Hosted by Sheila — Thank you!
It seems like this week is awful lonely without Sheila and "What Are You Reading" has almost less meaning because I know while I'm writing this she's off saving lives and making a difference. At first when I started thinking about it I grew almost bitter at the mundaneness of memes; I mean, really why is it important, who does it benefit, listing what you accomplished every week and what books you "brought" in?
What is it about book blogging that I feel like "makes a difference" anyway? Is it the reviews, the community, the memes, the scheduled posts, the Twitter conversations? Being a teacher, I'd like to say it's the reviews and the growing knowledge of YA books that I have gained since becoming a book blogger. But really, I think it's more than that. Yes, this blog benefits my students — but more than that this blog benefits me, as a teacher and as reader. If it weren't for reading YOUR "It's Monday" posts, "IMM" posts, and other random book posts, my TBR pile wouldn't be overflowing... but at the same time I wouldn't know what books to "look for" at my local book stores or library. I wouldn't know about books (synopses) without reading them. And most importantly, I don't think I'd be as driven to read every week if I didn't know that someone out there was going to check in on my progress every week.
So while Sheila, God Bless her, is out saving lives and making a difference in Honduras (save travels!), this week I was able to add one more book to my classroom shelves and do a book talk on it. This week I finished reading "Shade." And who knows, maybe someone out there will read my review or a student will love my book talk and pick the book up and consequently have a life changing literary experience. It could happen, right? Maybe I'm changing lives one book and one student at a time? Or... maybe I just like the satisfaction of seeing what I've accomplished every week.
What about you? What benefit do you get out of doing memes?
Review Books: "E=MC2" and " The Classics"
My Books/Recreational Read: "Pretty Little Liars"
Class Books: "Finding Forrester"