Pioneer Girl (The Annotated Autobiography) - Laura Ingalls Wilder (Pamela Smith Hill - Editor)

Pioneer Girl: The Annotated Autobiography by Laura Ingalls Wilder
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I am a long-time Little House fan. Not the show but definitely the books. Since early elementary school (I'm now in my 40's). So a long time. And I've lost track of how many times I've read the original series or how many add on books, adaptations for younger children, etc. I've written.
While it took me what felt like an eternity to read this book, it was absolutely worth it. And, as way of excuse, one of the reasons it took me so long was because the book itself is a rather large format. I couldn't just chuck it in my bag and head out, reading it in the nooks and crannies of my day.
Anyway, enough about me. Wilder wrote Pioneer Girl to be an adult book of growing up in the ever expanding western territories of the United States. It went to several agents and through multiple revisions, but was never actually published. However, Wilder pulled heavily from this memoir text to develop her iconic, historical fiction(ish) stories for children. It was so interesting to see where it all began from.
This annotated version was especially interesting because the abundant annotations added so much understanding, context, and clarification.
Now I'm just going to go back to kicking myself that I decided against the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library a few weeks ago when I was in Iowa City. I was right there on the grounds but didn't know that's where the original manuscript of Pioneer Girl is housed until I read this book.

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The Enchanted Hour: The Miraculous Power of Reading Aloud in the Age of Distraction - Meghan Cox Gurdon

The Enchanted Hour: The Miraculous Power of Reading Aloud in the Age of Distraction by Meghan Cox Gurdon
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I enjoy books about books and reading books about reading and reading aloud. So this one is right up my alley. I learned many new vocabulary words myself reading this book, like the book states the children you read to will if you read aloud to them. Some of the stats and studies weren't great as far as having incredibly small sample sets, etc. But, like a normal human, I can ignore that if I really support whatever those small studies are purporting. :)
Anyway, great book about reading aloud. Not just to children but to tweens, teens, spouses, aging adults, dogs. Basically anyone. It doesn't address reading to your plants, but I imagine that wouldn't hurt either.
Two extensive book lists in back: one of the books mentioned in the text and another of additional books. Now I just need to get more consistent on reading aloud to my little people more than just a quick picture book at bedtime.

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The Nickel Boys - Colson Whitehead

The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Important.
Heart-wrenching.
Thought provoking.
Absolutely worth reading.

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The Rest of the Story - Sarah Dessen

The Rest of the Story by Sarah Dessen
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Emma Saylor unexpectedly has to spend three weeks with her maternal grandmother and extended family, somewhere she hasn't been and people she hasn't seen since she was four. Once there, she realizes the opportunity to learn more about her mother and even herself.

Not my favorite of Sarah Dessen's novels. I actually have been waffling between 2 and 3 stars for this one. I think there were just several typos and so many contradictions in small and big things - including timelines - that each time it interrupted my enjoyment of the story itself. And those kinds of editing issues are just not something I expect in her books. Also, there were SO. MANY. CHARACTERS to keep up with. I think by the end I mostly remembered who was who and how they fit in. But the first half was tough going. The way her dad just changed so much at the end was a bit of a stretch for me.

Underage drinking was pretty consistently present but not always in a positive light.

I still liked the premise of the story and several of the characters. I just feel it could have been better executed.

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