February is Black History Month, a time to celebrate and honor great and influential African Americans throughout history. 

Did you know that Black History Month was first celebrated in 1926? It was originally called "Negro History Week" (a term that we no longer use) and was started by historian Carter G. Woodson. Mr. Woodson was one of the first scholars to study African American history and promote the importance of discovering and understanding the history of African Americans here in the United States and around the world.

Here are a few inspiring books to share in celebration of Black History Month:

For young children:

Langston Hughes' melodic poem is paired with stunning photography by Charles R. Smith, Jr. to create a siimple, yet moving tribute to beauty in its particular and universal forms. 

For elementary-aged children:

Did you know that one of the 2011 Caldecott Honor books tells the story of a slave who went on to become an influential artist and poet?  Dave the Potter by Labban Carrick Hill is a beautifully illustrated, powerful true story.   

For older readers:

In this tour-de-force sequel to Chains, Curzon, a 15-year-old escaped slave, joins the Continental Army at Valley Forge.  Will he and his friend Isabel finally be granted true freedom?

More books to celebrate Black History Month.

Looking for in-depth information on famous African Americans? Check our Biography Resource Center or History Resource Center. 

Grrrrr.

 The New York Times Book Review recently profiled three new picture books about bears including Otto the Book Bear and Maudie and Bear. Whether they are of the grizzly, polar, or teddy variety, we love picture books about bears! Here are a few of our very favorite bear stories:

2012 Caldecott Award Winner!

On Monday morning in Dallas the 2012 Youth Media Awards were awarded by the American Library Association.

The winner of the 2012 Caldecott Medal was A Ball for Daisy, by Chris Raschka.

The winner of the 2012 Newbery Award was Dead End in Norvelt, by Jack Gantos.

Click the link below for a full list of winners and honorees!

To ring in the New Year the children's librarians decided to vote on their picks for the Best Books of 2011. Whether you are a fan of historical fiction or fantasy, picture books or chapter books, there are plenty of gems that have appeared this year. Which books did your favorite librarians choose? Here is a recap of their personal favorites. 

Miss Kiera picks Blue Chicken by Deborah Freedman and Blackout by John Rocco for her picture book choices. As far as Kids Fiction, she mentions Wonderstruck by Brain Selznick, Okay for Now by Gary Schmidt, and Jefferson's Sons: A Founding Father's Secret Children by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley. 

Miss Elisabeth, our newest children's librarian, absolutely loved The Princess Curse by Merrie Haskell, Breadcrumbs by Anne Ursu, and Jefferson's Sons. Her favorite picture book (surprise, suprise) was My Name is Elizabeth! by Annika Dunklee. 

Miss Marian, our Nutmeg Guru, recommends Grounded by Kate Klise,The Princess Curse, and Stuck by Oliver Jeffers. She also loved last summer's booktalking series, Frankly Frannie by A.J. Stern. 

Miss Claire would have to agree with Miss Kiera on Wonderstruck and Okay for Now. In addition, two of her most talked about books this year were The Unforgotten Coat by Frank Cottrell Boyce, Small Acts of Amazing Courage by Gloria Whelan, and The Chronicles of Harris Burdick: Fourteen Amazing Authors Tell the Tales. For picture books, without a doubt, Underground by Shane Evans is not to be missed. 

To see all the choices, view the Best Books of 2011 booklist. 

The first book in the series!

Hey IReaders! Are you a fan of Daisy Meadow's Fairy books? Then the Children's Library has a new series just for you!

In Hailey Twitch is NOT a Snitch, meet Hailey, a very ordinary girl who has a very extraordinary secret: her best friend, Maybelle, is a fairy! But there's a catch - Maybelle doesn't have control of her magic yet. She causes magical accidents wherever she goes! Only Hailey can see Maybelle, so everyone thinks Hailey causes all the trouble.

Check out this list of all the Hailey Twitch titles to read more about Hailey, Maybelle, and their wacky adventures!

The Children's Librarians have chosen new books that make great gifts for the little ones in your life, whether they're being read to, starting to read themselves, or are already non-stop, voracious readers. 

The following are a couple of ideas that aren't yet in the Children's Library collection, but will be soon.

For parents who want to introduce their babies to the music they love, there are Rockabye Baby CDs.  Imagine Aerosmith, The Flaming Lips, The Cure, Lady Gaga, and more played on the harp and xylophone.  Ultra-soothing and enjoyable for both kids and adults.

It's A Little Book by Lane Smith is a conversation between two baby animals about what to do with a book:  it's not for e-mailing or eating or building, it's for reading.  Fun, tongue-in-cheek humor for kids and grown-ups whose lives are filled with technology.  Check out the book trailer here.  The original, It's A Book, is available at the library.

 Click on the link below to see our other titles (many of which are series)!

Another "Best of Picture Books 2011" list is out, this one by Publisher's Weekly.  From a history of African-Americans with beautiful oil illustrations to the dry tale of a bear who has lost his hat, there's a book for every interest.

Click on the link below to see the list.  Enjoy!

See The New York Times Best Books list.

The Children's Library just received an order of great new picture books!

Marisol MacDonald Doesn't Match/Marisol McDonald No Combina is an English/Spanish book about an adventure-loving girl who doesn't match - and doesn't want to!

Check out this fun new title and more at the link below...

The New York Times Book Review just announced it's 10 picks for Best Illustrated Children's Books of 2011.  These books run the gamut from dry humor (I Want My Hat Back) to gorgeous biographies (Me...Jane and A Nation's Hope, which you might remember as a Booktalking title from this past summer!).

The list of books is below, with the exception of two books:  Ice by Arthur Geisert and A New Year's Reunion by Yu Li-Qiong.