Books I Read and Other Assorted Oddities

 I picked this one up on Audible because it sounded interesting, and I thought it was nonfiction before. Turns out, it was fiction, but it ended up being an interesting read. The Making of Another Major Motion Picture Masterpiece follows the story of the development of a fictional (but I think based off of a real) film. From the creation of the source material, to the writing of the script by director Bill Johnson, to the casting of Wren Lane and others, the book follows the entire production until a screening of the final film in New York. The film is based on a series of comic books. These comics were a fictionalized story of his uncle who was a flamethrower in World War II. The character, Firefall, becomes a villain in a new installment of a blockbuster super hero franchise. This is another complex story with a lot of moving parts. It has a very large cast of characters and sometimes it's difficult to keep them separated. There's also not a whole lot of development on many o...

 OK, this was our book club book this month. It's another middle grade kind of book. Tiph is new in town. Her parents (well her dad and step-mom) are occupied with her two younger siblings. While on a walk, Tiph comes across an elderly woman who seems to be struggling to walk her dog. Offering to help, Tiph discovers that the woman is alone and recovering from an operation. Tiph helps her, and finds herself with a job working for the old woman. Tiph loves dolls and has been eyeing one in a shop in the town (incidentally, where she also came across the old woman). The shop owner doesn't like kids much, and Tiph isn't allowed in his shop on account of being suspected of stealing a clock from the shop some months before. When she accompanies her new friend, Néni (Aunt) Szilvia, she steals a doll she has been eyeing for some time. Will this theft change her relationship with everyone? OK, this summary doesn't really do the book justice. There are a lot of moving parts in th...

 I have a portion of this series in my classroom library, so I've added it to my mystery reading sheet. I obtained the first book from the library, and was able to read it really quickly so the person who had it on hold could get the chance to read it as well. The Eye of the Crow  follows a 13 year old Sherlock Holmes. Sherlock is ditching school and reading the papers, looking at crimes and investigations. It is through these "sensational" papers, that he sees the murder of a woman in the Whitechapel neighborhood. Sherlock sees the primary suspect be arrested, an Arab boy only a little older than Sherlock himself, who whispers to Sherlock "I didn't do it!" Driven by this, Sherlock begins to investigate the case, only to find himself in the cell next to the Arab, accused of being an accomplice to the murder. Can Sherlock solve the case and save himself and the Arab? This book was fairly quickly paced, and while the ending was kind of predictable, I enjoyed t...

 This book came highly recommended from a former coworker of mine. I picked it up on Audible, and then ended up buying a physical copy somewhere along the line, and got to the physical copy before the audiobook. I've been really interested in this topic as a parent and a teacher. Like Haidt, I've seen progressively alarming trends in student well being and mental health in recent years, and it was accelerated by the pandemic. The Anxious Generation  discusses what happened to teens in the wake of the transition away from flip phones to smart phones starting around 2012. Haidt discusses the effects of social media, and how these apps are designed to be addictive. He discusses solutions that parents, schools, and governments should take to help build resilience in our children and teens and protect them online. First of all, I thought this book was very thorough. I felt that Haidt addressed so many aspects of this discussion. I think it was helpful that he presented his research...

My husband really enjoys The Legend of Zelda games, and I've liked watching him play them, though I'm not as interested in them as he is. I found this book on Audible (I think it was included with membership) and thought that it sounded really interesting. The Psychology of Zelda  is a collection of essays from various people (mostly with doctorate degrees in psychology and related fields) about how The Legend of Zelda  games are impacted by psychology. From topics ranging from projection to the stages of grief, this book picks apart the games, the music, the characters, and the players to show why the games are so impactful and popular. This book was interesting, and was generally easy to follow. I didn't fully know what I was getting into when I bought the book, so I didn't realize that it was a collection of essays. Still, that didn't overly bother me, except that it made the audiobook version a little hard to follow. I couldn't keep track the author biograp...

