My Life as a Reader in 2016

Each year for the past six years, I've challenged myself to read 100 children's books. Why children's books? Because that's what I'm compelled to write.


For any writer, I think it's important to read a lot of books of the kind that you want to write. I'm convinced it helps to embed the structure, style and language of the kind of book you want to write in your mind. It also helps you to find out what kinds of books your audience likes to read, and, in the process, you learn about the kinds of books you'd like to write.

Along the way, I've come to appreciate the art form of children's books beyond my own learning as a writer. There are few extraneous words in children's books, there isn't space. The writing is highly polished, the stories beautifully creative. I treasure my time spent reading children's books, and I'm proud to be able to attempt stories of my own.

What does this mean for my reading goals? Since I'm doing more writing and have less time for reading, this year I'm going to be a little less specific about what I choose to read. Instead of focusing on the quantity of children's books I want to read, I'm aiming for diversity. I want to read more different kinds of books -- maybe some nonfiction, maybe some children's books that I wouldn't normally pick up.


I will continue to list the children's books that I read here and, hopefully, on GoodReads.com, if I can remember. I may make it to 100, but I may not. I like to see what I find. I also like to read books nominated for awards. Most of the books I read are based on recommendations from other readers and writers, as well as from what I find in my local library. If you have any recommendations for me this year, please share them in the comments!

Here are my 2016 reading goals (which are not so different from last year's!):

1. Read LOTS of children's books - picture books, middle grade and young adult.

2. Read all of the fiction picture book finalists (I better read these ones, because I'm a second round judge!) finalists and the middle grade fiction finalists for the Cybils Awards, and maybe some of the finalists for speculative fiction for elementary and middle grades, if I have time. (For more about these awards given by book bloggers, visit www.cybils.com). 

3. Read all of the Blue Spruce and Silver Birch nominees for the Ontario Library Association's Forest of Reading Awards.

4. Try to remember to keep track of my reading on GoodReads, though I'll also be tracking it here on my blog.

I'm excited to begin!  Do you have any reading goals? Feel free to share or link to them in the comments. I'll be back Thursday with a Learning from Picture Books feature and then next Monday I'll have my first featured post for Marvelous Middle Grade Monday in 2016. Happy reading!

Reading Goals for 2015

This was the first year since I started my 100 book challenge that I didn't achieve my goal of reading 100 MG and YA books. I know that sounds like something I should be disappointed about, but I'm not. The main reason I set goals is for something to work towards and to focus on. I can always set another one or a different one if that one doesn't work out. I like to be flexible. 

I still strongly believe that reading a lot of books is an important way to improve your writing. But the other important thing that goes along with that is actually doing the writing. And in 2014, I was writing. I also re-discovered my passion for writing picture books, which I gave up a few years ago because of the frustration of rejection. This year, I'm ignoring that and doing what I love. Besides, almost every day I come home from work with another picture book idea (one of the benefits of teaching kindergarten). I'll still be working on my middle grade novels, too, because I love the ideas and challenge. 

What does this mean for my reading goals? This year, I'm going to be changing my 100 Book Challenge to include picture books as well as middle grade novels, and a sprinkling of young adult novels because I love them too. I'm not setting a number for how many of each type, because I like to see what I find. I choose books to read based on recommendations from other readers and writers, as well as from what I find in my local library. If you have any recommendations for me this year, please share them in the comments!

Here are my 2015 reading goals:

1. Read 100 children's books - picture books, middle grade and young adult.

2. Read all of the picture book and middle grade fiction finalists for the Cybils Awards, and maybe some of the finalists for speculative fiction for elementary and middle grades, if I have time. (For more about these awards given by book bloggers, visit www.cybils.com). 

3. Read all of the Blue Spruce and Silver Birch nominees from the Ontario Library Association's Forest of Reading.

4. Try to remember to keep track of my reading on GoodReads, though I'll also be tracking it here on my blog.

I'm so excited to begin! I already read a couple of the nominees and finalists towards the end of 2014, so I'm off to a good start. Do you have any reading goals? Feel free to share or link to them in the comments. I'll be back Thursday with a Learning from Picture Books feature and then next Monday I'll have my first featured post for Marvelous Middle Grade Monday in 2015. Happy reading!

