Geo Librarian

  AGGIE AND THE GHOST written & illustrated by Matthew Forsythe A Paula Wiseman Book Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2025 ISBN: 978-1-5344-7820-6 Source: publisher for review (Thanks!) Ages 4-8 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover & summary provided by the publisher for review. ABOUT THE BOOK From Matthew Forsythe, the creator of the acclaimed and beloved Pokko and the Drum, comes a surprising and pleasing picture book about rules. And sharing. And an epic game of tic-tac-toe. Aggie is very excited to live on her own—until she finds out her new house is haunted. But no fear, the situation is nothing that can’t be fixed with a carefully considered list of No haunting after dark. No stealing socks. No eating all the food. But the ghost doesn’t like playing by the rules and challenges Aggie to an epic game of tic-tac-toe—winner gets the house. REVIEW In this rather unusual book, Aggie moves into a house only to discover that the place is haunted b...

TEN-WORD TINY TALES OF LOVE written by Joseph Coelho, illustrated by 21 Artist Friends Candlewick Press, 2025 ISBN: 978-1-5362-4129-7 Source: publisher for review (Thanks!) Ages 8-12 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover & summary provided by the publisher through Goodreads.com. ABOUT THE BOOK From former UK Children's Laureate Joseph Coelho comes an extraordinary collection of tales—each one illustrated by a different artist, and each just ten words long. Is it possible to tell a tale of love using just ten words? The answer is an enthusiastic yes. And when those words are joined by illustrations from twenty top creators, the results can be stunning. In this unique compendium designed to spark the imagination, Joseph Coelho brings us cherished moments between siblings, worlds where nature blooms and heals, touching tales of beloved pets, and more. Each ten-word tale has been paired with one of the finest illustrators working today, among them Jon Klassen, Jarvis...

  NARWHAL, UNICORN OF THE ARCTICE written by Candace Fleming, illustrated by Deena So'Oteh A nne Schwartz books, 2024 ISBN: 978-0-593-37778-9 Source: Blue Slip Media & publisher Ages 6-10 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover & summary provided by the publisher through Goodreads.com & Blue Slip Media. ABOUT THE BOOK Venture to the Arctic Ocean and discover real life underwater unicorns--narwhals--in this stunningly illustrated nonfiction picture book.You are a narwhal. Shy... Swift... Small... Humans call you unicorn of the Arctic.When winter ice covers the Arctic Ocean, a narwhal pokes his head through a patch of open water, his tusk--a six-foot long tooth--pointed to the sky.Join this mammal as he jousts with another narwhal, floats with his pod, and uses echolocation to find his prey. When warmer weather arrives, he will migrate towards summer ground. But he must be careful! Predators--orcas and polar bears--will be hungry and looking for a meal.... Ho...

  THE STORYTELLER written by Lindsay Bonilla, illustrated by Noar Lee Naggan Nancy Paulsen Books, 2024 ISBN: 978-0-593-10958-8 Source: publisher/Blue Slip Media Ages 6 and up All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover and summary provided by publisher through Goodreads.com & Blue Slip Media. ABOUT THE BOOK Featuring an evocative text and luminous paintings, this stunning book celebrates the power of stories—how they connect us, inspire us, and keep memories alive. Griffin’s grandmother spins the most marvelous stories, from breathtaking fairy tales to fascinating family lore. These stories fuel his imagination and fill their days with magic. So when he sees her once-bright spark begin to fade, Griffin is scared to think of the future. Fortunately, though, he has her stories to guide him—and to remind him that he is braver than he could ever imagine. ABOUT THE AUTHOR & ILLUSTRATOR Lindsay Bonilla is a professional storyteller and author whose previous picture book...

NELL PLANTS A TREE by Anne Wynter & Daniel Miyares Balzer + Bray, 2023 ISBN: 978-0-06-286577-9 Source: purchased Ages 4-8 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover & summary provided by publisher through Goodreads.com. ABOUT THE BOOK This gorgeous picture book shows how one little girl’s careful tending of a pecan tree creates the living center of a loving, intergenerational Black family. For Earth Day and every day! Perfect for fans of Matt de la Peña and Oge Mora. Before her grandchildren climbed the towering tree, explored its secret nests,                       raced to its sturdy trunk,                                   read in its cool shade,                       or made pies with its pecans... Nell buried a seed. And just as Nell’s tree grows and thrives with her love ...

  DO YOU KNOW THEM? Families Lost and Found After the Civil War written by Shana Keller, illustrated by Laura Freeman Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2024 ISBN: 978-1-6659-1307-2 Source: purchased Ages 8-12 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover & summary provided by publisher through Goodreads.com. ABOUT THE BOOK A moving and triumphant picture book inspired by the printed newspaper ads placed by African Americans who were separated from family members by the Civil War, enslavement, and emancipation. After the war’s end, everyone is missing someone. Lettie’s missing her family. They had been sold and lost long before enslavement was abolished. Every week, she reads the advertisements in the newspapers to her congregation. “Do you know them? I would like to find my people. My mother’s name was Charlotte King, and when I was sold, I had five brothers.” Lettie is determined to find her loved ones, too. She saves every penny she earns, but not to buy candy or toys....

FIGHTING WITH LOVE The Legacy of John Lewis written by Lesa Cline-Ransome, illustrated by James E. Ransome A Paula Wiseman Book/Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2024 ISBN; 978-1-5344-9662-0 Source: publisher for review Ages 9-12 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover & summary provided by the publisher through Goodreads.com. ABOUT THE BOOK The story of a groundbreaking civil rights leader, John Lewis, comes to life in this compelling and beautifully told nonfiction picture book. John Lewis left a cotton farm in Alabama to join the fight for civil rights when he was only a teenager. He soon became a leader of a movement that changed the nation. Walking at the side of his mentor, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Lewis was led by his belief in peaceful action and voting rights. Today and always his work and legacy live on. REVIEW Covering his childhood through to Bloody Sunday (the march to Selma), Fighting with Love, highlights the life of John Lewis. From a you...

