DIY Story Time: The Letter "Z"

We made it -- it's "Z" Week! Here are a few books to celebrate this final, zany letter of the alphabet:

By Deborah Lee Rose

Baker & Taylor Publisher Services, 2021. Picture Book.

From A to Z, “you are there” NASA photos capture real women and men astronauts on the International Space Station doing all kinds of work―and having fun! Diverse astronauts from around the world include NASA’S first all-woman spacewalk team and the first African American astronaut on a 6-month mission to the space station.

With STEM-rich text and action words, ASTRONAUTS ZOOM! gives kids a space-eye view from the time astronauts awake till they’re zipped in for the night. Kids will also discover how astronauts practice on Earth, getting dressed in spacesuits and “spacewalking” in NASA’s training pool. Lots of hands-on STEAM ideas are included―like exploring science and engineering activities, making videos “from space,” even throwing a space pizza party!

--Publisher

Construction Zoo

Written by Jennifer Thorne

Illustrated by Susie Hammer

Albert Whitman & Company, 2018. Picture Book.

It's a quiet morning at the zoo, until some strange new creatures roll in―trucks and bulldozers and wrecking balls! They’re tumbling, digging, and roaring alongside the animals. Giraffe, rhino, the monkeys, and the tigers watch the new creatures and, soon, are playing with their new friends. It’s party time at the Construction Zoo! But…what happens when the construction is over? Will the party be over, too? The clever rhyming text and simple, bold art will appeal to both kids and their parents. --Publisher

Zombelina

Written by Kristyn Crow

Illustrated by Molly Idle

Walker Books for Young Readers, 2013. Picture Book.

Zombelina loves to dance. She moonwalks with mummies and boogies with bats. She spins like a specter and glides like a ghost and loves to dance for her family the most. When Zombelina enrolls in a ballet class for real girls, her dancing gives everyone the chills! But when her first recital brings on a case of stage fright, her zombie moans and ghoulish groans scare her audience away. Only her devoted family's cheers, in their special spooky way, help Zombelina dance the ballet debut of her dreams.

Introducing the most adorable zombie to ever grace the dance floor, Kristyn Crow's pitch-perfect rhyme and Molly Idle's charmingly spook-tacular illustrations will make every reader want to sway and sashay in their own zombie trance. --Publisher

Dude, That's Rude! (Get Some Manners) by Pamela Espeland & Elizabeth Verdick

If there's one book today's kids need to read, it is Dude, That's Rude! (Get Some Manners) . The authors provide a fun format for teaching etiquette to children. They discuss proper behavior at home, at school, at other people's homes and in public places. The information is completely up-to-date with cellphone manners and netiquette included. Fun, cartoony illustrations are on practically every page giving the book great visual appeal. This book is perfect for boys and girls in the fourth grade or older. WARNING: Bodily functions are discussed.

Faces of the Moon by Bob Crelin

Faces of the Moon by Bob Crelin Illustrated by Leslie Evans Charlesburg; 2009; unpaged Faces of the Moon is a short nonfiction book that describes the different phases of the moon and why the moon appears like it does on certain nights. This book is short and sweet so even the youngest of moon lovers will enjoy it. The layout is simplistic and easy to follow. I don’t know much about the moon so I found it very interesting.

Review: The Factory

The Factory By Catherine Egan New York, NY : Scholastic Inc., 2025. Fiction. 306 pages. Thirteen-year-old Asher Doyle has been invited to join the Factory, a secretive research facility in the desert which ostensibly extracts renewable energy from the electromagnetic fields of its young recruits. But Asher soon realizes something sinister is going on. Kids are getting sick. The adults who run the Factory seem to be keeping secrets. And the extraction process is not only painful and exhausting, but existentially troubling. Asher makes a handful of new friends who help him with an investigation that turns into a resistance, which turns into...a cliffhanger! The Factory is a page-turning sci-fi with multidimensional characters, an intriguing plot, and refreshingly straight-forward writing. Egan weaves in detail about climate crises and social unrest, making the story's dystopian setting feel rich and plausible. With its sophisticated themes and accessible storytelling, I would recomm...

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