Thank you so much Karen @Texreader I have been wanting to read this for a long time. I try to read books that have been awarded O'Dell and Newbery. I appreciate you so much and your support. I know it took me a long time to open, but I needed to get out of the depression. You were right, I was also grieving an end of a friendship. Thank you for understanding me.

How fascinating!!! The books I decided to read next are very similar in theme. Two books of a person of Color who has a decision to make - to be someone they're not to get what they humanely deserve or to stay true to their heritage and family history.

Even though, this is a somber book about the violence of Colombia, I LOLed at "as confused as Adam on Mother's Day." I'm so blessed to live near so many great restaurants. Tropical Grill in Spruce Pine served me with grilled chorizo sausage and fried bread. So incredibly good. #FoodandLit @Texreader @Catsandbooks

I feel lost and overwhelmed right now. I just finished school to a bad year. I had to file a report on a colleague who I thought was a good friend. She was my 11year old's teacher. She looked right at me and said, if she had a gun, she would kill them all. Then Uvalde happened four days later and I am having trouble separating the two. My heart hurts for Texas and I just can't get back to normal because of what my "friend" said. So many lives. And

This series was my first foray into fantasy with fantastic characters. I love revisiting the adventures. My favorite will always be Pip/Ozma. #ChildrenClassics2022 @TheBookHippie

Listened to it because it was easily available. For anyone who likes pop culture mixed with an intergalactic insurance agent, this audio is for you. It would have been an easy pick if Jimmy Stewart had been mentioned.

WHAT A TREASURE!!!! Chinese and Korean heritages are highlighted in this story set during the western expansion of US. Very rare. I know of only Laurence Yep for middle grade, but Park wanted to confront the absence and hatred of other cultures in the Little House books. #TeachEmpathyThroughLiterature #MiddleGradeMay @megnews

Another add to my class. Set in North Carolina during the Trail of Tears. It describes how the Real People were placed in pens like animals. I would suggest this to anyone who wants to encourage and develop empathy. #MiddleGradeMay @megnews

I was looking for a strong gothic tale and I found it. Were the body snatchers aliens, medicine, or imagination? I still don't know. Love a good ambiguous ending.

You get to know the histories of the characters and then... A horrific ending. Horrific. I thought it was brilliant how we see the violence that is still high in our indigenous communities.

A very challenging read. The book opens when a nervous Tarana Burke does not want #metoo to go viral. She had worked so incredibly hard to incorporate it into the Black community where women are statistically abused. She realizes that it is time to increase the range of her community. It covers her abuse and her humility when she fails a young girl's need to share. Every one should read this. Burke even makes a powerful plea for men to stand up.

Have I mentioned how much I love the #FairytaleReadingChallenge and how much I love this book. #Mulan was March, but I wanted to drag this book for a long time. The battle scenes were perfect. The characters were brilliant in tricking the villain. Loved this book. @Charityann

Very poignant immigration story told as a graphic novel. Misunderstandings between mother and daughter were stressed. I'm hoping I can get both of my daughters to read it. #Nonfiction2022 I'm an Outcast @Riveted_Reader_Melissa

A storytelling battle between a cleric and a trio of tigers. How delightful, delicious, and fun. I love it when this oral tradition is honored and Vo did it very craftily. A wonderful fantasy with mammoth riders. #PopSugar

A grand adventure! And I think I am a little bit in love with Long John Silver. #Booked2022 @Cinfhen @4thhouseontheleft @BarbaraTheBibliophage

Back to my childhood. Adventure with a raggedy group of fantastical characters. Trying to save the Shaggy man's brother from the Gnome King. I wonder if Cornelia Funke was inspired by this series. The gnomes seemed very similar. Onomatopoeia in its title. #PopSugar2022

So courageous. I'm scared for her during these turbulent times in #Afghanistan She wrote about how disrespectful America was in bringing dogs into the people's homes. What a brave woman. To stand up for women's rights just by deciding to wear men's clothing after puberty. I was in complete awe in her steadfast faith and communication with Allah. #Nonfiction2022 @Riveted_Reader_Melissa I am a Rebel #FoodandLit @Texreader @Catsandbooks

Had too much humor. I appreciate his sense of humor, but it became overkill. Especially when discussing serious issues such as the Vietnam draft and rape. It left a bitter taste. #Nonfiction2022 @Riveted_Reader_Melissa I am Rock n Roll

I looove Locke's mysteries. A Texas Ranger fights racism while searching for a missing child. While coping with his family.

