Book Club for Kids Drops in on the State of the Union

Looking for your next favorite book? Here are some suggestions from readers at  Watkins Elementary School on Capitol Hill: Geronimo Stilton - Geronimo Stilton Athletes vs Mathletes - W.C. Mack Scare Stories to Tell in the Dark - Alvin Schwartz Guts - Raina Telgemeier Diary of a Wimpy Kid - Jeff Kinney Basil and Oregano - Melissa Capriglione  Percy Jackson - Rick Riordan Matilda - Roald Dahl Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - J.K. Rowling Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets - J.K. Rowling Flora and Ulysses - Kate DiCamillo Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul - Jeff Kinney Another Kind - Trevor Bream Last Kids on Earth - Max Brallier The Babysitters Club - Ann M. Martin Stone Fox - John Reynolds Gardiner The Day the Crayons Quit - Drew Daywalt Magic Treehouse - Mary Pope Osborne The Getaway - Jeff Kinney Ranger's Apprentice - John Flanagan Grandude's Green Submarine - Paul McCartney Wings of Fire - Tui T. Sutherland

Favorite Books from Watkins Elementary School in Washington DC

We continue our Banned Books series, airing episodes that have been banned or challenged around the country. This week, it’s Vernica Roth’s dystopian adventure Divergent. Back in 2015, Ashland High School in Oregon banned Divergent because – according to the school’s online  newspaper - the book “shows a girl fighting against society which we do not want to strengthen.” What do you think? Give a listen to our discussion of Veronica Roth’s Divergent. We venture into a dystopian universe created by writer Veronica Roth. Divergent is a tale about finding out where you fit in – and whether you’re brave enough to take a literal leap of faith. Our celebrity reader is the 2018 Ms. Senior California and a familiar voice on KUNV Rita Pardue. Our readers are from Benjamin Trasker Middle School and we taped the episode at the Bowie, Maryland branch of the Prince Georges County Memorial Library. Kitty Felde is host.

Banned Books Divergent by Veronica Roth

What are the challenges of writing in two languages? Christina Diaz Gonzalez talks about some of the pitfalls of getting the nuances right when Spanish speaking characters are from different countries.

A Conversation with Christina Diaz Gonzalez

There are some people we just don't notice. A quiet student, immigrants speaking in their own language, a homeless person living in a van - you could call them invisible. That's the name of our book Invisible by Christina Diaz Gonzalez. Students from Swanson Middle School in Arlington, Virginia discuss the bilingual graphic novel with host Kitty Felde. Our celebrity reader is Monica Sanchez. Favorite Books from Swanson Middle School: Fifth Quarter - Mike Dawson The Tryout - Christina Soontornvat  Cirque du Freak - Darren Shan Every Last Word - Tamara Ireland Stone Miss Quinces - Kat Fajardo Michael Jackson in Comics - Ceka Christina Diaz Gonzalez' Favorite Book: A Wrinkle in Time - Madeleine L'Engle Favorite Books of Monica Sanchez Harry Potter - J.K. Rowling I'll Love You Forever - Owen Hart Books by Monica Brown

Invisible by Christina Diaz Gonzalez

Who says kids who love STEM subjects aren't readers? We take to the stage for a live taping of the Book Club for Kids podcast at the 2023 LA Maker Faire/STEM Festival where host Kitty Felde asks kids our hardest question: What's your favorite book and why? Here's their answers: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone - J.K. Rowling The Magic Treehouse - Mary Pope Osborn Frog and Toad are Friends - Arnold Lobel The Golden Books - Disney Little Blue Truck - Alice Schertle Percy Jackson - Rick Riordan The One and Only Ivan - Katherine Applegate Junie B. Jones - Barbara Park Pete the Cat - James Dean and Kimberly Dean Couch Potato - Jory John They Both Die at the End - Adam Silvera A Good Girl's Guide to Murder - Holly Jackson The School for Good and Evil - Soman Chainani The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins The Inheritance Games - Jennifer Lynn Barnes Bad Kitty - Nick Bruel

