A Foodie Bibliophile in Wanderlust: March 2019

Monday, March 25, 2019

It's Monday! What are you reading? 3-25-19

It's Monday! What are you reading? Is a wonderful community of readers, teachers, and librarians. Hosted by Jen over at Teach Mentor Texts along with Kellee and Ricki at Unleashing Readers, participants share their reading adventures from the past week along with their reading plans for the week ahead.

My Monday posts are generally just a highlight of what I've been reading during the week so if you'd like to see all that I've been reading, follow my Goodreads page.

Hi friends! It's been a minute. Walden committee reading has me consumed so I don't have time to post every week, but I'm here now and have tons of reading to share with you.

I recently finished reading:

On the Come Up by Angie Thomas

While I found The Hate U Give more compelling, I also found this book a fantastic follow-up to THUG. I’m actually looking more forward to this movie adaption than THUG because the music is going to be fire!

Cardboard Kingdom by Chad Sell

In a time when boredom no longer exists because we constantly have devices to keep us busy, a book that reminds us of the power of imagination and the need for kids to be bored to develop their creativity is a welcome addition to the world of graphic novels.

Picture books I've read and loved:

Olive & Pekoe: In Four Short Walks by Jacky Davis and Giselle Potter
A quiet story about 2 dogs who are unlikely friends, one is young and energetic, the other old and slow, yet they still manage to be good friends and stick together.

Another by Christian Robinson
I love that Christian Robinson’s illustrations have a childlike whimsy while also managing to be sophisticated at the same time. Those qualities are especially on display in this wordless picture book where his illustrations do all the heavy lifting and show us just what a brilliant storyteller he truly is.

What a Cold Needs by Barbara Bottner, illustrated by Chris Sheban
I don’t know how, but Barbara Bottner and Chris Sheban found a way for me to wish I could be a sick kid again and spend all day reading, sleeping, and snuggling with pets and parents.

Because by Mo Willems
Music can change you. Your life can change the course of others’ lives for the better. This book is one is a palpable experience of the ways in which music can change you. I may have cried whilst reading.

Which One Doesn't Belong? Playing with Shapes by Christopher Danielson

You know how standardized tests project that there is only one answer on a multiple choice question even if more than one of the choices seem plausible? Yeah, well this book spits in the face of that and I love it.

Currently Reading:

Shortest Way Home: One Mayor's Challenge and a Model for America's Future by Pete Buttigieg
The more I learn about this guy, the more I like him. Right now he is my top choice for the Democratic nominee for president.

Wednesday, March 13, 2019

Blog Tour + Giveaway: The Missing Piece of Charlie O'Reilly

Charlie O’Reilly is an only child. Which is why it makes everyone uncomfortable when he talks abut his brother.

Liam. His eight-year-old kid brother, who, up until a year ago, slept in the bunk above Charlie, took pride in being as annoying as possible, and was the only person who could make Charlie laugh until it hurt.

Then came the morning when the bunk, and Liam, disappeared forever. No one even remembers him—not Charlie’s mother, who has been lost in her own troubles; and not Charlie’s father, who is gone frequently on business trips. The only person who believes Charlie is his best friend, Ana—even if she has no memory of Liam, she is as determined as Charlie is to figure out what happened to him.

The search seems hopeless—until Charlie receives a mysterious note, written in Liam’s handwriting. The note leads Charlie and Ana to make some profound discoveries about a magic they didn’t know existed, and they soon realize that if they’re going to save Liam, they may need to risk being forgotten themselves, forever.

Rebecca K.S. Ansari’s debut novel is a stunning contemporary fantasy about love, loss, and the power to forgive that we all have in side us—even if we sometimes forget it’s there.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Rebecca K.S. Ansari is a former ER doctor. The Missing Piece of Charlie O’Reilly is her first book. She lives in Minnesota with her husband, four sons, and some seriously massive pets.

GIVEAWAY!