Simcoe Day Fun

Today is a holiday - it's called Simcoe Day here in the Toronto area, in honour of John Graves Simcoe, who founded Upper Canada which later became Toronto. In other places in Canada, the holiday might be called the Civic Holiday or "that holiday at the beginning of August". Whatever it's name is, who would pass up a chance to celebrate?

We're going to eat blueberry pie and do something fun, so no Marvelous Middle Grade Monday today (though I might sneak in a little writing later). To see what I've been reading lately, check out my 100 Book Challenge for 2013.

I'm also always open to suggestions for great middle grade and YA books to read, so if you've read something good lately, please do share!

Three Favourite YA Reads

I love reading YA and this year I read so many great books for my 100 book challenge it was hard to pick out my favourites! Some were recently published, but others go back a few years, because I find out about great books on other blogs as well as while browsing at the library. Some of this year's favourites:

Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi - I loved the story and the way the author used the sense of smell (more on this here). I can hardly wait for the sequel!

 


Cinder by Marissa Meyer - Such a cool concept to mix fairytales and sci-fi. I really enjoyed this one, even though some parts were a bit predictable.












Jane by April Lindner - I love Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte and this modern take was really enjoyable.






There were so many other YA books that I enjoyed this year, including:

Catching Jordan by Miranda Kenneally

The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater

The Selection by Kiera Cass

Insurgent by Veronica Roth

Gilt by Katherine Longshore

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

I'm looking forward to what's in store for 2013! What was your favourite YA read this year?

Three Favourite Middle Grade Reads

I don’t have a Marvelous Middle Grade Monday review for you today. Instead, I thought I’d highlight a few favourite middle grade novels from my 100 book reading challenge this year. It was hard to narrow it down, because I've read so many great middle grade books!

The False Prince by Jennifer Nielsen - I loved the main character's voice and the plot twists. This was a fun read.








See You at Harry's by Jo Knowles - An emotional story that was hard to put down. I recently featured this one here.











The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate - I loved the poetic language and writing style that fit so well with the gorilla narrator. You can read my thoughts here.





Some other great ones that I read this year:

Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys
May B. by Caroline Starr Rose
The Unwanteds by Lisa McMann
Liesl and Po by Lauren Oliver
Boys Without Names by Kashmira Seth
The Undergrounders by David Skuy


What was your favourite middle grade read this year?

Adults Reading Children's Books?

One of the things I plan to continue with in 2012 is my 100 Book Challenge, where I challenge myself to read 100 YA and MG books in a year. This year, I actually read more MG than YA.

Along with finding some really great books, keeping track of what I read has benefits, especially when people ask me for book recommendations for those age groups. The more MG and YA fiction I read, the more I realize how much I enjoy it. The stories are faster paced and usually always emotionally satisfying. There are so many good children's writers, I never feel that I'm missing something by not reading more books for adults.

The biggest problem I have is when other adults ask what I'm reading or look at me funny when they see I'm reading a "children's book". I usually mumble something and quickly change the subject, as though there's something wrong with what I'm reading, when in fact, these are some of the best books I've ever read. This year, I'm going to work on being less self-conscious and start verbalizing more about why I'm reading the book and why I'm enjoying it.

In case you were wondering, I do read some books written for adults too -- mysteries, chick lit, The Night Circus, cookbooks, nonfiction about health and food, and now, books that I can get on my Kindle (it hasn't replaced what I read in paper, just provided another way for me to find books to read).

What do you say when another adult asks you about the children's book you're reading? Any advice?

Good Friday Reads

If you're heading into a long weekend like I am (Easter, anyone?) then you might have a little more time for reading. Some great books I've read lately that take me to a different world:

Across the Universe by Beth Revis. I read all the hype and promos and wow! Were they right! A great story that pulled me into a different time and place. I loved the world building.

