Category Archives: Reading

Some Recent Reading

Posted on 03/11/2014 by chick

13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson, A+: In this book, a timid teenager receives a package from an aunt who has recently died. The package contains 13 blue envelopes and money for a plane ticket to England. The envelopes … Continue reading →

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Finishing up 2013: Part I

Posted on 01/15/2014 by chick

100 Cupboards by N.D. Wilson, A- I enjoyed this slightly unusual book about a boy who, in the farmhouse where he’s staying with family, discovers cupboards that connect to other worlds. Parts of the premise were difficult to believe, and … Continue reading →

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Remembering High-School English Class

Posted on 01/03/2014 by chick

Trying to write a synopsis of a book always reminds me of Mr. H, my least favorite high-school English teacher. Mr. H was energetic. He tried to engage the class. For example, when we were reading Beowulf, he used one … Continue reading →

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The Book of Tiny Gardens

Posted on 12/30/2013 by chick

Gardening in Miniature by Janit Calvo Grade: A If you’ve kept up with my blog, you know how I feel about the tiny gardens that grow on the rocks in the woods behind my house. And you know that I’ve … Continue reading →

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Chipping Away at the List

Posted on 10/04/2013 by chick

I’ve been chipping away at the list of Top 100 Children’s Books. My Father’s Dragon by Ruth Stiles Gannett Grade: B+ My Father’s Dragon is a cute story about a boy who rescues a dragon that is being exploited by … Continue reading →

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Replacements Needed

Posted on 10/01/2013 by chick

I have been slowly replacing the old paperbacks in my library. It’s a necessary task. Some of them have degraded to the point that they might not survive another reading. The most decrepit of them all is C.S. Lewis’s Prince … Continue reading →

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The Worry Week

Posted on 09/30/2013 by chick

The Worry Week by Anne Lindbergh Grade: B+ The Worry Week is a fun story about three sisters who are supposed to stay with an aunt for a week while their parents deal with some business, but instead they sneak … Continue reading →

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Fifty-Two

Posted on 08/15/2013 by chick

Today I completed my reading goal for the year: 52 books. Perhaps now I’ll try to work my way through three books that I inadvertently abandoned along the way (The House of the Seven Gables, Tess of the d’Urbervilles, and … Continue reading →

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Grow Your Soul, Vonnegut Style

Posted on 07/17/2013 by chick

Practicing an art, no matter how well or badly, is a way to make your soul grow, for heaven’s sake. Sing in the shower. Dance to the radio. Tell stories. Write a poem to a friend, even a lousy poem. … Continue reading →

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Wish List

Posted on 07/16/2013 by chick

I was excited to learn from a Smithsonian article that there is such a thing as the Dictionary of American Regional English. I could get lost in a book like that. I had a lot of fun just with the … Continue reading →

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