soon forget.  You absolutely must read this one.


This year I read 30 Middle Grade books

My Favorites:

I am not sure what I was expecting from this book, but whatever my expectations were, the author exceeded them. I love the way the author really helps the reader to feel what it must have been like to be denied rights because of race. This is a must-read for students learning about the Civil Rights movement.

This is a great story about how a caring person can help a child to change the way he thinks. It is a beautiful story and I would highly recommend it.

This is a powerful and brilliant narrative about a girl with special needs. I wanted to go into that book and slap her father silly at several points in the book. It is ultimately a book about hope and survival. This is another must-read book.

What sounded like a far-fetched and unbelievable narrative turned into a page-turning unputdownable book.  Jennifer Holm wrote a great novel about family relationships and the inevitability of growing older.

This is a another powerful narrative about empathy and understanding each person's story. It is a great novel for deep discussions about how we treat other people.

Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library was like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory but with books. I loved it and I know kids will love it too. It was especially fun to look for the book titles that are scattered throughout the dialogue.

I loved A Snicker of Magic. I don't know how to do it justice on the page so I will just highly recommend it.

This is another powerful story that is important to share with students.

Brown Girl Dreaming is another must-read. Jacqueline Woodson writes such beautiful verse about her childhood and growing up.



I read other books, some professional books, some graphic novels, some picture books, etc. for a grand total of 174 books. I didn't make my goal of 220 books, but that is because I read some might long books and took it east on myself. I had become a bit obsessed with challenges and had really been using reading to avoid some other things in life. I am happy with the total I did get and have set my new goal at 160 books to help myself continue to balance reading with other things I need to do.

Here is to another wonderful year of reading amazing books!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? 12/29

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? --From Picture Books to YA is a weekly meme started by Jen at Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee at Unleashing Readers. This is a chance for bloggers to recap their week of reading and share their plans for the next reading adventures they will take. Visit the host blogs for a list of great blogs participating in this meme and a whole bunch of titles to add to your to-read lists.

I have been horrible about blogging this school year. I forgot how much work is involved in learning a new grade level and adjusting to the students. I am having a fabulous time in my 4th grade world this year. 

New Year's Resolution #1: Blog at least on Mondays and Saturdays for my favorite link-ups. 

 

The last time I wrote a post for Monday was the end of October. I have read MANY books since then so I am just going to share about my favorite books. Bear with me, though, because this might still turn out to be a long post. 

Books I Finished:

The Retribution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin was one I was eagerly awaiting and had preordered in order to read it right away. I absolutely loved the first two books and was chomping at the bit for this one. Although I felt the mystery was still as intriguing in this book, I was disappointed by the ending. The narrative in this book felt forced and I just didn't buy some of the resolution of some of the plot lines. I still would recommend the series, but I was quite bummed that the third one did not wow me like the others. 

I love that I was able to share Ivan: The Remarkable True Story of the Shopping Mall Gorilla with my students. We finished reading The One and Only Ivan earlier this fall and it was great to read this one and get the true story. 

I loved The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary Pearson. It is a really fascinating science fiction story that questions how far is too far in biomedical engineering. I was riveted the whole time and will be looking for the other books in this series. 

I was super excited when In The Blood by Lisa Unger was the daily deal on Kindle. I saw Lisa Unger at Key West Literary Seminar last year and was really interested by her description of this book. This is a psychological thriller that really delves into the question of whether there is a genetic predisposition to being a psychopath. This is a really compelling mystery book for adults. 

Believe it or not, Take Me to the River is the first book I have read by Will Hobbs. I definitely can see how this author is a popular one, especially for boy readers. This is a title I will be recommending to boys in grades 5 and up who like adventure stories. 

I love A.S. King and this one does not disappoint.  I wanted to slap Gerald's mother. That is all. 

I had never read The Wonderful Wizard of Oz before. I read it now so that I could do some work with the book in my classroom. We had an opportunity to take a field trip to see a musical production of The Wizard of Oz and we are having fun working with this story. 

I can see why Midwinterblood won the Printz award last year. It is a very well-written and literary book. I very much enjoyed the book and it absolutely made me think. However, I am not sure it is a book that many young adults will enjoy. 

What the Moon Said by Gayle Rosengren is a middle grade historical fiction novel set in the great depression. Esther's family moves from Chicago to a farm in Wisconsin to try their luck at making money that way. Needless to say, it is a very difficult transition for the whole family. I would recommend this book for grades 4 and up. 

This is What Happy Looks Like by Jennifer Smith is a fun teen romance book. I enjoyed the way the author used e-mails as transitions between chapters. She did a good job of keeping the book light-hearted while also dealing with some heavy issues. I would definitely recommend this one for grades 8 and up. 

