Welcome to the Lazy Readers' Book Club, your reading time manager!
This is where you go when you want to read quality books that don't take years to finish. My mission is to increase interest in reading by providing cool, short book recommendations for all ages. From interest comes devotion.
As teachers, parents or whatever state we find ourselves in, we often cannot find time to read for fun, and I think it is important that our children see us reading for pleasure. Therefore, each month I provide book recommendations that are quick and easy to read for personal pleasure. I try not to include any books over 250 pages, and I always include books written for a variety of ages (don't be shy about reading kids' books, though; they are my favorites because they generally have shorter chapters, bigger print and colorful pictures).
I hope you find a few moments to enjoy these quick reads in November:
I have my friend, Patricia Edie, to thank for this wonderful retelling of one of my favorite books of all time, Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. This version focuses on the relationship between the escaped slave Jim and his wife Sadie, and it follows their love story’s ups and downs. How Rawles was able to successfully pull this off is beyond me, as she creates a remarkable character in Sadie while staying true to Twain’s text and tone. An excellent supplementary book to give to students.
If you have failed to read a Walter Kirn novel yet, you are in for a real treat. He writes for slate.com, and I would consider him a modern George Orwell, suspicious of technology and corporations. Kent Selkirk works for AidSat, a cyber how-to organization run amok. Let’s just say that there is surveillance taking place everywhere, and you may wind up looking over your back more than once after reading this quick read.
I have Stacey Mulrenin to thank for this recommendation. The winner of the 2003 Pulitzer Prize in Drama, it tells the tale of how a new lector changes the lives of Cuban immigrants working at a cigar factory in Florida in the 1920s. This is a topic I have been interested in, as the magazine Cigar Aficionado had a wonderful feature in their June 2008 edition on the tradition of lectors reading aloud to workers. A great story, and very easy-to-read play.
#04
We Were There, Too!: Young People in U.S. History
by Phillip Hoose
Okay, it is a little longer, but I would make this a MUST purchase for any teacher or school library. Heck, I think everybody could benefit from this book, as I was captivated by its true stories of young people in America who made a difference. Do you know about the 16-year-old girl who fought in the Revolutionary War posing as a male? Or the high school junior who refused to give up her seat on a segregated bus in Alabama, nine months BEFORE Rosa Parks? I assure you, this book hooked me and never let go.
A fun read about two girlfriends who are so obsessed with a certain Broadway musical that they attend a performance every Saturday. When it is rumored the show is about to close, hilarity and suspense ensue. Why can’t more books for teenagers be written like this? A fun story without violence, coarse language or any of the typical garbage fed to the masses in middle and high school.
#06
Richard Matheson's I Am Legend
by Steve Niles & Elman Brown
Stephen King says the author that had the greatest influence on his life was Richard Matheson, so I encourage you to “load up” on Matheson’s books (which have been turned into countless movies, including Duel, What Dreams May Come and the recent Will Smith-version of I Am Legend). Teens are going ga-ga over graphic novels right now, and this is a very good graphic novel that stays true to Matheson’s original book.
This book made me yearn to return to Madrid, as this series is hugely popular in Spain. Funny first-person narrative with magnificent illustrations by Emilio Urberuaga that bring to mind cartoonist Jules Feiffer and Roald Dahl’s illustrator, Quentin Blake.
Subtitled Survive and Succeed with David Mortimer Baxter, this first in a fun series shares David’s best excuses for getting out of work. What I like best about the series is how Tayleur provides lots of “doodles,” subheadings and font changes, providing students with ideas on how to structure their own texts and help them come to life. Students love the inspiration for different excuses.
#09
Skippyjon Jones in Mummy Trouble
by Judy Schachner
This series about a Siamese cat who thinks he is a Chihuahua is always a hit with young children. I recently met Judy and loved her tales of where she gets her ideas and her hat-box collections for story inspiration. Her evolution as an illustrator and author makes a great story in itself. Parents cannot go wrong with this latest tale in the series, which features a trip to ancient Egypt before Skippyjon returns home to his “mummy.”
I have had enough teachers write me with this recommendation that I suppose I must include this magically illustrated book, another in a long line of great reads from the very-talented David Shannon. Kids love this book for the pictures; teachers love it for the message that it’s alright not to succumb to peer pressure. A wonderful book to read aloud and “show off” to kids.
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My website woes continue. I am unable to email my monthly book picks at this time, and I apologize for the inconvenience as I work on the problem (translation: I am still seeking a webmaster). Thank you for your patience as I work on this transition.
In the meantime I continue to spend way too much time on the road away from my family. I can always tell I am spending too much time away by the diversity of titles I indulge. Besides quick reads, this past month I enjoyed Alex Beam’s Gracefully Insane (a history of New England’s famed McLean mental hospital, a sort-of “country club” for its often famed patients ranging from Sylvia Plath to Ray Charles), Vicky Myron’s Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World (the story of how an abandoned cat affected the patrons of a small-town library in Iowa) and Alice Schroeder’s magnificent book, The Snowball (billionaire investor Warren Buffett’s first authorized biography).
Anyhow, enjoy this month’s book selections. I hope you are all reading some wonderful books. Make sure to tell me all about them. If you're an author or a publisher and would like to send me review copies of your book(s), please send them to:
Dr. Danny Brassell CSUDH, COE 1440 1000 E. Victoria St. Carson, CA 90747
I make every effort to read everything that is sent to me (as a matter of fact, I am always more likely to mention books that are sent to me…hint, hint).
Some folks take offense that I call this site the "Lazy" Readers' Book Club. I know many of us are avid readers. This site is for everyone who doesn't have time to read thicker books but still have a hunger to read some quality literature. What bothers me is that there are only 24 hours in a day, and hectic schedules often prevent us from one of life's greatest pleasures: reading. By the way: people who read more become better readers, and my experiences have shown me that people who reader shorter books eventually gravitate to longer ones. Indeed, even I find the time to read lengthier books, now that I have developed a taste for shorter ones.
Remember, books and other items purchased from Amazon.com through links from the lazyreaders.com website will directly benefit BookEnds (http://www.bookends.org), a nonprofit organization devoted to increasing children's access to books and community service awareness. All you have to do is visit our website, click on Amazon, and Amazon will donate up to 10 percent of your total purchase to BookEnds. Visitors to our site who have used this feature have already raised a lot of money for this wonderful cause. Keep it up!
Every day I receive emails from people who want to be sent this list of monthly book picks. If you know anybody who would like to be included on the list, ask them to register at our website link, http://lazyreaders.com/contact.html, to receive my monthly recommendations. If you want to be removed from this list, please just say so. I promise that I will never forward anything but my monthly book picks. That's the honest truth - no mortgage rate ads or promises to help you lose 10 lbs. in three hours. I'll just send book recommendations once a month.
Please remember to read for fun and to read to your children, and e-mail me any short books that you'd like to have considered for our lists.
