August 29/September 2, 2008

August 29/September 2, 2008

Self-Starter: We did another puzzler, similar to the one we did last time, and we talked about prepositions, since they are the keys to solving many "puzzlers."

1. Students took the spelling test on the names of our school administrators, their seventh grade counselor, and their teachers.

2. We practiced filling out the "Reading Logs," using a picture book, The Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins.

3. We started a vocabulary challenge to prepare to read the novel The Outsiders. The challenge is to match slang terms from the early 1960's with their meanings. We did a little in class, and students should do their best to finish matching the terms by next time. Parents and grandparents, and others, are welcome to help.

August 27/28, 2008

Self-Starter: Can you read this? NE1410S It is a combination of letters and numbers that makes a complete sentence. Of course, we'd need to add capitalization, punctuation, and correct spelling if we were to write it out as a sentence!

1. Spelling Practice Test: Be ready for the real test next classtime. The test will cover correctly spelling, capitalizing, and punctuating the names of our administration, the seventh grade counselor, and your your own teachers.

2. We took the final portion of the Seventh Grade State Core Pretest today.

3. Students had time to read their books.

If you haven't turned in your disclosure document, book approval for the Book-of-the-Month club, or brought your composition book, do so as soon as possible. They will be late after the 29th.

August 25/26, 2008

August 25/26, 2008
*Find the extra credit opportunity for this week here on our blog.*

Self-Starter: Students wrote on the whiteboard teacher names as practice for the spelling test on Thursday/Friday.

1. Some of the students who hadn't done so yet handed in (into the top wire basket for their period) --
disclosure signatures,
the VIP sheet (on the back of the disclosure signatures),
the book approval,
and the composition book which is to be left in class.

2. We discussed
a. checking out books from the classroom library
b. book orders -- The first order will go in this Friday.
c. expected behavior for on the way to and from, and in the media center

3. Students took the second part (sections C and D) of the Core PreTest. If you are absent, you may need to arrange a time before or after school to make-up the tests.

4. We went to the media center to allow each student to look for a book for the Book-of-the-Month Club assignment or to read a book. Most students also had some extra time to read after finishing the test.

Extra Credit

This extra credit opportunity has expired as of August 29. Watch for new opportunities.

Here's your chance to earn 5 points of extra credit! Just tell me what the featured book is for this week. This opportunity expires August 29.

The featured book of the week is the first of a series of books: the Sammy Keyes mysteries. This would be a great time to start reading the series, because there is a book for each month from September through the end of school, and -- I think -- beyond. Sammy's author also wrote Flipped.

The first book to look for is Sammy Keyes and the Hotel Thief.

This is a link to more information about the author and about Sammy: http://www.randomhouse.com/kids/vandraanen/sammykeyes/

Recommended Books

This will be long, but since my web pages are down, let's try it!

American Fork Junior High Seventh Grade English Suggested Books for Outside Reading
The number with the “L” indicates the lexile level (reading level) of the book.
Select books near or above your own reading level.

Select books that you have not read before.

You may choose books not on this list.

Watching a video based on a book does not count, though it may be a valuable additional activity after you have read the book.

You should be able to answer questions about the book.

If you’re reading a library book for your portfolio, make sure you complete the portfolio before the time you must return the book.

â This symbol indicates books which will be read as a class in seventh, eighth, or ninth grade, so must not be used for your seventh grade reading.

Adolescent Literature

Brooks -- The Moves Make the Man (basketball) L1150

Corman – No More Dead Dogs L610

Westall, Robert – Stormsearch

Kherdian, David – A Song for Uncle Harry

Spinelli – Maniac Magee (192 pages) L820

Fleischman, Paul - Whirligig L760

Hesse – The Music of Dolphins and others

Adventure

Aiken, Joan – The Wolves of Willoughby Chase L1020

Beatty, Patricia – Lupita Manana L760

Burroughs, Edgar Rice - Tarzan L1270

Defoe, Daniel – Robinson Crusoe L1320

Duman, Alexander – Count of Monte Cristo L930

Gardiner, John Reynolds – Stone Fox L550

George, Jean Craighead – Julie L700, Julie of the Wolves L860

Heyerdahl, Thor – Aku-Aku, Kon-Tiki L1310

Junger, Sebastian – The Perfect Storm (301 pages) L1140

Kipling, Rudyard – Captain’s Courageous L1020

Krakauer, Jon – Into Thin Air (378 pages) L1320

McKinley, Robin – The Blue Sword L1030 ,

The Hero and the Crown L1120    -- Fantasy

Myers, Walter Dean – The Righteous Revenge L980 and others

O’Dell, Scott – The King’s Fifth L840 , Island of the Blue Dolphins L1000 (184 pages), The Black Pearl (96 pages), Zia, Sing Down the Moon L820

