Diversity Rocks! Challenge Update

From time to time since I decided to join the Diversity Rocks! Challenge I thought about how many of the books that I read fall into the diversity category, even if I did not choose to add them to my self-created Diversity Rocks! Challenge list. Today I noticed a comment from the organizer of the challenge reminding me to put a link to one of the books that I read, which falls into this category on the Diversity Rocks! blog in order to get a chance to win some books from Lee and Low. I LOVE Lee and Low books.

I also decided that I will go ahead and label all of my posts that follow the challenge guidelines whether or not they are on my original list, and some will cross over with other challenges. You will be able to tell the difference between my planned challenge reading and other books because I will leave my original list the same.

Speaking of my list...I noticed that the April review post mentions to post links for any books read by "authors of color". One of the books that I read and have on my original list is Deborah Kerbel's Mackenzie Lost and Found. I was not sure whether or not the book technically "counts" and I still think it is a gray area. The author is not "of color", but I thought that she has a diverse background - Canadian born in London with broad travels and the book was set in Israel. So...I was counting it as diversity because the author was from another country. However if it is based on whether or not the authors are "of color" then it probably does not really fit technically, but I still think it serves the purpose of the challenge. I loved the glimpses of Israel that the book gave me too.

Here are April books that I read that fit into the Diversity Rocks! category that I previously did not include:
*Tears of a Tiger
*Haters
*The Poet Slave of Cuba

Al Capone Does My Shirts

I first heard about Al Capone Does My Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko at a BER conference targeted at matching boys with books. I remembered it book talked as a humorous, fun book focusing on twelve year old Moose's experience of moving to Alcatraz.

An aspect of the book that I was not expecting was Moose's sister. Looking back to the information on the cover it does allude to Moose's sister who is "not like other kids" but I had no idea that this would be a big part of the book, and that it would be a serious component balancing out the humorous sides. At the end of the book, the author notes that his sister's character was inspired by her own sister who had a severe form of autism, although she is never referred to as being autistic in the book because autism was not identified at the time period of the book's setting. Moose also has to deal with the warden's daughter who is always up to a scheme and trying to get the other island kids involved. I loved how all the different plots in the book wove together well to build up to the ending.

I am going to recommend this book to my student who I was having a hard time suggesting a book to that he wanted to read. I especially thought the first couple of pages did a great job of engaging the reader. I know my student would be fascinated with the concept of living on Alcatraz in 1935 with hard core criminals as neighbors. It made me want to do further research about Alcatraz and Al Capone.

Busy Weekend

This was a busy weekend, and unlike most weekends, I did not get a chance to read much. Typically I love having the chance to stay up a little later on Friday nights reading a good book (and Saturdays too), but I was so exhausted Friday that I went to bed earlier than I do on school nights. There was not a lot of down time over the weekend either, so I am looking forward to reading for about an hour to an hour and a half before going to bed and gearing up for another week (only four more to go; I can hardly believe it). Ahhhhh, I love to relax and read!

Book Awards Reading Challenge Countdown

Just as the end of the school year is quickly approaching, so is the end of the Book Awards Reading Challenge (June 1). I still have quite a bit to read. I have started Cuba 15 (about a quarter of the way) and Baseball in April (more than half way finished), but I have not even started The Thief Lord or Al Capone Does My Shirts. The countdown is on...

Korianne's Fun Contest

Through Book Mooch, I heard about a blog Korianne Speaks, and she just sent an email talking about a really fun contest that she is doing to celebrate her 20th birthday that was just this Tuesday. You still have until this Saturday to get on over to Korianne's blog and sign up to win great prizes such one of six books and an mp3 player. Happy Birthday Korianne!

Tears of a Tiger

Tears of a Tiger is one of those books that I have heard often, and I knew that I liked Sharon Draper as an author because of her help with We Beat the Streets. I just picked up Tears of a Tiger this weekend because one of my students was having a hard time finding a book. He wanted something like We Beat the Streets or La linea. I decided to preview Tears of a Tiger to see if it is appropriate for him. While I am still torn on whether or not it would be a good fit for my student as a 6th grader, the book definitely left an impression on me.