THE LAST STAND written by Antwan Eady, illustrated by Jarrett & Jerome Pumphrey Alfred A. Knopf, 2024 ISBN: 978-0-593-48057-1 Source: purchased Ages 4-8 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover & summary provided by the publisher through goodreads.com. ABOUT THE BOOK The author of Nigel and the Moon , delivers a tender intergenerational story inspired by his childhood in the rural south. Here's a farm stand that represents the importance of family, community, and hope. Every stand has a story. This one is mine. Saturday is for harvesting. And one little boy is excited to work alongside his Papa as they collect eggs, plums, peppers and pumpkins to sell at their stand in the farmer's market. Of course, it's more than a farmer's market. Papa knows each customer's order, from Ms. Rosa's pumpkins to Mr. Johnny's peppers. And when Papa can't make it to the stand, his community gathers around him, with dishes made of his own produce. Heartwa...

  OUTSIDE AMELIA'S WINDOW by Caroline Castro, illustrated by Anna Sands Budisan Two Lions, 2023 ISBN: 978-1-5420-2785-4 Source: Blue Slip Media Ages 4-8 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover & illustrations provided by Blue Slip Media. ABOUT THE AUTHOR/ILLUSTRATOR Caroline Nastro was born and raised in New York City. Her first picture book, The Bear Who Couldn’t Sleep, illustrated by Vanya Nastanlieva, has been translated into three languages and was chosen as a Bank Street Best Picture Book of the Year in Spanish. Outside Amelia’s Window is Anca Sandu Budisan and Caroline Nastro’s second collaboration. Their first book, Fly, Little Bird, Fly!, was published in 2021. Caroline attended the Sorbonne University in Paris, France, and has a master’s degree in theater from Stanford University. She is an award-winning theater director and playwright. Learn more about the author at www.carolinenastro.com . Anca Sandu Budisan was born in Romania and studied children’s ill...

LOVE IN THE LIBRARY by Maggie Tokuda-Hall, iillustrated by Yas Imamura Candlewick Press, 2022 ISBN: 978-1-5362-0430-8 Source: publisher for review Ages 6 and up All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover & summary provided by publisher through goodreads.com. ABOUT THE BOOK Set in an internment camp where the United States cruelly detained Japanese Americans during WWII and based on true events, this moving love story finds hope in heartbreak. To fall in love is already a gift. But to fall in love in a place like Minidoka, a place built to make people feel like they weren’t human—that was miraculous. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Tama is sent to live in a War Relocation Center in the desert. All Japanese Americans from the West Coast—elderly people, children, babies—now live in prison camps like Minidoka. To be who she is has become a crime, it seems, and Tama doesn’t know when or if she will ever leave. Trying not to think of the life she once had, she works in the c...

HOPE IS AN ARROW The Story of Lebanese American Poet Kahlil Gibran by Cory McCarthy, illustrated by Ekua Holmes Candlewick Press, 2022 ISBN: 978-1-5362-0032-4 Source: publisher for review All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover & summary provided by goodreads.com & the publisher. ABOUT THE BOOK A lyrical biography of Kahlil Gibran by award-winning writer Cory McCarthy, with glorious illustrations by Caldecott Honoree and two-time Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award winner Ekua Holmes. Before Kahlil Gibran ever put his pen to the page to eventually become the world's third best-selling poet of all time, he was Gibran Khalil Gibran, a child immigrant from Lebanon who had a secret hope. That hope sprung from his experiences in Lebanon, where Christians and Muslims crashed like two strong headwinds, and in Boston, where the wealthy crashed with the poor. His secret hope: to connect all people from around the world, bringing them together despite their differences ...

THE FIELD by Baptiste Paul, pictures by Jacqueline Alcantara NorthSouth Books, 2018 ISBN: 978-0-7358-4312-7 Source: purchased Ages 4-8 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book summary and cover from goodreads.com and publisher. ABOUT THE BOOK “Vini! Come! The field calls!” cries a girl as she and her younger brother rouse their community—family, friends, and the local fruit vendor—for a pickup soccer (futbol) game. Boys and girls, young and old, players and spectators come running—bearing balls, shoes, goals, and a love of the sport.   “Friends versus friends” teams are formed, the field is cleared of cows, and the game begins! But will a tropical rainstorm threaten their plans?  REVIEW This book is a joyous ode to the thrill of playing futbol (soccer) with friends.  Baptiste Paul takes readers to the island of Saint Lucia in the Caribbean Sea to experience the fun of a spontaneously thrown together game of soccer.  Gathering up friends, moving livestock, and f...

SEEKING FREEDOM The Untold Story of Fortress Monroe and the Ending of Slavery in America by Selene Castrovilla, illustrated by E.B. Lewis Calkins Creek, 2022 ISBN: 978-1-63592-582-1 Source: purchased Ages 10 and up All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover and book summary obtained through Goodreads.com and the publisher. ABOUT THE BOOK In this dramatic Civil War story, a courageous enslaved fugitive teams with a cunning Union general to save a Union fort from the Confederates–and triggers the end of slavery in the United States. This is the first children’s nonfiction book about a Black unsung hero who remains relevant today and to the Black Lives Matter movement. On the night Virginia secedes from the Union, three enslaved men approach Fortress Monroe. Knowing that Virginia’s secession meant they would be separated from their families and sent farther south to work for the Confederacy, the men decided to plead for sanctuary. And they were in luck. The fort’s commander, Ben...