It’s Monday! What are you Reading? is hosted by Sheila at Book Journeys and invites bloggers to recap what they’ve read this week while planning ahead on what to read next! Jen at Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee at Unleashing Readers added their own twist by focusing on kidlit, from picture books up to YA.

Hey literacy lovers! It’s been awhile, hasn’t it? I’m finally finished with my gifted endorsement grad program, so expect my IMWAYR posts on a regular basis from here on out!

Here’s what I’ve read lately:

(Click on the book covers to add these titles to your Goodreads TBR piles)

Ungifted by Gordan Korman
2012
MG/YA Realistic Fiction
My Goodreads Rating: 4/5 Stars
A funny story about a misguided misfit who ends up in the district’s gifted program after a major mishap. Great characters and ending!

Anything But Typical by Nora Raleigh Baskin
2010
MG Realistic Fiction
My Goodreads Rating: 4/5 Stars
Jason, the main character in Anything But Typical, is a fourteen year old autistic boy who loves to write stories and talk about writing with his online friend Phoenixbird. The world around him is confusing and Jason narrates the story beautifully by talking about his daily struggles of living in a neurotypical world.

The Shade of the Moon (The Last Survivors Series #4) by Susan Beth Pfeffer
2013
YA Dystopian
My Goodreads Rating: 3/5 Stars
I really, really enjoyed the first two books in this series and am in fact reading book #1, Life as We Knew It, to my eighth graders right now. They are on the edge of their seats every time I read and we have had many, many “end of the world”conversations over the past two weeks. While it has been interesting to see what happens to these characters over the course of four books, this one was bleak, depressingly violent and just not for me.

Champion (The Legend  Series #3) by Marie Lu
2013
YA Dystopian
My Goodreads Rating: 5/5 Stars
I love this series! I can’t say enough about it. I love the lean writing and the back and forth perspective of the two main characters Day and June. This book is just as exciting as the first two, and while I was really sad it was the end of the series, I look forward to more books by Marie Lu. This is a must read!

Carnivores by Aaron Reynolds, Illustrated by Dan Santat
2013
Picture Book
My Goodreads Rating: 4/5 Stars
Lion, Great White Shark and Timber wolf are tired of being misunderstood. They come together to figure out a way to make everyone else to like them with pretty funny consequences. I liked this book a lot and read it to my classes, but the last page gets me every time. A good PB with a “be yourself” message.

Mr. Tiger Goes Wild by Peter Brown
2013
Picture Book
My Goodreads Rating: 5/5 Stars
Mr. Tiger wants to go wild, but his friends are not amused and he leaves town to do what he wants. He ends up missing his friends and goes back to town only to be welcomed by a big surprise! I love this book and the pictures. Great story for all ages!

The Distance Between Us by Kasie West
2013
YA Realistic Fiction
My Goodreads Rating: 4/5 Stars
A great YA coming of age story with a little romance, too. Caymen is seventeen and spends her days working at her mother’s doll store. One day, Xander, who clearly is not from Caymen’s side of town, comes into the store and finds he has met his match. I really liked this one and it reminds me of Sarah Dessen’s books, but without the beach.

That Time I Joined the Circus by JJ Howard
2013
YA Realistic Fiction
My Goodreads Rating: 4/5 Stars
So Xandra, otherwise known as Lexie, finds herself on a bus traveling away from her beloved NYC to Florida after a series of very unfortunate events and ends up joining a circus because she has no where else to go. No, really, that’s how the book starts. I was really skeptical of this one, but found it to be pretty good. I loved all of the characters and the plot twists. A great story about friendship, love and family.

Crankenstein by Samantha Berger, Illustrated by Dan Santat
2013
Picture Book
My Goodreads Rating: 4/5 Stars
Love the illustrations in this one! My eighth graders are currently doing a picture book study and Dan Santat is one of the featured illustrators they are looking at right now. Simple story about what happens when kids get mad and turn into Crankenstein. I love the ending!

Here’s what I plan to read next: (Click on the cover for more info from Goodreads)

I’m to the point in my reading year that I have a lot of “odds and ends” type books laying around and want to finish them by the beginning of 2014. I am still saving these two special professional books for when I have a lot of time to devote to them, so I plan to fly through the 3 middle grade books first. My TBR basket at school is dwindling and I have a small bag at home of random books that I’d like to get to as well. Easier said than done, but now that I have a lot more free time on my hands I am up for the challenge! Have a fantastic Thanksgiving and reading week!

Happy Reading!

Lesley ♥