AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT: JOHN GREEN

In May we will be reading (and watching) The Fault in Our Stars by John Green for our Book to Movie Club.  John Green is a bestselling author and has won the Michael L. Printz Award (for excellence in YA literature) as well as the Edgar Award (presented by the Mystery Writers of America).  For more information on John Green, his novels, and his video blog, visit http://johngreenbooks.com/

John Green's Novels:
Looking for Alaska- Miles Halter is leaving behind his safe and boring life and leaves for boarding school.  He makes new friends, friends whose lives are definitely not safe and boring.  At the center of this group is Alaska, and Miles falls in love.  When tragedy hits, it is only by facing death that Miles learns the value of life and love.

An Abundance of Katherines - After being dumped by another girlfriend in a long line of girls named Katherine, Colin sets off on a road trip with his best friend in order to find some direction in his life and to create a formula to help explain his relationships.

Paper Towns - Quentin Jacobsen is enjoying the his last days of high school until his classmate and neighbor, Margo, takes him on an adventure and then disappears.

Will Grayson Will Grayson - Two teens accidentally meet and discover that they have the same name.  Their lives become intertwined and one even begins to date the other's best friend.

The Fault in Our Stars - Hazel has cancer, and she has accepted her diagnosis.  That is she has accepted it until she meets a boy at cancer support group, and he makes her examine her thoughts on love and life.

John Green Read Alikes:
Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell
If I Stay by Gayle Forman
The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver
13 Reasons Why by Jay Asher
The Beginning of Everything by Robyn Schneider
Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins
Every Day by David Levithan
Ask the Passengers by A.S. King

Picture from http://syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9780525478812/lc.jpg&client=arrowheadlbs&type=rn12

Picture Books about Gardening

Spring has sprung, and we’re celebrating with a roundup of books about GARDENING for kids! 

Don’t forget—Evansville is launching its community garden this year, making this the perfect time to talk about growing your own food plants and flowers with your family!

• The Curious Garden by Peter Brown
• Planting a Rainbow by Lois Ehlert
• The Gardener by Sarah Stewart
• The Carrot Seed by Ruth Krauss
• From Seed to Plant by Gail Gibbons
• The Magic School Bus Plants Seeds: A book about how living things grow by Johanna Cole, illustrated by Bruce Degen
• Growing Vegetable Soup by Lois Ehlert

Books About Trees for Kids

This week we celebrate Earth Day with a wonderful local event, the Evansville Energy Fair, on April 24^th. Make sure you stop by the library’s table to do a fun recycled craft project that you can wear home!

In honor of Earth Day, here’s some books that are all about TREES – very appropriate not only for this time of year, but since Evansville is part of Wisconsin’s Tree City program.

• Someday a Tree by Eve Bunting, illustrated by Robert Himler
• Arbor Day Square by Kathryn O. Galbraith, illustrated by Cyd Moore
• Tell me, Tree: all about trees for kids by Gail Gibbons
• A Log’s Life by Wendy Pfeffer
• The Lorax by Dr. Seuss
• A Busy Year by Leo Lionni
• There Was a Tree by Rachel Isadora

Try doing a leaf rubbing (once we finally have some leaves on the trees!) to extend one of these fun picture books into a hands-on activity!

Picture Books About Superheroes!

In case you haven’t heard, HEROES is the theme for the 2015 Summer Library Club! 

We’re getting prepared for a summer of heroic and super activities with a super-reader-themed photo booth at Family Night for Week of the Young Child coming up on April 17th, and so I thought we’d get started this week with a roundup of fun superhero themed picture books for all!

• Traction Man is Here! by Mini Grey
• Princess Super Kitty by Antoinette Portis
• Eliot Jones, Midnight Superhero by Anne Cottringer, illustrated by Alex T. Smith
• Supersister by Beth Cadena, illustrated by Frank Dormer
• Awesome Dawson by Chris Gall
• The Astonishing Secret of Awesome Man by Michael Chabon, illustrated by Chris Parker
• The Day I Lost My Superpowers by Michaël Escoffier

We hope you enjoy these fun super titles – watch for more information about the Summer Library Club coming up soon!

