I feel like the sentiment “You read so many books!” has finally arrived this month with a stack of twelve books. The truth remains the same, as you will see below, that I start a lot of books. This month I was happy to finish three books!
These blog posts are a way for me to document and share the reality of my reading journey, while holding me accountable to the books I’ve started, continued to read, kept in idle, abandoned, and finished.
Started
How We Fall Apart by Katie Zhao
- The 9th grade English teaching team is looking for books to diversify our curriculum and this was one of the books in consideration.
1984: The Graphic Novel by George Orwell, adapted and illustrated by Fido Nesti
- I’ve started to read 1984 a handful of times, and I find it boring. Hoping the graphic novel will be better.
Continued to Read
Street Data: A Next-Generation Model for Equity, Pedagogy, and School Transformation by Shane Safir and Jamila Dugan
- I started Street Data at the end of October for a Professional Learning Community Book Club.
Idle
I did not make any progress on these five books in September, October, and/or November. I’m interested in all of them for various reasons and will keep them around to continue reading.
North: Finding My Way While Running the Appalachian Trail by Scott Jurek and Jenny Jurek
Different Seasons: Four Novellas by Stephen King
On Writing by Stephen King
Twelve and a Half: Leveraging the Emotional Ingredients Necessary for Business Success by Gary Vaynerchuk
Unspeakable Acts: True Tales of Crime, Murder, Deceit, and Obsession by Sarah Weinman
Abandoned
The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals by Michael Pollan
- The Omnivore’s Dilemma is a dense read that I do not have the bandwidth nor time for at this point in the school year.
Finished
Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman
- I read this collection of short stories centered on the creation of a garden in Cleveland to one of my 9th grade English classes.
- ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ – I’m finding as time goes on, this story and the characters are becoming more and more outdated. Overall, the book provides an excellent example of how people from different backgrounds can build a community from the ground up.
A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry
- Two of my other 9th grade English classes listened to the audiobook of this play, so technically I read this twice alongside them.
- ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ – I had never read this play before I taught it for the first time, which was last year. The story line and characters are growing on me. I’m looking forward to future reads with my students.
- The 9th grade English team recently decided to make this book a required read in our curriculum instead of To Kill a Mockingbird. Prior to this decision, it was an optional book as an all-class read.
Maus I: A Survivor’s Tale: My Father Bleeds History by Art Spiegelman
- A summer visit to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington D.C. with my wife inspired me to pick up this book again.
- ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ – Even though it was a re-read, I was still stopped me in my tracks at certain points. Art Spiegelman’s storytelling through metaphors and his artwork are excellent.
- Graphic novels continue to be an interest of mine, which is why I’d like to read one a week in 2023. If you have any suggestions, send them my way!
Disclosure Statement:
I’m still giving affiliate links a try, so the links to books are just that. If you purchase books from these links, I receive a commission at no extra cost to you.