Pacetti Bay Book Blog

Okay gang!  It’s time for us to get serious about SUNSHINE STATE BOOKS!  Everybody will get the list of the THREE books they need to read and study.  I made a mistake at the meeting, we are reading 3 each so that way everybody will have 3 different books.  Once you think that you can recite all the information in the books without even thinking, then you should strive to read some other sunshine state books, if you want.  Try to have all your books read by April, because that is the estimated time we will begin studying the books together as a group.  If you have any questions about the layout of the competition or anything that has to do with SSYRA come talk to me or Sonia.  We have both competed before, and we can honestly say that this is no walk in the park.  In case you need a reference of what books you need to individually focus on, they are listed below:

Monica-

1. Football Hero by: Tim Green

2. Lawn boy by: Gary Paulsen

3.  The Great Wide Sea by: M.L. Herlong

Jade

1.  Taken by: Edward Bloor

2. Lost Time by: Susan Maupin Schmid

3. Changeling by: Delia Sherman

Kelsey

1. The Boy who Dared by: Susan Campbell Bartoletti

2. Do not Pass Go by: Kirkpatrick Hill

3. Billy Creekmore by: Tracey Porter

Brianna

1. The Mailbox by: Audrey Shafer

2. I, Q: Independence Hall

3. Smiles to Go by: Jerry Spinelli

Sonia

1. The Seer of Shadows by: Avi

2. Diamonds in the Shadows by: Caroline B. Cooney

3. Mercy on These Teenage Chimps by: Gary Soto

Please commit to reading these books!  When I get new information concerning the Battle of the Books, I will be sure to inform everybody!  Thanks, and can’t wait to see everybody at the next meeting on February 10!

This is the blog where Jade will post her questions and discussions that she would like us all to participate in.  Check this blog daily, to see if she has updated it!!!  Thanks for being the discussion director, Jade!!!

Girls, we have a lot to do.  At the meeting today, we decided many things, and I am aware that not everybody was there.  Don’t worry, we voted and the majority ruled.  Below I will list the things that we need to focus on before and during next weeks meeting.  These things will be listed by order of importance.

1. PTSO Book List

Ms. Johnson has been so kind to offer us this chance to get money for our future book club books.  If we can come up with a list of the books we want to read in this book club, Ms. Johnson will present this list to the PTSO.  She will then ask them for the money to buy enough copies of each book for us to have.  The thing is we have to have this list done by Wensday of next week, because that is when the meeting is.  I think that we should pich about 15 books we want to read.  If you would like to suggest a book for the club to read, post it.  The book does have to meet some requirements, though.  The book has to be school appropiate and you have to have not read the book before.  If you would like to make a book suggestion, post it before Monday.

2.  The Roar blogging and reading

At the meeting today, we decided that we will spend only three weeks reading the book.  We also decided that we would read 3 chapters of the book each night, except on Saturdays.  To succesfully discuss the book together using the blog,  the common night we will all get on the blog is Tuesday.  The time is 8:45.  At the next meeting, I will have a table of how many chapters you have to read each night. We will discuss this system more in depth at that time.

3. Jobs

Today I presented the members of the book club with an idea.  The idea was that each member of the book club would have a different role to play in keeping the order of the club.  Everybody present at the meeting decided that they wanted to have jobs, and then we picked the jobs.  The jobs are as followed:

Monica: Secratary/ Scribe

Jade: Discussion Director

Sonia: Activities Director

Brianna:  Informational Director

Kelsey: Book Boss

I’m pretty sure that everybody has a clear understanding of what there jobs are, except Jade.  On Thursday I will have a printout that has the job description of each job for everybody.  These jobs probably will not start until after we have our meeting on Thursday.  My job will just be to keep the site updated, and to supervise the other jobs.  Again, we will talk about the jobs more at the meeting on Thursday.

There are some other things we will need to discuss at the next meeting, but they are not as inportant as the things atated above.  If anybody has any questions concerning anything, you know how to contact me.  Thanks!

Okay everybody, we need to take a vote!  The vote is going to be on how we will read and discuss the Roar.  So if we are going to discuss our thoughts of the book online, using the blog, we will all need to be on the same page, literally.  If we decide to read a certain amount of the book each night, so that we can all discuss the same material each night, or every other night, the amount we would have to read is as follows:

Week 1

Thursday- 1-3

Friday- 4-6

Saturday- 7-9

Sunday- 10-12

Monday- 13-15

Tuesday- 16-18

Wednesday-No Reading

Week 2

Thursday- 19-21

Friday- 22-24

Saturday- 25-27

Sunday- 28-30

Monday- 31-33

Tuesday- 34-36

Wednesday- No Reading

Week 3

Thursday- 37-39

Friday- 40-42

Saturday- 43-45

Sunday- 46-48

Monday- 49-51

Tuesday- 52-54

Wednesday- No Reading

If everyone agrees to go by this plan while reading the Roar, I would prefer that nobody reads ahead, so that we can all be on the same level of discussion.  Also, if we go by this plan we would have to decide whether to discuss this book on the blog, every night, every other night, or just on specific days.  We would also have to pick a time to get online each night.  This time will be consistent every night.(Please include the previously stated innformation in your vote) If we do decide to pick this method I will discuss it more in depth at our next meeting!

I am open to any ideas on how to keep a consistency on reading the Roar and discussing it on the blog.  Please post your ideas and votes before next Tuesday.  Thanks and I can’t wait to see what we decide!

?

