Mental Health Teen Nonfiction

The wonderful Brooke Windsor over at the YALSA Hub shared an amazing list of nonfiction titles focused on mental health for teens.  I know that my teen nonfiction section could definitely use some updated and informative books covering a range of questions and topics regarding mental health.  In particular, non-judgmental books and books that guide teens to even more resources would be most welcome.  Happily, Windsor's list includes books on topics as broad as "positive psychology" and as specific as a single personal experience had by an author.  Time to stock those shelves with solid resources on this growing topic of interest to teens!

Find the list in it's entirety HERE.

Relight Your Programming Fire

We can all hit a programming wall.  Should you do another round of a well-loved, but much run program?  Should you build a whole new program from scratch?  Where else can you gain inspiration to break out of a programming rut?  not to fear, Chelsea Price, Director of the Meservey Public Library in Iowa is here to light your program fire again!  Over at the Programming Librarian blog, Price lists webinars, blogs, websites and more that inspire her and help her reignite her passion for programming.  Check out her list of ideas and inspirations HERE.

2019 Best Apps and Websites for Teaching and Learning

The American Association of School Librarians (AASL) announced its 2019 Best Apps and Best Websites for Teaching and Learning at the American Library Association (ALA) Annual Conference in Washington, D.C., on June 22. The annual lists honor apps and websites that enhance learning and curriculum development for school librarians and their teacher collaborators.

Recognized apps and websites foster innovation, creativity, active participation, and collaboration. They were also evaluated for their support of AASL’s “National School Library Standards for Learners, School Librarians, and School Libraries.”

Explore the list of apps HERE.

2019 Audie Awards

The 2019 Audie Award Winners have been announced!  On Monday, the Audio Publisher's Association held the Audies Gala in New York, where they honored audiobooks from all different genres and age ranges.

The big winner this year was Tomi Adeyemi, whose Children of Blood and Bone won the coveted title of audiobook of the year.  Other winners included, Sunny by Jason Reynolds for middle grade, Sadie by Courtney Summers in the YA category, and The Secret of Nightingale Wood by Lucy Strange for author/s narration.

Check out the whole Audie Award Winners list HERE.

22 Diverse Book Choices for All Grade Levels

Tom Berger, over at Edutopia recently compiled a list of teacher-recommended diverse books for every grade level.  From Last Stop on Market Street (Matt de la Pena) for the Pre-K - 2nd grade crew to They Both Die at the End (Adam Silvera) for high-schoolers, this list is not exhaustive, but definitely worth a look!  Berger notes that: "We hope they reflect human diversity in the broadest sense, addressing race and ethnicity, religion, sexual identity, socioeconomic status, and other special circumstances."

Check out the full list HERE.

The Best Podcast Apps For Your Smartphone

A couple weeks ago, over at Review Geek, Jennifer Allen discussed the best podcast apps for your smartphone.  If you are a neanderthal like me you know about Apple Podcasts and maybe Google Play Music if you are an Android user.  (What can I say, I drive a car from the early 2000s and am stuck still rocking burned CDs.)

BUT, as Allen points out:

If you’re not enjoying the wealth of podcasts out there, you’re really missing out. Podcasts provide you with the experience of a radio show—ranging from in-depth information on a wide variety of subjects to light hearted comedy—but are available whenever and where ever you want to listen, if you have a good app to manage them that is.

So, check out her fabulous list and maybe recommend a few to teens or grown-ups at your library!