Wednesday's Read

I know it has been forever since I have posted a "Wednesday's Read" and I apologize. I have read some great books as of late that I am excited to share with you. But first, let me begin with a story.

About five years ago I had just finished reading a book and I loved it. I knew that I needed to share it with my mom. I called her up and said, "Mom I just finished an amazing book and I need you to read it so we can talk about it." She said, " Funny, I just finished a great book in my book club and I was going to tell you to read it." I said, "What was it called"? She said, "Life of Pi". I then proceeded to say that that was the exact book that I was going to tell her to read. We had read it within days of each other. And that is how it works between my mother and I. We love a lot of the same books and have similar taste when it comes to what we read(and similar taste in almost everything else too). We are also both avid readers, and have a true love and appreciation for a good book.

And that brings me to today's bookS. Yes plural on the books! My mom and I are always trading reading suggestions so that we can chat about books, and that is how my mom came up with a great idea. My parents live in Washington DC and sometimes my mom substitutes for the schools in Virginia. She happened to be working in a middle school on the day that they were introducing this years "Virginia Readers" books to the kids. She heard a brief summery of all the books and thought they sounded really fun. We also both really enjoy YA books! So we decided that together we are going to read all the books on the list. So far she has read 4 and I am just starting the 4th. I have been loving it so far. It has also been fun to talk about the books as we are reading them. Every year the Virginia Readers Association puts out a list for primary, elementary, middle, and high school aged kids. Then the students are awarded depending on how many of the books they read. It reminds me of the Pizza Hut sponsored "Book It" program. Do you guys remember that? Anyway, every year the kids also choose a winner out of all the books. We think that when we are done with this years list, we might go back and read some of the past winners. They have them all the way back to 1982!

Okay, enough rambling, lets get on to the books!

The first book we read from the list is, "The Black Book of Secrets," by F.E. Higgins. I was hooked just from the title and cover of this book.

The black book of secrets is the story of a pawnbroker, told by his apprentice. But he is no ordinary pawnbroker you see, you go to him to pawn your secrets. They are all recorded in a mysterious black book.

I really enjoyed this book. It was a little dark(which I totally dig), mysterious, quirky, and even a little whimsical. It was received very well by both my mother and I.

The next book we read is, "First Light," by Rebecca Stead.

Unlike the first book, I was not super excited for this one based on the title, cover, or synopsis. It is the story of a boy named Peter, whose father is a scientist, who goes with his family on an expedition to greenland and discovers "something" in the icy frontier. It is also the story of Thea, who lives with her family in Greenland.

Let me tell you, mom and I were both pleasantly surprised and pleased with this book. It is very interesting and I was hooked and fascinated as I read it. I thought it was a great book!

The next book we read is, "Book of a Thousand Days," by Shannon Hale. Oh how we loved this book! I adored it!

Shannon Hale has done it again! This book is the story of a handmaid named Datshi who is locked in a tower for seven years with her lady Saren. It is written by Datshi and is a journal of sorts. Just like another favorite of mine, "Goose Girl", it is also loosely based on a Grimm's fairytale. So far I think this has been my favorite. I guess deep down I will always be a little girl who loves her fairy tales.

I would recommend any of the books so far to anyone out there. I think that Young Adult fiction is perfect for all ages. We have been having fun reading and discussing so far, and if you would like to join us, here is the list. From the link if you click where it says, "Middle School," you will find the list of books we are reading.

Stay tuned to hear how the others turn out!