Picture Book Neighborhoods: Fun - STEM

This was one of the original collection when I created the neighborhoods and I had a lot of arguments with other staff about including math in the FUN section. Which just goes to show that adults absolutely pass their attitudes on to kids! I overhauled this section in my last update and created additional Dewey numbers. This section is one that has a lot of fiction in the Dewey numbers - as I explain to the kids, the numbers are a classification system, not fiction vs. nonfiction.

This selection doesn't include nonfiction series or some older titles. The biography section isn't heavily used, but I do pull a lot for school requests.

500 - General Science

• David Adler
• Light waves
• Magnets push, magnets pull
• Solids, liquids, gases and plasma
• Things that float and things that don't
• Do not lick this book* (*It's full of germs) by Idan Ben-Barak and Julian Frost
• Curious Pearl, science girl: Curious Pearl identifies the reason for seasons by Eric Braun
• Invention Hunters discover series by Korwin Briggs
• The Invention Hunters discover how machines work
• The Invention Hunters discovery how electricity works
• Infinity by Sarah Campbell
• Gravity by Jason Chin
• Power Up: Your incredible, spectacular, supercharged body by Seth Fishman
• Everyday STEM: Our camping trip: Physics, Chemistry & Fun by Helena Harastova
• Sounds all around: the science of how sound works by Susan Hughes and Ellen Rooney
• Small Matters: The hidden power of the unseen by Heather Ferranti Kinser
• Wait 'til you're older by Maria Marianayagam
• This book bubbles over: From the ocean to Mars and everywhere in between by Nora Nickum
• Rainbow science by Artemis Roehrig
• Hands on science series by Lola Schaefer
• Wonder of color by Catherine Stier
• I'm a neutrino: Tiny particles in a big universe by Dr. Eve M. Vavagiakis

507 - Experiments

• Science play by Susan Edwards Richmond
• Rosa (series) by Jessica Spanyol
• Rosa's big pizza experiment

513 - Math

• David Adler
• Graphs
• Let's estimate
• Millions billions and trillions
• Perimeter area and volume
• Squares, rectangles, and other quadrilaterals
• Triangles
• Let's add up by Victoria Allenby
• 100 snowmen by Jennifer Arena
• I'm trying to love math by Bethany Barton
• Sarah C. Campbell
• Growing Patterns: Fibonacci Numbers in Nature
• Mysterious patterns
• How many ducks could fit in a bus? Creative ways to look at volume by Clara Cella
• Bake infinite pie with X + Y by Eugenia Cheng
• How many? a different kind of counting book by Christopher Danielson
• Math play! learning activities for preschoolers by Linda Dauksas
• Count by 10 to 100 by Charles Ghigna, illustrated by Misa Saburi, music by Mark Oblinger
• 100 days of school by Trudy Harris
• Now what? A math tale by Robie Harris, illustrated by Chris Chatterton
• Reindeer remainders by Katey Howes
• Wing Wing Brothers series by Ethan Long
• The Wing Wing Brothers Math Spectacular
• How much is a million? by David Schwartz
• Arithmechicks by Ann Marie Stephens
• sCATtered! a story of estimation by Ann Marie Stephens
• Mice mischief: math facts in action by Caroline Stills
• The pigpen problem: how to calculate area and perimeter by Bill Wise
• Storytelling Math series
• Lia & Luis: Who has more? by Ana Crespo, illustrated by Giovana Medeiros
• The animals would not sleep! by Sara Levine, illustrated by Marta Alvarez Miguens

514 - Mapping and Patterns

• What a map can do by Gabrielle Balkan, illustrated by Alberto Lot
• Julie Dillemuth
• Mapping my day, illustrated by Laura Wood
• Camilla Cartographer
• Joyce Hesselberth
• Mapping Sam
• Pitter-Pattern
• Bracelets for Bina's Brothers by Rajani LaRocca (Storytelling Math)
• Follow that map by Scot Ritchie
• All about patterns by Elizabeth Rusch

