Whether it’s a Sunday morning where I have my tea while reading a book after the newspaper or my nightly cup of tea and reading before bed, or frankly any time of the day that I’m reading, it’s always better with a cup of tea.
Or… is it that tea is better when reading a book?
Either way, they’re inextricably linked on my arm and it’s a winning combination.
An avid user of libraries means weekly visits.
Currently, my public library is in a transitional phase as the old library had to be abandoned due to the overwhelming cost of structural repairs that was needed to make it safe for visitors. Our city decided to purchase an old bank building that had been vacant for many years right in the heart of our downtown, but it also needs significant structural repairs and a redesign but with a revitalization grant, it was a supported opportunity. In the meantime, the library has been in a small pocket of a senior center owned by the city. Our director and small staff has made the best of the situation.
I’m also lucky enough to have more intimate details about the running of the library after being appointed to the Board of Trustees, so I went from an avid user to an avid user and Board member. I encourage anyone who might have the time and energy to dedicate to this volunteer opportunity, to do it. Or simply volunteer, if that’s an avenue at your library. And if that isn’t available, attend the programs. Borrow the books. Check out other materials or if the library has one, their “library of things” or museum passes. Sit in the library for a spell to suck up the energy.
I’ll say what’s often repeated which is that the public library remains one of the last locations that doesn’t ask anything of its visitors. It equalizes access to things like the internet and resources. It provides community connections and aids for literacy.
Therefore, if you haven’t visited your local public library in a while. Now’s your chance.
Blogging each day during a month has been a fun adventure to challenge me and I’ve decided February is a LOVE-ly month for another round using the theme of love. Have an idea for a post? Drop it in the comments.
This past Monday was the premier event in children and teen publishing: the Youth Media Awards. While it will undoubtedly look different next year without having a midwinter conference beforehand, it will continue to be an event to be viewed. It’s where winners of big awards that add seals to books get announced to the gasps, claps, and exuberance of all who are watching. There are years I’ve been “in the room” and years like this year that I was watching the livestream making audible noises and shaking my hands in celebration. Here were the titles that I was most excited to see come across the screen either because I devoured them (not having known about them previously in the days following the YMAs or precisely because I loved them leading up to the YMAs).
Ironic that I’m posting the day after Library Shelfie Day that looks to be the fourth Wednesday of January because yesterday was the day I should have taken a library shelfie! I was damn proud of spending a few days finishing up weeding nonfiction after having done a cursory weed of fiction about a month ago and the other section of nonfiction at the beginning of the year.
The work of actually deleting them from the system and moving them to free carts, teacher classrooms, donations, and new life in another library pales in comparison to the backbreaking (and knee burning) of the weeding itself. Plus of course the feeling of levity when the torn or yellowed pages, smashed spines, and seriously outdated books get tossed because no one needs to that on their shelf. It dulls the shine of the wonderful books on the shelves, so I’m glad they’re shining again.
Yet, like a tale or soap opera entitled “Ourshelves” it’s like laundry at home– the minute I think I’m done, there’s more to do. And in this case– the elegance of pristine shelves with all of the books sitting upright, sitting *just right* on the shelf, nothing backward or tipped over– will all be over as soon as students are back in full force on Monday. Do I wish it could last a few days? Of course, but then I wouldn’t be recognizing that the reason they’re messy is that they’re being used.
With the last day of the year, what’s better than a quick post of my favorite posts from this year because they were often about amazing moments or reads from this past year.
And it wouldn’t be the end of one year and the start of another without having my last book of the year and first book of the new year lined up. Several hours ago I finished the National Book Award winner Kareem Between by Shifa Saltagi Safadi. It’s clear why it’s a winner.
And as if Fiona Staples and Brian K. Vaughan made a wish come true that I whispered into the ether or not, my first read of 2025 will be Saga #71.
There’s no doubt this will be the perfect way to usher in a new year of reading. If you haven’t hitched your wagon to Saga yet, make this your year.
Finally, the caboose to this best-of train are books written for adults. A treat and indulgence for a high school librarian like myself. It’s evident that I lean heavily into nonfiction but have been known to get sucked into a vivid fiction too. Oh, and comics.
