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In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren.  The idea is to connect with other bloggers and book lovers to see what everyone is reading.  Books don't have to literally come in your mailbox.  They can be books you checked out at the library, bought at the bookstore, or downloaded to your e-reader.  The idea is just to share what's new on your immediate TBR pile. 

This was a great book week for me:

For Review:
 
The Fourth Stall by Chris Rylander

I had a mom come up to me after school one day last week and said, "I have an assignment for you.  I've heard that if you have Borders gift cards you should spend them ASAP in case they go bankrupt.  I know what a great classroom library you have so if I give you $100 in gift cards, will you spend them by this weekend?"

DUH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Of course I will!  :o)  These are the books I bought for my classroom library:

Oogy: The Dog Only a Family Could Love by Larry Levin (I'm a sucker for dog books and word has it, this one won't make you cry at the end)
I Am Number Four by Pittacus Lore (wish I hadn't bought this one now that I know the smarmy way it was written)

The Mermaid's Mirror by L.K. Madigan
The Brooklyn Nine by Alan Gratz

The Order of Odd Fish by James Kennedy
Homeless Bird by Gloria Whelan

The Odyssey: A Graphic Novel by Garreth Hinds

One by Kathryn Otoshi
Zero by Kathyrn Otoshi

I always try to stop by my town's library on a Tuesdays because their used book store is open when I stop by after work.  I always get tons of goodies for my classroom library whenever I stop there.  This week was no different: (Notice the beer bottle in the background to give the picture that touch of class :p  Oops!)

 

 Impulse by Ellen Hopkins

Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls

The Naked Mole-Rat Letters by Mary Amato

How to Rule the School by Kathryn Lay

Moccasin Trail by Eloise Jarvis McGraw

The Adventures of Robin Hood by Howard Pyle

Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift

Midnight for Charlie Bone by Jenny Nimmo

Flipped by Wendelin van Draanen

The Dark is Rising by Susan Cooper

The Sign of the Beaver by Elizabeth George Speare

Chasing the Falconers 1-4, 6 by Gordan Korman

Report to the Principal's Office by Jerry Spinelli

Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer

Dogs Don't Tell Jokes by Louis Sachar

Devoured by Amanda Marrone 

And finally, this is one my favorite things book-related I received this week.  I went upstairs to our school's library earlier this week to talk to the librarian and I noticed there was an empty, rotating book rack just sitting there.  It had formerly been filled with all the library's paperbacks, but they have recently been moved to some available bookshelf space.  Since my classroom bookshelves are filling up quickly, I asked the librarian if she was getting rid of the rack.  She said, "Why, do you want it?"  I practically yelled the word YES!  She said, "It's yours."

So now I am now the current owner of my very own rotating book rack:

My students said to me the other day, "Mrs. S, your room is starting to look more like a library than a classroom."  Better yet, they said this statement with excitement and pride.  As one of my friends on Facebook said, "Surround them with enough books and they won't even know they're learning."  That is precisely the idea!