When the sun sets, Dad's job as a school custodian is just beginning. What is it like to work on a Friday night while the rest of the city is asleep? There's the smell of lilacs in the night air, the dusky highway in the moonlight, and glimpses of shy nighttime animals to make the dark magical. Shooting baskets in the half-lit gym, sweeping the stage with the game on the radio, and reading out loud to his father in the library all help the boy's time pass quickly. But what makes the night really special is being with Dad. Newbery Medalist Karen Hesse's quietly powerful story of a boy and his father is tenderly brought to life by G. Brian Karas in this luminous tribute to an enduring, everyday sort of love.
Bookworm for Kids
Bookworm for Kids presents books for toddlers to teens and everything in between: board books, picture books, chapter books, middle grade reads, tween reads, and young adult literature.
Saturday, October 18, 2025
Night Job by Karen Hesse
When the sun sets, Dad's job as a school custodian is just beginning. What is it like to work on a Friday night while the rest of the city is asleep? There's the smell of lilacs in the night air, the dusky highway in the moonlight, and glimpses of shy nighttime animals to make the dark magical. Shooting baskets in the half-lit gym, sweeping the stage with the game on the radio, and reading out loud to his father in the library all help the boy's time pass quickly. But what makes the night really special is being with Dad. Newbery Medalist Karen Hesse's quietly powerful story of a boy and his father is tenderly brought to life by G. Brian Karas in this luminous tribute to an enduring, everyday sort of love.
Friday, October 17, 2025
The Book of Frights for Spooky Nights by Leisa Stewart-Sharpe
Open The Book of Frights for Spooky Nights—if you dare—and encounter the world's most haunted places in the journal of a long-lost Ghost Hunter.
Ghosts and ghouls, crypts and cryptids await you in The Book of Frights for Spooky Nights, the illustrated notes of a long-gone Ghost Hunter—a guru from beyond the grave who explored the world's scariest places.
As you flick through the Ghost Hunter's chilling firsthand narrative, you'll experience running from the headsman's axe in the Tower of London, seeking out the seasick spirits aboard the Queen Mary in California, and escaping the pharaoh's wrath in the Valley of the Kings, with this frighteningly factual compendium of spooky sites from around the globe. For each haunted locale, you'll first read the research of the ghost hunter, learning all about the real history and beliefs behind the creepy goings-on. Then, you're put in the middle of the action as you read their account of visiting each place in an attempt to finally complete the Book of Frights, and end its curse for good... From treading the storied cemeteries of Edinburgh to dodging the Headless Horseman in Connecticut, these are adventures you wouldn't want to go on alone!
As well as the featured locations, scattered throughout the book are many more secrets and facts to uncover in the bitesize tales of the Ghost Hunter's travels to farflung places, grouping together spooky castles, eerie countryside, forests of fear, and even whole islands said to be haunted.
With hauntingly beautiful illustrations and a thrilling fact-or-fiction, book-within-a-book narrative, The Book of Frights for Spooky Nights is best read by the flickering light of a campfire, or a flashlight way past bedtime...
Thursday, October 16, 2025
In the Witch's House by Amy Houts
Picture Book
When a curious child steps inside, cobwebs swish, bones clatter, and mysterious sights await. Not everything is as it seems. With lyrical language, gentle suspense, and a cozy twist ending, This read-aloud favorite offers just the right mix of spooky and sweet. Perfect for autumn storytimes, family bedtime reading, or classroom fun,
In the Witch's House invites young readers into a not-so-scary tale where imagination takes center stage. Ideal for ages 5+, clean content, and full of magical charm without fear or fright.
Berna Datema is a Dutch children’s book author and illustrator. Born in Alkmaar, the Netherlands, she studied to become an art teacher in Amsterdam and went on to attend the Vogue Academy of Fashion Design. She worked as fashion designer for children’s clothes, specialized in prints and repeat pattern design. Berna’s first children’s book series, which featured a family of meerkats, were illustrated in watercolor and ink and published by C. de Vries-Brouwers in Antwerp. Along with writing and illustrating,
Berna designed digital materials for scrapbooking, working for international websites and shops. Berna took part in several inspiring courses by platforms Domestika, Lilla Rogers, and Skillshare, such as Editorial Illustrating and Illustrating for Children’s Books. Berna is member of childrensillustrators.com and SCBWI. Visit her website: https://www.bernadatema.com
Wednesday, October 15, 2025
Raven Saga, Vol. 1 by Chihiro Howe
Wen lives in a land of fairy tales and has never seen the world outside of her home. The house where she and her grandmother, Clarimonde, reside is protected and secluded by a magical barrier. Wen dreams of exploring the world and seeing the ocean one day, yet her grandmother insists that she stay inside their little bubble where the seasons never change.
When a peculiar boy with a band of ravens begins capturing magic users across the kingdom, she must uncover the secrets held within the woods before the world is robbed of its happily ever after.
One day, a mysterious prince passes out just outside the barrier and Wen crosses over to help him. In the confusion outside the protective circle, the boy and his flock of ravens descend and abduct Wen’s grandmother. Wen decides to travel with her newfound friend, Prince Corliss, and his trusty sidekick Theo the swallow, on a quest to save Clarimonde.
On her journey, Wen discovers that the outside world isn’t as magical as she once thought, and danger lurks around every corner. But with the help of her friends, she will do her best to unravel the mystery of the boy with the ravens, and more importantly, the mystery of her own past.
This volume collects episodes 1 to 17 of the enchanting WEBTOON comic Raven Saga.
Tuesday, October 14, 2025
Happy Book Birthday, Leaf Town Forever by Kathleen Rooney and Beth Rooney!
Based on a true story, Leaf Town Forever is the gentle tale of a town created by children with vivid imaginations. The timeless and universal saga, written in haiku, reminds both kids and adults that some dreams are worth protecting. Unfurling over the cycle of seasons, this is the story of an enchanting place full of tenacity and hope, creativity and fun—a connection to the natural world within reach for us all if we unite to make and maintain it.