You might have noticed this new widget I have on my sidebar, courtesy of JacketFlap and the Children’s Book Council. It is announcing several nominees for the Children’s Choice Book Awards. In case you didn’t know, the Children’s Choice Book Award nominees have been announced in each category: Kindergarten to second grade, third to fourth grade, fifth to sixth grade, teen choice, author of the year, and illustrator of the year. There are five books or people nominated in each category.
Here’s a little blurb about the contest from the CBC website: “The favorite book finalists were determined by close to 15,000 children and teens. Thousands more will be able to cast their votes for their favorite book, author, and illustrator at bookstores, schools, libraries, and at BookWeekOnline.com from March 15 to May 3.
The Children’s Choice Book Awards winners will be announced live at the Children’s Choice Book Awards gala on May 11 in New York City as part of Children’s Book Week (May 10-16, 2010), the oldest national literacy event in the United States.”
When looking at the list, I am just thrilled. Here are some of my favorites from the list of nominees:
*Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
*City of Glass by Cassandra Clare
*Carl Hiassen for Scat
*Rick Riordan for The Last Olympian
*James Patterson for Max
*Victoria Kann for Goldilicious (Illustrator)
To see the full list of nominees, you can go here.
So, mark your calendars to let your children or your students vote on their favorites. If you haven’t read these books, then go to the library or bookstore and check them out! You have until May 3 to vote, so that’s plenty of time to devour these titles. If you have a favorite from the list, let us know here. You can find some of these authors and their books on this site. Go to the second sidebar on the right-hand side of this page, go to the category they write (such as YA), and click on their name. I have reviewed and provided activities for Suzanne Collins, James Patterson, Cassandra Clare, and Carl Hiassen.
Happy reading!
photo by midweekpost www.flickr.com
*Young adult, urban contemporary fantasy
*Teenage girl as main character
*Rating: City of Ashes, the sequel to City Of Bones, is a page-turner. You won’t want to stop until you read every last word of the Clary-Simon-Jace saga.
Short, short summary:
It’s hard to summarize this plot without giving anything away. But I’ll try my best. Since this is book two, if you, your teen, or your students haven’t read book one of
The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare, I highly recommend you do. Otherwise, you’ll be, well, just really confused. At the end of book one, we find out that Jace and Clary are brother and sister, and their father is Valentine. At the beginning of book two, both are trying to deal with this–Jace and Clary hate Valentine since he is the most evil and disturbed Shadowhunter in the world. In spite of being brother and sister, they still find themselves attracted to each other. Simon, Clary’s best friend, is doing his best to try to make Clary attracted to him instead of Jace, even calling her “his girlfriend” and engaging in some make-out sessions. Alec is still dealing with being comfortable in his sexuality, and we even get a glimpse into Isabelle’s dating life when the characters have to visit the Seelie Court (help me with the spelling, folks–I listened to this book on audio, and it turns out there are several ways to spell it?). Basically, someone is killing downworlders and making it look like the vampires are running crazy in the city, but Jace and the other Shadowhunters don’t believe the vampires are doing it. (Hmmm? Who could it be?) The Lightwoods are not so sure about Jace because of whom his father is–can they trust him anymore? The Inquisitor, a very powerful lady in the Clave, also seems to have it out for Jace. I won’t go on, but as you can see, this book is a good mix between the personal lives of the characters and an action-filled fantasy story.
So, what do I do with this book?
1. Teens will probably read City of Ashes as part of their independent reading, home school curriculum, or in a book club. So, these activities will focus on those types of readings. First, teens (or adult readers) can find out more about the series and the author (I love her website–very straightforward, direct, and talking to teens) on the author’s website and the series website. Let teens explore these two resources.
2. Exploring and discussing the characters in City of Ashes is a must as character-development is one of Clare’s strengths. Ask teens which character in the novel is their favorite and/or which character they relate to the best. What do they think about Clary and Jace or Clary and Simon? Do they think Jace and Clary are really brother and sister? What are the special “powers” that Valentine has given his children? What about the Inquisitor? What is her motivation? What is the significance of the Inquisitor’s last action? These are all questions that can be discussed or written about in reading response journals. (Some of these answers will not be revealed until book 3, but teens can predict!)
3. The setting of City of Ashes is “an alternative present-day Manhattan.” What makes this an “alternative” setting? Discuss with students if the world that Clare has built is believable and realistic in the context of the book? How does Clare do this? Is the setting like another character in City of Ashes? <
*Young adult contemporary fantasy
*Fifteen-year-old girl as main character
*Rating: If you are a fan of the Twilight series, you will love City of Bones and its sequels. Check them out now!
Short, short summary: I know why I love City of Bones by Cassandra Clare. School Library Journal said it was “Buffy-esque.” That’s good enough for me! Clary Fray’s life changes when she is at a nightclub with her best bud, Simon, and she sees three tattoo-covered teenagers kill another teen, who then disappears. This immediately puts her into the world of the Shadowhunters (humans who kill demons), and she soon finds out that she has some Shadowhunter blood, too. Her mother, Jocelyn, is missing because she is the only Shadowhunter who knows where the Mortal Cup is, and a powerful Shadowhunter named Valentine wants it at any cost. This is all new to Clary, who had her memories erased when she was young, and she is quickly introduced to this new “magical” view of New York City by Shadowhunter teenagers: Jace, dreamy and mysterious; Isabelle, beautiful and graceful; and Alec, broody and the only homosexual character in the book. Twists and turns happen in every chapter, and teen fantasy lovers will enjoy this first book of the series.
So, what do I do with this book?
1. Teens will most likely read this book at home or as part of an independent reading assignment. One of the activities they can do is compare and contrast themselves with one of the characters: Clary, Simon, Jace, Isabelle, or Alec. All of these teenagers in the book have strengths and weaknesses that readers can relate to. Students could write several journal pages while reading as they get to know the characters better.
2. The setting of City of Bones is present day New York City. Could this book take place in another city? Does it matter that it is New York? Ask students to think about this question. If they think this novel could take place in another large city such as Los Angeles, ask them to write or discuss how this would change certain plot points. Why do they think Cassandra Clare chose New York City for the setting?
3. Why is City of Bones believable even though it is fantasy, or is it? Ask students to debate or write about this question. Does Cassandra Clare stick to the rules of her fantasy world? What are some of the rules? Why is this important when writing fantasy?
Have you read City of Bones? What did you think?
You might have noticed this new widget I have on my sidebar, courtesy of JacketFlap and the Children’s Book Council. It is announcing several nominees for the Children’s Choice Book Awards. In case you didn’t know, the Children’s Choice Book Award nominees have been announced in each category: Kindergarten to second grade, third to fourth grade, fifth to sixth grade, teen choice, author of the year, and illustrator of the year. There are five books or people nominated in each category. 