Every month, a member of the staff at QPL share their top favorite books. This month, Carrie Hummel, Outreach Programming Specialist, is sharing her top favorite books with you!
1. The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street by Karina Yan Glaser
The Vanderbeekers captured my heart from the very first book in this multi-cultural family series. Set in Harlem, New York, yet universal and classic in tone, this series follows a family of seven and their large extended family and community through seven novels. Lovely illustrations and maps bring you into the Vanderbeekers world where you are immediately invested in the dilemmas the kids set out to solve. If you are looking for family stories full of love, adventure, cookies, and an unforgettable cast of characters this one is for you.
2. Chasing Vermeer by Blue Balliett
Mysteries, art escapades, coded messages in the illustrations, and a new character added in each book make this series my top pick for families who love mysteries, history, art, architecture, and tightly woven novels that keep you guessing until the end. Award winning author Blue Balliett wrote her first novel for her fifth-grade class as a read aloud while still working as a classroom teacher. She now writes full-time from the laundry room of the Hyde Park home she shares with her family and one cowardly cat. Start with this series and you will want to read all of her stand-alone novels as well!
3. The Aurora County Books & The Sixties Trilogy by Deborah Wiles
I love both these series for entirely different reasons! The Aurora County books follow an evolving cast of lovely big hearted eccentric characters in a fictional Mississippi town. From Love, Ruby Lavender, which is tied together with a series of letters between a granddaughter and her grandmother, to A Long Line of Cakes, which follows the Cake family as they (maybe) settle in Aurora County and open a bakery. Full of friendship, heart, baseball, and the best character names ever – Comfort, Peach, House, Leo Meyer Lemon Cake, and dogs named Dismay and Eudora Welty, this series is sure to steal your heart and make you want to inhabit Aurora County for just a little longer. Perfect for a family read aloud.
The Sixties Trilogy is the most creative historical fiction series I have ever read! Packed with photographs, newspaper clippings, transcripts, and information about three keystone events of the 1960’s and tightly bound together by a compelling narrative and a cast of characters that flow through and evolve over the three books you must see this series in print to truly understand it’s value. Recommended for older children and anyone looking to learn more about the 1960’s in America.
4. The Science Comics and History Comics Series by various authors
Do you love Science? Are you a big fan of graphic novels? History buff? These gorgeous hilarious and informative series have got you covered! From frogs to Hip Hop, the digestive system to the transcontinental railroad, these series are sure to capture or create an enthusiastic non-fiction reader in your home. Packed with well researched information and grounded in delightful and accessible narratives, readers of all ages will enjoy the science and the story and will likely want to explore the detailed graphics again and again.
5. The One Minute Workout by Martin Gibala
Grab one of the aforementioned books on audio from Libby or Boundless and get ready to do the shortest and most effective cardio workouts of your life! While I love to exercise and enjoy walking and riding my bike, I’ve never been a runner and don’t enjoy cardio, but this book changed my workouts forever! High Intensity short duration is the key to long term cardiovascular health. From elite athletes to folks in cardiac rehab who haven’t exercised in decades, world renown exercise physiologist Gibala explains the science behind why the One Minute workout is the safest, best, and most likely to be followed workout ever created. And he backs it up with easy-to-understand workouts that can be adapted to any exercise from the elliptical to the pool and even the park if you just have a couple minutes while the kids are on the swings! This book changed my life and put me in the best cardiovascular health of my life, after 40! A must read / listen for anyone looking to increase cardiovascular health and reduce their time in the gym.