46-51: Fall Reads

I have met my goal to read 50 books this year!  Yay!

For the R.I.P. Challenge:  4 novels

1. The Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen: So good! I enjoyed this one as much as I enjoyed Allen’s Garden Spells. Just a touch of fairy tale and magic.  I loved main character Josey, who seems so human because she is not perfect.  The main imperfection at the moment is Della Lee who has taken up residence in Josey's closet and is now privy to Josey's secret:  she loves sweets (me, too). Want to Read by This Author:  The Peach Keeper and Shoot the Moon.
2. Dead in Dallas by Charlaine Harris: Need to read more in this series! I have several more of Sookie Stackhouse's adventures awaiting on me.  Remember, Sookie is not a vampire herself. She just dates a vampire.  Her "gift" is that she can read minds of everyone except her vampire.  While I do enjoy this series, I must recommend Harris’ Lily Bard series…must be the English teacher in me and that I live in Arkansas!
3. Cross Fire by James Patterson: I so enjoy reading James Patterson. This one I purchased before my daughter’s surgery and read following our move out of ICU…a nice escape from reality! This novel continues the adventures of Alex Cross, who once again must protect those he loves the most as their lives are endangered by the return of Kyle Craig, who has escape prison and has adopted the persona and face (via reconstructed surgery) so that he might more invade the live of Alex Cross.
4. The House at Riverton by Kate Morton: This one which I just finished this morning, took me a while to read; even read a couple in between. BUT it was good, just not as good as my previous Morton read The Forbidden Garden. This novel relates the story of this house through the memories of Grace as she records them for her grandson.  This novel reminded me somewhat of The Great Gatsby, as it was set in the 1920's and 1930's.  To read by this author:  The Distant Hours.
5. The Host by Stephanie Meyer...I completed this one after the R.I.P. Challenge.  It was on my original list to read.  So good!  Why did I wait so long to read this one?  Loved it!  Much more so than her Twilight series.  Seriously!

For My English 11 Class:

The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane is one of those classics that I should have read somewhere along the way but did not.  This is the first of four novels that I purchased, thanks to a grant I received, for all of my students.  I enjoyed it.  No, it is not a chick flick, but the novel relates an interesting perspective of war. 

My favorite lesson that I taught using this novel also involved a movie clip from Forestt Gump.  At one point main character Henry Fleming runs because he is scared.  We compared this scene to the one of Forestt when he was in the Vietnam War and he was instructed to run.  Interesting comparison.

Fifty-one books...and more to read!

45: The City of Fallen Angels

Cassandra Clare continues her The Immortal Instruments series in The City of Fallen Angels as she builds several of her characters, especially Simon who has just recently become a vampire...thinking Simon may now be my favorite character, for he seems to be the most "human" of all.  Weird, uh?

Before I began reading this one, in a discussion with a teacher-friend who is also hooked on this series (yes, I like it as well, if not better, than the Twilight series), she commentd the author must be going to write another one, for "she just can't let it end that way."  I agree...but that is all I can tell you!  (I did check out her website, and Clare is working on #5:  City of Lost Souls, coming in May 2012.)

Another note on the popularity of this novel...three students want this novel as soon as I return it to the school library.  Very proud of myself...I checked this book out, instead of buying it.  I am just too addicted to books, so in one small step to break this trend, I went to the shelf, read it, and did not annotate one single place in the novel.  (Annotation is part of the addiction, also!)  Now, I am excited to return it to school tomorrow and share!

Now, to begin The Infernal Devices series...book one The Clockwork Angel sits waiting on me.  (Yes, I bought that one!)  This series is actually the prequel to The Immortal Instruments series.  A flashback of sorts, I am assuming.

NOTE:  Cassandra Clare blogs here.

