Author Archives: GPL

Teen Wintery Reads

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Looking for a teen read to get you in the holiday spirit? Check out one of these wintery reads!

Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan

Told in the alternating voices of Dash and Lily, two sixteen-year-olds carry on a wintry scavenger hunt at Christmas-time in New York, neither knowing quite what–or who–they will find.

 

What Light by Jay Asher

When Sierra falls for Caleb, a boy who made a terrible mistake years before, she is determined to help him find forgiveness, despite the disapproval and suspicions they meet.

 

Top Ten Clues You’re Clueless by Liz Czukas

The day before Christmas, money goes missing from a donation box at GoodFoods Market and Chloe and her five of her teenage co-workers, held in the break room until the police arrive, try to identify the real thief.

 

The Afterlife of Holly Chase by Cynthia Hand

After being visited by three ghosts on Christmas Eve, Holly Chase chooses not to mend her spoiled ways, and upon her death discovers her selfishness has caused her to work for eternity as a ghost of Christmas past.

 

My True Love Gave to Me edited by Stephanie Perkins

If you love holiday stories, holiday movies, made-for-TV-holiday specials, holiday episodes of your favorite sitcoms and, especially, if you love holiday anthologies, you’re going to fall in love with this book. So curl up by the fireplace and get cozy. You have twelve reasons this season to stay indoors and fall in love.

 

 

Review: Daisy Jones and the Six

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Daisy Jones and the Six (coming in March 2019)
by Taylor Jenkins Reid
4 stars

Taylor Jenkins Reid is one of my absolute favorite authors. I was thrilled to be chosen to receive an advanced reader copy. This book will be released in March 2019. Daisy Jones and the Six was unlike anything I’ve ever read. The Six is a rock band formed in the 1960’s who later adds the iconic Daisy Jones. The way Reid writes I kept wondering if Daisy Jones and the Six were an actual band that I just had never heard about.

From the beginning we know that the band breaks up. The story continues with the points of view from the band members and other characters spanning from the 1960’s to 2012. As with many rock bands this has your classic, “sex, drugs, and rock n’ roll.” It is told in interview format without questions. At first I wondered if it was going to be this way the entire book, and if it was, would it hold my attention for the entire book? It really did.

I was hesitant about this book even though TJR is one of my favorite authors. It seemed so different and not something I would normally pick up. But I was pleasantly surprised that this kept my attention and made me feel so many emotions. There was so much heartbreak in this book. As with Evelyn Hugo, TJR made me believe Daisy Jones is a real person. I love that this is being made into a TV show. It will be great on screen. Props to Reid for writing a very original story with a unique format. Highly recommend! Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy!

Read-alikes

Beautiful Music by Michael Zadoorian

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Review: How to Stop Time

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How to Stop Time
by Matt Haig
4 stars

“Sometimes things are a change for the better and the worse at the same time, like the internet. Or the electric keyboard. Or pre-chopped garlic. Or the theory of relativity.”

Tom Hazard is over 400 years old. He was born in 1581. He went through puberty very early and aged faster than most of the boys his age. Since puberty…not so much. Due to an unknown condition, Tom ages approximately 15 times slower than normal human beings. So even though he is 437, he looks about 41. He has sailed with Captain Cook, worked with Shakespeare, and had a cocktail with F. Scott Fitzgerald.

Parts of the book are almost depressing. With the ability to view humanity through the centuries, Tom becomes disillusioned with people making the same mistakes over and over again. Other parts were much more hopeful, as Tom finds things and people to enjoy throughout his centuries. There is a society that protects people like Tom. The society provides funds and new identities every 8 years to help them avoid detection…in exchange for the occasional favor.

 

Read-alikes

The Rain Watcher by Tatiana de Rosnay

Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan

The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins

 

What’s New in Storytime?

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Recently I began a new phonological awareness program with the kids in Smart Start Story Time. This program is from the curriculum adopted by Greenwood Schools by Michael Heggerty, PhD and is the pre-kindergarten component. Phonemic awareness refers to the ability to manipulate individual sounds in spoken words. This is one of the most important skills that predict reading ability. So, if you hear the familiar refrain of, “It’s rhyming time, it’s rhyming time, it’s rhyming time, OH YEAH!!!!” That’s one of our new warm up exercises in story time. We will be doing, “Take 2 words and put them together” for compound words and lots of work on the first and last sound you hear in a word. Research has shown that playing with words in this way helps develop their expertise in isolating sounds. According to the website, Reading Rockets, here are some things you can do at home:

  • Help your child think of a number of words that start with the /m/ or /ch/ sound, or other beginning sounds.
  • Make up silly sentences with words that begin with the same sound, such as “Nobody was nice to Nancy’s neighbor”.
  • Play simple rhyming or blending games with your child, such as taking turns coming up with words that rhyme (go – no) or blending simple words (/d/, /o/, /g/ = dog).
  • Read books with rhymes. Teach your child rhymes, short poems, and songs.
  • Practice the alphabet by pointing out letters wherever you see them and by reading alphabet books.
  • Consider using computer software that focuses on developing phonological and phonemic awareness skills. Many of these programs use colorful graphics and animation that keep young children engaged and motivated.
  • Follow this link for more information on phonological and phonemic awareness: https://tinyurl.com/39jekm3

Below is a wonderful video on a classroom that uses this method:

 

 

Review: Anatomy of a Miracle

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Anatomy of a Miracle
by Jonathon Miles
5 stars

When confronted by a seeming miracle, how do we, in modern society, react? This is the construct upon which this novel is built. When Cameron Harris, a paralyzed veteran of the war in Afghanistan, rises up out of his wheelchair in the parking lot of the Biz-E-Bee convenience store, we see how various people respond to this other-worldly event.

Is it a miracle, or hoax? His doctor views it scientifically, delving into medical records from the time the old Soviet bomb exploded and severed Cameron’s spinal cord. Was he hiding his ability to walk for four years to avoid being called back to serve?

Many people become involved, including an investigator from Rome, arriving to research claims of this “miracle” for the Catholic church.

Theories and suspicions grow in the community and online, as Cameron, himself struggles to understand what happened to him and why. To complicate matters, a reality TV show based on Cameron is being filmed, with the Biz-E-Bee becoming a pilgrimage spot for those seeking miracles. A circus ensues…

The underlying story of what happened in Afghanistan is slowly brought into focus, with the true miracle happening at the end of the book, one in which love heals and Cameron may at last find peace.

 

Read-alikes

Every Note Played by Lisa Genova

An Object of Beauty by Steve Martin

White Teeth by Zadie Smith