Articles tagged Bear Pond Books
General / Book Recommendations
While 2020 seems to be intensely engaged in an active round of “Up Your Game,” there is some relatively good news coming out of the book publishing industry (Cue the bullhorns! Good news!). Namely, gatekeepers at publishing houses and those who are writing book reviews are starting to step aside and give voice to those … Continued
When my fourth grade daughter started thinking about her informational writing piece, a culminating writing project of sorts, she initially focused on topics about which she was knowledgeable – myths (thank you Rick Riordan), dogs, skiing. I asked her what she wanted to learn more about, and her answer was the Taliban. I put that … Continued
I met Katy Farber around the time her first book for kids, The Order of the Trees, was published by Green Writers Press in 2015. Katy has a smile that reaches deep into her sparkly eyes. These are the kind of eyes that give her away as a curious educator and writer for children. I … Continued
General / Book Recommendations
With the call for more diverse books in the publishing business, it’s been heartening to see a small uptick in children’s books that reflect the beautiful diversity of the faces we see around us more and more each day. Heeding that call, three women in central Vermont are striving to make folks in their predominantly … Continued
I am writing this from my lovely little bubble of Bear Pond Books. I think we can all agree it’s been a busy, distracting fall. I know that my book reading time has taken a precipitous fall because of it. Time to dip back into the well of imagination, inspiration and contemplation. For our kids, reading … Continued
This summer we’ve been basking in the glory of so many female heroes, in politics and in sports especially. I didn’t get to watch much of the summer Olympics, but I sure did read about many of the extraordinary feats of athleticism and personal, political and historic victory. Many of the young female athletes from … Continued
I missed the original Harry Potter buzz – I’m not sure how as I worked in a bookstore off and on from 1996-2002, during which the first four books were released. I made up for this last week, when I got swept up in my eight-year-old’s excitement over Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. I could … Continued
General / Book Recommendations
by Jane Knight – Bear Pond Books As I write this, there are four middle school kids hanging out in our play space in the Children’s Room at Bear Pond– ‘The Chicken Coop’—they are reading picture books to one another, laughing and reminiscing about their ‘childhood favorites’. I love that for these kids, there is … Continued
General / Book Recommendations
Our good friend Jane Knight at Bear Pond Books in Montpelier has done it again! Here is her list of recommended children’s and young adult books for this holiday season. Gift Ideas You’ve all asked for more Harry Potter “stuff” and this is the year for that! British artist Jim Kay has been commissioned to illustrate … Continued
We recently held a book review event for our children’s librarians. We had a panel of four reviewers and talked about new fiction for middle grades through high school. As I was creating the list of books I wanted to review I realized with no small amount of shock that I had a long list … Continued
Define “the best.” Here are three possible answers: Indie bookstores, the people who support them, and the people who run them. This year, the generous patrons of five bookstores donated 789 books to the low-income, at-risk, and rural kids CLiF serves. The first wave of these books arrived in mid-December, brightening the holidays for many kids. Just like every … Continued
General / Book Recommendations
This is the second half of Jane’s holiday recommendations. For Part One, click here. And now a handful of outstanding picture books, because I cannot choose just one (ever!). Sidle on up, pardner, for a hilarious Wild West caper by the outlaw author/illustrator duo Bob Shea and Lane Smith. Kid Sheriff and the Terrible Toads … Continued
General / Book Recommendations
I’ve got lots on my mind as I think and write about books and giving this holiday season. But I think Kyle Zimmer, President of First Book in Washington DC says it best for me when she spoke at the National Book Awards ceremony this past month: “In this country that we are so … Continued
The last time I was volunteering at a book giveaway, where we let each child in the school pick out a new, free book to take home, I had several middle school aged boys say to me “There’s nothing here I want.” Or “I don’t see anything I like.” It’s times like that I try not to … Continued
General / Book Recommendations
Happy Friday! We’re digging out after Vulcan dumped two feet of fresh snow over Vermont. Which means all this weekend we’ll be doing our two favorite activities: reading and skiing. Here are some clips from the last two weeks. Meredith found a lot happening in Ohio to help third graders pass reading tests: When more … Continued
Every year CLiF works with thousands of low-income, at-risk, and rural children from birth to age 12. And every year, without fail, our most challenging clients are the oldest boys.
Trying something new here in the CLiF office. We’re tuned in to literacy news from near and far, and there are great stories every day out there about reading, writing, and books. So in the spirit of sharing resources, every week (mostly) we’ll post a mini library of links to stories we like. If you … Continued
General / Book Recommendations
This is part 2 of a 2-part blog post. For part 1, click here. Trust me. As the Children’s Book Buyer at Bear Pond Books I’m right there with kids in the search for the “next great book.” Lucky for me, poring over publisher sales catalogs and getting advanced reader’s copies of books … Continued
CLiF has served over 350,000 children since 1998.