620 - Engineering

• Simple machines by David Adler
• Building our house by Jonathan Bean
• Kurt Cyrus
• Billions of bricks
• Fix that clock
• Operation cupcake by Bambi Edlund
• Know you know how it works by Valorie Fisher
• How to code series by Josh Funk
• How to code a sandcastle, illustrated by Sara Palacios
• Gail Gibbons
• Tool book
• Up goes the skyscraper
• Reaching across the sky: a celebration of bridges by Christy Hale
• Mellons build a house by Robin Jacobs
• Dams by Rebecca Pettiford
• Look at that building! A first book of structures by Scot Ritchie
• Lift, mix, fling! machines can do anything by Lola Schaefer
• Sounds of trash by Tina Athaide (STEAMworks series)
• Perfect paper plane by Catherine Stier
• Wired by Anastasia Suen
• Larissa Theule
• Concrete from the ground up, illustrated by Steve Light
• Glass
• Plumber Pearl by Andrea Zimmerman

921 - Biographies

• Scientists get dressed by Deborah Lee Rose and Caroline Watkins
• June Almeida, Virus Detective! by Suzanne Slade, illustrated by Elisa Paganelli
• Dragon bones: the fantastic fossil discoveries of Mary Anning
• Blips on a screen: how Ralph Baer invented TV video gaming
• It belongs to the world: Frederick Banting and the discovery of insulin
• Patricia's vision by Michelle Lord, illustrated by Alleanna Harris
• The crayon man by Natascha Biebow, illustrated by Steven Salerno
• Evelyn the adventurous entomologist by Christine Evans, illustrated by Yasmin Imamura
• Shark Lady by Jess Keating, illustrated by Marta Alvarez Miguens
• Swimming with sharks by Heather Lang, illustrated by Jordi Solano
• Diving Deep: Using machines to explore the ocean by Michelle Cusolito
• John Deere's powerful idea: the perfect plow
• Life in the ocean: The story of oceanographer Sylvia Earle by Claire Nivola
• Mr. Ferris and his wheel
• Mesmerized by Mara Rockliff, illustrated by Iacopo Bruno
• Margaret and the moon by Dean Robbins, illustrated by Lucy Knisley
• Beulah has a hunch! Inside the colorful mind of master invento by Katie Mazeika
• We are the NASA Scientists by Zoe Tucker, illustrated by Amanda Quartey
• Counting the stars by Lesa Cline-Ransome
• Whoosh! Lonnie Johnson's Super-Soaking stream of inventions by Chris Barton
• The vast wonder of the world: Biologist Ernest Everett Just by Melina Mangal
• Kati's tiny messengers: Dr. Katalin Karikó and the battle against COVID-19
• In the bag: Margaret Knight wraps it up by Monica Kulling, illustrated by David Parkins
• Hedy Lamarr’s double life by Laurie Wallmark, illustrated by Katy Wu
• Yasmeen Lari, green architect: the true story of Pakistan's first woman architect
• Jerry changed the game! by Don Tate, illustrated by Cherise Harris
• The leaf detective: How Margaret Lowman uncovered secrets in the rainforest by Heather Lang
• Just wild enough: Mireya Mayor, primatologist
• Maryam's magic: the story of mathematician Maryam Mirzakhani
• What Miss Mitchell saw by Hayley Barrett
• Up Periscope! How engineer Raye Montague revolutionized shipbuilding by Jennifer Swanson
• Blast off! how Mary Sherman Morgan fueled America into space
• Emmy Noether: the most important mathematician you've never heard of by Helaine Becker
• Joan Procter, dragon doctor: The woman who loved reptiles by Patricia Valdez
• Always looking up: Nancy Grace Roman, astronomer by Laura Gehl, illustrated by Louise Picott
• Classified: the secret career of Mary Golda Ross, Cherokee aerospace engineer
• Alberto Salas plays Paka Paka con la Papa by Sara Andrea Fajardo
• The polio pioneer by Linda Elovitz Marshall, illustrated by Lisa Anchin
• The bug girl (a true story) by Sophie Spencer and Margaret McNamara, illustrated by Kerascoet
• The girl who tested the waters: Ellen Swallow, environmental scientist by Patricia Daniele
• The Day-Glo brothers: the true story of Bob and Joe Switzer's bright ideas and brand-new colors
• A Life Electric: The story of Nikola Tesla by Azadeh Westergaard, illustrated by Julia Sarda
• Ocean speaks: Marie Tharp and the map that moved the earth
• A doctor at heart: The story of...Vivien Thomas by Joan Schoettler, illustrated by Steffi Walthall
• Buzzing with questions: The inquisitive mind of Charles Henry Turner by Janice N. Harrington
• The girl who built an ocean by Jess Keating
• Spark: Jim West's electrifying adventures in creating the microphone by Ainissa Ramirez
• I am... series by Brad Meltzer
• I am Jane Goodall, illustrated by Christopher Eliopoulos

