The last couple years have seen an avalanche of excellent YA fiction featuring a broad range of LGBTQIA+ characters. This made it difficult to pick one to review for Pride Month, which is a very good problem to have. I ultimately chose We Contain Multitudes by Sarah Henstra, and absolutely loved it. The story is told entirely through the letters of two high school students randomly paired up for an English assignment. At first, dedicated Walt Whitman cosplayer Jonathan Hopkins and football star Adam Kurlansky seem totally incompatible. But as the weeks pass, their lives slowly intertwine. Jo and Kurl
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Archives for Authors & Books
Bilingual Picture Books
Here are some digital titles for you and your family. Whether you enjoy traditional tales or totally new stories, we trust you can find a title for every taste in your family. Aquí le ofrecemos algunos títulos digitales para usted y su familia. Ya sea que disfrute cuentos tradicionales o cuentos totalmente nuevos, aquí podrá encontrar un título para cada gusto en su familia. Hands Are Not For Hitting / Las manos no son para pegar, by Martine Agassi. (Available as eBook on OverDrive) Baby Shark / Bebé tiburón, by John John Bajet. (Available as eBook on OverDrive) The Sad,
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Amazing Audiobooks for Kids
I love audiobooks and I enjoy having the eBook or print version of the story in front of me while listening to the audio. It just works for me! I find that my mind occasionally wanders if I’m only listening to the audio and having the eBook or print version of it helps me to focus. I also have noticed that I tend to read too quickly if I’m just reading an eBook or print version. Whether you’re a fan of audiobooks or have never tried them before, I hope you’ll give a listen to my audiobook recommendations that you
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Virtual Book Club for Teens
Due to uncertainty about large public gatherings this fall, the Battle of the Books (BOB) competition has been postponed until October 2021. We (librarians and BOB coaches Lauren and Kat) are glad this decision has been made in the interest of safety… but we worry we’ll miss our BOB team too much! So, we’re excited to begin a monthly virtual book club for teens. Each month, we’ll read and discuss a book that’s available with unlimited copies on Hoopla. We’ll also keep our BOB skills sharp with Jeopardy games, trivia questions, and maybe even drills to improve our speed on
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For the Class of 2020
There might not be ceremonies, big parties, caps, or gowns this year, but the Class of 2020 should still be celebrated, and we've got a few things to add to your Make Your Own Graduation toolkit. You'll find commencement speeches by National Book Award-winning author Jesmyn Ward, Admiral William H. McRaven, Abby Wambach, Barack Obama, and other notables in our Libby booklist, To the Class of 2020: We Salute You! Borrow Elgar's graduation classic Pomp and Circumstance, Drew's Famous Graduation Party Music, or some newer favorites at Hoopla, such as Lizzo's Cuz I Love You, 2020 Grammy Nominees, or Drake's
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Teen Book Review: Sparrow
Below you'll find a book review of a new title submitted by teens in the Edge. Sparrow by Mary Cecilia Jackson Available as an eBook on OverDrive. Review: This book is about a young ballerina who goes by Sparrow that dates a very popular kid named Tristan in school. She can not believe that this popular kid is into her and enjoys it very much. However, Tristan has a very dark side. Every time he gets angry at Sparrow, he abuses her. Not knowing that she does not deserve this kind of treatment due to the fact that she was
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Author Event: Astronomer Dr. Julia Kregenow
Dr. Julia Kregenow is an astronomer and Associate Teaching Professor at Penn State University. She will be presenting two programs in May for families related to children’s books she has written and her study of astronomy. You can borrow some of Dr. Kregenow’s books in eBook format from the Library through OverDrive/Libby and Hoopla. Thursday, May 21, 2:00 p.m. Register in advance here. Dr. Kregenow will read from her book Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star, I Know Exactly What You Are and lead a family sing-a-long for mixed age groups, singing several different verses from her book and giving additional scientific
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astronomy, author event, and author visit.
Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month: Chapter Books
White Plains is a wonderfully diverse community! Parents, children and teens have expressed an interest in titles that reflect the diversity in the community, and Ashley, Kathlyn, and Raquel's “Dive Into Diversity” column will spotlight noteworthy children's and teen titles that are inclusive, diverse and multicultural to fulfill that interest. Ashley's portion is aimed at readers in grades 4-6. Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month is celebrated during the month of May. I had been wanting to read Hello, Universe by Erin Entrada Kelly for a while now. It won the Newbery Medal in 2018! It was a potential pick
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Virtual Book Display: Jewish American Heritage Month
President George W. Bush established May as National Jewish American Heritage Month in 2006. The month-long celebration highlights the many contributions of Jewish Americans to American history, and celebrates Jewish cultural heritage. To celebrate, here are some fun and noteworthy Children’s and Young Adult titles. Children's Picture Books: Children’s Chapter Books: Children’s Nonfiction: Young Adult Fiction:
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Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month: Picture Books
Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month, takes place in May. It celebrates the culture, traditions, and history of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the United States. Stanford University’s Asian American Activities Center website states that May, “was chosen because two important anniversaries fall during this time: the arrival of the first Japanese immigrants in the United States on May 7, 1843, and the completion of the transcontinental railroad by many Chinese laborers on May 10, 1869.” To explore the history, traditions, culture and arts of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, the Library of Congress has put together a useful
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Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month: YA Fiction
Having missed out on Star Trek as a child, I first heard of George Takei about ten years ago when he began posting hilarious memes on Facebook. More recently, he’s been known for his political activism and for sharing his childhood experience in an internment camp during WWII. This is the topic of his 2019 graphic novel They Called Us Enemy. Takei relates the circumstances of his family’s forced removal from their Los Angeles home and the four years they spent behind bars. He tells the story as he experienced it as a child, layered with facts he learned from
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Jewish American Heritage Month: Chapter Books
White Plains is a wonderfully diverse community! Parents, children, and teens have expressed an interest in titles that reflect the diversity in the community, and Ashley, Kathlyn, and Raquel's “Dive Into Diversity” column will spotlight noteworthy children's and teen titles that are inclusive, diverse and multicultural to fulfill that interest. Ashley's portion is aimed at readers in grades 4-6. May is Jewish American Heritage Month and I enjoyed reading the delightful My Basmati Bat Mitzvah by Paula J. Freedman, which Kathlyn suggested I try. Read on to find out more about why your child may have fun reading it as
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Jewish American Heritage Month: Picture Books
Jewish American Heritage Month is a month to celebrate the contributions Jewish Americans have made to America since they first arrived in New Amsterdam in 1654. The Library of Congress website states that, “On April 20, 2006 President Bush issued the first Presidential Proclamation which designated May 2006 as Jewish American Heritage Month.” The National Museum of American Jewish History has a great website to explore resources that highlight American Jewish history, art, and culture and their virtual resources can be explored here. Highlighted below are three notable picture books geared towards younger readers that explore the history and culture
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Jewish American Heritage Month: YA
While making a list of potential titles for this month, I was drawn to In the Neighborhood of True by Susan Kaplan Carlton. It’s historical fiction, set in Atlanta in 1959 (rather than WWII, as many other YA historical fiction titles are). I just had to see what the author would do with this setting and time period. When Ruth’s father suddenly dies, her mother resettles the family in a guest house belonging to her own wealthy parents. Ruth’s grandmother is heavily invested in the local debutante scene and encourages Ruth not to mention her Jewish faith around her new
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May is Mental Health Awareness Month
Mental Health Awareness Month began in the United States in 1949 by the Mental Health America organization. In her Publisher’s Weekly article, “Mental Health and Middle Graders,” Shannon Maughan writes, “A 2019 article in JAMA Pediatrics cites data revealing that one in six youths ages six to 17 experience a mental health disorder in a given year, and that in 2016, 16.5% of U.S. youths ages six to 17 (7.7 million people) experienced a mental health disorder.” To read her article in full click here. In honor of Mental Health Awareness Month, I have gathered together noteworthy books for younger
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Mother’s Day Book Display
Mother’s Day is traditionally celebrated on the second Sunday in May, which falls on the 10th of May this year. Usually in the Spring, Mother’s Day is celebrated in many countries around the world! The day honors mothers and grandmothers for their love, nurturing, and care. If you are interested in creating some lovely hand-made flowers for the special moms and grandma’s in your life join Lina Cavalcanti’s craft program by watching the video here. To celebrate the mothers and grandmothers in our lives, I have gathered a collection of fun and noteworthy titles below:
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National Paranormal Day
As a kid, my journey into reading and loving books began with the paranormal. I devoured Nancy Drew and Hardy Boy books along with R.L Stine’s Fear Street. I quickly moved to comic books like The Maxx, horror books by Stephen King, Dean Koontz, and my favorite author Robert R. McCammon. I also began to venture into manga, especially CLAMP, an all-female Japanese writing group that wrote Cardcaptur Sakura, xxxHolic, and Tsubasa. Most of their manga has elements of Japanese mysticism and the occult. With the popularity of Stranger Things, we can see that the paranormal can be a coming
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Free Comic Book Day
While Free Comic Book Day (usually celebrated on the first Saturday of May each year) has been postponed due to the virus, and the Library is unable to host our usual big celebration with fun activities and comics to give away thanks to Aw Yeah! Comics in Harrison, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t enjoy some comics at home! To get your comics fix, I do encourage you to check in with your local comic book shops (Find yours here!). Many are doing great virtual events, offering deals on comics to get physical books to you at home by pulling titles
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Cinco de Mayo
Cinco de Mayo, or the fifth of May, is a holiday that celebrates the date of the Mexican army’s May 5, 1862 victory over France at the Battle of Puebla during the Franco-Mexican War. Enjoy these books about the holiday and more books that celebrate Mexican culture. Books About Cinco de Mayo/May 5th: Celebra el Cinco de Mayo con un jarabe tapatío, by Alma Flor Ada, F. Isabel Campoy (Spanish) (OverDrive) Marco’s Cinco de Mayo, by Lisa Bullard (Hoopla) Cinco de Mouse-O!, by Judy Cox (Audio-Book) (Hoopla) Cinco de Mayo, by Rachel Grack (Hoopla) Cinco de Mayo, by M.C. Hall
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Hoopla Staff Picks: Grown Up Comics
Possibly our most dynamic digital resource, Hoopla includes a variety of different formats from books to movies and music. In order to highlight some of these, we've gathered staff recommendations of just a few formats you can stream and download with your library card. Below are some graphic novel recommendations from Manager of Youth Services, Josh Carlson. These titles are all phenomenal, but are definitely not for kids. Did you just binge watch The Boys, Locke and Key, The Witcher, or Watchmen? These comics are where those, and other great shows, came from: The Witcher Locke and Key The Umbrella
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