Up at 5:30 a.m. - not typical for me but this is my first day at Montessori and I am driving Steve in to work so I can have the car. Can't wait to dive into that collection and see what is actually there. My goal today is to work my way through the supply closet and see what I need to order and just settle in.

We must have a new cat in the neighborhood - poor Sophie! She just screams for help when they corner her on our balcony. It isn't like she can jump off - we are on the second story and the house is built on a steep hillside as well.

Interesting discussion on YALSA-BK about how we decide what to read next. It really depends upon my mood for leisure reading, but when I am reading professionally, which means YA literature in most cases, I try to read first time authors, favorite authors, books from small presses, and those that are recommended by colleagues. Right now I am setting aside MS/JH titles and concentrating on upper level YA since I am reading for the HS booktalking book. I am reading A Fast and Brutal Wing by Johnson right now - a recommendation by Julie Scordato, whose recommendations I trust. Thanks Jules! :-) It is an incredible book about siblings who shape shift (I think - I haven't finished it yet) into a hawk and a cat. The story is told through emails, letters to the psychiatrist, and the girl's "novel".

Time to finish getting ready for work.