powerfulwomenreaders

RAE’S READS

about

This year (2025) finds me with 53 years of teaching “under my belt.” I have taught all levels from pre-K “(library lady” or “book lady”–volunteer) to juniors, seniors, and graduate students enrolled in my Advanced Writing class at the university where I have just completed 34 years. My first paying teaching job was junior high, and I spent 13 years with ages 12-13, the “difficult years.” I had some of the “funnest” experiences with this age group. When I was no longer the “young, fun teacher,” I taught in an elementary school setting before sixth graders went on to junior high, teaching language arts blocs, an assignment that was a “dream-fit” for me. After completing graduate school in my 40s, I went on to community college, then university teaching. This past fall I accepted a part-time teaching job at Apogee Gulf Coast Schools in its first year at the Alvin campus. After my Better Half died n 2022, I achieved a lifelong dream: opening a bookstore of my own, Rae’s Reads. A year later, I sold the house we had lived in for 47 years and moved into the bookstore. My goal is to circulate and repurpose books. Just as teaching is “in my blood,” so is a passion for reading, writing, libraries, and everything bookish. This blog will be open to anyone who loves books, promotes literacy and wants to “come out and play.”

August 30, 2022

TODAY, Monday, August 29th is a day for celebration. I finished another reading challenge I took on for 2022, the “What’s in a Name?” challenge.

Hosted by Andrea at the Carolina Book Nook, “What’s in a Name?” Includes the following six prompts:

A title that has a compound word–

My choice for this book was a kids’ book, which teaches what a compound word is and has four of them in the title. I reviewed it on PWR under a “Saturday Morning for Kids” post.

Another kids’ book, one I finished today was for the prompt, a reference to speed in the title. For this one, I enjoyed

My great niece and her daughter, who is five, love sloths. Every time I see something like this book cover, I think of them and have a whole new respect for an animal I once only thought of as lazy.

The third prompt is to have in the title a person or group of people and their description. So, I read some time earlier this year…

The fourth prompt brought me back to another kids’ book, with a mythical being mentioned in the title, It’s Ok to be a Unicorn.

Again, I reviewed this one on a Saturday Mornings for kids post (type the title into the search box on the home page, and you’ll find the picture of the cover. I failed to save it for this post.

One of the earliest books I read in 2022 was for prompt number five of this challenge, a title that mentions a season. For that one, I read Eudora Welty’s Summer, and double dipped to count it for the Classics Club as well.

I may have even triple dipped because this one was on my TBR shelf for years, which would qualify it for the Mount TBR challenge.

The last prompt was for a title with a color in it. I started The White Gardinia, which started out interesting enough, but I put it back in my local library when I came across The Pink Suit. I have always been fascinated with Jackie Kennedy, and the story behind the pink suit (based on fact but embellished by the author’s imagination) she wore the day of JFK’s assassination was a recent, interesting read.