Torrey Maldonado
Here’s a letter from my heart to someone who helped inspire what’s at the heart of my writing and teaching, and what’s at the heart of books I hold close.
books
Mental Health in Children’s Literature
Authors Dr. Nancy Bo Flood and Ann Jacobus have been curating a list of traditionally published, exceptional children’s literature that tackles mental illness for over a decade.
Let’s Offer Readers a History Buffet
There are, of course, a myriad of possibilities for your history buffet: mix and match middle grade fiction, long form nonfiction, picture books, both nonfiction and informational fiction, artwork, film, and museum websites.
Firefly Light and Great Books about the Night
Do you remember summer nights when you were a child? Running on bare feet? The grass silk-soft and dewy? Crickets chirping? A bright slice of moon? Fireflies and the first stars?
Marveling about Migration
Flyways? Up until this moment, I confess I had a relatively elementary-school-like understanding of how and why birds migrate. Join me in learning more.
Books for Baby Gifts
Books are a wonderful way to encourage families to start the read-aloud habit early and often. Here are suggestions from people who work with children, families, and books.
Welcoming Spring with Froggy Books and Wild Experiences
This much-anticipated froggy season and this week's World Frog Day mark a time of increased appreciation for our amphibian neighbors. It's the perfect time to study frogs
How Parks Connect Us
… and Why It Matters
Spring is in the air, and we’re pulled outdoors to wander in our favorite city parks. Ducks are dabbling; frogs are trilling; the apple trees are bursting into bloom. Everywhere, it seems, children frolic and neighbors wave. It’s been a long winter, but our cities are alive.
Doorways to the Wild and Wondrous
Today, writing about nature and outdoor play just feels as natural and right to me as breathing. All my happy memories of chasing frogs, climbing trees, and splashing in summer lakes easily inform the stories I write.
Catherine Urdahl
As a child, I was shy and scared — of other kids, dogs, almost anything outside my fence. My parents enrolled me in preschool, hoping I’d blossom. I refused to get out of the car. I had everything I needed at home, including a mom who loved reading to me. My first book memory is Three Bedtime Stories: The Three Little Kittens, The Three Little Pigs, The Three Bears, illustrated by Garth Williams.
Mélina Mangal
Mélina Mangal’s Self on the Shelf
I looked on my shelves, wondering which books to highlight. I have several shelves, scattered around the house. Though I am a school librarian, my home shelves are quite fluid, as in, they’re not strictly organized. Books are loosely grouped by format and size, sometimes by genre. I really don’t have that many books (I love to visit the library!),
Ann Angel and Her Reading Team
February 2021
Our Raising Star Readers contributor Ann Angel always has a unique take on selecting books for her Reading Team. Here, Ann talks about books that encourage what she calls “mindfulness moments” — titles that help kids (and adults) slow down and focus during our current “wild” times:
Our house is home to three generations. So husband Jeff and I live with Teddy, a rather rambunctious five-year-old, and his mom.… more
Tracy Sue Walker
This month we welcome Tracy Sue Walker, author, public librarian, and professional storyteller.
She’s recently been revealing “the truth about” a series of mystical creatures, so far including dragons, Bigfoot, and unicorns, for Scholastic Book Clubs.
Tracy describes herself this way, “A booklover, daydreamer, and goofball, I’m pretty quiet unless I’m telling a story, then I’m pretty loud.”
Candice Ransom
One green thing I wish everyone would do:
Give up plastic bags. It’s hard, I know, to remember to carry a bag into a store. I wish we could give up other forms of plastic, like the blister packs encasing everything from Barbie dolls to Bic pens. Back in the days of five and ten stores, it was so nice to simply pick an item out of a bin or off a shelf, pay for it, and not wrestle with tin snips to get it open.
Going Rogue
“Exploration is really the Essence of the Human Spirit.”
—Frank Borman
’Tis the season for fall themes such as pumpkins, leaves, and turkeys. As I was planning programs for October and November, I decided it was time to go rogue and think of new themes. I started searching terms such as “funny fall celebrations” and “unusual holidays.” From National Mad Hatter Day to National Cake Decorating Day, my search helped me develop new program opportunities for families to enjoy including:
National Mad Hatter Day, October 6, 2019
Journey down the rabbit hole and make Wonderland come to life.… more
Celebrating Rosh Hashanah
The Jewish High Holidays begin with the festivities of the New Year on Rosh Hashanah and end ten days later with the observance of the Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur. It’s a time of reflection and a renewal of intentions to do better in the coming year. Here are a number of books that will help children understand the traditions of the holiday and experience the joy of the celebration.
… more Dogman© Unleashed
Encourage kids to be creative without worrying about being perfect.
