Crazy Town

Asylum by Madeline Roux

I saw this at the bookstore a couple of weeks before I actually bought it. It has a sequel,  but I will likely wait until it's released in paperback before I buy it.

Dan is accepted into a summer college prep course at a university in New Hampshire,  I think.  They are renovating the dorms, so they house the kids in an old, abandoned asylum.

I always say nothing good happens in an asylum,  and that sentiment is true here. Weird things happen to Dan, particularly after he and his friends investigate the offices, which are off limits. Dan learns about a serial killer who was housed there, and there are crimes popping up that are eerily similar. 

I enjoyed this book, as it has creepy,  abandoned asylum photos. It's done much like Ransom Riggs' books, but creepier.  Probably shouldn't have read it in the dark, by the beam of a flashlight before bed though.  There may have been some nightmares. ;)

Reading List #25 and 26

Rules by Cynthia Lord

Catherine is twelve, and her brother, David, is eight. David is autistic, and Catherine finds herself taking care of him/entertaining him more than she'd like. Her needs come second to his. It's summer, and a new girl moves into the house next door. Catherine has wanted nothing so much as a friend of her own. Catherine has also made a friend at the OT office, Jason, who seems to be a quadrapelegic. Catherine learns about true friendship, and that she doesn't have to worry about David. A true friend wouldn't mind her brother.

Timmy Failure: Now Look What You've Done by Stephan Pastis

My guess with this one is someone saw how popular the Diary of a Wimpy Kid books are, and wanted to try to capitalize on their success as this series is very similar.

Timmy fancies himself the world's greatest detective. He has a "trusty" sidekick, a polar bear named Total. They are trying to solve their most important case to date: the mystery of the principal's missing globe. Unfortunately, Timmy misses the most obvious clues, and comes to the wrong conclusions, despite the help of his friends. Still, this was an amusing and quick read.

Reading List #24

Out of my Mind by Sharon Draper

Melody is eleven years old and in the fifth grade. She is incredibly smart, but next to no one knows because Melody can't speak. She also can't walk, or do many things that "normal" children her age can do. Melody has cerebral palsy.

This book chronicles Melody going from an outcast in the developmental room at school to an inclusion program. It covers how she gets a machine that helps her to talk. Due to this machine, she is able to communicate and try out for the Whiz Kid competition. She makes the team, and helps them get to the finals in Washington DC, but her team, in their selfishness, ditches her.

There were several instances where there were tears. I hated reading about how people treated Melody because of her disability, but rejoiced when they embraced how awesome she was.

Reading List 14-23

Hitler Youth by Susan Campbell Bartoletti

An informational text about, you guessed it, Hitler Youth. There were things that surprised me, like how it was set up like the Scouts. They did a lot of camping and having campfires, much like my experiences with Girl Scouts. It wasn't meant to be the atrocity it became, but then, neither did Germany as a whole at that time.

Mirror Mirror by Marilyn Singer

Poetry based on fairy tales. Two poems per fairy tale, as well as two pictures per fairy tale. The pictures are meant to mirror each other. The poems are written using the exact same words, but backward.

The Three Pigs by David Wiesner

Basically, the same story we all know, but with a twist. The pigs end up in other nursery rhymes and stories, make friends with the characters, and bring them back to their own story to defeat the Wolf.

Balloons Over Broadway by Melissa Sweet

This is the story of puppeteer Tony Sarg, and how he came up with the idea of the floats used in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade.

Spiders by Nic Bishop

An informational text about spiders. Awesome pictures. Even if you are not a fan of spiders, you can appreciate these pictures.

Primates by Jim Ottaviani

An informational text in the style of a graphic novel. In this case, it is about Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey and Birute Galdikas and their contributions to the study of primates.

It's So Amazing by Robie Harris

I had a hard time getting my hands on this one, and, frankly, I could have done without reading this one. It is about the facts of life, including how babies are made, menstruation, circumcision, adoption, STD's, and love. Unfortunately, this book will stick with me because I am scarred for life from some of the illustrations. Naked, hairy cartoon me. Old cartoon women with saggy boobs. Come on! No child needs to see that!

My Teacher is a Monster by Peter Brown

Robert thinks his teacher is a monster until he sees her one day in the park, and they hang out. He begins to see her as a regular person, until they are back in the classroom.

Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick

Honestly, when I saw the size of this book, I started cursing my professor. It's 620 pages, and I have this long-ass reading list. I am generally not bothered by the length of a book, but, again, I have a long-ass reading list. My school librarian pointed out it wasn't truly that long, and I would knock it out in no time. She was right; I finished in about an hour and a half.

