by Deborah Heiligman
Illustraged by Leuyen Pham
Hennepin County Library hardcover 32 pages
genre: Children's biography
Pam Silverain recommended this to me. I had never heard of Erdos before but love the story of his life as a mathematician extraordinaire! I love that he called colleagues' children "epsilons" since they were "small amounts." I love that he took what could be considered a solitary pursuit and shared so extensively with other mathematicians. The author recommends the books The Man Who Loved Only Numbers (Paul Hoffman) and My Brain Is Open (Bruce Schechter). There is also a documentary called N Is a Number. These all sound very interesting! Perhaps I need to own a copy of this picture book to share with future grandchildren . . .
Wednesday, December 30, 2015
Paperboy
by Vince Vawter
Hennepin County Library hardcover 221 pages
genre: YA historical, coming-of-age
Oh my word. I *loved* this book! I was reading it to evaluate its use for our students in their Civil Rights unit. At first, I thought it was perhaps a bit too "young" for our kids, but now I'm not so sure.
Eleven-year-old Victor Vollmer is in the seventh grade because he is bright, but he was almost held back because of his severe stuttering. He loves words, but struggles to say them. Set in Memphis during the 1950s, Victor takes over his best friend's paper route for the month of July while Art ("Rat") is visiting his grandparents' farm. Doing the route opens Victor's world in unimaginable ways.
Initially, I was going to make a pros/cons list for using this book. Right now, the kids read Lay That Trumpet in Our Hands. Not having read that title yet, I'm not sure if Paperboy has enough of the same civil rights content that the teachers want. It is, however, an amazing and rich story. I will probably buy a copy for PRMS and invite the teacher to read it (or have some of our capable students read it and make a recommendation). I loved the focus on words and language - both spoken and written.
Hennepin County Library hardcover 221 pages
genre: YA historical, coming-of-age
Oh my word. I *loved* this book! I was reading it to evaluate its use for our students in their Civil Rights unit. At first, I thought it was perhaps a bit too "young" for our kids, but now I'm not so sure.
Eleven-year-old Victor Vollmer is in the seventh grade because he is bright, but he was almost held back because of his severe stuttering. He loves words, but struggles to say them. Set in Memphis during the 1950s, Victor takes over his best friend's paper route for the month of July while Art ("Rat") is visiting his grandparents' farm. Doing the route opens Victor's world in unimaginable ways.
Initially, I was going to make a pros/cons list for using this book. Right now, the kids read Lay That Trumpet in Our Hands. Not having read that title yet, I'm not sure if Paperboy has enough of the same civil rights content that the teachers want. It is, however, an amazing and rich story. I will probably buy a copy for PRMS and invite the teacher to read it (or have some of our capable students read it and make a recommendation). I loved the focus on words and language - both spoken and written.
Monday, December 28, 2015
For Such a Time
by Kate Breslin
Hennepin County Library paperback 418 pages
genre: Christian historical fiction
Overall, I really like Breslin's writing. She is a talented author who creates characters with depth. Setting the story of Esther in Nazi Germany makes sense on some level, but it is somehow disturbing to set a love story in the Holocaust. This book just didn't work well for me as a reader. Both Hadasseh and Arik were compelling characters, as were Joseph, Morty, Helen, and others. But the evils of Nazi Germany don't lend themselves well as a setting for a love story. On page 89, at the Commandant's dinner party, I thought it would not at all be realistic for a group of German leaders to brush off the harsh comments that Arik made about the SS. In any case, I finally got "into" the story around the mid-point and found it more compelling to read the second half. I'm glad I read her other book first. (This one was her first novel published.) I won't spoil the ending, though I definitely saw it coming. She did an excellent job with the inclusion of Bible verses at the start of every chapter.
