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Can you guess what today is?

I’ll give you a hint: today marks the official start of the slide toward 50.  Technically, it doesn’t start until 9:26 PM, but heck, I’ll be asleep by then!

Since  I am heading into a new year (and it is midway through 2009), I thought it would be a great opportunity to take a bloggy step back and do some mid-year updates.

…

First up, the Diversity Rocks Book Challenge.  I joined the Challenge when it opened in January, because I love Ali’s premise:  add multicultural awareness to your reading. I set a goal of nine books for the year, though I secretly hope to read twelve. I finished June with five books for the challenge. Two chapter books, three picture books. I listed six books, and have only read three: I reviewed Little Leap Forward;  I read Give a Goat, but didn’t review it; and I have finished Seven Miles to Freedom and will do the review this month.  I’m not wedded to finishing the other three, because I my purpose is to explore new worlds. So I’d rather be open to new opportunities than stick to a list. I am certainly on track for nine books, and am comfortable that I can read/review twelve – without feeling pressure.

Speaking of book numbers … as of June, we have filled the Reading Tub with 336 new titles; all but 100 (BEA acquisitions) are unsolicited requests for review. Wow! That’s pretty  amazing since we are only accepting books from authors and publishers that we have worked with in the past.  We aren’t likely to double that for the remainder of the year, but that is STILL a lot of books we can get to at-risk readers.

Most of the other goals for the year, still sit in the starting blocks … thanks to the economy. It is what it is, and I am one of those people who believe that things happen when they’re meant to happen. There are plenty of other things to do in the meantime.

So what am I looking forward to now? Just two things.

• The Share a Story Shape a Future literacy blog tour pushed me beyond my comfort zone and was a catalyst for new friendships and opportunities.  We’ve got Share A Story 2010 on the drawing boards …
• October 17. I am r-e-a-l-l-y excited about the Kidlitosphere Conference in DC/Northern Virginia. I met lots of folks at Book Expo America in New York, and there will be a lot more folks at the Conference.

Everything else is icing on the cake!

photo credit: Terry Doherty, whose actual age is now closer to a MULTIPLE of seven!