The Last of '08

I made it to 46 in this calendar year, but I only started counting as of February 1st. Looks like I have a month to read 6 more! I'll know which post at which to start counting for 2009, though.

The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch
Genre: Motivational Rating: (out of 10): 6
There were some great nuggets in this book, but his presentation put me off. It seemed as though he did most everything right... I liked the story style of Tuesdays with Morrie better.

Stone Fox by John Reynolds Gardiner
Genre: Historical Fiction, Children's Rating: (out of 10): 9
This was a short book written at about a 3rd grade level. I was surprised at how many deep subjects it contained. There is a lot to teach from this book. The ending surprised me, too.

The Purpose of Christmas by Rick Warren
Genre: Religion Rating: (out of 10): 4
I liked the layout of the book- three distinct sections with main points following. It was easy to follow. I've just never gotten into religious reading.

The Tales of Beedle the Bard by J.K. Rowling
Genre: Fantasy, Children's fables Rating: (out of 10): 7
This was a neat concept. There were 4 fables from Harry Potter's world, and then Dumbledore commented on each one afterwards to tell more about their significance. I thought two of the stories were wonderful and the others were so-so. I could see why avid Harry Potter fans would be disappointed- it was just a taste. All of the proceeds from this book also went to charity.

Charlie Bone and the Castle of Mirrors by Jenny Nimmo
Genre: Fantasy, Children's Rating: (out of 10): 8
The books are building into a great ending. I have trouble separating one from another after I've read them, but I have enjoyed the series as it has grown throughout the books. I thought the first book was pretty straightforward. Now we're getting to know more about the battle between the Red King's children and the history behind what's going on.

Charlie Bone and the Hidden King by Jenny Nimmo
Genre: Fantasy, Children's Rating: (out of 10): 9
Much like my last comments. We figure out what happened to Charlie's father in this book. Like I said, it's building.

Inkdeath by Cornelia Funke
Genre: Fantasy, Children's Rating: (out of 10): 7
Can I give two different ratings for the first and second half of the book? I felt the same way with Inkspell. I just could not get into the first half of the book- read two chapters, go to bed- there was no sense of "can't put it down" at all. The second half of the book came together beautifully- and she wrapped up the trilogy in a perfect way. It was clever, engaging, and creative... once you were past page 300 or so.

Catching Up

The Amulet of Samarkand: The Bartimaeus Trilogy Book 1 by Jonathan Stroud
Genre: Children's Literature, Fantasy Rating: (out of 10): 7.5
The series was set in London during the American Revolution (but for some reason the magicians had cars). The series revolved around the conflict between the magicians running the government and the commoners. I really enjoyed the differing perspectives in the whole series of these books. It was cleverly written, for some reason just not a "can't put down" book.

The Golem's Eye: The Bartimaeus Trilogy Book 2 by Jonathan Stroud
Genre: Children's Literature, Fantasy Rating: (out of 10): 8.5
This book had twists and turns, and it took me about the whole thing to figure out who the villain behind the golem was. The character development of the main character was interesting as well.

Ptolemy's Gate: The Bartimaeus Trilogy Book 3 by Jonathan Stroud
Genre: Children's Literature, Fantasy Rating: (out of 10): 8
The third book tied up some questions about the past of the characters and gave background information. It was really tied up very well. I just didn't love the series. Great writing, though.

Settling in Michigan by Lynne Deur
Genre: Primary source, history Rating: (out of 10): 6.5
Short stories in this book gave accounts of early Michigan. Useful for teaching.

Orphan Trains: Researching American History by Deitch & Bracken
Genre: Primary Source, history Rating: (out of 10): 8
This book contains a variety of types of sources: newspaper, firsthand accounts, adoption documents, etc. Very complete picture of what the orphan trains were like. It will be indispensable for my unit.

Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer
Genre: Fantasy Rating: (out of 10): 8.5
I'm tempted to give two ratings: One for the beginning of the book and one for the end. I thought that the climax of the book was about halfway through, and the rest was superfluous. Dave did point out to me that there were some loose ends that needed to be tied up. The plot was predictable as it was heavily foreshadowed in the beginning of the book, but enjoyable nonetheless.

The Green Book by Jill Paton Walsh
Genre: Children's Literature, Science Fiction Rating: (out of 10): 6
The book is about a group of people who are forced to evacuate Earth and live on an unknown planet. I am thinking about starting the year with a space theme, and I heard of this book from an example unit. The book was a little strange, though... not sure it will accomplish what it is meant to accomplish as an introduction to the year, and afraid that it will scare the kids- make them worry about the end of the world. We'll see. I may try it.

Midnight for Charlie Bone by Jenny Nimmo

Midnight for Charlie Bone by Jenny Nimmo

Genre: Children's Lit, Fantasy Rating: (out of 10): 7
This was an interesting read. It took awhile to get into it, but then the plot was enough to keep the pages moving. There are some definite similarities to Harry Potter, but making comparisons helped keep my interest.

Eragon by Christopher Paolini

Genre: Children's Lit, Fantasy Rating: (out of 10): 8.5
The first half of this book dragged, but that may have been because I read it in pieces during silent reading at school. I couldn't put it down once I got further into it. The movie is terrible. It doesn't follow what happens in the story, and it is slow.

Eldest by Christopher Paolini

Genre: Children's Lit, Fantasy Rating: (out of 10): 9
This one moved quickly right from the start. One thing I was interested in was the love story, which moved slowly throughout this story (but anguishingly so- is that a word?). I have my guesses as to what will happen next... Now I will have to wait until September just like everyone else for the next book...

Creating Classrooms Where Teachers Love to Teach and Students Love to Learn by Bob Sornson

Genre: Teaching, Parenting Rating: (out of 10): 6.5
I have already read the Teaching with Love and Logic book, so this was nothing new. Reading it did remind me of some things to keep in mind as I teach, such as empathy. We were asked to read it over the summer by my principal.

800 Pages in 24 Hours

I feel like myself again... reading has been a priority in my life for the past week. :) I guess there is a plus side to unnecessary snow days.

New Moon by Stephenie Meyer
Genre: Fiction, Fantasy Rating: (out of 10): 10
I enjoyed the character development again, and felt as though she did a wonderful job of making the audience empathetic to Bella's pain. The conflict and suspense made this edge-of-your-seat reading.

Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer
Genre: Fiction, Fantasy Rating: (out of 10): 8
I read this book in one day. The rating is only in relation to the other two books... I personally liked them better than this one. I thought this one was a little more predictable.

I am looking forward to a new book in the series in August and the movie of Twilight as well!

Inkheart and Inkspell by Cornelia Funke (read in '07)
Genre: Fiction, Fantasy Rating: (out of 10): 6.5
I had high expectations from Funke because I really enjoyed The Thief Lord. The world she creates in the story is fascinating, but there were times in reading both that I was dragging.