Orczy, Baroness – The Scarlet Pimpernel L1140

Paulsen, Gary (not allowed by some teachers) - Hatchet L1120 (195 pages), The River (132 pages), Brian’s Winter (133 pages),

Brian’s Return (115 pages)

Richter, Conrad – The Light in the Forest L870 (120 pages)

Sperry, Armstrong – Call It Courage L830

Stevenson, Robert Louis – Kidnapped L990 ,

Treasure Island L1100

Swift, Johathan – Gulliver’s Travels L1330

Taylor, Theodore – The Cay L860 (144 pages), Timothy of the Cay (176 pages)

Tolkien, J.R.R. – The Hobbit L1000, The Lord of the Rings Trilogy L860, 810, 920, any others

Twain, Mark – Adventures of Huckleberry Finn L990, Adventures of Tom Sawyer L950

Ullman, James – Banner in the Sky L680

Animal

Adams, Richard --Watership Down L880

Armstrong – Sounder L900

Eckert, Allan W. – Incident at Hawk’s Hill L1200 (207 pages)

Farley, Walter - Black Stallion L680-920 (series)

Gipson – Old Yeller L910

Grahame – Wind in the Willows L1140

Herriot, James – All Creatures Great and Small. etc. L990

Kjelgard – Big Red L910

London, Jack – â The Call of the Wild L1150 and â White Fang L970 = seventh and eighth grade class books

Mowat – Never Cry Wolf L1330

Rawlings – The Yearling L750

Rawls, Wilson – Summer of the Monkeys L810 , Where the Red Fern Grows L700

Sewell – Black Beauty L1010

Schaefer, Jack – Conversations with a Pocket Gopher

Award Winners – Many of the books listed here are award winners. Ask your librarian for others.

Biography/Autobiography – See biography shelves in the media center.

Dahl, Roald – Boy (160 pages) L1090

Classics

Alcott, Louisa May – Little Women L1300

Barrie, James – Peter Pan L920

Baum, Frank – Wizard of Oz (series) L1000

Burnett – The Secret Garden L970

Carroll, Lewis – - Alice in Wonderland L950

Collodi, Carlo – Pinocchio L780

DeJong, Meindert – The House of Sixty Fathers L820

Dodge, Mary Mapes – Hans Brinker L1020

Heaney, Seamus, translator – Beowulf L1090 (208 pages)

Kipling, Rudyard – Jungle Books L1140

Milne, A.A. - Winnie the Pooh (not for portfolio)

Montgomery – Anne of Green Gables (series) L990

Saint Exupery, Antoine de – The Little Prince L710

Seredy, Kate – The Good Master L640

Sewell – Black Beauty L1010

Spyri, Johanna – Heidi L960

Fantasy

Alexander, Lloyd – The Book of Three L770, The Black Cauldron L760, The Iron Ring L680, and others.

Anthony -- Incarnations of Immortality & Xanth series L@750

Asprin – Myth series, Thieves’ World Series L710-980

Babbit, Natalie – Tuck Everlasting L770

Banks, Lynn Reid – The Indian in the Cupboard L780

Barron, T.A. – Heartlight, The Ancient One L910, The Lost Years of Merlin (series) L770, and others.

Beagle, Peter – The Last Unicorn and others L820

Bradbury, Ray – Something Wicked This Way Comes L820

Brooks, Terry – Sword of Shannara and others L830-1220

Magic Kingdom for Sale - Sold L830

New: Chabon, Michael – Summerland (500 pages)

Cooper, Susan – Greenwitch L830 , The Dark is Rising L920, Silver on the Tree L900, and others.

Donaldson, Stephen – Lord Foul’s Bane and others

Eddings, David – any novel L800-900

Farmer – The Ear, the Eye, and the Arm L660

Feist, Raymond – Magician: Apprentice L940 (485 pages)

Goldman – The Princess Bride L870

Grahame – Wind in the Willows L1140

Jacques, Brian - Redwall and others L800

Jordan, Robert - The Wheel of Time series

Kendall – The Gammage Cup L950

Kurtz, Katherine – Deryni Rising and others

L’Engle, Madeline – A Wrinkle in Time L740, A Wind in the Door, etc.

