Women of Action!
I was thrilled when I was asked to compile a list of movies featuring strong female characters. I love movies featuring women who can take control of an uncontrollable situation and get the job done. Whether it's Sarah Connors saving the fate of mankind in T2 (1991) or Annie making sure the bus never drops under 50 mph in Speed (1994), I love movies that feature strong, uncompromising female leads.
Are your kids history buffs? Maybe, maybe not. For me there's so much to delve into that I could spend unreasonable amounts of time on it. Believe me, I've spent many hours in cemeteries and archives soaking up all that info! Much more than just dates in a textbook, history is made up of family dramas, battles and wars, advancements in science, math, philosophy, etc. I think there's a lot to learn from, but also to appreciate. Now, if your kiddos are into personal stories of individuals throughout history (as the popularity of Hamilton seems to attest to), there are certainly some budding historians among the newest generations. Maybe it's that they love George Washington as much as I do or anything on Madame C.J. Walker is automatically added to the "want-to-read"shelf. Clearly there are a few people throughout history who really pique our interests.
During the quarantine last year I took the time at home to practice my sewing and stitch one a bunch of band patches to my denim jackets and decided to make it into one of our library guides when I got back, showing how to make your own battle jacket and I even complied some lists of heavy metal and punk inclined reading for our youth, young adult and adult collections (you can find the full guide here). Below I've curated some of my favorite family friendly titles to share with your children to introduce them to some of your favorite genres and artists...though I must admit I am a bit partial to punk and metal:
Picture Books
Who Exactly is The Sandman? - A Brief History
The upcoming series "The Sandman" is based on the series of comics written by acclaimed writer Neil Gaiman, though his incarnation of the Sandman character wasn't the first.
Golden/Silver Age Sandman
I didn't know Random Acts of Kindness Day, which happens on February 17 this year, even existed until very recently. Of course, I know there are people who choose to be kind every day, but I had no idea it was an official day! So I found out more. As any modern person does, I searched online. Discovering the Random Acts of Kindness Foundation was pretty exciting for me! On their website, the Foundation shares tons of resources including real-life stories, downloadable materials, and many celebrations of kindness you can see and do in every day life. This got me thinking of the types of stories and inspirations we at the library have to offer for Random Act of Kindness Day. Of course, the library has many materials to choose from. However, I am including in this particular blog only children's nonfiction books.
