March is National Reading Month
Celebrate with Books from Your Yorktown Public Library
March is National Reading Month, a time to honor Dr. Seuss, one of the most beloved children's authors. His birthday, March 2nd, marks the beginning of Read Across America, an initiative launched in 1998 by the National Education Association (NEA) to encourage reading among young learners.
The stories Dr. Seuss wrote have certainly inspired young ones to pursue reading for generations. Your Yorktown Public Library has many of the beloved children’s writer’s books in the collection. View the catalog for these materials.
While Dr. Seuss has unquestionably encouraged children to read since the day of his first published book in 1937, he has simultaneously been credited by many authors as a force that ignited their interest in both reading and writing books.
Read on to discover some of the authors who list Dr. Seuss as their inspiration.
In the Children’s Collection
Doll Bones by Holly Black
Zach, Alice, and Poppy, friends from a Pennsylvania middle school who have long enjoyed acting out imaginary adventures with dolls and action figures, embark on a real-life quest to Ohio to bury a doll made from the ashes of a dead girl.
Would I Trade my Parents by Laura Joffe Numeroff
In the newest picture book by New York Times #1 bestselling author Laura Numeroff, a little boy ponders why his friends' parents are so special and why sometimes he wishes he could trade . . . But then he remembers his very own parents and all the amazing things that only they know how to do--like the way they always read with him or leave notes in his lunch box or take him on family bike rides. In fact, his parents are the best of all!
The Right Word: Roget and his Thesaurus by Jennifer Bryant
The Right Word is an inviting, visually engrossing portrayal of Peter Mark Roget and the creation of the thesaurus. Jen Bryant's lyrical text and brilliantly detailed mixed media illustrations from Caldecott Honor-winning artist Melissa Sweet celebrate the joy of learning and the power of words.
Clifford’s Funny Adventures by Norman Bridwell
Read about Clifford, the big red dog, as he grows from a puppy into a huge house-sized dog and how his size proves to be a problem when he tries to help, until one day a young girl tries to walk along the railing of a bridge.
Heart of the Moors by Holly Black
From New York Times bestselling author Holly Black comes a captivating original novel set between Disney's Maleficent and Maleficent: Mistress of Evil, in which newly-queened Aurora struggles to be the best leader to both the humans and Fair Folk under her reign; her beau, Prince Phillip, longs to get to know Aurora and her kingdom better; and Maleficent has trouble letting go of the past.
Beatrice Doesn’t Want To by Laura Joffe Numeroff
Beatrice doesn't like books or reading -- and she especially doesn't like accompanying big brother Henry to the library three days in a row. But that's where he has to take her while he works on his dinosaur report. Naturally, Beatrice doesn't want to get books from the shelf. Beatrice doesn't want to let Henry work. And Beatrice certainly doesn't want to sit in a room full of boys and girls during story hour. Is there anything that could possibly change her mind? Meet Beatrice, a little girl who knows exactly what she doesn't want. Or does she?
Are You Ready to Play Outside? by Mo Willems
Gerald and Piggie are best friends. Piggie can't wait to go play in the sunshine. But will a rainy day ruin all the fun?
Look at Me: A Book about Differences by Allia Zobel Nolan
Is it better to be big or small, striped or spotted, with fins or wings? Zany animals with funny googly eyes invite readers to celebrate their special qualities and differences. Little ones won't be able to resist picking this book up to give the fun plastic peepers a shake.
In the Young Adult Collection
The Cruel Prince (Folk of the Air #1) by Holly Black
Jude was seven years old when her parents were murdered and she and her two sisters were stolen away to live in the treacherous High Court of Faerie. Ten years later, Jude wants to belong there, despite her mortality. But many of the fey despise humans. Especially Prince Cardan, the youngest and wickedest son of the High King. To win a place at the Court, she must defy him--and face the consequences. In doing so, she becomes embroiled in palace intrigues and deceptions, discovering her own capacity for bloodshed. As civil war threatens, Jude will need to risk her life in a dangerous alliance to save her sisters, and Faerie itself.
BONUS: This material is also available as an audio book and an eBook.
In the Adult Collection
Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders
On February 22, 1862, two days after his death, Willie Lincoln was laid to rest in a marble crypt in a Georgetown cemetery. That very night, shattered by grief, Abraham Lincoln arrives at the cemetery under cover of darkness and visits the crypt, alone, to spend time with his son's body. Willie finds himself in a strange purgatory-- the bardo-- where ghosts enact bizarre acts of penance ... and where a struggle erupts over his soul.
BONUS: This material is also available as an audio book.
On the Libby App
Toasty by Sarah Hwang (eBook)
Toasty loves dogs—so much so that he'd like to be one. He knows there are some differences—most dogs have four legs, but Toasty has two arms and two legs. Some dogs sleep in dog houses, but Toasty sleeps in a toaster. All dogs have hair and fur, but Toasty has neither because he's made of bread. In spite of these differences, he decides to go to the park to play with the dogs but runs into trouble when they want to eat him. Lucky for Toasty, he is rescued by a little girl who has always wanted a dog but can't have one because she is allergic. Toasty is the perfect dog for her. Sarah Hwang's inspiration for Toasty came from her childhood experience as an immigrant and her discovery that you find your best friends when you're willing to just be yourself.
The 10th of December by George Saunders (eBook)
Writing brilliantly and profoundly about class, sex, love, loss, work, despair, and war, Saunders cuts to the core of the contemporary experience. These stories take on the big questions and explore the fault lines of our own morality, delving into the questions of what makes us good and what makes us human.
Everything is Connected by Jason Gruhl (eBook)
Playful illustrations and funny, rhyming text show readers all of the many ways we are linked to every big, small, hairy, slimy, snuggly, scaly, floppy, flappy, bristly, buzzy, beautiful creature on Earth.
To learn more about the man who was the inspiration to the above-mentioned authors, check out the following Dr. Seuss material:
Who Was Dr. Seuss by Janet B. Pascal
An illustrated biography of Theodor Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, describing his childhood, his literary accomplishments, and related topics.
BONUS: This material is also available as an eBook and an audio book
Dr. Seuss: The Great Doodler by Kate Klimo (eBook)
Follow Dr. Seuss’ career as an ad man, political cartoonist, creator of forty-five indelible children’s books, and Pulitzer Prize winner. Not bad for a lifelong doodler! This book includes fun facts and several of Dr. Seuss’s original sketches and artwork!
Dr. Seuss by Stuart P. Levine
This biography of the famous author of children's books Includes bibliographical references and index.
The Boy on Fairfield Street: How Ted Geisel Grew Up to Become Dr. Seuss by Kathleen Krull
Award-winning author Kathleen Krull zeros in on the formative first 22 years of the life of Ted Geisel. This is the first picture book biography of Dr. Seuss, written especially for his young fans who want to know what made him tick. The animals in the zoo that his father ran and his fondness for drawing them, the injustices he suffered as the child of German immigrants, and his inherent sense of humor all fed into the imagination of this boy. He was a square peg in a round hole until he found that he could make a living doing exactly what he pleased—doodling and writing funny things about the world as he saw it.
BONUS: This material is available as an eBook.
As we celebrate reading and inspiration, I ask that you ponder this:
Is it the silly shapes and the play on words?
Is it the rolling rhymes or the rainbow birds?
Was it the fantastical lands? Give me a clue.
Wonder how Dr. Seuss has inspired YOU?