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One of my favorite things to do as a young adult was spend hours at the public library looking for books to bring home. I loved the freedom to choose whatever books I wanted. I would carefully pull books out after reading titles that sounded interesting and sit on the floor in between the rows and rows of books. I would create stacks of books that I wanted to bring home. Books that seemed funny, books with beautiful illustrations, or books that appealed to my interests. I don't think I ever successfully read all of the books I brought home, but I continued this same process each time I would go. Up to this day, I still bring home too many books from the public library.

Donalyn Miller's novel The Book Whisperer provides insight on how to create an inclusive and powerful classroom focused on readers and free-choice. She brings my library dreams to life inside the walls of her classroom. Miller's approach to teaching reading is unconventional compared to the traditional test-preparation instruction that takes place in so many classrooms today. Miller's goal is to create lifelong readers that love to read. She does this by creating a community of readers with a goal of reading 40 books in one school year. She finds the inner reader in every student by building relationships, setting high expectations, and giving children the freedom to choose and explore literature. The Book Whisperer made me question my own use of leveling systems, classroom libraries, and book choice. Could it really be possible to let students choose freely without micromanaging the entire process? Miller believes it is not only possible, it is necessary.

The Book Whisperer shares Donalyn Miller's personal reflections on being a lifelong reader, the "how-to" in setting up a classroom library and reading workshop, and my personal favorite, whispers, the activities Miller uses to build relationships and promote dialogue around literacy. Miller begins the novel sharing her personal experience as a reader.

Donalyn Miller loves reading, and it is contagious. She does not pick favorites or hold reservations. She loves all books. From the first day of class, her students learn that Donalyn Miller loves to read and that she wants her students to love to read as well. Miller's reading workshop follows important components. (NOTE: refer to "My Reader's Notebook" for more information.) She believes her students have the right to choose their own books and must be given ample time to read. But what about the students that are below level readers, have been held back, failed the standardized test last year, or simply refuse to read? There is no difference. Miller sets high expectations and fosters a community of readers. "Time and time again, I have seen a heavy dose of independent reading, paired with explicit instruction in reading strategies, transform nonreaders into readers" (p.25).

In order to create a community of readers, Miller states that the classroom must be a motivational environment. (NOTE: refer to "My Reader's Notebook" for more information on conditions for learning.) Students must be surrounded by books, given explicit instruction, and responsibility. Students must be able to make choices in their learning. Most importantly, in order to have a motivating environment, students must be engaged and accepted no matter where they are on the reading curve.

The Forty-Book challenge sets the bar high for reading expectations. Donalyn Miller realizes that by setting a goal of 10 books or another lower number, students wait to get started. She wants to get books in her students' hands on day one. She wants her students to read every single day. Children learn to love reading by spending time reading. The Forty-Book challenge requires students to read outside of their comfort zone by exploring genres. Miller hopes that by pushing students to explore, children will find the one genre that really speaks to them. (NOTE: Genre requirements are in My Reader's Notebook)

Miller's powerful challenge to read forty books in one school year highlights the importance of providing our students with time to read. There is no way to come close to meeting this requirement if we spend valuable instructional minutes completing mindless worksheets, thematic units, or sitting in a circle while students share yet another book report. Miller's message to teachers everywhere makes us question how we spend our instructional time with students. Every minute in Miller's classroom is focused on one key idea: create lifelong readers.

The most compelling parts of Donalyn Miller's book were the activities designed to allow dialogue between the student and teacher around literacy, called whispers. The students in Donalyn Miller's classroom want her insight and recommendations. It is clear through the quotes and student samples that her students trust and respect her as a reader. Donalyn shares ways to create this connection and reading relationship with your own students.

Miller's novel touches on multiple themes including all students are readers, children must be given choice and opportunities to read, and the teacher must act as a reading role model. The Book Whisperer made me reflect on my own instruction in the classroom. Am I spending time after school grading "busy work" when I could be responding to student letters or creating personalized piles of books that I believe would help my students fall in love with literature? Donalyn Miller's passion for literacy reaches outside the classroom. Her students leave her class with a love for reading that prepares them for far more than a standardized test.

Donalyn Miller's enthusiasm for reading made me want to join the Forty-Book Challenge too! Her book is inspiring and a very enjoyable read. While I love her message and the ideas overall, the Forty-Book Challenge may not possible in all classrooms. Elementary grades may find it difficult when stamina is not yet established; however, her goals to develop the reader and not just the student for the specific grade level can be applied no matter what grade you teach. In addition, I believe the Forty-Book Challenge can easily be turned into a competition, which is not the intent. It is important to keep the focus on developing each reader and respecting where he/she is in their reading development.

