Like a Dandelion (HarperCollins) by Huy Voun Lee, King of Ragtime (Simon & Schuster) by Stephen Costanza and Born Ready (Crown) by Jodie Patterson, illustrated by Charnelle Pinkney Barlow have been selected as CCBC Choices 2022. CCBC Choices is a best-of-the-year list created annually by the librarians of the Cooperative Children’s Book Center.
See the full list here
Get Like a Dandelion here
Get King of Ragtime here
Get Born Ready here
Let’s Be Friends/Seamos amigos (Holiday House) by René Colato Laínez, illustrated by Nomar Perez, has been named to Tejas Star Reading List for 2022-2023!
The Tejas Star Reading List (TSRL) provides a recommended reading list to encourage children ages 5-12 to explore multicultural books and to discover the cognitive and economic benefits of bilingualism and multilingualism. The Tejas Star Reading List is intended for recreational reading, not to support a specific curriculum.
Congratulations Nomar!
See the full list here
Get the book here
School Library Journal has given a starred review to Pink, Blue, and You!: Questions for Kids About Gender Stereotypes (Random/Anne Schwartz) by Elise Gravel with Mykaell Blais (text) & illus. by Elise Gravel. See the review below.
PreS-Gr 2–In her signature style, Gravel (What Is a Refugee??” and others) and Blais provide an accessible introduction to gender and gender stereotypes. Beginning with smart, open-ended questions, the authors challenge readers to think about gender stereotypes, why they exist, and if they are true or fair. The book progresses to an overview of sex versus gender, complete with helpful visual aids, an exploration of pronouns, and ultimately, a few examples of how gender is treated in different communities. At each step, the authors ask readers what they think and how they feel. This engagement, coupled with the accessible presentation of the material, makes for an excellent resource. The folks depicted throughout vary in appearance, and include many skin tones, ages, and family structures. A few folks wear hijabs, and two others use wheelchairs. Gravel’s illustrative style is wildly appealing, and the comic-style presentation helps to endear the book to readers. A slight weakness is the homogeneity of illustrated body type, though this is not enough to diminish the book’s overall value.
VERDICT Thoughtful, engaging, and visually bright, this is an excellent addition to any library serving preschool and early elementary ages.
Pink, Blue and You! will be published in March 2022. Pre-order it here
Born Ready (Crown) by Jodie Patterson, illustrated by Charnelle Pinkney Barlow, has been selected for the 2022 KNEA Reading Circle Recommended List in the Primary category. Each spring, the newest list is published and sent at no cost to every school in the state of Kansas as a service of the Kansas National Education Association (KNEA). School library media specialists across the state use this catalog as a respected, dependable tool for evaluating and selecting new reading material for purchase. Additionally, educators and librarians from more than 20 other states access this recommended list online.
Get the book here
Nelvana and Discovery Kids has given the greenlight to a third season of Redknot’s Agent Binky: Pets of the Universe. The hit animated preschool series airs in Canada on Treehouse, and is based on the best-selling Binky Adventure graphic novels (Kids Can Press) by Ashley Spires.
Read the full press release here
Get the Binky Graphic Novels here
Stitch By Stitch: Elizabeth Hobbs Sews Her Way to Freedom (Holiday House) by Connie Schofield-Morrison, illustrated by Elizabeth Zunon, has been selected as a 2022 Notable Social Studies Trade Book!
The Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People is an annual project of the National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS) and the CBC running since 1972. The selection committee looks for books that emphasize human relations, represent a diversity of groups and are sensitive to a broad range of cultural experiences, present an original theme or a fresh slant on a traditional topic, are easily readable and of high literary quality, and have a pleasing format and, when appropriate, illustrations that enrich the text.
Congratulations Connie and Liz!
See the full list here
Get the book here
The 2022 Booklist from Rise: A Feminist Book Project is out and several books illustrated by Painted Words artists are on it!
Included are:
Secrets of the Sea (Clarion) by Evan Griffith, illustrated by Joanie Stone
The Library Bus (Pajama Press) by Bahram Rahman, illustrated by Gabrielle Grimard
Legacy (Bloomsbury) by Nikki Grimes, including illustrations by Vanessa Brantley Newton, Cathy Ann Johnson, Keisha Morris, Shadra Strickland, and Elizabeth Zunon
The Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) has released their 2022 Notable Children’s Recordings List and recognized 8 Listening Library titles, including GRANDMA’S PURSE (Knopf ) written and narrated by Vanessa Brantley Newton!
Congratulations to Vanessa on this wonderful achievement!
Get the audio book here
King of Ragtime (Simon & Schuster) by Stephen Costanza has been named to the ALSC Notable Children’s Books List for 2022.
Each year a committee of the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) identifies the best of the best in children’s books. According to the Notables Criteria, “notable” is defined as: Worthy of note or notice, important, distinguished, outstanding. As applied to children’s books, notable should be thought to include books of especially commendable quality, books that exhibit venturesome creativity, and books of fiction, information, poetry and pictures for all age levels (birth through age 14) that reflect and encourage children’s interests in exemplary ways.
Congratulations Steve!
See the full list here
Get King of Ragtime here