Last week, I had the great pleasure of attending the Int’l Reading Assoc. Conference in Minneapolis.  I was so impressed!  I guess I don’t get out often enough, but I felt very much like a kid in a toy store.  Rather than go into great detail, I’ll just list some of what I loved about my trip (in no particular order):  Minneapolis’ weather, listening to authors, all those BOOKS, meeting teachers and librarians from all over the world, free stuff and BOOKS, great sessions on writing and digital literacy, the shopping cart escalator at the two-story Target, having to FedEx BOOKS home because I maxed out my luggage, Ben Carson’s keynote address, …and did I mention all the BOOKS?

I heard authors Gordon Korman and Patrick Carman speak about their recent books, One False Note (2nd book in The 39 Clues series) and Skeleton Creek, respectively. I’m planning to read both books as soon as school’s out.  Both Korman and Carman were hilarious!  I’m sure the books will be just as entertaining.  I wrote a post about the first “39 Clues” book (The Maze of Bones by Rick Riordan) back in November.  The books in this series have different authors, although some authors will pen more than one.  Korman will be writing another one later in the series.  Patrick Carman is the author of the fifth book in the series, which hasn’t been released yet.

Carman’s Skeleton Creek experiments with a new format.  The two main characters adopt different ways to tell their stories.  Ryan writes his story and his friend, Sarah, films hers.  The story is told in alternating written chapters and short video chapters (via the internet).  I’m looking forward to reading/watching this one!

NOTE:  The first two South Side Middle students who comment on this blog post will receive a copy of either One False Note or Skeleton Creek, SIGNED BY THE AUTHOR!

Keep reading and keep learning!