—Dav Pilkey
At the start of the fall program season, I asked our youngest patrons what programs they would like the library to offer. I heard a child yell out, “DOGMAN”! I smiled and I told him that was a great idea. Dogman© is a graphic novel series written and illustrated by Dav Pilkey that tells the story of George and Harold’s newly created hero of justice.… more
Back-to-School Favorites
This list was contributed by Deb Andries and Maurna Rome, friends, educators, and colleagues!
Favorites from Deb Andries:
Alma and How She Got her Name by Juana Martinez-Neal
Dreamers by Yuyi Morales
A Quiet Place by Doug Wood and Dan Andreasen
The Day You Begin by Jacqueline Woodson and
Truman by Jean Reidi and Lucy Ruth Cummins
Drum Dream Girl by Margarita Engle and
How to Read a Book by Kwame Alexander and Melissa Sweet
Why by Laura Vaccaro Seeger
Each Kindness by Jacqueline Woodson and E.B. Lewis… more
Summer Reading Kick-off
For the past four years, my library has provided our community with a summer reading carnival to kickstart our summer reading program. For the first two years, we had a few bounce houses and cotton candy and 400 patrons attended. To plan our past carnival, I brainstormed ideas on how to continue by providing a carnival with more than bounces houses and cotton candy.… more
Fresh Air: Taking Storytime Outdoors
“We could never have loved the earth so well if we had no childhood in it.” —George Eliot
In the state of Iowa, where I live, the change from winter to spring is like an on and off switch. Yet, at the end of another vortex, Spring has finally come to Iowa. Spring is a perfect time to schedule your storytime programs outdoors.… more
Libraries and Librarians
We’re posting this when it’s National Library Week, but we believe every week should be Library Week. If you love public, school, and special libraries as much as we do, add these books to your reading list and share them with your favorite readers.
As always, if you have a book you believe should be on this list, let us know in the comments or send us an e‑mail.
… more The Animals in The Stuff of Stars
When I first read The Stuff of Stars by Marion Dane Bauer and Ekua Holmes, I was captivated by the beauty of the book and its lyrical thoughts about the earth and our environment. Ms. Holmes’ illustrations invite us to look closer, to discern the creatures she’s so artfully included. Ms. Bauer’s text includes a list of animals that roam the earth, bringing to mind all of the stories and facts about these specific animals, birds, insects, and reptiles.
… more Bookstorm™: Just Like Rube Goldberg
Educators across the country have been inspired by Rube Goldberg’s intricate, clever, engineering-based, but unlikely-to-be-made-in-real-life cartoons. Students are gathering to create their own Rube Goldberg machines, using everyday objects in fun and innovative ways to accomplish simple tasks with fun results. Just Like Rube Goldberg inspires all its readers with the details about Rube’s childhood and his trip into adulthood.… more
The Arrow of Time
When you walk into our house, you know immediately my husband and I are readers. The dining room is designated as the library, but there are bookcases and books in every single room, including the bathrooms. We subscribe to The Wall Street Journal and the Sunday New York Times, as well as Smithsonian, Audubon, and Sky and Telescope.… more
Books Are Our Emissaries
As authors, we send our books out into the world and, if we’re lucky, they connect us to good people whose paths we wouldn’t otherwise cross.
For 28 years, Dinner at the Panda Palace has been my excellent emissary.
Dinner at the Panda Palace started as a simple counting and sorting book with lots of animals and a party atmosphere to make the learning fun. … more
A Match Made in Heaven
A little more than two years ago I shared a Teach it Forward column entitled “Books for my Grandbaby and Me.” As I celebrated the arrival of my first grandchild and marveled at the joy of becoming a first-time grandma, I embraced the chance to share my love of reading with this most precious future book lover. It was a match made in heaven … a little one to hold gently on my lap while sharing book after book.… more
Skinny Dip with Stephanie Calmenson
Author of the beloved Dinner at the Panda Palace, Stephanie Calmenson has shared her love of literature with early childhood and elementary readers by channeling her enthusiasm for their experiences into her books.
Who was your favorite teacher in grades K-7 and why?
I loved my kindergarten teacher, Ms. Cogan, who taught with warmth and joy.… more
Skinny Dip with Margarita Engle
Our current Young People’s Poet Laureate, Margarita Engle has written about the land, the life, and the heroes of Cuba, along with verse novels, picture books, and biographies of heroes the world over.
What is your favorite daydream?
I love to dream of instant travel, like the “beam me up” gadget in old Star Trek episodes. There are so many places I want to see, and so many people I want to visit more often, especially relatives in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Miami, and Cuba.… more
Skinny Dip with Geoff Herbach
Creative with many endeavors, including writing, teaching college students, theater, and being a dad, Geoff Herbach is stretching his wings from YA fiction to picture books!
Who was your favorite teacher in grades K-7 and why?
