Books & Music

Hi! :) I'm nominating summer 2011 as the best one of my life so far. I got to go to the beach, which was awesome. I get to eat fresh raspberries out of my Mom's garden, which is delicious. I have no complaints! Summer always seems like a time when people drift in and out of your life, moving like a cool breeze on a hot day, or the waves of the ocean. This year's hellos have been better and fresher, and the goodbyes have been less sorrowful somehow.

In other news, Borders is going out of business and having a sale. A big one. This is bad news! Up to 40% off means that even someone as cheap as I am can find good deals. On lots of stuff.

The first time I went I bought:

Cecily G. and the Nine Monkeys, by Margaret and H.A. Rey
This book is the first one that mentions a monkey named George, who is always curious. That's him standing in the sunshine, because his friend Cecily G. is tall enough to reach her neck through the rain clouds.

Where the Mountain Meets the Moon, by Grace Lin
This book is exquisitely illustrated! I've read it once (borrowed from the library) and plan on reading it several more times. The message of the story written for children is one of thankfulness.

And on Thursday I went after work and bought:

When You Reach Me, by Rebecca Stead
I haven't read this before, but it was recommended highly to me by Desirae! I'm excited.

Should I Share My Ice Cream?, by Mo Willems

And three CDs (each for around $5): Miles Davis (Miles In The Sky), Billie Holiday, The Byrds

Weekend Reading List

4th of July! Fireworks! And books. I had a quiet weekend in beautiful Pray, Montana, staying at a cozy cottage. It was such a nice break between the end of summer school, and going back to work full-time.

This is what I read:

Olive's Ocean, by Kevin Henkes

Their Eyes Were Watching God, by Zora Neale Hurston

The Time Warp Trio: Summer Reading is Killing Me! by Jon Scieszka

I also read some poems by Wendell Berry, from the book Given. Morning and evenings are such nice times to read poetry! Especially when you're reading about nature, and you're sitting on a back porch with mountains to either side of you, and a creek rushing by a few yards away.

Hello Summer!

I had forgotten how much I love summer in Montana. This week reminded me of that fact. The weather has been amazing! Even the dramatic rain and thunderstorms felt so summer-y. We live in a beautiful world!

Certain music makes me think of summer; reminiscent of drinking iced tea lemonade all day long, and licking popsicles on a front porch. Some of these are old favorites, and some of them newly discovered. [On a slightly related note: I need to stop listening to James Blake on repeat. I listen to a select few songs by him over and over again while doing homework! It's very effective for typing out lesson plans, but not very effective when I'm trying to fall asleep and get a lyric unstuck.]

Sorry this isn't a fancy-pants cool-looking playlist. Technology is not my strong suit. Click here for the grooveshark.com playlist!

Books I Want to Buy

I went to Barnes & Noble today, spent 45 minutes looking around, and managed not to buy anything. These are going on my list of Books I Want to Buy:

Item 1: Peter Pan and Wendy

This book - the loveliest hardback copy imaginable - is part of the Sterling Illustrated Classics series, which I have been a fan of for a while. This was my first time seeing their version of J.M. Barrie's classic and the pages are glorious. Computer images can't show you the full beauty of the book. It features amazing full-page and two-page spread illustrations (I think they are pen and ink) done by Robert Ingpen. He's also done nice illustrations for Wind in the Willows and Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.

Item 2: Along a Long Road

This book is fabulous! It's written by Frank Viva, and features quirky illustrations alongside simple text. One of my classes this summer is reading clinic, and I'm working on decoding with a six-year-old boy. I think he would love this book - it doesn't dumb anything down, yet it is still written with clarity, and uses short (mostly one-syllable) words. Even more amazing - it rhymes! The story is about a man on a bike, riding through town and country, going uphill and downhill along a long road.

Item 3: Elephant & Piggie books

Oh my gosh! Mo Willems is the best. There were two titles today that I hadn't seen before, so of course I had to read them. I skimmed through (and laughed out loud) at Should I Share My Ice Cream? and I Love My New Toy! The first one is absolutely hilarious, and I liked it because it has Gerald, Piggie, AND ice cream in it! The second one is simpler than a lot of the Elephant & Piggie books, and would be perfect for beginning readers - even those who are just starting to decode, like my student in reading clinic. My favorite is probably still Elephants Cannot Dance, but I love them all. I wish I owned every one of them! I don't because I'm usually too cheap to pay $9 each. Usually.