Welcome to another installment in our series of blog posts featuring children’s books we’re currently loving! “Book Chat with the Youth Services Team” features one book recommendation from each of our Youth Services team members. We cover a variety of books from fiction to non-fiction, picture books to chapter books, graphic novels and more! We hope that this month’s reading recommendations get you excited about some awesome new books we’ve added to our collection as well as some oldies but goodies. Enjoy!
Lisa recommends: Never Caught, The Story of Ona Judge: George and Martha Washington’s Courageous Slave Who Dared to Run Away by Kathleen Van Cleve (ages 10 to 12)
Ona Judge was a slave owned by George and Martha Washington who is known for her daring escape to freedom. Ona was never captured even with the extreme measures Washington went to for her return. This biography is a young reader’s edition of a popular adult bestselling book under the same title. It does an excellent job explaining how the Founding Fathers who owned slaves tried to justify their actions with their belief of paternalism. The authors delve into speculation regarding Ona’s feelings but make sure to acknowledge that Ona’s thoughts are mostly not known. There is only one written account of Ona’s views that was published close to Ona’s death which is included at the end of the book. A great read for Black History Month!
Beth recommends: Hello baby, it’s me, Alfie by Maggie Hutchings and Dawn Lo (ages 3 and up)
Are you getting ready to have another baby and the little one you have is getting excited or worried? This book is perfect to help show siblings how the baby is growing in size and their excitement to meet them. Alfie spends his days (and months) telling the baby how big they are getting and what he is doing to get prepared. He goes from just wondering about them as the size of a lemon seed, feeling a kick just for him, to how to help the dog when he is scared and so much more. Journey through Alfie’s feelings about being a big brother. This story provides parents a great starting point when telling their little ones that another is on the way. I love that there are more books like this to help siblings prepare for the next journey within the family.
Adriane recommends: Busted by Dan Gemeinhart (ages 8 to 12)
Oscar lives in a retirement community with his grandfather. His favorite singer is Frank Sinatra, and he attends a lot of funerals. So, when his grandfather is threatened to be kicked out of Sunny Days, he needs to find a way to keep them in their home. His way to make some money is Jimmy Deluca, one of the residents who wants Oscar to bust him out of Sunny Days. What results is an adventure unlike anything Oscar has ever experienced and maybe will open his eyes.
I enjoyed Dan Gemeinhart’s writing style. He has the ability to take unrealistic events that shouldn’t happen to a tween boy and make them fun and entertaining. The book is funny and heartbreaking all at once. Almost nothing goes as planned, but by the end, you are okay with that.
Lauren recommends: The First State of Being by Erin Kelly (ages 8 to 12)
This book is a lovely way to remember that sometimes when things seem overwhelming, you have to re-set and stay in the present or “first state of being”. The third state of being refers to the future, and sometimes, even if you know what the future holds, it doesn’t help with the present. This book centers on three main characters: Ridge, the first person ever to visit the past from the future, and the two friends he makes upon arrival, Michael and Gibby. As the story unfolds, you see how much the past has shaped the future and how much not knowing about the future affects it. One of the other main plot points of this book is Y2K, which may seem silly now, but at the time, it was a major concern for many people. Michael especially has what Ridge refers to as a “weighted mind” about it. There are many great life lessons in this book, and one of my favorites is the “imagine at least one good outcome” approach. A great book to start the new year with a positive mindset, knowing that the most important thing is to stay in the present.
Mirissa recommends: My Book of Horses and Ponies: A Fact-filled Guide to Your Equine Friends. by Dorling Kindersley Publishing Inc. (ages 5 to 9)
Even if 2026 wasn’t the Year of the Horse in the Chinese Zodiac, a book of horse breeds is required reading for Horse Girls of all genders and ages. This recent nonfiction takes interested readers through a wide selection of breeds, from Andalusians to Welsh ponies. Along the way, it shares information about herd dynamics, gaits, coat patterns, and more. As with other books from the DK publishing house, it relies just as heavily on pictures as it does on printed facts. With everything you’ll learn, it’s easy to imagine yourself strapping on a helmet and jumping right into the equestrian world. (But I have dibs on the thoroughbred, OK?)
Katie recommends: Bored by Felicita Sala (ages 4 to 8)
Rita is booooooored! She can’t think of anything to do except lay around and be bored. But after a while, her boredom starts turning into creative daydreams and she actually starts having some fun! The perfect book for a day snowed in at home.
