Teen Book Rec Templates

Rachel Strolle

Refresh your reader's advisory for teens with these awesome recommendation templates from Rachel Strolle. In a recent Teen Librarian Toolbox post, Rachel includes everything you need to create and update teen reader's advisory booklets at your library and some tips/tricks for how she does her booklets.  

To read the whole post and get access to the templates, visit: https://teenlibrariantoolbox.com/2025/12/02/read-rec-rachel-template-for-readers-advisory-booklets/.

[Read Rec Rachel: Template for Reader’s Advisory Booklets. Strolle, Rachel.  Teen Librarian Toolbox blog. SLJ. December 2, 2025.]

Dragon Tales

Image by Lorelei Cohen from Pixabay

I love putting together book bundles at my library and one of my favorites is the dragon-themed bundle.  It disappears from the shelf like magic. But anytime is a good time for dragon tales, including storytime!

Check out Storytime Solidarity's collection of dragon-themed books, songs, rhymes and felt boards compiled by Auntie Anne. Whether you are doing a dragon book bundle, display, or storytime this post has you covered.

Stop here for all your dragon resource needs. [Here be Dragons. Auntie Anne. Storytime Solidarity blog. April 23, 2025.]

Books About the Night Witches - Courtesy of A Mighty Girl's Facebook Page

Looking to increase your WWII offerings, particularly about topics that might not be as well known by the general public?  You're in luck!

Recently, A Mighty Girl shared the following on their Facebook page:

  **Please note, the text was slightly changed to eliminate the multiple URLs.  They have instead been linked to the corresponding text for ease of use and streamlining purposes.

"The Nazis called them 'Night Witches' because the whooshing noise their plywood and canvas airplanes made reminded the Germans of the sound of a witch’s broomstick. The Russian women who piloted those planes, onetime crop dusters, took it as a compliment. In 30,000 missions over four years, they dumped 23,000 tons of bombs on the German invaders, ultimately helping to chase them back to Berlin. Any German pilot who downed a 'witch' was awarded an Iron Cross. These young heroines, all volunteers and most in their teens and early 20s, became legends of World War II but are now largely forgotten. Flying only in the dark, they had no parachutes, guns, radios or radar, only maps and compasses. If hit by tracer bullets, their planes would burn like sheets of paper."

So begins a NY Times tribute to one of the most famous "Night Witches," Nadezhda Popova, pictured here. Popova, who flew 852 missions during the war, passed away in 2013 at the age of 91. To read more about her incredible story, click HERE.

For a gripping new historical fiction novel for adult readers that explores the history of the Night Witches, we recommend The Huntress.

For a fascinating biography about these courageous women for teen and adult readers, check out "A Thousand Sisters: The Heroic Airwomen of the Soviet Union in World War II.

For two historical fiction novels based on the Night Witches, both for ages 13 and up, we recommend Among the Red Stars and Night Witches: A Novel of World War Two.

For adult readers who would like to learn more about the role of Russian women combat pilots during WWII, there are several excellent books including Night Witches: The Amazing Story Of Russia's Women Pilots in World War II, Wings, Women, and War: Soviet Airwomen in World War II Combat, The Unwomanly Face of War, and Flying for Her Country: The American and Soviet Women Military Pilots of World War II.

For an inspiring book about more courageous women who stood up to the Nazi regime, including the Night Witches, we highly recommend Women Heroes of World War II: 32 Stories of Espionage, Sabotage, Resistance, and Rescue for teens and adults like, ages 13 and up.

And, for books for all ages about girls and women living through the WWII period, visit our WWII & Holocaust section. 

Collection Development: Native American Heritage Month

November was Native American Heritage Month so here are some great book lists and recommendations from across the internet to help bolster your collections!

• Abby the Librarian shared Four Crossover Book by Native American Authors
• First Nations Development Institute created a printable PDF Recommended Reading List
• Katherine at A Mighty Girl blog has 40 Children's Books Celebrating Native American and Indigenous Mighty Girls 
• Brightly author Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich wrote about 13 Books to Share Stories of Native American History and Experience with Kids and Teens
• Scholastic shared 27 Fiction Books Celebrate Native American Heritage

Book Lists Galore!

