Book-Talk: Clementine H. Hopeful is Not a Hero

I related very strongly to protagonist Clementine in Noah Corey’s debut novel, which combines elements of fantasy with the intense day-to-day concern of trying to survive bullying. I’d love to see this book placed widely in libraries.
https://youtu.be/ng9fhq6r0H4

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My UCM extracurricular experiences

I spent time this weekend applying for scholarships through the University of Central Missouri. Filling out the application offered me a chance to reflect on my experiences as a UCM graduate student.

Let’s build a Community of Readers (2026)

“When children see the adults around them using reading and writing in their everyday lives, they’re more likely to become readers and writers themselves.” — How to Create a Literate Home: Young Child and Kindergartener, PBS Kids, March 26, 2012. I created flyers for coworkers at SRCSA to display a book that they are currently reading. My design is based on one by librarian Andrea Trudeau.
https://youtu.be/HxMp9YuJ-kI

‘My Fade is Fresh’ by Grant and Thomas

A new school year is underway in SRCSA library, and I’ve already fielded my first read-aloud request: My Fade is Fresh, by Shauntay Grant.

UCM, LIS 5622 : Introductions

For the nearly 10 years that I’ve worked in SRCSA library, two values that guided me have been creating a welcoming space and promoting a reading culture. I talk about those values as part of a video introducing myself to classmates in LIS 5622, “Library Administration and Leadership” (which I am taking in Fall 2026 via the University of Central Missouri). Watch for a surprise guest appearance by a certain feline!
https://youtu.be/JjVngz0mk9A

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Library slideshow, August 2026

Whenever I go to my downtown public library, a slide-deck of rotating announcements is displayed on a screen as I enter the building. Here is something similar, which I created to display announcements for SRCSA library in August 2026. I used Canva to create the slideshow and while I play it without sound in the library, the version that I’ve posted to YouTube is set to “Ambient Summer” by Mykhailo Kripak (music from the Canva library). The creator has given permission for this music to be used on YouTube.

‘Dark’s Tale’ by Deborah Grabien

Whenever I visit San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park and see signs warning of coyotes, my thoughts turn to Dark’s Tale by Deborah Grabien, which I re-read every few years. I want to share it as a commemoration for Black Cat Appreciation Day, which is observed each year on Aug. 17.

UCM ‘Move-In,’ Fall 2026

As a graduate student taking distance-ed classes via the University of Central Missouri, I want to offer a special welcome to those new distance learners who are joining us in Fall 2026.
https://youtu.be/XDjj2miu8RE

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‘We Burned So Bright’ by T.J. Klune

I just finished reading We Burned So Bright, a recent book by author T.J. Klune. I attended a presentation by Klune in Sebastopol, shortly after We Burn So Bright had been published, and I appreciate Klune making a local stop during what was undoubtedly an exhausting promotional tour.

‘Tales from the Territory’ by Travis Baldree

Tales from the Territory, expected in September 2026 from Subterranean Press, assembles short stories about beloved characters from Travis Baldree’s Legends & Lattes best-selling series. This essential collection offers glimpses into the lives of Thimble, Viv, and Tandri before Viv attempted to open a coffee shop in the city of Thune. It reveals how Zyll the goblin met a certain Elder Blade called “Breadlee,” and introduces competition in the form of a rival coffee shop.

Looking forward to new semester at UCM

Looking forward to a new academic year, University of Central Missouri, as I pursue my Master’s degree in Library and Information Science. Here’s my study-space organized for my upcoming classes. During Fall 2026, I’ll be studying library administration and leadership.

‘What's Growing in Your Garden?’

In a post to social media, Phi Kappa Phi is encouraging its members to share “What’s growing in your garden these days?” In response to this prompt, I have a rescue orchid at home that currently has a beautiful white bloom on its flower spike.

‘The Sinking House’ by Darcie Little Badger

I’m looking forward to publication of a new book by one of my favorite authors. The Sinking House, by Darcie Little Badger, will come out in August 2026.

Book-Talk: Legends & Lattes (graphic novel adaptation)

I loved Travis Baldree’s “Legends & Lattes” cozy fantasy series and now the first book has been adapted as a graphic novel, coming in October 2026. Reading this book was a very “cinematic” experience and I thought the artists’ depictions of the characters seemed very faithful to how they were described or how I envisioned them from reading the original book.
https://youtu.be/1vhWyTx2X8g

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‘The Gender Binary is a Big Lie’

In honor of International Non-Binary People’s Day, observed each year on July 14, I recommend The Gender Binary Is a Big Lie by Lee Wind. The title offers an excellent summation that immediately positions it as an alternative to the narrative that everyone must fit into one of only two socially-imposed gender identities. This narrative is vital and compellingly attractive to a reader like me, someone who has always known myself to fit outside the gender binary.

I Hope You Get This Message by Farah Naz Rishi

Cleared another book from my TBR list this week: I Hope You Get This Message by Farah Naz Rishi. “When news stations start reporting that Earth has been contacted by a planet named Alma, the world is abuzz with rumors that the alien entity is giving civilization only a few days before they hit the kill switch.”

Book-Talk: Night of the Abiku by Craig Kofi Farmer

When his eighth-grade class becomes stranded during a field trip to a southern plantation, Winston comes face to face with something terrifying within the mansion’s walls.
https://youtu.be/GXTvlXc22zw

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‘Children of Ragnarok’ by Cinda Williams Chima

I recently completed Children of Ragnarok by Cinda Williams Chima (Grade 7 and up - School Library Journal). Published in 2022, this book was “new to me” when I purchased it at a second-hand bookstore. I was deeply interested in the fantasy setting that incorporated Norse mythology and I quickly became caught up by the story, which centered around three young people whose respective quests and challenges converge in New Jotunheim: a seeming paradise that is tainted by hidden evil. School Library Journal says: “Hand this to fantasy fans and younger readers aging into YA.” Children of Ragnarok is the first book in Chima’s Runestone Saga. The story continues in Bane of Asgard, published in 2024 — currently on my “want to read” list.

Equitable travel is essential for accessing library services

I live in a metropolitan area where I take for granted that I can just walk or take the bus to my public library. So while listening to That Librarian, written and narrated by Amanda Jones, I was deeply concerned by something Jones said about teens being able to access Livingston Parish Library in Louisiana: “Kids younger than sixteen cannot drive alone.” Teens would not be unaccompanied in Livingston Parish Library unless an adult gave them a ride and dropped them off there.

I was concerned and troubled by the idea that young people (or really people of any age) couldn’t easily walk, ride a bike, or take public transit to access their local public library. (And I’m aware that this reaction of mine is off-topic to the main focus of Jones’s book, which concerns her efforts to combat attempts at book censorship and to challenge hateful people who subjected her to cyber-bullying.)

What I’m reading in Summer 2026

What books do people have on their reading lists? Here’s a look at some of the books I’m reading during Summer 2026.

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