May is Jewish American Heritage Month. Let’s celebrate by reading books that include Jewish representation and discuss the Jewish American experience throughout history. Picture Books Joyful Song: A Naming Story by Lesléa Newman Zachary is so excited about his baby sister’s naming ceremony. On the walk to the ceremony, he meets various members from his community and invites them to the ceremony as well. This is a beautiful, inclusive book about family, tradition, and community. Matilda Makes Matzah Balls by Rhonda Cohen This year is the start of a new Passover tradition: Matilda is helping her Bubbe make matzah ball soup! Follow Matilda as she experiments with the recipe with support from her grandmother in this fun and colorful book about trying new things. Mitzvah Pizza by Marge Kaplan Missy is on the way to the Pizza shop with her dad, discussing how she should spend her Hanukah money. When she gets there, she learns about the sticky note wall representing pre-paid slices of ...

April is National Poetry Month! Let's celebrate with poetry books, from writing your own poems, to nonfiction poetry books and novels-in-verse. Books to Help You Write Your Own Poetry Poetry Prompts: All Sorts of Ways to Start a Poem by Joseph Coelho This book offers amazing prompts and inspiration for readers to start writing their own poetry. A Crow Doesn’t Need a Shadow: A Guide to Writing Poetry from Nature by Lorraine Ferra This beautiful book helps readers observe nature deeply and find inspiration all around us.  Read, Recite, and Write Cinquains by JoAnn Early Macken Cinquains are a unique form of poem made up of five lines. This book teaches the history and technique behind this type of poem and provides many prompts to help you write your own.  Explore Poetry! by Andi Diegn This book breaks down types of poetry and various topics and vocabulary relating to poetry and then provides activities that get readers writing. Non-Fiction Poetry Books Out of Wonder: Celebr...

March 16 is the one hundredth anniversary of Goddard’s legendary first liquid-fueled rocket launch. To celebrate, let’s read some books about space! Picture Books Usha and the Big Digger by Jagannath Knight When Usha’s big sister, Aarti, tells her about the Big Dipper, Usha sees a big digger instead. This book helps teach kids the math concepts of rotation and perspective through a fun and relatable story about the sky. Mae Among the Stars by Roda Ahmed This book tells the inspiring tale of a girl who wants to be an astronaut and achieves her dream. It is based on the life of Mae Jemison, the first African American woman to travel to space, and it encourages young readers to dream big. Field Trip to the Moon by John Hare This picture book follows a child with a love of coloring on a field trip to the moon. What happens when they get left behind? This wordless picture book is full of expression, allowing readers to sympathize with the child and create their own prose for the tale. How...

With the spirit of the Olympics in the air, the Children’s Librarians at Worcester Public Library thought it would be fun to share some amazing nonfiction books to explore more about the Olympics. Crossing the Finish Line by Thushanthi Ponweera When Sri Lankan Olympian Rantunge Karunanada raced in the 1964 Olympics, he quickly learned that he did not have much of a chance of winning the 10,000-meter race. However, just competing in the Olympics was a dream come true, and nothing was going to stop him from reaching the finish line. Declan Farmer Paralympic Hockey Star by Matt Chandler Declan Farmer is a two-time Paralympic gold medalist. This inspirational book details his life, challenges, and athletic career. History and Stars of the World’s Greatest Sporting Event: From Athens 1896 to Paris 2024 by Vijayan Bala Learn all about the modern Summer Olympics in this book! It includes information about the history of the games (including details on each event from 1896 to 2024), features...