Each year, I crowdsource the titles on my #MustReadin2019 list from the other #MustRead lists. It’s my favorite way to put together my own list, and it keeps me reading much more happily and willingly than I would if I consulted only myself. I find plenty of books that would have made it onto my…
I know exactly why I am a reader. Because of my mother. When I was growing up, she read to me every night before bed (even now when I reread Bedtime for Frances, possibly my very favorite childhood book, I hear her voice telling the story). She took me to the library every week. She…
I’ve been participating in Carrie Gelson’s #MustReadin2019 Reading Challenge since 2014. I’ll let Carrie explain the purpose and spirit of this challenge: For anyone out there with a To Be Read list that seems like it will never end, this challenge is for you! This is all about making your own personal list of books that you…
I’ve never met a reading challenge I didn’t want to commit to (well, except for the John Grisham Challenge I saw this morning. I don’t want to do that one). But I’m the first to admit I’m not very good at follow-through. And that’s ok. It’s fun to commit to challenges, research books, and make…
Once again, I crowdsourced the list of books I included on my #MustReadin2018 list, selecting one title from the #MustRead list of each participant. I ended up with 22 books on my list. I pretty much never finish a reading challenge, so I didn’t read all 22 books on my list, but I did complete…
I am still working on my #MustReadin2018 reading challenge as well as the reading challenge I created with my Children’s Literature students, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t room for just one more. My Children’s Literature students alerted me to a glaring book gap in my own reading life: mysteries. They kept asking for recommendations,…
In January, I joined Carrie Gelson and many other bloggers in creating #MustReadin2018 reading lists. To add a twist to the challenge, I crowdsource my list, selecting one title from each blogger’s list to add to my own. Crowdsourcing has proven to be a more effective way for me to get closer to completing a…
One of my favorite truths from Donalyn Miller’s wonderful book, Reading in the Wild, is that readers have plans. I love to make reading plans. I am constantly cooking up some new plan for myself. Sometimes, maybe even often, I spend more time making reading plans than I do actually reading. I’m not sure what Donalyn…
One of the joys of my reading life is making elaborate reading plans and long lists. I have never seen a reading challenge I don’t want to join or scanned a book list I don’t want to complete. But it is also a truth of my reading life that I hate assigned reading and…
I love making #MustRead lists, but I’ll be honest: that’s usually where it ends for me. If I manage to read three or four titles on the list, that’s a very successful reading experience for me. There’s something about putting a book on a list and deciding to read it that makes me lose interest…
the dirigible plum 