First Day of Unicorn School by Jess Hernandez and Mariano Epelbaum

First Day of Unicorn School by Jess Hernandez and Mariano Epelbaum will be published in January of 2021. I was lucky to receive an ARC from the author, but this book is available for ordering right now. I taught with Jess at a middle school, and her sense of humor shines through in her debut book. 

This is the story of Milly the donkey who gets accepted to unicorn school, but since she isn't a unicorn, she wears a party hat and masquerades as one. She meets all the other unicorns when she is distracted and bumps into one and then stumbles into the others. What she doesn't realize until later is that none of the other animals are unicorns either. 

I like that this story shows the importance of being your true self and that often we all feel like we are suffering from imposter syndrome. This would be a fun story to read to young children in pre-school or elementary school and have them create their own unicorn disguises. They could also find the similarities they share with each other. 

Mariano Epelbaum created the cute and brightly colored art for this book that is fitting for unicorns. 

Read to a child today even if that child is you. 

Link to our NICU book registry to donate books to babies in the newborn intensive care unit so their parents can read to them while they grow. You can also donate gently used books to our project by sending them to me or to Angie. Email me for a mailing address. We can use both English and Spanish books. If you have a graduate of the NICU, or if you have a baby whose life you would like to honor by donating books to this project, let me know, and I can make a book plate with their name for the books you donate.

Red Kayak by Priscilla Cummings

 Red Kayak by Priscilla Cummings was published in 2004 and is the first book of a three book companion set. I read the second book, The Journey Back, several years ago, so when I spotted Red Kayak in a little free library, I scooped it up. 

Brady Parks, the main character, is hailed as hero when he rescues a small boy from the waters of the Chesapeake Bay, but he makes a discovery that puts all that he did in question. 

Brady and his friends, Digger and J.T. are close, but their friendship may not survive the poor choices that are made. Brady keeps his discovery a secret, but he must choose between what he knows is right and his friends. 

This story shows how important it is not act on impulse, but to think things through, take a breath, even when anger takes control. The consequences of rash actions can often haunt us and others for a lifetime. 

The Cope Family, who had twins in our NICU, sent this selection of quality books for the babies at our hospital. Thank you so very much!

Link to our NICU book registry to donate books to babies in the newborn intensive care unit so their parents can read to them while they grow. You can also donate gently used books to our project by sending them to me or to Angie. Email me for a mailing address. We can use both English and Spanish books. If you have a graduate of the NICU, or if you have a baby whose life you would like to honor by donating books to this project, let me know, and I can make a book plate with their name for the books you donate.

Read to a child today even if that child is you. 

Genesis Begins Again by Alicia D. Williams

Genesis Begins Again by Alicia D. Williams was published in 2019 and won a Newbery Honor medal, the Coretta Scott King Award, and was a finalist for the William C Morris Debut Award. 

Genesis, the main character of this story, deals with poverty and housing instability because of her father's gambling and alcohol addictions. Genesis loves her parents and they love her and each other, but life with an addict is hard.

Genesis's grandmother is willing to help Genesis and her mother, but her help comes at a cost. Grandma is a multi-generational victim and perpetrator of colorism. Genesis, like her father, has very dark skin - even her gums are dark. She doesn't like herself and has a list of the reasons she dislikes herself - being too black is only one of the items on her list. 

I enjoyed this well-written story of a young girl trying to fit in a society that doesn't always appreciate her gifts. The author dealt realistically with the father's addictions, issues of poverty, relationships, and the struggle to fit in. 

My daughter, Caitie Jolley, donated these books to our NICU book project. If you haven't read these books, they are incredibly fun to read to a little one. Thank you, Caitie. 

Link to our NICU book registry to donate books to babies in the newborn intensive care unit so their parents can read to them while they grow. You can also donate gently used books to our project by sending them to me or to Angie. Email me for a mailing address. We can use both English and Spanish books. If you have a graduate of the NICU, or if you have a baby whose life you would like to honor by donating books to this project, let me know, and I can make a book plate with their name for the books you donate.

Read to a child today even if that child is you.