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All patrons are welcomed, and encouraged (but not required) to wear face masks. Other precautions will remain in effect around library facilities, including capacity limits and physical distancing.
Looking for a good book for kids? Check out our online collection of EPL Kids booklists!
Tis the season: Support the Library!
Tuesday, February 14, 2023 | View in browser
It's our favorite time of year: the major children's literature awards have just been announced! Check out this fabulous booklist of all the 2023 Award Winners and Honor winners for kids up to 5th grade! A selection of the winners:
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Caldecott Award (Children's Picture Books) - Hot Dog by Doug Salati
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Newbery Award (Best Children's Book) - Freewater by Amina Luqman-Dawson-also the winner of the Coretta Scott King Author Award!
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Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award - Standing in the Need of Prayer: A Modern Retelling of the Classic Spiritual illustrated by Frank Morrison
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Pura Belpré Youth Author Award (Kids' Latinx Literature) - Frizzy by Claribel A. Ortega
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Pura Belpré Youth Illustrator Award - Where Wonder Grows, illustrated by Adriana M. Garcia
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Asian/Pacific American Literature Awards - Picture Book: From the Tops of the Trees by Kao Kalia Yang and Middle Grade: Maizy Chen's Last Chance by Lisa Yee
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Sidney Taylor Award (Kids' Jewish Literature) for Picture Book: The Tower of Life: How Yaffa Eliach Rebuilt Her Town in Stories and Photographs by Chana Stiefel and Middle Grade: Aviva vs. the Dybbuk, by Mari Lowe
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Stonewall Award (LGBTQIA+ Kids' Literature) - Love, Violet written by Charlotte Sullivan Wild
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Schneider Family Book Award (Kids' Disability Experience Literature) Picture Book - Listen: How Evelyn Glennie, a Deaf Girl, Changed Percussion by Shannon Stocker and Middle Grade - Wildoak by CC Harrington.
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Robert F. Sibert Award (Kids' Informational Books)- Seen and Unseen: What Dorothea Lange, Toyo Miyatake, and Ansel Adams’s Photographs Reveal About the Japanese American Incarceration, written by Elizabeth Partridge
For a full list, including awards for Middle School and Teen books like the Printz and Alex Awards, check out the ALA press release!
Speaking of reading books, a team of educational researchers from the University of Utah and Penn State University is seeking to learn more about readers' book preferences across time. This link takes you, the adults, to a short, confidential questionnaire about the types of books you liked to read in the past and those you like now. Thank you in advance for participating and completing this survey!
- Need a last minute Valentine's Day decoration even toddlers can do? Try these "stamped" hearts!
- Want an easy kid-friendly dessert for tonight using foods you have on hand? Try these Banana Boats!
- Check out our Love is All Around booklist for wonderful read aloud suggestions!
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Valentine's Day Bouquet Card Crafing! Drop in to Robert Crown to make your own Valentine card at our craft station. Tuesday, February 14, Robert Crown Branch Library: More Information.
Join us as we celebrate Black History Month:
Evanston's Black History Scavenger Hunt! This indoor mini scavenger hunt is dedicated to the Black history of Evanston. Twelve hidden pictures. One clue sheet in your hand. How many pictures can you find? How much history will you learn? Wednesday, February 1-28, Main Library and Robert Crown Branch Library: More information.
Short and Sweet: Mae Jemison Craft - Zoom, Zoom, Zoom! (ages 2-7)! Take home kits featuring a link to a storytelling video about the groundbreaking Black astronaut, and supplies to make a rocket bookmark craft. Through February 28, while supplies last, Main Library and Robert Crown Branch Library: More information.
Check out these cool booklists for your kids:
 Purple Crayon Players Storytime (ages 0-5) Northwestern University theater students plan a fun, fast paced story time for young kids, with an age-appropriate craft for parent and child to do together. Come weekly until March 17! Friday, February 17, 9:30 am, Main Children's Room, Main Library: More information.
Snowy Day Party with Imagine U Players (ages 3 an up) Bring your child to this fun storytime led by the Imagine U players from Northwestern University's Snowy Day cast and crew! Now 50 years old, Snowy Day is widely considered the first picture book to star a black child. Come hear the classic story, learn some "snow science," and play an indoor snowball game, too! Saturday, February 18, 10:30 am, Main Children's Room, Main Library: More information.
