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Books and Reading 

• Book Hive : http://www.plcmc.org/bookhive

The Book Hive was created by the Public Library of Charlotte-Mecklenburg County (Charlotte, NC), the Book Hive began as a readers' advisory tool. It features their librarians' reviews of children's and young adult literature, which can be accessed via thematic list or a searchable database. Young readers can submit their own comments on books as well. (The "Request an Item" feature is only for those in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg County Service Area.)

• Database of Award-Winning Children's Literature : http://www.dawcl.com

Librarian Lisa Bartle has indexed over 5,000 titles from more than 60 awards and best-of-the-year lists to create this free, searchable database, and she continues to keep it updated. Users can choose to narrow their search based on criteria such as age of reader, setting (nation or urban/rural), historical period, and ethnicity/nationality of protagonist, as well as specific award or best-of-the-year list. Keyword searching is also available.  

• Favorite Teenage Angst Books : http://www.grouchy.com/angst

While this site hasn't been regularly updated since 2002, it's still worth a visit for its fresh, thematic approach to young adult literature. Reviews are organized into categories such as "Sex and Love," "Fitting In," "Mixed-Up Families," "Journeys," "Pressure," and others. It also features author interviews.  

• FlamingNet : http://flamingnet.com/index.cfm

This not-for-profit web site run by a high school student and his dad invites reviews of books from children and teens. The young reviewers pen their responses to books ranging from old standbys to advance reader copies of books that are about to be released and have been submitted by publishers or authors for review. The site links books reviewed to amazon.com for purchase, with proceeds earned used to purchase books for libraries in need.

• Guys Read : http://www.guysread.com

Guys Read features books and ideas to promote literacy among boys (and men). It features recommended reading lists, a database searchable by author, title, and topic, links to selected authors, and more. Author Jon Sciescka is man behind the "Guys Read" idea.  

• I.N.K.  : http://inkrethink.blogspot.com

Interesting Nonfiction for Kids is a blog offering perspectives on writing--and reading--nonfiction from authors. A varied and often distinguished list of posters shares insight into their own work and responses to the work of others.  

• Just One More Book! : http://www.justonemorebook.com

Andrea Ross and Mark Blevins are passionate about children's books and share their lively appreciation in podcasts recorded three times a week at a coffee shop in Ottawa, Ontario. Their program includes book reviews, and interviews with authors and illustrators, while listeners send in their own audio reveiws to share. It's all accessible on a well-organized web site.  

• Kids' Corner at BookMuse.com  : http://www.bookmuse.com/pages/notes/kidscorner.asp

This is part of an extensive site especially designed for book groups serving all ages of readers. Recommended books are reviewed by BookMuse staff who also provide several open-ended questions as a discussion starter for each book. Children's books are arranged by age level and catgories (mysteries, realistic fiction, reluctant readers, etc). Readers are invited to recommend books for inclusion and to submit their own written reviews for featured books. An especially nice feature is "Book Group of the Month" in which selected groups are profiled so that others can read about how the group works and what books they have enjoyed discussing.  

• Mrs. Mad's Book-a-Rama :  http://www.mrsmad.com

Mrs. Mad is the nickname of a primary school teacher in England whose site shows not only her passion for good books but also her understanding of young readers. Her child-friendly reviews, for example, appear in question-and-answer format: What's it about? What happens? Is it easy to read? and they give you an opportunity to tell her what you think about the book. You can also search for books by age level and reading interests, or take a look at Mrs. Mad's own Top 50 books. In addition to her excellent literature information, she provides links to sites of interest to young readers (and their parents).  

• Notes from the Windowsill : http://www.windowsill.net

Is an online book review journal "celebrating children's books loved by adult readers." Editor Wendy E. Betts, who formerly worked on WEB: Celebrating Children's Literature, offers reviews from that journal, as well as new reviews, and news about upcoming releases, particularly reissues of old favorites.

• Overbooked : http://www.overbooked.org/index.html

This "site for ravenous readers" features bookslists by genre and theme as well as timely information on books published for young adults and adults receiving starred reviews in one or more professional review journals. Among the featured lists is "Adult Books for Teens."  

• Planet Esme : http://www.planetesme.com/fun.html

Don't let the chaotic appearance of this site keep you from spending a little time exploring its many thematic booklists (great for storytimes or classroom units) and recommended reads for children. Former teacher Esme Raji Codell also instituted the Chapman Awards for Best Classroom Read-Aloud, and features this on her site as well.

• Public Libraries  : http://www.publiclibraries.com

If you don't know or haven't thought about your public library as your first source for books, literacy resources and reading in your community, consider this your reminder. You can search for your public library on the web on your own own, or locate it through this site.

• Read On Wisconsin!  : http://readon.wisconsin.gov

Launched in September, 2004, this site is the online book club of Wisconsin First Lady Jessica Doyle. Children and teens are invited to read the featured book each month and log on to share their responses.

• Reading Rants : http://www.readingrants.org

Created by middle school librarian Jennifer Hubert, this site is comprised of annotated bibliographies on high-interest topics for teens such as weight and eating disorders, gay teens, rock bands, teen vampires, spirituality, and drugs. Even nonreaders are likely to be attracted to Jen's recommended reading lists that all have catchy titles such as "Boy Meets Book," "Reality Bites," and "Slacker Fiction," and her chatty reviews of each title make for pleasurable reading, too.  

• Science Fiction and Fantasy for Children  : http://sfbib.lib.uoguelph.ca/index.cfm?action=home

Linda Day, a librarian at the University of Guelph in Ontario, has compiled this searchable database of science fiction and fantasy book she recommends for children and teenagers. It provides detailed plot descriptions, and age and grade level recommendations. A great resource for any librarian, teacher, parent or reader looking for book suggestions, or looking to find the name of a book they can remember by plot but not title.  

• TeenReads  : http://www.teenreads.com

Part of the Book Report Network, this online forum provides teens with a place to talk about literature. The site features teen reviews of books, author profiles and interviews, an online newsletter, and a forum for responding to a question of the month relating to books.  

• Trelease-on-Reading  : http://www.trelease-on-reading.com

Read-aloud advocate Jim Trelease (author of The Read-Aloud Handbook) doesn't have the easiest site to navigate, but with a little patience you'll locate insightful and inspiring chapters from his book, as well as his essays on a variety of other topics. Click on the "Site Contents" link in lefthand column of the main page for the quickest way to navigate your way around.