Dark Life by Kat Falls. I liked the action and adventure in this book (definitely a fast-paced story) but it was the setting that really intrigued me. The details of living in an underwater city were interesting. So much that I wished there were a few more about how it all worked. But I have a feeling there are more books to come.

Scumble by Ingrid Law. This struck me as such a good example of what I love about middle grade books. A bit of magic, a bit of mystery, a kid with unusual talents. I actually didn't like Ingrid Law's Savvy that much, even though it got great reviews, but I really enjoyed this one! [Maybe I'll have to read Savvy again.]

By the way, I read these the old-fashioned way, on paper. I'm not sure which is better for the earth, paper or digital? Anyone know? 

Happy Earth Day and Happy Easter, if you're celebrating.

Reading Middle Grade: Two Great Examples

Last year, I noticed that my 100 book challenge was weighted more towards YA than MG, even though I write MG. So this year, I'm making more of an effort to read middle grade books. And I love it. (I also think it's helping me strengthen my writing, but that's a topic for another post).  I recently read two books that strike me as really great examples of MG.

Drizzle by Kathleen Van Cleve delighted me from the beginning. What kid wouldn't love to live on a farm with jewels in the garden, talking bugs and a treehouse-like room? Eleven-year-old Polly is friends with a plant and has a mystery to solve about her family farm. This is truly a story for children, not a teenaged story masquerading as one for kids. I'd describe it as magical (and not just because there is magic in the story).

Belly Up by Stuart Gibbs hooked me and I just had to keep reading. Again, it seemed like a kid's dream come true. Who wouldn't want to live at a zoo adventure park? Having a hippo at the centre of a mystery was unique. I also loved the fact that the main character's parents were in the story and actually part of solving the mystery at times, instead of too busy to notice what their son was up to (or dead).

Reading these books made me think about:

1)  how the setting can really become part of the story and help to bring it alive

2) the importance of having a really good story

Of course, good writing is important, but it was really the story that first captured my attention for both of these books. The authors made me curious about what would happen in the story, and what life was like for characters living in these settings.

Book Challenge Benefits

In 2010, I challenged myself to read 100 middle grade and YA books and I did it – yay! Why do such a crazy thing? It was one way I'd be sure to read the kinds of books that I’m writing. I also I wanted to become familiar with more children’s authors and publishers, and hopefully learn something. So what did I learn?

1. It helped me remember more about the books I read. My list and occasional blog posts about the books led me to think more about what I was reading.

2. I developed a stronger sense of what I like to read—and the kind of book I want to write. The way I want it to sound. The kinds of characters and story I want to create. Even though I knew I had to read enough books to reach my goal, I wasn’t afraid to stop reading a book if I really didn’t like it. I didn’t include them on my list, but there were probably about 5 or 6 books I just gave up on.

3. Paying attention to publishers, editors and agents through books was a good start to immersing myself a little deeper in the publishing community.

4. Keeping track helped me see that even though I write MG, I often choose YA books to read. I had to focus more on MG books to keep it balanced. Maybe one day I’ll switch to writing YA?

5. I read some books I might otherwise have skipped over and actually enjoyed them.

I plan to start another book challenge for myself for 2011. I'll be sticking with the same goal of 100 MG and YA books. It seems like a good number for me, since I finished a couple of weeks before the end of the year.

How much reading do you do in the genre you are writing? How does it benefit your writing?

Good Books and What is Believable

I just finished reading Yours Truly, Lucy B. Parker: Girl vs. Superstar by Robin Palmer (#93 in my hundred book challenge) and really enjoyed it. What made it so fresh and enjoyable was definitely the main character Lucy, with her so-true to life grade 6 concerns and her personality quirks and anxieties. The novel is a great example of a book with a strong main character voice, which is really what got me hooked on reading it. And it was fun!

It got me thinking a little bit about the issue of believability in middle/tween books though. Some (adult) reviews of the book mentioned the unlikelihood of Lucy (the main character's mom) getting involved with the Dad of a tween superstar [this is a key element of the plot]. But I wondered whether that would matter as much to middle grade readers.

