We are in a golden age of juvenile literature. This is plainly evident when we look at a genre we call, “New Fantasy”. Today’s fantasy writers take cues from classic fairy tales to forge new stories and characters that are a feast for the imagination. Blending traditional stories with modern characters has been the key […]
Recently, our founder, Jake Ball, was featured in the National PTA’s blog ‘Our Children’ with an article about juvenile literature as an art form. Juvenile books today are nothing short of a work of art. Every art form goes through a “Golden Age,” a period when the art is at its peak and relevant to […]
4 Questions that Build Reading Habits Today’s students live in a rapidly changing digital world. It seems that technology touches every aspect of school and home life. In the face of rapid change, one thing remains constant: Students need reading proficiency for academic success. When a parent asks how he or she can help their […]
Help me, help you, help your child succeed at reading Today’s students live in a rapidly changing digital world. Technology touches every aspect of school and home life. In the face of rapid change, one thing remains constant: Students need to read proficiently for social and academic success. The parents of our current grade-school children […]
If there’s one word to describe the current state of public education in the United States, it is: pressure. Pressure to perform well on standardized tests, academic rankings, athletics and much more. This pressure comes from state legislatures, elected school boards, universities, education advocacy groups, parent organizations and more. Many public and independent schools […]
Nine Techniques that will Take Storytime From Good to Great A live and engaging presentation of a book stirs imagination, builds community and brings people from all walks of life into your library. Storytime is, without question, worth doing. However, many libraries struggle to make Storytime live up to its potential. We asked librarians from […]
Today, right now, is a Golden Age of juvenile literature. Don’t believe it? Here are children’s books published since 2012 that are true masterpieces of art and language. These books are breathtaking works of art, and they’re in print right now. There are many more books that could be on this list. But, 12 seemed […]
Feeling Pressure for Your Students to Perform? Hire a Librarian. If there’s one word to describe the current state of public education in the United States, it’s: pressure. Pressure to perform well on standardized tests, academic rankings, athletics and much more. This pressure, while keenly felt in the school building, comes from state legislatures, state […]
Building readers in the age of the internet is a challenge that no generation has ever faced. We’re the first-hooray! Today’s young parents are the group we old-timers call “Millennials.” Millennials are popularly defined as people born between 1982 and 2000. These wonderful young people are becoming parents and wondering how they can build reading […]
The tasks of helping children, especially boys, establish strong reading habits is a perennial challenge for parents and teachers. This task has been made more difficult as electronics occupy more space in our daily lives. As a bookseller and the father of three boys, I am often asked by parents and educators which books are […]