'Tis the season for oodles of book lists, fa la la la, la la la la

Best of, notable, can't miss book lists, fa la la la la, la la la la



The New York Times Book Review recently announced their Notable Children's Books of 2018.

Paste Magazine shared their picks for the 30 Best Young Adult Novels of 2018.

Chicago Public Library, rockin' out oodles of book lists with their Best of the Best Books, 2018 edition.

The annual Goodreads Choice Awards 2018 winners have also been announced!

Holy guacamole, that's a lot of fabulous books!  (and the lists are still coming, believe you me!)

Happy perusing!

VOYA's Nonfiction Honor List 2018

Looking to revamp your nonfiction offerings for your 5th through 8th graders?  

Check out VOYA's Nonfiction Honor List for 2018!  With subjects ranging from sandwiches to computer coding, you're sure to find something to entice readers.

Ready to take a peek?  Click HERE.

May is Mental Health Month

May is Mental Health Month, dedicated to drawing attention to and increasing the understanding of mental illness and easing the stigma surrounding it.

Want to make a display, but don't know where to start?  Here are a collection of websites that have put together handy dandy book lists:

Penguin Teen

Tor Teen

Brightly

The Guardian

The following was found on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website:

Mental Illness and Adults

• In 2015, there were an estimated 43.4 million adults –about 1 in 5 Americans aged 18 or older – with a mental illness within the previous year.
• In 2015, there were an estimated 9.8 million adults – about 1 in 25 Americans aged 18 or older – with serious mental illness. “Serious mental illness” is defined as individuals experiencing within the past year a mental illness or disorder with serious functional impairment that substantially interferes with or limits one or more major life activities.

Mental Illness and Children and Teens

• Just over 20% – or 1 in 5 – children, have had a seriously debilitating mental disorder.
• Half of all chronic mental illness begins by age 14 and three-quarters begin by age 24.
  

To learn more, check out the following websites:

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Mental Health.gov

National Institute of Mental Health

National Alliance on Mental Illness

Mental Health America of Wisconsin

Just one last thing before I go...

Remember, you're not alone, you are stronger than you think, and you are not less than others. You matter. 💓

2017 ALSC Summer Reading Lists

ALSC has posted their 2017 Summer Reading Lists for ages birth - 8th grade!  You can download each list AND they "can be customized to include library information, summer hours and summer reading programs for children before making copies available to schools and patrons."

Titles include: The Lending Zoo (Frank Asch), The Quickest Kid in Clarksville (Pat Zietlow Miller), Unusual Chicken for the Exceptional Poultry Farmer (Kelly Jones), and In the Footsteps of Crazy Horse (Joseph Marshall). 

Find the downloadable lists HERE.

Best Adult Books 4 Teens 2016

While not a huge fan of using a "4" when a "for" would suffice, I do love the work done by the Adult Books 4 Teens reviewers over at the School Library Journal nominating and reading 260 adult books with teen appeal published in 2016 and going on to review 109 of those titles.  Then, they graciously narrowed down the list to the 19 Best Adult Books 4 Teens 2016.  The list highlights both fiction and nonfiction, with a larger fiction section.  See the full list of what might draw teen readers to the adult shelves HERE.

Children’s Books About the Immigrant Experience

There are some significant challenges facing libraries and librarians who serve diverse patrons in the US following the election.  So, I would like to share a wonderful list, compiled by Karina Glaser over at Book Riot, of children's books about the immigrant experience.  Some highlights include The Name Jar by Yangsook Choi, One Green Apple by Eve Bunting, Inside Out & Back Again by Thanhha Lai, and Cuba 15 by Nancy Osa.  View the entire list HERE.

I'm Your Neighbor

I'm Your Neighbor is a project which promotes the use of children’s literature featuring “new arrival” cultures and groups to engage the entire community in a discussion of commonalities and differences. 