Short & Sweet Storytelling in the Art Garden - Zoom, Zoom, Zoom! We're Going to the Moon! (ages 2-7) Enjoy a special storytime in honor of Mae Jemison, the first black woman in space! We'll read a book, sing a song and make a rocket ship bookmark craft. Sunday, February 26, 2 pm, Art Garden, Main Library: More information.
Family Storytime and Craft (ages 3-7) Join us for stories, songs and a fun craft. Books appropriate for ages 3-7 but all are welcome. Wednesday, March 1, 6:00 pm, Barbara Friedberg Storytelling Room, Main Library: Register.
Jammie Time: Evening Family Fun Storytime (ages 2-6) Let us do your bedtime reading for you: visit the library in your jammies and listen to stories, sing songs, and have fun. All family members welcome; books selected for children ages 2 to 6. No registration required. Thursday, March 9, 6:30 pm, Main Children's Room, Main Library: More information.
Cardboard Carnival is Back (grades 5-8) Open to D65 students in grades 5-8, this cool contest challenges kids to create their own carnival games. Once you're registered, come to the great training classes in awesome techniques (like NeoPixel Light Strands) for your game at both library locations! Your carnival game is due Sunday, March 5, 2023. More information.
Word Rangers Writing Club (grades 3-5)! Do you like to write stories, poetry, songs, or other forms of creative writing? Come to the library to discuss writing, find new story inspiration, grow your creative writing skills, and meet others who share a passion for writing! We create a safe space to express ourselves and (if you want) share our work with others. Sunday, February 19, 2 pm, Barbara Friedberg Storytelling Room, Main Library: Register.
Ecology Center Critter Visit and Stories at the Main Children's Room! Come experience some of the Evanston Ecology Center's live animals up close at the library! We will learn about each animal, the groups they belong to, the senses that they use, and the adaptations that make them uniquely awesome! Wednesday, March 1, 1:30 pm, Community Meeting Room, Main Library: Register.
Graphic Novel Book Club for Kids (grades 3-5) This month we will be discussing Stop by the children's desk to pick up a copy to read beforehand. Saturday, March 4 , 11 am, Barbara Friedberg Storytelling Room, Main Library: Register.
Cardboard Carnival Community Showcase (All Ages) Play all the amazing games designed and built for the Cardboard Carnival Challenge! Participants will be showcasing their games and everyone can try them out. There will be a raffle, the final prizes for the challenge announced and more! Saturday, March 11, 2 pm, Fleetwood Jourdain: Register.
Get a Museum Pass! Take your kids to visit a museum, zoo, garden or other fun venue with a pass from Museum Adventure or Explore More Illinois! For Evanston Public Library patrons. One Museum Adventure Pass per family per week, More information.
 Mardi Gras is French for Fat Tuesday. Called that because it is the day before Lent when fasting begins, Mardi Gras is the chance to eat up milk, butter and eggs before Ash Wednesday, the start of Lent in some Christian churches. But everyone can celebrate Mardi Gras whether or not you will be fasting later!
- First, check our our Mardi Gras Booklist! Find picture books and middle grade novels, too, for all ages of kids to celebrate.
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Make pancakes for dinner! Pancakes are a traditional food for Mardi Gras.
- Make colorful masks together to wear while eating your dinner pancakes on Mardi Gras. If you are feeling really festive, bring some noise-makers like pots and pans and parade around the neighborhood!
 Mahashivratri, “The Great Night of Shiva” is the most significant event in India’s spiritual calendar. It is a solemn event with an introspective focus -- fasting, meditation, and an all night vigil, celebrated this year on February 18. A blessed evening to all in Evanston who observe Mahashivratri!
Shiva literally means, "that which is not," because Lord Shiva is also the Destroyer, able to destroy the evil in the world. He is part of the Hindu Trimurti (trinity) along with Brahma and Vishnu.
One food permissible to eat for those who can't keep a strict fast is fruit. Make this recipe for a delicious fruit chaat, fruit with spices. Kids can help with cutting the fruit! Kids can try out this coloring sheet of Lord Shiva, too.
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