See Sparks Read

Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War by Steve Sheinkin My rating: 5 of 5 stars "In the past, I had instinctively accepted the ethos of my profession, the idea that leaking was always inherently bad, treacherous... I had been wrong. Obviously, leaking could be a patriotic and constructive act." -Ellsberg, quoted in Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War by Steve Sheinkin The Vietnam War had been over for several years when I was born. We didn't study the Vietnam War while I was in high school and I did not take any modern history classes in college. I had vague ideas about the Vietnam War- I knew that American citizens were drafted to serve in the US military. I knew there was a lot of opposition to our involvement in the war. People fled the draft. Protests were abundant. I knew American involvement was in reaction to the communist regime in North Vietnam. As a scho

Education is a reflective practice. To become a better educator, one most continue to learn, grow, and reflect. Personal Learning Networks (PLNs) are fellow educators and resources that the educator seeks out and interacts with to learn and grow. Gone are the days that the only ways to connect with other educators was to talk to colleagues and attend conferences. An educator can now engage in professional learning through making connections anytime and anyplace through social media. Twitter has been particularly helpful in this regard, with Twitter discussions utilizing hashtags to allow for user participation. Additionally, Facebook Groups and Google Groups allow for people across the globe to connect in a more linear format. A question or idea is posted, and feedback is given through the form of comments. Though a hashtag may be used, it is not necessary to organize the conversation. I do engage in PLNs through social media on a regular basis. However, it is not the only way I cons

We Were Liars by E. Lockhart My rating: 5 of 5 stars I was recommended this book to fulfill a reading challenge. I needed to read a book with an unreliable narrator. With a title like "We Were Liars," I should have known this would fit the bill. The book begins with a map of Beechwood Island and a Sinclair family tree. Predictably, the main character (and narrator) Cadence is from a rich family. They do have their own island and a family tree, after all. Cady (Cadence) along with her cousins Johnny and Mirren and family friend Gat make up the Liars. The four of them are an inseparable group during their summers at Beechwood from a young age. Then, during summer 15, something tragic happens to Cady and everything changes. She is different, the Liars aren't close anymore. They seem to be keeping something from her. Cady can't remember what happened to her during that fateful summer, but with the help of the Liars, she remembers and re

Today I attended the annual Illinois Library Association's legislative luncheon. This was my second time attending this event, and though it was the same place and mostly the same attendees, it was markedly different. Last year, most of the lunch was spent talking about the lack of a state budget. While the sorry state of the IL budget was reviewed, it was not the focus of the event. Me with State Senator Jim Oberweis February 12th, 2016 This year, the event was unexpectedly focused on the roles of libraries and librarians. My cup of tea indeed. Unsurprisingly, the legislators present had positive things to say about libraries and librarians. What was surprising, however, was their belief in the library as a "Cradle of Democracy" (Lankes, 2012). I recorded a few noteworthy quotes of the luncheon, however, I will first quote Andrew Carnegie (as one does when writing about libraries): "There is no such a cradle of democracy upon the earth as the Free Public Lib

Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard My rating: 5 of 5 stars "I grew up wondering if I'd have food for supper; now I'm standing in a place about to be eaten alive." -Mare. Mare is a Red. Red, as in the color of her blood. In Mare's world, there are Reds and Silvers. Silvers do have silver blood, but they also have special abilities or supernatural powers that make them the ruling class over the Reds. The Reds are the serving class, going to war for the Silvers in addition to being the workers who make the Silvers' clothing and exist generally to better the lives of the Silvers. They are nearly a slave class while the Silvers either are royals or seem to live like royals. Mare knows she is going to be sent off to war (she will be conscripted, as she calls it), like her older brothers. Her younger sister, Gisa, is an apprentice to a clothes-maker, so she will be able to avoid going to the war. Mare is envious of her sister and her safer path. Mare

Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green My rating: 4 of 5 stars "i don't know what freaks me out more- that i matter to him, or that he matters to me." -David Levithan Where to begin? I love this book. It is one of my absolute favorites. It's called Will Grayson, Will Grayson because it is about two different teenagers named Will Grayson. David Levithan authors the Naperville, IL Will Grayson. Naperville Will Grayson lives with his mother, is not affluent (he works to help pay the bills), does not have many friends, and was just betrayed by Maura, his closest friend. John Green authors North Shore Will Grayson, whose parents are doctors, who does what is expected of him, and who tries not to get noticed. He fails at trying not to get noticed simply by being best friends with Tiny Cooper. Tiny is best described in the words of North Shore Will Grayson: Tiny Cooper is not the world's gayest person, and he is not the world's largest person