Endlessly Ever After by Laurel Snyder and Dan Santat

Ever since the arrival in my library of Endlessly Ever After by Laurel Snyder and Dan Santat, I’ve looked forward to featuring it as a read-aloud. It features choose-your-own-adventure storytelling similar to the mass-market books I used to devour as a young person: except that Endlessly Ever After is a beautiful example of the picture-book format with its lavish, full-color, and evocative illustrations. This week, I debuted it with my school’s two third-grade classes; each class experienced a very different outcome as determined by the choices they voted upon each step along the way. Endlessly Ever After was the winner, in 2026, of the California Young Reader Medal in its “Primary” category.

Don’t comply with censorship in advance

In his recently published short book of essays, Mac Barnett emphasized the importance of children finding their experiences and emotions reflected in the stories they read. His observation was made against a backdrop of ever-increasing attempts to remove books from libraries that disproportionately target books by authors of color and authors who are LGBTQIA+.

CYRM: Winners in 2026

As part of curating a library collection that appeals to reader interests, I make a point of following official results for my state’s reader’s choice award. These are books that won a popular vote among young people choosing their “favorites.” Among recent arrivals to SRCSA library, here are the winners, for 2026, of the California Young Reader Medal.
https://youtu.be/mcV9gfBpkQc

Character education: Books about Creativity

For a character-education focus on “Creativity,” here are several books from SRCSA library.
https://youtu.be/7Xoti2X2NGA

Book-Talk: Opting Out

In my latest book-talk: I love Opting Out, the soon-to-be-published middle-grade graphic novel by Maia Kobabe and Swati “Lucky” Srikumar.

Book-Talk: Wish I Was a Baller by Amar Shah

I’d recommend this graphic-format memoir to a variety of young readers: especially kids who love sports, who aspire to careers in journalism, maybe even to kids who combine both interests.
https://youtu.be/7fSr8qYfONg

Cultural humility and a diverse library collection

Building and promoting a diverse library collection begins with materials selection. In an earlier writing I talked about the fact that communities served by libraries are increasingly diverse. “Race, ethnicity, language, physical and mental ability, socioeconomic status, gender expression, and sexual orientation are just a few ways diversity is reflected in [students’] lived experiences” (Hughes-Hassell, 2020, p. 21). My goal when building a library collection is to serve this increasingly diverse community by ensuring variety among the books in the library’s collection.

SRCSA library ‘Top 25’ for 2025-2026

What books are students most frequently checking out from SRCSA library?

Most popular types of books in SRCSA library

From among 3,318 circulations so far this school year (from Aug. 16, 2025 to March 9, 2026), what were the most popular types of books checked out from SRCSA library?

Scholastic Book Fair at SRCSA

Scholastic Book Fair took place this past week at Santa Rosa Charter School for the Arts, bringing with it a fresh infusion of new books for the school library. ’Tis now my happy task to prepare these awesome books for use. Appreciation to the many volunteers who made Scholastic Book Fair possible!

Federal bill equates trans identity with sexually explicit material

One of the core tenets that I embrace as a librarian serving young people is that readers need stories about people who are both like and who are unlike them. A diverse library collection should ideally encompass many facets: including race, sex, gender identity, differing abilities, who a person is attracted to, and more.

Marley’s Pride (Complete read-aloud for National Day of Reading)

To commemorate the National Day of Reading on Feb. 27, 2026, here is a complete reading of Marley’s Pride by Joëlle Retener with illustrations by DeAnn Wiley. I am reading this book with permission by the publisher, Barefoot Books. Marley is going to their first Pride parade with their grandparent, Zaza, who is being honored for their work supporting the transgender community. Marley has sensory sensitivities and is worried about the noise and large crowds, but wants to go in order to support Zaza.
https://youtu.be/WQyhCqdpAJY

Book haul: ALA Youth Media Awards, 2026

Among recent arrivals in SRCSA library: Here are some winners of the 2026 Youth Media Awards, which are presented each year by the American Library Association.
https://youtu.be/vah_Q3FUmqA

SRCSA library: New arrivals in January and February 2026

Here is a slideshow featuring some new arrivals during January and February 2026. This slideshow was created in Canva. Music: Funky House by Nver Avetyan. The creator has given permission for this music to be used on YouTube.
https://youtu.be/SfWuw6RDiFo

Books about Friendship, for Valentine’s Day!

For Valentine’s Day, let’s focus on friendship. Here are several books from SRCSA library that speak to various aspects of friendship.
https://youtu.be/k5DTZ2N3ZO0

Books for Black History Month

To commemorate Black History Month: Here is a slideshow featuring some books from SRCSA library. The slideshow was created in Canva. Music: Wide Space by AudioCoffee. The creator has given permission for this music to be used on YouTube.
https://youtu.be/q3rpiDJ-3II

Character education: Books about Honesty

SRCSA’s character-education focus for February 2026 is “Honesty.” Here are books from the school library, which address the character trait of Honesty.
https://youtu.be/YzZk-_kysYs

Stories of immigrant families: Books in SRCSA library

Here is a selection of books from SRCSA library that center the perspectives of children from immigrant families. The slideshow was created in Canva. Music is Wide Space by AudioCoffee. The creator has given permission for this music to be used on YouTube.
https://youtu.be/YjKbwCu29LE

“From its earliest days, the American experience has encompassed immigrants.”
- The American Library Association, 2018.

Character education: Books about Perseverance

SRCSA’s character-education focus for January 2026 is “Perseverance.” Here are several books from SRCSA library, which address the character trait of Perseverance.
https://youtu.be/vsBFfB005Qc

Character education: Books about Empathy

SRCSA’s character-education focus for December 2025 is “Empathy.” Here are books from the school library, which support the character trait of Empathy.
https://youtu.be/Q4joWWcv-0w