#IMWAYR December 12, 2016

Hurrah! #IMWAYR time again, when readers share what they have been reading and find out what others have been up to in the past week. The adult version of this meme is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date. The kidlit rendition is hosted by Jen at Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee and Ricki at Unleashing Readers. Whatever you are looking forward to in your next great read, these are fabulous places to start your search.

It is now official. 
Both of my son's partners are expecting babies. Sometime in June I will be a grandmother! I am a tad excited about this. If you have ideas for what to get as gifts (books or other stuff) for expecting parents, I am open for suggestions.

Otherwise, I have had a somewhat dismal reading week. What I finished was great, but I was busy. I helped out at my old school's book fair last week. That is how I managed to find time to read all the picture books. I had my niece and nephew over one night because of snow. Then my family got some serious baking in. We have made peanut butter balls, shortbread and peanut butter cornflake squares.

NOVELS

5 stars
Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch by Terry Pratchett & Neil Gaiman Narrated by Martin Jarvis
What can I say. I adore Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman. As I read this, I imagined how much fun these two had writing it.
Two children are born. Another, the antichrist, arrives at the hospital and his planned substitution goes awry.
Consequently his strategic upbringing is meted out to the wrong child. This really screws things up, as nothing takes. Meanwhile, the real antichrist grows up in a small village with loving parents and a cohort of close friends.
Considerable celestial and satanic energy have been put into preparing for Armageddon. As the time draws near, the armies of good and evil are ready and waiting for the antichrist to take over the world and destroy it.
But what if the main actor decides to change plans?
This novel is peopled by a delightful cast of characters, including The Gang of Them, a 'fussy angel and a fast living demon', witches and witch finders, and the four Horsemen of the apocalypse. I loved them all.

CHAPTER BOOKS

5 stars
The Princess in Black Takes a Vacation (The Princess in Black #4) by Shannon Hale Dean Hale & LeUyen Pham (Illustrations)

I was so happy to read this last week. After a strong beginning the series flagged a bit for me. This one takes me back to why I loved the first one so much. Poor Princess in Black, even while on vacation she can't get away from fighting monsters. At least she can count on Duff looking after things while she is away. Or can she?

PICTURE BOOKS

4 stars
School's First Day of School by Adam Rex & Christian Robinson

This is a very sweet story about the first day of school from the schools perspective. It will be a delightful book to read to all children starting school, and everyone else who helps them navigate this great adventure.


5 stars
The Princess and the Pony by Kate Beaton

What a delightful read! This is no ordinary princess, and this is no ordinary pony. After an inauspicious beginning, together they will change the world. (I bought two copies of this for the little girls in my life)


4 stars
Little Red And The Very Hungry Lion by Alex T. Smith

What a delightful retelling of the classic Little Red Riding Hood. I laughed all the way through it. Red is a strong indomitable character who is sure the lion would rather eat donuts than people. These illustrations are gorgeous.



4 stars
Are Pirates Polite? By Corrine Demass, Artemis Roehrig & David Catrow (illustrations)

These raucous pirates show how it's possible to be rowdy and wild and have a good time, but still remember to use your manners. It's sweet. Catrow's images are delightful!


4 stars
Boy + Bot by Ame Dyckman & Dan Yaccarino (Illustrations)

This book is loaded with charm and humour. A boy and a robot become unlikely friends. When the robot accidentally gets turned off the boy tries to fix it. When the boy goes to sleep, the robot ends up trying to fix the boy.

4 stars
The Cookie Fiasco by Dan Santat (an elephant and piggie like reading book)

Fun Fun Fun! And it's loaded with math. A group of group of four friends have to figure out how to share three cookies. How they managed to achieve this is hilarious.



3.5 stars
Fly Guys Ninja Christmas by Ted Arnold

Fly guy books never languished on the library shelf. I've never met a reluctant beginning reader who didn't love them. So I was excited at the book fair to see this Christmas book. It didn't disappoint. It is loaded with the same humor of the others as Fly Guy tries to protect his family from the stranger who arrives on Christmas Eve. I purchased a copy for one of my nephews.