For the third day of the four day event featuring the best of 2024, I’m sharing my favorites targeting young adults. One is an ongoing comic in which I cosplayed the main character, Erica Slaughter at a recent comic con. One is by the GOAT of YA, Jason Reynolds. Several romance titles that. One nonfiction about deadly plants. A few autobiographies in various formats. And last, one atmospheric fairytale.
Next up, the fantastically deep bench of awesome middle grade for 2024. I could have created an honors list in addition to the ten I’m featuring as my favorites of the year.
It’s that time of year! Where readers, social media influencers, publishers, libraries, and anyone related to books share their best books. I’m no different. Though my years-end lists always feature books published in that year, not what was read in that year. This year I’ve settled on four categories: picture books, middle grade, young adult, and adult. I decided not to organize by format or genre but instead on audience. Here are my favorite picture books from 2024. Favorites because of their message, their art, and the way the art and words meld.
On November 24, 2023, I posted Over this next year that explained a challenge I was embarking on to read forty books that had affected me since I was turning forty. Challenge complete.
Pacing myself throughout the year, I listened to some of the books and read others but I did purchase a few of the titles that I hadn’t previously owned. As I read each one, I flipped it to show my progress over the year.
Ultimately, a few of them will not remain on my shelf because that’s the thing about rereading books, it’s not always the same the second time around. But I’m glad for it because it shows I’m not the same person. Tastes and interest shift in books the same that it does with food or decorating or clothing. That’s to be celebrated and one of the reasons I wanted to undertake the reflective practice of rereading because I rarely reread and prefer to remember the feelings about the books rather than the content. What I learned:
Mood as a literary device is important to me a reader. The books that remain impactful are a direct result of the book’s atmosphere such as The Virgin Suicides, The Girl From the Other Side, and Mudbound.
Nonfiction, especially food memoir, literally takes the cake. Read: Crying in H Mart and Dessert Can Save the World. But books about food are right next to them like Chicken Every Sunday, First Bite, and Lessons in Chemistry.
The classics on my list didn’t hold their own unfortunately. Sorry Brave New World, The Catcher in the Rye, and Jane Eyre. But neither did the epic first book in the Mayfair Chronicles The Witching Hour, though I heart Anne Rice forever and always.
Strong, whip smart, sassy, or otherwise memorable characters are hard to forget. Benny from Circle of Friends, Naomi from Out of Darkness, Maddie from A Northern Light, Lena from Between Shades of Gray, Anne from Anne of Green Gables, Melinda from Speak, Carey from If You Find Me, Charlotte from The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle, and Hazel from Anatomy: A Love Story.
Significant relationships tug at my heartstrings which is why I carry a torch for all of the creatures in The House In the Cerulean Sea and Saga; the dystopian community in The Giver, Werther opining in The Sorrows of Young Werther, the ultimate friendship trio in The Serpent King, and the whole crux of what Turkle stands for in Reclaiming Conversation. And as long as there will be star-crossed lovers, there will be Edward and Bella from Twilight.
Innovative formatting or a unique approach to storytelling keep me thinking about a book long after I’ve finished it. Think The Lovely Bones‘ from beyond the grave, mental illness in Challenger Deep, Long Way Down‘s mystery elevator, Crank‘s verse, The Vagina Monologues‘ well, monologues, Milk and Honey‘s Instagrammable poetry and illustrations, the library in The Midnight Library, and Calvin and Hobbes‘ daily and Sunday strips.
Picture books say so much without having to say much at all. This is where pictures speak a thousand words and the author creates the write words to allow the pictures to shine which is why Farmhouse and My First Day by Quang and Lien were on my list. Both I’ve gifted several times over.
And let’s just say I ripped a page right out of The Power of Moments to create this personal challenge, which is why I’ve relished this project over this last year; celebrating book love by reading Book Love, which was a gift from a friend. I couldn’t have asked for a more fulfilling opportunity and urge others to find a moment to reflect on your own reading journey– whether it’s been a few months or years or a lifetime.
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Readers Be Advised 