Madison recommends: Stella by Starlight by Sharon Draper (ages 7 to 11)
Based on family stories and diaries from Sharon Draper’s grandmother, Stella by Starlight follows Stella, an eleven-year-old Black girl living in the fictional town of Bumblebee, North Carolina, in 1932. Stella has a secret- she’s not very confident in her writing- so she sneaks out at night to practice. Through her journal entries and early editions of a homemade newspaper, readers are introduced to Stella’s life during the Jim Crow era in North Carolina. Although the Ku Klux Klan makes appearances and tries to intimidate Stella and her neighbors, the story shows love and courage overcoming hate. From neighborhood dinners to the entire town coming together to put out a fire, Draper highlights the power of community and how people take care of each other, even in the hardest times. This is a story that will keep you reading until the very end! Check out Stella by Starlight, by Sharon Draper at your local Richmond Public Library Branch.
Summer recommends: Little Man, Little Man: A Story of Childhood by James Baldwin (ages 9 to 12)
2026 marks 50 years since the original publication of renowned author James Baldwin’s children’s novel, Little Man, Little Man. TJ – inspired by Baldwin’s nephew Tejan Karefa-Smart, who writes the foreword in this edition of the book – is a four-year-old boy who lives in Harlem in the 1970s. Interspersed among the paragraphs of text are the bold and colorful illustrations by French artist Yoran Cazac. TJ spends his days playing on the streets with his friends WT and Blinky. Baldwin’s writing respects the intelligence of children, as TJ can see the effects of racism, poverty, and drug use in his neighborhood. TJ’s parents tell him, “Don’t believe everything you read. You got to think about what you read […] But read everything, son, everything you can get your hands on.” Half a century later and that advice is still paramount for all children.
Rachel recommends: Will’s Race for Home by Jewell Parker Rhodes (ages 8 to 12)
The year is 1889, and Will Samuels is the first in his family to be born free. He and the rest of his family are sharecroppers—working dawn to dusk in Texas cottonfields belonging to a man who takes 70% of their profit and charges them for the seeds. It’s a suffocating life made harder for Will by the inexplicable and impassable gulf between himself and his father. But one December day, Will’s father learns about the Oklahoma Land Rush. Each family can claim up to 160 acres of land. If they can get there fast enough.
It is a long and dangerous journey to Oklahoma. The weather is brutal, the wildlife is deadly, and strangers’ intentions are hard to know. Caesar, a former Union soldier Will and his father encounter, is a rare friend. But not everyone in the South is fond of Union veterans, and even less so Black ones. The three of them dream of freedom, home, and a better life. That same dream is shared by thousands of Land Rushers; too many for everyone to achieve it. Will’s Race for Home is about family of blood and of choice, the long shadows of a past lived and inherited, and The American Dream denied so many.
Richard recommends: Nancy Drew: The Mystery at Lilac Inn by Carolyn Keene (ages 8 to 12)
I’ve continued on my search for great classic children’s book, and being a mystery fan, of course I had to do another Nancy Drew. This on is The Mystery at Lilac Inn, originally published in 1930. In it, our intrepid detective Nancy and her friend Helen visit Lilac Inn where another friend, Emily, has had some valuable heirloom diamonds stolen. Adventure ensues as Nancy uncovers a gang of jewel thieves, and as the plot thickens, leads to Nancy being trapped on a sinking boat. Will Nancy escape and trap the thieves? Read the book to find out!
Joan recommends: The Bear Went Over the Mountain by Jane Cabrera (ages 2 to 5)
In this book, author/illustrator Jane Cabrera uses the familiar children’s song as a basis for this sing-along bedtime tale about a bear and his animal friends. In this story, Hare, Fox, Wolf and Owl look in turn for one of their missing friends. Eventually the five friends make it to the other side of the mountain where they celebrate with a moonlight jamboree. The book ends with the final verse coming from a child’s point of view as he creeps over the mountain to see where all the friends could be. The illustrations show a child creeping up the “mountain” (the stairs) until he gets to “the other side of the mountain” (a cozy bed filled with stuffed animal versions of the 5 woodland friends) and those friends are “all snuggled up with me.” I appreciate that most of the text does well when sung aloud and that the illustrations are bright and colorful. However, the little twist at the end is probably my favorite part of this book. I recommend it as a read-aloud/sing-aloud for bedtime or anytime.
Well, readers, that’s a wrap! Check back again next month for some more fabulous reading recommendations. Until then, happy reading!
