• Lists

    2024 Blogging A to Z Challenge: Boy Characters

    boy characters header

    It’s day two and time for the letter “B”! And while my title is a little clunky, it’s written that way on purpose. I don’t adhere to the idea that there are “boy” books and “girl” books. Rather, there are books that interest readers. And yes, I know that some…

  • Lists

    2024 Blogging A to Z Challenge: Aquatics

    2024 A to Z Challenge: Letter A

    It’s the very first day of April, and you know what that means – the beginning of the 2024 Blogging A to Z Challenge! I’m excited to participate in my ninth(!) year of this challenge! This year, my theme is adventurous readers and I’m going to be sharing 26 letter-themed…

  • Lifestyle

    Director’s Thoughts – 6/21/2023

    computer

    It’s Summer Reading time and it feels like most of my time is spent thinking, planning, talking, and even posting today’s Director’s Thoughts – 6/21/2023 about it! A time to engage families in the library even more so than usual and get kids excited about reading! Our library held our…

  • Lists

    2023 Blogging A to Z: Reflections

    Reflections

    It’s May 1st and I’ve completed my 8th year of the Blogging A to Z Challenge! Over the course of April, I shared 26 blog posts with 312 picture book, chapter book, middle grade, and young adult titles under my theme – Books for Every Reader! I hope you found…

  • Lists

    2023 Blogging A to Z: Zany

    Z: Zany

    I can’t believe we’ve already reached the letter “Z” It has been a very busy month and I’m so glad I got to share over 300 titles and authors with you! For the letter “Z”, I chose the word zany. Zany became my catch-call letter for some really fun, wacky,…

  • Lists

    2023 Blogging A to Z: Youthful

    Y: Youthful

    I wanted the chance to throw in some picture books to the 300+ titles I was suggesting this month, so I thought my adjective “youthful” would be the perfect place for them! I tried to pull a mix of picture book titles that are great for older readers with more…

  • Reviews

    Like – Picture Book Review

    kids on the beach

    Summary: “Are you like a tin can?Not really. How about a swimming pool?Like a swimming pool, you are filled with water and chemicals and dirt, so you are a little bit like a swimming pool. How about mushrooms, excavators, hyenas . . .  Hey, wait a minute! You know what…

  • Lists

    20 Favorite Graphic Novels

    graphic novel

    Graphic novels are some of the most popular books in my library for kids! They absolutely LOVE them! I often think that kids fail to look beyond the perennial favorites like Raina Telegemeier and Dav Pilkey. Not to say there is anything wrong with either of these authors – they…

  • Lists

    15 Short Middle Grade Books

    short book header

    Great books don’t have to be over 400 pages. In fact, it takes a really great writer to write a long book that will readers reading. J. K. Rowling is probably one of the most well-known authors who was able to manage this for a younger audience. But, that doesn’t…

  • Activities

    Storytime Theme: Trees

    trees header

    Tree-themed storytimes usually happen in the spring or the fall due to the changes that happen to tree leaves during those seasons, but these great books can be used at any time of year! A lot of tree-themed picture books do mention the seasons, while others are focused on tree…