I am quite late with my post this week, and continue to struggle with the new online learning and the quarantine. I find I am working harder to accomplish far fewer things that feel far less rewarding. On Thursday, I will join my teaching colleagues in heading back into our schools. Students are not returning, yet, but we have been asked to work in our buildings, rather than from home. Details are not plentiful but we may be laying the groundwork for students to return for the final month of school in some way. Time will tell.
I read a little bit of several books to prepare for them to be taught online, but my students have not been online nearly as much as anticipated. My district made it clear that people were not to feel pressured and that their health (mental and physical) were top priorities. This is as it should be, but given the relatively low covid-19 numbers in my area, we could have more students present than we do for the hour or so a day that I have requested. Now that I am figuring that out, I am hoping to be able to do more independent reading of my own. I am very late to the link up of Monday posts hosted by Jen V at Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee and Ricki and Unleashing Readers, but thank all of them for continuing to host a number of posts each week that are a great source of books to add to your kidlit piles.
Books I Enjoyed This Week
This is the first in a series, and I have read online that there are at least four coming. I had previously read the second book. In this series a group of four Indigenous youth find mysteries to solve and work together to help their community by solving them. This #ownvoice series is becoming a must stock in my library. The small town feels like a real character to me, reminding me of places I have lived and lived near. The kids play to their own personal strengths, and are good hearted. The plots feature an aspect of the lives of Indigenous peoples that is serious and not found often enough in other books for kids below grade 7 (in this case land title and in the first one I read, the ’60’s scoop).
I am pretty big fan of this writer’s way of describing things, and I am not even too sure that I can explain why. I loved her earlier books, The Wolf Wilder, and The Explorer. Vita’s grandfather has lost his wife, and then his home, and Vita is certain that he was swindled out of the latter. So, she vows to get it back for him. She can’t do it alone but lucky for her she meets some other eclectic and plucky kids in 1920’s New York that are as loyal to her as she is to her grandfather. These “good thieves” set out to steal from the really bad guys. A daring plan set in a really interesting world.
Certainly, as the cover says, inspired by Anne of Green Gables, and a really good add for fans as it covers the spirit and imagination of the novel and has beautiful illustrations.
I just finished this book, and I probably should take a lot more time to think about it before I write about it. It has really well developed characters some that you like, some that you don’t, but all of which you can come to understand better as you read. Ellie and her family had to move from town after the Crash and live on Echo Mountain making their new life off the land. It is not easy, and although Ellie seems to thrive, others are grieving for the lives that they had. In addition, there is the loss of her father, who is in coma following an accident, and Ellie meets others that have been injured while out on the land. Her compassion and spirit really make the novel, as she and the people around her learn that many of us have untold stories. I think this is my favourite book by an author that already has a Newbery Honor award, so I am thinking this is one of several books that I have read this year that will start popping up in Mock Newbery conversations.
Currently Reading
I am reading these three for my classes Lit Circles/Book Clubs. They are all re-reads for me, and I am hoping students will enjoy me reading them online.
I am reading this creepy story of monsters and creatures terrifying a young boy in the swamps of rural Florida with my family. I am actually between books that I am reading on my own.
On Deck Reads
These are some soon to be published or just published books I have to read soon.
Thanks for stopping to read about my week, I hope to get to see your reading adventures soon.
Wriggling Bookworms 
How long does your school go, Aaron? Our schools have mostly released for the summer. Local teachers are packing up their classrooms to spend the second half of May, June, and most of July on summer break. Then many will start back in the classroom in the last week of July or first week of August. That said, we just go tour first COVID-19 case in our tiny community and the national guard was here today (Monday) testing to see how far it has spread. So July/August is still up in the air on whether teachers/students will be heading back to the classroom. On to books… The Good Thieves sounds very interesting. I’m going to add the title to my list. I see it’s on Overdrive, so that’s good new for me! In fact, I just looked up The Case of Windy Lake and see it’s available on Overdrive, as well. Wow! I’m impressed at their growing selection. I’m hearing really good things about both We Are Not From Here and Tornado Brain, so I look forward to hearing your review when you finish. Hope you have a wonderful week!
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My school is supposed to run to the end of June, and then be back in session on the Tuesday after Labour Day in September. We don’t have a lot of covid cases in my small town that I am aware of, but there was one in March that was connected to the school district. The odd things is that no one seems to know where he got it from. He recovered and has been back to work. Good that Overdrive is coming through as it should be a good option for people right now. Have a great week.
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I loved Sweep and I am sure your students will too! I have an ARC of Echo Mountains from NCTE and definitely need to read it after seeing so many bloggers review it. I have a lot of backlisted reading to do over the summer.
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