Looking for great “sports books”? You are going to want to add Hena Khan’s Power Forward to your list. I read it one sitting. It was fantastic!

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Book description (from the publisher):

From the critically acclaimed author of Amina’s Voice comes the first book in an exciting new chapter book series about a fourth-grader with big dreams of basketball stardom.

Fourth grader Zayd Saleem has some serious hoop dreams. He’s not just going to be a professional basketball player. He’s going to be a star. A legend. The first Pakistani-American kid to make it to the NBA. He knows this deep in his soul. It’s his destiny. There are only a few small things in his way.

For starters, Zayd’s only on the D-team. (D stands for developmental, but to Zayd it’s always felt like a bad grade or something.) Not to mention, he’s a bit on the scrawny side, even for the fourth grade team. But his best friend Adam is on the Gold Team, and it’s Zayd’s dream for the two of them to play together.

His mom and dad don’t get it. They want him to practice his violin way more than his jump shot. When he gets caught blowing off his violin lessons to practice, Zayd’s parents lay down the ultimate punishment: he has to hang up his high tops and isn’t allowed to play basketball anymore.

As tryouts for the Gold Team approach, Zayd has to find the courage to stand up for himself and chase his dream.
Check out my 2018 Middle Grade Novel Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLM5ylqxs3RWhViM7BR0enfqBNMcZ_Jxpf

Check out my 2018 Picture Book Playlist:

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Places to find me:

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The Creativity Project edited by Colby Sharp (ME!)

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The Brilliant Deep by Kate Messner and Matthew Forsythe is one of my favorite 2018 picture book biographies. I was captivated by Ken Nedimyer’s story.

Purchase the book through Indie Bound: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781452133508

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Check out my 2018 Middle Grade Novel Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLM5ylqxs3RWhViM7BR0enfqBNMcZ_Jxpf

Check out my 2018 Picture Book Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLM5ylqxs3RWileOTtdP8cBQoFjI0ZtLwJ

The Creativity Project edited by Colby Sharp (ME!)

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Book description (from the publisher):

All it takes is one: one coral gamete to start a colony, one person to make a difference, one idea to change the world. The ongoing efforts to save and rebuild the world’s coral reefs–with hammer and glue, and grafts of newly grown coral–are the living legacy of Ken Nedimyer, founder of the Coral Restoration Foundation. Kate Messner and Matthew Forsythe tell the true story of the coral restoration pioneer in this brilliant tribute to the wonders of nature and the power of human hope.

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I want my students to love reading so much that they do it every single day of their life. Reading at home for many of my readers is challenging. In this video I share a few ways that I am trying to help them find success. Nothing flashy here, just trying to get kids pumped about reading books.

I had a blast hanging out with Donalyn Miller and Veera Hiranandani at the North Texas Teen Book Book Festival. Donalyn’s The Book Whisperer has probably been the most important book in my development as a teacher. Veera’s The Night Diary is one of the best 2018 middle grade novels that I have read. You MUST check it out!

Click below to purchase Night Diary from IndieBound.org
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Click below to purchase The Book Whisperer from Indiebound.org
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The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl by Stacy AcAnulty is a must read 2018 middle grade novel. I devoured it! I needed to read it as quickly as possible so that I could get it into the hands of my students. The girl that is currently reading it in class is also loving it. I bet you know some readers that will love this book, too.

The Miscalculations of LIghtning Girl by Stacy AcAnulty is a must read 2018 middle grade novel. I devoured it! I needed to read it as quickly as possible so that I could get it into the hands of my students. The girl that is currently reading it in class is also loving it. I bet you know some readers that will love this book, too.

Purchase the book through Indie Bound: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781524767570
If you’d rather purchase the video from Amazon you can find an affiliate link for that here:

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Check out my 2018 Middle Grade Novel Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLM5ylqxs3RWhViM7BR0enfqBNMcZ_Jxpf

Check out my 2018 Picture Book Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLM5ylqxs3RWileOTtdP8cBQoFjI0ZtLwJ
Book description (from the publisher):

A lightning strike gave her a super power…but even a super genius can’t solve the problem of middle school. This smart and funny novel is perfect for fans of The Fourteenth Goldfish, Rain Reign, and Counting by Sevens.

Lucy Callahan was struck by lightning. She doesn’t remember it, but it changed her life forever. The zap gave her genius-level math skills, and ever since, Lucy has been homeschooled. Now, at 12 years old, she’s technically ready for college. She just has to pass 1 more test–middle school

Lucy’s grandma insists: Go to middle school for 1 year. Make 1 friend. Join 1 activity. And read 1 book (that’s not a math textbook ). Lucy’s not sure what a girl who does calculus homework for fun can possibly learn in 7th grade. She has everything she needs at home, where nobody can make fun of her rigid routines or her superpowered brain. The equation of Lucy’s life has already been solved. Unless there’s been a miscalculation?

A celebration of friendship, Stacy McAnulty’s smart and thoughtful middle-grade debut reminds us all to get out of our comfort zones and embrace what makes us different.

I had a ton of fun hanging out with Jonathan W. Stokes at the North Texas Teen Book Festival last weekend in Dallas, Texas.

If you haven’t read Jonathan’s The Thrifty Guide series, you should consider checking it out from your local public library.

Below you’ll find the video interview I recorded with Jonathan in Texas.

ENJOY!

If you could only pick one author’s books to read for the rest of your life, which author would you pick? After reading Kate DiCamillo’s Louisiana’s Way Home, I think I’d pick Kate’s books if I could only pick one author.

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Check out my 2018 Middle Grade Novel Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLM5ylqxs3RWhViM7BR0enfqBNMcZ_Jxpf

 

Check out my 2018 Picture Book Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLM5ylqxs3RWileOTtdP8cBQoFjI0ZtLwJ

 

The Creativity Project edited by Colby Sharp (ME!)

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Book description (from the publisher):

When Louisiana Elefante’s granny wakes her up in the middle of the night to tell her that the day of reckoning has arrived and they have to leave home immediately, Louisiana isn’t overly worried. After all, Granny has many middle-of-the-night ideas. But this time, things are different. This time, Granny intends for them never to return. Separated from her best friends, Raymie and Beverly, Louisiana struggles to oppose the winds of fate (and Granny) and find a way home. But as Louisiana’s life becomes entwined with the lives of the people of a small Georgia town — including a surly motel owner, a walrus-like minister, and a mysterious boy with a crow on his shoulder — she starts to worry that she is destined only for good-byes. (Which could be due to the curse on Louisiana’s and Granny’s heads. But that is a story for another time.)