The Perfect Pet

This week, we're sharing some of our favorite pet stories for younger children.  Here are a few of our favorite pet picture books . . . .

A Boy and His Bunny by Sean Bryan

One morning, a boy wakes up with a rabbit on his head and, although his mother is skeptical, he soon discovers that he can be fed, ride a bobsled, and even look cool with a rabbit on his head.

Dogs by Emily Gravett

Various types of dogs illustrate the concept of opposites, with such examples as dogs that are big and small, tough and soft, hairy and bald, and slow and fast.

Children Make Terrible Pets by Peter Brown

When Lucy, a young bear, discovers a boy lost in the woods, she asks her mother if she can have him as a pet, only to find him impossible to train.

Bark, George by Jules Feiffer

A mother dog tries to teach her pup how to bark, and is surprised at why he wasn't learning.

More Pet Stories --

Bad Dog by Mike Boldt

Be Gentle with the Dog, Dear by Matthew J. Baek

The Blue House Dog by Deborah Blumenthal

Can I Be Your Dog? by Troy Cummings

Dog in Charge by K.L. Going

The Dog Who Belonged to No One by Amy Hest

Flat Cat by Tara Lazar

Gaston by Kelly DiPucchio

Gilbert Goldfish Wants a Pet by Kelly DiPucchio

Goldfish on Vacation by Sam Lloyd-Jones

The Great Dog Wash by Shellie Braeuner

How Mr. Silver Stole the Show by Kate Klise

I Got a New Friend by Karl Newson Edwards

I Hate My Cats: A Love Story by Cali Davide

I Want a Dog by Jon Agee

I'm Not Missing by Kashelle Gourley

Mogie: The Heart of the House by Kathi Appelt

Move Over, Rover by Karen Beaumont

Mr. Putney's Quacking Dog by Jon Agee

No Dogs Allowed! by Sonia Manzano

Painter and Ugly by Robert J. Blake

The Perfect Pet for You by Estelle Laure

The Pet Potato by Josh Lacey

Pirate's Perfect Pet by Beth Ferry

Some Cat! by Mary Casanova

Take Your Pet to School Day by Linda Ashman

This Is Gus by Chris Chatterton

Trouper by Meg Kearney

Wiener Wolf by Jeff Crosby

Rip-Roaring Reads: Stories Featuring Dinosaurs

Dinosaur books are always popular.  This week, I'm sharing chapter book stories featuring dinosaurs.  Here are a few of our favorites . . . . 

Knights vs. Dinosaurs by Matt Phelan

With the realm at peace and few dragons about, the Knights of the Round Table are bored, so Merlin sends them to face the most terrible lizards of all --dinosaurs.

Dinosaur Trouble by Dick King-Smith

Young dinosaurs Nosy, a pterodactyl, and Banty, an apatosaurus, become friends, despite their parents' prejudices.

Dinosaur Boy by Cory Putman Oakes

Sprouting a tail and spikes over the summer before fifth grade, Sawyer, a boy with the dinosaur gene, is bullied in school, but when his tormentors begin to disappear, it is up to Sawyer, his best friend Elliot, and a mysterious new girl to rescue them from a galactically horrible fate.

More Dinosaur Stories --

The Bad Guys in Do-You-Thin-He-Saurus by Aaron Blabey

Caveboy Dave: More Scrawny Than Brawny by Aaron Reynolds

Dactyl Hill Squad by Daniel Jose Older

Dino-Mike and the T.Rex Attack by Franco Aureliani

The Dinosaur Mystery by Gertrude Chandler Warner

Dinosaurs Before Dark by Mary Pope Osborne

The Journey Through Time by Geronimo Stilton

Mad Scientist Academy: The Dinosaur Disaster by Matthew McElligott

A Mysterious Egg by Stacy McAnulty

Saving the Stegosaurus by Rex Stone

Short Story Collections for Teens

Sometimes you just want a short story to read rather than a longer novel.  So this week I'm sharing collections of short stories for teens.  Here are a few of our favorites . . . .

Unexpected Magic: Collected Stories by Diana Wynne Jones

Contains fifteen short stories and one novella by fantasy writer Diana Wynne Jones.

Through the Woods by Emily Carroll

A collection of five spine-tingling short stories.

Out of Our League: 16 Stories of Girls in Sports edited by Dahlia Adler

An anthology about the trials and triumphs of girls in sports.

Tasting Light: Ten Science Fiction Stories to Rewire Your Perceptions edited by A.R. Capetta

This electrifying collection imagines what the world could be through the lens of technologies emerging today, posing a challenge to connect with open minds, hearts and senses in a fast-changing world.

More Short Story Collections for Teens --

The Collectors edited by A.S. King

Color Outside the Lines: Stories About Love edited by Sangu Mandanna

Faeries Never Lie: Tales to Revel In edited by Zoraida Cordova

Fools in Love: Fresh Twists on Romantic Tales edited by Ashley Herring Blake

Games Untold by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

His Hideous Heart: 13 of Edgar Allan Poe's Most Unsettling Tales Reimagined edited by Dahlia Adler

Love on the Other Side by Nagabe

Moira's Pen by Megan Whalen Turner

Shards & Ashes edited by Melissa Marr

A Thousand Beginnings and Endings: 15 Retellings of Asian Myths and Legends edited by Ellen Oh

Up All Night: 13 Stories Between Sunset and Sunrise edited by Laura Silverman

National Poetry Month

April celebrates National Poetry Month!  Check out one of the following books and discover some new poetry this year in celebration.

