Growing Bookworms Newsletter: September 21: Writing, Editing, and Discovering #LunchLady

Today, I will be sending out a new issue of the Growing Bookworms email newsletter. (If you would like to subscribe, you can find a sign-up form here.) The Growing Bookworms newsletter has refocused recently, and now contains content from my blog focused on growing joyful learners, including bookworms, mathematicians, and learners of all types. The newsletter is sent out every two to three weeks.

Newsletter Update:  In this issue I have four book reviews (picture book through middle grade) and two posts about my daughter's latest literacy milestones (declaring herself a person who loves to write, and changing the ending of a book). I also have two posts with links that I shared recently on Twitter. I'll have a post with articles about joy of learning soon - I do have a couple of things saved up, but haven't had time to add my comments. 

Reading Update: In the past two weeks most of my reading time was again on audio. I read/listened to one middle grade book and four adult titles. I do have some promising middle grade titles stacked up, but reading time has been hard to come by... Anyway, I read: 

• Susan Maupin Schmid: If the Magic Fits (100 Dresses, Book 1). Random House. Middle Grade. Completed September 9, 2016, print ARC. Review to come, closer to publication. 
• Marti Olsen Laney: The Intovert Advantage: How Quiet People Can Thrive in an Extrovert World. Workman. Adult Nonfiction. Completed September 10, 2016, on MP3. I found plenty of food for thought in this title, which I had picked up as an Audible Deal. 
• Jonathan Maberry: Patient Zero: Joe Ledger, Book 1. St. Martins Press. Adult Mystery/Thriller. Completed September 17, 2016, on MP3. This was a bit violent/gory for my taste, but it certainly held my attention, and I'm tempted to take a look at the next book in the series. 
• Martin Lindstrom: Small Data: The Tiny Clues that Uncover Huge Trends. St. Martins Press. Adult Nonfiction. Completed September 18, 2016, on Kindle. It took me a long time to get through this book, but it's one that can be read in small doses. I found the premise, that insights can be found by looking at "small data" like what people put on their refrigerators, and what they share on Twitter, interesting.
• Craig Johnson: An Obvious Fact (Walt Longmire). Viking. Adult Mystery. Completed September 20, 2016, on MP3. This was not my favorite installment of this series, for some reason. It just didn't hold my attention. I'll still be looking out for the next book, though. 

I'm reading A Field Guide to Lies: Critical Thinking in the Digital Age by Daniel J. Levitin and listening to Home (Myron Bolitar) by Harlan Coben. But I'm also very tempted by the new Carol O'Connell book about Mallory, and will likely dip into that soon. The books my husband and I have been reading to our daughter in 2016 can be found here. My daughter's latest literary discovery is the Lunch Lady books by Jarrett Krosoczka. She was talking to me about how she couldn't wait to grow up to become a spy, so that she could have access to the gadgets. And I said: "Have I ever shown you the Lunch Lady books?" And a new fan was born. Now that she's in first grade, lunch ladies are a more real concept for her. So the idea of a lunch lady who is a spy, and has fun gadgets, well, that's irresistible, isn't it? We are already on Book 4. 

I'm continuing to share all of my longer reads, as well as highlights from my picture book reads with my daughter, via the #BookADay hashtag on Twitter. Thanks for reading the newsletter, and for growing bookworms. 

© 2016 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved. You can also follow me @JensBookPage or at my Growing Bookworms page on Facebook.