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| Hole in the Barn Door Quilt Block |
I'm participating in the monthly feature, What's on Your Nightstand? Participants post what they've been reading the past month as well as what they're planning to read in the future.
Baby Board Books:
I recently spent time at a bookstore checking out board books to send to our grandson. I bought copies for us and for him so that my husband and I can read the books to him even when we aren't together.
I love these books by Sandra Boynton as well as Jamberry by Bruce Degen. They are fun for both adults and children!
Picture Books:
I have been reading fairy tales with my third graders, comparing and contrasting different versions. We read The Emperor's New Clothes by Hans Christian Andersen and compared it to The Principal's New Clothes by Stephanie Calmenson - a really fun version of the story. 
We also read several versions of The Princess and the Pea, starting with Hans Christian Andersen's version. Then we read Janet Steven's wonderfully illustrated version as well as the hilarious The Princess and the Bowling Ball byJon Scieszka and Lane Smith. We finished with the students' favorite and mine, The Cowboy and the Black-Eyed Pea by Tony Johnston. 
Finally, I read The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain by Peter Sis - a Caldecott honor book. This is a picture book most appropriate for teens and adults, I think. Years ago, my 6th grade teacher connected me with a penpal from Czechoslovakia. Author and illustrator Peter Sis was born in Czechoslovakia the same time as my penpal (the start of the Cold War), so this book is of particular interest to me. Sis tells his story using both pictures and journal entries. A perfect read if you lived during the Cold War Era or want a personal account of it from the point of view of someone who lived behind the Iron Curtain.
Middle Grade/Young Adult Books:
I am reading The Seven Wonders of Sassafras Springs by Betty G. Birney with one group of 5th graders and Great Illustrated Classics Swiss Family Robinson with another group. Everyone is enjoying the books, including me!
Book Challenges:
This month, I'm participating in the Lucy Maud Montgomery Reading Challenge 2014. For this challenge, I read:
The Blue Castle by L. M. Montgomery
Anne of Avonlea by L. M. Montgomery
Lucy Maud Montgomery: A Writer's Life by Elizabeth MacLeod (picture book)
Lucy Maud Montgomery: The Author of Anne of Green Gables, written and illustrated by Alexandra Wallner (picture book)
I wrote a separate post about this challenge here.
Book Club Books:
I read the January selection for the online Quilters' Book Club, The Healing Quilt by Lauraine Snelling. You can check out all posts here.
I also read The Worst Hard Time: The Untold Story of Those Who Survived the Great American Dust Bowl by Timothy Egan. My local book club, Raspberry Mountain Readers, had a wonderful discussion about it.
This year, I've also decided to participate in the Reading to Know Classic Book Club 2014. Our January selection is The Blue Castle by L. M. Montgomery, which I also read for the Lucy Maud Montgomery Book Challenge.
Professional:
I'm probably the last reading teacher in the world to finally have read The Book Whisperer: Awakening the Inner Reader in Every Child by Donalyn Miller. And now, I'm in the middle of her next book that she wrote with Susan Kelley called Reading in the Wild. Both books contain many good ideas and words of wisdom in this world of high stakes testing.
What's on Your Nightstand? Inquiring minds want to know! Answer in the comment section below. By commenting, you'll be entered to win a hardcover copy of Prayers for Sale by Sandra Dallas! The more you comment, the greater your chances of winning! If you are reading this via email, you must click on the title of my blog post to be able to comment and read the comments of others.
You might also enjoy reading my previous blog post
When my currently 7 year old grand daughter was about 4, I began to read Cinderella to her from one of my old books (i.e. ancient copy). She stopped me before we got very far and proceeded to tell me that wasn't right, because that isn't what happened on the DVD! No amount of persuasion would convince her that the DVD was wrong and the book right, and she got quite angry with me. I just had to give up on it, and read her something else. That made me very cranky at the time.
ReplyDeleteI remember reading time in my grade school. It was in fifth grade and the teacher would make us be quiet while she read a chapter from a book. The only book that I remember was Johnny Tremain. Johnny Tremain is a 1943 children's historical novel by Esther Forbes set in Boston prior to and during the outbreak of the American Revolution. I also received Mrs. Lincoln's Dressmaker in the mail this week and started that. I have to say it wasn't what I was expecting but am enjoying it. I love history and while reading it could remember some of the lectures from my classes back in 2010 about History of the South, etc.
ReplyDeleteI'm about halfway through Sense and Sensibility/Jane Austen this week. Mrs. Lincoln's Dressmaker is next, waiting on the table. I read it last year at this time, and look forward to a second round. Later in February I'll get to Mittel Europa/Susan Slesin, I Beat the Odds/Michael Oher and Other Women/Lisa Alther.
ReplyDeleteI am reading The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin and Very Valentine:A Novel by Adriana Trigiani. I also have read the Healing Quilt and The Dressmaker by Kate Alcott this month
ReplyDeleteI'm re-reading 'The Snow Ghosts' by Beryl Netherclift. I bought my first copy from Scholastic, way back in elementary school, and re-read it almost every winter. I now have 3 copies, since I've almost worn out my first copy. Hubby got me the other 2 copies many years ago. Great read!
ReplyDeleteI am reading "Crunch Time" by Diane Mott Davidson ...a mystery shared by a fellow choir member.
ReplyDeleteAlso, "Servants of the Map" by Andrea Barrett ... a gift from my daughter, and on stand-by, "Mrs. Lincoln's Dressmaker, by Chiaverini, a gift from my son. At the speed I read, these will probably take the whole month.
I just got the Healing Quilt and love it. I listen to more books while I sew. I also read devotional books like Guidepost. After Healing Quilt I want to get a book by Maud Montgomery. My book discussion group just finished Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger--excellent.
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