Diverse Reads – Page 5 – The Mint Girl Blog

My Outsiders Project

Recently, in my English class, we read the Outsiders by S.E Hinton, then we did a project on it. I chose “Loaded Language,” where I had to choose a major event from the story and write a newspaper about it from a Greaser and Soc point of view. I hope you enjoy!

The Output- A Greaser View

The most important news from the most trusted Greasers in town!

A Killing in the Park
Reported by:

Last week, there was blood in the fountain of the park. There was a switchblade lying next to the body, blood coating its handle. Dried blood pooled on the pavement, leading to a dead body. This body was of Robert Sheldon, a 17 year old Soc. A Soc in a Greaser park is highly unusual as most of the time each group follows their own boundaries. But it isn’t strange that a Soc would be the first one to break the treaty.

Today, Johnny Cade, a 16-year old Greaser, has confessed to killing Robert. As of this time, he is in the hospital and we were not able to get a statement from him. Johnny is a part of Dallas Winston’s gang, though we were unable to get a statement from him either. We did learn that 14-year old Ponyboy Curtis assisted in the crime and he was open to giving a statement for us.
“It was late and Johnny and I were just hanging at the park. Suddenly this car pulls up and out comes 5 of the Socs for just the two of us. One of them was drowning me and I was almost dead when Johnny, well Johnny saved my life. He just pulled out his switchblade and killed their leader. They all ran off after that,”

Self-defense was all it was. When someone you know is getting drowned, what else would you do? Our next story is…

Platinum- A Soc’s Newspaper

We get you your news with the straight facts.

Robert Sheldon, Dead
Reported by:

Most of the Socs were worried when they didn’t see Robert Sheldon on Sunday last week. Then on Monday, when he didn’t come to school, they knew something was wrong. Most of them wondered what could have happened to Bob, a steadfast Soc. Well, wonder no further.

Robert Sheldon, a 17 year old Soc, was killed on Saturday by Johnny Cade, a 16 year old Greaser. Yesterday, Johnny admitted to killing Robert. He is in the hospital now and we were unable to speak to him. We did get a statement from David, a Soc who was there at the time.
“So Randy and Bob came up to me and 2 others. They were drunk and angry and wanted revenge on these Greasers for picking up their girls and I said yes. I was just frightening the other one a bit, nothing much, when the one you called Johnny stabbed Bob. We all ran off after that, because everyone knows never to fight a crazy Greaser,”

So there it is. Johnny Cade killed a Soc with absolutely no reason other than a bit of frightening. On the next story…

My Top Books of January

My first top book post of 2022! Here are my top books of January.

Rule of Wolves by Leigh Bardugo
This was such a great book! It ended the Grishaverse series and was part of the King of Scars duology. This book told the story of Nikolai, Zoya, and Nina. Nikolai, the king of Ravka, has to figure out how to defeat the Fjerdans with little to no weapons or money. He also has to figure out his feelings for Zoya when he should be marrying a princess. Zoya, Nikolai’s general, is trying to adjust to her new life with a dragon inside of her. She keeps forcing herself to forget her feelings for Nikolai, even when he admits he reciprocates them. Nina, Nikolai’s spy, realizes that the best thing for Hanne is to win a man but she won’t accept it. I love their journey and the twists and turns that you’ll never forget. I totally recommend this series to you.
The School for Whatnots by Margaret Peterson Haddix
This book was so interesting! I loved the characters and the plot. Max’s life changed when his best friend, Josie, leaves him a note, telling him that “No matter what anyone says, I’m real,” Soon after, Max learns what whatnots are. They’re robots, built to look and act like humans to surround the rich kids and make them feel protected. Max refuses to believe this and starts searching for Josie. There are so many twists which I never saw coming and I loved the narration style. This is such a great book!
Premeditated Myrtle by Elizabeth C. Bunce
I really enjoyed this book and the mysteriousness of it all. Myrtle is such a lively character and I enjoyed the way she went about solving the murder. It was written in such a way that you could figure out the mystery with Myrtle and it all made sense in the end. This is such a great book and I loved it a lot. I totally recommend it to you.
Operation Do-Over by Gordon Korman
This book was so good! I loved Mason and the way we got to see his character in two different times. Mason and Tyrus were the best of friends until Ava. Now, they never talk. One day, Mason wakes up as his old self and he knows it’s a chance to have a do-over. I loved this book and the plot. The ups and downs were perfect and the whole thing was spectacular. This is such a great book!
When Did You See Her Last? by Lemony Snicket
This is part of the All the Wrong Questions series. I really liked the book and the mysteries that came along with it. Lemony Snicket is an apprentice to S. Theodora Markson. They’re investigating the disappearance of Cleo Knight, though all the adults seem to give up too early, not seeing the missing pieces. Lemony and his friends, Ellington and Moxie, try to solve the mystery. I really enjoyed this book and I can’t wait to read the rest of the series.

