If libraries are your child’s idea of a perfect place to spend the day, check these out
Inside the Books: Readers and Libraries Around the World
Author: Toni Buzzeo
Illustrated: Jude Daly
Publisher: Upstart Books
Recommended Age Range: 4 to 8
Website
Travel the world Inside the Books as children are introduced to truly unique libraries, including one that floats; another pulled by donkeys; one where books are “shelved” in a wheelbarrow; live on a train; even move around a continent in a tractor-trailer.
Librarian on the Roof! A True Story
Author: M.G. King
Illustrator: Stephen Gilpin
Publisher: Albert Whitman and Company
Recommended Age Range: 6 to 8
A terrific book about a librarian who actually goes (and spends a few nights) on the roof of the oldest library in Texas. Why? To raise money for a children’s section. While I won’t tell you how it ends, it definitely shows the power of passion, persistence and, of course, patience.
Awards: “52 Great Reads” list, 2010 National Book Festival, in Washington, D.C.
Library Lion
Author: Michelle Knudsen
Illustrator: Kevin Hawkes
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Recommended Age Range: 4 to 8
Website
Library Lion is a terrific story about a lion that happens to walk into a library one day. At first, no one is too happy about this (except the kids, of course:) Yet, in time, the lion becomes a beloved member of the library family. When rules are broken, and he sadly leaves, we all learn that sometimes, just sometimes, rules are meant to be broken – even in a library.
Awards: A Junior Library Guild Selection; School Library Journal’s Best Books of 2006; Amazon.com’s #1 pick for their list of the Best Picture Books of 2006; Nick Jr. Family Magazine’s Best Books of 2006 (“Most Droll”); Publishers Weekly Cuffie Award; Oppenheim Toy Portfolio 2007 Platinum Award; 2006 Wilde Picture Book Award; Child Magazine’s Best Children’s Books of 2006; Winter 2006-2007 Book Sense Children’s Picks List; 2007 Book Sense Book of the Year Children’s Illustrated Honor Book; Irma S. and James H. Black Honor Book for 2006; 2007 Time of Wonder Award winner; The New Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association 2007 Picture Book of the Year; TIME Magazine 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time Selection; ABC Best Books for Children
Richard Wright and the Library Card
Author: William Miller
Illustrator: Gregory Christie
Publisher: Lee & Low Books (Pbk.)
Recommended Age Range: 5 to 9
Awards: Notable Books for Children, Smithsonian Magazine
Schomburg: The Man Who Built a Library
Author: Carole Boston Weatherford
Illustrator: Eric Velasquez
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Recommended Age Range: 9 to 12
Website
Awards: A Junior Library Guild Selection; 2018 Golden Kite Award Winner, Nonfiction for Young Readers; 2018 Carter G. Woodson Book Award Honor, Middle Level; Booklist Top 10 Diverse Nonfiction for Older and Middle Readers 2018; ALSC Notable Children’s Books 2018, All Ages; 2018 Walter Award Winner, Younger Readers; Capitol Choices 2018, Seven to Ten; CCBC Choices 2018 Choice: Historical People, Places, and Events; CSMCL Best Multicultural Children’s Books of 2017; School Library Journal’s Best Books of 2017, Nonfiction; Shelf Awareness 2017 Best Books of the Year, Picture Books; Kirkus Reviews Best Books of 2017, Picture Books; New York Public Library Best Books for Kids 2017; The Nonfiction Detectives Best Nonfiction Books of 2017
The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore
Author: William Joyce
Illustrator: Joe Bluhm
Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers, an Imprint of Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing Division
Recommended Age Range: 5 to 9
A beautiful and heartfelt book about the wonder of stories and the power of words; a testament to the belief that all of us have a story to share.
Awards: Academy Award for Best Short Film (Animation), 2011
The Library
Author: Sarah Stewart
Illustrator: David Small
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Recommended Age Range: 5 to 9
Website
From the award-winning team of Sarah Stewart and David Small, The Library is a captivating story about one woman’s love of books. With humor and whimsy, this story shows just what one person can do when books pile up and goodness overflows.
Awards: New York Times Book Review Notable Children’s Book of the Year; New York Times Outstanding Books of the Year; IRA Teachers’ Choices; Publishers Weekly Best Books of the Year; An American Bookseller Pick of the Lists; A Children’s ABBY Honor Book
The Lonely Book
Author: Kate Bernheimer
Illustrator: Chris Sheban
Publisher: Schwartz & Wade Books, an Imprint of Random House Children’s Books
Recommended Age Range: 4 to 8
Website
We’ve all seen the brand new books at the library displayed for all to see. Yet, over time, many of these become hidden in “yesterday’s” shelves. This is the premise behind Kate Bernheimer’s heartfelt story The Lonely Book. Long forgotten, a book is given a brand-new (shelf) life when it is discovered and brought home by a little girl. Yet, when it accidentally gets returned and lost, she refuses to give up hope and, with the help of a very patient and understanding librarian, makes sure that the book has a happy ending.☺
Awards: Missouri Show Me Reader Award 2015
Thomas Jefferson Builds a Library
Author: Barb Rosenstock
Illustrator: John O’Brien
Publisher: Calkins Creek, an Imprint of Highlights
Recommended Age Range: 8 to 11
Website
This is a terrific picture book, full of interesting facts and playful illustrations, that shows not just how much our third president loved to read, but how he started the Library of Congress. One of my favorite things about reading this book is the surprise on children’s faces when they realize this book is true, especially after amazing statistics such as the Library’s 800 miles of shelves and 155 million items.
Awards: NCTE Orbis Pictus Recommended Book, 2014; Bank Street Best Books of the Year; Junior Library Guild Selection