Fiction (selections)

• Garcia & Colette go exploring by Hannah Barnaby, illustrated by Andrew Joyner
• Girl versus squirrel by Hayley Barrett
• Ada Twist, scientist and Rosie Revere Engineer by Andrea Beaty
• Pigeon math by Asia Citro
• Emmie builds something new by Marjorie Crosby-Fairall
• Cece loves science and adventure by Kimberley Derting
• Carrie Finison
• Dozens of doughnuts, illustrated by Brianne Farley
• Plenty of pancakes
• Friends beyond measure: A story told with infographics by Lalena Fisher
• Flash and gleam: light in our world by Sue Fliess
• Balance the birds and Stack the cats by Susie Ghahremani
• Zero the Hero by Joan Holub, illustrated by Tom Lichtenheld
• Lemonade in Winter, a book about two kids counting money by Emily Jenkins
• Bird builds a nest by Martin Jenkins
• The Quest for a Tangram Dragon by Christine Liu-Perkins, illustrated by Lynn Scurfield
• Mad Scientist Academy series by Matthew McElligott
• Mad Scientist Academy: The Dinosaur Disaster
• Bears make the best math buddies by Carmen Oliver, illustrated by Jean Claude
• How to catch a clover thief by Elise Parsley
• 365: How to count a year by Miranda Paul and Julien Chung
• How old is Mr. Tortoise? by Dev Petty, illustrated by Ruth Chan
• Bunny figures it out by Ruby Shamir, illustrated by Andrew Joyner
• Baker makers by Kim Smith
• Julia Sooy
• Every day, chemistry, illustrated by Bonnie Pang
• Our world is relative, illustrated by Molly Walsh
• Count on me by Miguel Tanco
• Is 2 a lot? An adventure with numbers by Annie Watson, illustrated by Rebecca Evans

August in review, looking forward to September

Part of one of our play areas. This is actually very tidy.

 Technically, we still have a week of August left, but summer reading ends this Saturday and I am more or less off until Monday, so as far as I'm concerned we're done.

This summer was, in terms of summer reading, traffic, circulation, and programs, extremely successful. As far as staff morale and stress levels, it was... overwhelming. We went straight into summer with no break after a year of stressful renovations. Additionally, it turns out that the repurposed space amplifies sound - combined with the increased traffic the noise is relentless. We also had illness, personal losses, and some major weather events. I try to make summer as simple as possible - I don't want to be one of those libraries that dreads summer or end with my staff and I being burned out and exhausted - but I just couldn't avoid it this year.

In the past, I've offered no programs in August, just summer reading, but this turned out to be problematic between school not resuming until after Labor Day and previous library boards not wanting a program break. I compromised this year and offered a couple simple storytimes and drop-in events (no teen volunteers - those were all scheduled in June-July). However, one thing I've discovered this summer is that the only program our patrons are really interested in is storytime. Otherwise, they are satisfied with the repurposed space, which has three play areas.

We will be taking a long program break, not resuming until September 21. In addition, this fall I am doing a very simple slate of programs.

