Kevin

Book Log Love Practicing the Piano || Peggy Gifford || E/JR || 11/14/12 || 11/22/12 || Time || James Dashner || JR || 12/5/12 || 12/6/12 ||
 * =#= || =Book Title= || =Author= || =E, JR, C= || =Date Started= || =Date Completed= ||
 * == 1 == || Silverwing || K. Oppel || N/A || ~September 2012 || 11/8/12 ||
 * ==2== || Prophet of Yonwood || Jeanne Duprau || JR || Unknown || Unknown ||
 * ==3== || City of Ember || Jeanne Duprau || JR || Unknown || Unknown ||
 * ==4== || Diamond of Darkhold || Jeanne Duprau || JR || Unknown || 9/27/12 ||
 * =5= || Moon over Manifest || Clare Vanderpool || JR || Unknown || Unknown ||
 * =6= || Found || Margaret Peterson Haddix || JR/C || 10/19/12 || 10/20/12 ||
 * =7= || Sent || Margaret Peterson Haddix || JR/C || 10/20/12 || 10/20/12 ||
 * =8= || Sabotaged || Margaret Peterson Haddix || JR/C || 10/21/12 || 10/21/12 ||
 * =9= || Torn || Margaret Peterson Haddix || JR/C || 10/22/12 || 10/22/12 ||
 * =10= || Caught || Margaret Peterson Haddix || JR/C || ~10/25/12 || ~10/25/12 ||
 * =11= || Among the Hidden || Margaret Peterson Haddix || E/JR || ~10/25/12 || ~10/26/12 ||
 * =12= || Among the Betrayed || Margaret Peterson Haddix || E/JR || 10/27/12 || 10/27/12 ||
 * =13= || Among the Imposters || Margaret Peterson Haddix || E/JR || 10/28/12 || 10/28/12 ||
 * =14= || My Life as a Book || Janet Tashjian || E/JR || ~11/5/12 || 11/13/12 ||
 * =15= || Sunwing || Kenneth Oppel || N/A || 11/12/12 ||  ||
 * =16= || Moxy Maxwell Does Not
 * =17= || Double Identity || Margaret Peterson Haddix || JR/C || 11/24/12 || 11/27/12 ||
 * =18= || The Magic Thief || Sarah Prineas || JR || 11/27/12 || 11/29/12 ||
 * =19= || The Magic Thief: Lost || Sarah Prineas || JR || 11/29/12 || 11/29/12 ||
 * =20= || The Golden Ghost || Marion Dane Bauer || E || October 2012 || October 2012 ||
 * =21= || The Same Stuff as Stars || Katherine Paterson || JR [GR] || 12/5/12 ||  ||
 * =22= || Infinity Ring: A Mutiny in
 * =23= || The House on the Gulf || Margaret Peterson Haddix || E/JR || 12/11/12 || 12/12/12 ||
 * =24= || The Name of This Book is Secret || Psuedononymous Bosch || JR/C || 12/15/12 || 12/18/12 ||
 * =25= || If You're Reading This, it's Too Late || Psuedononymous Bosch || JR/C || 12/18/12 || 12/20/12 ||
 * =26= || H.I.V.E. || Mark Walden || JR/C || 1/7/12 || 1/8/12 ||
 * =27= || H.I.V.E.: The Overlord Protocol || Mark Walden || JR/C || 1/8/12 || 1/8/12 ||
 * =28= || Airborn || Kenneth Oppel || JR/C || ? || 1/14/13 ||
 * =29= || Skybreaker || Kenneth Oppel || JR/C || 1/15/13 || 1/15/13 ||
 * =30= || Starclimber || Kenneth Oppel || JR/C || 1/16/13 || 1/16/13 ||
 * =31= || Simon Bloom: The Gravity Keeper ||  ||   ||   ||   ||
 * =32= || Torn || Margaret Peterson Haddix || JR/C || 1/20/13 || 1/21/13 ||
 * =33= || The Mysterious Benedict Society ||  || JR/C || 1/29/13 || 1/29/13 ||
 * =34= || The Mysterious Benedict Society: The Perilous Journey ||  || JR/C || 1/30/13 || 1/30/13 ||
 * =35= || The Mysterious Benedict Society: The Prisoner's Dilemma ||  || JR/C || 1/31/13 || 1/31/13 ||
 * =36= || Out of my Mind || Sharon M. Draper || JR || ? || ? ||