Hennepin County Library paperback 418 pages
genre: Christian historical fiction
Overall, I really like Breslin's writing. She is a talented author who creates characters with depth. Setting the story of Esther in Nazi Germany makes sense on some level, but it is somehow disturbing to set a love story in the Holocaust. This book just didn't work well for me as a reader. Both Hadasseh and Arik were compelling characters, as were Joseph, Morty, Helen, and others. But the evils of Nazi Germany don't lend themselves well as a setting for a love story. On page 89, at the Commandant's dinner party, I thought it would not at all be realistic for a group of German leaders to brush off the harsh comments that Arik made about the SS. In any case, I finally got "into" the story around the mid-point and found it more compelling to read the second half. I'm glad I read her other book first. (This one was her first novel published.) I won't spoil the ending, though I definitely saw it coming. She did an excellent job with the inclusion of Bible verses at the start of every chapter.
Thursday, December 24, 2015
MAD Magazine
I grew up on MAD magazines and loved them - Spy v. Spy, Sergio Aragones, the fold-in back page, the satire, . . . .so I bought a copy at Half-Price Books. The April 2004 edition, I found the humor to be nasty and the magazine that I loved so much as a kid to be mean and pointless. Sigh. Growing up and maturing is a good thing, but I sometimes miss my childhood. I am glad I can find humor elsewhere. And I wonder how much my addictive reading of these as a kid shaped my attitudes . . . I won't miss the magazines, but wanted to record my thoughts here.
(When I started teaching at NPMS in 1997, the library had a subscription. I read one to refresh my memory and there was a LOT more sexual content and drug humor than I remembered from my own childhood. I cancelled that subscription!)
(When I started teaching at NPMS in 1997, the library had a subscription. I read one to refresh my memory and there was a LOT more sexual content and drug humor than I remembered from my own childhood. I cancelled that subscription!)
On the Road
by Jack Kerouac
Hennepin County Library audiobook 9 discs
read by Will Patton
genre: realistic fiction
This is one of those books I've heard of but never read before. Besides his name, I only knew the phrase "beat generation" in relation to this work of fiction. I didn't like it and I want to do some reading online to figure out why it was/is such a commonly referenced work of fiction. Below are my stream-of-consciousness notes written while I was driving . . . I know, not safe. But I can jot without looking at my hand.
Beat Generation / hipster - set in 1947, when was it written?
Too many characters! Why mention every single person they hung out with? Who cares?
"Yo!" gun / "queers" in a bar in San Fran / alcohol (throughout the entire book - they consumed a LOT of alcohol)
Of Mice and Men reference . . . Billie Holliday Lover Man
What did Sal's aunt think of all the comings and goings? Why did she put up with it?
Dean is mentally ill.
Music - important to the characters, progression of styles, interesting historically
Drug culture of 1940s, 50s - really?! I didn't think there was much of that going on. But perhaps the fact that Kerouac wrote about it was part of what made this book such a big deal - he acknowledged a part of society that most people pretended didn't exist?
Stealing / speeding / delinquents . . . I don't like Dean, Sal, or Ed very much.
Negroes - admiring tone AND racist attitudes . . .
"fags"
"It's not my fault." - Seriously?! Haven't you people heard of personal responsibility?
Generation . . . selfishness and self-centeredness
Degenerates
Some very beautiful language in places. Is Sal the writer based on Kerouac himself? It seems so.
Wanderlust. Across the country and back again. Repeat. Mexico.
Mexican whorehouse - conscience? Yuk. These guys are jerks. And drunks.
Why does Dean bother to get married?!?!?! Mary Lou, Camille, Inez. Four babies with three women and he's not sticking around to help any of them.
Sal Paradise - cool name.
Ending - what happened to Dean?
Why was Sal always such a patsy, letting life happen to him and following the younger Dean around as though he were amazing?
Okay - time to read *about* the book so I have a better understanding of why it matters in American literature.
From Wikipedia (with hyperlinks removed):
"On the Road is a novel by American writer Jack Kerouac, based on the travels of Kerouac and his friends across America. It is considered a defining work of the postwar Beat and Counterculture generations, with its protagonists living life against a backdrop of jazz, poetry, and drug use. The novel, published in 1957, is a roman à clef, with many key figures in the Beat movement, such as William S. Burroughs (Old Bull Lee) and Allen Ginsberg (Carlo Marx) represented by characters in the book, including Kerouac himself as the narrator Sal Paradise."