3 stars
Groovy Joe: Ice Cream And Dinosaurs by Eric Litwin & Tom Lichtenheld

I wanted to love this book by Eric Litwin, author of the Pete the Cat books. Unfortunately it didn't quite work for me. It's got fun characters and a delightful message about sharing. Maybe if I listen to the song that goes along with it I would like it better.



CURRENTLY

I'm listening to Jack: The True Story of Jack and the Beanstalk by Liesl Shurtliff. It is fabulous!

UP NEXT
I'm going to be busy finishing up sewing projects so I suspect I will be mostly listening to books. I've downloaded Red by Liesl Shurtliff and suspect that will be what I put on after Jack.

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20 comments:

  1. I am reading Red right now! How I celebrate the official announcement of grandmotherhood to come! Wow, did you plan your retirement perfectly or what!? I want to be as coordinated as you on this whole situation. (in the future!) Of course you know, I have LOTS of ideas about books that are necessary for little ones. As I am sure you do! We need to get together!

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    1. I'll have to drop in to see you! I just got two copies of babies everywhere!

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  2. This is a great list! I love all of them for various reasons. I definitely will try to add a few of the picture books to my children's department at my library. I am a fan of Neil Gaiman, but haven't read much of him...YET.

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    1. I've adored everything of Gaiman's. I started out with his kid lit, and then moved into his adult stuff. American Gods is on my list of books to reread.

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  3. I was going to say, I think Carrie has some posts about books! A recent favorite is Bunny Roo, I Love You by Melissa Marr. Congrats to you :)

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  4. I have loved all the Liesl Shurtliff books, and The Cookie Fiasco is lots of fun. It does sound like a busy week, but good too. Congratulations on two grand babies coming! That's wonderful. A recent love of mine is Lullaby & Kisses Sweet, a lovely poetry book for the young ones. Have a great week, Cheriee!

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    1. Thanks Linda. I am excited! It's been hard waiting for them to reach 12 weeks so we can tell the world.

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  5. My students LOVE The Princess and the Pony. ALL students: boys, girls, elementary, and middle school. In fact, it's actually the boys who are checking it out more than the girls. This makes me so incredibly happy.

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    1. That is really fabulous Beth! If I had a young boy to give it to now I would. There are a couple of babies, but I'll have to wait.

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  6. I've requested Little Red and the Very Hungry Lion from my library. Looks like a lot of fun. My library doesn't have Are Pirates Polite? yet, but I'll keep my eyes open for it. Hope you have a great week!

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  7. Princess in Black has quite a following at my school. Glad you're pleased about impending grandchildren- my daughters both had young men at the house this weekend and I was conflicted. I refuse to get emotionally involved until they've been around for a couple of years. Grandchildren sound horrid, so I'm in no rush!

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    1. It wasn't easy when my boys brought home so many lovely young girls, but on a positive note, some of them continue to drop in even though it has been years since they were involved with them. My guys are 33 and 35 so having grandchildren isn't so scary as it might once have seemed!

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  8. I had the same reaction to Groovy Joe. My kindergarten students enjoyed it, but for me it was meh. Good Omens is too funny. I need to catch up on Princess in Black. I've only read the first two.

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    1. Isn't it hilarious? I just love both of them. I wish I could have seen their interactions as they were working on it!

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  9. I'm going to have to read Good Omens at some point. I do love Terry Pratchett, and this sounds like a hilarious story. Princess and Pony is one of my favorite PBs. My pre-service teachers are always looking for PBs that have some math embedded, so I will be sure to get Cookie Fiasco for them. Can't believe there's a Dan Santat I haven't seen! Congrats on impending grandkids! I am very much hoping that grandmothering is a lot easier and more immediately rewarding than parenting, LOL. Also hoping that it's years away!

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    1. Your son is way to young for you to think about grandchildren! Mine on the other hand are in their 30's.

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  10. Wonderful titles as always, Cheriee! Grandchildren, that's unbelievable! You must have given birth as a toddler - hahhhaha! I do own a copy of Good Omens but haven't had a chance to read it yet, your review made me want to pick it up and read it NOW.

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    1. Good Omens will be a brilliant holiday read Myra. It is loaded with humour but is also thought provoking.

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