 I've been loving this series, so I was very excited when I got to roll for mystery books and this is what I got. I was definitely eager to continue the series. Jameson has found a secret in Prague, but not one he's willing to let Avery in on just yet. As they're in London, Jamison is approached by his father, a British nobleman who has a request: join the mysterious, underground club: The Devil's Mercy, and win back his ancestral home. Do Avery and Jameson have what it takes to beat the odds? Can they get into the Most Dangerous Game? Meanwhile, Grayson finds himself in Phoenix, Arizona trying to break his half sister, Gigi out of prison. Once there, he finds his father's real family in deep financial trouble, and on the brink of ruin. Unable to leave the situation alone, guided by Gigi's digging into her father's whereabouts, Grayson finds himself tangled up in a complicated family battle. Can he protect his sister's while also staying loyal to his Haw...

This was another book club book for my neighborhood book club. It's our middle grade choice, and I found the title and summary for it really intriguing. Coyote and her dad, Rodeo, live on a refitted school bus they've called Yager. They drive across the country in search of any adventure with the exception of Washington state. Washington is a "no-go." It was in Washington, five years earlier, that Coyote's two sisters and mother were killed in a car crash. In a weekly phone call with her grandma, Coyote finds out that the neighborhood park is about to be paved over. It was in that park, five years ago, that Coyote, her sisters, and mother buried a memory box, a time capsule that they promised they would dig up in ten years time. Can Coyote get Yager and Rodeo across the country without Rodeo knowing. I really enjoyed this book. It was cute, emotional, and funny. I found Coyote to be a really fun main character. She was witty, well-read, and sarcastic. I very much ...

 This was one of the book club choices for my neighborhood book club. We called it historical fiction, but I didn't really feel like it was actually historical fiction, but I did enjoy it. The Names follows the storyline of a woman Cora and her abusive husband. Cora is in a terrible marriage. The story starts with Cora on her way to the registrars office to fill out the birth certificate for her newest child. Her oldest child, Maia, thinks the boy's name should be Bear. Cora wants to name him Julian. Her husband, Gordon, wants to name him after himself as it's a family name. The story follows all the way through what would happen depending on which name the baby is given. The concept of this book was really fascinating. I highly enjoyed the way this book was written and told, though it was a little confusing at the start. I also had a hard time with the time jumps that happen in between each chapter. Really though, I loved the characters in the book. Bear, Julian, and Gordo...

 I picked this one up with a bunch of others after the Secret Projects campaign, and it's been on my TBR forever. I read this as part of my Sanderson rotation spot. John finds himself in the middle of a forest, at night, with no knowledge of how he got there, who he is, or why he's there. He quickly finds himself over his head, fighting well-armed men with all kinds of physical augments that he doesn't have access to for some reason. The twist? John is in an alternate dimension of Medieval England. He's from the future, but somehow has to blend in with these people of the past. Can he stop the people from his own timeline who are trying to exploit it? I will say... This was not my favorite Sanderson. I didn't not like this book, but it wasn't my favorite. I love the witty title, and the main character was fine. The writing was pretty good as well. But unlike a lot of Brandon's other books, this book was too slow for me. First: the amnesia problem. I don'...

 This one was really popular in YA several years ago. I know... I'm always reading older books. But I was fascinated by the dark cover and spooky vibes. I picked this up as an audiobook and started it a couple of months ago. Lately, I've been really good and listening to books on my way home from work and while cleaning. Three sisters, divided as children. Each with a different power. Kat is a poisoner, capable of mixing power potions designed to bring death upon any enemy. Arsinoe is a naturalist, who can make plants bloom and summon an animal familiar. Mirabella is an elemental with the power to control the weather and fire. Two of the sisters are incredibly weak, and one very strong. After Beltane, comes the Year of Ascension, where two sisters must die, and one will become queen. Who will prove strong enough to survive? I had no expectations going into this book. I had no idea what it was about, or anything. I just knew that it was popular. I was hooked pretty much from the...

