My 2014 Book Challenges

I'm participating in #Mustreadin2014 and Check Off Your Reading List 2014.  I LOVE this challenge because it has allowed me to put books on my list that I've wanted to read for awhile.  I tend to get bogged down (well, maybe not bogged down, but rather attached to) new releases in the intermediate grade fiction and nonfiction area and this list has a nice spread of adult fiction, nonfiction, and kids stuff.

Drumroll Please...

(In no particular order)

1. Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy by Karen Foxlee

Oh, I didn't want to finish this one because it's so good! I can't imagine a middle grade kid who wouldn't love this creepy, modern-day fairy tale. Ophelia, her sister Alice, and their father have traveled to a museum in a town that is continuously snowy. Her father is an international sword expert and has been asked by the museum curator, Miss Kaminski, to head up the sword exhibition for Christmas Eve. Ophelia and Alice are trying to move past the death of their mother and both are a little lost. Ophelia, while exploring the mysterious museum, finds a young boy who weaves a story of wizards, magic, and the Snow Queen. It's up to Ophelia and the boy to defeat the Snow Queen before it's too late. Just the right amount of creepiness and reality, this is going to be a HUGE hit in my classroom!

2. The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith (or J.K. Rowling)

I love Cormoran Strike. This is a classic who-dunnnit mystery, but written really well. Galbraith developed the characters fully and left no stone unturned in the investigation. If you were paying close attention, you could solve the crime right along with Strike. I especially appreciated how Galbraith made Strike a real person--one with many flaws, but one that could pull himself together and get back on his feet to do the right thing. It's a character driven mystery, but a good one!

3. The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

This was such a creepy book! A great story about prep school boys in Virginia that are searching for the ley line to wake the elusive Glendower. Blue is the daughter of a psychic in the town of the prep school. She meets up with the Raven Boys and helps them in their pursuit. I must read the second one soon because the first one left me hanging!

4. The Great American Dust Bowl by Don Brown

This is a wonderful graphic novel about the Dust Bowl in the 1930s. I love how Brown gives readers the background knowledge necessary for understanding exactly what caused the Dust Bowl. He also does a nice job explaining what happened during the dreadful dust storms that lasted for nearly a decade. This is a perfect book for our journey unit.

5. The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty

I loved this book about secrets and the consequences our actions can have on others. The story revolves around three women, all connected in some way, all with regrets and burdens of their own. Yet, these women must take on their husbands secrets, too, and decide what to do with their lives once they are privy to the knowledge. Well told and compulsively readable, I'm glad we picked this for book club!

BOOK I'M CURRENTLY READING THAT ARE ON MY "MUST READ IN 2014" LIST:

I'm almost done with this one.  I LOVE it!!

I started this one Sunday evening and I'm keeping it at school for silent reading time.  It's good so far!

I've been making my way through this one.  I'm going to stick it out.

I started this one on vacation over spring break.  It's LONG, but I'm liking it!

I'm making my way!  I'd love to know what book (or books!) you're reading in 2014!