What I've Watched in 2012

This will be my running list of the movies/television I've watched this year. I'll link to it in my sidebar, and keep it updated.  I'm hoping to do a few posts about my viewing, too, as the year progresses.

For me:
1.  Winter's Bone
2.  An Education
3.  Inception
4.  Downton Abbey (Season 1)
5.  The Hunger Games


With dh:
1.  Doctor Who (Series 3)
2.  Doctor Who (Series 4)
3.  Doctor Who (The Complete Specials)
4.  The Artist

With the whole family:
1.  The Muppet Show (Season 2)
2.  Puss in Boots
3.  Enchanted
4.  The Sound of Music
5.  Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
6.  Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Where I've Been

What I Read in 2012

For me:

1. The Story of Beautiful Girl (Rachel Simon)
2. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks (Rebecca Skloot)
3. The Scorpio Races (Maggie Stiefvater)
4. The Good Earth (Pearl S. Buck)
5. Between Shades of Gray (Ruta Sepetys)
6. State of Wonder (Ann Patchett)
7. Chime (Franny Billingsley)
8. My So-Called Life (Joanna Nadin)
9. The Life of Riley (Joanna Nadin)
10. Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy (Gary D. Schmidt)
11. Bossypants (Tina Fey)
12. Big Girl Small (Rachel DeWoskin)
13. The Kitchen Boy (Robert Alexander)
14. 15 Minutes Outside (Rebecca P. Cohen)
15. Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal? (Jeanette Winterson)
16. Peace Like a River (Leif Enger)
17. Dorrie's Book (Marilyn Sachs)
18. Pure (Julianna Baggott)
19. Hoping for More (Deanna A. Thompson)
20. Mudbound (Hillary Jordan)
21. The Long Secret (Louise Fitzhugh)
22. When She Woke (Hillary Jordan)
23. Vietnamerica (GB Tran)
24. Summer of Fear (Lois Duncan)
25. The Grounding of Group 6 (Julian F. Thompson)
26. Daughters of Eve (Lois Duncan)
27. Fatal Remedies (Brunetti #8) (Donna Leon)
28. Fractured (Will Trent #2) (Karin Slaughter)
29. Pardonable Lies (Maisie Dobbs #3) (Jacqueline Winspear)
30. Imagine: How Creativity Works (Jonah Lehrer)
31. Wonder (R.J. Palacio)
32. Friends in High Places (Brunetti #9) (Donna Leon)
33. Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail (Cheryl Strayed)
34. Doc (Mary Doria Russell)
35. This Dark Endeavor (The Apprenticeship of Victor Frankenstein #1) (Kenneth Oppel)
36. Ransom (Lois Duncan)
37. Triptych (Will Trent #1) (Karin Slaughter)
38. Liar & Spy (Rebecca Stead)
39. Such Wicked Intent (The Apprenticeship of Victor Frankenstein #2) (Kenneth Oppel)
40. Through Tempests Dark and Wild (Sharon Darrow)
41. Ellen Tebbits (Beverly Cleary)
42. More Baths Less Talking (Nick Hornby)
43. A Girl from Yamhill (Beverly Cleary)
44. Arcadia (Lauren Groff)
45. Silhouette of a Sparrow (Molly Beth Griffin)
46. The Raven Boys (Maggie Stiefvater)
47. The Fault in Our Stars (John Green)
48. Half Broke Horses (Jeannette Walls)
49. Gone Girl (Gillian Flynn)
50. Help, Thanks, Wow: The Three Essential Prayers (Anne Lamott)
51. The Uncommon Appeal of Clouds (Isabel Dalhousie #9) (Alexander McCall Smith)
52. Weird Things Customers Say in Bookstores (Jen Campbell)
53. The Round House (Louise Erdrich)
54. The Rhythm of Family (Amanda Blake Soule and Stephen Soule)
55. Crossed (Ally Condie)
56. French Lessons (Alice Kaplan)
57. The Chaperone (Laura Moriarty)

For/with Skye (grades 7-8):

