WWW Wednesdays – January 11, 2012

My bookshelf

– What I’m currently reading
Deck the Halls by Mary Higgins Clark and Carol Higgins Clark. It’s the prequel to The Christmas Thief, which I read a couple of months ago. I’m enjoying this guilty pleasure of light reading in between some heavier reading.

– What I recently finished reading
The Element: How Finding Your Passion Changes Everything by Ken Robinson. This was quite an interesting book to read, with lots of materials and research data in less than 300 pages. But I think rather than using the subtitle “How finding your passion changes everything”, it should have been ” how some people found them passion and changed their lives.” This book is full of examples of famous (and less famous) people who found their passion early on or later in life, and what factors can affect someone finding their passion, or not. As a parent, I find it helpful as an observer to identify areas of interest in my children I may want to encourage rather than smother. But for myself, it doesn’t really tell me how to discover my own passions and find “my element.” I still recommend this book for the information it contains overall but the quest shouldn’t stop at the end of it.

The 19th Wife by David Ebershoff. A little long but I didn’t guess who the real murderer was, so I liked the surprise ending.

– What I think I’ll read next
Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut. I just picked it up at the library today and should be able to start it in a couple of days.

My kids’ bookshelf

– What they’re currently reading
– I Want My Hat Back by Jon Klassen. A bear searches for his missing hat until he remembers where he last saw it. The large font size makes it easy for young readers to read on their own and the story is very funny. I just can’t believe my kids haven’t figured out what happened to the lying rabbit at the end…
– Owl Moon by Jane Yolen. This is a Caldecott Medal Book winner and it really deserves the award, both for the story and the beautiful illustrations. On a very cold winter’s night under a full moon, a father and daughter trek into the woods to see the Great Horned Owl. My kids couldn’t wait to see if the owl would show, and the wait was worth it.
– The Berenstain Bears Say Please and Thank You by Jan & Mike Berenstain. Sister, Brother, and Honey Bear practice using their very best manners in many different situations. A great book to teach or remind kids about good manners (saying please, thank you, you’re welcome, sorry, etc).

– What they recently finished reading
Hippo and Rabbit in Three Short Tales by Jeff Mack. Jeff Mack is a genius and really knows what makes little kids laugh. These three very short, super easy to read stories are just hilarious and my kids loved this book. Can you imagine what happens when a rabbit pushes a hippo on a swing? Not much, right? Now, just imagine what happens when a hippo pushes a rabbit on a swing. Wheeeeeeeeeee!
– The Fool of the World and the Flying Ship : a Russian Tale retold by Arthur Ransome. Another Caldecott Medal Book winner, this is the story of the Fool of the World who, when the Czar announces he’ll marry his daughter to the man who brings him a flying ship, sets out to try his luck. On the way hemeets some unusual but also very useful companions. This book is pretty long so I recommend for kids over four years, but it’s very interesting.

– What I think they’ll read next
We just picked up a whole bunch of books at the library today, including some Richard Scarry’s and the brand new Mr Putter & Tabby Ring the Bell by Cynthia Rylant!

What about you? Any books you or your kids are reading you’d like to share?

If you enjoyed reading this post and would like to receive future postings, please enter your email address and click the Sign Up button at the top right of this page. Thank you for reading!