A KIND OF PARADISE By Amy Rebecca TanON SHELVES NOW! Dear Reader, I was walking along the main street of my town one evening when I noticed lights shining from inside an empty storefront. I peered inside to find a...
How to Library by Amy Rebecca Tan, author of A Kind of Paradise A Kind of Paradiseby Amy Rebecca Tan My debut novel, A Kind of Paradise, comes straight from my library-loving heart. I began working in a public library...
Protecting Our Most Vulnerable by Cassie Sheets, Educator Hello Library Advocates, During National Library Week, let’s celebrate the ways that libraries protect children’s privacy. During my brief stint working as a library assistant, I learned about the many ways that...
The Making of a Librarian by Tony Snyder, Copyright/Interlibrary Loan Associate at Kent State University Libraries It all started when automated public library catalogs were still a novelty. I had just completed a computer training course that would allow me...
Feed Them and They Will Come: Engaging Tweens at Your Library by Ashley Brown, Children's Librarian, and Cassidy Tanzella, Teen Librarian When we started working together at our current library, we looked for gaps in programming and how we...
Choosing Community by Morgan Rose Stewart, Children's Librarian for Memphis Public Libraries In August 2018, I had a choice to make, a very important “two roads diverged in a yellow wood” kind of choice (happy Poetry Month, everyone). I had...
Libraries = Strong Communities, Alabama Librarians, and the Civil Rights Movement by Molly Saunders, Children's Department Library Technician at the Homewood Public Library in Homewood, AL I first encountered the names Juliette Hampton Morgan and Emily Wheelock Reed in graduate...
Middle School can be tough. Navigate its challenges with these great books about family, friendship, and fitting in. NEW KIDby Jerry Craft Perfect for fans of Raina Telgemeier and Gene Luen Yang, New Kid is a timely, honest graphic...
Sweeping Up the Heart by Kevin Henkes on sale now! Dear Reader, Although it is my picture books that people seem to know best and love most, it is my novels that are nearest and dearest to my heart....
HEROINEby Mindy McGinnisON SHELVES NOW! Dear reader, I began writing Heroine after a school visit to an area particularly hard-hit by the opioid epidemic. Over lunch, staff confessed to me that nearly everyone in town had been impacted by addiction, either as...
OPPOSITE OF ALWAYS by Justin A. Reynolds on shelves now! Dear Reader, This story began with heartbreak. I’d just lost one of my closest family members, followed by the unexpected and sudden death of my best friend (still in...
THE BLOOD SPELL by C.J. Redwine on sale now! BORN IN A LIBRARY I was lucky. My family had no television. No brand name clothes or popular toys. No money for eating out at restaurants or impulse buys. What we...
NEW KIDBy Jerry CraftON SHELVES NOW! Dear Book Lover, I can honestly say that I have wanted to be an artist ever since I was old enough to hold a crayon and not stick it up my nose. Even though...
The Field Guide to the North American Teenager by Ben Philippe On shelves now! Dear Reader, My favorite superhero has always been Spider-Man. This wasn't due to his superpower or beautiful love interests permanently dangling from bridges but the fact...
Fresh off the press! Here are six fantastic YA titles that are sure to get your teens reading and discussing, along with some helpful tips for organizing and running your book club. 1. Damsel by Elana K. Arnold A dark,...
You were a press witness to an execution, which led you down this path to eventually write WE’LL FLY AWAY. What effect did this experience have on you? I’ve always been against the death penalty, but it was more of...
JUSTINA IRELAND, author of the forthcoming YA novel Dread Nation, recently addressed a group of booksellers at the NEIBA Children’s Breakfast in Providence, R.I. The following is a written transcript of her moving talk on the power of stories, diversity...
Spring has officially sprung! And while it may not feel exactly like spring (especially here in chilly NYC) we know it's only a matter of time until the grass is green and the birds are chirping. Celebrate the start of...
THAT THING WE CALL A HEART by Sheba Karim on sale 5/9/17! Why YA Books with Muslim Protagonists Are More Important Than Ever I grew up in Upstate New York, in a small town on the banks of the Hudson...
WHEN SPRING COMES by Kevin Henkes illustrated by Laura Dronzek on sale now! Now that it's officially spring (no matter what it might look or feel like outside your window!), there's no better time to enjoy the latest delightful picture...
How a Librarian Changed My Life By Aaron Hartzler Like most kids, from elementary school on up, I did my dead-level best to fit in. I always had a good group of friends, but there were still things about me...