Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick Scholastic Press, 2011 639 pages When I was growing up, book fairs were one of my favorite things about school. Every year, I waited with baited breath for those little catalogs to show up on our desks. And though I never got to buy all the books I wanted (which was … Continue reading Wonderstruck
When You Reach Me
When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead Wendy Lamb Books, 2009 208 pages When You Reach Me is a fantasy that doesn't know it's a fantasy, a typical coming-of-age novel made atypical--even brilliant--by its sci-fi undercurrent and ever-shifting web of connections and revelations. Set in the late 1970s, the novel centers on Miranda, a sixth-grader … Continue reading When You Reach Me
When Mindy Saved Hanukkah
When Mindy Saved Hanukkah by Eric A. Kimmel; ill. by Barbara McClintock Scholastic Press, 1998 32 pages Courage is a difficult, even counterintuitive, quality to cultivate in our children. By definition, it requires direct exposure to danger or adversity--the very kinds of circumstances from which we try to protect our kids. And when dealing with … Continue reading When Mindy Saved Hanukkah
Read Like a Girl 