I hope you enjoyed my top reads!

Farah Rocks Florida: A Book Review

Recently, I got to the the amazing Farah Rocks Florida book for MCBD, Multicultural Children’s Book Day. I have been a part of the MCBD community for many years now and I really enjoy the opportunity to learn and read books set in places around the world featuring voices I may not have heard before.

This year, I got to read and review Farah Rocks Florida. I really enjoyed the book and the characters and the plot. It’s a great read!

Farah Rocks Florida is written by by Susan Muaddi Darraj and illustrated by Ruaida Mannaa. It joins the series of other Farah Rocks books.

Farah lives with her mother, father, and brother in Baltimore. But when her brother wakes up in the middle of the night with his heart feeling weird, her entire life changes. With her mother looking after her brother and her father working all day, Farrah has to go to Florida to stay with her Sitti Fayrouz. On the plane, she meets a grumpy old man, who she’s glad to get rid off when she leaves. You can imagine her surprise when the old man turns out to be staying in the same colony as her grandmother. She tries to ignore him, but slowly she starts warming up to him and gets the other residents to feel the same way. As the book progresses, she realizes that life in Florida isn’t so bad and that everyone there is great.

I really enjoyed this book and all the references to Greek mythology. Farah is a great character and I loved reading about her life.

Multicultural Children’s Book Day 2022 (1/28/22) is in its 9^th year! This non-profit children’s literacy initiative was founded by Valarie Budayr and Mia Wenjen; two diverse book-loving moms who saw a need to shine the spotlight on all of the multicultural books and authors on the market while also working to get those books into the hands of young readers and educators.

MCBD’s mission is to raise awareness of the ongoing need to include kids’ books that celebrate diversity in homes and school bookshelves. Read about our Mission & History HERE.

MCBD 2022 is honored to be Supported by these Medallion Sponsors!

SUPER PLATINUM: Make A Way Media

PLATINUM: Language Lizard

GOLD: Barefoot Books, KidLitTV, Candlewick, Capstone, Abrams Books

SILVER: Pack-n-Go Girls, Charlotte Riggle, Kimberly Gordon Biddle

BRONZE: Carole P. Roman, Patrice McLaurin, Dyesha and Triesha McCants/McCants Squared, Redfin.com, Redfin Canada, Redfin Mortgage, Redfin/Title Forward, Create & Educate, Star Bright Books, Vivian Kirkfield, Dr. Eleanor Wint, Kind World Publishing, Snowflake Stories, Lisa Wee, SONGJU MA, Melissa Stoller, J.C. Kato and J.C.², Crystel Patterson, Audrey Press, Pragmaticmom, TimTimTom, Wisdom Tales

MCBD 2022 is honored to be Supported by these Author Sponsors!