Hennepin County Library audiobook 9 discs
read by Will Patton
genre: realistic fiction
This is one of those books I've heard of but never read before. Besides his name, I only knew the phrase "beat generation" in relation to this work of fiction. I didn't like it and I want to do some reading online to figure out why it was/is such a commonly referenced work of fiction. Below are my stream-of-consciousness notes written while I was driving . . . I know, not safe. But I can jot without looking at my hand.
Beat Generation / hipster - set in 1947, when was it written?
Too many characters! Why mention every single person they hung out with? Who cares?
"Yo!" gun / "queers" in a bar in San Fran / alcohol (throughout the entire book - they consumed a LOT of alcohol)
Of Mice and Men reference . . . Billie Holliday Lover Man
What did Sal's aunt think of all the comings and goings? Why did she put up with it?
Dean is mentally ill.
Music - important to the characters, progression of styles, interesting historically
Drug culture of 1940s, 50s - really?! I didn't think there was much of that going on. But perhaps the fact that Kerouac wrote about it was part of what made this book such a big deal - he acknowledged a part of society that most people pretended didn't exist?
Stealing / speeding / delinquents . . . I don't like Dean, Sal, or Ed very much.
Negroes - admiring tone AND racist attitudes . . .
"fags"
"It's not my fault." - Seriously?! Haven't you people heard of personal responsibility?
Generation . . . selfishness and self-centeredness
Degenerates
Some very beautiful language in places. Is Sal the writer based on Kerouac himself? It seems so.
Wanderlust. Across the country and back again. Repeat. Mexico.
Mexican whorehouse - conscience? Yuk. These guys are jerks. And drunks.
Why does Dean bother to get married?!?!?! Mary Lou, Camille, Inez. Four babies with three women and he's not sticking around to help any of them.
Sal Paradise - cool name.
Ending - what happened to Dean?
Why was Sal always such a patsy, letting life happen to him and following the younger Dean around as though he were amazing?
Okay - time to read *about* the book so I have a better understanding of why it matters in American literature.
From Wikipedia (with hyperlinks removed):
"On the Road is a novel by American writer Jack Kerouac, based on the travels of Kerouac and his friends across America. It is considered a defining work of the postwar Beat and Counterculture generations, with its protagonists living life against a backdrop of jazz, poetry, and drug use. The novel, published in 1957, is a roman à clef, with many key figures in the Beat movement, such as William S. Burroughs (Old Bull Lee) and Allen Ginsberg (Carlo Marx) represented by characters in the book, including Kerouac himself as the narrator Sal Paradise."
See Me After Class: Advice for Teachers by Teachers
by Roxanna Elden
Hennepin County Library paperback 197 pages
genre: Non-fiction advice
At first, I *loved* this book and thought about buying lots of copies for teachers. She uses humor and "straight talk" to communicate both the joys and frustrations about teaching. But some of her advice is horribly out-dated (or I just work at too progressive of a school). This edition was published in 2013, but still has advice on taking phones away from students, behavior management whose goal is to keep kids quiet and still, etc. With the personalized learning we're doing, the vast majority of the book just doesn't fit our school culture. Her tone and humor kept me reading to the very end of the book, though!
Page 3 - "Acting like a hard job can be done easily is a sure way to do it wrong. The knowledge teachers need is complicated, it's important, and it's way more than anyone can learn in one year. The great teachers of the future know they're not great yet. They know they're making mistakes, and some of those mistakes are big. They're sorting through a million pieces of advice, each starting with the words 'All you have to do is . . . ,' until they want to lie on their backs in the school hallway and yell, "This is all the time and energy I have! Can someone please tell me what I should really spend it on?"
