10

Yesterday I had a snow day. If I were a kid I would have started to jump up and down, made a big breakfast and spent the day outside and lounging about the house. As an adult, I still had to go to work, but it was a very productive day.

The even bigger news--I finished my tenth book. Ok..it was a young adult book, but I love young adult books and feel that given I am an educator, I should be reading lots of young adult literature (which I do). This book, Penny From Heaven by Jennifer L. Holm, made me laugh and it made me cry. The book is set in the 1950's, when pools were feared to cause polio and kids rode where ever they wanted to go. The story is told from Penny's point of a view, a young girl who lives her mother, Me-Me and Pa-Pa. Her father died when she was young, his family, a LARGE and Boisterous Italian family, is still very close to her, though not her mother or her mothers family. The story chronicles the food, fun and adventures of Penny as she tries to understand why the two sides of her family do not get along and why no one will discuss her father's death (all the while, dealing with the issues of being a 12 year old girl---bad perms, boys, etc.). This is a great read for any middle school student. Not only is it entertaining, it brings the reader back to a time in this countries history when not all "Americans" were treated as Americans (I am sure there could be many connections to the current world).

Enjoy the day!