The format of the book blew me away. I always love to see a surprising book structure. This book was all told through non-traditional forms such as straight dialogue, newspaper articles, school essays, and journal entries without having any regular narration mixed with dialogue. Through the book we see how Andy struggles to move on with his life after his best friend dies as a result of Andy's drinking and driving. I was hooked beginning to end.

I look forward to reading the other books in the Hazelwood High trilogy. I wonder if they are also in similar formats.

Haters

Pascuala (Paski) is in for a shock when her dad announces that they will be relocating to Los Angeles from their rural New Mexican home so that he can pursue his animation career. To say the least, she is not happy with her father's decision at all. The majority of the book deals with her adjustment to California. I enjoyed seeing Paski's evolution throughout the book.

While it took me a while longer than with some books to get hooked, I ended up enjoying Haters by Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez more and more the further I read. From the beginning I enjoyed Paski's humorous voice, and I can just imagine her silly Dad. I especially liked her interest in nature and biking.

When I read one of Valdes-Rodriguez's adult chica lit books I remember thinking that it had some more graphic scenes than other books in the genre, and this is true with Haters for its respective genre as well (although it does not seem to be any worse than what I know of Gossip Girl books). Depending on how strict parents are, they may or may not want their daughters to read the book.

Top Ten Uses for an Unworn Prom Dress

I loved Top Ten Uses for an Unworn Prom Dress. As a sophomore Nic thought her dreams were coming true when her crush asked her to the prom and she had found a one of a kind dress for the special event. Only her date's girlfriend moves back to town leaving Nic without her magical night. Trying to get over the event, she begins making a list of ten uses for "The Dress".

The book had a good balance of serious topics, such as her parents' financial situation, as well as regular teenage drama. Throughout the whole book Nic narrates with a lovable, humorous voice. Needless to say, I had another late night. Once started, there was not any point in the book where I felt like I could put it down for the night. I can't wait to read Ferraro's other two books How to Hook a Hottie and The ABCs of Kissing Boys (my favorite cover of her three books).

Watersmeet

I am always excited to get an ARC of a book that I just can't wait to read. When Watersmeet arrived in the mail, I put all other reading on hold and started it right away. This book has so much potential, and I can't wait to see my students enjoy it. The cover alone created a lot of buzz. I brought it to school to read for SSR on Friday, and the picture on the front quickly sparked my students' curiosity - they all wanted to know what the book was about. Since I was close to the beginning I could not tell them much yet, but I promised that I would be finishing it over the weekend to give a full book talk at the start of the week. I did however share with them that the author is a teacher who wanted to write a book that her students would enjoy, and that only heightened their interest.

Watersmeet set up an experience where I had to be an active reader throughout because new layers were constantly being revealed alongside building action. Just when one danger was resolved, a new one arrose. Because it is a fantasy, there was always the element that anything could happen to main character Abisina and the many people and creatures that she encounters.

I expect Watersmeet to be a hit with my students, and as such, they will be thrilled to see that the ending leaves it wide open for another book.

Great Deal

For a limited time Mia King's Sweet Life is available as on Amazon with a bargain price of $5.99! It's a great chance to get it if you have been wanting to read it.

The Poet Slave of Cuba

"Poetry cools me, syllables calm me
I read the verses of others
the free men
and know
that I'm never alone

Poetry sets me aflame
I grow furious
dangerous, a blaze
a soul and heart, a fiery tongue
a lantern at midnight"
-Juan p. 4

Lately I have really enjoyed books written in verse. The Poet Slave of Cuba: A Biography of Juan Francisco Marzano by Margarita Engle with art by Sean Qualls has been on my to-read list from the start of the school year. Once I picked it up, I read it in one setting. It was amazing.

Combining two of my favorite formats, multiple perspectives and writing in verse, Engle told the biography in an uncommon way. The book explains that she felt she needed to write it in verse in able to do the poet justice. We learn so much about Marzano's life through snippets of information told by Marzano, his parents, his original owner, his second owner and her son, and the overseer. I am excited about how this format drew me into what could have otherwise been a slow-moving biography and to see if it has the same effect on my students.

In one week I am going to be highlighting poetry in our classroom and am going to showcase this and other novels in verse that we have in the room. I am so glad that I read this book with perfect timing to share it with my students. I will probably also post the excerpt from the book somewhere around the room as well.

