Xepherus Reads

Hello, Fellow Book Worms and Book Dragons!  Required Reading in School    *****************************    When I was a student, especially in middle school, I disliked required reading. It was not that I hated reading because I was reading all the time. But it was mainly the fact that I was reading a book I had no interest in. Plus, the fact that my grade for that quarter depended on doing this assignment made me very apprehensive.    It was not until I reached high school and college that I was seeing a change in the required reading. The teachers would first explain the premise of a book to us. Then they would ask us if that premise would be something that we would be interested in. This approach worked better for me and my classmates because we got to vote on a book that we would read. One of the hardest books to get through for me were books I had no interest in. There are many books out there that cover the sam...

Hello, Fellow Book Worms and Book Dragons,   I have stated before how much I loved and appreciated my Scholastic Book Fairs when I was a kid in elementary school. They instilled a sense of excitement into my school, and to visit the Book Fair was an event for all of us.    I am happy to know that after all theses years I can still get excited about the Scholastic Book Fair. But this time around it is the Scholastic Warehouse Sale that has me excited every year. Just recently the Scholastic Warehouse Sale began in Danbury, Connecticut. I was able to peruse thousands of square feet of books. It was an event that was filled with eager book readers, teachers, book professionals, and thankfully, young children. Millions of discounted books greet you as you enter   Hundreds of metal cabinets opened to reveal books from $1-$3  It was an event that was filled with eager expressions, happy children, and a courteous staff that was extremely helpfu...

Hello, Fellow Book Worms and Book Dragons,    Tuesday Talks is a group on Goodreads that is a weekly discussion forum created by BookTubers Janie Johnson and her pal, Janelle. It is a very social group and is very fun to answer each week's question.   This week's question is: What middle grade series needs a young adult sequel?        I have read many middle grade books in my years of reading. This question had me thinking hard, but I found a middle grade series deserves a young adult sequel...   The Johnny Dixon Mysteries by John Bellairs captured my imagination in the early 1980s. Published by Bantam-Skylark books, it was a mystery series surrounding a boy named Johnny Dixon and his neighbor, Professor Childermass. What made their mysteries so much fun was the fact they all had a supernatural element to them. Beginning with the Curse of the Blue Figurine in 1983, Bellairs introduced us to 1950s Duston Heights, Massachusetts. It was ...

Hello, Fellow Book Worms!   Welcome back to another Tuesday Talks question!   Tuesday Talks is an awesome group over at Goodreads that welcomes the book community to engage in discussions that are designed to get the community together for talks and recommendations. The group is moderated by Janie Johnson and her book pal, Janelle. Every Tuesday we have a topic that is presented to us. We are asked to participate in the discussion and share our opinions.    This week's question is:  What Do You Think of Required Reading in School?    *****************************    When I was a student, especially in middle school, I disliked required reading. It was not that I hated reading, because I was reading all the time. But it was mainly the fact that I was reading a book I had no interest in. Plus the fact that my grade for that quarter depended on doing this assignment made me very apprehensive.    It was not until I ...