Page 31 - "You will realize that some parts of teaching make you very happy, while others make you very unhappy. You have the right to focus on the parts you love as often as possible, forgive your mistakes, and give yourself credit for what you're doing right. It's also okay to accept that some things are not under your control and to focus your efforts on the things that are. Wen all else fails, cursing into a cabinet works surprisingly well." (referencing an earlier paragraph)
Page 40 - She's writing about being at a workshop on getting organized. "I slumped farther down in my chair every time I heard the words color-coded or of course you have already. By the end of the presentation, only my neck and shoulders were touching the seat. I was no more organized, but I was fully convinced I had no business being a teacher - or maybe even alive - at my current organizational level." She later made another joke about the color-coded people . . . very funny!
Pages 52-55 - She writes about everyone having strengths and how important it is to capitalize on your personal strength areas. Here are the ones she references: patience and understanding, perseverance, knowledge of your subject matter, knowledge of the neighborhood, sense of humor, organization, large size, loud authoritative voice, energy, good people skills, work ethic, stage presence, confidence, character, creativity and problem-solving skills, ability to stay calm and think clearly under stress, sassy attitude, kids of your own, ambition, and a positive attitude and a passion for teaching. I like how she emphasizes positives, but acknowledges the negatives for each of us.
Page 94-95 - She advises teachers to have students write their own failure notices. Sadly, I accidentally deleted page one off my phone instead of uploading it. I don't necessarily like her script, but I love the idea of it. Here's the second page of content on this topic:
Hennepin County Library paperback 197 pages
genre: Non-fiction advice
At first, I *loved* this book and thought about buying lots of copies for teachers. She uses humor and "straight talk" to communicate both the joys and frustrations about teaching. But some of her advice is horribly out-dated (or I just work at too progressive of a school). This edition was published in 2013, but still has advice on taking phones away from students, behavior management whose goal is to keep kids quiet and still, etc. With the personalized learning we're doing, the vast majority of the book just doesn't fit our school culture. Her tone and humor kept me reading to the very end of the book, though!
Page 3 - "Acting like a hard job can be done easily is a sure way to do it wrong. The knowledge teachers need is complicated, it's important, and it's way more than anyone can learn in one year. The great teachers of the future know they're not great yet. They know they're making mistakes, and some of those mistakes are big. They're sorting through a million pieces of advice, each starting with the words 'All you have to do is . . . ,' until they want to lie on their backs in the school hallway and yell, "This is all the time and energy I have! Can someone please tell me what I should really spend it on?"
Page 31 - "You will realize that some parts of teaching make you very happy, while others make you very unhappy. You have the right to focus on the parts you love as often as possible, forgive your mistakes, and give yourself credit for what you're doing right. It's also okay to accept that some things are not under your control and to focus your efforts on the things that are. Wen all else fails, cursing into a cabinet works surprisingly well." (referencing an earlier paragraph)
Page 40 - She's writing about being at a workshop on getting organized. "I slumped farther down in my chair every time I heard the words color-coded or of course you have already. By the end of the presentation, only my neck and shoulders were touching the seat. I was no more organized, but I was fully convinced I had no business being a teacher - or maybe even alive - at my current organizational level." She later made another joke about the color-coded people . . . very funny!
Pages 52-55 - She writes about everyone having strengths and how important it is to capitalize on your personal strength areas. Here are the ones she references: patience and understanding, perseverance, knowledge of your subject matter, knowledge of the neighborhood, sense of humor, organization, large size, loud authoritative voice, energy, good people skills, work ethic, stage presence, confidence, character, creativity and problem-solving skills, ability to stay calm and think clearly under stress, sassy attitude, kids of your own, ambition, and a positive attitude and a passion for teaching. I like how she emphasizes positives, but acknowledges the negatives for each of us.
Page 94-95 - She advises teachers to have students write their own failure notices. Sadly, I accidentally deleted page one off my phone instead of uploading it. I don't necessarily like her script, but I love the idea of it. Here's the second page of content on this topic:
She included a poem she wrote (Roxanna Elden) titled All of the Above. I'm including it here because it's easily available online. It definitely makes a point about teaching (and standardized testing . . . ).
