Books · 12-20-2015
According to author Meghan McCarthy, “Chester Greenwood may not have been the first inventor of earmuffs, but he was probably the youngest.” After testing various versions of his earmuffs, he devised a tight steel band that held his “mufflers” in place. At age nineteen, he received the patent for his ear-mufflers. And now, 138 years later, Chester and his champion ear protectors are celebrated each December in Farmington, Maine. Learn more about what makes Chester Greenwood unique in...
Books · 12-12-2015
Regular readers of this blog know how much I like the vintage posters from the Be Kind to Books Club. Created by Arlington Gregg in the 1930s, these Works Progress Administration (WPA) posters taught young patrons about proper book care. Lucy Jakub, a college student and Library of Congress Junior Fellow, recently updated the series with literary characters from the public domain. She selected characters that would help teach children how to care for their books. For example, “Dracula...
Books · 11-25-2015
If you have ever attended a book festival, you know how fun it is to share the enjoyment of reading with others. At the National Book Festival in Washington D.C., enthusiastic readers (of all ages) attend numerous author talks, book-signings, and family-centered activities that emphasize the importance of lifelong literacy. This year, while wandering through one of the pavilions, I learned about the work of Room to Read. This non-profit believes that “World Change Starts with Educated...
Books · 09-26-2015
Young Adult books are the focus of this year’s Banned Books Week. The annual celebration of the freedom to read will run from Sunday, September 27 through Monday, October 3, 2015. "Young Adult books are challenged more frequently than any other type of book," said Judith Platt, chair of the Banned Books Week National Committee. "These are the books that speak most immediately to young people, dealing with many of the difficult issues that arise in their own lives, or in the lives of their...
Books · 07-02-2015
Firebird: Ballerina Misty Copeland Shows a Young Girl How to Dance Like the Firebird Written by Misty Copeland, Illustrated by Christopher Myers Winner of the 2015 Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award
Books · 06-12-2015
“Rose Howard is obsessed with homonyms. She’s thrilled that her own name is a homonym, and she purposely gave her dog Rain a name with two homonyms (Reign, Rein) which, according to Rose’s rules of homonyms, is very special. Not everyone understands Rose’s obsessions, her rules, or the other things that make her different – not her teachers, not other kids, and not her single father.” Rain, Reign is about Rose, a fifth grade student with an “official diagnosis” of...