Lewis, C.S. – The Chronicles of Narnia L870-940 (fantasy), Out of the Silent Planet L1020 (160 p.), Perelandra,, That Hideous Strength, and others. (scifi/fant)

McCaffrey, Anne – any novel L910-1120

McDonald, George – The Princess and the Goblin L1030

McKinley, Robin – Beauty L970, and others.

Nix, Garth – Keys to the Kingdom, Seventh Tower, and others

Pullman, Philip – The Golden Compass L930 and others

Rowling, J.K. – H. P. and the Sorcerer’s Stone L880 and others

Sachar, Louis – Holes â L660

Sleator, William – Singularity L740

Stewart, Mary – any novel The Crystal Cave L960

Swift, Johathan – Gulliver’s Travels L1330

Tolkien, J.R.R. – The Hobbit L1000, The Lord of the Rings L860,810,920, any novel

Weis/Hickman – The Dragonlance series

White, T.H. - The Once and Future King L1080, The Sword in the Stone L1120, and others.

Yolen, Jane – any novel above Lexile 700

Historical Fiction

Avi – The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle L740; Crispin

Bruchac – Sacajawea L840

Collier – My Brother Sam is Dead L770

Crowe – Mississippi Trial, 1955 (Utah author)

Cushman, Karen – Catherine Called Birdy L1170,

â Midwife’s Apprentice L1240 (class book)

Edmunds and Lanz – The Matchlock Gun (80 pages)

Fox - The Slave Dancer L970

Greene – Summer of My German Soldier L800

Hesse – Out of the Dust

Lowry, Lois – Number the Stars L670, â The Giver L760]

*The Silent Boy by Lois Lowry 

Paterson – Lyddie L860

Selden, Bernice – The Mill Girls: Lucy Larcom, Harriet Hanson Robinson, Sarah G. Bagley

Uchida– Journey to Topaz L970 (Reading Class Book)

Houston – Farewell to Manzanar L1040 (Reading Class Book)

Walters – War of the Eagles, Caged Eagles L650,690 "

Horror

Bellairs, John – Chessmen of Doom, The House with a Clock in its Walls, etc. L910, 800

Doyle, Sir Arthur C – The Hound of the Baskervilles L1090

Peters, Ellis – A Morbid Taste for Bones L1160

Shelley, Mary – Frankenstein L1179

Stevenson, Robert Louis – Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde L1040

Humor

Enright, Elizabeth – Gone-Away Lake L760

Gilbreth, Frank R. Jr. – Cheaper by the Dozen L890  -- nonfiction

Kaufman, Bel – Up the Down Staircase

Kerr – Please Don’t Eat the Daisies

Korman, Gordon – I Wanna Go Home. etc. L560-840

Lewis, C.S. – The Screwtape Letters L1250

McMannus, Patrick – A Fine and Pleasant Misery

Snicket – A Series of Unfortunate Events L1000-1150

Life and Its Problems  -- Contemporary Realistic Fiction is in Red

Aldrich, Bess Streeter – A Lantern in Her Hand L1020  -- Historical

Angelou, Maya – I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings L1070

Avi – Nothing But the Truth L1080 pp. 210

Bach, Richard - Jonathan Livingston Seagull  -- Fantasy

Barrett – Lilies of the Field L770  -- Historical

Bauer, Joan – Hope Was Here, Squashed L710,930

Braithwaite – To Sir with Love

Bunyan, John – Pilgrim’s Progress L1140  -- Allegory

Cannon, A.E. – Amazing Gracie L680

Carter - The Education of Little Tree L890

Creech – any except Walk Two Moons (7^th grade class book)

Dickens, Charles – Great Expectations, A Tale of Two Cities â(required 9^th grade) L1200,1130

Douglass – The Robe -- Historical

Fitzhugh, Louise – Harriet the Spy L760

Fox – The One-Eyed Cat L1000

Frankle, Viktor – Man’s Search for Meaning (Non-fiction)

Gardiner – Stone Fox L550

George, Jean Craighead - Water Sky L730

Gunther - Death Be Not Proud L1069

Hemingway, Ernest – The Old Man and the Sea L940

Hilton – Goodbye Mr. Chips L930

Hinton – That Was Then, This is Now, Tex L780, 710, (The Outsiders â L750 Seventh grade class book)

