Add Classroom Libraries to Your Alex
December 16, 2025
7 Graphic Novels for Gr 3-7 for Your ALEX Library
January 18, 20267 PURR-FECTLY POSH Reads for Your ALEX Library
Good Reads Have Amazing Staying Power...
1
Sure Win in a Few Categories in 2026 ALA Book Awards
Let's Be Bees
by Shawn Harris, Caldecott Honoree
(Neal Porter Books, Feb 2025)
"Father and child become buzzing bees, rustling trees, and more in this delightful make-believe romp from Caldecott Honor winner Shawn Harris.
The only thing better than playing make believe is playing make believe with your favorite grown-up! Especially when that grown-up’s imagination is as big as yours, and you both get to make all kinds of funny sounds.
Fans of Shawn Harris’s Caldecott Honor-winning debut Have You Ever Seen a Flower? and illustrations in the Newbery Medal-winning The Eyes and the Impossible will find a new instant favorite in Let’s Be Bees. With bright, bold crayon illustrations, lilting, rhythmic words, and endless fodder for playing along, this is a read aloud guaranteed to bring on the giggles and requests to do it all again.
A Smithsonian Magazine Best Children’s Book of the Year
A Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year
One of Chicago Public Library’s Best of the Best Books
A Booklist Editor’s Choice: Books for Youth
A School Library Journal Best Book of the Year
A CALIBA Golden Poppy Finalist" (Amazon).
2
Biography Sure to Thill Readers of All Ages
by Barb Rosenstock
Illustrated by Mar Delmar
(Knopf, Feb 2026)
"A fresh and fascinating picture book biography about the iconic magician Harry Houdini, an avid book collector who lived and breathed the idea that books are magic, from the author of Caldecott Honor book The Noisy Paint Box.
Houdini is the world's most beloved magician, and he became famous for all of the amazing tricks he accomplished. Houdini knew just how to captivate his audience, whether it was leaping from a bridge or freeing himself from a straitjacket. But in true magician's fashion, he kept a secret so great that not many people knew about, and that was his love for books!
As a young boy in Budapest, Harry learned to read at his father's knee. After the family emigrated to America, Harry grew up to be the amazing Houdini--but never lost his love of reading. He spent the rest of his life collecting all kinds of rare and unusual books, almost entirely about magic. With warm, inviting text and astounding art with miniature models constructed from paper, this extraordinary book opens a new page on the story of Harry Houdini" (Amazon).
3
When A Book Biography Creates A Performance
How to Have a Thought: A Walk with Charles Darwin
by Nicholas Day, Sibert Medalist
Illustrated by Hadley Hooper
(Disney Hyperion, March 2026)
Any biography that begins with "First you need a rock" is sure to rock its readers.
"Take a walk with Charles Darwin in this electrifying new picture book from Sibert Medalist Nicholas Day.
How do you work through a complicated idea, solve a tricky problem, or make a big discovery? Charles Darwin had a lot of ways to do it. He paced in circles and hit rocks with a stick. He studied the bones of his dinner. He even rode around the world on a boat called The Beagle.
These methods may sound unorthodox, but they led him to some pretty great thoughts—and discoveries about the origins of life as we know it.
Sibert Medalist Nicholas Day’s conversational text has all the charm of a true story told by your smartest, most interesting friend. With Hadley Hooper’s engrossingly textured illustrations, How to Have a Thought is both an introduction to Darwin and an invitation to live with brilliant curiosity.
A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection" (Amazon).
4
Love the Duality of This Title
Best Buds
by Becky Scharnhorst
Illustrated by Jiarui Jiang
(Margaret K. McElderry, July 2025)
"Friendship comes naturally to a boy who moves to town and instantly befriends a variety of plants in this heartwarming and funny picture book for fans of Strictly No Elephants and When Grandma Gives You a Lemon Tree [and Sophie's Squash].
When Spencer moves to a new town, his mom is worried he may have a hard time making friends. But it’s easy! First, Spencer meets Fred, who is an excellent listener. Then there’s Dottie, who’s a bit wild, and Eugene, who’s a jokester. The only thing is, Fred, Dottie, and Eugene are all…plants.
While the adults in Spencer’s life question whether he might want friends he doesn’t have to water, Spencer knows that friendship can blossom in the most unexpected places" (Amazon).
5
When Individuality Meets Imaginative Play
The WILDEST THING
written + illustrated by Emily Winfield Martin
(Random House, Jan 2026)
"NATIONAL BESTSELLER • From the #1 New York Times bestselling author and illustrator of The Wonderful Things You Will Be comes an enchanting picture book about a child finding their "wild" self.
What would you do if you let the wild in" (Amazon)?
Eleanor loved wild things.
Every wing and wild sprout.
There was something wild inside of her,
waiting to come out...
Favorite spread:
"With gorgeous illustrations, this book is the ideal addition to any bedtime reading routine or read aloud. The Wildest Thing beautifully expresses a timeless message about little ones unleashing their inner 'wild' and encouraging their budding imagination and unique individuality" (Amazon).
6
When You May TOTALLY Change Your Mind
Serafina is Sarifina. She HATE-HATES water. "She hates loathes DESPISES WATER" (Burgess). Except when she's thirsty.
"No thank you. So even though she looks fantastic in goggles, Serafina is NOT happy to be forced into a swim class by the powers that be. NOTHING can convince her to get into that disgusting pit of seething water. Nothing, that is, except maybe a very beloved old friend who needs a hand" (Amazon).
Positive proof that "trying something new can lead to unexpected joy" (Amazon).
7
Leaning into the Power of a Good Argument, er Discussion, on Superpowers
BORED
written + illustrated by Felicita Sala
(Neal Porter, Jan 2026)
Utter boredom leads one imaginative girl to inspiration in this clever story from much-loved creator Felicita Sala.
Rita is bored. So, so, so bored.
"[Rita’s] tried stretching her body across her bedroom, side-eyeing herself in the mirror, stomping her feet and swinging her arms. Time drags on, and there she remains: catatonic with boredom.
In her tragic and weakened state, her mind drifts to the beginning of a daydream. What if all the bored people in the world gathered together and got onto a bus? What if the boredom filled them up like balloons, with tiny heads and arms sticking out? What if they floated into the sky, bobbing along until they each spied something exciting enough to make them toot the boredom out" (Amazon)?
Read What You Love, Love What You Read
Finding an engaging book for library time is easy with these book in hand. They will not disappoint. And they just might lead kids into the wonderment found in books everywhere!
