Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh

So far, not much about 2020 has been predictable. And much of it has been unsettling at best. But one thing that we can count on is that babies keep being born and, even in these extraordinary circumstances, they need the same things: love, nurturing, encouragement—and books! Educators, child development experts, and librarians all agree that reading aloud to babies helps prepare them for later…

Talking with children, preschoolers, teens or in between, about current events can be challenging in the best of times. When illness, inequity, violence and hate surround us, it can be an overwhelming prospect. Here are some books that we think offer a good place to start the conversation.

As librarians, we mostly believe that almost any problem can be solved—or at least better understood—through reading. The current pandemic is testing that belief (along with lots of others), but we are still searching for and sharing good resources as much as possible. If you also turn to books to help make sense of the world and you are trying to figure out how to explain the new reality to your kids, consider sharing some of these very recently published online titles with the children in your lives.

If your family likes listening to books together, check out the list of kids’ audiobooks we’ve put together on OverDrive. There are books intended for a variety of ages and even grown-ups will likely find something to enjoy and/or ponder.

The Best Books for Babies list has been created annually since 2000 by a committee of local librarians, child development experts, and community members. Check out this year's Best Books for Babies list, and start reading today!

Banned Books Week is an annual celebration of the freedom to read. Censorship is a serious concern for many people and according to statistics from 2016 it may be on the rise. So how can I suggest that the occasional challenges that Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh receives from our users are not actually a bad thing? Because in most cases these requests are related to…

Research shows that sharing picture books with young children encourages the development of early literacy and language skills.

Libraries aren’t just buildings full of books. They’re also places where connections are made and ideas are shared. Read about one such experience in the first person account below by our guest blogger Dutian, a volunteer and enthusiastic promoter of cross-cultural understanding.