Brain Break

Today I am going to delve into a professional book, Boy Writers, Reclaiming Their Voices, by Ralph Fletcher. It's not the first time I have read it, or bought it --

I have a rather relaxed "check out" policy in my room. It isn't the most economically savvy, but I don't mind. Books come and go as kids start and finish -- but sometimes they don't come back.

That's ok. I maintain the hope that it was read, loved, and someday...when the bookshelves are being cleaned, it will be found and a fond memory of reading (and me) will rise to the surface. If it's returned, that's only a bonus...hopefully, it's passed on and someone else is captivated by it.

That's the case for this book. I loaned it to a teacher friend sometime, somewhere...but it's always been in my mind as a book I have wanted to re-read. So...thank you Amazon, I have another copy (I made sure my name was on the front this time in Sharpie).

I know I told you I would talk about how I select books today, and I will get to that...I promise.

For today, I wanted to point out how I naturally shifted from fiction after about 5 books to delve into a different genre. Half of me knows I should, but part of me is craving something different so I can process differently and give my fiction "muscles" a break.

Know that your children need to be taught those rhythms...that we don't shift genre only because the teacher has assigned it, or the library has a rule about making sure you have a numerical variety at check out. It's something we NEED as living readers.