The project features a recommended list of books and an evolving list of engagement projects for educators, librarians, and community organizations who seek to build bridges.

The goal of the project is to both support communities as their cultural makeup evolves and to create opportunities for children’s literature featuring refugees, immigrants, and “new” marginalized groups.

Recent topics covered by the I'm Your Neighbor blog include: the new Muslim children's book imprint at Simon & Schuster, the keynote address by author Maria Testa for the Citizenship Ceremony in Portland, and book reviews!

We're The People 2016 Summer Reading List

The We're The People blog began in early 2015 when Edith Campbell invited a handful of colleagues who share a passion for children, literacy, and diversity to work with her on a Summer Reading list. Books recommended on the blog are ones written or illustrated by Native Americans or writers/illustrators of color that have withstood a critical review.

Their 2016 Summer Reading List is a great resource for creating your own summer reading book lists, or as a stand-alone resource to share with families at your library!

Building a Home Library

The 2016 update of the ALA-CBC Building a Home Library lists are here!

Every two years the ALA-Children’s Book Council Joint Committee produce a set of booklists that provide a good foundation for a child’s home collection. These lists were developed from titles compiled by ALSC’s Quicklists Consulting Committee for each age range: 0-3, 4-7, 8-11 and 12-14.

The four Building a Home Library Lists are available for download in booklet and handout formats. The lists are also available on the Children’s Book Council’s site.

-- as seen on the ALSC listserv 6/13/16 

When Tragedy Strikes

How can we in libraries respond to our families in the aftermath of a crushing and tragic blow - whether from gun violence or a natural disaster? Three and half years ago, after the Sandy Hook tragedy, we wrote on this blog (and hoped it would be for the last time):
"You might have some parents or kids looking for help in dealing with the stress, grief, fear, and other feelings that are roused by such a horrific event.  Here are a few tip sheets and bibliographies that might be useful to you as you try to sensitively answer those questions. A display might be a good way to get the information out there to people who don't want to ask."

Having resources at the ready to share with families  is vital.

Here are some links to help meet the needs of our communities:
Orange County Library System put up a page with information and resources

Betsy Bird shared resources in her SLJ Fuse 8 column

A Media Specialist's Guide to the Internet shares excellent resources to help children

South Central Library System (WI) shares bibliographies on helping children cope and teaching tolerance

Read On Wisconsin 2016 - 2017 Titles Annouced!

Read On Wisconsin (ROW) is a state-wide literacy program, administered by the Cooperative Children’s Book Center, that promotes high-quality books for children and teens. Each month features one or more Read On Wisconsin titles for children and teens in five different age-level groups.  And the 2016 - 2017 titles have just been released!  Check out the titles HERE.

 

June is GLBT Book Month

June is GLBT Book Month and is a nationwide celebration of the authors and writings that reflect the lives and experiences of the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender community.

Looking to update your collection or enhance your current LGBTQIA+ offerings?  Check out these award winners, booklists, and websites!

2016 Stonewall Book Awards
The first and most enduring award for GLBT books is the Stonewall Book Awards, sponsored by the American Library Association's Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Round Table, honors books for exceptional merit relating to the gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender experience.

2016 Rainbow Book List
The Rainbow List is a bibliography of books with significant gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, or queer/questioning content, and which are aimed at youth, birth through age 18.

CCBC: Gay and Lesbian Theme and Topics in Selected Children's and YA Books
As always, the CCBC offers a wonderful list of LGBTQ books for children of all ages.

Bustle: 30 LGBTQIA+ Children's Books
Looking to amp-up your picture book collection?  Bustle presents a list of  30 children's books with the note that "LGBTQIA-positive children's books have something to offer every kind of kid and every kind of family."

Buzzfeed: 16 LGBT Books That Will Actually Change Your Life
Buzzfeed asked followers to share which LGBT book influenced them the most.  A great crowd-sourced list. (Note: Not all books included are for teens/children.)

