Provo Library Children's Book Blog

  50 States of Love By Anna Aronson Beverly, MA: Frances Lincoln Children's Books, 2025. Picture Book. This picture book is a great tribute to the fabulous land and people of America. Each of the fifty states is represented, in alphabetical order. The layout of each page features beautiful illustrations as well as a short snippet about the state. Kids who are learning about the states, or learning about geography, or learning about the alphabet could all appreciate this book. I love books that help me travel to places I have never been. Obviously, with just a tiny summary of each state, we aren't learn everything there is possible to know, but this book does a great job sparking curiosity! I found the artwork to be very inspiring, and I think it will have a lot of kids flipping to different states just to see how they are represented here. It could also lead to great conversations about what a child would have included instead, if they were the author.

The Strongest Heart By Saadia Faruqi New York: Quill Tree Books, 2025. Fiction. 370 pages.   13-year-old Mohammed Mirza, called Mo, has a lot of practice acting like he doesn't care. It's easier than admitting that he's bothered by the hard things in his life. Like his scientist mother who left her family behind to work in a refugee camp in Greece. Or his father who struggles with untreated paranoid schizophrenia. Or Abba and Mo's recent move from New York City to Houston, Texas to live with Abba's widowed sister and her 13-year-old son Rayyan -- who is still processing his grief and trauma after the murder of his father. Mo finds escape and comfort in South Asian folktales, boxing, and art. As Mo starts to spend more time with caring adults who take an interest in him, he starts to open up and let people in -- everyone except for his monstrous Abbu. This character driven novel is layered and complex and, understandably, emotional. The portrayal of a parent with a s...