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This is part of our “Christmas in July” series! Elf (2003) PG Check it out in our online card catalog! Summary: Raised as an oversized elf, Buddy travels from the North Pole to New York City to meet his biological father, Walter Hobbs, who doesn’t know he exists and is in desperate need of some …

Smithton Public Library District’s2024 Summer Reading Program FOR AGES 0-100+! Visit the library to sign up the whole family, beginning Tuesday, May 28, 2024. Everything you need to complete the reading program is in the folder! A few notes: *A maximum of 3 completed logs per person may be turned in for prizes. The Summer …

Get inspired for the holiday! Read something you’ve never heard of before. Read something as old as you can find. Read something brand new, hot off the shelf. Read a classic you enjoy over and over. And share with your family! Mr. Willowby’s Christmas Tree | Robert Barry Summary: When Mr. Willowby’s Christmas tree is …

December 2, 2024 to February 28, 2025. Patrons can visit the library to register in-person and pick up a reading log. Additional Reading Logs can be downloaded here.  Age groups: How it Works Registration for youth and adults begins Monday, December 2, 2024 and the program runs until Friday, February 28, 2025.You must visit the …

Keepunumuk – Weeachuman’s Thanksgiving Story by Danielle Greendeer, Anthony Perry, and Alexis Bunten Summary: Consider sharing this story with your children.  It is a more accurate accounting of what many Americans call Thanksgiving and Native Americans refer to as a day of mourning. Recommendation: It is time to refresh this story, allowing the First Peoples’ …

Curious George | Margret and H.A. Rey Summary: First published in 1941, Curious George is an orphaned monkey in Africa. It tells of his many adventures with the man with a yellow hat who brings him back to America. As is name suggests his curiosity gets him into a lot of trouble. There has been …

A Pig Parade is a Terrible Idea | Michael Black Summary: Summer is all about parades and fun! Could anything possibly be more fun than a pig parade!? You wouldn’t think so. But you’d be wrong. A pig parade is a terrible idea.  Recommendation: Oh dear!  It sounded like such a good idea!  But what …

I thought I was pulling together a selection of works not at all alike each other… but no, I really do like my adventure stories with moral or ethical consequences. Read The Count of Monte Cristo aloud – the language is musical. Island of the Blue Dolphins might need note taking or drawings of the …

Remembering my favorite go-to books of childhood, I was fortunate to have a lot of reading time when visiting my grandparents who had amazing ‘old’ collections of work I’d never heard of. They loved providing animal stories like Riki-Tiki-Tavi and the following. I was well acquainted with the Disney movies of these first two before …

Library Director Jenna Dauer remembers Junior Fiction chapter books from her childhood. Witch of Blackbird Pond | Elizabeth George Speare Summary: Kit Tyler must leave behind shimmering Caribbean islands to join the stern Puritan community of her relatives. She soon feels caged, until she meets the old woman known as the Witch of Blackbird Pond. …

Library Director Jenna Dauer reminisces about five memorable books from her childhood. Giving Tree | Shel Silverstein Summary: A young boy grows to manhood and old age experiencing the love and generosity of a tree which gives to him without thought of return. Reminisce: I tested on this book for Accelerated Reader and I remember …

The Garden of Abdul Gasazi | Chris van Allsburg Summary: When the dog he is caring for runs away from Alan into the forbidden garden of a retired dog-hating magician, a spell seems to be cast over the contrary dog. Recommendation: I forget to read the words, I’m so captivated by the art! See more …

Cyrano |2021 Summary: This is a romantic historical musical version of the same classic story made completely attainable by Steve Martin’s modern take with Roxanne (1987). Whether or not the music is part of what you enjoy about this version, that’s up to you. I don’t want to talk it down just because I found …

2022 Illinois Bluestem Award Winners 2022 Monarch Award 2022 Rebecca Caudill Award Winners Check out our Google Sheets document (linked below) to see the titles! These spreadsheets also show you if the library has a physical copy, or if you can get a digital copy through Hoopla or CloudLibrary.

The Spy Kid franchise (2001) -or- Little Nikita (1988) Note/Summary: I wanted to review Little Nikita, the story of an unwitting dependent child of parents who happen to be Russian moles in 1980’s USA. However, the IHLS does not appear to have a copy available for viewing at this time. As the character played by …

The links below the groupings direct you to various blog posts featuring the listed titles. Happy Reading! -Jenna Dauer, Smithton Public Library District Library Director Tween (5th grade and up) interests:  Where the Mountain Meets the Moon, by Grace Lin – 2009 Inspired picture books: Thumpy Feet, by Betsy Lewin – 2013 This is Not …

Scroll down for suggestions for the following ages.  The links will jump you to that section of the blog post. Birth to 5 years old 6 to 12 years old Teens, ages 13-18 years old Adults Ages Birth to 5 years old Sneezy the Snowman | Maureen Wright Summary: A snowman who finds it dreadfully cold keeps …

Dear Librarian | Lydia M. Sigwarth Summary: Many children don’t gain the experience of knowing a ‘library home’ – having enjoyed several myself as I grew up, this story is a great callback to comfortable surroundings. The main character is unnamed in her own narrative, but it becomes clear that she represents the author when …

From Cinda: The holidays are on their way! I associate holidays with family coming together. Do you have a favorite family movie? Does it happen to involve a holiday or not? Some of my favorite movie families are shown without any holidays involved. I also love a few traditional (and not so traditional) Christmas movies …

The Great Chicago Fire: Rising from the Ashes | Kate Hannigan & Alex Graudins Summary: A fictionalized account of what happened before, during, and after the Chicago Fire (which burned for 30 hours before it was done), this story follows the movements of a couple of kids as they try to reunite their lost puppy …