Marcia Strykowski

More New Books!

I haven’t posted about book purchases for a while. Below are some of the books I’ve recently added to my library’s children’s collection. These selections caught my eye, either by fabulous reviews, popular subject matter, beautiful illustrations, or all three. I wish I had time to read and review them all on the spot, but I’ll get there eventually.

Let’s start with picture books. These are all fun subjects with great illustrations and I’m looking forward to checking them out soon for a closer look.
june pbsSo many wonderful picture books:
june pbs2june pbs3Here are some new middle grade selections:
june mg fictionAnd more!
june mg fiction 2If you’d like to see what I bought a few months back (with more information about how librarians choose what to buy), check out this post: New Library Books.

Seems every time I put an order in, another great book comes to my attention. What have I missed this time?

Happy Reading!

43 Comments

  1. Thank you, Marcia. The Bear and the Piano is one of my new favorites. You have listed many that I don’t know I can’t wait to check them out! -Jennie-

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    • The Bear and the Piano! I hope you enjoy the others, as well. 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

      • Marcia, author Ryan Higgins of Mother Bruce and Wilfred will be at the Eric Carle Museum to read aloud on Sunday. Thought you’d like to know. Wish I could be there!

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        • Oh, that sounds like it will be a good program. I’m not available either, but thanks for telling me and anyone else who might be interested!

          Liked by 1 person

  2. A great collection here! So many great books, so little time to read them all.

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  3. Thank you for including the link to the previous selection. It was nice to take another look. I can see why you don’t have the time to check and review them all. It would be a mammoth task.
    I’m thinking out loud here! Is it possible to check which books you select proved most popular in the library? If so perhaps you could blog about (say) the top three and the one that is always left on the shelf. It could be an interesting mini study and might help with future selections. Just an idea and there are probably a million reasons why it wouldn’t be possible…
    I’m sure my little granddaughters would giggle over Grumpy pants. The title alone would be enough to set them off. I’m intrigued by Horrible Bear and Paris. Those would be my picks from the covers.

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    • Great ideas, Barbara! I can do a circulation history and find out which books have been checked out the most. That might be interesting to try in a few months. I actually have already read some of the picture books all the way through, but didn’t want to play favorites. Your choices are good ones. I interviewed the author of Paris for Two last year during my spotlight series. You can find the link to read about Phoebe under my Spotlights tab. Thanks so much for your comment!

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  4. I love The Bear and The Piano (and gave it for two graduation gifts), There is a Tribe of Kids, and The Wild Robot (even bought a copy for a teacher friend). So many good ones….what a lucky library!

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    • All these books are so fortunate to have strong well-deserved word-of-mouth campaigns behind them. Nice (and clever) of you to give so many book gifts to your friends!

      Liked by 1 person

  5. Hello! I’m glad I’m not the only one who loves illustrated childrens books 🙂 There’s a guy called Ed Boxall, who writes/draws and prints his own books for children. I have one called The Shell Collector. I don’t know him personally, but just adore his work.

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    • Hi, thanks for your comment! We aren’t usually able to buy self-published books for the library, especially paperbacks because they don’t hold out as long, but that’s wonderful you enjoy his books and I’ll keep The Shell Collector in mind.

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  6. What a fun fun post Marcia!! I am going to head over to Amazon and read reviews right now. But would love to have your evaluations even more. I like your three criterion– they all have very promising covers. And it would be fun to check your circulation stats later to see which ones are the most popular. I know our grand-girls want to check out the same favorite books over and over. After reading your comments, I’ve got to see The Bear and the Piano– and I have a picnic loving daughter who should have the The Perfect Picnic book!! Thanks Marcia– your blog posts are always the best!! Hope alls well with you.

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    • It’s funny how many kids want the same books over and over. Caregivers often get frustrated and then in turn, very excited when their children move on to something new. I usually read the latest issues of review journals to find new releases as they not only seem more legitimate, but it sometimes takes a while for Amazon to catch up. Thanks for your kind words, Rhonda!

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      • Great Marica– my only close book store is Barnes & Noble– and I’m thankful they are still there!–but they have a very limited range, love your resource of truly worthwhile new books! thanks bunches.

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  7. Hey there, Marcia! Since June is the 6th month of the year, I’m following 6 fun and interesting blogs each day, and you’re one of them! Follow me back if you like at http://www.thatssojacob.wordpress.com and make six new blog friends of your own. Have a great day!

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  8. Colleen

    So many books, so little time… I really enjoyed this post,Marcia! Thank you! (I am inspired to live to at least age 110!)

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  9. Thanks for the recommendations. These suggestions will be very helpful the next time I purchase books for gifts.

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    • And these are just the tip of the iceberg, so many interesting ones released into the world each month–makes it hard to choose!

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  10. Oh so many wonderful-looking books! Have I told you how much I envy you for your job, Marcia?

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    • Working at the library is a fun job all around and I feel fortunate to have landed there.

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  11. So many good ideas! Thank you!

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    • You’re welcome! It takes a while to research them, so I figured I’d share my list once in a while.

      Liked by 1 person

  12. We’re always buying kids books here but I haven’t come across any of these. The covers all look good though

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    • Covers are so important in considering what’s going to make a good read. 🙂

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  13. Thanks for this roundup! I have added a few to my TBR list!

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  14. Bette Norton

    I love all of the great picture books you have posted. They have intriguing titles and beautiful book covers! I too wish I had more time in the day to read them all! I love picture books!. I used to be around them more when I was teaching preschool. I have been retired for six years now and miss reading the picture books with the children.
    I definitely will be reading some of these books. I like the title Grumpy Pants and I love Hector and Hummingbird, as I enjoy hummingbirds! So many to choose from. I hope to purchase a few for my picture book collection! Thank you for taking the time to select and post them! Very fun post! 🙂

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  15. Ashley

    Very cool!! You pick great titles!

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  16. Wonderful! Marcia, I’m curious about the book cover images in your posts. Where do you get them, a website? or do you scan or photograph them? Thanks for another enjoyable look at the beautiful children’s books out there!

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    • Hi, for book covers I often use the pictures provided on Goodreads. It’s one of the few times I don’t restrict myself to using my own or public domain images, since my posting of the covers helps to promote the book—a win-win situation for authors and illustrators, as well as their publishers. 🙂

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      • That makes sense. I often use images on Library Thing (available for members) for book covers because I really want to be careful to use only public domain images. I’ll have a look at Goodreads next time. And do you have an app that displays the covers in rows so beautifully? Thanks Marcia.

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        • I don’t use any apps, just a free WordPress theme. I make one jpeg for each group of books, so there are really less pictures than it appears. I’m sure there are easier ways to do it; my way can take a lot of fussing. Good luck!

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  17. So many lovely-looking books!

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  18. An exciting selection Marcia, thank you.

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