February 14, 2013 Dear Ms. Sellers,

Hello! I was able to get __Starclimber__ as an e-book from the Google Play Store. Oddly, the cloud cat, pirates, and floating ship do not really make an appearance in __Starclimber__. Neither does the Aurora, which as I am rather disappointed by, I kind of liked it. __Chasing Vermeer__ sounds like a very interesting book. How are the pictures hidden? Is there a special way to see them? I also didn't find __The Mysterious Benedict Society__ very confusing. Maybe it was because I was completely focused on reading it, while you were listening to it while doing something else. Also, I actually had to look up Rick Riordian. So he's the author of the Percy Jackson series, huh? I don't think I am really swept up in it. That may change one I read one of his books, though!

I have recently finished __out of my mind__. It is about a girl who has cerebral palsy and can't talk or walk. She eventually manages to overcome these limitations with the power of technology! The most important idea is to treat everyone the same and don't discount people because of their disabilities. Something interesting is that I actually started reading this book last year and never finished it because the school year ended. I'm quite disappointed that I didn't finish it, as it is a great book.

Your student, Kevin Liu

Feb. 12, 2013 Dear Kevin-

I would say one of the differences between Shade and Marina, and Matt and Kate, is that Kate is more of the impulsive one like Shade. Matt, if I remember correctly,is the more level headed one of the duo. Were you able to get __Starclimber__ from RPL or Google? Some day I will finally finish the series and find out what happens to Matt and Kate. What stands out in my memory for the series were the cloud cats and pirates in the first book, and that weird floating ship with the creatures in it in the second book.

__Sixty-Eight Rooms__ sounds like a good suggestion for our MCBA read aloud. Reading the back of the book made me think a little bit about another favorite series that I found originally through the MCBA. (Text to Text) It's called __Chasing Vermeer__. I know that __Sixty-Eight Rooms__ takes place at the Art Institute of Chicago- a very famous museum that I've always aspired to attend. __Chasing Vermeer__ also takes place in Chicago, but at the University of Chicago (a prestigious place) and focuses on three classmates. They also both have this mysterious element to them that make them appealing. What I like about the __Chasing Vermeer__ series, is that they also have illustrations that have hidden pictures in them.

I think it's kind of interesting that you most recently discovered both __H.I.V.E__. and __The Mysterious Benedict Society__. They were actually both on the MCBA list, at the same time, about three years ago. I didn't read either book at that time, but felt like they had some similiarities in the smart kids being recruited for something. __The Mysterious Benedict Society__ went on to win for the whole state, and after that I felt compelled to read it. I happen to be driving across the state of North Carolina by myself and I thought it the perfect time to listen to it instead. Big mistake- I was super confused as I drove on Interstate 85 and tried to follow all that was going on with the characters. I learned my lesson, I now stick to biographies of Non fiction when I listen to a book.

What series will you conquer next? Have you been swept up into the Rick Riordan intrigue like the rest of our class?

Your friend, Ms.Sellers

February 1, 2013 Dear Ms. Sellers,

I really like Kenneth Oppel's __Airborn__ series. Matt and Kate do "butt heads" quite a bit, like you said Shade and Marina do in your book talk. They often disagree about things, like about how going into the forest is safe, should you //really// pick up those bones, and when they should escape. I do enjoy Kenneth Oppel's books, but I do not really like Frankenstein-esque books. The __Doctor Frankenstein__ series does sound interesting, though. I will probably give it a try. Perhaps I will like it! Perhaps you should read the MCBA book __The Sixty-Eight Rooms__. I have read it, and it is a very good book. Also, I have read a book with the setup of switching perspectives each chapter. The book was the __Candymakers__, with each chapter cycling through the perspectives of Logan, Miles, Daisy, and Philip.

Recently I have been reading the book series __The Mysterious Benedict Society__. As the title says, it is quite mysterious. Some kids find an ad about wanting to prove your "special talents", and they enter. What they do not know is that it is a test, to find kids for Mr. Benedict's mission! They must infiltrate the Institute and find out info about the mysterious Whisperer. The genre of this book is Fantasy because it is impossible with current technology to create a mind-altering machine.

