Kids Book Recommendations

I have a complicated relationship with JK Growling – not with the bear herself, of course (she’s my BFF!), but with her name. First, a bit of history:

This Summer, families can "Read Beyond the Beaten Path" and play Nature Bingo! We have five themed bingo cards waiting for you in the Children's Room: Flora, Fauna, Sky, Water, and Rainbow. You can check off at least one square on each card by reading a book from the list on the back of your bingo sheet. This is the "Flora" list, which includes fun titles about plants and flowers. Each book is linked to make it easy for you to put a hold on the titles that pique your interest.

This Summer, families can "Read Beyond the Beaten Path" and play Nature Bingo! We have five themed bingo cards waiting for you in the Children's Room: Flora, Fauna, Sky, Water, and Rainbow. You can check off at least one square on each card by reading a book from the list on the back of your bingo sheet. This is the "Fauna" list, which includes fun titles about animals and wildlife. Each book is linked to make it easy for you to put a hold on the titles that pique your interest.

This Summer, families can "Read Beyond the Beaten Path" and play Nature Bingo! We have five themed bingo cards waiting for you in the Children's Room: Flora, Fauna, Sky, Water, and Rainbow. You can check off at least one square on each card by reading a book from the list on the back of your bingo sheet. This is the "Sky" list, which includes fun titles about the things you see when you look up. Each book is linked to make it easy for you to put a hold on the titles that pique your interest.

This Summer, families can "Read Beyond the Beaten Path" and play Nature Bingo! We have five themed bingo cards waiting for you in the Children's Room: Flora, Fauna, Sky, Water, and Rainbow. You can check off at least one square on each card by reading a book from the list on the back of your bingo sheet. This is the "Sky" list, which includes fun titles about the things you see when you look up.

This Summer, families can "Read Beyond the Beaten Path" and play Nature Bingo! We have five themed bingo cards waiting for you in the Children's Room: Flora, Fauna, Sky, Water, and Rainbow. You can check off at least one square on each card by reading a book from the list on the back of your bingo sheet. This is the "Rainbow" list, which includes fun titles about the things you see when you look up.

This past week, we lost two Children's Book greats: Eric Carle (The Very Hungry Caterpillar) & Lois Ehlert (Chicka Chicka Boom Boom). Both were prolific authors & illustrators whose work will live on in the imaginations of children (& adults!) for generations to come.

Welcome to Miss Jess Suggests!

In each episode of this series, Head of Youth Services Jessica Block recommends great books for you to try (plus some bonus titles!). Different episodes will focus on one interest level or age group, so if you don't hear about something "just right" for your reader, check back! We'll cover books for babies and toddlers straight through middle school. And of course, they are all available here in the Children's Room at the Ames Free Library.

As described on their website, Alex Gino “loves glitter, ice cream, gardening, awe-ful puns, and stories that reflect the diversity and complexity of being alive.” Check out Alex’s website to learn more about them and their books.

School is back in session, leaves are changing, pumpkins are showing up on everyone’s doorsteps… what else is new?

Books kept being published even as we quarantined safely at home throughout the spring and summer, so now that we’re open for browsing, there’s plenty of good stuff for you to check out!

If you’re a fan of graphic novels, there are new books in these following series: