It’s Monday, May 2 #IMWAYR

Today’s post will feature a few of the books that I read this week, and a few that I did not read this week that come out in the month of May that I am really looking forward to sharing with students. I am once again linking up to the posts at Unleashing Readers and Teach Mentor Texts. I was really slow to visit other sites this week but finished on Sunday. Thanks so much to the hosts and other bloggers that post here for the continuing community that they provide.

This week was pretty busy. I took one of my first days (if not my very first) off since before the pandemic. I have been aware of how short we are of on-call teachers, and I haven’t been sick (very lucky, and high mask use). In my District, veteran teachers of more than 10 years get one discretionary day. Earlier in the year, we were told not to ask for them, but things are a little better from a covid perspective, so I just decided to submit for one, and got it. My wife already has one day off each week as a part-time teacher, so we drove to a neighbouring District, where they had collected about 70 boxes of books for my wife’s library, which flooded in November. Not exactly a day off, but after we loaded as many as could fit in our vehicle, we drove to a few places we enjoy in BC’s Okanagan region to enjoy lunch and local delectables (read: wine). For those of you that live close to me, I should recognize with a shout out the great people in Summerland and Penticton that asked to help my wife rebuild her library and donate books to local families. That trip, and my oldest daughter’s first ever track meet cut into my reading this weekend, but were both great for my soul nonetheless.

Books I Enjoyed This Week

Sir Ladybug, his herald, and their friend Sterling, the snail from Tabor’s earlier book Snail Crossing team up in this early graphic novel that is cute and witty. Sir Ladybug has to figure out how to appease a chickadee who is not a monster, but only wants to eat something and save a caterpillar from being that something. I appreciated the knock knock jokes (really, I wouldn’t have thought I would) herald whose bravery and “loud, fancy words,” help to save the day, and most of all the what the team creates to save the day. I have already seen a cover of the second in this series and think it shows great promise for young readers.

I think this one has been reviewed by more than one posters in this group, but it certainly deserves the attention it has received. I thought it was an outstanding addition to any list of books for the first week of school. It provides a welcome and then shares how schools can be a vital piece to the community.

A funny, silly story about the only doughnut that doesn’t seem to understand the purpose of his existence. Spoiler alert, but I thought it was very funny how he calls the bakery to warn the baker that the customers are trying to eat his creations. The illustrations make the pages very busy, but there are lots of laughs to be found.

I work in a pretty rural area that has a school garden, but I still think my students will relate to this tale of a child who had a garden in her last apartment building and seeks to bring that aspect of home to her new school. Millie’s new building does not have the right kind of roof for a garden but she misses the taste of a real carrot, and speaks up until her new school community agrees that a garden will bring them together and be worth the work.

I mentioned this one a while ago, I couldn’t really read my e-ARC properly, but the author offered to help me with it and I had a great experience reading it. This ambitiously intellectual MG graphic novel is full of information about the impact of climate change. Examples include the Siberian Unicorn, yedoma, and the Batagaika Crater in Eastern Siberia. I had to look a few of these up, but there is information in the story and the backmatter to help readers out. They will learn lots about climate change.
The Extincts are a team of extinct animals on missions to help save the world. In this first installment though, they need to find out who to trust and the meaning of family, in addition to fighting off creatures to help save the planet. The first in a promising new series.

Books I Hope Kids Check Out This Month

I read both of these books early as I am a pretty big fan of both. Drifters (release date May 10) is a sci-fi adventure in the spirit of The X-Files and Stranger Things, while Lines of Courage (May 17) is my new favourite historical fiction by Jennifer Nielsen, and there have been a few I really loved.

Currently Reading and On Deck Reads

The first two on the above list are e-ARCs that I have to read soon as they come out soon and I have had a few e-ARCs expire lately while I was reading them. Very frustrating. I started My Own Lightning, the sequel to Wolf Hollow, a Newbery Honor book, and I am really enjoying it. I loved Echo Mountain by Lauren Wolk and am curious if I can enjoy this one as much. Yonder will be the next e-ARC I read that comes out on May 10. I am re-reading two verse novels, Alone and Lifeboat 12 because they are part of a Literature Circle unit my class is doing and the Battle of the Books that my District is running in June.

Thanks so much for viewing my post this week, I hope to see what other readers have been up to. Enjoy the rest of your week!