Reading Resources for Parents

As promised, each month in addition to a review of any new and great adult books I have read, I am also going to highlight some great online reading resources for parents.  Most of us struggle with how to get our children to read more, or are looking for additional books for our children to read.  I often get the question "What should my child be reading?" My most honest answer is "What ever they enjoy!"  Don't worry if your children are choosing to read books that don't seem like great works of literature.  Foster the love of reading first and they will come around to reading the classics before you know it.  Let your children see you read.  We all know we should model good behavior for our children, and this includes reading.  If you set aside time to read everyday, your children will see this, and come to develop the reading habit too!

So with this in mind, it seems best to start with Scholastic for Parents.  Scholastic is one of the top publishers for children's books in the United States, with a long history of providing great educational and recreational reading materials for kids.  Their website has extensive resources for parents on reading, as well as activities and printables.  One of the best features of this site is the "age-by-age quick finder."  Enter  your child's age, and the type of book you are looking for, and a list of suggested reading material is provided for you!  This is a well organized site, and it is very easy to use.  Take a few minutes to explore it, and let me know what you think!

http://www.scholastic.com/parents/

I was so excited to read the first book from Khaled Hosseini in six years.  After his huge success with two of my favorite books The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns, this book was eagerly awaited.  Oh how I wanted to love it, but I didn't even like it very much.  I think my problem was with the time shifting for each character.  Often that particular devise can be used effectively to tell a story that spans decades and multiple characters, but I felt like we were lurching from one story to the next, rather then making smooth transitions.  Hosseini is a genus at bringing the world of the Afghan diaspora to life, but this work is not quite as good as the others.  Read it for yourself however, and let me know what you think.  See a complete plot summary below!

Library Journal (April 1, 2013)

This bittersweet family saga spans six decades and transports readers from Afghanistan to France, Greece, and the United States. Hosseini (The Kite Runner; A Thousand Splendid Suns) weaves a gorgeous tapestry of disparate characters joined by threads of blood and fate. Siblings Pari and Abdullah are cruelly separated at childhood. A disfigured young woman, Thalia is abandoned by her mother and learns to love herself under the tutelage of a surrogate. Markos, a doctor who travels the world healing strangers, avoids his sick mother back home. A feminist poet, Nila Wahdatire, reinvents herself through an artful magazine interview, and Nabi, who is burdened by a past deed, leaves a letter of explanation. Each character tells his or her version of the same story of selfishness and selflessness, acceptance and forgiveness, but most important, of love in all its complex iterations.

Welcome Back and Big Changes to Come!

I hope that all of you had a wonderful, fun filled, and relaxing summer.  School is in full swing, and we have had a great start to the school year.  I wanted to let you know that this page is "somewhat" under construction this month.  I am going to expand this site to include information on parenting books, guided reading lists for children, sites on helping your children to become better readers, links and information on using our library resources, etc.  I am going to continue to offer my book reviews of adult fiction (see the first four choices on the right column), but expand to better meet the needs of our parents!  Some exciting changes are coming, and I look forward to hearing your thoughts.  Check back in October!

Inferno and Summer Reading

Dan Brown has brought us another Robert Langdon novel, that was on the best seller lists before it was even published (thanks to advanced ordering)!  I read my copy in just a few days, as it is another page turner.  I don't want to give too much of the plot away, as the suspense it what makes the Langdon novels so much fun to read.  I will say this, I was not crazy about the amnesia plot line, as it seemed a little contrived.  The Da Vinci Code is still my favorite in the Langdon series, but I liked Inferno better then Angels and Demons and The Lost Symbol.  See the complete plot summary below.

From the Publisher: In his international blockbusters The Da Vinci Code, Angels & Demons, and The Lost Symbol, Dan Brown masterfully fused history, art, codes, and symbols. In this riveting new thriller, Brown returns to his element and has crafted his highest-stakes novel to date.

In the heart of Italy, Harvard professor of symbology Robert Langdon is drawn into a harrowing world centered on one of history’s most enduring and mysterious literary masterpieces . . . Dante’s Inferno.

Against this backdrop, Langdon battles a chilling adversary and grapples with an ingenious riddle that pulls him into a landscape of classic art, secret passageways, and futuristic science. Drawing from Dante’s dark epic poem, Langdon races to find answers and decide whom to trust . . . before the world is irrevocably altered.

On the right hand side of this page you will see all of my suggested summer reading lists.  They can also be found on the Peck website with the summer projects.  I will post the books I plan to review on this blog next school year in August, but in the mean time enjoy my suggested summer reading material.   I hope you all have a safe and restful summer, and I will see you back here in the fall!

Wolf Hall and Bring Up the Bodies

It is hard to believe that summer is nearly here.   You will be able to access all of the summer reading suggestions for Grades K-12 and the adult list on the Peck website in June. 

