What Are You Reading? (59) #IMWAYR – September 8, 2013

Thanks to Book Journey for starting this whole thing!

Thanks also to Teach Mentor Texts and Unleashing Readers for their focus on Children’s Literature of this meme!

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This week, I posted:
–Room to Read– If you love books and are a strong advocate for literacy (as I suspect you are) and/or part of the non-profit world, these books are must-reads.

–Flashback Friday- Dr. Seuss

Making signs and shelftalkers for work has made me realize that I like to use lots of elements and have some sort of interactive element. It’s good to know this because I can’t draw. Here’s one I made for Tikki Tikki Tembo.

I bought the newest Jasper Fforde book, The Song of the Quarkbeast.

I also wanted to share this video that’s making its rounds on the internet- a great documentary about bookstores and bookselling. I know it inspired me to be a better bookseller.

-Mr. Tiger Goes Wild by Peter Brown [*]- This was getting a lot of buzz so I had to read it.

-Iggy Peck, Architect by Andrea Beaty, Illustrated by David Roberts [**]- I remember my boss raving about this. This was pretty enjoyable, funny.

-Rosie Revere, Engineer by Andrea Beaty, Illustrated by David Roberts [*]- This was pretty much the same message/plot but with a different-gendered protagonist. I did enjoy seeing Iggy in the background of some scenes. Now, I’ve got to see if she was in the other book.

-Lulu and the Brontosaurus by Judith Viorst, Illustrated by Lane Smith [*]- I’ve been recommending this to customers for awhile but I actually just read it. I like the writer and the illustrator. This was a cute story of a girl who wants everything and practically gets anything she wants until she asks for a brontosaurus. I think kids and parents will enjoy the cheeky narrator, the illustrations, the characters, the lessons, and the story itself.

-The Curious Garden by Peter Brown [**]- This was much enjoyable and I loved the message. He definitely has a unique style.

-Santiago Stays by Angela Dominguez [*]- The illustrations here are wonderful, actually adding another element to the story of a boy trying to coax a stubborn French bulldog to play with him without success. I liked the tiny twist at the end.

-The Line [**]- This is another one of those wordless picture books that hits it out of the park with it’s inventiveness and playfulness.

-Hello Mr. Hulot by David Merveille [**- My Pick of the Week]- What a great find this was! If you’re familiar with the Mr. Bean character you’ll enjoy these comic strip style short stories with a surprising often entertaining “reveal” on the next page. The illustrations are incredible and I actually want to watch the films these are based on.

-Francis, the Little Fox by Veronique Boisjoly, Illustrated by Katty Maurey [*]- The illustration drew me in but I almost didn’t want to finish reading it. There seemed to be no point in it.

-Something Big by Sylvie Neeman, Illustrated by Ingrid Godon [**]-A little boy wants to do “Something Big” but doesn’t quite know what exactly. A touching story about a father and son and making a difference.

-Nicholas Again by René Goscinny, Illustrated by Jean-Jacques Sempé [**]-I’m so glad I met Rene Goscinny’s character. The adventures of this French school boy are told in short stories. He is so excitable and always getting in trouble and his friends are just as good (or it it bad?) as him! A great character in children’s literature!

Rating Scale
*= It was OK
**= Liked it
***= Recommended
****= Highly Recommended
*****= Favorite

I started reading Anne Ursu’s The Real Boy.

Have a great reading week!