I loved Mrs. Fatzinger in 5th grade. She read books out loud to us every day right after lunch and it was fantastic.… more
Skinny Dip with Joyce Sidman
From the first time, many years ago, that I heard Joyce Sidman read aloud from her poetry, when Eureka! Poems about Inventors was about to be released, I knew this woman carried magic in her soul. Working magic with words, writing about science and our very human emotions … Joyce has become a favorite author for many readers.
Who was your favorite teacher in grades K-7 and why?… more
Skinny Dip with Lee Bennett Hopkins
You cannot be a part of the children’s literature community without knowing his name. Lee Bennett Hopkins has been writing for children and adults since 1968. His Books Are by People (1969) had a profound effect on me. With his anthologies, he has kept our eyes focused on poetry, knowing how much children love the images and emotions evoked by well-chosen words.… more
Skinny Dip with Cathy Camper
Are you fans of the Lowriders graphic novels? We are! And we can’t wait for the next one. The author who thinks up those great stories is Cathy Camper. We invited her to Skinny Dip with the Bookologist … and she said yes! When we asked her pointed questions, here’s what she had to say.
Favorite breakfast or lunch as a kid?… more
Skinny Dip with Suzanne Costner
We’re thrilled to Skinny Dip with outstanding educator Suzanne Costner, Thanks to Suzanne for answer our questions during her very busy end-of-the-school-year hours.
Who was your favorite teacher in grades K-7 and why?
My favorite teacher was Mrs. Hill in 4th grade. She read to us every day after lunch: Stuart Little, Where the Red Fern Grows, James and the Giant Peach.… more
Books for Solace and Comfort
With reports from educators that students are in a heightened state of anxiety, we put out the call for recommendations for books that would offer comfort and solace within the age range of ages three to twelve. Do you have a book in mind? Send us your recommendation(s). We’ll keep adding to this list, so you may wish to bookmark it.… more
A Story for the Ages
For the past two years my husband and I have had the good fortune to spend the waning days of summer in Door County, Wisconsin. There we have discovered a vibrant arts community. A bounty of theatre, music, and fine arts is there for the picking.
This year, as I scanned the possibilities for our visit, I was particularly interested in the Peninsula Players’ Midwest première of a new play by Kenneth Jones called Alabama Story.… more
Dear Peacemakers
In recent weeks, we’ve had many requests for books about anger and fear and conflict resolution.
I was immediately reminded of an excellent resource published in 2010 called Book by Book: an Annotated Guide to Young People’s Literature with Peacemaking and Conflict Resolution Themes (Carol Spiegel, published by Educators for Social Responsibility, now called Engaging Schools).… more
Choice and Voice
In several past articles I’ve written about the frustration I’ve felt concerning my district’s decision to adopt a new reading curriculum. In recent weeks I have had to reflect and dig deeply to understand my uneasiness and fear related to “an innovative and modern way to teach the gamut of elementary literacy skills” (quote from district website post about the new reading curriculum).… more
Reading Memories
Memories of my childhood are imperfect. Yours, too?
I don’t remember having a lot of books as a child. I remember The Poky Little Puppy and another dog book (title unknown) and Three Little Kittens (perhaps a reminder to me to keep track of my mittens).
I remember using the school library voraciously to read books. I had no access to the public library (too far away) so that school library was my lifeline.… more
Feeling Cranky
Phyllis: February is the month for lovers and for love. And it’s the month where some of us also get a little grumpy. Gray slushy snow — no good for skiing or building snow people — lines the streets. The weight of winter coats wears old. And even though we do love February, we thought we’d look at books about grumpiness — just in case anyone else might feel a little, well, cranky once in a while.… more
“Don’t get took! Read a book!”
by Vicki Palmquist
I go crazy when I hear that Vaunda Michaux Nelson has another book coming out. I’m a fan. For my own reading life, No Crystal Stair: a documentary novel of the life and work of Lewis Michaux, Harlem bookseller, is one of my top ten books in the last ten years. I found every aspect of that book satisfying.… more
The Curious Child: writing and books
by Vicki Palmquist
After reading Catherine, Called Birdy, readers will wonder about Edward, Birdy’s brother, and the books he was scribing at the monastery. In what type of book did Birdy keep her journal? Who taught her to write? Did she write in the same fancy script that her brother did at the monastery?
Birdy gives the reader clues about her journal: “The skins are my father’s, left over from the household accounts, and the ink also.… more
The Curious Child: writing and books
by Vicki Palmquist
After reading Catherine, Called Birdy, readers will wonder about Edward, Birdy’s brother, and the books he was scribing at the monastery. In what type of book did Birdy keep her journal? Who taught her to write? Did she write in the same fancy script that her brother did at the monastery?
Birdy gives the reader clues about her journal: “The skins are my father’s, left over from the household accounts, and the ink also.… more