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Donalyn Miller's students love to share book titles and recommendations. Miller even has her own "Miller mountain" of books she plans on reading in her home. I would love to use this space to discover new titles. Please share in the comments below.

My recommendations:
Picture books
Not Quite Narwhal by Jessie Sima
Thundercake by Patricia Polacco
Fly Away Home by Eve Bunting
The Napping House by Audrey Wood
We're Going on a Bear Hunt by Michael Rosen and Helen Oxenbury
Young Adult
Crenshaw by Katherine Applegate
Pax by Sara Pennypecker
Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson
Esperanza Rising by Pam Munoz Ryan
Adult
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware
Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden

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Notes from The Book Whisperer

Key Components of a Reading Workshop
Time
Choice
Response
Community
Structure
Source: Atwell, 1998

Conditions for Learning according to Brian Cambourne
Immersion
Demonstrations
Expectations
Responsibility
Employment
Approximations
Response
Engagement
Is free from anxiety
Is modeled by someone they like, respect, and trust

Forty-Book Requirement
Poetry anthologies 5
Traditional Literature 5
Realistic Fiction 5
Historical Fiction 2
Fantasty 4
Science fiction 2
Mystery 2
Informational 4
Biography, autobiography, memoir 2
Chapter-book choice 9

Whispers
Building relationships to ensure each student is heard and valued
Student surveys - Miller uses these to create book recommendations
Reader's Notebooks - Informal letters back and forth between student and teacher regarding books read independently by the student
End of Year Evaluations - Candid insight on student growth and reflections

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Donalyn Miller is an author, awarded Texas teacher, staff development leader, and avid reader. She has taught fourth, fifth, and sixth grade classrooms in Fort Worth, Texas. While Donalyn Miller has a passion for Language Arts, her career did not start in the classroom. Miller was a bookkeeper and worked in corporate settings before finding herself in the classroom.

The Book Whisperer (2009) is Miller's first novel. She has since published Reading in the Wild (2013) and appeared in publications such as Gifted Child International, Education Week Teacher, The Reading Teacher, Voices From the Middle, Educational Leadership, Horn Book, and The Washington Post. Donalyn Miller writes about the importance of free choice reading and fostering the reader in every student in the classroom.

Donalyn Miller has co-founded the popular blog, The Nerdy Book Club, with Colby Sharp. Educators and readers alike can gather in this online community to share recommendations, resources, and explore favorite titles for young adult readers. Donalyn's other projects she pursues include her #bookaday challenge and #titletalk. To learn more about these challenges, I recommend following her on twitter.

Donalyn lives in Colleyville, Texas with her husband Don, another avid reader.

"When my students think about me in the future, I want them to remember me as a reader with a book in my hand and a recommendation on my lips" (Miller, 2009, p.106)

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Donalyn Miller asks educators to reflect on their own experiences as a reader. Students need more than just modeling how to read. According to Miller, children need to see what a reading life looks like (2009, p.110).

My reading life started as a young child eager to read Henry and Mudge. I was below level, and I knew it. I was often pulled out of class to meet with the reading specialist in another room with a small group of students. We worked on passages and comprehension questions. I quickly became frustrated with anything related to Language Arts. I hated being pulled out of the classroom. I resented the Henry and Mudge series because it was too difficult for me according to my scores on standardized assessment. I slowly began to despise any and all books that were placed in front of me in small group.

This all changed when I entered my fourth grade classroom. My teacher asked me what kinds of books I enjoyed. I didn't know. I only knew the books I enjoyed to read from the bookshelf in my home that I had read at least a million times since I was a little girl. I knew that those books were not what she had in mind. I glanced at her bookshelves of thick lengthy chapter books. I told her I liked Nancy Drew. This was a lie, and we both knew it. I had never read Nancy Drew. Instead of pushing me towards books she believed were at my "level," she let me explore. She put stacks of mystery books in front of me. We eagerly went through the pile together talking about how we could pick a book that felt right for me. I ended up picking The Bobbsy Twins of Lakeport by Laura Lee Hope. My reading life changed that day. I devoured the book in less than 24 hours. I was hooked. I read the entire series that year.

I ask you to reflect on your own reading life. What was the last book you read? Was this book for pleasure or for school/work? Miller urges us to consider how our view of reading may seep into our instruction (2009, p.110) What was our reading life as a child? Was it a positive or negative experience? Please share in the comments below.