Update!

I have certainly fallen off the updating wagon lately and it is because Eleanor and I have been busy discovering the outdoors again now that the weather is getting nicer, as well as reading new books for her. I have also been reading a ton - I am already halfway to my Goodreads goal of 200 books for the year!

Additionally, I have started working on two more book projects of my own, so that brings the total count to three that I have in the works, not counting the murder mystery I have been writing, editing, re-writing, and editing and writing more, since I was a sophomore in high school. But that is on the back burner for now because the smaller projects I have been working on are inspired by my little lady, and the silly adventures we have together. I am excited for them and I hope they can one day see the light of day. Even if I am never successful by society's standards, if I get one copy published for Eleanor to have on her own bookshelf, then I will count that as a far greater success than anything else I could ever hope to accomplish.

For Mother's Day (early) I received a Kindle. I am both excited and appalled. I swore up and down I would never, never, never use a Kindle. Nothing can replace the feel and smell of a book. That is still true and Eleanor and I will never stop our weekend adventures at the library. However, as I am approved for more and more titles on NetGalley, I am finding it increasingly more difficult to actually get them all read, as previously I was having to read them on my laptop. Hence, the Kindle. We shall see how it goes, though I can't ever imagine a world without the library, nor would I want to. What a horrible world that would be.

Something Sure Smells Around Here

Author: Brian P. Cleary

Rating: 5 Stars

Review:

I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

What a fun and neat way to show students how to create limericks! I absolutely loved this text and the illustrations that went with each limerick. Any kind of poetry has been a struggle for me to teach with my students, especially for teaching those who lack confidence in their own writing, ANY kind of writing, period. But I am always looking for fun texts with silly stories or themes that will help put them at ease and show students that it is okay to laugh and have fun and be silly with writing. This would be a great text for our poetry units, I wish I had found it earlier in the school year!

I like that it could be independent for students as well, as it gives directions prior to the limericks for how students could write their own. The word play is also fun, such as the pirate shaking his booty while he also has a treasure chest, or the teacher who students are 'bright' (so bright, they are represented as light bulbs). 

I also found the 'further reading' section at the end to be helpful. It is always nice as an educator and parent to be pointed in the right direction to find my resources for my students.