During our program break my staff will be helping out other departments (we had a pivotal staff member move on), finally getting the Create Space arranged, and tackling the endless to-do list of projects that have been set aside before and during the grant renovation process. The last weeks of August I will be spending writing reports and organizing data and then the beginning of September I am going to actually take some time off, handle collection projects that have been languishing, and potentially work through the last projects as the grant draws to a close. It will still be very busy, but hopefully we can be more relaxed and as traffic slows down as people go to the fair and return to school the noise levels might abate.

In short, I am busy: We Explore Artist Tom Lichtenheld

Art Project Part 1: Sketching
I encouraged the kids to sketch out their ideas with pencils and erasers. I had lots of pictures of Tom Lichtenheld's art processes from Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast.

Supplies

• pencils, erasers, paper

Storytime

• Sing by Joe Raposo
• Shark vs. Train by Chris Barton
• Ten rules of the birthday wish by Beth Ferry
• Exclamation point by Amy Krouse Rosenthal

Art Project Part 2: Colored pencils
The kids color their drawings with colored pencils; there are also activity sheets.

Supplies

• watercolor pencils
• bleeding art tissue paper
• water, paint brushes
• paper (thick/stiff works best)

Resources

• Tom Lichtenheld's website
• Seven Impossible Things

Evaluation

• 8-19-26
• I've only done this once before - it generally works better with older kids. I just read a couple stories (Sing, Shark vs. Train, and This is a moose) and then we used watercolor pencils and bleeding art tissue paper.
• 6-28-19
• Attendance: 21
• Notes: I taped the samples of works in progress to a table for the kids to look at. I forgot to bring over toys for the little ones again. Most attendees stayed until 3 and had a great time.

STEAM Activities: Pattern Play

  Canva links to resources and posters

Specific supplies

• colored tape (thin masking tape)
• shape stickers

General supplies

• paper
• markers
• pony beads
• pipe cleaners
• beading string
• scissors

In short, I am busy: We Explore Artist Sarah S. Brannen

Books

• Collaborations with Melissa Stewart - nature journal style
• Monarch and Mourning Cloak
• Summer sleepers
• Feathers
• Seashells
• Toddler-friendly books
• A perfect day
• Bear needs help

Art Project 1: Bleeding art tissue paper

• Bleeding art tissue paper
• Paper (thick, non-absorbent paper works best if you have it)
• Water
• Paintbrushes

This is for toddlers or those who don't want to get messy. They just paint the water over the tissue and it "bleeds" onto the paper. It's sold in packs of all colors, but only the dark pink, blue, and purple actually work though. Little kids mostly just enjoy getting things wet anyways. You can either wait for the paper to dry and brush off the wet tissue paper scraps or peel off the wet ones, dying your fingers colors in the process.

Art Project 2: Liquid watercolors

• Liquid watercolors
• Watercolor paper
• Brushes

This is for older kids - these paints stain. I store them in baby food jars and occasionally they dry out - just add a little water. Every once in a while they go bad though and all you can do then is toss them. Theoretically you could add water and dilute them, but that's a little too complicated for my audience.

I had planned to pass out pencils and notebooks and go outside to sketch things the kids saw, but I had only a couple toddlers to start with and then a few older kids at the end come in to paint and it was hot and humid so I skipped that.

Picture Book Neighborhoods: Fun - Sports

 This section is one of the originals, but how I organized the books in it has changed quite a bit. I've played around a lot with the cutters of the nonfiction section but finally settled on, generally, cuttering them by sport with an additional cutter if there are more than 4 titles. I also include contemporary sports figures under 921 and historical sports figures in the US history section. (I don't have any picture book biographies of historical sports figures who are NOT from the US, and I'll cross that bridge when and if I come to it!). I'm pretty liberal in interpreting "sports" and have included some general dance titles in this section as well.

 I have a lot of nonfiction series on sports here, including titles from Creative, ABDO (those are old - I don't purchase from them anymore), Lerner, and Capstone. Overall, it's kind of a weird section, because there really isn't much interest in sports from preschoolers so this section is mostly aimed at elementary school kids.