Holt – When Zachary Beaver Came to Town L700 pp.227

Johnson, Scott – One of the Boys, Safe at Second L700

Keyes – Flowers for Algernon L910

Knowles – A Separate Peace L1110 pp. 196

Krumgold, Joseph – and now Miguel L780 pp. 245

Lindberg, Anne – Gift from the Sea

McCormic – Cut L660 pp. 151

Myers, Walter D.--- Somewhere in the Darkness, Monster L670

Newton, Robert – A Day No Pigs Would Die L690 pp. 150

Olsen, Gretchen – Joyride (200 pages)

Paterson – Bridge to Terebithia L810

Potok, Chiam – The Chosen L970

Randale – The Only Alien on the Planet L650

Ritter – Choosing Up Sides L670

Saint Exupery – The Little Prince L710  -- Fantasy

Sebestyen, Ouida – Words By Heart â L750  -- Historical Fiction

Smith – A Tree Grows in Brooklyn L810

Steinbeck, John – The Red Pony, The Pearl L810,1010

Ten Boom, Corrie – The Hiding Place L900  -- Nonfiction

Voight, Cynthia – Dicey’s Song and others L710

Wiesel, Elie – Night L590  -- Historical Fiction

             Wolff – Make Lemonade L890 pp.200

Love Stories

Austin, Jane – Pride and Prejudice L1100

Bronte, Emily – Wuthering Heights L880

Bronte, Charlotte – Jane Eyre L890

McDonald, George – any of his Scottish romances

West, Jessamyn – Friendly Persuasion L970

[â May not be used for 7^th grade reading.]

Multicultural

Angelou, Maya – I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings L1070

Banks, Lynne Reid – One More River L780

Barrett – Lilies of the Field L770

Brooks -- The Moves Make the Man (basketball) L1150

Carter - The Education of Little Tree L890 pp.216

Frankle, Viktor – Man’s Search for Meaning

Gardiner, John Reynolds – Stone Fox L550

George, Jean Craighead - Water Sky L730

Hicylimaz, Gaye – Against the Storm

Ho, Minfong – The Clay Marble

Ho, Minfong – Rice Without Rain

Houston, Jeanne Wakatsuki– Farewell to Manzanar L1040 p203

Jiang, Ji-Li – Red Scarf Girl L780 pp.285

Levitan, Sonia – The Return

Namioka, Lensey - The Coming of the Bear and others L690-830

Potok, Chiam – The Chosen L970

Richter, Conrad – The Light in the Forest L870

Sebestyen, Ouida –  Words By Heart L750

Taylor, Mildred D. – Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry L920 pp276

Ten Boom, Corrie – The Hiding Place L900

Wiesel, Elie – Night L590

Mystery

Braun, Lilian Jackson – The Cat Who. . . mysteries L740-910 Christie, Agatha – And Then There Were None â 8^th grade , Murder on the Orient Express, others. L570,640

Clark, Mary Higgins – The Anastasia Syndrome L790 (stories)

Doyle, Sir Arthur Conan – Complete Sherlock Holmes L1080

Konigsburg, E.L. – From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, The View From Saturday L700,870

Raskin, Ellen – The Westing Game L750

Van Draanen – Sammy Keyes mysteries

Non-Fiction

Armstrong – Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World L1090

Farrell – Invisible Enemies:. . . Infectious Disease L1200

Hawking – A Brief History of Time L1290

Ritter – The Story of Baseball

Wilson – The Ingenious Mr. Peale

Science Fiction

Adams – The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy L1000

Asimov, Isaac – any novel L740-1250

Bradbury, Ray - The Martian Chronicles, any novel

Card, Orson Scott - Ender’s Game and others. L780-910

Christopher, John – Pool of Fire, The White Mountains, City of Gold and Lead L760-970

Coville, Bruce - My Teacher is an Alien L650, many others. ( You may read â My Teacher Fried My Brains L750 as a class in seventh grade)

Crichton, Michael – Jurassic Park, The Lost World L710,670

Farmer – The Ear, the Eye, and the Arm L660

Lewis, C.S. – Out of the Silent Planet and others (scifi/fantasy)

