Monday's Reading

This is the book I've been reading all week.
I want to encourage my teacher and librarian friends everywhere to rush right out and get your own copy. I can practically hear the discussions, the projects, the thoughtful poetry it will inspire!

There are so many memorable moments in the exchanges between these two poets that it's hard to single out one line, one verse, even one poem. But there was something about Charles's words in DINNER CONVERSATION, that really made me smile. Perhaps it was that wink from Grandma. 


Irene's poem, APOLOGY, tugged at my heart. 

I swallow.
I want to say
I'm
          sorry,
but those words are so small for something so big.

If you haven't listened to the podcast, you must!  Here's a link to Travis Jonker's excellent interview via his School Library Journal podcast. (You can also find the Teachers' Guide on this site.)

And the Kirkus review= a star!

A word on the paint, pencil and collage illustrations by Sean Qualls and Selina Alko.
Perfect.

 

brown girl dreaming

What I'm Reading Now.

I read Jacqueline Woodson's new memoir-in-verse because smart people said I would love it.
Then I read it again to write a review, because I did indeed love it.
Then I read it again because I loved it so much I wanted to share a poem to inspire a Writing Workshop.

So believe me, I was delighted to hear the author say she reads slowly.
And sometimes more than once.
When I'm reading for pleasure, I don't always do that. But now I will try harder.
She advises kids to do the same. Even with a book that's easy to speed through- like this one- sometimes you need to slow down, savor the words. Read it again.

Here's the author talking about her path to becoming a writer.




(You can see the link and read Betsy Bird's comments about the book HERE.)

This quote reminds me of someone. Maybe a lot of someones. So I love it (and I paraphrase):
When I was growing up, I told lies all the time. And I had a teacher who told me to write it all down. Because if you write it down, it's no longer a lie. It's fiction.

The Battle Continues

I can't believe how intrigued I am with this Battle of the Books thing. In a million years, why should I read about one book vs another when I often haven't even read both books?

Because the judges are so hilarious and so bright and so very articulate, that's why.

Okay for Now vs. Wonderstruck?

I've actually read both those books and would have guessed Okay for Now. But like my beloved basketball team and their bracket, you just never know.

So check it out. Here's the School Library Journal website:

http://battleofthebooks.slj.com/

Plus, they have these really cool graphics:

And I love how they link all the blog posts, tweets, etc., others have written. Now THAT can lead to some serious time wasting- chugging along following those links.
But it's not wasting time when you learn something new about books.
That's my story and I'm sticking to it.



Related posts: Okay for Now
Battle of the Books

Writing About Race

Food for thought in this School Library Journal article by Mitali Perkins. Be sure to read through the comments if you're interested in the topic.