Biographies

• Courage in her cleats: the story of soccer star Abby Wambach
• The girl who figured it out: the inspiring true story of wheelchair athlete Minda Dentler
• Tacko Fall: to new heights
• Not yet: the story of an unstoppable ice skater by Zahra Lari
• Flying high: the story of gymnastics champion Simone Biles
• I am Simone Biles
• Fearless heart: the legacy of an Olympic figure skater : an illustrated biography of Surya Bonaly
• Heroic heart: an illustrated biography of Joe Delaney
• Decoy saves Opening Day by Shohei Ohtani
• Basketball dreams by Chris Paul
• Simone Biles by Ebony Wilkins
• Sisters: Venus and Serena Williams

Previously reviewed nonfiction titles

• Tae Kwon Do by Cari Meister
• My first book of Soccer by Beth Bugler and Mark Bechtel, illustrated by Bill Hinds
• My first book of baseball by Beth Bugler and Mark Bechtel, illustrated by Bill Hinds

Previously reviewed fiction titles

• Happy like soccer by Maribeth Boelts, illustrated by Lauren Castillo
• Serafina makes waves by Matthew Burgess, illustrated by Robin Rosenthal
• Baller Ina by Liz Casal
• Better than a touchdown by Jalen Hurts, illustrated by Nneka Myers
• Goal! by Mina Javaherbin, illustrated by A. G. Ford
• Max Explains Everything: Soccer Expert by Stacy McAnulty, illustrated by Deborah Hocking
• I am darn tough by Licia Morelli, illustrated by Maine Diaz
• All I want to do is swim by Marilyn Singer, illustrated by Luisa Uribe
• Home base by Nikki Tate, illustrated by Katie Kath

STEAM Activities: Mapping our world

  Canva links to resources and posters

General supplies

• Paper
• Scissors
• Markers
• Crayons
• Colored pencils
• glue sticks
• old magazines

When I requested books for this project, in addition to picture books about mapping I also requested some art books about making maps and RPG fantasy map drawing books. I don't think anybody actually did it though - other than an extremely chaotic crossover with Pokemon Hangout, only a few people went in and just colored.

In short, I am Busy: We Explore Artist Julie Paschkis

Best swirly art in the style of Julie Paschkis!

Art Project Part 1: Sketching

The kids start with pencils and drawing paper and I show pictures of Paschkis' sketches for her artwork, especially P. Zonka. I encourage them not to worry about "mistakes" or extra lines.

Supplies

• Pencils and drawing paper

Storytime

During storytime I discuss Paschkis' art process and how the pictures and words are put together. Paschkis is a really easy artist for this because there are a number of interviews with her on  Seven Impossible Things' interview as well as information on her website.

Read-Alouds

• P. Zonka Lays an Egg
• Mooshka, a quilt story
• Zigzag
• Eek! by Julie Larios
• Crick Crack Crow by Janet Lord
• Vivid: Poems and notes about color
• Barking ballad
• Who put the cookies in the cookie jar by George Shannon
• Fat cat by Margaret Read Macdonald
• Magic spell (this is good to show Paschkis' earlier style)

Display books

• Making light bloom by Sandra Nickel
• Kalinka and Grakkle
• Summer birds by Margarita Engle
• Pablo Neruda by Monica Brown

Art Project Part 2: Painting

Older kids can be encouraged to mix their paints and make new colors, using biocolors. Younger children can use the no-spill paint cups. As always, we change brushes between colors so we don't need cups of water.

Supplies

• Tempera paint in no-spill cups
• Biocolor paint and styrofoam or plastic plates for mixing
• Paintbrushes, aprons, sink, paper towels

Evaluation

This month in the collection

Library Pinterest

• New for Children
• New for Juvenile readers
• New Young Teen and Young Adult

New Book Spotlight

*Unless otherwise noted, all items were purchased for or added to the library collection*

Board Books

• Let's make burgers by Jamie Oliver
• Pigeon won't play with shapes
• Waiting room by Eleni Wehner