44: A Midsummer Night's Dream

My motivation for reading this particular play:  Our drama department will perform A Midsummer Night's Dream later this fall, and I am reading Iron King because I heard it referenced this play.  Thus, my thoughts are that I might create some mini-lessons for our English department to use by connecting this two genres in hopes of promoting the drama departments production.  Sneaky?  :)

Admission of Guilt:  I went online and read an overview of the play (had never read this one!  How did that happen?)...(in a very quiet voice)...this did help much in my quicker reading of the play!

Our drama teacher has modernized the storyline, and I can now further understand her enthusiasm, for this plot line will definitely appeal to this age group and especially to those who have enjoyed the fantasy literary revival of late.  Her production will be set in a modern high school setting.

Shakespeare has everyone falling in love...with the help of a little magical concoctions...and then falling out of love...and even includes a Romeo and Juliet extreme love scene.  Oh, and one cannot help but laugh as several make donkeys of themselves.

Yes, the drama department and the audience should appreciate this one!

Now, to finish reading Iron King and to begin making text-to-text connections between the two genres...

Read A Midsummer Night's Dream online here.

00: The Book Whisperer

I am not counting this book as one of my 2011 reads...I sat down with it and quickly realized it is not one that "fits" who I am right now, so I skim/scanned the book in one evening.

Author Donalyn Miller is a sixth grade language arts teacher in Texas who succeeds in kids reading 40+ books per year...yes, amazing...and she discusses how she achieves this goal.

My goal is to have kids reading...right now, all my students have checked out a book that they are reading for "pleasure."  With the advent of the Common Core, though, my focus has changed (thankfully!); therefore, we may read less, but read them more in depth.

Need tips and encouragement, though, to send kids further down the literary path...especially younger readers...then this professional development book is for you!

43: Advancing Formative Assessment in Every Classroom

Our English Department chose this book to read as our summer reading assignment...and from me it receives all positive reviews, except for just one thought.   The book was written for instructional leaders, not teachers.  As a teacher, I was offended, often expecting the word imbecile to pop off the page in reference to the leader in the classroom.  (Felt this most strongly in the last chapter, so if you are a teacher, you might consider just ending the book at chapter 7.) My problem with these authors and others who support such subtle suggestions is that these people have forgotten that they are simply support staff for the true leaders in any school district. I wish our thinking on the chain of command were not so skewed, but it is.  Now with that side note...okay, fore-note aside, I would love to share the nuggets that I, just a teacher, gleaned from this book.

The authors Connie Moss and Susan Bookhart are ever-encouraging student involvement in their learning...and this I love!  (I will be the first to admit that I need be LESS the sage on the stage and MORE of the guide on the side.)  They promote the students being involved in setting goals, self-assessing, and asking effective questions.  They promote the teachers being involved in sharing learning targets, providing feedback that informs and "feeds forward"  (formative assessments = "assessments for learning rather than assessment of learning"),and asking strategic questions.

I especially appreciated the discussions about...

1. having students create an assignment's rubric,
2. utilizing formative assessments (and, no, I do not already use these...or at least not enough!), and,
3. asking questions (both from the teacher and the students).

Yes, this was a good read to finish...just one day until school starts...a good read from which I truly hope to implement that nuggets listed above.

41-42: James Patterson and Neil White

41:  The 9th Judgement by James Patterson

I waited long for the next installment in this series The Women's Murder Club.  James Patterson writes with a powerful voice and with gruesome detail.

If read Patterson, then will enjoy this one...but first read the other eight in the series!

42:  In the Sanctuary of Outcasts by Neil White

This one I read for the local ladies book club that I have yet to attend...actually, this is the second novel I have read for that book club!  Maybe third time will be charm!

This memoir is outstanding!  It relates the narrative of Neil White's year spent in a federal prison, which also housed the last people in the United States suffering from leprosy.  Really!  I found that hard to believe also!

This is one of those books you read...and immediately think, "I need to re-read that novel one day."  Felt the same way about The Shack and The Harry Potter Series.

What I appreciated most, the true message of the memoir for me, was the change that occurred with Neil White, as he learned what he truly valued in life.

Yes, another good read!

40: Slaughter-House Five

Chosen for a Book Challenge...