Books & Reading

Book Suggestions

For those of you who are bored with summer vacation or looking for book suggestions for throughout the school year, check out the books that I have been reading below.

Here is a list of a few of the things that I have read over the years and would suggest:

• I started reading “Cold Train Coming” by Larry Barkdull last year and have yet to finish it. I’ll let you know when I do though. I think that the dog might die in the end (like Shiloh, Old Yeller, Where the Red Fern Grows and so many others), but I’m still not sure. I have to pick it up again soon.  (July 21, 2009)

• Just recently, I read a book called Quid Pro Quo by Vicki Grant. It is a book about a teenage kid whose mother works as a lawyer and was kidnapped and he is trying to find who did it so that he can find her. If you want to know what happens, you’ll have to read the book though. (July 21, 2009)

• I just started reading “Chasing Lincoln’s Killer” by James L. Swanson.  It’s really interesting.  I had no idea that there were other failed assassination attempts on President Lincoln before the actual one that happened at Fords Theater in 1865.  I’m learning new things every day.  (Septermber 11, 2011)

• This summer, I have been reading “A Child Called It,” by Dave Peltzer.  I still cannot believe that one mother can have so much hate for her child as the woman in this book had for hers!  The author, Dave, endured quite a lot as a kid.  (Aug. 8, 2012)

• This summer, I finished reading “Divergent,” by Veronica Roth.  I can’t believe all of the daring things that Beatrice did in that book just to be a part of the Dauntless Faction.  I don’t know if some of the things in there that she did were really brave or just plain stupid.  I would not have dared to jump off of buildings or on and off of moving trains!!  I also read most of the book “Lord of The Flies,” by William Golding, which I remembered reading in high school once but haven’t read in a LONG, LONG time so I decided to pick it up again.  (Aug.  23, 2014)

• This last year, I have been reading “The Book Thief,” by Markus Zusak and to start off the summer vacation with a new book or two, I just finished reading it today.  I enjoyed the heartfelt emotions of Leisel Memminger and giggled when I read about the antics of her and Rudy Steiner.  Despite the dark tone of the book and time period in which the book was written, there is an uplifting message of hope, belonging, and love.  I also decided to start the second book in the Divergent Trilogy, “Insurgent,” by Veronica Roth.  I have checked out the book and am reading it online through the OverDrive App. provided by the district to all teachers and students.  (May 18, 2015)

• This summer, I read a great young-adult novel called “Vote,” by Gary Paulsen.  It was a pretty easy and quick read and quite a fun story about a kid who was running for office at his school.  (August, 2015)

• Last summer, I began the second book in the Divergent Trilogy, “Insurgent,” by Veronica Roth but I never finished.  So I picked it up again and have recently finished it.  I have to say that it is definitely an action-packed book!  I have also been re-reading different versions of Cinderella such as Yeh-Shen, Ashenputtle, and others.  (June 16, 2016)  I also recently finished reading “Allegiant,” by Veronica Roth. (July 26, 2016). 

• During the summer of 2017, I have spent time reading “The Orange Duffle Bag,” by Sam Bracken.  

• During the summer of 2019, I have spent more time reading "Inferno," by Dan Brown & have once again begun reading "Esperanza Rising," by Pam Munoz Ryan.  I have also been reading recipes, and KSL News online.  For professional reading, I have been continuing to read "Helping Children Succeed" by Paul Tough,  and "Disruptive Thinking," by Kylene Beers and Robert Probst.

• During the summer of 2022, I read "The Porter Rockwell Chronicles (Volume 1)," by Richard Lloyd Dewey.  I also spent time reading "Escape From Chernobyl," by Andy Marino.  "Escape From Chernobyl" was a really exciting read that I definitely recommend to anyone interested in science and historical fiction.  I also started reading "Once Upon A Time:  Red's Untold Tale," a story about the life of Little Red Riding Hood (with tie-in's to the Once Upon A Time Series that aired on television several years ago).

• In 2022, I read "The City of Ember," by Jeanne DuPrau, which was a mix of science, technology, friendship, and adventure.

• "The Boys In The Boat", by Daniel James Brown is one that I read during the summer of 2024 and is one that I would recommend.  It is a bit of a challenging read, but is a book of historical fiction telling the story of a group of boys who were competing in Rowing during the time of the Great Depression and who were determined to complete in the Olympics in Berlin.  

Summer Reading:  You can continue to use Sora on your Chromebook over the summer.  And, if you haven’t already downloaded the SORA app on your phone or other devices, you can so that you can keep CHECKING OUT BOOKS ALL SUMMER on those as well, check with the school librarian for more information about that.