It’s Monday, What Are You Reading? is hosted by Kathryn at The Book Date, and adapted by Kellee at Unleashing Readers and Jen at Teach Mentor Texts with a children’s/YA focus. This weekly roundup is a great way to discover new blogs and bloggers, share recommended (or not so recommended….) titles, and add to your ever-growing to-read list.
Title: Firegirl
Author: Tony Abbott
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: 2007
Genre/Format: Novel
While going through a stack of library donations I came across this slim novel and decided to skim through a few pages. I ended up reading the entire novel in one sitting, unable to put it down. It really is quite a special little book. A young girl who’s been horribly scarred in a fire transfers into Tom’s school, turning his class upside. Tom struggles with his feelings for Jessica, torn between curiosity, fear, disgust and empathy. This is a very simple, understated story in which very little actually seems to “happen”, and yet the characters are profoundly changed in quiet ways. I really appreciated Abbott’s honesty when writing about the characters’ emotions and actions – Tom, our hero, is an honest, authentic character who doesn’t always make the best decisions or do the “right” thing, which just makes his personal growth feel more significant. In the interest of full disclosure – a tear or two might have been shed during the reading of this book…
Title: Charlotte’s Web
Author/Illustrator: E.B. White / Garth Williams
Publisher: HarperCollins
Publication Date: 2012
Genre/Format: Novel
I just…*sniff*…reread this children’s classic….*sniffle*…..for the first time since elementary school….*sniffle*
Suffice it to say, I’d forgotten just how sad this sweet little story is, and just how guilty it would make me about eating a ham sandwich…Want to encourage someone to reduce their meat consumption? Have them read the passage where Wilbur the little pig, upon discovering that he is to be slaughtered, runs around his pen sobbing “somebody save me! I don’t want to die!” My goodness….
Well, this was a bit of a week for tear-jerkers! What have you been reading this week?
Raincity Librarian 
I don’t know Firegirl at all but it sounds like something a lot of my students would read. You really never know where you might find a great book. Thanks for the post.
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So true, I’m always finding surprises in the most unlikely place. It’s a very lovely little book, I highly recommend picking it up. 🙂
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Oh yes, Firegirl was a wowsa of a book for me when I first read it many years ago as a young(er) librarian myself. Have you read the more recent book, Wonder? Some similar themes, I think.
And, goodness, Charlotte’s Web!
http://readerbuzz.blogspot.com/2016/03/readingand-coughingreadingand-coughing.html
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Yes, it’s definitely reminiscent of Wonder, very similar themes. I love discovering older titles that I might have otherwise missed, there are so many gems hidden in the stacks!
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I haven’t heard of Firegirl. Thanks for including it 🙂
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I hadn’t heard of it either, until I saw it in the donation pile. You never know where a great story might be hiding. I see all the new books as they come into the library, but sometimes there are really great older texts that get hidden in the stacks, so it can be really neat to find them. 🙂
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We have Firegirl in our library but I haven’t read it. I don’t know how many times I’ve read it, but Charlotte’s Web is still one of the most beautifully written books for me.
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The sign of a fantastic, beautifully written book is whether is stands the test of time, and Charlotte’s Web absolutely does. Timeless.
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I’m curious about Firegirl…and who doesn’t love Charlotte’s Web? Enjoy your week…and here are MY WEEKLY UPDATES
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Such a classic, stands the test of time.
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I would agree – both are potential tear-jerkers.
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Especially when you’re a giant sap like me….!!! 😉
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For someone so enamoured with children’s lit – I confess I have yet to read Charlotte’s Web. Maybe this year?
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We actually read it in elementary school, and I haven’t read it since! It’s a pretty quick read, so I’d recommend giving it a try.
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I read Charlotte’s Web as a little girl, and I want to reread it soon! Thanks for reminding me of this! I love your blog! It is beautiful! The banner is simply fantastic.
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Why thank you! 🙂 It can be so interesting to reread books we read it childhood, you can get such a different perspective, and find all sorts of meaning that you didn’t the first time. The best books have layers like that. 🙂
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I remember reading Firegirl when it was on the Young Hoosier list. It is a very quiet and very powerful story. I always had a hard time describing it to students so that they would want to read it, but those who gave it a chance usually loved it.
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I know that experience all too well – sometimes I adore a book, but I struggle to convince kids to give it a try!
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I just read George which talked so much about Charlotte’s Web–it made me want to reread it.
Firegirl is one that I bought many years ago, but I haven’t read yet. I’ll need to fix that.
Happy reading this year 🙂
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LOL! Oops! Week, not year!
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Hopefully I’ll have happy reading this year, too 🙂
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Rereading childhood favourites can be a dangerous experience – they don’t all stand the test of time, but thankfully Charlotte’s Web absolutely does!
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Firegirl seems like an emotional read. I would be shedding tears too. Yeah for Tom!!
LOVE Charlotte’s Web.
I hope your reading week was good.
Elizabeth
Silver’s Reviews
My It’s Monday, What Are You Reading
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Well, I’m a little tardy to the comment responding party, but better late than never! Thanks for stopping by!!
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