8 Earth Day Books 2026
April 11, 2026Protected: 5 Creative book ideas to help librarians encourage and expanding reading!
May 29, 202610 Books To Celebrate ‘What a Gift a Book Is!’ + Activities 2026
What A Gift A Book Can Be!
Celebrate These 10 Awesome Reads and see!
Every book is a gift. A piece of an author's heart and soul pours onto the page and gifts the reader an aural and visual experience that uniquely celebrates their place in the world. We can really look at libraries like a great fortress of curriculum, hundreds, thousands, of books, waiting to be investigated and enjoyed and explored. I invite you to take a peek at 10 books to get excited about this season. (Write About It! Activities included.)
1
Peeking Behind the Narrative Story
Peek & Boo!
by Estrela Lourengo
Illustrated by Estrela Lourengo
(Sourcebooks Jabberwocky, March 2, 2026)
Doesn't the love of books first arrive in small portions, reading cuddled up in story? Surprise! What readers might see with their eyes makes for a whole lotta fun in this title. Don't we all recall those early days of playing peek-a-boo. Put a pillow over your head and if the hider can't see you, rest assured, they cannot see you.
In Peek & Boo! Day at the Zoo, two friends look for each other at the zoo, and readers will love helping Peek look for Boo! Great Concept. Awesome, Action-packed art, with a little "Find Me!" built in. Board Book, Five Stars. Like this one, you will love Peek & Boo! Time For Bed, too.
Where do I shelve it?
In my elementary library, this title was shelved as a K PEEK book. I created that title for all my little books from fiction to nonfiction to appear on a small shelf and particularly target my PreK and Kinder-readers.
2
Seeing Life in Different Points of View
The Whale's Tale and the Otter's Side of the Story
by Kate Messner
Illustrated by Brian Biggs
(Clarion Books, April 21, 2026)
Just out and just in time to learn two big writing tips from one awesome author! In The Whale's Tale, Kate shares "A Book [You Can] Read from Front to Back and From Back to Front." So we know, know that this book is going to very playful. On page one, we also learn we are in for a very fine argument: Which is best or otterly more cool, Whale or Otter?
As a writer, we use dialogue to help the reader feel more present to a scene, but we also learn that an argument, a bouncy bickering back and forth between two characters is some of the strongest dialogue we can write.
So, let's explore! What draws you in? Who is best or more cool? And how does the story change reading it forward versus reading it backwards?
W R I T E A B O U T I T ! Activity:
BEFORE you read:
What side to the story do you think you will be on by the end of this forward and back story?
AFTER you read:
Which side of the story were you on and did it surprise you?
Why?
Support your answer with events in the story.
3
Books Transport Readers to Other Worlds
A Fish Like Me
by Jamie Sumner
Illustrated by Devon Holzwarth
(Atheneum Books for Young Readers, April 28, 2026)
A Fish Like Me took me back to my own swimming, lessons, lifeguarding, coaching, and EMT training days.
One day we hosted lessons for spinal bifida patients, and the pure joy they expressed with the newly discovered freedom of movement water provided still makes me joy cry.
The day a terrified of water aqua-tot decided he could tackle his fear by becoming a shark. Held little arms over his head to form a dorsal fin, placed face right under ('goggulars' on), and never felt that fear return.
UNDER HERE,
there is no top or bottom,
no left or right...
only fields of water to wander in
at topsy-turvy
as I like.
W R I T E A B O U T I T ! Activity:
BEFORE you read:
What do you like most about water, swimming, or playing in a river or lake?
AFTER you read:
What does this swimmer do in the water?
What ways does water allows for magical moving in wonderful ways?
4
Celebrating Curiosity & New Experiences
102
by Matthew Cordell
Illustrated by Matthew Cordell
(Little, Brown Books, April 14, 2026)
Matthew Cordell has a unique connection with both brush and pen. He has completely found his place among the greats of kid lit.
102 takes readers on a mini-adventure. Not because it happens in the dark, but because our MC shrinks into a new world not explored much and takes readers on an experience they will not soon forget. Part Jumanji, part Where the Wild Things Are, this one, or rather 102, creates whole lotta wild adventuring for readers!
When a cricket climbs onto George's shoulder, he shrinks into a new world readers can explore.
We recognize this as Photosynthesis, but this is a different, original, telling of how that works. And that scene? Looking up with critters to find in the tree scape? Amazingly artistically extreme... and awesome.
The cricket jumped onto my shoulder and rubbed its legs together.
And I slid off the bed...
I shrank down...
to the size of ...
almost a cricket.
W R I T E A B O U T I T ! Activity:
BEFORE you read:
What makes something a UNIQUE adventure?
When UNIQUE means stand out, different, not experienced before?
AFTER you read:
Why was this a UNIQUE adventure?
How was this adventure Unique?
If you wre to write a story like this, what kind of adventure would you take your reader on and why?
