• Lists

    Top Ten Tuesday: Art Heist Middle Grade Mysteries

    Top Ten Tuesday

    In today’s blog post for Top Ten Tuesday, we had the chance to choose a “genre freebie.” And I’ll tell you how I ended up in sharing books in this tiny little niche of a sub-genre – art heist middle grade mysteries. When I sat down to choose a genre,…

  • Lists

    12 Mindfulness Books for Parents, Caregivers, & Teachers

    mindfulness

    I think just about everyone can benefit from a little mindfulness! “Mindfulness means maintaining a moment-by-moment awareness of our thoughts, feelings, bodily sensations, and surrounding environment, through a gentle, nurturing lens” (Greater Good Magazine). This is often easier said than done, but with anxiety, high levels of stress, and mental…

  • Lists

    12 Read-Alikes for the I Survived Series

    wilderness mountain with towering pine trees

    Today I’m sharing 12 Read-Alikes for the I Survived series. The I Survived series by Lauren Tarshis is a popular one in my library. At just over 100 pages, these books are quick reads that bring history to life in action-packed text. And now they’re also being re-released as graphic…

  • Lists

    Top Ten Tuesday: Favorite Heroes & Heroines

    Top Ten Tuesday

    Today’s theme Favorite Heroines got adjusted just a little to Favorite Heroes & Heroines so that I could share some of my favorite middle grade fantasy titles! I tend to claim that I’m not much of a fantasy reader, but in truth, I am. I’ve found that I can find…

  • Lists

    2023 CLEL Bell Award Winners

    play blocks

    The CLEL Bell Awards are announced annually by the Colorado Libraries for Early Literacy (CLEL). Five books are awarded “in recognition of five high-quality picture books that provide excellent support of early literacy development in young children.” CLEL doesn’t just award books an award. They also create early literacy activity…

  • Lists

    2022 CYBILS Award Winners

    trophy and medal

    The CYBILS or Children’s and Young Adult Bloggers’ Literary Awards were presented on Valentine’s Day (or February 14th). And with a crazy week at work, I’m finally getting a chance to sit down and check out all the winners this year! The CYBILS “aims to recognize the children’s and young…

  • Lists

    Top Ten Tuesday: First Crush Middle Grade Novels

    Top Ten Tuesday

    It’s a Valentine’s Day freebie for Top Ten Tuesday today. And at first, I was at a loss as to what to share today. But then, I realized that first crushes was a perfect theme for today’s Top Ten Tuesday. Some might think that middle grade readers are too young…

  • Lists

    Bedtime Books for Little Ones

    bedtime

    What theme is more popular than bedtime books for little ones? Bedtime is a prime time to snuggle together and spend time reading aloud. There are probably hundreds, if not thousands of picture books dedicated to bedtime, but today I’m sharing just a few. This post may contain affiliate links,…

  • Lists

    12 Books of Poetry for Teens

    microphone

    I’m going to bet this may not be one of my more popular posts. Let’s be honest, you say the words teens and poetry in the same sentence and your mind automatically conjures up some classroom where you learned to memorize poetry from centuries ago. But, I promise, that is…

  • Lists

    Top Ten Tuesday: 2023 Debut Books I’m Excited About

    Top Ten Tuesday

    When I realized today’s theme was all about debut books, I was super excited! I spent a good part of January sharing A LOT of debut authors and books, which means I’ve got a great idea of some of the fantastic titles coming out this year from debut authors. In…