Book-A-Day Almanac
Discover the stories behind the children’s book classics and the new books on their way to becoming classics.
Ballet for Martha
Elementary School, Middle School, Nonfiction, Picture Book On May 11, 1894, Martha Graham was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. At the age of sixteen, she saw her first dance performance “and that night my fate was sealed.” In her early twenties Graham moved to Greenwich Village, New York, and joined the Follies, with assorted animal acts and chorus girls. In 1926 she started […]
20th Century, Dance, History, WomenFeatured on May 11
A Chair for My Mother
Elementary School, Picture Book, PreschoolToday we celebrate Mother’s Day, a time to remember all of the sacrifices and kindnesses of our mothers. As a body of stories, children’s books are probably kinder to fathers than mothers. But our Book-of-the-Day is about a memorable mother and a child who appreciates her. Vera Williams grew up in a household where her […]
Award Winning, Caldecott, Family, Multicultural, WomenFeatured on May 8
Miss Rumphius
Elementary School, Picture BookStarting tomorrow, we celebrate National Wildflower Week (May 6-12th), created by the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, to “encourage the observations, cultivations and study of native wildflowers.” Today’s book, Miss Rumphius by Barbara Cooney, completely embodies the spirit of this week. In this story a spinster librarian travels around the world and eventually returns to […]
20th Century, Gardening, History, NatureFeatured on May 5
Shark vs. Train
Elementary School, Picture Book, Preschool May has been designated Get Caught Reading Month, a campaign launched in 1999 by the Association of American Publishers. The month has been set aside to remind people how much fun it is to read; posters for the event show favorite children’s book characters or celebrities celebrating books and reading. I’m going to feature two […]
Humor, Imagination, ToysFeatured on May 2
Charlie Parker Played BeBop
Elementary School, Picture BookOn April 30, 1941, over seventy years ago, the first commercially recorded work of Charlie Parker was cut at Decca Records. Born in 1920 in Kansas City, Kansas, Charlie Parker began playing the saxophone at age eleven without formal training. In 1939 he headed to New York City, where he teamed up with Dizzy Gillespie […]
Jazz, MusicFeatured on April 30
Red-Eyed Tree Frog
Babies and Toddlers, Elementary School, Nonfiction, Picture Book, Preschool April 29 has been designated Save the Frogs Day, a day of amphibian education. Although there will be an event in Washington, D.C., the third annual Save the Frogs Day organizers encourage people to recognize the day in their own communities. Their website contains lesson plans and activities that can be adapted by teachers and […]
Animals, Award Winning, Boston Globe-Horn Book Award, Frogs, NatureFeatured on April 29
Brontorina
Elementary School, Picture Book, Preschool From April 26- May 5, we celebrate National Dance Week, a time to reflect on the benefits and beauty of dance and its ability “to enrich our lives, our bodies, our spirits and our culture.” Dance, dancers, and ballet have always proved fertile ground for children’s book creators. Angelina Ballerina and Ballet of the Elephants […]
Dance, Dinosaurs, HumorFeatured on April 28
Madeline
Elementary School, Picture BookBorn on April 27, 1898, Ludwig Bemelmans came to the United States when he was sixteen, after having been raised in Austria. As a child he lived in a hotel that his father ran; later he worked in a New York hotel to pay his bills. His true love, drawing and painting, had always been […]
Award Winning, Caldecott, ParisFeatured on April 27
Country Bunny and the Little Gold Shoes
Elementary School, Picture Book The celebration of Easter contains both religious and secular components. Today many children will search for Easter eggs, candy baskets, and the various treats that have become associated with the holiday. Although hundreds of books have been published for Easter, for me the best was published seventy-two years ago: DuBose Heyward’s The Country Bunny and […]
Animals, Easter, Holidays, RabbitsFeatured on April 24
In the Small Pond
Elementary School, Picture Book, PreschoolSince 1970 Earth Day has been celebrated worldwide on April 22. With an emphasis on the resources of the planet and renewable energy, Earth Day reminds us to take a closer look at the world around us. Suggested activities and local events can be found at the Earth Day Network. Today I’d like to take […]
Animals, Award Winning, Caldecott, Nature, SeasonsFeatured on April 22
The Gardener
