Diego Rivera: His World and Ours

By Duncan Tonatiuh When I was in elementary school, my mom would come to our classrooms and share information that she knew about various artists and their histories for a special event called "Artist in the Classroom." My mom's love of art and art history rubbed of on me at a very young age and …

Rhymes With Witches

By Lauren Myracle When I was in junior high, it was pretty much guaranteed that if I was handed a book written by Lauren Myracle, I would be quick to read it. I loved teenage drama stories about problems between friend groups, boy troubles and conflict--Myracle's forte. What I did not expect from Myracle was …

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl

By Jesse Andrews One of my favorite books when I was growing up was Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie by Jordan Sonnenblick. When I was in fifth grade, I remember picking out this book in the library after reading the back cover and becoming intrigued. The main character receives news that his five year old …

Flora & Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures

By Kate DiCamillo When I was growing up, my mom loved to read me chapter books before I went to bed. A lot of the books that we read together were selected by her, and many of them were books that she had enjoyed when she was younger or that she had heard great things …

Emily Dickinson: Poetry for Kids

By Emily Dickinson Emily Dickinson's timeless poems are transformed into this beautifully illustrated children's book that gives a first glimpse into the wonders of poetry. This book is broken down into sections and organized by season. Poems for winter, spring, summer and fall allow the audience to read a poem suitable for every day of …

Radiant Child: The Story of a Young Artist Jean-Michel Basquiat

By Javaka Steptoe The phrase "don't judge a book by its cover" certainly comes into play here, but not in the way that most would use the phrase. Upon first glance, Radiant Child really exemplifies it's title by featuring a brilliant colored, radiant cover. That being said, the most memorable aspect of this story by far …

Plenty of Love to go Around

By Emma Chichester Clark Plenty of Love to go Around is the perfect heartwarming book to bring home if an older sibling becomes jealous of a new baby in the family. Emma Chichester Clark uses the four-legged character Plum, based on her own dog, to communicate the idea that even though at certain times some …

Finding Winnie: The True Story of the World’s Most Famous Bear

By Lindsay Mattick I absolutely loved this book and it is no surprise that it received the Caldecott award. From the moment I opened it and began reading, I was completely drawn in. I had never known any part of this story, so each step amazed me. It's a great idea to create a children's …

Shrek!

By William Steig It usually goes without saying that when a book is transformed into a movie, the book is inevitably going to be better. However, in the case of the book and movie, Shrek, in my opinion, the movie is actually much better. It is clear that the directors of the movie just drew …

Nadia: The Girl Who Couldn’t Sit Still

By Karlin Gray When I was walking around my local library, this book caught my eye from on top of a shelf and I immediately picked it up. I have loved gymnastics and tumbling ever since I was a little girl, so if this book had been published when I was younger, I definitely would …