Charlene Mosley (official MCBD2022 Poster Creator)
Illustrator Isabelle Roxas (Class Kit Poster Creator)

Alva Sachs, Brianna Carter, Ebony Zay Zay, Rita Bhandari, Gwen Jackson, Lois Petren/The 5 Enchanted Mermaids, Valerie Williams-Sanchez and Valorena Publishing, Josh Funk, Afsaneh Moradian, Eugenia Chu, Maritza Martínez Mejía, Diana Huang, Kathleen Burkinshaw, CultureGroove, Sandra Elaine Scott, Dorena Williamson, Veronica Appleton, Alejandra Domenzain, Lauren Muskovitz and Sandfish Publishing, Tonya Duncan Ellis, Kimberly Lee, Susan Schaefer Bernardo & Illustrator Courtenay Fletcher, Nancy Tupper Ling, Winsome Hudson-Bingham, Amanda Hsiung-Blodgett, Sivan Hong, Michael Genhart, Debbie Dadey, Elizabeth Cureton, Stephanie Wildman, Maryann Jacob, Sherri Maret, Rochelle Melander, Dia Mixon, Kiyanda and Benjamin Young, Shereen Rahming, Linda Thornburg and Katherine Archer, Rebecca Flansburg and BA Norrgard , Maxine Schur Natalie McDonald-Perkins

MCBD 2022 is Honored to be Supported by our CoHosts and Global CoHosts!

MCBD 2022 is Honored to be Supported by these Media Partners!

Check out MCBD’s Multicultural Books for Kids Pinterest Board!

FREE RESOURCES from Multicultural Children’s Book Day

Diversity Book Lists & Activities for Teachers and Parents

Homeschool Diverse Kidlit Booklist & Activity Kit

FREE Teacher Classroom Activism and Activists Kit

FREE Teacher Classroom Empathy Kit

FREE Teacher Classroom Kindness Kit

FREE Teacher Classroom Physical and Developmental Challenges Kit

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FREE Homeschool Diverse Kidlit Booklist & Activity Kit

FREE Teacher Classroom Raising Awareness on Systemic Racism in America Classroom Kit

Gallery of Our Free Posters

FREE Diversity Book for Classrooms Program

Join us on Friday, Jan 29, 2021, at 9 pm EST for the 8th annual Multicultural Children’s Book Day Twitter Party! Be sure and follow MCBD and Make A Way Media on Twitter!

This epically fun and fast-paced hour includes multicultural book discussions, addressing timely issues, diverse book recommendations, & reading ideas.

We will be giving away an 8-Book Bundle every 5 minutes plus Bonus Prizes as well! *** US and Global participants welcome. **

Follow the hashtag #ReadYourWorld to join the conversation, connect with like-minded parts, authors, publishers, educators, organizations, and librarians. See you all very soon on Twitter!

Hashtag: Don’t forget to connect with us on social media and be sure and look for/use our official hashtag #ReadYourWorld.

December’s Top Reads

Here are my top books of December!

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
I love this series so much. Clary Fray is a tennager when she realizes that she sees things that others don’t. She meets Jace, Isabelle, and Alec, the other Shadowhunters. I loved their adventures and there were so many lot twists that shocked me. This is such a great book and I loved reading it so much. I totally recommend it to you!
The Secret Series by Pseudonymous Bosch
I read the second and third books in this series (If You’re Reading this, it’s Too Late and This Book is Not Good for You). Cassandra and Max-Ernest are such great characters and I enjoyed the involment of a new character, Yo-Yoji. this stories are great and I loved the storytelling style. I love this series!
The Hawthorne Legacy by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
I am in love with this series. In this book, Avery continues her adventures with the Hawthorne Brothers. There are so many secrets revealed and a whole new land is discovered. I really, really enjoyed the plot and the characters. I totally recommend this book to you!
Six Crimson Cranes by Elizabeth Lim
I really enjoyed this book! In this book, Shiori, the only one with magical powers in her kingdom, gets cursed by her stepmother, Raikama. Her brothers turn into cranes and Shiori, without a voice, sets out to save them. I loved the story and the plot! This is the first part of a duology based on the fairytale, “The Wild Swans,”.
The Verdigris Pawn by Alysa Wishingrad
I loved this book and the way it invented a game that worked so well with the book. When Beau meets Cressi, he finally sees the true ways of his father and the ones before him. He realizes that he has to take control of the king, but before he can do that, he needs his ace and his pawn. I loved this story so much!

