I came up with this name because a 'running record' is something that I do when reading with students to check for how well they are reading. I thought it was clever (but I am sure that I will be the only one :) since these posts would be about things that I have been reading. I am also hoping to come up with some kind of picture header too, however that will be all in good time.
Anyway, for the record this week I have books #'s 11, 12 & 13!
Book #11 was Project Mulberry by Linda Sue Park
This book was okay. I read it for the April meeting of my 4th grade book club. I liked how the dialogue was written, but the storyline was not one of my favorites. It is about a girl named Julie who is Korean & her best friend Patrick. They are trying to come up with a project that will get them to the state fair & it is decided that they will try to raise silkworms & make silk. The town they live in is mostly Caucasian & Julie already feels like her family sticks out too much so she is not exactly thrilled by this idea, but she goes along with it anyway. Julie & Patrick learn alot about each other, families & silkworms along the way.
I can say that even though I wasn't thrilled by this book-several of my students thought it was great so kids may judge it differently than I did :)
Book #12 was The Centurion's Wife by Davis Bunn & Janette Oke
I also thought that this book was just okay too. I liked the storyline, but just felt that it was too predictable. It is set in the weeks right after the death of Jesus. The story is about a woman named Leah who is a servant for Pontius Pilate's wife. She is sent to learn as much as she can about this man named Jesus & his followers for Pilate's wife. A marriage has also been arranged for her with a centurion named Alban who has been given the same mission by Pilate-both are unaware that they have been sent on similar missions.
This book was an easy read & predictable, but I did like trying to put myself into the shoes of Jesus's followers in those days after his death & 'seeing' what it might have been like.
Book #13 was Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling
I thought this book was fantastic & I couldn't even wait to borrow the next one from my sister-I had to check it out from the school library! :) I now see what all of the fuss was about back when these books were coming out & I think it helps that I actually felt like I was reading more of an "adult" level book. I noticed a big difference in how the books were written somewhere around Book#5. This book also did a great job of starting to pull some of the plots together from the first 5 books to get the stage set for the finale in Book #7, which will have to wait until the next "Running Record"....
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