Galley Prints read

I haven't really posted on any books like I originally intended so today I thought I would.  I have recently read a few "galley prints".  These are books that haven't been published yet.  A few were through loan via netgalley.com and a few are directly from the publisher.  So below is my very brief opinion on each.  They are in no particular order.

Sisters Red by Jackson Pearce
Loved it but I love fairy tales being retold.  This is Little Red Riding Hood with a Happy ending.  I think teens will like it and it flows really well.

The Bad Queen by Carolyn Meyer
Liked it.  It is about Mary Antoinette, a hard subject for me to get into.  Although I did not walk away liking the main character I did understand her motivation and personality better. Worth reading.

Jessica's Guide to Dating by Beth Fantaskey  this was a lot of fun.  A better and more satisfying vampire book than Twilight.  Not dissing Twilight but this was a bit more meaty :)

The Secret to Lying by Todd Mitchell
At first I didn't think that I liked this book or more precisely where it was going. Definitely a book worth reading to the end. Satisfying ending although the over all setting is less than believable the characters are very believable. Still has me thinking of the characters and their problems--and that takes a lot for me.

This World We Live In by  Susan Beth Pfeffer
Wow, I didn’t think she could do it again but Susan Beth Pfeffer did.  This book, This World We Live In, was hauntingly good.  I started it and couldn’t put it down.  Similar to the first, the protagonist Miranda Evan is back.  Set about6-12 months after the moon has been hit by a meteor and has caused the Earth uncontrollable climatic trouble.  The book picks back up with Miranda and her family.  This time the family is expanding and the troubles are too. Although it is a third in a series this book could be read as a “stand-a-lone”book.   It has a logical progression of events, which is frightening too.  Just when the reader thinks that the story can’t keep up the action pace it does.  I like how the characters in the second book were inter-woven into the fabric of this book too. I think mature readers can handle the topic along with the lightly mention topics of teen love and intimacy. I dearly hope that this is not the last book in this series. The author had me wanting to stock my shelves and lay in the supplies for this Dystopian future. Great read.

In case it wasn't obvious from the review the last book This World We Live In was my favorite!  I will keep trying to write my reviews both here and at Shelfari. 

Reading and Writing

You know I once taught and in-service to a bunch of teachers.  It was a summer workshop on science and math and hands-on activities.  I read them a quote from a teacher's manual from 1919 or "somewhere there abouts".  Anyway, the jest of the quote is that students gain more from hands on, real world application and use.  Also students learn by doing.  Imagine that! The wheel is constantly being reinvented and today is no exception!  Research is saying that if you let kids read on their own and choose what they want to read they read better.  Guess what I heard today?  If you let them write on their own and not focus on the process as much, they become better writers both in school and on standardized test. WHOA---you mean if they get a chance to just "do it" instead of talking it to death it makes a difference?  I hate when people treat kids like they are idiots.  Learning can actually be fun.  :)

Bibliophile

The dictionary says that a bibliophile is"a person who collects or has a great love of books."  Yep that is me.  I am trying to pass them on now so I don't get buried by them!  No sense having a book just sit. Now I need to write my own.  Have the ideas, the start but need to finish the purpose or direction to go and finish it.  Hmm

Cookbooks

Okay, I have a penchant for cookbooks anyway but I made the mistake of watching "Julie and Julia". Now I MUST have "Mastering the Art of French Cooking".  Even if all I do is read it, I must have it!   I have never really desired to cook anything French except French bread but now I must have the book.  MUST is the theme here.  So what do I cook instead today since I don't have said book?  A giant brownie cupcake with cream cheese icing.  Not at all French but I had a new pan and I wanted to check it out.  Thus books and cooking collide in a very weird way.  Cooking is a peaceful thing to do even when it isn't fancy--as long as you have time. BTW, I did place a bid for said book. :)  Wish me luck!  Let you know in 4 days if it is mine!  Then I think I will find that beef dish she cooked in the movie and try my hand at that.

What if?

Here is a novel concept (ha ha). What if all you had to do to improve your reading and improve how you do in school and in life was to read more. Not read more of what people told you to read but what you wanted to read. Simple, low cost (think school and public library). Wow. I get so tired of all the tricks or programs to "get your child to read". Basically you read what they want to hear. What you like to read. When they can they read what they want to read thus the read more.

Studies over and over and over say the more you read the better you get at it. DUH! I could list the studies but just google "research on self selected reading site:gov" Like riding a bike. Was anyone born riding a bike? No.

Can you tell I was looking a useless grants today spouting "they" had the answer to make reading work? UGH!