2017 Reading Challenges

In 2017 I plan to read more of those books that you’re “supposed” to read in your life. One I read a long time ago and want to re-read. A few are books that I’ve really wanted to read and always say I will, but put it off in favor of any other book that catches my eye. Some are books that never sounded that good to me, but are such staples that I feel like I need to give in and read them, for the sake of being a bookworm and librarian.

I plan to read one classic a month, which still gives me plenty of reading time for whatever books catch my eye on the shelves.

The Classics Challenge books are:

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte

The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank

Lord of the Flies by William Golding

Animal Farm by George Orwell

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck

Slaughterhouse 5 by Kurt Vonnegut

The Color Purple by Alice Walker

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

I pulled this list from here, so once I complete this challenge, I will have read 24 out of the 30 books. I’ll leave those last 6 to tackle in 2018…

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I also want to read more diverse books. I am going to make conscious choices with every book I read in 2017, but will read a baseline of 12 diverse books, which again is one a month, minimum. I picked books from We Need Diverse Books’ end of the year booklist.

The Diverse Challenge books are:

Simon Vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli

The Game of Love and Death by Martha Brockenbrough

Nest by Esther Ehrlich

If I Ever Get Out of Here by Eric Gansworth

Since You Asked by Maurene Goo

The Five Stages of Andrew Brawley by Shaun David Hutchinson

Under a Painted Sky by Stacey Lee

Out of Darkness by Ashley Hope Perez

Gabi, a Girl in Pieces by Isabel Quintero

Show and Prove by Sofia Quintero

The Misadventures of an Awkward Black Girl by Issa Rae

When Reason Breaks by Cindy L. Rodriguez

Are you undertaking any reading challenges for 2017? Do you have any book recommendations I should add to my list, or feedback on the titles I chose?

Best Picture Books Read in 2016

I was going to splurge and share TEN of our favorite picture books read in 2016 because, let’s be honest, that’s most of what’s read around here, and there are SO MANY GOOD ONES that picking five is impossible. But I had the list and then decided to just share the five most recent in detail, and list the other five favorites.

In order from most recently published to oldest:

School’s First Day of School by Adam Rex (2016). Frederick Douglass Elementary is a brand new school, built from the ground up, and he gets used to just having the janitor around keeping him clean. The janitor tells the school that soon he'll be full of children, and school gets very nervous. The school has to learn everyone's names, and how to act, and  how to make friends... Can he do it, or will he be too scared?! Reviewed in detail here.

Monster Trucks by Annika Denise (2016). My son loves monster trucks, but this book is extra fun because the trucks are actual monsters! The monster trucks race each other on a spooky night, but what happens when a new vehicle shows up on the track? This one is included in my Halloween Book Recommendation video.

The Bear and the Piano by David Litchfield (2016). This book is so sweet and touching! I'll admit, I teared up at the end. The story is great, and the artwork is beautiful. Definitely one I'll keep coming back to, whether I'm reading it aloud to my son, or just reading it to myself!

Here Comes Destructosaurus by Aaron Reynolds and Jeremy Tankard (2014). The whole family loved this cute, witty book. Destructosaurus is trashing the whole town, burping fire everywhere, and not listening to the reader, who is trying to keep him in line. When the reader finds out Destructosaurus was just throwing a tantrum because he couldn't find his teddy, the tone changes...but so does the terrifying main character!

Yoo-hoo, Lady Bug! by Mem Fox (2013). This book is SO cute, I can't stand it. It's kind of like Where's Waldo? for kids, but on a simpler scale. There are illustrations of a crowded shelf, or a staircase with toys strewn about, and the reader has to find the ladybug in each. There is a simple rhyme to say before finding the ladybug, and a "solution" with the ladybug zoomed in on the next page. My son and I both enjoyed this book immensely.

The Runners-Up:

Boy + Bot by Ame Dyckman and Dan Yaccarino (2012) was previously reviewed in a What We Read This Week post.

Nothing Like a Puffin by Sue Soltis (2011) is a fun book comparing and contrasting a puffin against other animals and objects. It's a great book to read aloud with your kid and let them point out and name all the things they identify and, depending on age, guess at what qualities are similar to or different from the puffin.

A Balloon for Isabel by Deborah Underwood and Laura Rankin (2010) was previously reviewed in a What We Read This Week post.

Bee-Wigged by Cece Bell (2008) and Unlovable by Dan Yaccarino (2002) are both reviewed in previous What We Read This Week posts.