Just before the Library closed to help contain the spread of the coronavirus, librarian Amy Caswell prepared a display of this year's nominees for the Indiana Early Literacy Firefly Award. This state award encourages parents, caregivers, and young children to interact together with exceptional picture books––which serve an important role in the first years of a child's life.

Due to the crisis, the Indiana Center for the Book is opening up remote voting for this award. Children ages 0–5 who live in Indiana can experience the five nominated titles through the videos below, then parents can assist them in voting for their favorite! Read more about 2020 Indiana Early Literacy Firefly Award Videos and Voting

Reviewed by Aubrey D. 

What is wet, white, cold, and soft? Snow of course! For squirrel and his friends snow is a new adventure that they can't wait to experience. Meschenmoser's sketchy illustrations are charming and his characters are endearing, a great book for sharing one on one!

Find it in the Children's Picture Book Collection!

Picture books are often children's first exposure to art. As galleries of artists' work—all within the pages of books—they reflect the vast variety of art mediums we find in museums. Some artists create with real-world materials like paint and pencils; others make collage or etchings. Some even work in virtual media like computer graphics, and, of course, some use a combination of tools and methods.

When my children were younger, I would check out piles of picture books to read with them—and for the pleasure of viewing the artwork. And even though my children have moved beyond picture books, I still enjoy opening these miniature exhibitions, browsing through old favorites or finding new artists.

In honor of National Picture Book Month this November, I recommend these resources: Read more about Picture Books: Extraordinary Art, Conveniently Portable

Nobody Likes a Goblin by Ben Hatke is a funny fantasy story that flips the classic hero dynamic on its head. Hatke tells the story of a goblin in a dungeon who enjoys a pleasant life counting treasure and spending time with the Skeleton King, when a band of ‘heroes’ barge into the dungeon, pillage his treasure and take his friend. This event sparks the goblin’s odyssey as he leaves the comfort of his dungeon to search for his friend, braving danger and fleeing pitchfork wielding farmers at every step. Eventually, the goblin ends up in a cave far from home, where he finds out that there are in fact, people who like goblins and want to help him on his quest. Read more about Nobody Likes a Goblin by Ben Hatke

The Journey by Francesca Sanna is the culmination of interviews the author collected at a refugee camp and is their combined story. This beautifully illustrated book tells the tale of one family as they are forced to flee their home and travel through forests, wade rivers, clamber over walls, and sail across the sea to find a safe place to live. The illustrations are surreal and mysterious, balancing the reader between both the real and the fantastic. While the illustrations are breathtakingly beautiful, the content is scary, inspiring, heartbreaking, and remains precipitously balanced between hope and fear. Pairing the two in this manner allows Sanna to delve into a difficult topic, without becoming too dark for the young readers it is meant to reach. Overall, Sanna offers no answers, she has merely opened a door, and leaves the floor open for conversation and imagination. Read more about The Journey by Francesca Sanna