1. The Hunger Games (Suzanne Collins)
2. Thirteen Reasons Why (Jay Asher)
3. Dear Bully (ed. Megan Kelley Hall and Carrie Jones)
4. Amelia Lost (Candace Fleming)
5. Breadcrumbs (Anne Ursu)
6. Boy Meets Boy (David Levithan)
7. The House on Mango Street (Sandra Cisneros)
8. The Wednesday Wars (Gary D. Schmidt)
9. Hidden (Helen Frost)
10. Americus (M.K. Reed)
11. The Wee Free Men (Terry Pratchett)
12. A Mango-Shaped Space (Wendy Mass)
13. The Order of the Stick #1: Dungeon Crawlin' Fools (Rich Burlew)
14. The Order of the Stick #2: No Cure for the Paladin Blues (Rich Burlew)
15. Spera, Volume 1 (Josh Tierney)
16. The Order of the Stick #0: On the Origin of PCs (Rich Burlew)
17. Diamond Willow (Helen Frost)
18. Amulet #1: The Stonekeeper (Kazu Kibuishi)
19. Amulet #2: The Stonekeeper's Curse (Kazu Kibuishi)
20. Amulet #3: The Cloud Searchers (Kazu Kibuishi)
21. Amulet #4: The Last Council (Kazu Kibuishi)
22. Where the Mountain Meets the Moon (Grace Lin)
23. The Ogre of Oglefort (Eva Ibbotson)
24. The Giver (Lois Lowry)
25. The Order of the Stick #3: War and XPs (Rich Burlew)
26. Love Rides the Rails (or Will the Mail Train Run Tonight?) (Morland Carey)
27. The Good, the Bad, and the Barbie (Tanya Lee Stone)
28. Mercury (Hope Larson)
29. Stargirl (Jerry Spinelli)
30. Drama (Raina Telgemeier)

+ Cybils Graphic Novel Finalists:

Nursery Rhyme Comics (ed. Chris Duffy)

Sidekicks (Dan Santat)

Zita the Spacegirl (Ben Hatke)

Hereville: How Mirka Got Her Sword (Barry Deutsch)

Page by Paige (Laura Lee Gulledge)

Anya's Ghost (Vera Brosgol)

Level Up (Gene Luen Yang)

Bad Island (Doug Tennapel)

With Skye (grades 7-8) & Felix (grades 1-2):

1. Darth Paper Strikes Back (Tom Angleberger)
2. Half Magic (Edward Eager)
3. Magic by the Lake (Edward Eager)
4. The Wizard of Oz (L. Frank Baum)
5. The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place #1: The Mysterious Howling (Maryrose Wood)
6. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (#1) (J.K. Rowling)
7. Matilda (Roald Dahl)
8. Pippi Longstocking (Astrid Lindgren)
9. The Borrowers (Mary Norton)
10. Dying to Meet You (43 Old Cemetery Road #1) (Kate Klise & M. Sarah Klise)
11. Over My Dead Body (43 Old Cemetery Road #2) (Kate Klise & M. Sarah Klise)
12. Nate the Great and the Lost List (Marjorie Weinman Sharmat)
13. Nate the Great and the Sticky Case (Marjorie Weinman Sharmat)
14. How to Train Your Dragon (#1) (Cressida Cowell)
15. Nate the Great and the Fishy Prize (Marjorie Weinman Sharmat)
16. Nate the Great and the Boring Beach Bag (Marjorie Weinman Sharmat)
17. The Secret of the Fortune Wookie (Origami Yoda #3) (Tom Angleberger)
18. The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place #2: The Hidden Gallery (Maryrose Wood)
19. Henry Huggins (Beverly Cleary)
20. Time Cat (Lloyd Alexander)
21. Little House in the Big Woods (Laura Ingalls Wilder)
22. You're a Bad Man, Mr. Gum! (Andy Stanton)
23. The Cricket in Times Square (George Seldon)
24. Comet in Moominland (Tove Jansson)
25. The Tale of Despereaux (Kate DiCamillo)

With Felix (grades 1-2):