Now, to the books of the month!  I am including information on two books this month, as they are part of a series.  I kept hearing wonderful things about Bring up the Bodies and it recently won the 2012 Man Booker Prize.  However, I knew is was the second in the series, so I decided to read Wolf Hall first.  If you love historical fiction, these are the books for you.  These books focus on the lives of the members of Henry VIII court, and the tension and tragedies that surround this particular reign.  Hilary Mantel does a wonderful job of bringing all of the historical figures to life (very similar to Philippa Gregory The Other Boleyn Girl), but perhaps with a more gritty edge.  These books would make a wonderful start to your summer reading list!  See complete summaries below, and happy reading.

Wolf Hall
From the Publisher:
WINNER OF THE 2009 MAN BOOKER PRIZE
WINNER OF THE NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD FOR FICTION
A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
England in the 1520s is a heartbeat from disaster. If the king dies without a male heir, the country could be destroyed by civil war. Henry VIII wants to annul his marriage of twenty years and marry Anne Boleyn. The pope and most of Europe opposes him. Into this impasse steps Thomas Cromwell: a wholly original man, a charmer and a bully, both idealist and opportunist, astute in reading people, and implacable in his ambition. But Henry is volatile: one day tender, one day murderous. Cromwell helps him break the opposition, but what will be the price of his triumph?

Bring Up the Bodies
From the Publisher:
Winner of the 2012 Man Booker Prize
Winner of the 2012 Costa Book of the Year Award
The sequel to Hilary Mantel's 2009 Man Booker Prize winner and New York Times bestseller, Wolf Hall delves into the heart of Tudor history with the downfall of Anne Boleyn
Though he battled for seven years to marry her, Henry is disenchanted with Anne Boleyn. She has failed to give him a son and her sharp intelligence and audacious will alienate his old friends and the noble families of England. When the discarded Katherine dies in exile from the court, Anne stands starkly exposed, the focus of gossip and malice.
At a word from Henry, Thomas Cromwell is ready to bring her down. Over three terrifying weeks, Anne is ensnared in a web of conspiracy, while the demure Jane Seymour stands waiting her turn for the poisoned wedding ring. But Anne and her powerful family will not yield without a ferocious struggle. Hilary Mantel's Bring Up the Bodies follows the dramatic trial of the queen and her suitors for adultery and treason. To defeat the Boleyns, Cromwell must ally with his natural enemies, the papist aristocracy. What price will he pay for Anne's head?
Bring Up the Bodies is one of The New York Times' 10 Best Books of 2012, one of Publishers Weekly's Top 10 Best Books of 2012 and one of The Washington Post's 10 Best Books of 2012

The Light Between the Oceans

This is an emotionally difficult book to read.  I feel I need to say that first, because while this is beautifully written, it will leave you shaken.  It is not always easy to know what is right and what is wrong, and the characters in this story struggle mightily with this dilema.  "Right and wrong can be like bloody snakes: so tangled up that you can't tell which is which until you've shot 'em both, and then it's too late."

Tom Sherbourne returns from World War I to Australia and takes up a post as a lighthouse keeper on a remote island of the coast.  He convinces his love Isabel to marry him, and together they live many happy years on the island.  After many miscarriages Isabel's spirits begin to wain when a boat washes up on shore with a dead man and a baby, very much alive.  Rather then report the accident, Tom and Isabel decide to raise the baby on their own.  Over time they convince themselves that they did the right thing.  On a journey to the main land sometime later they meet the true mother of the baby, mourning the loss of her husband, and still searching for the baby she feels must have survived.

Kirkus Reviews starred (July 15, 2012)

The miraculous arrival of a child in the life of a barren couple delivers profound love but also the seeds of destruction. Moral dilemmas don't come more exquisite than the one around which Australian novelist Stedman constructs her debut. Tom Sherbourne returns to Australia emotionally scarred after distinguished service in World War I, so the solitary work of a lighthouse keeper on remote Janus Rock is attractive. Unexpectedly, Tom finds a partner on the mainland, Isabel; they marry and hope to start a family. But Isabel suffers miscarriages then loses a premature baby. Two weeks after that last catastrophe, a dinghy washes ashore containing a man's body and a crying infant. Isabel wants to keep the child, which she sees as a gift from God; Tom wants to act correctly and tell the authorities. But Isabel's joy in the baby is so immense and the prospect of giving her up so destructive, that Tom gives way. Years later, on a rare visit to the mainland, the couple learns about Hannah Roennfeldt, who lost her husband and baby at sea. Now guilt eats away at Tom, and when the truth does emerge, he takes the blame, leading to more moral self-examination and a cliffhanging conclusion. A polished, cleverly constructed and very precisely calculated first novel.

