Charlotte, Anansi, and Odin, Oh My! (Part 3 of 3)
May 22 2021We have talked about the power of the written word as well as of oral knowledge-sharing. When it comes to Odin’s story, the power of the two converge. Compared to other literate cultures of the time, the Norse left very little in the way of written work behind. This was…
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Charlotte, Anansi, and Odin, Oh My! (Part 2 of 3)
May 14 2021In the three posts in this series, we will be looking at the power of words and the importance of knowledge-sharing by looking at tales featuring three famous knowledge-sharers: Charlotte from E.B. White's Charlotte's Web, Anansi the Spider-Man from West African folklore,…
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Charlotte, Anansi, and Odin, Oh My! (Part 1 of 3)
May 8 2021In the three posts in this series, we will be looking at the power of words and the importance of knowledge-sharing by looking at tales featuring three famous knowledge-sharers: Charlotte from E.B. White's Charlotte's Web, Anansi the Spider-Man from West African folklore,…
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Lesser-Known Gems in Our Catalogue: Silverwing
April 30 2021Shade, a young silverwing bat, gets separated from his colony shortly before his first migration. With the help of a little brown bat named Marina, he must migrate on his own by using the directions his mother had sung to him in preparation for the journey. A great (Canadian!)…
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4 Great Science Books for Kiddos
April 24 2021Looking for some good science books for your child? We have some suggestions for that (and they're all in our catalogue!). To be honest, these are all great reads regardless of your age. George’s Secret Key to the Universe by Lucy Hawking & Stephen Hawking If you have…
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The Oldest Library Ever Found
April 16 2021Located in the city of Ebla, now located near the village of Mardikh (roughly 55 km outside Aleppo), you are looking at the Palace Archive of Ebla (aka the Ebla State Archives) the oldest organized library we have yet to find anywhere. The city was founded sometime around…
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9 Quotes About Libraries
April 9 2021Not to toot our own horn, but we think libraries are pretty great. And we're not the only ones, as these eight quotes about the awesomeness of libraries can attest! To any readers with vision problems: We have attempted to add alternative text to the images. If it isn't…
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3 Comics for Kids With Female Protagonists
April 4 2021Despite their bad reputation, comic books are actually great for kids, teaching them how to read both words as well as images in one fell swoop. They also help enforce the concept that you can take hints about the text from the images and vice versa. Plus, they're particularly…
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Connecting Inmates to Their Kids Through Storytelling
March 26 2021You may have heard before that giving prisoners access to books helps lower recidivism rates. Well, a recent study in the US suggests that allowing inmates to record themselves reading a story to their children may have a similar effect. Inmates and wardens alike report…
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The Library Robots of Oodi
March 21 2021We’ve talked before about library cats and library dogs, but have you ever heard of library robots? Though most libraries won’t be able to afford them for quite some time, they may become a common sight in the future. At the moment, to see library robots in action,…
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Choosing Books for Preschoolers Part 2/2
March 13 2021One of the tricky parts of storytelling to younger children is making it through a whole book without losing their interest. The younger a child is, the shorter their attention span will be. The most effective way to help them stay focused is to find a way to make the story…
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Choosing Books for Preschoolers Part 1/2
March 6 2021One of the tricky parts of storytelling to younger children is making it through a whole book without losing their interest. The younger a child is, the shorter their attention span will be. The most effective way to help them stay focused is to find a way to make the story…
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Resources on Bullying for Parents of Younger Children
March 1 2021On the last Wednesday in February, Canadians from coast to coast wear pink shirts to take a stand against bullying. Though the focus of Pink Shirt Day is on school-aged children, it's important that we remember that we adults have a part to play in the stand against bullying.…
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The Little Book That Could
February 20 2021When you were a kid, did you ever come across one of those books that had a story on one side, and then when you got to the centerfold you flipped the book over and there was a second story on the other side? Those kinds of books have a special name: reversible books. In…
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Growing a Reader
February 13 2021Though there’s no 100% guaranteed way to turn a mini human into a reader, there are some strategies you can employ to greatly tip the scales in your favour. 1. Regularly read to your child This is by far one of the most effective ways to grow a reader. It’s hard to…
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A Book By Any Other Name: Part 1/?
February 6 2021What we have written on throughout history has been just as varied as the writing systems themselves. This new series will be looking at the wonderful variety of writing media used across the globe. We hope you enjoy! =-=-=-=-= Clay Tablets Origin: Uruk, Modern-Day Iraq…
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Strategies for Storytelling
January 31 2021Holding the book – If you’re reading from a picture book, hold it in such a way where your child can see the picture and you can see the words at the same time. Try to avoid reading from the page and then holding the book up for your audience to see. This breaks up…
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Lesser-Known Gems in Our Catalogue: Ella Enchanted
January 22 2021Cursed as a baby with the “gift” of obedience by a misguided fairy, Ella is forced to always do as she is told. One day, she decides enough is enough, and sets out to find the fairy who cursed her to demand she fix her mistake. The book is a retelling of Cinderella…
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So, Just How Rich Is Jane Austen’s Mr. Darcy?
January 15 2021If you've ever read Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice, you know that the famous Mr. Darcy is rich. But how rich is kind of vague from a modern reader's perspective. Being told that Mr. Darcy has an income of £10,000 a year doesn't help much in giving us an idea of his wealth…
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A (Very) Brief History of Spelling
January 9 2021When we think of written language, we think of spelling and grammar. It’d be kind of hard to communicate through writing if we didn’t agree on which combinations of symbols mean what, after all. And you’d be right – writing without an agreed-upon way of spelling…
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