To what extent do middle grade readers accept a premise, without questioning whether it would happen in real life? I don't know the answer to this, but I suspect it has a lot to do with:

a) how engaging the characters and the voice are

b) background knowledge or experiences that relate to the premise (e.g. if you know a lot about it, you're more likely to be irritated when it's not realistic or logical)

c) the way it is presented (My 15-year-old points out that it is unbelievable that there are wizards, but that the Harry Potter books are written in a way that makes them highly believable.)

When a Book Takes Over

I don't know if you've ever felt this way, but sometimes, after I've read a book (or watched a really good movie),  it just fills up my mind. I don't want to let anything else in to take its place for a while. Not another book. Not a T.V. show. It's just my thoughts about the book and me. I want to savour the thoughts and feelings that rise up when reading a really great book.

My most recent read The Ask and the Answer by Patrick Ness was like that for me. I didn't like it at first, but I'd read the first book in the trilogy, The Knife of Never Letting Go, and I was hooked on the characters. So I carried on with it. Wow - did it get me. It stirred up so many emotions and made me think. Even when I wasn't liking it, I couldn't put it down.

Does Reading Children's Books Affect Your Grown-Up Reading?

In the past couple of months, I've been easing up on reading MG and YA (since my 100 book challenge is going well) and reading more adult fiction.

Maybe I've made some poor choices (bestseller lists and the New section at the library?), but I've found it hard to finish a lot of the adult fiction I've picked up. Either it seemed unbelievable or I just didn't care enough about the characters. It makes me wonder if reading mostly MG and YA has affected my reading preferences or if the writing in children's books is different in some way that appeals to me. Or maybe it's just because they're shorter (ha!).

I recently read Fact of Life #31 by Denise Vega and really enjoyed it. It wasn't a particularly fast-paced story (which some of you know I tend to prefer), but I liked the emotional issues and internal struggles faced by the main character. Maybe that's what appeals to me in children's books? BTW, my teenage daughter began reading the same book and gave up on it early, saying she didn't like it at all. But I could see how she wouldn't relate to or connect with the main character at the beginning of the story, or her situation working in a midwifery. It all comes back to that connection, doesn't it?

P.S. Over at MiG Writers, I recently blogged about how I schedule my writing time, in case you're interested.

Catching Up on Writing and Reading

I'm slowly emerging from summer fun mode and getting back to a routine, including writing, critiquing, and blogging. Sometimes I worry that taking a break from it will take my mind too far away and I'll lose some of my "writing magic". Never happens. Even though it make take a day or two to get back into it, writing is a big part of who I am, and it always comes back.

During my break, I did some serious thinking about "behind the scenes" elements of my latest novel. Thinking that I wouldn't have been doing if I'd just kept on with my writing schedule. My notebook is full of questions and scribbled comments on topics ranging from the politics of the place where my characters live to small details about my character's personalities. It's made me more excited than ever about my novel revisions, even though I have a lot of sorting out to do!

The one thing I didn't make much progress on was my 100 book challenge, though I did read Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins this week. I'll need to read it again to absorb it properly. Because I was looking forward to it all summer, there were some elements I found disappointing. But I think that when you're hyped up about reading something, there's often a bit of let down. I felt the same way about This World We Live In by Susan Beth Pfeffer, but after I re-read it, I appreciated it more. Mockingjay contained surprises, good writing, and interesting new characters. It definitely needs a second read that isn't coloured by my expectations.

Writing Characters You Don't Like

I recently read The Thief by Meghan Whalen Turner. This story hooked me, even though during the first half of the book I didn’t particularly like the MC--he seemed to be always complaining. So what kept me reading? The story (especially the challenges the MC faced in trying to achieve his goal) and the interesting interplay of characters and personalities as the MC became friendly with his captors. The book was a satisfying read--and had an awesome, unexpected twist.

However, it made me think about the process of creating characters. For most of my characters, there’s something about them I like. For the ones I don’t, I tend to exaggerate what I perceive as “negative” qualities. I have a feeling that these more “negative” characters in my stories are not as fully realized as the others. Because I don’t like them, I find it harder to give them fully rounded personalities. Any thoughts or tips?

