Kid’s Books Found in the 800s

With a new month, it’s time to start a new series of blog posts! This time we’re going to take a closer look at the Dewey Decimal System. For each class of numbers, I’ll share twelve specific titles for kids that you might find in that class. Before we get started, let me share a little information about the Dewey Decimal System and then we can dig in!

The Dewey Decimal System, created by Melvil Dewey in 1876 was created to organize books based on discipline and subject. The system is broken down into ten classes, each divided into ten divisions, and each of those divided into ten sections. Each subject matter has a three-digit that explains where it belongs with the option to include decimal places to further divide the section. For example, a cookbook is found in:

• 600 – Technology
  • 640 – Home economics and family management
    • 641 – Food and drink
      • 641.5 – Cooking and cookbooks

While the system has been updated through the years, criticism remains as the Dewey Decimal System is extremely Eurocentric and treatment of women, people of color, and other minorities continues to need updates (which can take years). Some public libraries have even abandoned the Dewey Decimal System in favor of other systems that either make more sense for their communities or systems that are better balanced.

The 800s are a tricky place for the Dewey Decimal System mainly because the 800s focus on literature and most literature has been moved into fictional shelving alphabetized by the author’s last name. The major things that can still be found in the 800s, specifically in the children’s department, are poetry collections as well as titles to help children learn how to write. Poetry is an underutilized format and I think exploring the 800s is a great way for kids (and adults!) to become more comfortable with poetry and its “rules” or guidelines.

The next time you stop at your local public library, swing by the nonfiction section and take a look at what you might find in the 800s! And at home, you can check out LibraryThing’s MDS – you can click on each class and see how things are organized at each level.

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Kid’s Books Found in the 800s

Awesome Earth: Concrete Poems Celebrate Caves, Canyons, and Other Fascinating Landforms by Joan Bransfield Graham, illustrated by Tania Garcia

The Earth’s crust shakes, water swells, lava flows, and glaciers advance. In this ingenious picture book, the landforms created by Earth’s powerful forces are examined through compelling concrete poetry. From canyons to volcanos, archipelagoes to hoodoos, take a tour of the many fascinating forms and features of our awesome planet.

Rich back matter includes more about landforms, a glossary, and additional resources for readers, caregivers, and educators.

Barbed Wire Between Us by Mia Wenjen, illustrated by Violeta Encarnación

Barbed Wire Between Us is a powerful reverso poem that tells two deeply resonant stories across time. It begins with a Japanese American girl sent to an internment camp in Oklahoma during World War II. Read in reverse, it reveals the journey of a Latina girl detained in the very same camp decades later, during the U.S. policy of migrant family separation.

Harrowing and emotionally charged, this poetic narrative compels us to confront a haunting question: What have we truly learned in the past 80 years about how we treat the most vulnerable among us? With haunting symmetry and striking parallels, Barbed Wire Between Us is a moving meditation on justice, memory, and the echoes of history that still shape our present.

Dear Acorn (Love, Oak): Letter Poems to Friends by Joyce Sidman, illustrated by Melissa Sweet

Dear Sky,
Hello! It’s me, Bubble!
I’m here!
Someone’s breathed me
awake!

What is it like to be little? What is it like to be big?

Award-winning poet Joyce Sidman explores both in this lyrical picture book. Whether it’s a small bubble writing to the enormous sky, or a mighty oak reassuring its tiny acorn, these surprising and delightful poems examine how we’re all connected—in both big and small ways.

Dinos That Drive by Suzy Levinson, illustrated by Dustin Harbin

You’ve never seen a dinosaur that’s into driving cars? Well, buckle up! Brontosaurus, Triceratops, Pterodactyl and T. rex are all here to show off their driving, flying and diving skills in this riotous, fully illustrated book of poems about dinosaurs and their favorite things-that-go! From flighty Bambiraptor’s traffic chopper to hardheaded Pachycephalosaurus’s garbage truck to mama Maiasaura’s kid-carting minivan, and even to the stars beyond — these dinos on the go have no time to slow down. Each spread is full of fun details for young readers to pore over, but with our intrepid dino guides providing helpful dino facts on each page, you’ll never need a GPS again!

Great Gusts: Winds of the World and the Science Behind Them by Melanie Crowder and Megan Benedict, illustrated by Khoa Le

Lift your face to the breeze—
let it bathe your cheeks
sift through your hair
tease your fingertips.

In a dynamic collection of poems, Melanie Crowder and Megan Benedict explore the world’s winds, from Italy’s swaggering maestro to Libya’s fierce ghibli to Canada’s howling squamish. The poetic styles used reflect the characteristics and sometimes the location of each wind: Japan’s blustery oroshi is celebrated in haiku, for example, while the poem about Britain’s helm uses iambs in a nod toward the iambic pentameter of English sonnets. Sidebars relay the science behind how each wind forms, where it blows, and the weather systems it heralds, and the airy art from award-winning illustrator Khoa Le is overlaid with scientifically accurate wind lines that show the path of each gust. More meteorological details can be found in the back matter, which includes explorations of the origin of wind and how winds are named, a world map pinning the winds’ locations, a glossary, and books for further reading.