The Tiger's Wife

In the interest of complete disclosure, it took me two attempts to finish this book, and I still did not love it.  I know that this is not the same opinion of many, but I just could not get into it.  Now with that being said, this book has given a great number of exceptional reviews from experts and lay persons alike.  The author, Tea Obreht, made the New York Time's list of "20 under 40" exceptional writers.  Most people love the interweaving of two stories, mythical and contemporary, but I just found it confusing.  With that, I will give you the review and summary of others, and give you chance to read it and make your own decision!  Feel free to comment below.

Booklist starred (February 15, 2011 (Vol. 107, No. 12))

Drawing on the former Yugoslavia’s fabled past and recent bloodshed, Belgrade-born Obreht portrays two besieged doctors. Natalia is on an ill-advised “good will” medical mission at an orphanage on what is suddenly the “other side,” now that war has broken out, when she learns that her grandfather, a distinguished doctor forced out of his practice by ethnic divides, has died far from home. She is beset by memories, particularly of her grandfather taking her to the zoo to see the tigers. We learn the source of his fascination in mesmerizing flashbacks, meeting the village butcher, the deaf-mute Muslim woman he married, and a tiger who escaped the city zoo after it was bombed by the Germans. Of equal mythic mystery is the story of the “deathless man.” Moments of breathtaking magic, wildness, and beauty are paired with chilling episodes in which superstition overrides reason; fear and hatred smother compassion; and inexplicable horror rules. Every word, every scene, every thought is blazingly alive in this many-faceted, spellbinding, and rending novel of death, succor, and remembrance.

Another double review!

Wow, where does the time go?  I apologize for another "double month" review this month.  I am planning on getting back on track after this.  I hope that everyone had a wonderful holiday break and has returned fresh and ready to read!  Here are the review for December and January.

The Paris Wife

History often neglects to tell the story of the "supporting players" in a persons life, but thankfully we have fiction to fill in the gaps.  Paula Mclain beautifully tells the tale of Ernest Hemingway and his wife Hadley.  Maclain does and excellent job of blending fact and fiction, and it left me wanting to learn more of the "true" history of this amazing marriage.  This is an excellent read, and one that I would recommend for your next vacation!


From the Publisher: A deeply evocative story of ambition and betrayal,The Paris Wifecaptures a remarkable period of time and a love affair between two unforgettable people: Ernest Hemingway and his wife Hadley.  Chicago, 1920: Hadley Richardson is a quiet twenty-eight-year-old who has all but given up on love and happiness—until she meets Ernest Hemingway and her life changes forever. Following a whirlwind courtship and wedding, the pair set sail for Paris, where they become the golden couple in a lively and volatile group—the fabled “Lost Generation”—that includes Gertrude Stein, Ezra Pound, and F. Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald.  Though deeply in love, the Hemingways are ill prepared for the hard-drinking and fast-living life of Jazz Age Paris, which hardly values traditional notions of family and monogamy. Surrounded by beautiful women and competing egos, Ernest struggles to find the voice that will earn him a place in history, pouring all the richness and intensity of his life with Hadley and their circle of friends into the novel that will becomeThe Sun Also Rises. Hadley, meanwhile, strives to hold on to her sense of self as the demands of life with Ernest grow costly and her roles as wife, friend, and muse become more challenging. Despite their extraordinary bond, they eventually find themselves facing the ultimate crisis of their marriage—a deception that will lead to the unraveling of everything they’ve fought so hard for.  A heartbreaking portrayal of love and torn loyalty,The Paris Wifeis all the more poignant because we know that, in the end, Hemingway wrote that he would rather have died than fallen in love with anyone but Hadley.

The Art of Fielding

While using baseball as a plot devise, this isn't really a sports fiction book.  The story isn't driven by whether the team wins or losses the "big game," but rather it sets up the frame work for how the 5 main characters in this work of fiction interact.   A full summary can be found below.  I found this book to be interesting, bu perhaps not the best I have read.  The characters were not easy to relate to, and yet you found yourself caring for each of them in the hopes that all would be well in the end. 

From the Publisher: At Westish College, a small school on the shore of Lake Michigan, baseball star Henry Skrimshander seems destined for big league stardom. But when a routine throw goes disastrously off course, the fates of five people are upended. Henry's fight against self-doubt threatens to ruin his future. College president Guert Affenlight, a longtime bachelor, has fallen unexpectedly and helplessly in love. Owen Dunne, Henry's gay roommate and teammate, becomes caught up in a dangerous affair. Mike Schwartz, the Harpooners' team captain and Henry's best friend, realizes he has guided Henry's career at the expense of his own. And Pella Affenlight, Guert's daughter, returns to Westish after escaping an ill-fated marriage, determined to start a new life. As the season counts down to its climactic final game, these five are forced to confront their deepest hopes, anxieties, and secrets. In the process they forge new bonds, and help one another find their true paths. Written with boundless intelligence and filled with the tenderness of youth, The Art of Fielding is an expansive, warmhearted novel about ambition and its limits, about family and friendship and love, and about commitment--to oneself and to others.