A beautiful romance between a quadriplegic and his caregiver. But love doesn't overcome all. A hard ending. It left me mad.

Middlin' I enjoyed reading something different from Milne besides Pooh. The characters thought highly of themselves, but it was fun when they compared themselves to Holmes and Watson.

I'm looking forward to listening to this today for #FoodandLit while I am knitting a dinosaur afghan for a toddler. @Catsandbooks @Texreader

In elementary school, I had a friend whose parents were political emigres from Communist Cuba. I fondly remember the music, the stories, and the food from this special family. I never eat bananas, but I ate Ms. Rodriguez's fried plantains so that is what I fixed for #Cuba #FoodandLit @texreader @Catsandbooks

I feel incredibly guilty for not meeting my discussion groups. I'm finding books on audible, scribd, and Libby while I am getting my little business going and I can't find all the books I need. #audiocrafting @Catsandbooks @curiouser@megnews @sblbooks @staci.reads @Daisey @BookBabe For 1619, the Bible, and Ulysses, I need to read, not listen. I should be catching up in the next week or so.

At times, I thought it was too similar to Beth Revis's Across the Universe. Eventually, it became its own and I began to appreciate it. And, knowing Beth's mother personally, I think Beth would appreciate the similarities.

I think John Boyne is incredible for writing human emotions in his stories. This book drained me. Courage. Cowardice. Being complicit or dying for your beliefs. #AuthorAMonth @Soubhiville

As a teacher who enjoys the Paideia Seminar to encourage critical thinking and using text evidence, I enjoyed reading about Socrates and his style of teaching with his questioning style. Thanks to @Chrissyreadit I decided to read it. I wasn't ready to end Greece. #FoodandLit @Catsandbooks @Texreader

I learned about the Senate hearings on the White Star ineptitude. Never ever thought about it. So interesting. And learned about the Duff Gordons. What really happened on that lifeboat? I was glued to the text from the first page.

I hate to think of my favorite author enduring abuse at the hands of her zealot, Transcendentalist father. How could he actually believe that dark haired children were of the devil? I learned so much and it just makes me admire her even more. I can't wait to visit Orchard House.

I will definitely read more Cleeton. I learned so much about Cuba and it's relationship with US. I never knew of Hearst's obsession with Cuba. I hope that he wasn't such a warmonger as Cleeton portrays him, but I know news was his business and he would probably do anything for his success. I even liked how all three main characters fought for Cuba and had a "happy" ending. #FoodandLit @Catsandbooks good choice Leila!!! @Texreader

It isn't very profound or evocative, but it's sweet and reminds me of small town life - how I was raised and how I am raising my girls. It has a great lesson, even the Baptist preacher is a sinner; therefore there is no one who should be looking down their noses.

Love revisiting my old friends (literature) from my childhood. My Nanny read Charles Perrault to me at a very young age. This version had Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella. #ChildrensClassicChallenge2022 @TheBookHippie
#FairytaleReadingChallenge @Charityann

Heartwarming story about a child's love to his father and his determination to help him heal. We have all been there. If we could take someone else's pain, we wouldn't hesitate, but Boyne writes from a child's perspective and we see that a child doesn't care about hurdles. They are going to do what needs to be done, even if it may be wrong to an adult's way of seeing. Because they have a perfect love. #AuthorAMonth @Soubhiville

Completed the #BookandBeyondReadingChallenge #BBRC @LibrarianRyan such fascinating new genres.