5
Even Steven: A Book About Sharing
Even Steven: A Book About Sharing
by Carrie Finison
Illustrated by Daniel Wiseman
(G.P. Putnam's Sons, April 14, 2026)
Steven, likes things even to a fault. Readers soon learn that this doesn't always work out.
Even Steven is a great exploration about what it means to share and the perfect books for your PreK, Kinder, and First Grade read aloud.
This is Steven.
Steven loves to make everything even.
Pencils.
Pickles.
Noodles.
Nickles.
You can't spell Steven without E-V-E-N!
But what happens when you have one thing you cannot split?
Will you join his classmates and holler:
STOP, STEVEN!!!
W R I T E A B O U T I T ! Activity:
BEFORE you read:
What does it mean to share?
Steven thinks it means to make everything even.
Do you think this idea works?
AFTER you read:
Did Stven's idea of making everything even work well?
What did you learn?
Now what does it mean to share?
6
Not Quite a Animal Vs Animal, But Close
PRETTY CLOSE, but NOT the SAME, A Side-by-Side Look at Confusable Critters
by Meg Fleming
Illustrated by Stepha Stilwell
(Beach Lane Books, May 5, 2026)
This titles created a great game of Did You Know for the reader. Did you know a which has a snout: a dolphin or porpoise? Which has a paddle or a fluke: a dugong or a manatee?
In this title, mistaken idenity is a big deal.
Look at that TORTOISE!
I'm not a tortoise.
Look at that TURTLE!
I'm not a turtle.
So who knows who is who?
W R I T E A B O U T I T ! Activity:
BEFORE you read:
Together, think about animals that often get confused.
Make a list.
Make a spot to share what makes one stand out?
AFTER you read:
Now revisit your list.
What did you learn?
What helps you identify the animal on your list?
7
A Tribute to Puppies Everywhere
A Puppy Like Yours
by Frank and Carla Murphy
Illustrated by Kayla Harren
(Sleeping Bear Press, April 15, 2026)
Explore the millions of ways dog love adds joy to our lives. No matter how they arrive. No matter what, they remind us to stop, listen, lean in, cuddle, and enjoy life's moments. (A favorite wordless spread show here—how dog grows up with us.)
This story opens:
There are millions and
millions
and millions
of puppies in our world.
And new puppies are born each day.
W R I T E A B O U T I T ! Activity:
BEFORE you read:
Describe your perfect pup.
What activities will you look forward to doing together?
Where will your dog sleep?
AFTER you read:
Now revisit your list.
Do your ideas shift after you read this book?
Did you discover more things you can do with your dog?
How many dogs do you think each home should have?
8
Do we have our Wild Cousins all wrong?
Sharks Unhooked,
The Adventures of Christina Zenato Underwater Ranger
by Patricia Newman
Illustrated by Becca Hall
(Millbrook Press, April 1, 2025)
Gotta love this book, which shares the story of a gil who does not feel like she fits in, until she reconnects to what she was uber-curious about growing up and a chance encounter with a shark.
W R I T E A B O U T I T ! Activity:
Before you read:
List the many ways you think about sharks.
Describe behaviors, things they do.
What is their known behaviors with humans?
After you read:
Now revisit your list.
Was your ideas proven to be fact or fiction (false)?
Share an event in the story that helped you reach your conclusion.
9
How Camouflage Work in the Wild?
Hide, Fish, Hide!
by Derick Wilder
Illustrated by Monika Filipina
(Sleeping Bear Press, July 15, 2026)
SBe playful and have fun witnessing just how perfectly animal behaviors set up certain protects for a variety of creatures from hungry predators. This is your chance to take a deep exploration of hide-and-seek beneath your feet, deep beneath our ocean waves.
This rhyming story opens:
Great White Shark
is on the prowl.
Watch out
for his toothy scowl.
Great White Shark
is on the prowl.
Hide while you still can.
W R I T E A B O U T I T ! Activity:
BEFORE you read:
What animals come to mind when you think about camouflage?
Make yourself a list?
Where would you find these creatures in the wild?
AFTER you read:
Now revisit your ideas.
What creatures surprised you?
Which ones did you know about?
Are there animals in the sea not listed here—what might they be?
10
Do We Need Environmental Protections?
Once A Wasteland
From Toxic Dump to National Park
by Diane Muldrow
Illustrated by Jindra Hodgson
(Sleeping Bear Press, February 15, 2025)
The Cuyahoga River valley, between Cleveland Ohio and Akron, hosted a Krejci salvage yard with a whole lotta pollution stacking up.
Residents began to wonder what could be done to undo the contaminated mess they were living next to. This is their story.
Could wildlife thrive once again? Could the people somehow shift this once-devastated environment into a place of beauty for all?
W R I T E A B O U T I T ! Activity:
BEFORE you read:
Comment about a toxic dump.
Do you think you could clean it up?
Do you think it is possible?
AFTER you read:
Now revisit your ideas.
Name three key ways the people cleaned up this toxic dump and transformed it into a National Park.