This is the story of Rose in 1927, told mostly in pictures. And the pictures! Simply stunning! Rose is 12, has a fascination with an actress (who turns out to be her mother), and is deaf. She runs away from home because her father is overbearing, and they think she can't make it in the world because she is deaf. She finds her older brother in New York, and he helps her find her way in the world.

This is also the story of Ben, who is partially deaf (until he is truck by lightning through the phone, which makes him totally deaf), almost twelve, living in Minnesota, who has recently lost his mother. He finds some clues the night he is struck by lightning of the father he's never known. He runs away from the hospital to New York to find his father. While there, he sees some of his father's work in the Natural History Museum, and makes a friend. In his search, he meets Rose, who turns out to be his grandmother.

Lovely story that made me cry a little.

Something for Me

To All the Boys I've Loved Before by Jenny Han

My daughter wanted to read this, and it is a possibility for this year's TAYSHAS list, so I took a little time from my children's book reading to check this one out. It was a fast read, so there was no harm in reading something I wanted to.

Lara Jean is the middle daughter. Her mother died when she was younger, and her older sister Margot took over things so the household would run smoothly. Margot is dating the boy Lara Jean is in love with, although she thought she was over that. When Margot breaks up with the boy, Josh, Lara Jean realizes she still feels something for him.

Lara Jean has loved five boys in her life, and when she is over them, she writes them letters that she never sends as closure. One day, those letters somehow get mailed, and Lara Jean's life gets out of hand. One boy, Peter, gets Lara Jean's letter, and ultimately, he and Lara Jean decide they will pretend to date so that they can make the people they both really like jealous.

I liked this because it had a Can't Buy Me Love vibe. More importantly, it is ok for my daughter to read.

Reading List #4-14

I have been remiss in keeping up with my reading list books, so I am playing catch up today.

It's a Book by Lane Smith

A cute book about a monkey and a donkey. The monkey is reading a book, and the donkey wants to know what it is. The donkey has a hard time understanding why the book is so entertaining to the monkey when it doesn't have the bells and whistles of his gadgets.

Olivia by Ian Falconer

Olivia is a little pig, quite literally. She's probably about three years old. She doesn't like to nap, or go to sleep, she has to try on everything she owns when she gets dressed, and wears out everyone around her. She also goes to the beach and the museum. She's a cultured swine.

Legend of the Bluebonnet by Tomie De Paola

Beautifully illustrated, this is a story of sacrifice. There is drought and famine for the Commanche people due to the selfishness of the people. They are told that if someone makes the ultimate sacrifice of their most valuable possession, the drought and famine would end. None of the warriors or other adults would give up their most valuable possession, but a little girl gives up her doll. In return for her sacrifice, the gods decided to allow bluebonnets to cover the land every spring.

This is Not my Hat by Jon Klassen

Two fish, one big, one little. The little fish steals the hat off of the big fish while he sleeps. He thinks he gets away with it, but he's wrong. The end.

Me....Jane by Patrick McDonnell

A biography on the early life of Jane Goodall.

Martina the Beautiful Cockroach by C.A. Deedy

Martina is of age to marry, but all her suitors only want her to meet their needs, not because they actually love her. She finds someone who loves her for her.

We Are the Ship by Kadir Nelson

Beautifully illustrated, told in nine innings, the story, from the beginning of Negro Baseball.

Rosa by Nikki Giovanni

Tells about the day Rosa Parks wouldn't give up her seat on the bus, and the aftermath in her hometown.

How They Croaked by Georgia Bragg

Informational text about nineteen historically significant personages. Gives the information, but also makes it interesting/amusing. I learned something, and I had fun doing it.

Paperbag Princess by Robert Munsch

Elizabeth was a beautiful princess who was supposed to marry prince Roland. Unfortunately, a dragon came and burned everything, including her clothes, and took Roland with him. Elizabeth outsmarts the dragon and saves Roland, but decides he isn't worthy of her.

Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson

Children's books should not be this sad! I realize that they have to learn about sadness and death, but I would have a hard time, as a teacher, assigning this book to my class.

Jess is a loner. He is the only son in a houseful of daughters, and is often overlooked unless he forgets to do his chores. Jess has been practicing all summer to be the fastest kid in school, but then Leslie the new girl decides to race. Leslie wins, and is the fastest, but Jess doesn't seem to mind. They become inseparable friends. They create a "kingdom" of their own in the woods. Everything is hunky dory until one day a fatal accident claims Leslie. Jess is heartbroken, but doesn't know how to deal with his grief. Ultimately, it takes a talk with his teacher to see that he can move on.

So that was ten. Sheesh. I still have seven more for the first two assignments that are due at the end of the week.