By Kitty Felde I was at a surprise birthday party last weekend for a friend and found myself sitting next to a 12-year-old who wasn’t a big fan of reading. He couldn’t remember the last book he read. I was determined to find something he’d love. By the time the […]
Young Readers: Cliffhangers
by Kitty Felde It’s a gimmick as old as Scheherazade: leave your audience desperate to know what happens next. You know the tale of the beautiful Scheherazade. She married a Sultan who killed off his brides the day after the wedding. Clever girl, she brought her sister along with her […]
RhinoRAM: Children’s Cybersecurity Book Authored by SW Resident
By Southwester Staff The Southwester is proud to highlight artists, writers, and creators that live in the neighborhood and make our vibrant DC quadrant what it is. In this issue, we highlight Southwest resident Adom M. Cooper and congratulate him for the December 2023 publishing of a children’s cybersecurity book […]
Young Readers: Kids Can’t Keep their Hands Off these Giftable Books
By Kitty Felde Kids are reading less. A lot less. Just one in three children read every day for pleasure. According to the National Literacy Trust, daily reading by kids between ages eight and 18 has dropped 26 percent over the past two decades. Librarian Rebecca Opalka says she’s been […]
Young Readers Book Review: Black Was The Ink
By Paula Young Shelton This historical fiction young adult novel takes the reader on an adventure through time and America’s political history. Centered on a young African American teen from Washington, DC, Black Was The Ink leads Malcolm on an exploration of himself, his family, and the forgotten history of […]
Young Readers: More Binge, Less Complaints
By Kitty Felde “It’s not that kids don’t like to read. It’s that they don’t like feeling like they’re forced to read.” That’s Eric Berman’s mantra. Berman is Teen Services Coordinator for the Alameda County Library in California. He says the key is getting reluctant readers hooked on something. Anything works, he […]
Young Readers: Falling in Love Again: Top Five Questions to Ask a Kid About Reading
By Kitty Felde Perhaps I’m still thinking about Valentine’s Day, wondering about how we fall in love with another person. What is it about them that makes them irresistible? A much tougher question is: how do we get a kid to fall in love with reading? It’s hard enough to […]