Top Books of January: click here
Top Books of February: click here
Top Books of March: click here
Top Books of April: click here
Top Books of May: click here
Top Books of June: click here
Top Books of July: click here
Top Books of August: click here
Top Books of September: click here
Top Books of October: click here
Top Books of November: click here

I really enjoyed talking about my top reads of each month! Do you think I should continue this next year?

November’s Top Books

Here are my top books for November!

The House on Hoarder Hill by Kelly Ngai and Mikki Lish
This is a great story about 2 kids who are determined to find out the mystery behind the disappearance of their grandma, Rose. Hedy and Spencer are at their grandpa’s house while their parents are on vacation. They get a mysterious message (Find Me) setting them off on their crazy adventure with piano-playing ghosts, mischievous paintings, and a very friendly bear rug and a glorious deer head. I loved the story and the way it progressed. This is such a great book!
Much Ado About Baseball by Rajani LaRocca
This book is about friendship, but it has so many other great themes coursing through it. Trish has just moved to a new town and is finding it hard to make new friends and fit in. So she joins the baseball team, hoping to meet someone new. There, she sees Ben, who she met and beat at the Math Puzzler Championships last year. Ben doesn’t want to be on the team, but when he sees Trish, he knows that he can’t quit and be embarrassed by her again. I love what happens next and the way that Shakespeare’s works are tied in. This is a great book!
Amber and Clay by Laura Amy Schlitz
This is definitely one of my favorite books this month. It tells the story of Melisto and Rhakos, two very different children, yet very similar. The story is told in many different points of view, with different types of storytelling for each. There are also “exhibits” which show items from a long time ago. I loved how the author incorporated these items into the story. This story flows so well and I loved watching the plot move along. I definitely recommend it to you!
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins
This is the prequel to the Hunger Games. It follows Coriolanus Snow, the antagonist in the original series, when he is young, 18 years old. He has been assigned to mentor a tribute for this year’s Hunger Games, a tribute from District 12, the worst district. He meets Lucy Gray this way and is enthralled by her, especially her voice. I loved following the events of the story and the way the plot continued. The characters are written very well and it was great to see how the characters grew into who they are in the actual books. I love this book!
The Name of This Book is Secret by Pseudonymous Bosch
This book’s storytelling style is unique, with the author keeping many things closely guarded. The two main characters, Cass and Max-Ernest go on a quest to rescue their friend when he is kidnapped by Ms. Mauvis and Dr. L. They go to the Midnight Sun, where strange things are happening. I loved their adventure and the way the story was told. It was very unique and I enjoyed it a lot. I totally recommend this book to you!

NaNoWriMo 2021

If you remember, last year, I participated in NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month). This year, I’ll be doing it again! I’m very excited with the plot/characters that I have created and I’m so excited to have this opportunity. Before starting, I have already created a plot, a sense of how much to write in a day/week, and some of my major character that will be involved.

Because of this, I am not planning on publishing many blog posts, only one more at the end of the month (The Top Reads of November). I am so excited to go on this journey again!

Have you ever considered doing anything like NaNoWriMo before?

Fictional Characters I Admire: Riley Oh

I smile through tears as Riley finds her sister. It’s been a heartbreaking journey, but so much has been gained from it. Riley Oh is from The Last Fallen Star by Graci Kim. She’s kind, strong, and determined. I love her story and here’s some reasons why.

Riley is very determined. When her sister began to die, Riley went on a huge quest to save her, even if it meant connecting with dangerous people. She knows how much her sister means to her and believes in her all the time. They have such a sweet relationship and I love the way that they’ll both do anything for each other.

Riley makes sure to get friends that she can depend on and trust. She has two sets of families who love her very much- one is from the Gom clan, the family that raised her, and one is from the Horangi clan, her true family. SHe’s also made friends from many different clans and they are there to support her when she needs help. She loves and works with them all, even when it seems challenging.

Riley Oh will always be one of my favorite characters, because of how determined she is and how she friendly she is. She’s such a great character and I love reading about her and the person that she is.

Category: Diverse Reads