 This book is really nostalgic for me, and probably why I love it so much. My mom read this to my brother and I when we were kids, and it's one that has stuck with me surprisingly well. I remember several parts of the story really vividly (and was actually really impressed with what I remembered of the story). This one got the Disney treatment, but the movie is terrible in comparison. Meg's father is gone. They don't know where he is, when he will return, or if he's even all right. People in town are starting to talk, and kids make fun of Meg (and they're met with her fists). All of that changes when Charles Wallace, Meg's younger brother introduces them to three exceptionally odd ladies: Mrs. Whatsit, Mrs. Which, and Mrs. Who. The ladies set the children (who are joined by Calvin, their neighbor) on a journey to rescue Meg's father from a galaxy-consuming darkness. Like I said, I can't help but find this book really fascinating. I remembered portions of...

 This book is highly recommended online and from some of my book club friends. It's taken me months to get through this, but I ended up enjoying it. The Nightingale  follows the story of two sisters, Vianne and Isabelle. Vianne is the older sister, married with a daughter, Sophie. Isabelle is a beauty, but a wild spirit. Never one to follow the rules, Isabelle frequently shows up where she's not supposed to be. As the war breaks out, Isabelle finds herself disobeying everyone's expectations again, and throwing herself into the resistance. With her husband gone, Vianne is forced to billet a German officer. This only gets more complicated as Isabelle's resistance life clashes with Vianne's attempts to protect her family. I loved this book, but I also hated it. I struggle a bit with violence against children, and while it is historically accurate, I really had a hard time with that aspect of the novel. The characters were interesting, though I was a bit annoyed by both...

 I love the  Harry Potter books and films, and I saw that a few of my friends had read this book. One of my coworkers suggested that I should bump it up in my to-read list, and so I did. Tom Felton outlines his experiences getting into acting, growing up with all brothers, and his early family life. Felton details his experiences working on the Potter films, and the actors, crews, and directors he got to work with. He is so complimentary of these great people, and he makes it clear how privileged he felt to get to rub shoulders with all of the people he worked with. He then tells of experiences after Potter , and his eventual spiral into substance abuse and eventually how he ended up in rehab. I found Felton's story honest. He doesn't hide behind the mistakes he made, or what he ended up doing. I also found his account humble, and he takes great care to recognize all of the people he worked with. His tributes to these actors is sweet, complimentary, and really interesting. I l...

 I inherited a bunch of upper elementary books from my mother-in-law when she left teaching, and it's been my goal to read some of them so I can make recommendations to my own kids. I keep thinking these little books will only take me an afternoon, but here I am two months after starting it finally finishing it. Moose Flannagan lives on Alcatraz Island. He's not a prisoner, but his father works at the prison, and so the family lives right there on the Island next to the cons. Moose's sister has been ten for five years in a row. They've tried to find help for her mental condition, and their last choice is a school for similar children. The family has relocated to Alcatraz to be able to afford the school. Moose meets the other Alcatraz children, including the willey Piper, the daughter of the warden. Piper hatches many schemes, one of which is to get the kids at school to pay them to get their clothes laundered by the cons including the infamous Al Capone. Can they actual...

 I've read both of the other books in this series and loved both of them. I was excited to get a story that was completely about Julie. The Pearl Thief  takes place about five or six years before the start of Code Name Verity  when Julie is just a teenager. The book starts with her arriving at her grandparent's Scottish castle for holiday sooner than anticipated. After visiting an old friend in the village near the estate, Julie is knocked unconscious by the river that runs on the estate, a river famous for its pearls. After she is discovered and taken to the hospital, Julie is determined to find out who hit her and solve the mystery of the missing pearls from the estate. I liked this book, but I didn't love it. I love Julie and her character. I loved her in Code Name Verity , and her voice is sarcastic, witty, and intelligent. All of that carries into The Pearl Thief  as well, with an added sense of aristocracy that the younger Julie obviously harbored. The plot was...

