So...the Search is on...

I am on two fold search right now, and I thought maybe today I would tell you how I am approaching it.

I have Matt in mind for my first search -- looking for those "boy" books with subject matter that he can grapple with.

And Allyson and Olivia, two former students from Houston -- with them, it is a combo "girly" and "sports minded."

So where do I begin?

First, I look at what my favorite authors have put out lately, or maybe older titles I have forgotten about.

Gary Paulsen, Jerry Spinnelli, Louis Sachar, Andrew Clements, Mike Lupica, Matt Christopher...to name a few for Matt. I know they all write well, which is at the top of my priorities in selecting books.

Sharon Creech, Eve Bunting, Eileen Spinnelli, Barbara Park, Kate DeCamillo, Katherine Paterson, Beverly Cleary...for the twins. They also all write well, and many of them have deeper level themes running through their books.

I just came up with two thoughts for the girls...Stargirl and its sequel by Jerry Spinnelli, and the Ramona Series by Beverly Cleary. Stargirl has a good plot and deals with boy/girl crush in a very innoculous way...a good intro for tweens. I thought of the Ramona series because the movie is coming out and that may be motivation to read the books beforehand (I might add the star of the Ramona book looks dead-on like Riley, a classmate of theirs).

Matt's search is going to take me more thought. I need to find the balance for him. He loves funny, and may abandon the book if it is too deep or dramatic without some comic relief. Then again, I may be underestimating him. He is a sensitive soul, and would try to identify and sympathize with a tough situation.

So that's how I do it. Just start scratching the surface of what I know, digging deeper until I find what clicks.