Elementary School, Picture Book April has been designated National Gardening Month. The mere idea of gardening brings me joy. As I write the first draft of this essay in February, two feet of snow sit outside the window. Will I ever see my gardens again? Gardening month reminds me of that desperate plea from Mary Lennox in The Secret […]
Award Winning, Caldecott, Family, Gardening, Great Depression, HistoryFeatured on April 19
Paul Revere’s Ride
Elementary School, Picture Book, Poetry I must admit that today is truly one of my favorite holidays, if not my absolute favorite, of the year. Although I try to avoid being “Boston centric” in the Almanac, I have lived in or near the city for more than forty years. Writers often get told to write about what they know—and today […]
History, Revolutionary WarFeatured on April 18
Library Lion
Elementary School, Picture Book This week we have been celebrating National Library Week. All kinds of libraries—school, public, and academic—participate in this annual event that celebrates the contributions of our nation’s libraries. If you haven’t registered a child for a library card recently, you will be pleasantly surprised about the offerings in children’s rooms of modern public libraries. Videos, […]
Animals, Humor, Imagination, LionsFeatured on April 15
Ballet of the Elephants
Elementary School, Nonfiction, Picture Book On April 9, 1942, fifty-one elephants performed in a ballet in Madison Square Garden. Although at first this idea seems absurd, the strange but true story is explored by writer Leda Schubert and illustrator Robert Andrew Parker in Ballet of the Elephants, published in 2006. Over the last ten years, picture-book texts have grown shorter, […]
Animals, Dance, Elephants, HistoryFeatured on April 9
A Sick Day for Amos McGee
Elementary School, Picture Book, Preschool Today marks National Doctor Day, when we should show our personal doctor appreciation with a card or a gift. It commemorates March 30, 1933, the first use of anesthesia in surgery. If by any chance you want to give a book as a gift, for yourself or your doctor, I can think of no better […]
Animals, Award Winning, Bedtime, CaldecottFeatured on March 30
Interrupting Chicken
Elementary School, Picture BookFrom March 22–28, we celebrate World Folk Tales and Fables Week, established to encourage children and adults to explore the lessons learned from folk tales and fables. Although folk and fairy tales form the basis of world literature and culture, adults have often questioned introducing them to children. After all, the material in these legends […]
Award Winning, Bedtime, Caldecott, Fairy Tale, Family, FolktaleFeatured on March 23
Busy, Busy Town
Elementary School, Picture Book, PreschoolToday has been designated International Goof-Off Day—a day to relax, be yourself, and avoid what you are supposed to do. If you are in the position to celebrate International Goof-Off Day, you first might want to read Tony Fucile’s Let’s Do Nothing for tips. But I myself am happiest when working at something I like […]
Animals, Humor, ImaginationFeatured on March 22
Brown Bear Brown Bear
Babies and Toddlers, Picture Book, Preschool Born on March 20, 1916, in Hiawatha, Kansas, Bill Martin Jr. served as a teacher and textbook editor before he became a children’s book writer. Growing up in Kansas, he struggled with reading, but adored listening to his grandmother, who was a storyteller. Also, he was saved from a lifetime of hating books by a […]
Animals, NatureFeatured on March 20
The Snowy Day
Elementary School, Picture Book, PreschoolIn 1963 when Madeline L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time won the Newbery Award, an artist who had struggled a long time to find his voice received the Caldecott Medal. Born in Brooklyn, Ezra Jack Keats was the son of Polish immigrants. Although his mother encouraged him to create art, something he delighted in doing, his […]
African American, Multicultural, Seasons, WinterFeatured on March 15
Independent Dames
Elementary School, Nonfiction, Picture Book March has been designated Women’s History month. Fortunately, in the last two decades we have been given scores of books that promote the role of women in history. For some great suggestions you can consult the Amelia Bloomer list compiled by the American Library Association. Today I’d like to focus on one of the exceptional […]
History, Revolutionary War, WomenFeatured on March 10
Dave the Potter
Elementary School, Picture Book March has been designated Arts and Crafts Month. History, as the saying goes, is written by the winners. The disenfranchised, those who struggled for recognition, left few clues for those who read the record of history. That is one of the reasons why Laban Carrick Hill’s Dave the Potter: Artist, Poet, Slave is such an important […]
African American, Art, Award Winning, Caldecott, MulticulturalFeatured on March 8
Spoon
