It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? 12/11/17

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? #IMWAYR is a community of bloggers who link up to share what they are reading. Kellee Moye of Unleashing Readers and Jen Vincent of Teach Mentor Texts decided to give it a #kidlit focus and encourage everyone who participates to visit at least 3 of the other #kidlit book bloggers that link up and leave comments for them.

Our Reads This Week:

The Unlikely Story of a Pig in the City by Jodi Kendall

Being one of five kids living in a cramped city house, Josie Shilling feels invisible.  Except for gymnastics, Josie does not have anything that is truly her own.

So when Josie’s college age brother Tom brings home a piglet named Hamlet on Thanksgiving, Josie instantly clicks with the little runt.  She convinces her parents to let her keep Hamlet with the stipulation she must find the piglet a home by New Year’s Day.

The Unlikely Story of a Pig in a City will warm both your heart and soul.  As the New Year approaches, Josie discovers that her love for Hamlet opens her eyes and mind to her other talents besides gymnastics.  As a dog mom, I can totally relate to how my love for my pups changed my life. Josie also comes to realize that her family truly does see her and has and will always be her biggest cheerleader.  What powerful messages for readers for all ages!

Special thanks to Jodi Kendall who provided our #bookexcursion group with an ARC prior to The Unlikely Story of a Pig in a City’s October 2017 publication.

Stella Diaz Has Something to Say by Angela Dominguez

Stella Diaz is a third grade student who loves to write stories, draw, and read about marine animals. While she is a very good student, Stella is not confident in her language abilities; as a Mexican American, she accidentally speaks Spanish instead of English and turns roja in embarrassment.   This year, school is also more challenging because her best friend Jenny is in another class, which makes Stella feel lonely.

Stella is excited about researching fish for her animal project, but she is nervous about having to present in front of her whole class including the new student Stanley. And it doesn’t help that one of her fellow classmate always picks on her for being quiet.  Fortunately, Stella has the support of her mom, older brother Nick, and best friend Jenny to make her realize her strength.  As her mom told her, “That’s why your full name is Estrella.  You’re my star.  You can light up the dark.”  Can Stella live up to her name?

Stella Diaz Has Something to Say is such a delightful novel.  Children can identify with Stella with a variety of reasons.  Her parents are divorced and she has a strained relationship with her father.  She is shy and finds it difficult to make friends.  I fell in immediately fell in love with Stella and was rooting for her to find her strength.  I appreciate the author’s note where Angela Dominquez shares that Stella’s story is 82.9% based on her own childhood and how like Stella, we all must discover our inner starfish. In addition, Dominguez’s black and white illustrations appear throughout the novel and visually enhance Stella’s story.

Special thanks to Angela Dominguez for sharing an ARC of Stella with our #bookexcursion group.  Pre-order now, for the book will be released in January 2018.

Our Featured Dog Selection of the Week: 

My Pet Wants a Pet  by Elise Broach Illustrated by Eric Barclay

Wanting to spread the dog love, Beagles and Books has a new weekly feature by highlighting a literary selection with a canine main character.

A little boy want something to take care for on his own. His mom finally relents and permits him to adopt a puppy. Not long after, the boy decides the puppy needs a pet. While the mom thinks this was a terrible idea, the boy empathizes and the puppy gets a pet kitten setting off a chain reaction. The kitten gets a pet bird; the bird gets a pet worm and so on. Mom is not happy. “NO MORE PETS!,” she says. How can the boy fix things and make his mom happy again? Read My Pet Wants a Pet to find out!

My Pet Wants a Pet is an endearing story reminding us that we all want to love and care for something. The charming illustrations adorably show each animal’s loving relationship with its “pet.”

Special thanks to Christian Trimmer and Mark Podesta of Henry Holt Books for Young Readers for sending an ARC to Beagles and Books. Please look for My Pet Wants a Pet in the new year, for it publishes in March 2018.

Etta, Bella, and I thank you for visiting Beagles and Books. Have a great week!