Tuesday, December 01, 2015
The Scottish Bride
by Catherine Coulter
Hennepin County Library audiobook 9 discs
read by Anne Flosnik
genre: historical romance
Dumb. And yet I listened to the entire thing. I almost ejected disc one and moved on to something else, but no. I kept listening. Handsome widowed vicar Tysen Sherbrooke has just inherited a castle and a title in Scotland. His ten-year-old daughter disguises herself and tags along. (Little kids - in a romance novel? Please.) His entire personality changes immediately and drastically when he encounters Mary Rose. The usual ensues. Conflict, passion, stupidity. The last portion of the story made me mad when Tysen's dilemma was between being happy (and a kind, loving father and husband) or following God . . . ahem. I mean being serious and devout in his parishoners' eyes. Yuk. Can't believe I wasted as much time on this as I did.
Hennepin County Library audiobook 9 discs
read by Anne Flosnik
genre: historical romance
Dumb. And yet I listened to the entire thing. I almost ejected disc one and moved on to something else, but no. I kept listening. Handsome widowed vicar Tysen Sherbrooke has just inherited a castle and a title in Scotland. His ten-year-old daughter disguises herself and tags along. (Little kids - in a romance novel? Please.) His entire personality changes immediately and drastically when he encounters Mary Rose. The usual ensues. Conflict, passion, stupidity. The last portion of the story made me mad when Tysen's dilemma was between being happy (and a kind, loving father and husband) or following God . . . ahem. I mean being serious and devout in his parishoners' eyes. Yuk. Can't believe I wasted as much time on this as I did.
Post 1,000! Must be Momentous
Okay, when I saw that this was my 1,000th post on this blog, I simply couldn't write about the audiobook I just finished. It was much too banal of a book. I love reading! I'm a little obsessive, finishing books that are truly not worth the time. Just for a change of pace, I'll list a few of my all-time favorites.
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte - I have read it at least six times in its entirety
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde
The Holy Bible (this list is NOT in "top ten" format)
Love You Forever by Robert Munsch
The Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax by Dorothy Gilman (published the year I was born!)
Slumdog Millionaire by Vikas Swarup (NOT the movie . . . never seen it. Don't want to.)
any Calvin and Hobbes collection
The Hiding Place by Carrie ten Boom
The Bone series by Jeff Smith
This was harder to do (spontaneously) than I expected! I read almost anything I come across. When I asked Louie what my favorite books were, he said "Jane Eyre" and "Pride and Prejudice." When I told him I had those already, he said, "You read the Harry Potter books a lot." Yep. I've read the entire series three times. And I've read Tolkien's Fellowship books once per decade since the 1970s. There are a lot of books I re-read . . . and a lot of others I experience once and move on from. That's why I blog. To keep track of the titles and my initial reactions.
If you're a regular reader of my blog, I'd love for you to leave a comment! I sometimes feel as though I'm writing in a void (and this is actually a storage spot for my thoughts, not an audience-driven vehicle). I love to read AND to connect to other readers!
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte - I have read it at least six times in its entirety
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde
The Holy Bible (this list is NOT in "top ten" format)
Love You Forever by Robert Munsch
The Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax by Dorothy Gilman (published the year I was born!)
Slumdog Millionaire by Vikas Swarup (NOT the movie . . . never seen it. Don't want to.)
any Calvin and Hobbes collection
The Hiding Place by Carrie ten Boom
The Bone series by Jeff Smith
This was harder to do (spontaneously) than I expected! I read almost anything I come across. When I asked Louie what my favorite books were, he said "Jane Eyre" and "Pride and Prejudice." When I told him I had those already, he said, "You read the Harry Potter books a lot." Yep. I've read the entire series three times. And I've read Tolkien's Fellowship books once per decade since the 1970s. There are a lot of books I re-read . . . and a lot of others I experience once and move on from. That's why I blog. To keep track of the titles and my initial reactions.
If you're a regular reader of my blog, I'd love for you to leave a comment! I sometimes feel as though I'm writing in a void (and this is actually a storage spot for my thoughts, not an audience-driven vehicle). I love to read AND to connect to other readers!
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