Is there any time more ripe with possibility and expectation than the beginning of a new school year? I’m brimming with ideas and excited to see students coming back. I must admit, however, that I’m less excited about library orientation: the same lesson over and over again, the listing of rules and expectations. If I […]
Long overdue for a great romance? September is Library Card Sign-Up Month, so check out these great librarian romances—one for every day of the month! Contemporary Romance Just Breathe, by Tamara Mataya Summer Nights, by Susan Mallery In Bed with Mr. Wrong, by Katee Robert Love Overdue, by Pamela Morsi Trouble when You Walked In, by […]
Last week, I had the pleasure of hosting a panel for our RA Conversations series co-sponsored by ARRT and Novelist, “Becoming the Face of RA.” You’ll hear all about it in the September issue of “Corner Shelf,” but something said by Polli Kenn, Book Sherpa at the Lawrence Public Library, has really stuck with me: She […]
I realize that most people are probably in the thick of beach book extravaganzas, but here in Chicago, I’m only just beginning. Even though school let out a few of weeks ago (we’re a late finish here), I’ve been mired in end-of-year tasks Now that I’ve tidied the collection and closed out for the season, I’m finally […]
Booklist and the Association of American Publishers convened the third installment of Read ‘n’ Rave at this year’s ALA Annual Conference. Modeled after the popular Shout ‘n’ Share panels that take place at the end of Book Expo every year, the program brings together a panel of collection development librarians who roam the exhibit aisles in […]
This year, the Audio Publishers Association has some special plans to celebrate June is Audiobook Month, which kicks off today. To learn more, I asked Katie Punia, public relations and events committee chair for the APA and director of publicity for Penguin Random House Audio, to stop by and share a post. Here’s Katie! As […]
In my previous post, “The Names of These Books Are Secret,” I wrote about how I got the kids in my grade-school library excited about reading mystery novels using “mystery mysteries.” Although feeling a bit trepidatious I decided to also try out mystery writing with my middle-grade students. Fifth and sixth graders started by defining a […]
As an adult reader I really like reading mysteries, but this has never been an easy genre for me to sell to my grade-school-library patrons. A quick off-the-cuff book talk at the shelves is really my bread and butter for getting books into kids’ hands, yet I’ve always struggled to do this with mysteries. It […]
Color coordination is an essential tool for quick book displays. We display red books for Valentine’s Day, and green books for St. Patrick’s Day. It’s only fitting that a book display honoring Prince would be violet in hue and theme. Celebrate the artist’s unique style and sense of playfulness with a whimsical tribute to the […]
The second annual National Readathon Day is fast approaching—mark your calendars for Saturday, May 21, when you can join readers across the county in celebration of that very special activity—reading. If you are a library, school, or bookstore planning a reading party, be sure to e-mail [email protected] to have your event publicized. Then readers can […]
Encouraging Middle-Schoolers to Choose Books
There’s been a lot of discussion among the librarians I know about what to do with middle-schoolers: they just don’t seem to read as much as they used to. I know that here in Chicago, we have a unique perspective on this situation, since our schools run K–8. In my former school system in Maryland […]
Getting Started with the Global Read Aloud
The 2017 Global Read Aloud kicked off yesterday, and I’m here to help. Author and educator Pernille Ripp founded the program as a way to connect students and teachers from different locales around the topics of books. (Think One Book One School or One Book One City, but on a global scale.) Each year, Ripp […]
TWO TRUTHS AND A LIE: Practice Recognizing Fake News
Cindy: There have been a number of YA fiction books with the title “Two Truths and a Lie,” but we’ve found a creative, informational book for middle-grade students that reinforces evaluating information for truth. Fake news, anyone? Two Truths and a Lie: It’s Alive (2017) by Ammi-Joan Paquette and Laurie Ann Thompson is the first […]
Encouraging Middle-Schoolers to Choose Books
There’s been a lot of discussion among the librarians I know about what to do with middle-schoolers: they just don’t seem to read as much as they used to. I know that here in Chicago, we have a unique perspective on this situation, since our schools run K–8. In my former school system in Maryland […]
Getting Started with the Global Read Aloud
The 2017 Global Read Aloud kicked off yesterday, and I’m here to help. Author and educator Pernille Ripp founded the program as a way to connect students and teachers from different locales around the topics of books. (Think One Book One School or One Book One City, but on a global scale.) Each year, Ripp […]
TWO TRUTHS AND A LIE: Practice Recognizing Fake News
Cindy: There have been a number of YA fiction books with the title “Two Truths and a Lie,” but we’ve found a creative, informational book for middle-grade students that reinforces evaluating information for truth. Fake news, anyone? Two Truths and a Lie: It’s Alive (2017) by Ammi-Joan Paquette and Laurie Ann Thompson is the first […]
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