From, Kevin Liu

January 28, 2013 Dear Kevin-

I'm really excited that you got in to Kenneth Oppel's other series- __Airborn__. James Liu has been reading __Darkwing__ and he mentioned how he thought the main characters in that book, two batlike creatures who are brother and sister, reminded him of how Shade and Marina interact. Do Matt and Kate interact at all like Shade and Marina? Sometimes authors will do that and have similar formats of characters in their different books. Do you think you'll go on and read the author's Doctor Frankenstein series?

I'm curious about what book you might want me to read after __Sunwing.__ I would like to read an MCBA. Is there one that you haven't read that you would particularly like to hear? One of the ones I was thinking of doing was __Because of Mr. Terupt__. This was probably one of the favorites I read over the summer. The book is about a fifth grade class, maybe a little like ours. I made a text to text connection between this book and another favorite old MCBA called __Flying Solo__. Both of these books are setup the same way so that every chapter is told from the point of view of a different character. I like this setup because it lets you as the reader know what the different characters are feeling. Sometimes I find this format hard to follow too as you have to keep track of a lot of different characters instead of just a couple.

Have you ever read a book with this kind of format?

Your friend in reading, Ms. Sellers

January 17, 2013

Dear Ms. Sellers,

Hello! Recently I have been reading __Airborn__. The book takes place in an Earth like our's was in the 20th century, but they use airships to travel instead of planes.It is about a cabin boy named Matt Cruse and a guest named Kate de Vries. Pirates cause them and their airship, the Aurora, to shipwreck on an island, but they manage to get back to civilization. What surprised me in the book is Kate and Matt find a hydrium (their equivalent of helium) vent on the island when the Aurora had just run out of hydrium. __I'd like to read more books by this author because they really suck you into the story and make it very hard to put down.__

From, Kevin Liu

Dear member of Room 7, I can’t believe that it’s already December and that we are halfway done with our second read aloud of __Sunwing__. You know I love these stories and love the characters- even Goth sometimes! I think the author Kenneth Oppel does a terrific job making you as the reader know the characters really well. We’ve talked a lot about how Shade is impulsive, and that he often “leaps, then looks” which causes many problems for him and others through the stories. One place where we see him do this is most recently in __Sunwing__. On page 164, “From behind him came a sudden and intense flash of light, and for a split second it was as if the night had become day. “Don’t look back,” Caliban snapped. Shade looked.” This is such a perfect example of Shade. We can all imagine how hard it is not to do something when someone tells you directly not to do it- but I would think that Shade would’ve been so scared at all that he had been through and would be afraid to see what terrible things would be behind him that he wouldn’t look as Caliban told him to. Shade however has a hard time following rules, and thinking things through. Although, I think we can already see signs that Shade is “growing up” in this second story.

Over vacation, I’m getting ready to read the third book in a Sci Fi series that I’ve really enjoyed. This book is called __Reached__ and it’s written by Ally Condie. The reason I am planning on reading it is that I’ve asked Santa to bring it for Christmas, and there’s nothing I enjoy more on Winter Vacation than curling up with a great new book. There are three main characters in this series- Cassia (the main girl), Ky and Xander. ***The genre of this book is definitely Sci Fi as this book takes place in the future where the government- called “The Society”- gets to make a lot of decisions for you. They pick a job for you, and they even recommend who you should marry. You don’t have to marry that person, but they “match” you with the perfect person. (The first book in the series was called __Matched__.)They also tell you that you may only keep a certain amount of special items or artifacts- and paper is a very special thing which most people are not supposed to have.**
 * Can’t wait to hear what you’ve been reading about- write you back after vacation!**
 * Love,**
 * Ms. Sellers J **


 * Dear Ms. Sellers,**
 * Hi! The guided reading book I've been reading is __The Same Stuff as Stars__. It's about 2 kids, Angel and Bernie, who get dropped off at their grandmother's house and left to stay there. Angel has to take care of whiny Bernie, who is 7 and constantly wants Sugar Pops. Angel is quite responsible, and we see her being responsible on page 2! "She raced back to the kitchen and grabbed the dishpan, not stopping to take out the dishes before she ran back to the fire. Angel sloshed the dirty dishwater over the flame..."**


 * A book that I read recently was __The Name of This Book is Secret__. The main characters are Cass (maybe not her real name), a survivalist, and Max-Ernest (also may not be his real name), a logic-thinking kid with 2 names. The become involved in The Secret and enter the Terces Society.** *The genre of this book is Mystery/Adventure as Cass and Max-Ernest try to solve the mystery behind 'The Secret' and go on an adventure while doing so. I really like this book, and I love how the author is so secretive and acts like he shouldn't be writing it.

