Mark Teague's Pigsty Book Club

Does your squirt's room look like this?  Is she a huge fan of pigs?  Then, the book to read is Mark Teague's Pigsty.

Beautiful illustrations painted in acrylic bring the antagonists, the pigs, to life.  Not to mention, the message of this picture book just might encourage your kiddo to clean his/her room.

Once the "pigsty" has been remedied (we are still not there yet . . . not even close), celebrate with a game of Monopoly and a big bowl of Bob's Potato Chips.

Karen Russell's Sleep Donation Book Club

I stumbled onto Atavist Books and was intrigued with the synopsis as well as the book cover of Karen Russell's digital-only novella, Sleep Donation.  I am on a novella (short novel) kick, so I downloaded it to my Kindle straightaway.

The plot follows the protagonist Trish Edgewater who lost her sister, Dori, due to an incurable case of insomnia and now works for the not-for-profit Slumber Corps urging others to donate sleep through the emotional appeal of her sister's death.  Furthermore, the story follows Edgewater as she works closely with Mr. and Mrs. Harkonnen whose infant, "Baby A," possesses sleep vital for this life-threatening epidemic.

In unfolding the plot, Russell's use of simile throughout offers vivid descriptions for the reader:

" . . . Donor Y wrote in tiny all-capitals, like a scream shrunken down into a whisper"  (Location 469).

"My wife just died, you see, and she's saturated my sleep like coffin milk"  (Location 506).

" . . . the freak blue Maybelline [personally, I never know where to put that blue] smuggles in between the taupe and the gray, which Dori always said was like the strawberry you're forced to buy in Neapolitan ice cream . . ."  (Location 1093).

In addition, the imagery of the moon found at the beginning and the end of the novella offers full-circle writing which could be discussed at length in the critical thinking classroom.  Yes!

While reading this short work of fiction, I was on the edge of my seat especially during the scene with Mr. Harkonnen and Edgewater, but ended up expecting a bit more.  Also, confusion for me was towards the end where Trish is referred to as "Mrs. Edgewater"  (Location 1565) when no mention of a husband occurred anywhere in this writing.  Instead, an intimate give and take appeared in Sleep Donation, but a co-worker shared the scene with Edgewater in lieu of a spouse.

For the purposes of book club, one may consider serving "loaves and fishes . . . "  (Location 1004) or "poisoned apple[s]"  (Location 1034), but I prefer "green pistachios. . ." (Location 1165) and a risque "purple sleep cocktail. . ."  (Location 1316).

Book Club Babes: Nick and Tesla's High-Voltage Danger Lab

Miss Colleen's selection of Nick and Tesla's High-Voltage Danger Lab was a hit not only for the book club members, but also the adults.  A thriller full of suspense and pretty cool experiments (this coming from a liberal arts person), I read my copy in one night.

Due to the high volume (sweet!) of experiments Miss Colleen's mom brought with her, we changed the mode of discussion.  Each member chose a favorite question out of the three written in her journal, wrote said question on an index card, and placed it in a bowl.  Members then chose a question (blindly) from the bowl and were given time to think about the answer before sharing with the rest of the group.

After discussion it was experiment time, their favorite.  

Volcano Kit Purchased at Happy Up

To conclude, members were given a choice of ice cream flavors including mint chip and double chocolate chunk (the hub was unable to find double chocolate praline)  because this was what Nick and Tesla devoured at the end of the book.  Takeaway was a sandwich bag full of diluted highlighter juice to be used in a top secret manner of the Book Club Babe's choosing much like Nick and Tesla used it to track the van in chapters 9-10.

Next discussion:  Miss Grace's The Puppy Place:  Chewy and Chica

Book Club Babes: Frozen

Book Club Babes (a third-grade book club) met and discussed Disney's chapter book, Frozen, selected by Miss Bella.  As members arrived, they were asked to decorate a cup to be used for the frozen punch, SoBe pina colada drink (found at Schnucks for $1/bottle . . . score).

Frozen SoBe was used as ice cubes to chill the punch.

After a dinner of sandwiches (which is mentioned in "Love is an Open Door"), a frozen dessert bar was served complete with a cake like the one found in the movie (minus the head statue) and various white/silver-colored treats (thank you Miss Faith for the white-iced snack cakes).

 
Discussion ensued with thought provoking open-ended questions such as, "What makes a family?" and "What is true love?"  to close reading questions such as, "What are the names of the three trolls?  Look in chapter 2."  One member's question of "What was your favorite scene?" led to third-grade members acting their answers out for the rest of the group.  Yes, goosebumps ran up and down my arms and legs as literacy in action unfolded before my eyes.  Even first and second grade siblings joined in on the discussion.  Be still my heart.

The remainder of book club was spent watching the movie Frozen (okay, I think one member ended up watching the movie in its entirety) and playing;  hey, they earned it.

Next discussion:  Miss Colleen's pick of Nick and Tesla's High-Voltage Danger Lab

Book Club Babes II: Where the Wild Things Are

Miss Sofia selected Maurice Sendak's Where the Wild Things Are for this book club discussion (each member selects a book of her choosing).  On arrival members had their pictures taken disguised as a wild thing.

Poster Created by Miss Corinna, 3rd Grade Assistant

Then, borrowing from Mrs. Lemons' blog, Step into Second Grade, we discussed activities we do when we are feeling wild.  After brainstorming, members wrote their personal wild activities on this FREE printable and decorated the top of the monster's head before attaching.

While chowing on a meal we thought protagonist Max would enjoy, ham and cheese sandwiches and watermelon chunks, my 3rd grade facilitator reread the book to members in preparation for an oral quiz.  For dessert, layer cake and ice cream seemed appropriate because this is what appears on the table in Max's room.

Watermelon Boat Courtesy of Miss Sofia's Parents

 

 

 

 

Miss Colette Iced the Layer Cake

After dessert, the remainder of book club was spent being wild.

Next book club:  Miss Morgan's pick of The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry, and the Big Hungry Bear by Don and Audrey Wood