I must admit, I do enjoy a well-done graphic novel. It’s not everyone’s proverbial cup of tea, but I like seeing what a talented artist can do to bring stories to life in that format. Having a talented writer along for the ride is certainly always a plus, as well.
Enter the latest entry in the graphic novel universe – a little book by author Stephenie Meyer called Twilight. Ever heard of it? ;) Love it or hate it, it’s certainly a book that’s difficult to ignore.
Click HERE for a link to the article I read at Entertainment Weekly magazine’s Shelf Life book blog about this forthcoming publication. Oh, and see below for the cover…I think it looks pretty cool and VERY interesting…
It’s time again for the Wrestlemania Reading Challenge sponsored by WWE and YALSA!
Check out this year’s COOL poster!
If you’d like to see the full-size image, CLICK HERE!
Reading logs and bookmarks are available NOW and are due at participating libraries (like LeGrande’s!) by January 19th! If you’d like to know more then you should contact or come see me in the Library Media Center. Remember, in 2008 LeGrande actually had a Regional winner who got to go see Wrestlemania!
Read like a champion and maybe YOU can hang out with the Superstars at Wrestlemania XXVI!
Mr. Crepsley, Madam Octa, and ME at Universal Orlando’s Halloween Horror Nights!
Hey gang! I’m back from vacation and back with you. Last week, Hart County was on Fall Break and I took the opportunity to visit Orlando, FL so that I could experience the most spooktacular event that I know of in the world! Universal’s annual Halloween Horror Nights is a super-scary experience that no horror fan should miss. Well, horror fans who are willing to have the living daylights scared out of them, anyway!
I’ll have to say one of the highlights of my trip was finding out that HHN had constructed a Cirque du Freak scarezone in addition to all the cool haunted houses. Honestly, I’ve been scared to post this because I’m afraid Mrs. Martin may never forgive me for going! I’m a big fan of Mr. Shan, but she is a MAJOR fan! As you can see in the picture above, I got to meet their Mr. Crepsley and Madam Octa which was REALLY awesome for me! Madam Octa was really moving in that box! My sister and I also got chased by some random vampires, spooked by a creepy announcer and got some pictures of Mr. Tall, Evra the Snake Boy, Rhamus TwoBellies, and Madame Truska! Overall, VERY nifty! I always enjoy seeing books brought to life when it’s done right.
As a little bonus, you can click HERE and go to the Apple site where you can watch a behind-the-scenes featurette that I think you’ll enjoy! There is some COOL stuff in there! If that isn’t enough, you can always go back to my previous post about this movie to watch the movie trailer again.
So, how many of you are planning to run out and see this movie when it opens next weekend? I certainly want to very badly! Leave your thought and reactions in the comments!
Before you jump to the wrong conclusion, dear readers, Banned Books Week is NOT about running about trying to get books put out on the streets instead of in schools or libraries where they belong. It’s quite the opposite. Banned Books Week exists to raise awareness about YOUR freedom to read!
This video that I made should give you a quick overview…
According to the American Library Association’s Office of Intellectual Freedom, there were 513 challenges to books reported in 2008. The top 10 most frequently challenged books of 2008 are featured in the video below:
So what do you think? Did you see any books that look familiar in either of those videos?
Do you think that other people should be able to decide for you what you can and can’t read? Well, besides your parents. They definitely get a say!
Constitution Day wasn’t that long ago. What connections can you make between the Freedom of Speech guaranteed by the First Amendment and the Freedom to Read?
If you’re interested in finding out where in the country that book challenges occur, check out this interactive Google map that includes challenges from 2007 to 2009. I found one from Winchester, KY!
So, I’ll end this with reminding you that Free People Read Freely! Read a Banned Book!
Sorry for the delay in getting a post up this week, but we had an interesting Monday here at LeGrande, didn’t we? First the network was down and then the water turned against us! Maybe today will be calmer…
So anyway, I’ll get right to it. This week, I want to know something about not what you DID read, but about what you WANTED to read. I want to hear about the book that somehow might have slipped through your fingers!
JCMS students, you may choose to approach this prompt from the perspective that you MIGHT want to read one of the other books on our Project List on your own sometime in the future. The LG kids looked at all the books before checking out, so they made lists to help them get at least one book that they had been interested in at the beginning. I know that you JCMS kids are only reading one book for this, so tell us about at least ONE OTHER book on the list that grabbed your attention as you were choosing.
And now, the THREE-PART prompt!
What book from your original list of “things on the Project List that looked interesting” did you NOT get to read? If there is more than one, feel free to share them all!
Why did you originally want to read that book?
Will you read it in the future (even without being assigned to do so)? Why or why not?
Pretty simple stuff, I think. I know that my personal list of “things I really want to read soon-ish” just grows and grows. I tend to have stacks and stacks of books around me all the time and it always seems like it gets bigger rather than smaller even though I read A LOT!
Sorry for the delay in getting a post up this week, but we had an interesting Monday here at LeGrande, didn’t we? First the network was down and then the water turned against us! Maybe today will be calmer…
So anyway, I’ll get right to it. This week, I want to know something about not what you DID read, but about what you WANTED to read. I want to hear about the book that somehow might have slipped through your fingers!
And so, a THREE-PART prompt!
What book from your original list of “things on the Project List that looked interesting” did you NOT get to read? If there is more than one, feel free to share them all!
Why did you originally want to read that book?
Will you read it in the future (even without being assigned to do so)? Why or why not?
Pretty simple stuff, I think. I know that my personal list of “things I really want to read soon-ish” just grows and grows. I tend to have stacks and stacks of books around me all the time and it always seems like it gets bigger rather than smaller even though I read A LOT!
I hope throwing a new post up here doesn’t confuse you guys, but I have REALLY exciting news to share with you!
Last year, LeGrande had the honor of welcoming author Leigh Anne Florence and her wonderful weenie dogs for an author visit. The pups were SO cute and we had a lovely day talking about reading and writing! I was really inspired to try providing a yearly opportunity for YOU (my students) to get to meet real-life authors.
I’ve got a SCARY GOOD surprise for you!
On October 14th, LeGrande will welcome Johnathon Rand for the afternoon! He is the author of the popular American Chillers book series and I think that this is going to be one incredible program.
If you’re not already a fan and you love a good scary story, then you really need to read some of his books. Besides, I think it’s always much cooler to meet an author after you’re at least mildly familiar with their work. I’ve met quite a few authors over the years and I always have a better experience when I can talk to them about what they’ve written AFTER I have actually read it myself.
To give you some inspiration, I created the following video. Take a look!
