Teach Like Your Hair's on Fire

This is another book that's been on my list for a long time, and I figured the summer before I myself am teaching like my hair is on fire might be a good time to actually read it. Although the author of this particular teacher memoir is an elementary teacher - and teaches at a school where homeroom teacher is also P.E. teacher, music teacher, and art teacher - and therefore teaches about six more subjects than I will, there was a lot that I learned from this book. To be completely honest, several chapters were skipped in the interest of relevance to me. One or two other chapters were skipped because the methods and activities he spends considerable amounts of time developing with his students are way more involved than I will be able to manage during my first five years of teaching at least. What was left, though, were excellent nuggets of advice and classroom management techniques that I will definitely think about and use when approaching the start of my classroom. He clearly shows the love he has for his job as he shares stories of students past and present, but also reveals valid and refreshing frustration with administration and policy that doesn't advocate for the best use of time or efforts as far as the students are concerned. I really enjoyed reading this book and will definitely reference several of the chapters and passages once the school year starts.

The Heroes of Olympus: The Lost Hero

Anyone who has read this blog in the last nine months or so knows that I am in love with Percy Jackson. I'm a huge, huge fan. So when I heard that Rick Riordan had started a new series featuring new demigods I got excited; when dear friends gave me the first book of that series to me as a graduation present I got really excited. I believe it goes without saying that I was not disappointed. I loved this book, and zoomed through the 557 pages in a couple of days.

The Heroes of Olympus series surrounds three new characters: Jason, Piper, and Leo. Jason wakes up on the first page of the book with complete amnesia of his entire life, and yet he seems to have an incredible knowledge of all things Roman (the Latin language, the Roman names of the gods, an "SPQR" tattoo on his forearm, etc.). Piper's father is a famous movie star who doesn't always have time for her, to which she responds with an impressive rap sheet and an uncanny ability to convince anyone to give her whatever she wants. Leo, highly ADHD, is a bit of a screw up who has many secrets surrounding the death of his mother and a certain terrifying babysitter who tried to kill him several times in his childhood. All three of these teenagers, as you might guess, are the children of gods and end up at Camp Half-Blood under the guidance of our favorite centaur, Chiron. An epic quest follows with enough monsters, angry gods and goddesses, and flying spirits to keep any struggling reader interested. Add a plethora of explosions, destructive storms, and an all-gold, fire breathing dragon and pretty much any reader will be interested. I miss Percy - minor spoiler alert: this series starts out with Percy mysteriously missing - but many of my old faves make appearances throughout the book which I always appreciate. The new characters are immediately endearing, which I also appreciate. Bottom line: I loved it and am anxiously awaiting the second book this Fall.

Special note as far as teaching purposes go: the chapters rotate perspective between the three main characters, providing a great example for a study on voice and perspective.

Maus I: A Survivor's Tale

Like many of the books on my list, I've been waiting to read this book for a long time. After hearing about it in a class a couple of years ago, I put it on said list - and then soon after bought it - but haven't had an opportunity to read it until now. Also, I have so many books on this list that it's hard to choose sometimes. But all of that said, I knew I would love this book and I was not disappointed. Not only am I excited to add a graphic novel to my library, but I always appreciate a new perspective on World War II and on the Holocaust specifically. Maus I: A Survivor's Tale offers both of these. Gritty and painfully honest, Art Spiegelman's account of his father's experiences in Europe as a Jew during World War II and the rise of the Nazi Party takes place alongside Spiegelman's present-day relationship with his father. Both story lines captivate and endear the reader; you can't help but read for fear of what will happen to war-era Vladek but also for curiosity of what the next interaction between Art and current Vladek will look like. You sympathize with the characters - both in the past and in the present - and you become increasingly more horrified as the Nazis gain more control. One of the most interesting elements of this particular graphic novel, though, is the way Spiegelman chose to draw each of the characters. Jews are depicted as mice while the Germans/Nazis appear as cats. The image of these animals, who are timeless enemies, pitted as enemies in this real life piece of history will stick with struggling readers in an unforgettable way. I highly recommend this book for teachers of Language Arts and History who are trying to communicate the Holocaust from a unique perspective and a reader-friendly format. Stay tuned for my review of the sequel.

Forged by Fire

After finishing Tears of a Tiger, I had no choice but to immediately launch into the sequel. I was actually introduced to Sharon Draper's Hazlewood High trilogy through my student teaching experience, and it was Forged by Fire that was being read as a read-aloud by my Cooperating Teacher. We hadn't gotten very far by the time I left the classroom, and I have honestly been looking forward to finding out what happens to Gerald and his family. And now that I've successfully read the book in its entirety, I can say that I loved this book just as much as I loved Tears of a Tiger. Everything I said about Draper's style in the first book - her graceful and careful handling of extremely difficult content - rings true here as well. Gerald's life, starting here in his toddler years and much before the timeline of Tears of a Tiger, is extremely difficult and heartwrenching to read, but Draper once again manages to write about these circumstances while keeping the book very PG-rated. This book ties into the plot of its predecessor well by beginning with Gerald as a toddler and then gradually moving forward in time until it "catches up to" Tears of a Tiger in the order of events. Because of this, the book - which would still be extremely powerful on its own as a stand-alone novel - becomes more emotional for readers who know what will happen to the boys as the plot continues because they have already read about the accident in the first book. Forged by Fire would be an excellent book to recommend to a student for silent, individual reading but would also be great for an engaging and emotional read-aloud as well. My only word of caution is that there are clear mentions and suggestions of sexual molestation in this plot that repeatedly comes up, so it would be wise to know where those parts are and know how you will skip over them and/or edit them for a read-aloud if you are uncomfortable reading them straight from the text. They are only implied and suggested, rather than described explicitly, but you may still feel that it's necessary to edit somewhat. Overall, though, the Hazlewood High trilogy continues to be fantastic, and I can't wait to get my hands on Darkness Before Dawn.

I'm Baaack!

Remember me? It's been approximately forever since I've written a post on this thing, but I HAVE been reading and I HAVE been thinking "Hey...I should probably post on that thing..." But I haven't. Mostly because it's summer and somewhat because the internet stinks at my house, but regardless of all reasons, I'm back. And I figured few things would be better to welcome my return to your inboxes and Google readers than a basically useless post from me that honestly tells you nothing.

...actual book reviews to follow soon.