June Is Audiobook Month: Audiobooks for Summer Reading

Submitted by Sharon Grover, Youth Services & Audiobook Literacy Consultant

Co-author, Listening to Learn: Audiobooks Supporting Literacy

Yes, you read that right, audiobooks are a legitimate way to read and should be part of every summer library program. In the summer, when everyone’s on the go, an audiobook can be an especially good way to squeeze in summer reading lists, reading for pleasure, or a shared family literature experience. If you're looking for great audiobook titles to include in your recommendations for summer reading, here are some suggested sites that will make it easy:

Sound Learning (http://soundlearningapa.org)

This terrific toolkit for teachers and librarians from the Audio Publishers Association is one-stop shopping for information on audiobooks and literacy-development, as well as a treasure-trove of teacher tips, suggestions for audiobook promotion in public libraries, and loads of great titles for every occasion, including summer reading.

Sync Audiobooks for Teens (http://www.audiobooksync.com)

This free program includes 30 titles (2 titles each week for 15 weeks) that can be downloaded and kept as long as you like. Geared toward teen interests and learning themes, this is an exciting, easy way to promote listening for teens ages 13 and up. Many adult listeners will find this list appealing as well.

Audiobooks for Kids and Teens (http://www.audiofilemagazine.com/kids-teens/)   

AudioFile magazine’s comprehensive list of titles is divided by age group and even includes titles particularly recommended for family listening. The large mix of genres, themes, and narration styles provides plenty of suggestions for all types of listeners. The AudioFile blog also offers ways to encourage discussion of what kids have read with their ears (https://blog.audiofilemagazine.com/category/audiobooks-literacy/).

Listen-Alikes for Grades 5-12

AudioFile also offers this broad selection of genres and themes paired together for listening and discussing. Check out the digital edition of the magazine for these titles in a five-page spread: http://digital.audiofilemagazine.com/i/657727-april-may-2016/21

And when you're doing audiobook Readers’ Advisory, don't forget the wonderful lists available from ALA: Notable Children's Recordings (http://www.ala.org/alsc/awardsgrants/notalists/ncr), Amazing Audiobooks for Young Adults (http://www.ala.org/yalsa/amazing-audiobooks), and the premier Odyssey Award, jointly administered by ALSC and YALSA (http://www.ala.org/yalsa/odyssey-award). You also don't want to miss titles selected for the Audio Publishers Association Audies Awards, exciting audiobooks for all ages and interests (https://apa.staging.t-r.io/uploads/pdf/Audies_Nominations_Release.pdf).

Happy listening!

Naturalists, Artists, Dreamers: ROW May 2016

Check out the May titles from Read On Wisconsin!

 The Story of Owen: The Dragon Slayer of Trondheim is one of my favorites from this month's ROW list, with dragons placed in a modern setting and an intriguing discussion of bards as chroniclers.

Book Lists and the Love of Reading

I've seen a couple of interesting articles/blog posts about reading and am curious what y'all think:

• Killing the Love of Reading
• Neil Gaiman and Libraries
• Sucking the Fun Out

After all that heady stuff, a little fun from the Ohio State marching band! Harry Potter is in the middle of the performance:

Resources for Dealing with Crisis and Tragedy

All of us are reeling after the tragedy last Friday.  You might have some parents or kids looking for help in dealing with the stress, grief, fear, and other feelings that are roused by such a horrific event.  Here are a few tip sheets and bibliographies that might be useful to you as you try to sensitively answer those questions. A display might be a good way to get the information out there to people who don't want to ask.

Do you have other books or resources that you would recommend?


Bibliographies:

Bibliography from the Cooperative Children's Book Center, dealing with grief and loss 

South Central Library System set up a resource about helping kids deal with tragedy

Center for Children's Books Bibliography about coping with death

Boston Public Library Bibliography: Times of Grief and Sadness

Tip Sheets:

 Child Mind Institute:  Helping Your Child Deal with Frightening News

Child Mind Institute:  Going Back to School After a Tragedy

National Association of School Psychologists tip sheet

National Association of School Principals tip sheet (also in Spanish)

 

Love and Logic tip sheet for dealing with tragedy