For various reasons, I was not going to read this book. But then my dad bought a copy, read it, and wanted me to read it to see what I thought of it. First: To Kill a Mockingbird. I enjoyed the book immensely. It a favorite “school book” of my childhood (in other words, a […]
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A coworker loaned me this coming-of-age story, telling me it is similar to The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, only it’s a young woman (slightly older than Huck) in slightly more modern times. It was an apt description. Margo lives in rural Michigan, and the book takes place in the 1970s. Whereas Twain wove humor as […]
I bought this book at a conference simply based on word of mouth, and I’m glad I did. It’s a middle reader—about a fifth grader named Caitlin—dealing with Asperger’s syndrome in the aftermath of a school shooting. I was skeptical upon first reading the premise because I didn’t want to read a book that dwelled […]
I picked up a copy of this book as part of Loudoun County’s One Community, One Book program in anticipation of an author visit later this month. The book is illustrated by Jim Kay and inspired by an idea from Siobhan Dowd, an author who passed away before she was able to write it. The […]
A few years ago, a student of mine recommended this book. I bought it, stuck it on my TBR pile, and started reading it over the summer. I enjoyed it, but it got swept into a box when I decided to paint the bedroom, so I had about half of the book to read when […]
Sharyn McCrumb was the banquet speaker at Longwood University’s Summer Literacy Institute, and I enjoyed hearing her speak. In preparation for hearing her, I wanted to read one of her back-list titles, so I chose The Hangman’s Beautiful Daughter, a title from 1992. McCrumb is known as a writer of Appalachian fiction, both historical and […]
I had the honor of hearing Cushman speak at the Shenandoah University Children’s Literature Conference this year on the day I was presenting a workshop. Her writing journey amazed me because she waited until age 50 to start writing because she realized until that point, she hadn’t had anything she needed to say. The Midwife’s […]
I won this book at a door prize at one of the sessions at Longwood University’s Summer Literacy Institute this summer. The class was about how to integrate activities to prepare children for disaster situations using literature. I’ve always been fascinated with the idea of disaster situations. Maybe it’s because I’m a writer, and my […]
I’m excited to be attending a conference at Longwood University along with Susann Cokal, and I wanted to read at least one of her books before meeting her. I chose The Kingdom of Little Wounds because many reviewers said it was a dark tale—which is right up my alley. The result of seven years of […]
About a year ago, I was honored to hear Aranka Siegal speak. She is a Holocaust survivor, and though her family begged her not to go to the speaking engagement (because of her age and the difficulties of travel), she insisted on going. When she found out she would be speaking to an auditorium full […]
