Kids & Families

  • Bringing a cat home: Picture books about adopting a cat

    A few weeks ago I wrote a post about the joys of adopting a dog. In the interests of balance and fairness (and because U.S. households with cats actually outnumber U.S. households with dogs!), here are some excellent picture books about adopting a cat. Wheedle and the Noodle by Stephen Cosgrove is the delightful sequel… Continue reading

  • Nightstand Reads: Seattle author Mary Jane Beaufrand on Ivan the gorilla

    We asked Seattle author Mary Jane Beaufrand, author of the  young adult mystery Dark River (a finalist for the Edgar award for best mystery) to tell us about notable books she’d recently read. She submitted this blog post before the sad news that Ivan the gorilla died in Atlanta on August 21. Take a look at what… Continue reading

  • A Dream of Summer

    A Dream of Summer, because we are all dreaming of summer… Here we are in the heady rush of summer, where busy summer plans are making themselves felt regardless of the on-again, off-again weather. In the midst of all the hurry, I find myself longing for quiet dreaming reads – the ones that speak of… Continue reading

  • The Phantom Tollbooth at 51

    One of my favorite books of all time, The Phantom Tollbooth, the novel by Norton Juster and illustrated by Jules Feiffer, celebrates its 51st birthday this year. It is fitting that I am writing to mark its 51st birthday, rather than its 50th because the book itself is a celebration of the unusual in the… Continue reading

  • Silly Stories to Share

    I don’t know about you, but despite the glorious weather, everyone I know is in need of a bit of cheering up.  I turn once more to the picture books, the silly and the sublime. Waiting For Winter by Sebastien Meschenmoser I know we’re all waiting for summer at this point, but don’t let that… Continue reading

  • Bringing a dog home: Picture books about adopting a dog

    If you were lucky enough to have a dog growing up you know how perfectly kids and dogs go together! Dogs provide unconditional love, and caring for a dog teaches children responsibility, kindness, and compassion. Here are some of my favorite picture books about the joys of adopting a dog! A young boy imagines what his… Continue reading

  • Who We Become

    “We had been so close to missing each other, he and I. He had turned out to be the greatest gift of all.”        -The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate There are people we interact with in life that help us become the people we are supposed to be. While some are with us for a lifetime… Continue reading

  • Delightfully disturbing picture books to share with your friends

    Why do I read picture books? Because they make me laugh and they are full of fantastic illustrations, of course. Also, it’s an easy evening’s entertainment to have an impromptu storytime while sipping cocktails before you settle in for dinner or break out Settlers of Catan. These have reduced my friends to abject hilarity, and… Continue reading

  • Seattle Picks: Scary fiction for kids

    Reading scary stories can give kids the thrill of experiencing a fantasy — without the truly horrifying consequences that go along with it. Our children’s services librarians put together a list of 32 (yes, thirty-two!) spine-tingling tales for children. You can find the entire Scary fiction for kids list in our catalog. Here are just… Continue reading

  • Beyond Lyle the Crocodile: The truly awesome Bernard Waber

    Some children’s authors get to be well known for one book, character or series of books, and their other books get sidelined. Sometimes it’s because their other books didn’t have the same cultural impact or just aren’t as good. But in other cases, some really great books get ignored and forgotten. This is certainly true in the… Continue reading

  • Hot Topic: Bullying

    There has been a lot of buzz in the media about the Motion Picture Association’s decision to give the new documentary, “Bully,” an R-rating, preventing teens from seeing the film. Many filmmakers, parents, and even politicians have been challenging the rating decision, lobbying to make “Bully” PG-13 and therefore available to a wider audience. The Weinstein… Continue reading

  • Make Learning Fun and Keep the Mind Young

    “Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning stays young. The greatest thing in life is to keep your mind young.” ~Henry Ford With school in full swing, maybe your child is having difficulty with a subject, or perhaps you want to explore an interesting topic together. The… Continue reading

  • John Flanagan’s Ranger’s Apprentice: A Dad’s Appreciation

    As an avid science fiction and fantasy reader, and as a children’s librarian, I’ve read my share of wonderful and intriguing stories. But nothing I’ve read before has been as deeply satisfying as John Flanagan’s Ranger’s Apprentice series. For the young, or not so young, reader craving action Flanagan’s books are hard to beat. And… Continue reading

  • Here a blog, there a blog — keeping up on children’s literature

    Looking for ways to keep up on the latest in children’s literature? Here are five of our favorite blogs that can help you with that: Book Dads This blog by three dads highlights books that show fatherhood in a positive light. Book Dads includes book reviews, spotlights authors and interviews, gives advice and resources for dads to help promote… Continue reading

  • Librarians’ picks for fourth- and fifth-grade readers

    Looking for a few books for your nine or ten year old? Take a look at the eight books suggested here, and be sure to check our Seattle Picks: Books for Fourth and Fifth Graders 20-item list in our catalog. Extra Credit by Andrew Clements (2009) Abby takes on an extra credit pen pal project… Continue reading

  • June Question of the Month – an irregular series

    Hi, I am looking for children’s picture books about or set in the Puget Sound area.  Non-fiction books for children about Puget Sound and marine life found there would also be appreciated.  Perhaps something like Davy’s Dream or There was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Trout. Hello! Thank you for your question about books… Continue reading

  • Classic Picture Books

    I just got done reading Dear Genius: The Letters of Ursula Nordstrom about the influential editor and director of Harper’s Department of Books for Boys and Girls. Many of the books Ms. Nordstrom edited are classic picture books that still have universal appeal to children today. Ms. Nordstrom published the Carrot Seed written by Ruth… Continue reading

  • Who’s got the sweetest disposition?

    Now that Seattle weather is arguably taking a turn for the better (crotchety curmudgeons like myself prefer the cold and the damp, dagnabit), my thoughts meander toward one of my few beloved outdoor activities, a pastoral pastime that comes as close to a spiritual event as heathens such as I ever experience. I am of… Continue reading