Lowry, Lois – â The Giver L760, Gathering Blue L680

Philbrick – The Last Book in the Universe L740

Verne, Jules – Journey to the Center of the Earth, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea L1040,1080

Wells, H.G. – The Time Machine, War of the Worlds, The Invisible Man L1070,1170,980

Sports

Biracee, Tom – Wilma Rudolph (Olympics, 111 pages)

Brooks -- The Moves Make the Man (basketball) L1150

Carter, Alden R. – Bull Catcher (baseball, 285 pages) L750

New: Chabon, Michael – Summerland (500 pages)

Krakauer, Jon – Into Thin Air L1320

Paulsen, Gary – Woodsong (dog sledding, 132 pages) L930

Pele – My Life and the Beautiful Game (autobiography – soccer)

Pfetzer, Mark – Within Reach: My Everest Story (nonfiction,

224 pages) L970

Romain, Joseph – The Mystery of Wagner Whacker (baseball - 208 pages), Maradora (soccer, 108 pages)

Western

Clark, Walter Van Tilburg – The Ox Bow Incident L890 p220

Grey, Zane – The Mysterious Rider, The Lost Trail (288 pages) , and others L790-890

L’Amour, Louis L690-1150

Owen, Wister – The Virginian L830

Schaefer, Jack Warner – Shane (119 pages) L870

August 21/22, 2008

August 21/22, 2008
These are the things we're doing today to reach our current learning targets.
Student Target 1: I will be able to correctly spell, capitalize, and punctuate (where appropriate) the names of my teachers, counselor, and administrator.

Today I’ll practice for my first spelling test teachers’, counselor’s, and administrators’ names.
Students practiced a procedure for learning how to spell words.

Student Target: I'll understand the meaning of select terms we use in English class.
Today I’ll study two vocabulary words: genre and novel. I should have two pink vocabulary sheets -- each at least partially filled out -- in my English binder.

Student Target: I'll prepare for the Utah State CORE test by mastering knowledge and skills that will help me succeed in junior high and high school.
Today I’ll honestly do my best on a pretest of 7th Grade CORE knowledge and skills.

August 19/20, 2008

August 19.20, 2008
Student Targets for today:
Today's Self-Starter:
I'll receive and get acquainted with the class disclosure document.
We spent some time filling out the VIP form.
Notice that the best way to give me your contact information in in an e-mail addressed to me at dorsc405@alpine.k12.ut.us and with the subject line "Parent of [your child's name]

2. I'll start practicing for my first spelling test: teachers', counselor's, and administrators' names. (Notice that we added the advisory teacher's name as #13.)

3. I'll receive and understand the Book-of-the-Month Club assignment.

4. I'll study two vocabulary words: fiction and nonfiction.

5. I'll interview and be interviewed by other students, and take notes to use for a written assignment.

Did you meet all of these targets today? If not, see Ms. Dorsey.

First Spelling Test

First Spelling Assignment
(Please notice that we've added #13 -- your advisory teacher.)

Prepare to be tested on correctly spelling (with correct capitalization) these names:

Be ready to take the test on these names on August 28 (A-Day) or 29 (B-Day).

The names of your teachers (include the correct form of address: Mr., Miss, Ms. or Mrs.)
1. ________________________________
2. ________________________________
3. ________________________________
4. ________________________________
5. ________________________________
6. ________________________________
7. ________________________________
8. ________________________________
Your counselor:
9. _________________________________

The names of our administrators
10. Principal: Mr. Shane Farnsworth
11. Vice-Principal: Mr. Jim Young
12. Vice-Principal: Mr. Todd Dalley
13. Advisory Teacher _______________________

Book-of-the-Month Club Assignment

Book-of-the-Month Club Assignment: In addition to the reading we’ll do in class, students are required to read a novel (or other approved book) on their own (outside of school, during advisory reading time, etc.) each month. You will keep a reading log, and toward the end of the month, you will complete, mostly in class, an assessment based on the book.
Book Requirements: You get to choose your book ☺, but it must meet these requirements.
 The book cannot be one read as a class or as a small group in class.
 The book must be grade level/reading level appropriate.
 The book should be 100 pages or longer. Select a book you can read by the time it is due.
 See the back of this sheet for a list of books not allowed.
 Check your teacher’s website and/or blog for a list of recommended books.
 The book must be approved by a parent or guardian, and by your teacher.
 The teacher may ask you to read a book from a particular genre.

