September 8 is International Literacy Day – a day that so important for those of us who work in public libraries. The modern library is full of technology, toys, activities and BOOKS! Reading is one of the most important skills that children need to learn and the best part is that reading can also be really FUN!! Reading starts young and it’s never too early to introduce kids to books. The library is full of books for all ages and interests. No matter what you like and what type of reader you are…we have something for everyone. Not sure what to read next? Stop by any one of our five locations and we’ll be happy to help you choose your next read. Here are some of my recommendations for kids of all ages. To see details in the library catalogue, simply click on the titles.
Board Books
Boo! Baa, la la la! by Sandra Boynton
Sandra Boynton is one of my favourite children’s authors. Not only did I read them to my own children, I can still recite some of them from memory. This funny story is a perfect fall read with Halloween just around the corner.
BOO! BAA, LA LA LA! From the beloved and bestselling Sandra Boynton comes a terrific new Halloween board book. A long-lost cousin of her classic Moo, Baa, La La La!, this delightful little story begins: On Halloween, the cow says BOO. She likes that word. It’s something new. The littlest book-lovers and their families will enjoy following the gentle cow as she ventures out into the moonlit night, trying to discover who it was that replied to her “BOO” with a “BAA.” The surprise ending is certain to delight everyone–young or old, feathered or furry. Told and illustrated with Sandra Boynton’s celebrated charm and pizzazz, Boo! Baa, La La La! is a wonderful, not-scary treat, with all the markings of a Halloween classic. BOO!
Counting by Fleur Star
DK Braille: Counting ‘s pages combine braille, large print, and high contrast photography with clear and predictive layouts for curious young readers. The accompanying story in print and braille takes readers on a counting adventure in the park. DK Braille: Counting is a unique book that teaches counting in a special, revolutionary book. A flagship series of high-quality, custom books with braille and tactile images for blind and partially sighted children, or sighted children with blind parents. The combination of text alongside the braille enables sighted parents to share the reading experience with visually impaired children, and for sighted children to share with their visually impaired parents.
Picture Books
We all play / kimêtawânaw by Julie Flett
This wonderful book celebrates playtime and the connection between children and the natural world. Beautiful illustrations show birds who chase and chirp, bears who wiggle and wobble, whales who swim and squirt, owls who peek and peep and a diverse group of kids who love to do the same, shouting: We play too! / kimêtawânaw mîna. At the end of the book, animals and children gently fall asleep after a fun day of playing outside, making this book a great bedtime story. This book also includes a glossary of Cree words for wild animals in the book, a pronunciation guide and link to audio pronunciation recordings.
Hair twins by Raakhee Mirchandani
A Sikh father and daughter with a special hair bond proudly celebrate and share a family tradition in this charming story! Every morning Papa combs through his daughter’s waves like he does his own–parting it down the middle, using coconut oil to get all the tangles out. Some days he braids her hair in two twists down the side of her face. Other days he weaves it into one long braid hanging down her back, just like a unicorn tail. But her favorite style is when he combs her hair in a tight bun on the top of her head, just like the joora he wears every day under his turban. They call this their hair twin look! This lovely story was also illustrated by a local illustrator, Holly Hatam.
Learn to Read Books
I’m on it! by Andrea Tsurumi
Goat likes to lead. Goat also likes Frog to follow. When Goat jumps on it, Frog does, too. Soon Goat and Frog are on it, along it, above it, inside it, beside it, around it, and under it–phew! How can their friendship get through it? This funny story will teach kids all about prepositions (position words) while they giggle along with Goat and Frog.
Who ate my book? by Tina Kügler
Someone is taking bites out of this book! And we have a feeling a certain mischievous goat has something to do with it… A goat is on the loose and is taking bites out of everything , even pages of this book! Join the fun in this story perfect for early readers.
Easy Chapter Books
Doggo and Pupper by Katherine Applegate
Doggo is used to things being a certain way in his family. He likes routine. Cat says he’s become boring. That is, until Pupper shows up! Pupper is playful and messy, and turns the house upside down. Soon, the humans realize that Pupper needs some training, and off he goes to puppy school. When Pupper comes back, he’s well-behaved. He’s not playful. He’s not messy. But Doggo soon realizes that Pupper also isn’t happy. So Doggo steps in to help, and rediscovers what it means to have fun. This is the first book in a new series.
Good dog: Fireworks night by Cam Higgins
In the delightful fourth book of the Good Dog series, Bo’s friend Scrapper get scared by summer fireworks! It’s finally summertime. And Bo Davis loves the summertime. The grass is greener, the days are warmer, and there are cookouts with fireworks on special nights. But do the other animals love fireworks as much as Bo? With easy-to-read language and illustrations on almost every page, the Good Dog chapter books are perfect for beginning readers.
Chapter Books
Unsettled by Reem Faruqi
When her family moves from Pakistan to Peachtree City, all Nurah wants is to blend in, yet she stands out for all the wrong reasons. Nurah’s accent, floral-print kurtas, and tea-colored skin make her feel excluded, until she meets Stahr at swimming tryouts. And in the water Nurah doesn’t want to blend in. She wants to win medals like her star athlete brother, Owais–who is going through struggles of his own in the U.S. Yet when sibling rivalry gets in the way, she makes a split-second decision of betrayal that changes their fates. Ultimately Nurah slowly gains confidence in the form of strong swimming arms, and also gains the courage to stand up to bullies, fight for what she believes in, and find her place.
The year I flew away by Marie Arnold
It’s 1985 and ten-year-old Gabrielle is excited to be moving from Haiti to America. Unfortunately, her parents won’t be able to join her yet and she’ll be living in a place called Brooklyn, New York, with relatives she has never met. She promises her parents that she will behave, but life proves to be difficult in the United States, from learning the language to always feeling like she doesn’t fit in to being bullied. So when a witch offers her a chance to speak English perfectly and be “American,” she makes the deal. But soon she realizes how much she has given up by trying to fit in and, along with her two new friends (one of them a talking rat), takes on the witch in an epic battle to try to reverse the spell.
Graphic Novels
Blue, Barry & Pancakes by Dan & Jason
Blue, Barry, and Pancakes are best friends, but sometimes friends make mistakes. One day, when the gang goes to the beach, Barry and Pancakes lose Blue’s beloved beach ball. They come up with a plan to get it back, but things go way off course. Now, these pals will have to go inside a giant whale’s stomach, crash a pool party on an alien spaceship, and survive Duckzilla’s volcanic birthday bash if they ever hope to see Blue’s beach ball again!
Yorick and Bones by Jeremy Tankard and Hermione Tankard
Hear ye, hear ye! Father-daughter duo Jeremy and Hermione Tankard are pleased to introduce the first book in a rib-tickling, heartfelt full-color graphic novel series perfect for fans of Bird & Squirrel! Yorick is a skeleton who was just dug up after a few hundred years of sleep. He speaks like it too. “Forsooth, my joy, I barely can contain!” Bones is the hungry dog who did the digging. Though he cannot speak, he can chomp. What will become of these two unlikely companions? Will Yorick ever find the friend he seeks? Will Bones ever find a tasty treat that does not talk back? The course of true friendship never did run smooth.
POST WRITTEN BY SARAH F., CHILDREN’S LIBRARIAN