I know we have not finished Countdown yet, but I want to hear your predictions and thoughts about this book!  Base your predictions from the synopsis, the excerpt I read, and any other background knowledge you have.  I’m curious to hear the different thoughts and opinions you all have!  Please share, share, share!

By the way, My Prediction:

I predict that there is not really an animal plaugue going on behind the Wall.  I think it is just a big lie that the person (or people) in charge put in place for a specific reason.  I’m not to sure what that reason is yet, though.  This Mal Gorman fellow seems real shady, and I have a feeling that he will end up being the protagonist of the book!  I also agree with Kelsey’s thought that this book will be similar to the story line of Compound by S.A Boden.  I am excited to find out if my predictions will come true, and if this book is really as good as everyone says!

P.S. How long do you girls think we should spend on this book?  Remember it is 54 chapters, and it’s a pretty wordy book.  I was thinking maybe 3 weeks at the most; that would mean we would have to finish 18 chapters each week. Also, keep in mind that the faster we finish this book, the more time we have to read new books before school is out!

    Mika and Ellie live in a future behind a wall: Solid concrete topped with high-voltage razor wire and guarded by a battalion of Ghengis Borgs, it was built to keep out the animals, because animals carry the plague. At least that’s what Ellie, who was kidnapped as a child, has always been taught.
But when she comes to suspect the truth behind her captivity, she’s ready to risk exposure to the elements and answer the call of the wild. Listen. Can you hear it? She’s strapping on her headset, jumpstarting her Pod Fighter, and–with her capuchin monkey at her back–she’s breaking out!

Hey Girls!!! I am so excited about this book club, and this new website!!!  It’s great that everybody can finally post comments and utilize the website to it’s full extent.  I have some important news for everyone, so keep on reading!

1. Next Meeting

Our next meeting will be held on Thursday, February 3rd, if everything goes as planned.  I’m not sure what is going on with the critical thinking situation, but as soon as I get more information I will let you know!

2. Finish Countdown!

Countdown by Deborah Wiles MUST be finished by everybody by our next meeting on Thursday!!!  We have to get done with this book, because too much time has been spent on it.  Everybody that has finished it, Congrats, and everybody that hasn’t get reading!

3. Our next book

As you all know, the next book we will be reading is  The Roar by Emma Clayton.  I read some of the first chapter today during the meeting, and everybody seemed intrested.  It sounds like a great book, and I can’t wait to start it next week.  I am working with Mrs. Johnson and Mrs. Gowens to get enough copies for us by next wensday.  We should have at least 4 by that time.  If anybody has an e-book reader and they are intrested in buying the book, look in to that.

If anybody has any questions or comments feel free to make a post, or talk to me during the day!  I can’t wait till our next meeting!  I will have a synopsis of The Roar posted by the end of this week.  Don’t forget to check this site daily, and I will see you girls soon!

When Finn has an eagle tattoo on his wrist he dosn’t know where its from or much less where he himself is from everyone tells him he was prison born but he wonders was he really prison born or was he from the outside? When Finn gets his hands on a key that is mythed to be able to lead to the outside he does his best to get outside with the help of a girl called Claudia. Claudia is from the outside a princess who believes Finn is someone from her past life. She also finds a key in her father’s study thats for some reason always locked. Claudia is running out of time to save Finn and his friends from the prison. Will she ever be able to get them out?

I think that this is a great book full of action and adventure. It’s a book for anybody who likes action and quest.

Here are a few discussion questions for the book!   Remember, our next meeting is  on 1/14/11, and you need to have read through chapter 13 in the book (Meaning don’t read Chapter 14!).  Once you finish Chapter 13, give the book to a member that hasn’t read these chapters.  Post your comments, thought, and feelings on the book usiny your username and password!  Enjoy!!!

Discussion Questions for beggining of the book:

1. Everyone in Franny’s family seems to be focused on his or her own problems.  What are the most important concerns of each member of the Chapman family- Franny, Uncle Otts, Jo Ellen, Drew, and Franny’s parents?

2. Why does Franny feel “invisible”- is she really being ignored by people or  does it feel that way to her?

3. Why does Franny hide behind a bush when Uncle Otts appears in the neighborhood after school?  Why is it easier for Drew to handle his great-uncle during that scene after school?

Our first book of the new year is Countdown by Deborah Wiles!!!  We discussed the book at the first meeting, so everybody should be pretty familiar with the text. However, below you will find a quick synopsis of the book.

Franny Chapman just wants some peace. But that’s hard to get when her best friend is feuding with her, her sister has disappeared, and her uncle is fighting an old war in his head. Her saintly younger brother is no help, and the cute boy across the street only complicates things. Worst of all, everyone is walking around just waiting for a bomb to fall.

It’s 1962, and it seems that the whole country is living in fear. When President Kennedy goes on television to say that Russia is sending nuclear missiles to Cuba, it only gets worse. Franny doesn’t know how to deal with what’s going on in the world — no more than she knows how to deal with what’s going on with her family and friends. But somehow she’s got to make it through.

Countdown features a captivating story interspersed with footage from 1962. Deborah Wiles has created a documentary novel that will put you right alongside Franny as she navigates a dangerous time in both her history and our history. It is an experience you will never forget.

Look for JFK and Khrushchev to leap off the page, along with Sandy Koufax, Pete Seeger, Fannie Lou Hamer, Cassius Marcellus Clay, James Bond, and more. Photographs, song lyrics, advertisements, news clippings, and television snippets populate the pages of this story about the sixteen days when the world came as close as it has ever come to nuclear annihilation.