Violet on the Runway

When I first started blogging and following book blogs this summer, Melissa Walkers' trio of Violet books were getting a lot of buzz, especially since it was close to the release of the third book. After waiting patiently for a while to see if a copy would show up on Book Mooch, I ended up buying a copy of Violet on the Runway from Amazon. Then my mom got me the second and third books off my wish list for my birthday (perfect timing). I love all three of the book covers - such fun designs and good use of color.

I really enjoyed the first book and am excited that I already have the other two waiting to be read. It was fun to see Violet go from a senior lacking confidence to gaining it through her unexpected modeling career. At the same time there is a fine line for Violet between positively changing from the experience and losing herself completely with her new "IT girl" life.

Author Melissa Walker also has a really fun blog. This summer I was looking at it regularly since I kept on hearing her books come up. Then once the business of the school year hit I eventually lost touch with the site. I just skimmed it to get the link for this post and can see that I have missed out on a lot. I am adding it to my blog roll so that I remember to check into it regularly. One of my favorite features is that she often gives cover stories of books. Covers are one of my favorite things about books, so it is fun to see the behind the scenes of this essential component.

Violet on the Runway is another one of those books that will go onto my "someday" shelf, hoping that I will eventually have interaction with a high school audience again to enjoy it because they would absolutely love it.

Does My Head Look Big In This?

Does My Head Look Big In This? by Randa Abdel-Fattah was one of those books that caught my attention from the first time I saw it. It has such a fun cover, from the title I could tell it was going to be humorous, and it centers on cultural identity - one of my favorite topics. After recently reading Abdel-Fattah's Ten Things I Hate about Me and enjoying it so much I was even more eager to read the book.

Once I finally sat down to read it I was not disappointed, as the book met up to my high hopes for it. I enjoyed Amal's witty personality. I also enjoyed that it was set in Australia like Ten Things. I always love catching glimpses of other countries and cultures through books, and I do not remember ever reading a book set in Australia. The two books showed me different aspects of the country. While both Amal and Jamilah were Muslims dealing with racism and prejudice, their families were very different. I still laugh thinking about how strict Jamilah's father was and the rules he had her sign and post on the refrigerator. Amal's parents were more liberal, yet Amal was very strong in her faith and stuck to her beliefs even when it would have been easier to not do so.

I thoroughly enjoyed both of Abdel-Fattah's books as stand alones, but being able to analyze them side by side adds another dimension of enjoyment. I hope to see more books from her soon! She's one of those authors that I think I would enjoy anything she writes.

A Recipe 4 Robbery

Marybeth Kelsey's middle grade mystery, A Recipe 4 Robbery, quickly pulled me in. Lindy and her two friends, Margaret and Gus, are likable characters who get swept up into solving a crime. Not only is Lindy hoping to receive a reward for recovering family heirlooms, but she also wants to make sure that a community member with a passion for animal rescue is not wrongly accused. Although the trio is cautious to not jump to conclusions, putting all the pieces together does not go as smoothly as they originally think. Their search for justice leads them through many twists and turns.

As a bilingual teacher I enjoyed sprinklings of French throughout the book. Even though my students are in an English-Spanish dual immersion program, I love any book that celebrates other languages sparking a curiosity for additional language learning beyond their two established langauges.

Aside from the endearing plot, I also like the format of the book. The text appears to be double spaced which will be appealing to the developing readers in my class. The readability and plot are a great combination to attract diverse levels of readers. I can see this being another perfect addition to the classroom library in which strong readers and developing readers alike can read, enjoy, and discuss together.

BEDA Challenge

Over at Em's Bookshelf I just heard about the BEDA (Blog Every Day April) Challenge that Maureen Johnson started. I decided to join in with one twist, my once a day blog post can be on either of my blogs (Mrs. V's Reviews or In Search of Balance).

Here is the Blog Every Day in April Manifesto:

I commit to this idea and am determined to create something EVERY DAY in April, including weekends. Every day, I will find something to say. I embrace the reality that there is always something to talk about, if you are willing to take the time to look for it.

I Mrs. V promise to blog every day in April.

This should not be hard material wise because I already wrote a list of blog topics that I want to do, with more ideas flowing in all the time with the super busy end of the school year frenzy.

I would love to know if you plan on doing BEDA so that I can check in to see your posts as well!