Hot Take: Summer Reading Lists and Schools

 

This is my personal hot take - after 10 years as a Young Adult Librarian and 10 years as a Children's and Young Adult Librarian.

Schools should assign summer reading. 

It can be as simple as read any two books of the student's choice.

And the project due could be as easily graded as a check mark. 

* A short review: What did you like about the book. What did you not like? What would you change?

 * Create something based on the book.

* Write a letter to the author (send or not)

We all know about the Summer Slide - this would help students.

But also, it would help public libraries. And let's be honest, we need help right now. Having a summer reading assignment gives families another reason to come into the library and check out books. Once they're at the library, they'll hear about all the awesome programs we have going on in the summer. They might attend a program. They might find new books that they enjoy. They might come back.

I'ved worked at four different libraries in my career and only one of them had a school with summer reading assignments. 

If your child isn't a huge reader, talk to the librarians. They can recommend books your child might enjoy. Honestly recommending books is one my favorite parts of the job. Connecting books to kids is so important, especially right now.

Let the readers pick books they're interested in. It's summer and they should be allowed to choose. Choosing gives them control and therefore more enjoyment. Let them read audio books, graphic novels, novels, nonfiction.... anything they choose. 

And as parents, make sure they are seeing you read too! It's super important to model behavior. They're not going to want to read if they never see you reading. You are their first influencer. 

Get yourself to the library. Get a library card if you need one. And start checking out books. Make reading and going to the library a habit. See what your library has to offer - it's not just about books anymore! 

PLA: Public Library Association Conference

 Last week, I was lucky enough to attend PLA in Minneapolis and it was really neat! I learned a bunch, took a lot of ideas home, and met some cool people.

On my arrival day, I walked to the main branch of the library.

And took a selfie:

Here's the statue inside:

Some boards in the Children's Room - they had a lot of interactive boards. 

I was waiting for the teen maker space to open, so I killed some time working on a puzzle.

There are four floors to the library and I had a great time scoping everything out.

For some reason I didn't take a picture of the teen maker space room, but it was really awesome.

I went to the Hen House twice and enjoyed it both times.

Here's a photo of the inside

Me before moderating a panel of super nice authors with great books (more about all those books later)

You can't really see it, but my necklace is a bookshelf that has doors on it. 

On Saturday, I saw the river, check out that sky! The weather was mostly dreary except for that first day and lots of mist/snow.

And also this amazing Romance bookstore. I wanted ALL the books! 

Take a look at the window display!

All in all, it was great time.

Review: By Invitation Only

 

Piper Woo Collins is not a debutante. Her single father works as an EMT. She's worked really hard to earn scholarships to college; she's something of a science whiz. After receiving a prestigious prize, Teen Vogue shares her profile. 

When an exclusive ball needs to find a replacement ASAP after one of the debutantes becomes a scandal, they pick Piper. Because Piper is not from the wealthy world, they place her with a roommate.

Chapin is not thrilled to play babysitter to a girl who doesn't understand anything - especially the importance of this week. Because she wants to win Debutante of the Year, she agrees to show Piper the ropes. But she makes it clear to Piper they are not friends.

The competition for Debutante of the Year is fierce. Piper becomes involved in one or two small mishaps. But anymore could ruin her future. And someone is looking for more...

My Thoughts: The tagline for this was Emily in Paris meets Princess Diaries - and I'm a sucker for anything Princess Diaries related. It was a good comparison; there was a lot of fashion and Piper was definitely a fish out of water in high society. I loved Piper's relationship with her Dad. I loved her best friend: Seb. I felt terrible for Chapin and her relationship with her mother.  This did make me want to go explore Paris for a few days! The shopping scene was charming. There was romance, intrigue, double crossings, and lots of secrets.  I did not see the end coming. This wasn't a book I wanted to put down, so make sure when you start it, you have time set aside to read! 

Cover Thoughts: Very Gossip Girl

Source: Book sent for review

Library Recommendation: 

Picture Book Review: All that Glimmers

Things in the world can be hard, but there are little things that make us smile and feel joy: glimmers.

I love the message of this book. It's important to see the little happy moments in life. It's important to celebrate success and happiness. I love that the characters are present in the moment and helping each other. The illustrations are soft and delightful. I love how they showcase the glimmers.

* A must have book for your library's collection

Top Ten Tuesday: Settings

 This week's topic is all about settings. I'm picking books that take place in Connecticut.

Adult:

Young Adult:

Middle Grade:

Kids:

Have you read any of these? 

What books are set in the state where you live?

Middle Grade Review: Secrets and Scones

 

Scarlett has had a rough time of it lately; she's dropped her friends and all her clubs at school due to her mother's blog. Her mom writes a parenting blog that shares intimate details of Scarlett's life. 

Scarlett stumbles across a secret. Her neighbor was taken away in an ambulance. When Scarlett walks by her house, she hears the cat crying. Scarlett discovers a house key and lets herself into the house. As she's feeding the cat, she discovers an amazing kitchen. There's a cookbook on the counter and when it opens to a page, her mouth waters.

Even though she has no prior experience, she decides to bake cinnamon scones. She's desperate to keep her mom from discovering her secret, but the new girl at school catches her. Scarlett swears her to secrecy. The Secret Cooking Club is formed. 

My Thoughts: I felt horrible for Scarlett - being the brunt of her mother's blog. They didn't have the best relationship, but I do like how it grew in this book. I like watching the friendship moments happen and then strengthen. I loved the baking moments. I really enjoyed the baking lessons between Mrs. Simpson and the club. And I confess, I liked the blogging moments and how Scarlett learns to blog. This ended really well and I'm eager to read the second book.

Cover Thoughts: Cute

Source: my Library

Why I read it: I love books about baking

Library Recommendation: A good choice for your middle grade collection for school and public libraries 

Picture Book Review: Garden Books

Just a few books about flowers and gardens:

A mom and her child are off to the nursery; they need supplies for their garden. What will they find? And how will it come out?

There is a lot of information in this book and a lot of text. The text is broken up by lots of colorful illustrations. Gardening tips and tricks are hidden within the text. Caution: this book might make you want to start up a garden. 

There's a piece of land that belongs to no one. Mara decides to plant some sunflower seeds. She plants them and tends to them. She waits patiently for them to sprout.

This is a lovely story about patience and gardening and things not working out as planned. I loved how the garden turned out and seeing how the garden changed. Another great story for PLANT A SEED summer theme. 

Willadeen's farm is in the middle of nowhere - just the way she likes it. Until someone tries to buy it from her. She isn't interested in selling and a city grows up around her. But now she's part of the city.

This is a story about community and determination. Willadeen doesn't give in to pressure about selling when a man tries to take her land. She carries on doing what she loves. 

While this one isn't a story, it is about gardening in a picture book format. There are 15 different projects that they can try to grow.

I love how some of the items you can grow from the product itself and you can use recycled materials. The instructions are easy to follow and cutely illustrated.