Huck Finn

A new edition of Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is being released and all instances of the "n" word will be replaced with the word "slave."

Read the article here.

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Peeps

Tired of your standard teen vampire romance? Good, because this is not it.

Peeps is however, freaky as all get out. Basically vampirism is caused by a really freaky parasite (and you learn plenty about other parasites in the book). The main character vampire is a "good" vampire and he works for a secret agency to keep the wild vampires under control.

Listen, I can't adequately explain this book without giving it all away, but it did freak me out. If you're squeamish, don't read it. If you're sensitive to any talk of sex, don't read it (it's not explicit or anything, they just talk about sex as a method for transferring the parasite). If you want a different take on all of this crappy vampire romance that's around these days, give it a try. I read it in a day and it was pretty good. I didn't love the ending and it wasn't perfect, but it was enjoyable.

Currently reading...1776 and The Book Thief

I feel like I have not blogged in awhile so I thought I would give an update on the books I am reading. It seems that I keep starting them, getting half way through, and then something comes up and I do not finish. Over break, I started 1776 and The Book Thief and am almost done with at least one of them. I got the book recommendation from Ginger for The Book Thief and she is right, it is really good. The opening hooks you right away, and although there are some parts that are a little slow, there is enough changes in the plot that keeps you interested. I really like it so far.

Audiobooks

As I was working scrubbing for cleaning checks and then when I was on the plane home I listened to The Curious Incident of the Dog in Night Time. It was a good book that I enjoyed (not for kids or anything), but I'm wondering what the general opinion is about audiobooks? Does it count as reading? Do you ever listen to them?

The Book Thief

I don't have much to say about this book except, go read it. Get yourself on the waiting list or buy it or whatever, but read it. It's beautiful.

You will cry. It's just going to happen.

Glimpse

I started this book last night and I finished it last night. I'd read another of this author's book over the summer (The Chosen One) which was extremely creepy and dramatic. Same with this one.

This is a dark book. It's one of those ones written in poem style. I think the writing was pretty good, but I had the plot figured out not far in. It was interesting still to read along as the main character figured out what was happening. Glimpse was emotional, but not so much that I was pulled in and cried or anything like that. I want to re-emphasize how dark this plot is because it's not appropriate in the elementary school classroom, even upper elementary. Without telling you much of the plot (because I don't want to spoil it), the book starts with the older sister holding a gun to her head and contemplating suicide. Yeah...wait until later middle school or high school for this one, but it's a good read for a teacher.

Provo Library Book Sale

On November 20th, I was able to attend the Provo Library book sale. If you are a Friend of the Library, members get in at 9am instead of 10am, so of course I signed up. As I walked over to the event at 9am, I saw crowds of people rush through the doors to get to the book sale in the basement. Naturally, I started to run with them. When I got in, I saw hundreds of books organized by fiction, nonfiction, movies, young adult books, pictures books, etc. I went straight for the young adult chapter books because I hope to teach the older grades. All of these books were $.50 each in really good condition. There were some very popular titles like Artemis Fowl, The Lightening Thief, Inkheart, Eragon, Shannon Hale books, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Magic Tree House, Harry Potter, Twilight, Newberry books, and many more. By the end of it all, I dragged my box full of 66 books and check out only spending $33 for these hard copy books. I highly recommend this book sale to anyone looking for a good read at a cheap prince. The most expensive items were $1.50. The next event will be February 19th, 2011. Recommendation- Bring a big bag to carry your books in if you are like me and buy a lot.