Submitted by Ms. Janis!
Book Fiesta! by Pat Mora. April 30 is Children’s Day (El Día de Los Niños) and also Book Day (El Día de Los Libros) in many Spanish speaking countries, and everyone is excited! Libros (books) can be read in many different places. This book shows children reading in a car, a plane, and on trains. You can read to your animals. Ask your child where they like to read! A little girl has a wagon filled with books, and a little boy is running with a few books tucked under his arms. Another little girl is carrying a banner announcing the special day. Children can read in different languages, they can read by themselves, or read with un amigo (a friend). Many children read at the library! This bilingual book has bright Hispanic colors that make it very eye catching. There are also suggestions in the back of the book on how to celebrate Children’s Day. See this book listed in our catalog
Holidays
Our Children Can Soar
Submitted by Tess from Lexington Park!
Our Children Can Soar: A Celebration of Rosa, Barack, and the Pioneers of Change by Michelle Cook, with illustrations by a variety of talented artists, is an excellent book for Black History Month, or any time of year you want to have a conversation with your child about the monumental achievements of African Americans throughout our country’s history. Beginning with the buffalo soldiers of the civil war, and ending with the election of Barack Obama and a promise of hope for the future, it features such heroes as George Washington Carver, Jesse Owens, Ruby Bridges, Ella Fitzgerald, and Thurgood Marshall, who all lead the way to inspire generations after them to dream and succeed. This is an upliftifting and powerful book, that may even bring tears to your eyes! See this book listed in our catalog
The Longest Christmas List Ever
Submitted by Tess from Lexington Park!
If there’s one thing our library never seems to run out of, it’s books about the Christmas holiday! Ask your librarians to suggest some titles if you’re feeling overwhelmed. One of my favorites is The Longest Christmas List Ever by Gregg and Evan Spiridellis. Meet Trevor–a precocious young boy who couldn’t be more excited to open presents Christmas morning! Santa Claus got him everything he asked for! But, oh no! He forgot one important thing! A fluffy brown puppy! So Trevor decides to start his letter to Santa early. He writes it all year long. Every time he thinks of another thing he needs, he jots it down. Soon the list is 500 feet long, and to mail it will cost 6 trillion dollars! Trevor decides to downsize, but it’s too late! He’s missed Santa’s deadline! “What was I thinking? Where was my head? I asked for too much–I’ll get nothing instead!” he laments. But when he wakes up in the morning, there’s a puppy there waiting for him! Mom and Dad must have gotten a letter off to Santa in the meantime, and Trevor learns “It takes love–not toys–to bring Christmas cheer.” See this book listed in our catalog
The Twelve Days of Christmas
Submitted by Sue from Leonardtown!
The Twelve Days of Christmas illustrated by Gennady Spirin. “The Twelve Days of Christmas” is best known as a folk song written between 1558 and 1829. It is sung or caroled during the Christmas season, usually taking turns with the different verses. In this version, illustrations are done in colored pencil and watercolor. They are beautiful renditions with soft detail, giving the reader a clear vision of each verse. For each of the twelve days of Christmas, lively gifts are presented to “my true love,” along with a partridge in a pear tree. Turtle doves, French hens, calling birds, golden rings, and laying geese provide the first six verses. The early period pictures give young readers a visual treat as they read along, providing thought provoking illustrations, and counting opportunities. The last six verses, containing swans, maids, ladies, lords, pipers, and drummers, will collectively have you singing along as you read! See this book listed in our catalog
I’m Not Santa!
Submitted by Carol from Charlotte Hall!
I’m Not Santa! by Jonathan Allen is a really cute story about an owl and a bunny rabbit. One day Owl is out playing in the snow when he runs into Rabbit. Rabbit immediately thinks Owl is Santa. Owl does have a Santa hat on but he insists he is not Santa. Rabbit keeps on and on and even breaks down crying, so Owl finally tells rabbit that he is Santa. Rabbit now realizes that Owl really is not Santa, and by the end of the story both Owl and Rabbit are upset and crying. Who will save the day? Will it be the guy in the big red suit himself? A very cute Christmas story. See this book listed in our catalog
A Christmas Carol
Submitted by Tess from Lexington Park!
“MARLEY WAS DEAD. There was no doubt whatever that Old Marley was dead as a doornail. That must be distinctly understood, or nothing wonderful can come of the story of Ebenezer Scrooge.” So begins Charles Dickens’s classic story A Christmas Carol beautifully imagined here by Brett Helquist in this new illustrated version. Scrooge, a holiday hating miser, is visited by three spirits: the ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Yet to Come, who teach him the true meaning of the season over the course of one fateful night. When he rises on Christmas morning Scrooge is a changed man, and decides to devote his life to helping instead of hating. This is the original Dickens text, so only read it to your children with long attention spans, but readers of all ages can appreciate the breath-taking pictures. See this book listed in our catalog