Haiku, Ew!: Celebrating the Disgusting Side of Nature by Lynn Brunelle, illustrated by Julia Patton

If you think poems about nature are all pretty flowers and rainbow sunsets, this book is not for you. If you can’t handle giant whale farts, turn back right now. If you don’t want to know how lobsters pee, do not read one word further. Seriously, if you open this book, you’re going to find out the disgusting truth about where honey comes from!

All right, you’re in charge. Don’t say we didn’t warn you . . .

I Heard: An American Journey by Jaha Nailah Avery, illustrated by Steffi Walthall

With stunning lyricism reminiscent of traditional African spirituals and today’s rhythm and flow of hip-hop, a teacher shares the history of being Black in the US, while continuing to march into present day–undeterred and proud to be Black. Author Jaha Nailah Avery shows you have to understand the past to shape the future, and knowing who you are gives you the strength to do just that.

Ready for Spaghetti: Funny Poems for Funny Kids by Michael Rosen, illustrated by Polly Dunbar

Will you getti the spaghetti?
Don’t say, “Not yetti spaghetti!”
I’m all setti for spaghetti.

Fizzing with rhythm, energy, and laughter, this perfect gift-book introduction to poetrycelebrates the day-to-day routines of early childhood. From the rise-and-shine exuberance of “Up, up, uppity-up!” to the sweet lull of “Hush and a hush/soft and low,” colorful pages abound with observations of ordinary moments, from brushing your teeth to digging in a sandbox, that mirror a childlike day-in-the-life. Poetic bounty at its best and brightest, this playful and affectionate read-aloud treasure will have toddlers clamoring for more, for the sheer fun of it.

A Whale of a Time: A Funny Poem for Each Day of the Year by Lou Peacock, illustrated by Matt Hunt

A wonderful gift for all ages, this beautiful, rib-tickling anthology is guaranteed to put a smile on your face! Whether it’s a poem about socks or spaniels, eggs or elephants, this bright and brilliant collection will bring you cheer and laughter every day. Perfect for reading aloud and sharing even more side-splitting hilarity with family and friends.

The spectacular range of poems for children includes work by John Agard, Maya Angelou, Brian Bilston, Gwendolyn Brooks, Lucille Clifton, Wendy Cope, Nikki Grimes, Nikki Giovanni, Langston Hughes, Edward Lear, Ogden Nash, Linda Sue Park, Michael Rosen, Judith Viorst, William Carlos Williams, Jane Yolen, Benjamin Zephaniah, and many more!

With a ribbon marker and poems about everything from animals, holidays, and food, to friendship, family, and feelings, A Whale of a Time is the perfect gift for any occasion.

Words with Wings and Magic Things by Matthew Burgess, illustrated by Doug Salati

Beyond the doorway of the first page of this collection awaits a dragon piñata, an alligator on the A train, a hungry yeti, an ice cream dream, jetpack sneakers, midnight firelight, a gray day, a plump tomato, a serious question and so much more. Whether you’re feeling blue, lemon yellow or Day-Glo green, this inviting and magical book of poems takes young readers on an uplifting journey through everyday moments, moods and experiences, transforming the ordinary into the extraordinary.

With enchanting illustrations throughout and seven die-cut portals that open into the realms of Welcome, Wonder, Wild, Weee!, Whoops & Wallops, Windows and Whispers & Well Wishes, Words With Wings and Magic Things explores how words can awaken us to a world of wonder and possibility. Step inside . . . and take flight!

Your Story Matters: A Surprisingly Practical Guide to Writing by Richard Scrimger, illustrated by D. McFadzean

Interested in writing but don’t know how to get started? Love reading and want to know more about how stories are created? Like ridiculous tales about troublesome sisters, peanut butter and steamrollers? Look no further!

Esteemed writer Richard Scrimger is here to answer all your burning questions about writing: whether about plot, character, structure, story hooks or commas. (Actually, don’t ask him about commas, it’s not that kind of book.)

Using clever (so he thinks) analogies, (sort of) brilliant examples and funny (well . . .) anecdotes, he will give you (truly) useful tools to start you on your way as a writer. And if that’s not enough, comic illustrations by D. McFadzean are the pepperoni on the writing pizza! (That will make sense once you read the book.)

So come, read this book and start your writing journey!

You’re a Poet: Ways to Start Writing Poems by Sean Taylor, illustrated by Sam Usher

When Piglet picks up a stone and drops it into a puddle, words seem to splash out: wet, fresh, earthy, sploshing, sunshiny, puddle. Is Piglet a poet? Each of five charming stories captures a warm snapshot into some happy moment in childhood while demonstrating how to create a different kind of poem: a puddle poem, a comparing poem, a making-a-person-out-of-something poem, an if-I-was poem, and an I-would-give-you poem. With plenty of tips and tricks after each story and fresh illustrations by Sam Usher, author Sean Taylor makes poetry writing accessible, inspiring even the youngest of children to find their voice and call themselves poets.