reading

Is the Problem Bad Reading or Bad Writing?

Let’s say you’re reading a book and the author makes a reference to something and you just don’t get it. It could be a phrase, a symbol, a name. Whatever it is, it doesn’t make sense to you. Some readers might feel confused and give the book a bad review. Some readers might just skip… Read more »

Reading Newbery Award Books

So I’m going to try and read as many Newbery Award books as possible this year! What is the Newbery? It is an award given to children’s literature by the American Library Association. Here’s the blurb from the website: “The Newbery Medal was named for eighteenth-century British bookseller John Newbery. It is awarded annually by… Read more »

Books That Made Me Laugh

Recently I posted about books that made me cry. Frankly, I don’t mind crying during a book, I feel like it’s a good thing when a writer can make me care so much that I cry. But I also love when a book makes me laugh. Not just say “heh” in my head but actually… Read more »

Reading Goals for 2015

In 2015 I plan to read 100 books. While that total number of books may seem high for some people, but the goal itself seems straightforward, right? Wrong. Debate 1: Does it count as having read a book if you listened to an audio book? It turns out people don’t actually agree on what counts as… Read more »

Sexism in Kids’ Books

I read a lot of children’s books but lately I’ve been really angry to discover so much sexism in them. My second grader is now reading chapter books but he still wants me or my husband to read with him, so I get to check out of a lot of books I’ve never read before…. Read more »

The Goldfinch and other books

Writers need to read books. Here are some I’ve read because they won awards. “…It’s a joke, the Fabritius. It has a joke at its heart. And that’s what all the very greatest masters do. Rembrandt. Velázquez. Late Titian. They make jokes. They amuse themselves. They build up the illusion, the trick—but, step closer? it… Read more »

Using Sight Words in Your Children’s Writing

If you’re planning to write for children, especially early readers, you need to be familiar with sight words. Sight words are a group of several hundred words that make up the majority of words used in children’s literature. New readers need to be able to recognize sight words by sight because many of them cannot… Read more »