Family Book Club
with Tess
August's Book: "One Crazy Summer" by Rita Williams-Garcia
Chapters 9 - 17: "Inseperable - Big Red S"
1. Have you owned anything that was very precious to you, like Fern's doll?
2. Who are the Black Panthers? What do you think their goal is?
3. Do you think Cecile was right to change her name to be a new person? Or do you agree with Delphine about the importance of a name?
4. Would you be offended if you were named after an animal? For me, it would depend on the animal! I think dolphins are beautiful and amazing and Delphine is a cool name.
5. Do you have brothers and/or sisters? Do you fight or do you stand up for each other? Are you the oldest? Do you look out for your younger siblings?
Share your thoughts on the book so far in the comments below!
Join us in discussing "One Crazy Summer" live on Zoom! We'll be meeting at 5 p.m. on Monday, Aug. 31. Sign up for the Zoom program here.
Family Book Club
with Tess
August's Book: "One Crazy Summer" by Rita Williams-Garcia
Chapters 1-8: "Cassius Clay Clouds" to "Glass of Water"
1. Do you know who Cassius Clay/Muhammad Ali was? Look him up! Why would Delphine describe the bumpy airplane ride as a "Cassius Clay-left-and-a-right jab"?
2. Have you ever been to California? What would you want to do if you could go?
3. Have you ever flown in a plane? How did you like it?
4. The girls' mother, Cecile, is cold and mean. Do you think she will change by the end of the book?
5. What do you think Cecile is hiding in the kitchen?
6. Remember that this novel takes place in 1968 - 52 years ago! With your parents' permission, look up some history of that year. What was going on in America? Why did the sisters feel they needed to be on their best behavior? Why were there so few other African Americans on the flight? Even the term "Negro" is a word we would not use today. What other differences have you noticed?
Share your thoughts on the book so far in the comments below!
Join us in discussing "One Crazy Summer" live on Zoom! We'll be meeting at 5 p.m. on Monday, Aug. 31. Sign up for the Zoom program here.
Family Book Club
with Tess
Reading Schedule for "One Crazy Summer" by Rita Williams-Garcia
August 3-9: Chapters 1-8 (Cassius Clay Clouds - Glass of Water)
Discussion Questions posted to blog on Monday, Aug. 10
August 10-16: Chapters 9-17 (Inseparable - Big Red 5)
Discussion Questions posted to blog on Monday, Aug. 17
August 17-23: Chapters 18-25 (China Who - San Francisco Treat)
Discussion Questions posted to blog on Monday, Aug. 24
August 24-30: Chapters 26-34 (Wish We Had a Camera - Afua)
Zoom meeting on Monday, Aug. 31 at 5 p.m. Register here: https://bit.ly/3fn9907
Family Book Club
with Tess
"The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles" - Part 3 (Chapters 1-8 + Epilogue)
- What is your favorite creature that the Potters and Professor meet in Whangdoodleland?
- Were you afraid they would never make it to the castle?
- Were you surprised that the Prock finally allowed them to meet the Whangdoodle?
- What did you think of the Whangdoodle?
- Did you think the Professor's experiment would work?
- How did you like the ending?
- How did you like the book overall?
Activity: Create your own Whangdoodle creature and send me a picture at [email protected]!
August Family Book Club
August's book is "One Crazy Summer" by Rita Williams-Garcia, a work of historical fiction and the winner of the Newbery Medal Winner & Corretta Scott King Award Winner in 2011.
Summary:
In the summer of 1968, after traveling from Oakland, California to spend a month with the mother they barely know, Delphine and her two younger sisters arrive to a cold welcome as they discover that their mother, a dedicated poet, is resentful of their intrusion and wants them to attend a nearby Black Panther summer camp.
The reading schedule will be posted on Monday, Aug. 3. Be sure to get a copy! Call the Tallyn's Reach Library at 303.627.3050 or visit in person for a physical copy. It is also available as an audiobook via RBDigital Audiobooks and as an eBook via Overdrive (Libby) and HooplaDigital. Access all three digital platforms with your library card.
Review of "The Last Wish: Introducing the Witcher" by Andrzej Sapkowski
by Nicole S.
Hello again! Like I said before I have been participating in a virtual book club with some of my friends from Wisconsin which has been incredibly enjoyable for me to be able to read other books I normally wouldn’t choose for myself and learning more about my friends’ reading tastes.
After reading two different suspenseful thrillers in a row we decided to dive into the fantasy genre with our next pick - “The Last Wish: Introducing The Witcher” by Andrzej Sapkowski. For those who don’t know this book is actually one of two collections of short stories that paves the way for the Witcher Saga novels surrounding the main character Geralt of Rivia.
This book was originially published in Polish in 1993 with an English translation later in 2007. This book contains six short stories which sheds a little light on Geralt’s many adventures. Having been injured in a battle and while resting at a temple, he is experiencing flashbacks from certain time’s in his life.
These short stories have been adapted to video games, film and a recent television series on Netflix starring Henry Cavill as Geralt of Rivia.