Books Not Allowed for Class Book Assessments

Books Not Allowed for Class Book Assessments
[Some of these books are used as class sets in our 7TH, 8TH and 9TH grade English classes. Others may be considered by our English department teachers to be too “young” for you, or otherwise inappropriate as homework for a junior high class.]

A Tale of Two Cities
Adventures of Ulysses
And Then There Were None
Animal Farm
Book of Three
Boxcar Children, any of the series
Bud, Not Buddy
Call of the Wild
Captain Underpants, any of the series
Charlotte’s Web
Diary of Anne Frank
Getting Away with Murder
Goosebumps, any of the series
Great Brain, any of the series
Great Gilly Hopkins
Gregor the Overlander (#1 and #2)
Harriet the Spy
Holes
Ice Story
Invention of Hugo Cabret
Left for Dead
Midwife’s Apprentice
Mississippi Trial 1955
Phineas Gage
Regarding the Fountain
Roll off Thunder, Hear My Cry
Romeo and Juliet
Stand Tall
Tom Sawyer
The Giver
The Outsiders
The Whipping Boy
To Kill a Mockingbird
Walk Two Moons
White Fang
Words By Heart
Authors:
Judy Blume
Beverly Cleary
Katherine Patterson (most)
R.L. Stein (all)

Literature Class books:
Stargirl
Witness
Esperanza Rising
Road to Memphis
Princess Bride
Gathering Blue
Pudd’n Head Wilson
Trouble Don’t Last
Keylock Man
Storyteller’s Daughter
Hoot
Surviving the Applewhites
The Dark is Rising
The Martian Chronicles
The Hobbit
The Westing Game

Also not accepted:
Books you read for reading skills or literature classes (or other classes), comic books, cartoon books, scriptures.
Please do not select books you have previously read.



The consequence for doing a book assessment on books “not allowed” will be a zero (no points) on the assignment.
Your teacher reserves the right to add or delete books on this list at her discretion.
 Have your book approved by your teacher and parents before you start reading.

Supplies for English Class

Welcome to Ms. Dorsey’s Seventh Grade Language Arts (English Class)
- Supplies Needed for Seventh Grade English Classes -
Prices for school supplies are usually at their lowest just as summer vacation is ending. Watch for deals on these items, and, if you can, pick up enough for the school year.
1. Three-ring binders (Your English binder may be used for more than one class.)
2. Dividers for the binder
3. Plenty of loose-leaf binder paper
4. A couple of 8 1/2” by 11” bound notebooks (spiral bound or pull-out) (The inexpensive 70-page notebooks work well.)
5. One or more composition books to leave in the classroom for reading responses.
6. Pencils (Be prepared to carry more than one.)
7. Pens (standard blue or blank ink for assignments) (Be prepared to carry more than one.)

It is important for each student to bring writing utensils to class every day.
You could bring gel pens, and other colored pens, but don't plan to write assignments using them.

Parents, permanent markers tend to be a nuisance item at school, so have students mark their belongings at home and leave the permanent markers there.

None of these materials are provided by the school,
and bringing required materials to class is considered part of the student’s preparation to learn.

If your family can't afford school supplies, please let the teacher know.

Optional, but helpful: colored pencils (These may be required for other classes.), a handheld pencil sharpener, a small stapler, a three-ring hole punch that fits in your 3-ring binder, sticky notes, a small bottle of hand sanitizer. In case of colds or allergies, your student may want to bring his or her own facial tissues to school, since the brand provided by the school is not the softest.
To contact Ms. Dorsey: E-mail dorsc405@alpine.k12.ut.us Phone 756-8543 ext. 206.

Vampires and Werewolves!

Yes, I have read Breaking Dawn. I finished it within 20 hours of when we bought it just after midnight on the night of its release. And, yes, I enjoyed it (I, too, love Edward Cullen), but see my "disclaimers" below:

Meyer, Stephenie -- Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, Breaking Dawn [I recommend these books only with these stipulations: 1) a parent should read them before or as the student is reading them (Most moms get hooked on the books, just as I have), 2) a girl reader should first promise to never let a boy into her bedroom unless he is with a moving crew or is her little brother, 3) a girl reader should first promise never to date anyone she can't tell her parents all about, 4) a girl reader should first promise never to date a "dangerous" man, 5) any reader needs to realize that there is no real person who has the willpower of an Edward Cullen. So don't put yourself in "dangerous" situations!]