I got this title as one of the free audiobooks from Sync audiobooks one summer. I laughed out loud numerous times at the hilarious musings of the protagonist. At times the book is quite crude, but I imagine that it is quite true to life and that many teenage boys think this way.  I would recommend this one to anyone in high school or older, but especially to boys. 

Gamer Girl was another fun teen romance book, with a little bit of teen angst thrown in as well. I enjoyed this quick read and would recommend it to grades 8 and up. 

I devoured The Program by Suzanne Young. It is incredible to me how authors can keep dreaming up dystopian worlds that are different yet equally terrifying as the ones I have read before. I highly recommend this one. 

I don't even know how to describe Life After Life by Kate Atkinson. It was shelved with the mystery books at my local library and I don't think that is the correct place for it, but I wouldn't know what genre it is either. I do know that it was incredibly intriguing and definitely had quite a bit of historical fiction. If you haven't read it, you should. 

Okay...I know I said I was just going to share the highlights, but I keep reading amazing books so they all feel like highlights. Believe it or not, I did actually leave some books out of my list.  

Books I am Currently Reading:

I am slowly making progress through El tiempo entre costuras by Maria Duenas (The Time in Between in English). It is such a big book and Spanish always goes slower for me.  I am also reading The Pale Assassin by Patricia Elliot. I am really enjoying learning more about the French revolution through the historical fiction. I also just started listening to Confessions of a Murder Suspect by James Patterson. So far, it is quite intriguing. 

What's Next?

I have a bag full of books from my classroom that I wanted to read during winter break. I am not sure how many of those books I will get to, but I will probably read The Blood of Olympus and Crossing the Wire. I will have to see.  

What are you reading this week? I would love to hear from you in the comments! Have a great reading week!

Celebrate!

Since I missed last week, I am adding some of the celebrations from the week before winter break to this blog post. Some of them were too good to miss out on.

Last week, we made ornaments for the students to take home. I have a class full of students who celebrate Christmas so we had fun with holiday crafts. I appreciate these years, because when I have students who don't celebrate, we don't celebrate in the classroom either. I was so happy with how cute the ornaments turned out.  And their elves were so fun too.

When we got to the end of Because of Mr. Terupt, there was an explanation of what it means to "loop" in school. There was a small chorus of, "can we do that?" that made my heart sing. I love it that my students love to be in my class and want to continue to be in my class.

Christmas celebrations with family were very nice this week.

Our plans for some projects in the house are underway and looking good.

I hope you all are finding a lot of things to celebrate in this joyful season.

Have a fabulous week!

Celebrate 12/13

Join the celebration by linking up at www.ruthayreswrites.com or just visit and read the great celebrations!

My poor deserted and lonely blog. I have been super busy with the grade level switch and consequently really exhausted at times when I usually would have blogged. As we approach the holidays, things are even more hectic and I felt the need to search for some positive this week. I am so thankful for this community of bloggers that I know will be forgiving and welcome me back with open arms.

My Celebrations:

• Scholastic Warehouse sale. Need I say more?  
• We started an "Elf Yourself" project on Friday and I am so excited to see the cute elves that my students will make. I also showed them the ornament project that we will do next week and I was happy to see their positive reaction. I can't wait to do that project either. This is the kind of thing I had missed about working with fourth graders. 
• We are almost finished with Because of Mr. Terupt as our read aloud. Students are really hanging on every word at this point. I love making students excited about excellent literature. 
• We focused on Questioning this week and read Flotsam and Tuesday by David Wiesner. My students loved this experience of reading the wordless books. So much curiosity abounds with each of these fascinating books. We really were able to see that as a reader you might have questions before, during, and after reading. 
• We went to see a production of The Wizard of Oz at a local theater company that partners with my school. It was a fabulous rendition of this excellent story! We are now working on writing a fractured version of the tale that we will work into a show and perform in February. I brought in the Kindles this week and my students were super excited to use them to start reading the book. 
• I introduced Storybird to my students and they have been writing like crazy. I love that website! 
• I have a luncheon to go to on Sunday with a bunch of local bloggers/teachers/authors. The hostess searches young adult fiction for ideas for recipes and then puts together a delicious buffet of literature-inspired food. We also have a book swap and usually get a couple ARCs as well. I am so excited. It is always a great time! 
• I lost 10 pounds in the last month using Weight Watchers digital tools. I need to lose a lot more, but I am proud of the progress so far. 
• Last, but not least, my husband and I decided to put up a Christmas tree this year. We don't always do so because a lot of years we are traveling to Spain to see his family. We aren't going this year and we decided to dig out the decorations. I forgot how many cute decorations I have. It is filling my house with Joy right now and I love it.  

What do you have to celebrate? I would love to hear from you in the comments!