Wing Nuts: Screwy Haiku by Paul B. Janeczko

A collection of senryu--similar poetry to haiku--tackles a wide range of such child-friendly subjects as baby-sitters, jumping rope, snoring parents, and Grandpa's underwear.

Bookjoy, Wordjoy by Pat Mora

An inspiring collection of Pat Mora's own glorious poems celebrating a love of words and all the ways we use and interact with them: reading, speaking, writing, and singing.

My Thoughts are Clouds: Poems for Mindfulness by Georgia Heard

A poetry collection that both illustrates what mindfulness is and encourages young, growing minds to be present.

More Books of Poetry --

Behold Our Magical Garden: Poems Fresh From a School Garden by Allan Wolf

Everything Comes Next: Collected & New Poems by Naomi Shahib Nye

I Wish Had a Wookie: and Other Poems for Our Galaxy by Ian Doescher

Lemonade by Bob Raczka

Love Your Amazing Self: Joyful Verses for Young Voices by Ofosu Jones-Quartey

Outside the Box by Karma Wilson

A Whiff of Pine, a Hint of Skunk: A Forest of Poems by Deborah Ruddell

The Weather Can Be Wild . . .

With the recent wild weather and storms I thought this would be a good time to share some picture books about the weather.  Here's a few of our favorites . . . .

A Hat for House: One Storm, Many Helpers by Audrey Perrott
One windy day, House’s hat blows clean off his head! His friends are happy to help, but nothing they try seems quite right. Then the wind gets even stronger and thunder rumbles, making House wonder how he can keep his family safe and if he’ll ever feel quite like himself again. 

Little Cloud by Eric Carle
A little cloud becomes all sorts of things--sheep, an airplane, trees, a hat--before joining other clouds and raining.

Snowflakes on Our Tongues by Mike Ornstein

Farmer Pumpernickel has a blissful, peaceful farm with his contented cows, satisfied sheep, pampered piglets, cheerful chickens, and happy horse. All is as it should be. But as snow starts to fall, the farm animals share their delight in the tasty flakes coming down from the sky. 

Hello, Rain! by Kyo Maclear

The air is full of waiting. The sky is full of breeze. The trees gust and billow. All before it rains.Rumble, rumble. Distant thunder. Rain is coming, rain is coming.

Weather Girls by Aki

Summer, Fall, Winter, or Spring the Weather Girls are ready for whatever the seasons might bring!

More Books --

All Year Long by Kathleen W. Deady

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs by Judi Barrett

Do I Have to Wear a Coat? by Rachel Isadora
Flora's Very Windy Day by Jeanne Birdsall

From Season to Season by Ethan Long

It Was Supposed to be Sunny by Samantha Cotterill
Not Now, Cow by Tammi Sauer
Rain by Cynthia Rylant
Really Bird, Really Scared by Harriet Ziefert
Sometimes Rain by Meg Fleming

Summer Green to Autumn Gold by Mia Posada

Sweater Weather by Matt Phelan
Winter Is Here by Kevin Henkes

Winter on the Farm by Laura Ingalls Wilder

Winter Woes by Marty Kelley

Dear Diary . . .

This week, I'm sharing teen books written in a diary format.  Check them out . . . .

The Runaway's Diary by James Patterson & Emily Raymond

Eleanor is happiest when she's left alone to dream up elaborate stories. Sam is polished, fun, and popular. Still, the sisters have always been there for each other--until everything changed. Now Sam is somewhere in Seattle, and Eleanor runs after her.

The Year I Didn't Eat by Samuel Pollen

Fourteen-year-old Max records his efforts to control his anorexia in a therapist-prescribed journal that also chronicles his parents' difficult relationship and his feelings for a new girl at school, Evie.

Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer

Through journal entries sixteen-year-old Miranda describes her family's struggle to survive after a meteor hits the moon, causing worldwide tsunamis, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions.

More Books --

83 Days in Mariupol by Don Brown

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie

Break to You by Neal Shusterman

Catherine, Called Birdy by Karen Cushman

Curse of the Specter Queen by Jenny Elder Moke

Ghost Diary by Seiju Natsumegu

Layers by Penelope Bagieu

Love and Gelato by Jenna Evans Welch

Love, Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli

The Princess Diaries by Meg Cabot

Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly

Witch Child by Celia Rees

All You Need is Books

 February is Library Lovers Month.  So we're sharing teen books featuring storylines centered around books.  

The Case Study of Vanitas series by Jun Mochizuki

Rumors revolving around The Book of Vanitas, a clockwork grimoire of dubious reputation, draw Noé, a young vampire in search of a friend's salvation, to Paris.

Last Chance Books by Kelsey Rodkey

Working at her family's independent bookstore during the summer before she leaves for college, Madeline Moore is determined to make the store succeed when she discovers that her crush, Jasper, works at the competing chain bookstore across the street.

The Grimm Legacy by Polly Shulman

New York high school student Elizabeth gets an after-school job as a page at the "New-York Circulating Material Repository," and when she gains coveted access to its Grimm Collection of magical objects, she and the other pages are drawn into a series of frightening adventures involving mythical creatures and stolen goods.

More Books --

The Archived by Victoria Schwab

The Forgotten Book by Mechtild Glaser

Ink and Bone by Rachel Caine

The Lefthanded Booksellers of London by Garth Nix

The Library of Broken Worlds by Alaya Dawn Johnson 

Library Wars series by Kiiro Yumi

Magus of the Library series by Mitsu Izumi

Recommended for You by Laura Silverman

Words in Deep Blue by Cath Crowley