My Reading Week #IMWAYR- January 30, 2023

Thanks to Unleashing Readers and Teach Mentor Texts for this meme!

This Is Not My Home by Vivienne Chang
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A wonderful reverse immigration story that, as someone who experienced something similar, I really appreciated since no one really talks about reverse culture shock.

All the Beating Hearts by Julie Fogliano
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A lyrical exploration of life and what unites us all.

Just Like Grandma by Kim Rogers
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book has many surprising wonderful elements that readers will love.

Tia Isa Wants a Car by Meg Medina
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I read this because Meg Medina was recently appointed as the latest National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature and I have a Reading Challenge to read their notable books as a way to celebrate.

This is a sweet story about a girl helping her aunt- her Tia Isa- buy the car of her dreams. It perfectly captures the immigrant family’s mindset (at least, it reminds me of my family) of having a dream that benefits others and postponing it for awhile to help others. And, of course, I loved seeing how the niece contributed.

A Color of His Own by Leo Lionni
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A sweet story of finding a place where one can belong just by being yourself.

Try a Little Kindness: A Guide to Being Better by Henry Cole
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A sweet book about different ways of being kind with very cheeky illustrations.

I Love My Mommy Because… by Laurel Porter-Gaylord
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A perfect read aloud for mother and baby.

Cut!: How Lotte Reiniger and a Pair of Scissors Revolutionized Animation by C.E. Winters
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A wonderful picture book about a pioneer in animation. I didn’t even know about Lotte Reiniger until a couple years or so ago and am glad that there have been books like this one to shine a light on her talents.

Grace Banker and Her Hello Girls Answer the Call: The Heroic Story of WWI Telephone Operators by Claudia Friddell
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was an interesting read about a subject I wasn’t familiar with. I wish the author had included their struggles after coming home rather than bury it in the back matter.

Georgia O’Keeffe: She Saw the World in a Flower by Gabrielle Balkan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

What the Artist Saw is a new picture book biography series that introduces readers to artists and includes activities they can do themselves. This one focuses on Georgia O’Keeffe. What I appreciated is that there were images of some of her work to help me better understand her art. I will definitely continue checking out the other books in this series.

Claude Monet: He Saw the World in Brilliant Light by D.K. Publishing
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

What the Artist Saw is a new picture book biography series that introduces readers to artists and includes activities they can do themselves. This one focuses on Claude Monet. What I appreciated is that there were images of some of his work to help me better understand his art. I will definitely continue checking out the other books in this series.

Donut Feed the Squirrels by Mika Song
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Two squirrel friends come up with a plan to satisfy their donut cravings much to the annoyance of the owner of the food cart selling such treats. But while they learn they may not get exactly what they want, something else may come out of it.

Linked by Gordon Korman
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I don’t think I’ve read a book recently that has elicited such strong conflicting feelings in me like this one. I was ready to rave about this book saying how thought-provoking it was and still is. But the book just rubbed me the wrong way after the twist was revealed. There just seemed to be no consequence to the person and it almost seemed like a dismissal of “Boys will be boys” especially when the whole town seemed to bend over backwards to help the kid out. Maybe I just need to be a more forgiving person but I wanted more when other people wouldn’t have had a second chance to redeem themselves. I think I could go off on a rant about this book for awhile. Anyway, the main point after my mood soured against this book was that one of the scariest things we can come across when faced with hate is indifference.

The Stranger by Albert Camus
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

It’s been a week of disappointing reads for me. The latest WTF read was The Stranger by Albert Camus.

The only good thing I have to say about it was that it was a short read.

Maybe I’m missing something so please inform me if I am but I also don’t want to think any more about this when I didn’t find it good at the most basic level.

If I wanted to read about life’s inconsequentiality and how comically tragic things can happen, I would just pick up my journal.

You can view all my reviews over on Goodreads. Please consider supporting independent bookstores when you want to buy any of the books I’ve mentioned via Bookshop.org or Libro.fm.

Thanks for visiting my blog. Happy Reading!

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