1. DSA #1: The New Kid at School (Kate McMullan)
2. DSA #2: Revenge of the Dragon Lady (Kate McMullan)
3. Bad Kitty Gets a Bath (Nick Bruel)
4. DSA #3: Class Trip to the Cave of Doom (Kate McMullan)
5. Happy Birthday, Bad Kitty (Nick Bruel)
6. DSA #4: A Wedding for Wiglaf?
7. Bad Kitty Meets the Baby (Nick Bruel)
8. DSA #5: Knight for a Day (Kate McMullan)
9. DSA #6: Sir Lancelot, Where Are You? (Kate McMullan)
10. Bad Kitty vs. Uncle Murray (Nick Bruel)
11. Bad Kitty for President (Nick Bruel)
12. The Trouble with Chickens (Doreen Cronin)
13. DSA #7: Wheel of Misfortune (Kate McMullan)
14. Ricky Ricotta's Giant [Mighty] Robot (Dav Pilkey)
15. The School Mouse (Dick King-Smith)
16. DSA #8: Countdown to the Year 1000 (Kate McMullan)
17. A Mouse Called Wolf (Dick King-Smith)
18. DSA #9: 97 Ways to Train a Dragon (Kate McMullan)
19. Garfield Minus Garfield (Jim Davis)
20. DSA #10: Help! It's Parents Day at DSA (Kate McMullan)
21. Alvin Ho #1: Allergic to Girls, School, and Other Scary Things (Lenore Look)
22. Ms. Krup Cracks Me Up! (My Weird School #21) (Dan Gutman)
23. Mr. Burke Is Berserk! (My Weirder School #4) (Dan Gutman)
24. Jake Drake, Class Clown (Andrew Clements)
25. Alvin Ho #2: Allergic to Camping, Hiking, and Other Natural Disasters (Lenore Look)
26. Calvin and Hobbes (Bill Watterson)
27. Jake Drake, Teacher's Pet (Andrew Clements)
28. Martin's Mice (Dick King-Smith)
29. Smasher (Dick King-Smith)
30. Mayor Hubble Is in Trouble! (My Weirder School #6) (Dan Gutman)
31. Calvin Coconut #1: Trouble Magnet (Graham Salisbury)

For Kids Book Club (ages 8-12):
1. Bobby vs. Girls (Accidentally) (Lisa Yee)
2. Bobby the Brave (Sometimes) (Lisa Yee)
3. Matilda (Roald Dahl)
4. The Borrowers (Mary Norton)

For Teen Book Club (ages 12+):
1. Thirteen Reasons Why (Jay Asher)
2. Breadcrumbs (Anne Ursu)
3. Boy Meets Boy (David Levithan)
4. The Wee Free Men (Terry Pratchett)
5. Sweetblood (Pete Hautman)
6. Frankenstein (Mary Shelley)

Maud Hart Lovelace nominees, 2012-13 (for Kids and Teen Book Clubs):
1. Dying to Meet You (43 Old Cemetery Road #1) (Kate Klise & M. Sarah Klise)
2. Diamond Willow (Helen Frost)
3. Matched (Ally Condie)
4. Extra Credit (Andrew Clements)
5. Go Big or Go Home (Will Hobbs)
6. Calvin Coconut #1: Trouble Magnet (Graham Salisbury)

Book #9: Magic by the Lake

Next came a horrid interval of unloading and unpacking, but few would wish to hear about that. Suffice it to say that at last the four children emerged in their new bathing suits, and the lake was waiting. ~Edward Eager, Magic by the Lake, pp. 6-7

After reading Half Magic aloud with my kids, they really wanted to read the next of Edward Eager’s tales. After checking out a few websites to see which one is considered “Book 2,” I learned that we could either go with Knight’s Castle, which was published next, or Magic by the Lake, which is a continuation of the story of the four children in Half Magic. I knew the kids had grown attached to this family, so I went with Magic by the Lake.

Eager’s language is wonderful, so wonderful that I must quote him again. The family has rented a cottage for the rest of the summer, thanks to the wonderful Mr. Smith, who understands children so well. Eager explains:

After the half magic was over, they wondered if they’d ever have any magic adventures again, and in the book about it it says it was a long time before they knew the answer. And here it was only three weeks later, and already Katharine was ready for more. But if you think three weeks isn’t a long time for four children to be without magic, I can only say that it seemed a long time to them. (p. 7)

A few of my kids’ favorite things:
~ The magical turtle, who brings the magic of the lake and sometimes (grudgingly) helps the children control it.
~ The children’s summer adventures. It reminded my kids of their vacations at the lake!
~ The ending, which holds a nice and satisfying surprise.

There were a few parts that I think scared my seven-year-old. By the middle of the book, he was starting to ask, “Everything will be okay, right?” In the book, the youngest of the children, Martha, is often afraid of the magic, and it does get a little scary. The chapter titled “The Island” was especially harrowing, not to mention being uncomfortably full of stereotypes. (I edited the language of that chapter as I read, but it was tough!)

But overall, they enjoyed this book, and we definitely plan to continue with Eager and read Knight’s Castle, which I’ve heard great things about.  And my kids are excited to learn more about the mysterious children that these four siblings meet on one of their adventures.  Eager gives us a sly hint that we will find out more about them in another of his books.

Be sure to check out the other Read Aloud Thursday posts at Hope Is the Word.