Oldies and goodies

What an amazing opportunity it has been to create and share resources about books and authors since 2001. This month's Nick's Picks includes some of our favorites—and because we have so many, we're doubling the number of featured resources.

We'd love to know your favorite resources in our digital library, too. Please email them to us, and perhaps we'll create a blog post of your favorites, too!

In the meantime, happy reading, and thanks for all.

Nick Glass, TeachingBooks.net Founder & Executive Director

Behind the Books: Julius Lester on sacred places within

Back in April 2009, award-winning author Julius Lester shared his belief that it's the "writer's responsibility to create the language through which we recognize our souls."

Read Julius Lester's Guest Blog Post now.

Behind the Books: Kathi Appelt on stepparents

Back in 2015, award-winning author Kathi Appelt revealed how her grief led to stories—and more stories—which, in turn, led to her picture book When Otis Courted Mama (HMH, 2015).

Read Kathi Appelt's Guest Blog Post now.

Meet-the-Author Book Reading: Mariko Tamaki on the summer cottage

Listen to Mariko Tamaki reflect upon communities connecting during summertime at the cottage—and how her graphic novel This One Summer (First Second, 2014) was co-created.

Meet-the-Author Book Reading: Faith Ringgold on going to the beach

Listen to Faith Ringgold share about the rooftop of her childhood and how she made her picture book Tar Beach (Random House, 1991) by painting fabric that became a quilt.

Browse all TeachingBooks.net Meet-the-Author Book Readings.

Featured Booklist: Diverse summer reads

Want to expand your horizons this summer? Check out the book and author resources for this summer reading list created by "We're The People."

The featured books are written or illustrated by Native Americans or people of color, and/or have characters who are Native, people of color, people with disabilities, or LGBTQ identified.

Though not an "oldie," this list is certainly a "goodie!"

See also resources for other summer reading programs at:
https://TeachingBooks.net/SummerReading

Featured Booklist: It's a mystery

Summer is a great time for some fun, free reading with a good mystery. Enjoy the resources to go with these tried and true mystery books for all ages, as suggested by the Cooperative Children's Book Center.

Name Pronunciations: How do you say...?

Whether on vacation or the first day of school, one of the first ways we introduce ourselves is by sharing our names.

When introducing a book to young readers, it's helpful to know how to pronounce the name of the author, illustrator—or even a character in the book! Check out these useful name pronunciation resources.

Play the Name Game
How many of these 30 authors' names can you pronounce correctly?

Characters' Names
Linda Sue Park and Jacqueline Woodson may have easy names to say, but what about the names of their books' characters?

Interactive Fun
Illustrator Hervé Tullet plays with us as we practice his name. Keep trying!

Contests & Giveaways

Check out our July Contests & Giveaways, accompanied by multimedia resources!

• Silver in the Blood by Jessica Day George
• First Touch Soccer series
• Big Book of Why

See the July Contests & Giveaways on our blog.