March 2012 Reading Theme

This month’s theme is “Children’s Classics”.  I’m choosing to go with a loose definition of classic.  Rather than sticking to titles written for children prior to a certain year I’m also going to allow so-called modern children’s classics.

I will have to admit that I am having a little difficulty getting to this month’s theme however.  I had four books come in for me on the library holds list at once, all teen and adult titles.  They all have waiting lists on them, too, so I have to either read them now or wait longer to get them again!  Oh, the drama!  You’d think being a librarian and knowing how the holds system works I’d be able to better manipulate it, but I just don’t have time to think too much about it.

I know I can fit in at least a few books related to the theme though!  So here’s to another month of reading!

February 2012 Theme Wrap-Up

I managed to stick pretty closely to my reading theme in February.  Twelve of the fourteen books I read fit my nonfiction theme.  Of the other two, one was a Newbery Honor book I was finishing up from January’s theme, and the other was a recent children’s title.  I’m trying to fit some of those in as I go so that I can sort of keep up with the latest in children’s literature.

I really enjoy reading nonfiction, so this was a fun theme for me.  The majority of the nonfiction I read was biographies, autobiographies, or memoirs, which was not intentional at all.  It just happens that I’m really drawn to learning about other people’s lives.  Some of the folks I read about were famous, some not well-known at all.  Eleanor Roosevelt (Eleanor Roosevelt: A Life of Discovery) is by far more of  a household name than Irena Sendler (Irena Sendler and the Children of the Warsaw Ghetto), but both women did courageous things that changed the lives of hundreds, if not thousands, of people.

With the exception of Mindy Kaling’s memoir (which was pretty funny) and Facing the Lion (which provided a glimpse into the life of the Maasai people), the other autobiographies I read were by children’s authors (Peter Sis’ The Wall, Allen Say’s Drawing from Memory, and Tomie DePaola’s 26 Fairmount Avenue).  While it’s not absolutely necessary to know about an author’s personal life when you read their work, it can often provide insight into their writing.  This can be especially true when you learn about the childhood of someone who writes primarily for children.

My reading also included two helpful parenting titles: 1-2-3 Magic (a method for disciplining children) and Toilet Training (we’re just starting to enter this new territory with Little L).

I didn’t feel like I spent enough time with the cookbooks I checked out from the library to count them as “read” yet, but maybe after I’ve had a chance to try a few recipes I will.

Overall, another great month of reading, although I still didn’t get to as many books as I had hoped.  A reader’s work is never done!

Books of the Month: February 2012

What I read last month:

• Eleanor Roosevelt: A Life of Discovery by Russell Freedman
• The Silver Pencil by Alice Dalgliesh
• Small Persons with Wings by Ellen Booraem
• What to Do About Alice? by Barbara Kerley
• Irena Sendler and the Children of the Warsaw Ghetto by Susan Goldman Rubin
• Queen of the Falls by Chris Van Allsburg
• Chasing Lincoln’s Killer by James L. Swanson
• The Wall by Peter Sis
• 1-2-3 Magic by Thomas W. Phelan
• Toilet Training by Vicki Lansky
• Facing the Lion by Joseph Lemasolai Lekuton
• Drawing from Memory by Allen Say
• Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (and Other Concerns) by Mindy Kaling
• 26 Fairmount Avenue by Tomie DePaola