Books About Construction Trucks

One of our most popular picture book sections, year in and year out, is the TRANSPORTATION section (black bins). Books about different construction vehicles are some of the most favored. 

Here’s a fun list of Construction Truck Books from growingbookbybook.com: 

http://growingbookbybook.com/2014/12/12/books-kids-construction-trucks/#_a5y_p=3015166

You can find many of the titles on this list at the library or online through RockCat:

• Work, Dogs, Work: A Speedy Tail by James Horvath
• Machines at Work by Byron Barton
• Diggers Go by Steve Light
• Construction Kitties by Judy Sue Goodwin Sturges, illustrated by Shari Halpern
• Go! Go! Go! Stop! by Charise Mericle Harper
• Digger, Dozer, Dumper by Hope Vestergaard, illustrated by David Slonim
• Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site by Sherri Duskey Rinker, illustrated by Tom Lichtenfeld

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT: BRAD MELTZER

Brad Meltzer's next novel is due out in June 2015: The President's Shadow.  This will be the third book in the series centering on Beecher White, an archivist at the National Archives.

Brad Meltzer has written many works of fiction as well as nonfiction for children.  For more information on Brad Meltzer, visit his website at http://bradmeltzer.com/

Adult Fiction by Brad Meltzer:
The Fifth Assassin (The Culper Ring Book 2)
The Inner Circle (The Culper Ring Book 1)
The Book of Lies
The Book of Fate
The Zero Game
The Millionaires
The First Counsel
Dead Even
The Tenth Justice



Adult Nonfiction by Brad Meltzer:
History Decoded: the 10 Greatest Conspiracies of All Time
Heroes For My Son
Heroes For My Daughter









Children's Nonfiction:
I am Jackie Robinson
I am Albert Einstein
I am Rosa Parks
I am Abraham Lincoln
I am Amelia Earhart





For books similar to Brad Meltzer's fiction, try one of these!
The Collectors by David Baldacci
Hidden Order by Brad Thor
Deception Point by Dan Brown
Never Go Back by Lee Child
Locked On by Tom Clancy
The Stranger by Harlan Coben
Fear Nothing by Lisa Gardner
Gray Mountain by John Grisham
The Wolf at the Door by Jack Higgins

Pictures from RockCat.

THE DARING LADIES OF LOWELL

The book club selection for April is The Daring Ladies of Lowell by Kate Alcott.  This historical novel tells the story of Alice Barrow who moves to Lowell, Massachusetts in the 1830s and begins to work in the mill factory.  Alice must deal with the dangerous conditions of the mill, the death of a friend, and the beginning of a romantic relationship.

Kate Alcott is also the author of The Dressmaker and A Touch of Stardust.  For more information on Kate Alcott, visit her website at http://katealcott.com/

Already finished all of Alcott's work?  Try one of the novels listed below.

April Morning by Howard Fast takes place in 1770s, during the American Revolution.

The Sheen on the Silk by Anne Perry follows Anna Zarides as she seeks to prove her brother's innocence.  She disguises herself as a eunuch and moves in close to those involved in her brother's fate.


Savannah by Eugenia Price tells the story of Mark Browning, a young man who renounces his father's fortune and moves to Savannah.  Once there, Mark is torn between two women: the wife of his mentor and a young lady with secret.

China Dolls by Lisa See takes place in 1938.  Helen, Ruby, and Grace are competing at the same audition for showgirl roles at an exclusive night club.  The three girls grow to depend on one another until everything changes with the attack on Pearl Harbor.


The Crimson Petal and the White by Michel Faber tells the story of Sugar, a whore in Mrs. Castaway's brothel.  Her climb up Victorian society brings the reader into the lives of many characters: socialites, journalists, and servants.

The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne is set in a New England colony and shows the impact a single act has on the lives of three members of the community: Hester Prynne, Reverend Dimmesdale, and Chillingworth.


Picture from http://syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9780385536493/lc.jpg&client=arrowheadlbs&type=rn12