Call Me Clumsy by Matthew Weinrich

Genre: Memoir, Humor
Source: I received a copy from the author

From Goodreads:
So begins the "odyssey of awkwardness" that is Call Me Clumsy, the my-life-so-far memoir
of Matthew Weinrich. Through utterly humbling experiences that span the decades of his life, Weinrich provides anecdotes that are equally cringe-inducing and laugh-out-loud funny. From his experience as a consummate slacker to his marriage proposal gone horribly awry to an unfortunate run-in with the fine men and women of the TSA, Weinrich bring you along as he strolls down memory lane, for better or for worse.

Ultimately, Weinrich gives us a heart-warming picture of the humility of a child of God who knows, without a doubt, that the old adage applies to him:
God is God, and I am not...
...not even close.

 

My Thoughts:

I laughed until I cried.  I identified with so many of the goofy things he did.  I have been clumsy when it comes to injuries to my feet and legs.  I’ve broken both feet twice, both knees twice and both ankles. I used to get teased for falling “UP” the stairs. I don’t think I have ever done anything quite as embarrassing as the things I read about in this book.  I have promoted the heck out of this book to my teacher friends.  There is something for everyone in it.  The story I identified with the most was “Fingers on Home Row”.  Matt and I are both teachers.  As such we have each had our share where we were doing what we thought was our best to encourage students only to have them burst into tears. Why? Because we didn’t pay enough attention to our students and take into consideration any concerns they had AT THE TIME, only to learn that because we had not, we had in actuality made the student feel there was no way they could succeed.  For me it was a student who kept insisting they could not read because they had an issue with short term memory.  I just knew I could help them.  Later talking with several students, the school counselor and the parents I learned he had a brain injury that made short term memory almost impossible.  I felt so terrible.  Some of Matt’s stories show us that there are people out there who are willing to help us out when we really mess up.  He also shows us that God definitely watches out for us when we put ourselves into stupidly dangerous situations.  I want everyone I meet to read this book.  It is one I have read over and over and over.  That’s not something I do very often.  It is definitely one of my favorites to read.

 

Author Bio

Born in Superior, Montana in 1984, Matthew Weinrich grew up in Montana, New Mexico, Nevada and Oklahoma.  He currently lives in Oklahoma City and teaches at Western Oaks Middle School in the Putnam City School District.  He is happily married to his beautiful wife Danielle of six years.  Matt and Danielle have recently welcomed their first child, a son named Elijah.  In his spare time Matt enjoys playing sports, writing, watching baseball and being involved with his church.

Website
Goodreads  

 

 

Student Saturday: The Last Thing I Remember - Andrew Klavan

Student Reviewer: Kaden

For the past few weeks I have been reading, The last Thing I Remember by Andrew Klavan and I have got to say, it is one of the very few fiction books I'm actually interested in. The main character, Charlie West is a hard working kid who wakes up literally in a nightmare. He is strapped to a chair nailed into the ground and he hears a voice that says, "Kill him!" He is just stuck there trying to remember the last thing he remembers and that's the interesting part. The last thing he remembers is going to bed and staring at his girlfriend;s number he got earlier that day. In the nightmare it is gone so therefore I predict over a year has passed from the last thing he remembers and they gave him some pill to make him forget what happened. I look forward to reading the next three books in this series and would recommend it to all action and cliff hanger lovers.

Orenda - Ruth Silver

Genre:  Middle Grade, Young Adult Fantasy

Source:  I received a copy in exchange for my honest review

 

From Goodreads

Join forces with a parallel universe.
Dark forces, magical creatures, and the world Lil thought she knew collide when a dream
transports her to the strange world of Orenda. Stunned and terrified, Lil comes face to face
with her doppelganger, Willow, who possesses the ability to travel between the two worlds. Everything Lil knows logically says that Orenda can’t exist, but a small clue may be proof that
it was more than an ordinary dream. With the threat of her sister in danger, Lil crosses
dimensions but it may cost her even more than she bargained for.
A sword wielding girl, the eternal suit, and a parallel universe come together in this action-
packed Young Adult fantasy adventure that will keep readers of all ages turning the pages.
Orenda is the first novel in the Orenda series.

 My Thoughts

I enjoyed the author’s Aberrant series so I figured I would like this series.  I was not disappointed.  I absolutely loved the idea of alternate worlds.  I am not so sure I would like to meet my doppleganger though.  For me most fantasy authors spend so much time building their world that I get lost.  There is more world building than plot.  Ruth gave just enough about Orenda to keep me interested.  I look forward to seeing what else I learn about this world in the next book in the series.  I believe this is exactly the kind of fantasy book my middle school students will enjoy.  Can’t wait to let them know about it.

 

About the Author:
Ruth Silver is the best-selling author of ABERRANT, a young adult dystopian adventure series published by Patchwork Press and Lazy Day Publishing, in 2013. Silver attended Northern
Illinois University and graduated with a Bachelor’s in Communication in the spring of 2005
While in college, she spent much of her free time writing with friends she met online and penning her first novel, Deuces are Wild, which she self-published in 2004. Her favorite class was Creative Writing senior year where she often handed in assignments longer than the professor required, because she loved to write and always wanted to finish her stories. Her love of writing led her on an adventure in 2007 to Melbourne, Australia. Silver enjoys reading, photography, traveling and most of all writing. She loves dystopian and fantasy young adult stories. Ruth has been actively writing since she was a teenager. Upcoming works include Royal Reaper, a young adult series about grim reapers, due for release June 3rd, 2014. She currently resides in Plainfield, Illinois.

 Where you can find her:

 Website  

Twitter  
Facebook  
Goodreads