Picture Books

• Where are my massive flying wings? by Sarah Tagholm
• Kaleidoscope of Hope: How butterfly cycles reflect our world by Miranda Paul
• Buzz! Being brave around buzzy, stinging insects by Toni Buzzeo, illustrated by Joe Cepeda
• Sharks in Kansas by Melissa Stewart, illustrated by Becca Stadtlander
• Pog and Pickle's Great Escape by Ross Montgomery, illustrated by Sarah Warburton
• Waffles & Julius No hugs please! by Ed Vere
• I used to be a dinosaur by Casey Lyall, illustrated by Laurie Keller
• Farmer's pajamas by Ruth Paul
• Just a frog by Iga Scibek
• Farm Shark by Bill Canterbury, illustrated by Maddie Frost
• The first drum I ever heard by Randy Preston, illustrated by Tamisha Anthony
• Forty the Fortune Teller by Drew Daywalt, illustrated by Kevin Cornell (replacement)
• The Mole and the Mound by Will Hamilton-Davies, illustrated by Kasia Fryza
• Finn the Floaty by Leanne Hatch
• Rafi and Rita by Jarvis and Judge
• Sounds of Trash by Tina Athaide, illustrated by Neha Rawat
• Exca-gator! by Brooke Hartman, illustrated by Michael Slack (second copy)
• Big Rig Pig by Claire Tattersfield, illustrated by Rob Sayegh Jr.
• The House by NinoCactus, illustrated by Celia Sacido
• Wonder World: Earth the science of soil by Ben Lerwill, illustrated by Xuan Le
• Let me fix you a plate: A tale of two kitchens by Elizabeth Lilly (replacement)
• All the ways we learn by Chloe Ito Ward, illustrated by Yaroslava Apollonova
• Breathe, Bunny, Breathe: A book about big feelings by Laura Lavoie, illustrated by Mike Boldt
• Sounds like Joy by Yesenia Moises

Early Readers and Transitional Chapters

• Cozy town by Ame Dyckman
• Avery and the squirrel delivery by Rowan Kingsbury
• Frankie and Friends: The missing sock by Christine Platt

Beginning Chapter Books (new series)

• Rainbow magic fairies: Graphic novels
• Super Roomies: Lake of slime by Jarrett Lerner
• Sherlock roach and the case of the missing crumb by Joe McGee
• Venus Washington and the lasagna drama by Maisha Oso
• Miles and Jones: The Anaconda Attack by Sam Smith
• Unicorn rescuers: Mermaid Land by Ana Punset
• Dog meets dog: On the loose in London! by Dan Yaccarino

Beginning Chapter Books

• Happy Birthday, Jose and Feliz by Susan Rose and Silvia Lopez, illustrated by Gloria Felix

Juvenile Graphic Novels

• Unfairies by Huw Aaron
• Monster Locker: Nine-Tail Trouble by Jorge Aguirre & Andres Vera Martinez
• Mixed feelings by Sara Amini
• Zeb and Bel by Rachel Elliott
• The girl who loved monsters by Insha Fitzpatrick, illustrated by Ashley Robin Franklin
• Pet placement society by Primo Gallanosa
• Offside by Christina Gonzalez
• Steven and Parker by James Parker
• My sister the freak by Dani Jones
• Night chef by Mika Song
• 100 cupboards the graphic novel by N. D. Wilson
• Harper Sharp by Jarrett Williams
• Haven and the fallen giants by Jen Xu

Juvenile Fiction

• Swimming into trouble by Angela Ahn
• Youngest Faircrest and the search for a sorcerer by Ollie George Clark
• The last ember by Lily Dodd
• Strays by Gia Gordon
• Friend group by Lisa Greenwald
• Renegades: The magic awakens by Erin Hunter
• Second life of snap by Erin Entrada Kelly
• Confessions of a mango by Kate Lumsden
• Pumpkin Apocalypse by M. D. Payne
• Deepa M. D. by Priya Swaminathan
• Healer and the phoenix by Linda Trinh

Juvenile Nonfiction

• Terrifying true tales by Paige Towler
• Earth by Anna Skowrońska
• Marvelous Mammals: A wild A to Z of Southeast Asia by Debby Ng, illustrated by Darel Seow
• Bat planet by Neil Griffin
• Why communities need engineers by Helen Liang
• Working boats by Tom Crestodina
• Beyond earth by Yolanda Ridge
• Crafty Dolls by Jane Bull (replacement)
• Mbappé v. Haaland by Matt Oldfield

