Posted in Explore and Discover on May 7, 2019 at 6:00 am
By Rachel Underwood I have recently discovered an intense love for nonfiction titles and it all started with a compendium of terrible medical cures through history. Those 24-karat golden face masks that are in vogue right now? They’ve already been done long before the present day (and the masks still don’t have any proven benefits; […]
Tags: adults, Arowana, book list, booklist, books, butter, cadavers, cure-all, death, dragon, facts, fish, history, knowledge, medicinal, medicine, nonfiction, octopus, orchids, quackery, rain, reading, science, teens, trivia, witches
Posted in Explore and Discover on April 16, 2019 at 6:00 am
By Susan Goertz April come she will when streams are ripe and swelled with rain. –from “April Come She Will” composed by Paul Simon This time of year the song “April Come She Will” inevitably gets stuck in my head. If I just shared my earworm with you, then you may want to check out […]
Tags: animals, April, books, cute animals, humor, music, National Poetry Month, Pets are Wonderful Month, poems, Poet Laureate, poetry, poetry slam, Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Month, reading, spring
Posted in Explore and Discover on April 11, 2019 at 6:00 am
By Caitlin Wheeler In the past 20 years, the Get Lit! Festival has hosted a whole slew of authors of exciting written work: Kurt Vonnegut, Jane Smiley, and Tim O’Brien are just a few. This year is no exception. At the 2019 festival, you’ll find the opportunity to hear from Roxane Gay, Tommy Orange, Kaveh […]
Tags: author, book list, books, festival, fiction, Get Lit!, guide, Inland Northwest Collection, literary, literary festival, literature, local, music, nonfiction, poet, poetry, prose, reading, writer
Posted in kids, Parents and Teachers on February 12, 2019 at 6:00 am
By Rachel Edmondson In my years of helping kids find books to read, one thing has remained the same—kids always want to read the same books their friends are reading. Often, a new title has gained traction. It’s also not uncommon for older series to suddenly come into popularity again, based on word of mouth. […]
Tags: book list, book recommendations, books, children, kids, kids books, reading, recommendations, tweens
Posted in Explore and Discover on February 5, 2019 at 6:00 am
By Susan Goertz Congratulations! You made it to 2019. I hope the year so far is treating you kindly. If your resolutions are starting to fall by the wayside, or the glum weather is getting to you, don’t worry. There is another chance for a fresh start—the Lunar New Year! As you know, the modern […]
Tags: Chinese Chunjie, Chinese New Year, cookbooks, cooking, dragon dance, family, hoopla, kids, kids books, Korean Seollal, Lunar New Year, new year, Nian, parents, picture books, reading, Spring Festival, Tibetan Losar, tradition, Vietnamese Tet
Posted in Parents and Teachers on January 29, 2019 at 6:00 am
By Sheri Boggs Big changes are afoot in our Easy Reader section! Elephant & Piggie, Daniel Tiger, Amelia Bedelia, Little Bear, Frog and Toad, and Fancy Nancy will soon be making room for true stories about otters, astronauts, WWE stars, and more as we launch our newest collection: Easy Reader Nonfiction. While we’ve always had […]
Tags: books, early learning, easy reader books, easy reader nonfiction, easy readers, informational reading, just right books, kids, learning to read, new readers, nonfiction, parents, reading, teachers
Posted in Explore and Discover on January 22, 2019 at 6:00 am
By Caitlin Wheeler A young boy grows up poor, not looked after by his foster parents. Abused, neglected, and destitute, he expects little from life, and life expects little from him. Until one day, everything changes. The child in servant’s clothes now wears a crown, and his childhood among the people turns out to have […]
Tags: adults, adventure, Arthurian, books, Britton, Guinevere, heros, kids, King Arthur, knights, knights of the round table, Lancelot, legend, legend of Arthur, magic, Merlin, monsters, Morgaine, Morgan le Fay, Morgause, myth, Nimue, reading, round table, Saxon, tales, tweens, Welsh, YA
Posted in Explore and Discover on January 3, 2019 at 6:00 am
by Dana Mannino “Do one thing every day that scares you.” I first met this quote on a refrigerator magnet. Since then, I’ve seen it online attributed to Eleanor Roosevelt, Kurt Vonnegut, and several more historical figures. The website Quote Investigator says that it actually comes from a 1997 article by journalist Mary Schmich, but […]
Tags: fear, Gale, gale courses, karaoke, nature, New Year's resolutions, politics, reading, reading diversely, reading resolutions, resolutions, setting boundaries
Posted in kids, Parents and Teachers on December 4, 2018 at 6:00 am
By Susan Goertz The scent of holidays is in the air. Crisp frost and cinnamon seem to waft near every doorway. We scramble to prepare for social gatherings while dreaming of time. Time to relax and enjoy the season. Time to be with loved ones, remember seasons past, decorate, and eat all the desserts. The […]
Tags: Albers, art, artists, Basquiat, books, books about artists, Chagall, family, Grandma Moses, holiday gifts, holidays, Kahlo, kids, kids books, Matisse, O'Keeffe, parents, Picasso, picture books, reading, what if, young learners
Posted in Explore and Discover on November 27, 2018 at 6:00 am
By Melissa Rhoades One specific morning in fourth grade still stands out in my memory. I arrived early to class, sat at my desk, and opened a novel I was midway through. I don’t remember now what book it was, but I do remember becoming completely engrossed, sinking into the world on the page. Which […]
Tags: authors, books, close reading, deep reading, diverse books, fiction, health, nonfiction, parents, patience, print books, reading, reading comprehension, reading diversely, reading resolutions, slow, slow reading, teens, tweens