Ah, Poe

From the Shoebox blog... This was too funny not to post here.

Children & YA books read for class

I thought I'd keep a little list of the children and YA books I'm reading for my Lit for Children and Young Adults class. Some of these books we're reading and discussing as a class. Some are for my reading logs that are due each module. And some are the ones I'm reading while choosing the books for my reading logs. By the end of the semester I think it's going to be a rather extensive list. So far, it's kept me busy, but not crazy. It's only been 3 weeks, though, so I suppose anything can happen.

As I do with my yearly lists, this post itself will be updated. I won't add a post to continue the list.

The Adventures of the Dish and the Spoon Mini Grey
Amber Was Brave, Essie Was Smart Vera B. Williams
Anansi and the Moss Covered Rock Eric Kimmel
Aurelie: A Faerie Tale Heather Tomlinson
Baseball Saved Us Ken Mochizuki
Caps for Sale Esphyr Slobodkina
The Case of the Missing Marquess Nancy Springer
Cendrillon: A Caribbean Cinderella Robert D. San Souci
Chains Laurie Halse Anderson
Children of the Great Depression Russel Freedman
Dona Flor Pat Mora
Harold and the Purple Crayon Crockett Johnson
The Empty Pot Demi
The Funny Little Woman Arlene Mosel
George Washington, Spymaster Thomas B. Allen
The Gingerbread Man Jim Aylesworth
Jabberwocky Lewis Carroll (Stephane Jorisch ill.)
Jingle Dancer Cynthia Leitich Smith
La Linea Ann Jaramillo
Lawn Boy Gary Paulson
Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile Bernard Waber
Penny from Heaven Jennifer L. Holm
Pompeii Richard Platt
Rosa Nikki Giovanni
Ruby's Beauty Shop Rosemary Wells
Satchel Paige Lesa Cline-Ransome
Scaredy Squirrel Melanie Watt
Shakespeare's Secret Elise Broach
Skippyjon Jones Judy Schachner
The Story of Ferdinand Munro Leaf
Sylvester and the Magic Pebble William Steig
Trashy Town Andrea Griffing Zimmerman
The Vegetables We Eat Gail Gibbons
The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain Peter Sis
The Way Meat Loves Salt: A Cinderella Tale from the Jewish Tradition Nina Jaffe
We Are the Ship: The Story of Negro League Baseball Kadir Nelson
Weedflower Cynthia Kadohata
The Year of the Dog Grace Lin
The Year of the Rat Grace Lin
Yum! ¡Mmmm! ¡Qué rico! Pat Mora

Postcard Library

A friend just sent me this great link to a website that has photos of old library postcards.
Search by state and see if your library is there! There are so many fantastic old buildings.

Books with Bite

Vampire books are all the rage right now. On Saturdays at the library I'm asked at least once if we have any of the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer. Not a single one of those books has been available since I started working at the library last September. And the library has 30 or 40 some copies! When Twilight isn't available, often we move on to another vampire series or book and try to find something that's actually on the shelf. Trickier than it sounds, believe me.



So, for my friends who are devouring the Twilight series (no pun intended!) and looking for something new to read, here's a little vampire list to feed your addiction.

Suck it Up Brian Meehl
Cirque Du Freak Darren Shan
Blue Bloods Melissa de la Cruz
Vampire Kisses Ellen Schreiber
Peeps Scott Westerfeld
Tantalize Cynthia Leitich Smith

And there's always Buffy the Vampire Slayer

And you should certainly read Dracula if you're really into vampires.

Not a complete list at all, but a good place to start for all you vampire lovers.

Library Postcard

In the middle of a Google image search, I found this little gem of a postcard. It's the Norwalk Public library. I don't know what year it's from but it's a beautiful drawing of the building. The landscaping out front has certainly grown in the time that has passed, but the building is just as stately as ever.

Beginning of the year slump

I find myself in a reading slump again this month. It seems to happen every January. I have a stack of books next to my bed that I really want to read. I'm a couple chapters into one that has been on my to-read list for a while. But, I just can't seem to muster the interest or attention. Perhaps my husband is correct in saying that January is my downtime after all the hustle and bustle of the holidays. That would explain the yearly nature of my reading slump.

Does anyone else ever find themselves in this sort of rut? When you love to read as much as I do and feel a little unsettled for being uninterested, what do you do to jump start yourself?