I Made It to 50 Celebration and Contest!

I am now halfway through my 100 book challenge! Yay! To celebrate, I'm giving away a copy of Waiting for Normal by Leslie Connor, my 50th read.

I still have 50 YA or MG books to go in my reading challenge, so for a chance to win the book, all you need to do is include a comment with the name of a MG or YA book you recommend.

The contest closes May 30th. Winner will be selected by a random draw.

The Dead and the Gone

#48. The Dead and the Gone by Susan Beth Pfeffer

I’ve waited a long time to read this YA novel. When I finally got the chance, I read it straight through, barely stopping to engage in my “real life”. I found it just as compelling as Life As We Knew It, which told of different characters experiencing the same life-changing event. For me, The Dead and the Gone was more gruesome and horrifying in some respects, but equally absorbing. I love Pfeffer’s writing style – straightforward, with every scene moving the story along, and very few adjectives or adverbs. Details are carefully chosen and mostly conveyed through actions.

#49. The Real Real by Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus

Though I don’t often like “average girl turns popular and gets the boy” stories, the reality TV setting made this one a little different. The writing was jumpy and hard to follow at times, but I liked the details and got hooked into the story.

Do You Write What You Like to Read?

In reading for my 100 book challenge, I’m finding out more about the kinds of books I like and don’t like to read. My most recent read, The Witch's Guide to Cooking with Children by Keith McGowan, was short and fast-paced, with several plot twists. I admired the cleverness of this retelling of the Hansel and Gretel story, set in modern day, and the way the author created a believable relationship between the brother and sister. But it took me a long time to get through. The story just didn’t hold my attention. Someone else probably thinks differently, because this is a matter of personal preference.

This leads me to think about my personal preferences for writing. I have common themes or elements in my stories but I don’t always stick within the same genre. It’s funny, because even though I do write some fantasy based in reality, I don’t like reading a lot of fantasy books for kids (except Harry Potter). Do you write the kinds of books you’d like to read?

The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate

#30. The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly

I can see why this novel was a Newberry Honor Book. I haven't read many historical novels for MG readers, but this one created a complete picture of life in 1899 as a backdrop for Callie Vee's story of finding out what she wants out of life (and standing up for it). I loved the way Callie's relationship with her grandfather developed through their love of science. I loved the attention to detail in this book, and the way the words flowed easily across the page.

Although I got my copy from the public library, this is a book I'll consider adding to my personal bookshelf.  I think there is a lot to be learned from it about writing dialogue without drawing attention to dialogue tags and building character through the use of specific details. I'll be reading this book again, because it is so rich it's impossible to absorb it all the first time.

Beautiful Words

27. Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin

After hearing so much about this book over at Grace Lin's blog, I had to read it. This book is many stories in one, with imaginative folktales woven through the text. I enjoyed the unique format and especially the way the author uses language. Plus, who doesn't love stories that contain dragons?  Some favourite phrases of mine included:

"As the sky deepened like brewing tea..."

"stars began to poke holes in the deep blue velvet sky" (This describes one of my favourite colours of the sky).

A good book to read if you appreciate how words can be perfectly put together to create compelling images. I'm thrilled to find out there are going to be more.

More on Different Viewpoints

 23. Eggs by Jerry Spinelli

What a great story of friendship between two unlikely characters - a 9-year-old boy and a 13-year-old girl! I can see this book appealing to both boys and girls. It was interesting to see how Spinelli handled the different points of view of the two kids. In some novels with different viewpoints, the POVs are quite distinct in terms of voice. I didn't find that so much here, but changes were clear. In a few places, the story was told from an adult perspective, which I found a bit jarring. I enjoyed the vivid visual images in this novel.

Revision update: I didn't reach my goal of finishing draft #2 of my work-in-progress by the end of February. But I will definitely finish this week. I made it to Chapter 17 of about 20 chapters. One of the things I will need to do in my next revision is to think about how to make the viewpoints in my own story emerge more naturally.