Elementary School, Picture Book, Preschool Today marks National Cereal Day, so raise a glass of milk or a cup of coffee to your favorite brand. Americans are, as group, addicted to cereal. I recently a saw a Facebook post by someone overseas who lamented she could not get her favorite American cereal in this foreign country. Our book of the […]
Food, Humor, ImaginationFeatured on March 7
Doctor De Soto
Elementary School, Fantasy, Picture BookToday we celebrate National Dentist Day. Suggestions for the day include delivering a thank-you note to your dentist—although I would recommend giving them the book of the day instead. For me, the greatest book ever written about a dentist is also one of the best picture books of the twentieth century: Doctor De Soto by […]
Animals, Award Winning, Humor, Imagination, Mice, NewberyFeatured on March 6
And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street
Babies and Toddlers, Elementary School, Picture Book, PreschoolOn March 2, 1904, Theodor Seuss Geisel was born in Springfield, Massachusetts. Seuss won a Pulitzer Prize for lifetime contribution, one of the few children’s book creators ever so honored, and his books have sold over 200 million copies. Like so many of our pivotal children’s book creators, Seuss struggled to get his first book […]
Humor, ImaginationFeatured on March 2
Tooth Fairy Day
Elementary School, Fantasy, Picture Book, PreschoolOn February 28, Tooth Fairy Day commemorates our love and affection to the kindly tooth fairy and her generosity to children. Many retain wonderful childhood memories of placing a tooth under the pillow and finding some coins in the morning. But does the tooth fairy visit everyone—all over the globe? In Throw Your Tooth on […]
Bedtime, Family, HumorFeatured on February 28
Whiteblack the Penguin Sees the World
Elementary School, Picture Book, PreschoolToday marks National Polar Bear Day, to celebrate the world’s largest carnivore. Although we have honored a lot of penguins on this website (Mr. Popper’s Penguins and 365 Penguins), polar bears have received scant notice. So today I’d like to honor a polar bear—although he happens to be the best friend of a penguin. In […]
Animals, History, Jewish, Multicultural, Penguins, World War IFeatured on February 27
The Story of Babar
Classic, Elementary School, Fantasy, Picture Book, PreschoolNext week, from February 24-28 has been designated as Read Me Week by Reading Is Fundamental to celebrate the importance and fun of reading. All week long, local businesses and organizations who have adopted schools in their area will send out volunteers to read. The week culminates on Read Me Day in Nashville, Tennessee—where local […]
Adventure, Animals, Elephants, France, HumorFeatured on February 23
Baseball Saved Us
Elementary School, Picture Book Executive order 9066: On February 19, 1942, President Franklin Roosevelt sent 110,000 Japanese Americans, two-thirds of them U.S. Citizens, to concentration camps in remote desert areas. Not allowed to return to their homes until January 2, 1945, these families lost an estimated $400 million worth in property—not to mention their own freedom and sense of […]
Asian American, Baseball, History, Multicultural, Sports, World War IIFeatured on February 19
Knuffle Bunny
Babies and Toddlers, Picture Book, PreschoolFor nearly ten years February has been designated Adopt a Rescued Rabbit Month. When I think of a rabbit that needs rescuing in children’s books, the first one that comes to mind appeared in 2004—not a living rabbit but a stuffed toy named Knuffle Bunny. In Mo Willems’s Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale, we first […]
ToysFeatured on February 18
The Librarian of Basra
Elementary School, Picture BookFebruary has been set aside as Library Lovers Month to celebrate school, public, and private libraries of all types. In my case, without libraries this website would not exist. My early exposure to a variety of books came at a small school library in Village Elementary School in Fort Wayne, Indiana. An enormous amount of […]
21st Century, Geography, History, PoliticsFeatured on February 17
Starry Messenger
Biography, Elementary School, Middle School, Picture BookBorn on February 15, 1564, Galileo Galilei, Italian physicist, mathematician, astronomer, and philosopher, has often been called the man responsible for the birth of modern science. Even his name indicates his rock star status in the scientific world—he’s known by a single name only, just like Cher or Madonna. In 1996, Peter Sís, an artist […]
Astronomy, Award Winning, Caldecott, History, Politics, ScienceFeatured on February 15
Daily children’s book recommendations and events from Anita Silvey.
Discover the stories behind the children’s book classics . . .
The new books on their way to becoming classics . . .
And events from the world of children’s books—and the world at large.
