Christmas with Harry Potter!

Yes, I'm going to post before I leave work today. First off, I allowed myself an hour last night to read and was able to finish Sloppy Firsts by Megan McCafferty. A student of mine was packing it around, and when I asked her if it was any good, she shrugged!?! I then saw some comments posted on author blogs about McCafferty's novels and thought I'd give them a try.

Well, let me just say that the author has written for Cosmo, which is not exactly ideal reading material for teens. Now I'm not a big prude, but will say that this novel had me floored (not in a positive way...) by all of the sexual references. I may not realize, completely, how rampant sexual experimentation is for my students, but I KNOW that it's not as flagrant, nor as common, as written about in this novel. The story is basically about a girl whose best friend moves away, becomes friends or is forced to hang out with a new group of girls (who she detests and find shallow), and who tells the story chronologically by month during her sophomore/junior years. It has your typical angst over boys (more about sex & drugs actually), disconnection from parents and siblings, and a snarky view of the world--feeling they are somehow the unique one in a pond full of copycat goldfish (when in reality, most teens think this is them).

Honestly, I wasn't okay with the gratuitous nature of the story--obsessed with losing one's virginity--and wondered at times if there was a point??? HOWEVER...you're left with a huge cliff hanger at the end of the novel that has forced me to put book two on hold so that I can see what happens. I have a feeling I'll be ticked at myself for spending time on this when I have so many others I need to be reading, but I at least want to know what happens!

On another note...our book club choice was in MY hands this month! :) I wanted something fun, and possibly Christmas-like, but have to admit that the choices for "Christmas" books out there left little to be desired. Having said that, I decided I'm ready to dive into my "Adult" British versions of Harry Potter, so I chose Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone--British, adult version--as our read of the month.

I've actually been pretty excited about reading this version ever since one of my favorite professors at K-State mentioned in a grad class that we should read the British versions for the differences in language. So, if you're a Harry Potter fan at all (hurrah, as am I!), then enjoy your dive into this magical story. (I have a feeling I'll be reading well beyond book 1 though!) Too bad these aren't available yet on my Kindle!!! :(


Also, don't forget to pick up your copy of the new Tales of the Beedle Bard by J.K. Rowling, that came out last Thursday. My copy arrived on my doorstep yesterday evening, and I'm excited to read these "children's tales" as something new.

Anyway, until then...Happy Holidays to all, and to all happy reading!