The character Geralt of Rivia, one of the few remaining witchers on the Continent, is a traveling monster slayer for hire, mutated and trained from an early age to slay deadly beasts. This puts the series of the Witcher in the fantasy genre. “Fantasy is defined as a form of literary genre in which a plot cannot occur in the real world. Its plot usually involves witchcraft or magic, taking place on an undiscovered planet of an unknown world. Its overall theme and setting involve a combination of technology, architecture, and language, which sometimes resemble European medieval ages. The most interesting thing about fantasies is that their plot involves witches, sorcerers, mythical and animal creatures talking like humans, and other things that never happen in real life (https://literarydevices.net/fantasy/)”
For those starting this book who haven’t read or watched any of its adaptations could make getting through the names and places a little difficult. One of the big reasons I wanted to start reading the Witcher novels was due to the first season of the “Witcher” on Netflix. I enjoy reading and watching anything fantasy and the different characters portrayed throughout the show were amazing. My favorite being Geralt of Rivia. Being trained to be a monster hunter from such an early age, Geralt is seen as both highly respected and highly feared. He has a gruff and cold demeanor towards everyone he meets yet at the same time he has a strict moral code when it comes to the monsters he hunts and kills. He is a very complex character and I thought that the books would give more of an insight to how he thinks because it is hard to portray someone’s inner conscience on the screen.
It is recommended to start with “The Last Wish” and even the other short story collection “Sword of Destiny” before diving into first of the “Witcher” novels, “Blood of Elves”. The reason behind this is because the first book in the series precedes the events that occur during the two short story collections. You follow Geralt of Rivia on his quests while meeting some key characters along the way.
If you do end up enjoying the short story collections then continue on and immerse yourself in Geralt’s journey through all six of the Witcher books! Check out the series from APL here.
Once you finish those and need to have more high fantasy novels check out “The Red Knight” by Miles Cameron or ‘”Assassin’s Apprentice” by Robin Hobb.
Check back for my next review of the next book club pick - “Ink and Bone” by Rachel Caine.
Family Book Club
with Tess
July's book is "The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles" by Julie Andrews Edwards. Need a copy? Call 303.627.3050.
Part 2 (Chapters 1 - 8) Questions
- Would you like to meet the Whiffle Bird?
- After the Sidewinder scare, would you want to go back to Whangdoodleland?
- What jokes would you tell to get aboard The Jolly Boat?
- What would you order from the soda fountain?
- When the High-Behind Splintercat came into Lindy's room, did you think he was friendly or that he would turn out to be trouble?
- Lindy was smart to sing along to the Splintercat's song. That way the Professor and her brothers could find her. What would you do to try to escape?
- Make a prediction! The third part of the book is called "Conquer". What do you think will happen next?
Leave your thoughts in the comments below!
Family Book Club
with Tess
July's book is "The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles" by Julie Andrews Edwards. Need a copy? Call 303.627.3050.
Part 1 (Chapters 1 - 6) Questions
- What do you think of Ben, Tom, and Lindy?
- Would you believe in the Whangdoodle if a stranger told you about it?
- How do they officially meet Professor Savant after the zoo?
- Professor Savant says that they can travel to Whangdoodle land only in their imaginations. He is teaching them to be more observant of things around them, like colors. How do you think they will use their imaginations to travel?
- Would you want to go to Whangdoodleland if you had the chance?
Leave your thoughts in the comments below!
Family Book Club
with Tess
It's a new month and time for our next Family Book Club read!
"The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles" by Julie Andrews Edwards
Reading Schedule
- Week 1 (July 6-12): Read Part 1 (5 chapters); Discussion blog posted on Monday, July 13
- Week 2 (July 13-19): Read Part 2 (8 chapters); Discussion blog on Mon, July 20
- Week 3 (July 20-26): Read Part 3 (8 chapters) & epilogue; Discussion blog and activity on Mon, July 27
To put a copy of the book on hold to be picked up during Curbside Pickup hours, please call 303.627.3050.
**Video may contain spoilers**
Join APL staff each week for a discussion of some of their current reads! Each week they will discuss a book from a different genre. Join the discussion live on at Facebook.com/AuroraLibrary each Friday at 1 p.m. (MST) and leave your thoughts in the comments below!
The next discussion will be at 1 p.m. on July 10, 2020 on our Facebook page and will feature "Desperadoes" by Ron Hansen (available instantly on hoopladigital.com).
Other upcoming titles, all available instantly from hoopla digital, include:
- July 17, "Commute" by Erin Williams
- July 24, "The Goblin Emperor" by Katherine Addison
- July 31, "FantasticLand" by Mike Bockoven
Family Book Club
with Tess
It's a new month and time for our next Family Book Club read!
"The Whangdoodle was once the wisest, the kindest and the most extraordinary creature in the world" but it, along with many other splendid and strange creatures, have disappeared, creating for themselves a secret land to live in peace away from people. Most humans have forgotten them but, with the help of Professor Savant, three children discover the way to Whangdoodleland.
Join the Family Book Club (all online!) and read this exciting fantasy/adventure written by the great Julie Andrews! To put a copy of the book on hold to be picked up during Curbside Pickup hours, please call 303.627.3050.
We will have discussion questions every Monday on our blog and, in the final week, a fun activity!
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