In the past, I have fallen back on favorite authors and books, nearly always Janet Evanovich or Jennifer Crusie. I love their books and those often get me in the swing of things again. We'll see what happens this year. I've just discovered a cute little YA series, called The Wedding Planner's Daughter by Coleen Murtagh Paratore and I thoroughly enjoyed the first book. I only wish I had reserved the others that the library has because I finished the first last night!

2009 * Books Read

1. The Wedding Planner's Daughter Coleen Murtagh Paratore (200)
2. Bones to Pick Carolyn Haines (349)
3. The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen v2 Alan Moore, Kevin O'Neill (228)
4. Dear Julia Amy Bronwen Zemser (327)
5. The Spiderwick Chronicles: Care and Feeding of Sprites Holly Black & Tony DiTerlizzi (48)
6. Ham Bones Carolyn Haines (275)
7. The Cupid Chronicles Coleen Murtagh Paratore (207)
8. Wishbones Carolyn Haines (336)
9. Plum Spooky Janet Evanovich (309)
10. George Washington, Spymaster Thomas B. Allen (192)
11. Willa by Heart Coleen Murtagh Paratore (228)
12. Penny from Heaven Jennifer L. Holm (274)
13. Children of the Great Depression Russell Freedman (118)
14. The Case of the Missing Marquess Nancy Springer (216)
15. Lawn Boy Gary Paulson (88)
16. Aurelie: A Faerie Tale Heather Tomlinson (184)
17. The Grand Finale Janet Evanovich (246)
18. Manhunt Janet Evanovich (248)
19. Back to the Bedroom Janet Evanovich (258)
20. Anyone But You Jennifer Crusie (224)
21. Love Overboard Janet Evanovich (266)
22. Smitten Janet Evanovich (234)
23. Chains Laurie Halse Anderson (316)
24. Amber Was Brave, Essie Was Smart Vera B. Williams (52)
25. La Linea Ann Jaramillo (131)
26 The Year of the Dog Grace Lin (134)
27. Weedflower Cynthia Kadohata (260)
28. The Year of the Rat Grace Lin (182)
29. Full Blast Janet Evanovich & Charlotte Hughes (344)
30. Belly Laughs Jenny McCarthy (165)
31. Thanksgiving Janet Evanovich (195)
32. Shakespeare's Secret Elise Broach (250)
33. Dogs & Goddesses Jennifer Crusie, Anne Stuart, Lani Diane Rich (388)
34. Wife for Hire Janet Evanovich (234)
35. Death of a Dreamer MC Beaton (247)
36. Death of a Gentle Lady MC Beaton (245)
37. Death of a Bore MC Beaton (248)
38. Death of a Maid MC Beaton (245)
39. Little House in the Big Woods Laura Ingalls Wilder (238)
40. Little House on the Prairie Laura Ingalls Wilder (335)
41. Momnesia Shannon Payette Seip & Adrienne Hedger (90)
42. Missing Joseph Elizabeth George (567)
43. The Old Wine Shades Martha Grimes (341)
44. For the Sake of Elena Elizabeth George (442)
45. Playing for the Ashes Elizabeth George (675)
46. How I Became an American Karin Gündisch (120)
47. After Tupac and D Foster Jacqueline Woodson (153)
48. Off and Running Gary Soto (136)
49. Indian Shoes Cynthia Leitich Smith (66)
50. Sees Behind Trees Michael Dorris (104)
51. The Dragon's Child Laurence Yep (133)
52. Ask Me No Questions Marina Budhos (162)
53. Introduction to Public Librarianship Kathleen de la Pena McCook (406)
54. Children's Literature, Briefly Michael Tunnell & James Jacobs (300)
55. The Sandman: Preludes & Nocturnes Neil Gaiman
56. The Sandman: The Doll's House Neil Gaiman
57. The Sandman: Dream Country Neil Gaiman
58. The Sandman: Season of Mists Neil Gaiman
59. The Sandman: A Game of You Neil Gaiman
60. Unshelved, v1 Bill Barnes & Gene Ambaum (127)
61. Husband Coached Childbirth Robert A. Bradley (360)
62. Rough Weather Robert B. Parker (301)
63. Burned Carol Higgins Clark (358)

*A note: I'm not listing all the picture books I've read for class and during my time working at the library. There are far too many of them to keep track of. Those that I've read for class can be found in a separate post.

Norwalk Public Library

The Norwalk, Ohio public library.



This is my hometown library. I love it. It's a beautiful building, it smells like books, it's cool and quiet. It has always been the perfect place to find a good read.