Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng

I love a story that gives you an understanding of how others might feel.  Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng does a fantastic job of invoking empathy for each of the characters in the story.  The Lee family is a complicated family.  Each family member lives with their own struggles and burdens.  

As a young child Lydia vowed to do anything to please her mother.  Lydia's mother life hasn't gone as planned and she's determined for Lydia to live her dream.  Lydia's dad also has expectations for Lydia that she can't live up to.  After years of pretending and over-achieving Lydia cracks and a tragedy occurs.  Lydia's older brother has just been accepted to Harvard and is successful but invisible to his parents.  Lydia's younger sister Hannah is a shadow moving around the house.

How did the Lee family get to this point and how do they now move forward without their beloved Lydia?

Goodreads

I love tracking my reading on Goodreads.  This website is a great way to keep track of what I have read and what's on my to read wish list.  I can mark a rating on the books I've read by a simple star rating system or provide a more detailed review.  Goodreads also lets you connect with friends or other like minded readers.  You can see what your friends are reading and their reviews.  Another feature I love is that you can set a reading goal for how many books you hope to read in a year.  My goal for 2015 was to read 50 and so far I'm at 55.  Today they offered a cool little summary of your year in review.  Check mine out here:  Goodreads Year in Review



Want to be friends on Goodreads?  I'd love to connect.

Did You Ever Have a Family by Bill Clegg

On the eve of her daughter's wedding June suddenly loses all her family.  She is left completely numb and a shell of her former self.  Without any thought she heads out of town on a road trip to an unknown destination.  On her travels she contemplates her relationships with all those she has lost.  Although, June has lost the most, there are others that have lost as well and are grieving.  Everyone in town is talking and spreading rumors.  What caused the tragedy?  Who caused the tragedy?  Other than the town gossips no one seems to have the emotional strength to question how it happened.

Did You Ever Have a Family by Bill Clegg is a beautiful story of love, loss, grief and healing.  It's also about the decisions you make in life and then living with the consequences.  

The Dogs by Allan Stratton

Cameron and his mom have been on the run.  Moving houses, cities, new schools, unlisted phone numbers.  Just as things settle, Cameron's mom has a feeling that his dad has found them and they are on the move again.  It's been so long since Cameron has seen his dad he can't remember if his memories are real or just stories his mom has told him.

Cameron moves into an old farm house and starts hearing stories about the place.  Soon he's talking to ghosts and digging up old murder stories.  Is Cameron losing his mind or is he on to something?  Most importantly, is Cameron just like his dad?

The Dogs by Allan Stratton is a Red Maple nominee in the 2016 Forest of Reading.

The Truth Commission by Susan Juby

Every year I like to read one or two Red Maple books to my grade 7 and 8 classes.  This year I've really struggled to pick one of the ten that I could read out loud to a class.  The nominees this year seem to be a bit more mature than other years.  I thought I would pre-read The Truth Commission to see if it might be a good read aloud.  Definitely not!

The Truth Commission is about three friends that attend a special art high school.  Normandy Pale is writing a story for a school assignment and The Truth Commission is that story.  Norm has two best friends Neil and Dusk.  The trio decide to seek out the truth among their fellow students.  Eventually the truths begin to unravel within the group.  Norm has some major family issues that no one talks about, including her parents.  When Norm's sister moves back home from college though it may just be too much to handle.

I found The Truth Commission to be very mature for a grade 7 and 8 level.  I thought some of the truths were way too mature.  One guideline that I try to use when picking books for that level is making sure that the characters are at the most 14 years old.  Norm and friends are 17 years old.  Because this book is a Red Maple book I will purchase it for my school library but I will probably let borrowers know that it's pretty mature before they start reading.

Madly by Amy Alward Blog Tour

I'm very excited to be taking part of the Madly Blog Tour.  Check out the blogs below that are also participating.  Every day has something exciting to offer.  I will be the final stop on the blog tour and will release an excerpt from Sam's Potion Diary!!  Very cool!!  I can't wait to share it with my blog readers.

Awesome is Everywhere by Neil Pasricha

I have long been a subscriber to Neil Pasricha's blog and have been eagerly awaiting a children's version of his chart topping books.  Awesome is Everywhere does not disappoint.  This book is on sale September 29th but one of the students at my school saw him speak at a book festival last weekend and Neil gave her an autographed copy.  She was so excited that she brought it in to show me and said that I could read it to my library classes all week.  It has been awesome seeing their reactions.  I have read the story to the kindergartens, the grade 8's and all grades in between.

Awesome is Everywhere reads a bit like a meditation book.  I encouraged students to close their eyes and pretend they were on a beach while I read.  The short story also has some relaxation breathing.  For me the ending is the best.  Where is the best place on earth?  Right here in the classroom surrounded by all the awesome kids of course.  There is a mirror at the back and I take the time to make sure each person gets a chance to see themselves.  It was very interesting to watch their reactions.  Some students made funny faces but most smiled.  Some appeared shy.  Only one boy refused to look at all.  Made me think he needs to be told he's awesome a little bit more often.

The story may seem quite primary for the grade 8's but when you flash the last page around they are all smiles.

Neil will be at the Word on the Street in Kitchener on September 26th.