Live from the 2023 LA Maker Faire and City of Stem Stage Show

Challenged Books Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell

Looking to start the New Year with some new books? Kids in LA County share their favorites with host Kitty Felde. Refugee - Alan Gratz The Secret Lives of Bees - Sue Monk Kidd Harry Potter and the Sourcerer's Stone - J.K. Rowling The Outsiders - S.E. Hinton Parrot in the Oven - Victor Martinez Enola Holmes - Nancy Springer The Mysterious Benedict Society - Trenton Lee Stewart Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan Dork Diaries - Rachel Renée Russell The Couch Potato - Jory John

The Books Kids in LA County Love

More than 100 million people have fled violence and persecution around the world. But that's just a number. Who are these refugees? Meet Omar. Readers from Dorothy Hamm Middle School in Arlington, Virginia discuss When Stars Are Scattered by Omar Mohammed and Victoria Jamieson. Our celebrity reader is Matthew Saltmarsh from the UNHCR. Kitty Felde is host.

When Stars Are Scattered by Omar Mohammed and Victoria Jamieson

We're happy to report that our most popular episode in 2023 is no mystery...actually, it IS a mystery: Varian Johnson's The Parker Inheritance. And by the way, if your school is in LA County, we'll come out and tape a Book Club for Kids episode in your classroom! Just have your teacher, parent, or librarian contact us at the website and click on the "Want to be on the show?" button.

Favorite Episode of 2023 The Parker Inheritance by Varian Johnson

How do you know which books make the best gifts? Kids in LA County share a few suggestions with host Kitty Felde. The Last Kids on Earth - Max Brallier  The Art of Seduction - Robert Greene Dogman - Dav Pilkey You Matter - Christian Robinson What the Dinosaurs Did Last Night - Refe and Susan Tuma King and Kayla and the Case of the Lost Tooth - Dori Hillestad Butler and Nancy Meyers The Hunger Games -  Suzanne Collins Amulet - Kazu Kibuishi Diary of a Wimpy Kid - Jeff Kinney Mickey Mouse - Phoenix International

Gift Suggestions from Kids in LA County

We continue to look through our many episodes of the Book Club for Kids podcast to examine the titles that have been banned or challenged. Today, we look at the 1977 Newbery Medal awarded novel by Mildred D. Taylor Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry. The book has been challenged in school districts from Burbank, California to Oviedo, Florida to Huntsville, Alabama mostly for the use of the "N" word. In Burbank, the book was removed from required reading lists, though kids can choose to read the book and it can be used in small groups after the teacher has undergone training on facilitating conversations on racism, implicit bias, and racial identity.  Mildred D. Taylor said "As a parent I understand not wanting a child to hear painful words, but as a parent I do not understand not wanting a child to learn about a history that is part of America, a history about a family representing millions of families that are strong and loving who remain united and strong, despite the obstacles they face." Here's some links to our resources:   https://www.marshall.edu/library/bannedbooks/roll-of-thunder-hear-my-cry/  https://ncac.org/update/letter-from-ncac-to-protest-the-challenging-of-roll-of-thunder-hear-my-cry  https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/books/story/2020-11-12/burbank-unified-challenges-books-including-to-kill-a-mockingbird  We turn back the clock to a difficult period of history in Jim Crow America. The book is the Newbery award winner Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by  Mildred D. Taylor. Readers from Immaculate Heart Catholic School discuss the difference between present-day Bronx and the south of the 1930's. Actress Tracy Leigh is celebrity reader. Literary historian  Dr. Dianne Johnson-Feelings of the University of South Carolina offers her perspective on the author.

Challenged Books: Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor

Writer Greg Neri talks to Kitty Felde about the role of luck and his rule of saying "yes" to new projects. 