Your student, Kevin Liu

November 14, 2012 Dear Ms. Sellers, I really enjoyed //The Missing// series too. I'm really glad that you introduced me to the series. I don't think the next book is the last one; I read that there are supposed to be two more after that. I think that Katherine and Jonah will travel back to Jonah's original time period and fix history, of course with a few problems on the way! I also hope that all of the missing kids from history will stay in the 21st century and history will be fixed.

At the end of __Silverwing__, I couldn't believe that Goth was still alive after he had been struck by lightning! I guess Goth was just a bit stronger than Throb, who was promptly burnt to ashes after the lightning struck his body. Or perhaps the lightning that struck Throb was the main bolt, and the one that struck Goth was an offshoot bolt, one not as powerful? Also, in __Sunwing__, when Shade flew into the large human building, I was thinking that Shade was getting blinded by the hope of getting his father back, and not really using his common sense. I predict that Shade has fallen into a trap laid by Goth, and the bat voices were all actually Goth's voice.

Also, I am currently reading the //Shadow Children// series. Like you said, the books are fairly short, but meaningful. I like the idea of a "Population Law" designed to prevent overcrowding and famine, but with people opposing it and having third children who cannot go to school or even leave the house. If I could talk to one of the book's characters, I would ask Jason, "Why did you betray the shadow children? Do you have something against them? I don't see anything bad that they did to you, so why did you betray them? They're just kids born into a world that only allows 2 kids per family." I am trying to find __Among the Barons__, but it isn't in the school library or yours! I'm going to attempt to find it in the Reading Public Library.

Your student, Kevin Liu

November 13, 2012 Hi Kevin- I'm so glad that I introduced you to //The Missing// series. I really enjoyed the first book __Found__ when it was on the MCBA list a couple years ago. I have long been a fan of the author, Maragaret Peterson Haddix and I'm glad that you're discovering her great series too. I will admit that I was kind of shocked/annoyed by the end of __Found__. I couldn't believe that Haddix took her Sci Fi/Fantasy novel, and spun it into a Historical Fiction novel- shocking! Generally, I was annoyed at the cliffhanger but I love that all the subsequent books involved different parts of history and especially __Sabotaged__ and __Torn__ cover parts of history that we learn about in 5th grade. Is the next book that is coming out, the last book in this series? Where do you think all the kids will ultimately end up? Were you surprised by the ending of __Silverwing__? Can you believe that Goth didn't die when he got struck by lightning. I think the author, Kenneth Oppel, makes the stories more interesting by keeping Goth- the bad guy- alive. The author got me interested in the part that we just left on- when Shade flew right in to the giant human building because he heard bat voices calling to them- but were they real voices, and should Shade have just flown in without being a little more cautious? I loved everyone in our class's reaction- could Goth be inside? could he be calling out? I kind of love it as a teacher when I leave people hanging at the end of the chapter and kids say, "Don't stop reading Ms. Sellers!" (You're reaction in particular was pretty awesome today ;)

Your friend in reading, Ms. Sellers :)

November 13, 2012 Dear Ms. Sellers, A little while ago, I finished //The Missing// series (at least until November 18, when the new one comes out). Because it involved time travel, I was a bit wary of paradoxes. But the paradoxes were fairly easy to understand. __The genre of this series is Sci-Fi because time travel hasn't been invented yet.__ __I'd like to read another book/series by this author because her books really suck you in and make you keep reading.__ For example, after school I finished reading //Found//. I then went right back inside, got //Sent// and began to read it. I can't wait for her next book, //Risked//, to come out.

Your student, Kevin Liu

September 26, 2012 Dear Room 7, I’m very excited to hear all your thoughts about what you’re reading on your individual wiki pages. I’ve really enjoyed all your enthusiasm about Silverwing. Even though this is my thirteenth time reading it, I still get really excited about sharing it every year. ** *The genre of this book is definitely fantasy since I don’t believe that bats and owls have wars or detailed adventures together. I also consider this to be a genre of my own invention- called Animal Adventure **. I love the character Shade; he’s one of my all-time favorites. ** *If I could talk to Shade, I would ask him if he thinks it was worth it to break the law and see the sun, especially after what happens to his colony as a result. **

Your friend in reading, Ms. Sellers:)