Young Teen (Voted for by TAB)

• Night king's court by Elisa Bonnin
• My Roman summer by Bruno de Luca
• Kaya of the ocean by Gloria Huang
• Midsummer sisters by Niki Smith
• Sunflowers and Lavender by Maisy Valais

Manga (new series) (Voted for by TAB)

• Akira failing in love
• Apothecary Diaries (light novel)
• Cogs of time (light novel)
• Demon prince of Momochi house: Succession
• Betrothed to a fox demon
• Summer Hikaru died (light novel)
• Ichi the witch
• My Isekai life
• Otaku love connection
• I'm running for crown princess, but all I want is a steady paycheck!
• The weakest tamer began a journey to pick up trash
• A timid lady was turned into an ugly cat, but on the verge of fainting is picked up by the most fearsome military duke

Young Adult (Voted for by TAB)

• Be yourself and other bad advice: a teen girl's guide to unlearning the rules (nonfiction)
• 99 things to do before you finish high school (new edition) (nonfiction)
• Gilded blade by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
• Rolls and Rivalry by Kristy Boyce
• Breakout by Dhonielle Clayton
• Costumes for time travelers by A. R. Capetta (new paperback edition)
• Faraway Inn by Sarah Beth Durst
• When I was death by Alexis Henderson (review copy, reviewed by teens)
• Star Seekers by HYBE
• Release me by Tahereh Mafi
• Her hidden fire by Clíodhna O'Sullivan (review copy, reviewed by teens)

Young Adult Graphic Novels (Voted for by TAB)

• Speak of the devil by Sweeney Boo
• As I dream of you by Jennifer Lee
• Everything amplified by Sarah Lippett
• Morgana and Oz
• My gently raised beast
• Remarried empress
• Sidequested
• Milk & Mocha comics collection: Our little moments

Picture Book Neighborhoods: Fun - Play

 I originally had called this section "interactive" books and included most of the I Spy type books here as well. However, most of my patrons had no idea what "interactive" meant and it was too long, so I changed it to books meant to play with. I do have a genre sticker for I Spy books which I use in and out of this section.

Recommended/Favorite Interactive Books for Storytime

• Count the monkeys by Mac Barnett
• Let's dance by Valerie Bolling, illustrated by Maine Diaz
• Silvia Borando
• Open up, please
• Shapes, reshape
• Stomp, wiggle, clap, and tap: my first book of dance by Rachelle Burk
• Don't push the button by Bill Cotter
• If you're a monster and you know it by Rebecca Emberley
• This book is magic by Ashley Evanson
• Watch out for the lion! by Brooke Hartman, illustrated by Anna Susbauer
• I will chomp you! by Jory John and Bob Shea
• David LaRochelle
• Go and get with Rex
• Mr. Fox's game of no
• Croc-a-doodle-doo by Huw Lewis Jones
• What's next door by Nicola O'Byrne
• Bouncing Bunnies by Fiz Osborne, illustrated by Tim Budgen
• Bunny slopes by Claudia Rueda
• How to count to 1 by Caspar Salmon, illustrated by Matt Hunt
• Do you know which ones will grow? by Susan Shea
• Recess by Lane Smith
• Herve Tullet
• Press Here
• Mix it up
• Let's play
• Shake the tree by Chiara Vignocchi
• Museum of shapes by Sven Volker
• How to wake up Piggy by Xu Pingping