A Conversation with G Neri

Where do gangsters come from? How can we keep kids out of gangs? Our readers from  Charles Hart Middle School in Washington, D.C. have some ideas. They discuss G Neri’s graphic novel Yummy and have a few questions for him. Celebrity reader is Ariel Richardson.     FAVORITE BOOKS FROM CHARLES HART MIDDLE SCHOOL: Demon Slayer - Natsuki Hokami One Piece - Eiichiro Oda Harry Potter - J.K. Rowling G NERI’S FAVORITE BOOK: The Phantom Tollbooth - Norton Juster ARIEL RICHARDSON’S FAVORITE BOOK: All About Love - Bell Hooks

Episode 145 Yummy by G Neri

It's the hardest question in the world: what's your favorite book? Kids from LA County schools have some answers for host Kitty Felde. The Fashion Fairies #2: Claudia the Accessories Fairy - Daisy Meadows Rascal - Sterling North Goosebumps - R.L. Stine Dog Man - Dav Pilkey Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - J.K. Rowling Wings of Fire - Tui T. Sutherland Jedi Academy - Jeffrey Brown The Mysterious Benedict Society - Trenton Lee Stewart Percy Jackson - Rick Riordan

More Favorite Books from LA County

Last year, nearly two thousand books were challenged in libraries across America. According to the American Library Association, that’s a 20 percent jump over a year ago.      We looked back at the nearly 150 episodes of the Book Club for Kids and realized how many titles have been challenged over the years. We’re going to revisit those episodes and bring them to you over the coming months, along with the reasons they have been challenged.  Our first book is James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl. According to the University of Tulsa, in 1986, a Wisconsin town banned the book after religious groups said a scene in the book where a spider licks her lips could be interpreted as sexual. A year later, the book was temporarily banned in schools after a woman complained about the depiction of tobacco and whiskey in the book. And in the early 1990’s a Texas public school system banned the book from elementary schools after the district said the use of curse words like “ass” were inappropriate. None the less, we present our podcast episode of James and the Giant Peach.         Link to Curriculum for James and the Giant Peach

Banned Books: James and the Giant Peach

Writer Claribel Ortega talks about why she loves writing fantasy. She also confesses that she's been writing about witches for a long time. Kitty Felde is host. And give a listen to our Dia de los Muertos episode of The Fina Mendoza Mysteries podcast. Here's a link to the free curriculum guide.

A Conversation with Claribel Ortega

Do witches have cliques? What happens when you're an outcast? Would you be brave enough to hunt down monsters? Students at Brookland Middle School in Washington, DC discuss Claribel Ortega's novel Witchlings. Veteran journalist Stephanie Roberts is our celebrity reader. Kitty Felde his host. Want to learn more about Dia de los Muertos? Listen to this special episode from our sister podcast THE FINA MENDOZA MYSTERIES. There is free curriculum for this episode. Favorite Books from Brookland Middle School: Judy B Jones series - Barbara Park Best Babysitters Ever - Caroline Cala Diary of a Wimpy Kid - Jeff Kinney A Wrinkle in Time - Madeleine L'Engle Claribel Ortega's Favorite Book: The Hobbit - J.R.R. Tolkien Lord of the Rings - J.R.R. Tolkien Stephanie Roberts' Favorite Book: Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day -Judith Viorst 

Witchlings by Claribel Ortega

Writer Ali Benjamin (The Thing About Jellyfish) talks about how she manages to focus and block out distractions. Kitty Felde is host.

A Conversation with Ali Benjamin

A young girl struggles to find out how her best friend died. It must be a deadly jellyfish. So she seeks out the experts. The book is The Thing by Jellyfish by Ali Benjamin. Readers from Newport Mill Middle School discuss death, "borrowing" their parents' credit card, and jellyfish. Writer Ali Benjamin talks about finding a character's voice. Legendary marathon swimmer Diana Nyad, is our celebrity reader. Kitty Felde is host.

Get Started

Download the App