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Monday, May 28, 2018

#IMWAYR May 28, 2018


Each week I try to join Jen from Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee from Unleashing Readers to share all of the reading I've done over the week from picture books to young adult novels. This week I enjoyed three middle grade books. I also read a book to honor Memorial Day.


Picture Book


This is a beautiful story of a boy and a father's visit to the Vietnam Veteran's Memorial in Washington, DC.



Middle Grade


I have heard nothing but praise about this book so I was so glad to finally get my hands on a copy. Bob is the story of a girl named Livy and a creature named Bob. Livy had befriended Bob when she was five and living in Australia. She had made him a chicken suit, taught him chess, and hid him in her closet. But when Livy and her mother left Australia, she had completely forgotten about him until the day she opened the closet and there he was, still waiting. Livy is determined to finish what she started at the age of five, figuring out where Bob came from and how to send him home. A delightful story told in two voices. I hope they will write the prequel because I would love a book about Livy and Bob at age five.


In this book, also told in alternating points of view, two kids, separated by distance, come together to share their love of scrabble. Both are having difficulty navigating middle school and friendship but they can at least count on the friendly competition. I found Charlotte's story uplifting and hopeful. The bullying Ben experiences is real and raw. I would have liked it to be resolved a bit more by the end, but maybe, as in life, it had to be left as it was. I would love to know what happens next for both of them.


The Unicorn Rescue Society is about two kids, a strange teacher, and an unusual creature. It was a light, fun, read. I can't wait to get the next one.


 We lost the great Richard Peck this week. I heard him speak three times and each time his words, and his voice, were memorizable. The Best Man is the story of Archer Magill, a young boy looking to understand life by learning from adult role models and friends. It's a modern story, but has an old time feel. - Rest in peace Richard Peck. Like the characters in your books, you are a role model and a man who will never be forgotten.
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Stacy Barnett Mozer is a teacher and a middle grade author. If you like what she's been reading follow her on Goodreads. Please leave a comment below. 

It's Monday, what are you reading?

Monday, May 21, 2018

#IMWAYR May 21, 2018


Each week I try to join Jen from Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee from Unleashing Readers to share all of the reading I've done over the week from picture books to young adult novels. 


Middle Grade


One of my favorites from childhood, and now a favorite again, The Westing Game is about sixteen heirs to a fortune who have to compete in a game of clues in order to win the money and find the murderer. Among the heirs, besides a possible murderer is a bookie, a bomber, a burglar, and a mistake. I was not supposed to finish this book this week because I am reading it with my 4th graders and forcing them to go slowly and look for clues. The only problem was I couldn't put it down. Kids who have loved The Candymakers by Wendy Mass and Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library by Chris Grabenstein will love this book.


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Stacy Barnett Mozer is a teacher and a middle grade author. If you like what she's been reading follow her on Goodreads. Please leave a comment below. 

It's Monday, what are you reading?

Monday, May 14, 2018

#IMWAYR May 14, 2018


Each week I try to join Jen from Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee from Unleashing Readers to share all of the reading I've done over the week from picture books to young adult novels. This week I read a mix of middle grade and young adult books.

Middle Grade


After a terrible accident, Alice's family is crumbling. Her father has moved to an apartment and her brothers are staying with her aunt. The only thing Alice feels she can do to take control is to refuse to leave, even if it means living in a tent in her backyard. Staying home also allows Alice to continue with the one consistent in her life, swim team. Tiny Infinities is about finding the small things that hold you together, even when life is falling apart. Look for an interview with the author soon on Sporty Girl Books.


Karen Rivers goal in creating this book was to create a modern day Are You There God, It's Me, Margaret. With issues of family, puberty, and transgender, she definitely has written a book that captures the confusion of growing up. Plus, there are whales!

Young Adult


Zelie remembers her world before magic was stolen. Before her mother was killed for being a mage. When she is given the chance to bring it back, she risks everything to set things right. An enjoyable fantasy told from multiple points of view.


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Stacy Barnett Mozer is a teacher and a middle grade author. If you like what she's been reading follow her on Goodreads. Please leave a comment below. 

It's Monday, what are you reading?

Monday, May 7, 2018

#IMWAYR May 7, 2018


Each week I try to join Jen from Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee from Unleashing Readers to share all of the reading I've done over the week from picture books to young adult novels. This week it was all young adult.


Young Adult


This Top Gun for teens focuses on three fighter pilots as they learn how to get along with each other while trying to save their world and their love lives at the same time. The main character, Nyx, is likable though flawed, trying to constantly live up to the expectations of her father while making sure no one knows that her father is an infamous general and their overall commander. 


I didn't choose this book because the main character's name was Nix, but it was an odd coincidence. Like Nyx, Nix is a girl who can do something no one else can. In her case she finds maps that allow her father to travel through time. Also confused about the relationship with her father and love, Nix must decide if she stays on her time traveling ship or if she goes out to seek her own fortune knowing she may never find her father again.
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Stacy Barnett Mozer is a teacher and a middle grade author. If you like what she's been reading follow her on Goodreads. Please leave a comment below. 

It's Monday, what are you reading?