Let’s Talk

This book is a collection of stories about loving–and loathing–your body.

It is funny and sad and touching and scary.

Check it out!

Write back and tell me what you are reading!

Whoever said you can’t judge a book by its cover was right! A friend suggested I read Strays, by Ron Koertge, and when I took it off the shelf, I have to admit I wasn’t really thrilled. I supposed the book was about dogs, which is okay, but honestly, not my favorite subject for novels. Imagine my surprise when I realized that the “strays” in this book are actually kids in foster care, and that the main character is not a dog, but a kid who identifies with animals of all kinds!  Sixteen-year-old Ted never had a great life. His parents fought and he was constantly bullied at school. But he is orphaned when his parents are killed in a car crash, and his difficult life becomes even harder. He has a new “brothers” and new “parents.” And he has no friends at his new school. He is having the worst year of his life. At least that what he thinks!

Everything about this book is intriguing!

Ellie has just started her junior year at a new high school and things just don’t seen quite normal. She and her friends seem to be reenacting the Arthurian legend, and her new classmates “become” such legendary characters as Guinevere, Lancelot, and the Lady of Shallot. Avalon High is full of twists, turns, and suspense. It is delightfully unbelievable. Try this book by the author of The Princess Diary series!

 I think I mentioned that I started The Invention of Hugo Cabret today and I finished all 530 pages of it today, too! Madeleine is right! This is a very, very good book. It is mysterious and magical, and it is two stories in one! The drawings are fabulous and the characters are people you might want to be friends with! This is one of the coolest books I’ve read in a long time! It’s unique! Check it out!

Welcome to Let’s Talk, Classical Magnet School’s online book discussion blog. Here we can discuss books: what we’re reading, what we want to read, what we think others would like to read.

It’s easy to get in on the discussion! Just write your comments, questions, and/or responses, and then post your first name and last initial. Do NOT list your full name.

I look forward to “talking” with you about books and reading!

Mrs. Kennedy

  Intermediate:

1. Escaping the Giant Wave (6)
2. Project Mulberry (5)
3. Hatching Magic (3)
4. Shredderman (3)
5. A Bear Named Trouble (2)
6. The Lightning Thief (2)
7. White Star (2)
8. Seven Professors of the Far North (1)
9. The Ravenmaster’s Secret (1)
10. Jackie’s Wild Seattle (0)

Teen:

1. The Lightning Thief (18)
2. Down the Rabbit Hole (13)
3. Emako Blue (9)
4. Locomotion (7)
5. Revenge of the Witch (3)
6. The Sea of Trolls (2)
7. The River Between Us (1)
8. In Darkness Death (1)
9. Shakleton’s Stowaway (0)
10. Bucking the Sarge (0)

   I just finished reading Day of Tears, by Julius Lester. It is the story of Emma, a slave owned by Master Butler, a man who has huge gambling debts. Butler decides to sell off his slaves in order to pay his creditors, and the results are devastating. The book is based on what history calls, “The Weeping Time,” the largest slave auction in American history, held in Savannah, Georgia in 1859. If you like fast-paced historical fiction, this is the book for you!

Welcome to Let’s Talk!

I wanted to let you know about a book I just finished reading: Elsewhere, by Gabrielle Zevin. Elsewhere is where 15-year-old Liz Hall finds herself at the opening of the book. Elsewhere is a bit like Earth, but somehow different. It is in Elsewhere where Liz meets her grandmother (who died before Liz was born), and it is there, where instead of growing older each day, Liz becomes one day younger as each day passes.  She has to live her life in reverse, and try to make the best of it! Isn’t that crazy?

What are you reading right now?

Let me know!

Mrs. Kennedy