As the start of the school year quickly approaches, I have been finding ways to book talk as many books as I can to teachers. Recently, I shared picture books, early readers and chapter books, middle grade novels, young adult novels, and nonfiction for children with a group of K-12 teachers. Yes, a little of […]
Category Archives: Top Ten Lists
August
11
Ten Early Readers and Transitional Chapter Books Not to Be Overlooked by Alyson Beecher and Michele Knott
posted by CBethM
July
21
Top 10 Books that Should Have Won the Newbery (According to Me, Anyway) by Stacy Nockowitz
posted by CBethM
Each year, a group of carefully selected committee members is given an impossible task: to choose the children’s book that they deem the most distinguished written by an American author and published in the previous year. I’m a middle school librarian who previously taught middle school language arts for more than twenty years, and I […]
July
14
Fighting the FOMO: Ten Ways to Make the Most of Your Local Book Festival (Without Breaking the Bank) by Oona Marie Abrams
posted by CBethM
I consider myself lucky to live in New Jersey — really! When my parents relocated here from Illinois in 1994, it was quite the culture shock, but I’ve embraced the Garden State enough to call myself a Jersey Girl (Exit 163!) and now raise my own family here. One of the benefits of living in […]
July
07
10 Musical Middle Grade Novels to Rock Readers’ Worlds by Lisa Jenn Bigelow
posted by CBethM
My middle grade years were immersed in music. I sang in the choir. I learned to play piano. I discovered my parents’ record collection, Top 40 radio, and cassingles. There was joy in lifting my voice, coaxing chords from the keys. There was comfort in hearing pop singers magically echo my deepest feelings. If life […]
June
18
A Top Fifteen List of Diversity in YA Realistic Fiction by Kristyn Dorfman
posted by CBethM
Hello again! You may recall I recently posted about Diversity in Speculative Fiction but I felt like it was also important to highlight some amazing realistic reads. I firmly believe that everyone should be able to see themselves in the stories they read and, of course, also see, lives different than their own. There […]
June
17
Top 10 Things I’ll Miss Over Summer Break by Kris Barr Paquette
posted by CBethM
It’s the last week of school. I feel like I’m drowning in my to-do list. I almost have all of my classroom library re-collected. Summer Reading Books have been checked out. Field trips are over. The end is in sight, friends. But, as always the end is a bit bitter-sweet, even for a tired teacher […]
June
16
Top Ten Ways to Keep Your Child Reading Over Summer by Ginger Healy and Stacy Rivas
posted by CBethM
As fifth grade teachers, we work hard in our classrooms to create a strong reading community by providing lots of choice and opportunities for reading. We are proud of our students for developing their reading preferences, sharing books with their reading communities, and carving out time for reading while in our care. Our classrooms include […]
June
15
Top Ten Books for Young and Young Adult Runners by Kacy Smith
posted by CBethM
I love reading. I mostly love running. My reading and running lives are not dissimilar; I have reading buddies and running buddies; I have running injuries and reading injuries (papercuts are no joke). I live in Oregon, a state known reading (think Powells and Wordstock) and for running (think Nike and Tracktown). We run at […]
June
02
Lines Going for Walks by Jenny deGroot
posted by CBethM
“A drawing is simply a line going for a walk” said artist Paul Klee. The following books celebrate the simplicity and magic of the line and its ability to “go for a walk,” leading into the world in creative and unexpected ways. The authors and illustrators of the these picture books remind us that it […]
May
12
A Top Fifteen List of Diversity in YA Science Fiction & Fantasy by Kristyn Dorfman
posted by CBethM
I often see, at conferences, in conversations with colleagues, and on social media people lamenting the lack of diversity in the publishing world. This refers to the people who are publishing books, the people who are reviewing books, and really anyone involved in the process from ideation to finished product. This has been especially pertinent […]