  A while ago, I read David and Goliath  by Malcolm Gladwell and found it interesting. As my sister was preparing for the AP exam last year, she read this and then recommended it to me. The Tipping Point  by Malcolm Gladwell explores how "epidemics" start and spread. Gladwell's analysis of how people can influence trends follows several different types of people and their roles in epidemics. As with all of Gladwell's work, I like the way he structures his argument and utilizes evidence. He has a very specific structure to his work that I find particularly helpful. His writing is clear, and I feel like I always know what the point of his evidence is. Like I tell my students, he doesn't leave things up to my interpretation as the reader. This structure does bother some readers because it gets a little repetitive by the end, and I also feel that Gladwell's use of that structure fizzles at the end. Sometimes I got lost in the evidence a bit as well. This was an in...

 Several students recommended this book, which was really popular a few years ago. I finally bought it and read it. Kya Clark has been abandoned her whole life. First, by her mother, who walked out on the family, then each sibling drifted off into the marsh and never came back. Kya was left with her abusive father until he, too, never returned. Kya took attachment wherever she could get it, first from Tate, who taught her to read and write, and then from Chase, the star football player from town. When Chase is found dead, it is Kya, the Marsh Girl, who is their primary suspect. Is Kya responsible for Chase's death, and can she hide in the marsh that only she knows? All around, this book is sad. Kya's story is heartbreaking as she is abandoned over and over again throughout the story. I truly felt for her as the story unfolded. Kya's character is a little flat; I feel like she remains the aloof Marsh Girl throughout the story, and she doesn't get past that personality tr...

 This book was a book club choice, and while the premise sounded a little weird, it ended up being a feel-good book that I enjoyed. Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt follows three different stories. At first, the storylines are disconnected, but gradually they start to line up. Tova lives in a small town in Washington and has recently lost her husband. Cameron is a failure who gives up on everything he's ever tried. Afraid to invest in anything, and desperate to know his parents, Cameron sets out from California to Washington to find his father. Marcellus is an octopus living in the Sowell Bay Aquarium. He alone knows the answers to the mystery of Tova's son, and though he can't communicate it directly, he really is a remarkably bright creature. This book turned out to be a feel-good, warm, fulfilling novel. If you're looking for a beach read or a cozy, comfort book, this is a great choice. I loved the sense of mystery throughout this book. It's clear f...

 I picked this up because I needed a quick read to get me back on track with my reading goal. It did not have that effect for me. This book (because it's the young reader's edition) is appropriate for about 2nd to 4th grade. While I think it does a fantastic job at what it's trying to accomplish, I would like to get the full version and reread it. This book has been made into a film, and I think its message is excellent. Hidden Figures  follows the story of several African-American women trying to break into the field of aeronautics during and just after World War II. These women started as "computers" which meant that they were checking the math of the predominately white male engineers in other departments. These women were brilliant in their own right, and amazing mathematicians. Eventually, their skills could not be ignored, and many of them were promoted to other departments, and breaking racial barriers that had existed for a century. Based on the intended a...

 I picked this one up to possibly use in my AP class. It had been recommended to me by one of my coworkers and I was trying to decide if it was worth using in AP. The 57 Bus  recounts the true story of two teens whose happenstance meeting on a public bus in Oakland, California. Sasha identified as nonbinary, liked to wear skirts, and went to a private school in Oakland. Richard was a black student, a good kid, but also tended to get mixed up in trouble. He went to a public school in Oakland's poorer side of town. One day, Sasha was riding the bus as they always did back to their house from school. This time though, Sasha fell asleep on the long ride. Richard and his friends boarded the bus as well, and seeing the skirt hanging off the edge of the seat, decided to see what would happen with a lighter. The material of the skirt burst into flames, and suddenly Sasha was burning. This story is unbelievably sad for both teenagers involved. In working with teenagers, one thing is tr...