Excellent retellings of East Asian folktales and myths. YA authors placed sci-fi twists to make new stories. I truly liked each one. #YAshortstories #BBRC @LibrarianRyan

I'm very surprised at how much awe I feel toward this work. I never thought I would read King - too much violence, gore, horror. But I was interested. What makes him so special? There were moments of gore, but there were also moments of beauty and peace and the terror that swept over you was deep and unexpected. I will definitely read more of his sci-fi work. This was amazing. George/Jake and Sadie. Love. #alternativehistory #BBRC @LibrarianRyan

This book was the Bees' Knees!!!! Did you know a family was raised in the New York Public Library? What an amazing childhood!!! To explore the map room, to see the exhibits first hand, to know the lore of the place. Fascinating!!! #MGBuddyRead @megnews

I have heard of the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency, but didn't know anything about it. Until now. I have fallen for the main characters and the discussions they have on moral obligations to their clients and nation #Botswana I will definitely read more. #ReadingAfrica2022 @BarbaraBB @Librarybelle #SeriesRead2022 @TheSpineView

Chicken Gyro with Greek Salad and Tsatziki sauce from Bellagio Bistro in Asheville. #FoodandLit @Texreader @Catsandbooks

My April #BookSpinBingo list @TheAromaofBooks

My completed March #BookSpinBingo @TheAromaofBooks

Manipulation, heartbreak, adventure, love. This epic has it all. I got so lost in the reading, I could swear it was Ken Follet. And Jamie. Swoon. Reminded me of Anne Blythe's Walter. Interspersed between the chapters, you are treated to historical snippets of real aviators. This is my favored contender for #WomensPrize2022 No, wait. I forgot about The Sentence.

This book should be read by everyone. The lone survivor of a massacre in a school. He was continued to be hunted by the Hutus because he was a celebrated runner, but also a Tutsi. It was a hard read, but he carries his physical and emotional scars with such grace that I feel privileged to know his story. #Burundi #ReadingAfrica2022 @Librarybelle @BarbaraBB #Nonfiction2022 #survivor @Riveted_Reader_Melissa

Fell in love with the cover. Was mislead by the cover. Too many times I was sick to my stomach by the food or hair. It was YUCK!!! interesting concept - revengeful ghosts within Vietnamese folklore.

Incredibly fun and satisfying. Middle schoolers plan a #caper to set up the arrogant opponent in the election. I'd definitely endorse such a school. Every character cared about something; didn't let life flow by them. This will probably be my next read aloud. #BBRC @LibrarianRyan

An epistolary novel for middle grades - set in a Mongolian style during Genghis Khan's day. I loved it. The characterization was fantastic. Dashti, a mucker girl uses songs to heal. She matures while supporting her mistress in a locked up tower. #MiddleGradeMarchThroughTime @megnews #BBRC @LibrarianRyan

Love learning about cultures that still center around the village. #ReadingAfrica2022 #Cameroon @BarbaraBB @Librarybelle

I liked the gothic atmosphere with the supernatural being explored with the tarot cards, visions, and ghost stories.

I have enjoyed every one of Lisa See's books I have read. She takes an unknown culture and makes it alive in my imagination. I just love her writing. I understood Young-sook's anguish and anger. The moment of Mi-ja's betrayal is heartbreaking. I couldn't sleep without revisiting the images evoked. And now I know a little bit about the haenyeo life. Just wow! I look forward to more, but my heart can't take it right now. #AuthorAMonth @Soubhiville

Completely BONKERS!!! I have enjoyed ya about virtual reality (love Marie Lu's WarCross), but the conspiracy theories kept confusing me even though I stayed up all night to finish. I still don't know how I feel, but I do know one thing - I WILL NOT ALLOW MY DAUGHTER TO WEAR HER VR HEADSET TODAY!!! #CyberPunk #BBRC @LibrarianRyan