Pizza for lunch

After two years of going to other people’s houses, I hosted book club last night.

It is a book club for librarians and a few others and we only discuss children’s and YA lit. It is large and fluid group. Each month when the reminder goes out, people chime in only if they are coming. They also state what they will bring. The person hosting orders pizza.

I am not the best hostess in the world and I worry about this flaw. As I tidied the house, I worried about parking, about how my dog – Lucy – would deal with 8-10 people in her space eating pizza, about the fact that I only have seats for eight. And I thought about the pizza.

I haven’t ordered a pizza in decades. Maybe not since university, when we dialed 967-11-11 for Pizza Pizza. I can still sing the radio jingle.

I knew I’d get one veggie and one meat, but I consulted my sister about the size to order. That determined, I placed my order online. College-age me could never have imagined this. A few people cancelled at the last minute another decided to come last minute. yes, we are that fluid.

The pizzas arrived on time.

There were enough seats.

Lucy was a very good girl.

And there is enough pizza left over for this week’s lunches.

Here is the list of books we discussed last night

Shorter Fiction:

• Heartbeat (Evan Turk)

• Carmela Full of Wishes (Matt De la Peña)

• Stop That Yawn! (Caron Levis)

Longer Fiction:

• Muse of Nightmares (Laini Taylor)

• The Assassination of Brangwain Spurge (M. T. Anderson & Eugene Yelchin)

• The Boneless Mercies (April Genevieve Tucholke)

• Sweep: The Story of A Girl and Her Monster (Jonathan Auxier)

• The Season of Styx Malone (Kekla Magoon)

Nonfiction

• Unpresidented: A Biography of Donald Trump (Martha Brockenbrough)

• In The Past: From Trilobites To Dinosaurs To Mammoths In More Than 500 Million Years (David Elliott)

Graphic Novel

• Check, Please!  #Hockey! (Ngozi Ukazu)

• Tiger Vs. Nightmare (Emily Tetri)

 

After the Book Club

I belong to an adult book club, made up of mostly librarians. I missed last night’s June meeting and the flurry that happens at the end. That’s where we decide which books we  will read for next month. Yes, I said books because we only read children’s and YA books. It is the best book club ever!

We usually choose about 10-12 books a month, a mix of picture books, longer fiction, non fiction and graphic novels. As we make each decision, phones are out and holds are placed at libraries.

Because I missed last night’s meeting, I didn’t see the list until I checked my email this morning. Before I began writing this post, my holds had been placed. All is well with the world.

Here is our July reading list(with links to my local library system):

Shorter Fiction:

• Ocean Meets Sky (Fan)
• Julián is a Mermaid (Love)
• Pie is For Sharing (Ledyard)

Longer Fiction:

• Blood, Water, Paint (McCullough)
• The Serpent’s Secret (DasGupta)
• When My Heart Joins the Thousands (Steiger)
• The Parker Inheritance (Johnson)
• You Go First (Kelly)
• Monday’s Not Coming (Jackson)

Nonfiction

• Photographic: The Life of Graciela Iturbide (Quintero)
• Girl Who Drew Butterflies (Sidman)

Graphic Novel

• All Summer Long (Larson)

Upcoming

• The Strange Fascinations of Noah Hypnotik (Arnold)

 

Journeys On the Oregon Trail

This week, my class set off on a book club adventure along the Oregon Trail. I started by introducing the five books they could choose. I gave a short book talk about each, then set a set of he five books on each table, giving theme ample time to look through to find a good fit book. Their choices were:

Ranger in Time:Rescue on the Oregon Trail by Kate Messner (by far the most desired book)

Thunder Rolling in the Mountains by Scott O’Dell and Elizabeth Hall (not exactly an Oregon Trail book, but there is a connection)

Dear Levi: Letters from the Overland Trail  by Elvira Woodruff

Rachel’s Journal  by Marissa Moss

The Stout Hearted Seven: Orphaned on the Oregon Trail  by Neta Lohnes Frazier

 

Then they had to fill out a form naming their first and second choices and why each would be a good book for them. Some of their reasons were excellent. Here are some samples.

“When we talked about Native Americans, I had questions that went farther. I would like to know how they were pushed out of their own land .”

” I like books with a map and journal books.”

“I enjoy books where people have to go on a hard life-or-death mission.”

“I want to know the feeling and how hard it can be to have to survive alone.”

“Time travel is right next to impossible.”

“It is teaching you about the Oregon Trail and it is also doing fantasy at the same time.”

“I could see how other people come together and help each other live.”

 

They didn’t all get their first choice, but everyone got their first or second choice, and so far, everyone seems happy with their book.