I Spy/Seek-and-Find Books

• Have you seen elephant? and Have you seen dinosaur? by David Barrow
• Bustletown series by Rotraut Susanne Berner
• Winter
• Summer, Fall, Winter, Spring
• Nighttime
• The Lost Christmas by b. b. cronin
• Dinosaur detective's search-and-find rescue mission by Sophie Guerrive
• I Spy series by Walter Wick/Jean Marzollo
• Find my favorite animals by by Clare Lloyd
• Spunky little monkey by Bill Martin Jr. and Michael Sampson, illustrated by Brian Won
• Welcome to the Rabbit Residence: a seek-and-find story by Haruka Nohana
• Who's hiding by Satoru Onishi
• Brown bear wood series by Rachel Piercey
• Penguin Pip's ice-cold seek-and-find book by Benten Pompen
• Where's Walrus? and Penguin? by Stephen Savage
• Spot-it challenge series by Sarah Schuette
• Look! a double book! 14 adventures to explore and discover by Bob Staake
• Look-alikes by Joan Steiner
• Where's the pair and One is not a pair by Britta Teckentrup
• Zebras in the city: seek and find! Thomas van Oostrum

Books to sing

• Baby Shark
• Monster Boogie by Laurie Berkner
• Frog trouble by Sandra Boynton
• Jane Cabrera
• Row row row your boat
• Here we go round the mulberry bush
• The itsy bitsy spider
• 5 little ducks by Denise Fleming
• Cat goes fiddle-i-fee by Paul Galdone
• Miss Mary Mack and The eensy weensy spider by Mary Ann Hoberman
• The animal song by Jonty Howley
• I'm still here in the bathtub by Alan Katz
• Babies on the bus by Karen Katz
• Wheels on the bus at Halloween by Sarah Kieley
• Sing by Joe Raposo
• All god's critters by Bill Staines
• Peanut butter and jelly by Nadine Westcott

Other titles I have reviewed

• This book is too quiet! You add the noise... by Cristina Cubells, illustrated by Joana Casals
• There's a monster in your book by Tom Fletcher, illustrated by Greg Abbot
• Danny Go's Volcano Adventure illustrated by Aleksandar Zolotic
• Watch this! a book about making shapes by Jane Godwin, Hilary Walker, and Beci Orpin
• What was it before it melted? by Kristen McCurry
• Cake for everyone by The Tjong-Khing
• Whose feet? A mix-and-match flip book by Sam Williams, illustrated by Ekaterina Trukhan
• Pet this book by Jessica Young, illustrated by Daniel Wiseman
• Play this book by Jessica Young and Daniel Wiseman

July 2026 in review, looking forward to August

The things just keep on coming. It turns out part of the reason I felt so miserable the latter half of July was because I was actually sick. Yay. The weather has also been very fun. (I am still feeling fairly miserable and very sarcastic.)

While we finished the month's programs, including several huge events with our school colleague, the last performers, and a lot of teen volunteers, I continued planning for the fall. I have already started collecting some teen feedback and will be doing a survey for families in August. I am writing a report on the space use and changes that need to be made. There are some things that need to be done that I cannot (and do not want to) DIY. I am also chronically behind on collection development projects.

In August we will continue summer reading through the 22nd. We don't have any performers or big programs and will not be doing any teen events or volunteering, but we'll do a couple storytimes each week and drop-in activities so there is still something going on every day, Monday - Friday. I will be doing storytimes, which I haven't done in a long time. We are also going to be having one last round of construction at the entrance.

I'm hoping we can start getting some of the program spaces organized, but staff will be on vacation and I am just physically and mentally exhausted. We won't be resuming programs until late September, so we can work on it then.

Summer reading overall has worked very well - there are only a couple minor updates I will make next year.

STEAM Activities: Insects

 Canva links to resources and posters

Specific supplies

• wooden cubes
• wooden beads
• pompoms
• googly eyes

General supplies

• pipe cleaners
• tissue paper
• permanent markers
• glue dots
• hot glue

I didn't really observe any of the kids who came in, although we did have a fair number. A lot of them made butterflies or necklaces with the beads.

STEAM Activities: Bubbles

 Canva links to resources and posters

Specific supplies

• droppers
• liquid soap
• paint
• straw
• paper

General supplies

• small plastic cups (donated)
• stir sticks/popsicle sticks
• platters
• water

There were a lot of bubble painting projects this week. The small plastic containers a patron donated have been very useful. We had more kids than usual participating this week and a lot of younger kids learning how to blow into straws.